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Abbey-cwm-hir, St. Mary. The present church was built with stone from the abbey. © Eirian Evans. Another view, interior view, and the remains of the old church, all © John Bowdler. Link.
Aberedw, St. Cewydd. SO 0803 4731. From an old postcard in Reg Dosell's Collection. A modern view, the porch, and an inscribed gravestone (inscribed with, Paul tells me, "IH 1604"), all © Paul Wood (2015). Link.
Abergwesyn, Pantycelyn Baptist Chapel. SN 893 537. © Simon Atkin. Hereabouts once stood St. David's Church. All that remains today is a graveyard with some ancient yews, and a fine Celtic cross. SN 8525 5260. Both © Paul Wood (2015). Last used for worship in 1865, its date of demolition is not so far apparent, though it was still standing "c. 1950" when this Francis Frith photo was taken. The Coflein entry includes an old photo, and says that in 1977, some low walls of the church were still visible, but Paul couldn't locate any.
Abertridwr, Sardis Chapel (1821 - date-stone). SJ 034 188. Both © Dennis Harper (2014). Link.
Battle, St. Cynog (CoW). SO 008 309. © Simon Atkin. Another view, © Paul Wood (2017). Link.
Beguildy, St. Michael and All Angels. Interior view. An ancient chest. All © John Bowdler. Link.
Berriew, St. Beuno. SJ 1878 0082. © Eirian Evans. Interior view, © Tim Hollinghurst. An old postcard view, from Reg Dosell's Collection. Another view, showing the churchyard gate. © Ellie Thomas (2010). Two additional views - 1, 2, both © Paul Wood (2016). Link.
Beulah, Eglwys Oen Duw (Church of the Lamb of God, 1867). Two interior views - 1, 2. SN 9133 5211. All © Mike Berrell (2013). Another view, © Paul Wood (2017). Link1. Link2.
Bleddfa, St. Mary Magdalene (CiW). Roof timbers. SO 206 683. Both © Ken Taylor. Two interior views - 1, 2, both © Mike Berrell (2011). A Tin Tabernacle - Zion Baptist Chapel. © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Bronllys, St. Mary (CiW). Link. Bethel Presbyterian Chapel (1929), and the preceding building. All © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Bryngwyn, St. Michael (CiW). SO 1866 4948. © Gerard Charmley (2011). Two additional views - 1, 2, both © Paul Wood (2016).
Bwlch-y-Sarnau, Baptist Chapel (1900). © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Capel-y-Ffin, the tiny St. Mary (1762). Interior view. Baptist Chapel. All © Gerard Charmley (2010). Link (for both churches). The former Monastery, founded by Father Ignatius. Another view, and the church, which is in ruins, though only 100 years old or so. Wikipedia says it was badly-built. All © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Carno, St. John the Baptist. © Mark Summers. Link.
Cascob, St. Michael and All Angels (CIW). SO 239 664. © Richard Roberts (2014). Link.
Cefnllys, St. Michael. SO 085 615. © Bruce Read. An old postcard view, from Steve Bulman's Collection. Cefnllys (or Cefn-Llys) is a deserted village east of Llandrindod Wells. Another view, and an interior view, both © John Bowdler. Link.
Churchstoke, St. Nicholas. The porch. Both © John Bowdler. Three interior views - 1, 2, 3, and the pulpit, all © John Bowdler (2010). Link. Methodist Church (1879). SO 2686 9407. © Steve Bulman (2018). Link.
Clyro, St. Michael and All Angels. Interior view. Francis Kilvert was curate here. Link. The former Congregational Chapel. All © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Coedway, St. Andrew (Presbyterian). SJ 340 148. © Les Needham (2011).
Cornhill, the former Primitive Methodist Chapel (1864). © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Crewgreen, the former Bethel Primitive Methodist Chapel (1875), currently undergoing conversion. SJ 321 151. © Les Needham (2011).
Crickadarn, St. Mary (CoW). SO 089 423. © Simon Atkin. Link.
Crickhowell, St. Edmund. From an old undated postcard, collection of Mrs. Marion Allen. A very similar postcard view, but in B&W, from Reg Dosell's Collection. Link. Betharaba Baptist Chapel (1840), and Danycastell Presbyterian Church (1805), both © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Crossgates, St. Padarn. © Dorothy Turley.
Cwmbach Llechryd, St. John the Divine. SO 028 521. © Bryan Price. Link.
Defynnog, St. Cynog. Another view, and another taken during the restoration of 2010. The early font, and the "foliated cross". All © Richard Camp. Link.
Discoed, St. Michael. © Tim Hollinghurst. Link.
Disserth, St. Cewydd (CiW). Timber roof construction detail - "scissor beams". Interior view. SO 035 583. All © Simon Atkin. Another view, and two interior views - 1, 2, all © John Bowdler. Link.
Dolau, St. Michael. Interior view. SO 150 667. Both © Ken Taylor. Baptist Church. © Bruce Read.
Dolfor, St. Paul. SO 106 871. © Eirian Evans. Another view. Interior view. Both © Mike Berrell. Free Church (re-built 1987, original building 1923). SO 107 870. © Mike Berrell.
Dolley Green, Ackhill Baptist Church (1930). Another view. SO 284 655. Both © Steve Bulman (2014). Link.
Dolyhir, a tin tabernacle, which looks abandoned. Can you advise the denomination? © Gerard Charmley (2011). Mike Berrell's researches have revealed that this was never a church, being (possibly among others) a reading room, mens' club, and a football changing room.
Evenjobb, St. Peter. Interior view. Bethel Baptist Chapel. All © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Forden, Ebenezer Congregational Church. SO 566 822. © Chris Kippin. Link.
Four Crosses, former chapel, now in secular use. SJ 269 186. © Mike Berrell (2010). Another view, and the dates of building and re-building (1823 and 1854) on the doorway, both © Dennis Harper (2014).
Garth, Olewydd Congregational Chapel. SN 964 501. © Mike Berrell.
Gaufron, Baptist Church. SN 999 679. © Bruce Read.
Gladestry, St. Mary. Interior view. Link. The former Zion Chapel, now a private residence. All © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Glascwm, St. David. Interior view. Both © Tim Hollinghurst.
Gravel, Baptist Chapel. © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Guilsfield, St. Aelhaiarn. © Tim Hollinghurst. Link.
Gwenddwr, St. Dubricius. SO 065 433. © Simon Atkin. Link.
Heartsease, Presbyterian Chapel. The sign below the apex has dates 1842 and 1902. © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Howey, St. David. Another view. Both © John Bowdler. Providence Baptist Chapel (1853) on Chapel Road. SO 056 588. © Richard Roberts (2016).
Hyssington, St. Etheldreda. Two further views - 1, 2. Two interior views - 1, 2, the font, altar, and pulpit. Hyssington Methodist Church, originally Primitive Methodist. The roundel below the roof apex has an inscription, and a barely readable date, which may be 1889. All © John Bowdler (2010).
Kerry, St. Michael and All Angels. Another view. Interior view, and the altar. Link. Baptist Chapel. Another building, now a private residence, appear to be a former chapel. Two views - 1, 2. Janet Gimber advises that this is the former St. Michael and St. Brendan (R.C.), which was built as a Reading Room and Community Centre in 1856. It closed ca. 1980. Link (which also has some information on the Parish Church). All © John Bowdler.
Leighton, Holy Trinity. © Chris Emms (2009). Link.
Libanus, St. John. © Eirian Evans. Ebenezer U.R.C. (1973) was built on the site of an earlier building. © Gerard Charmley (2010).
Llanafan Fawr, St. Afan. The burial place of St. Afan, and an ancient site, said to date from A.D. 409. SN 969 558. © Bryan Price. Link.
Llananno, St. Anno. Another two views - 1, 2, and an interior view, showing the spectacular rood screen. All © John Bowdler. Link.
Llanbadarn Fynydd, St. Padarn. Interior view. Both © John Bowdler. Link.
Llanbister, St. Cynllo. Two further views - 1, 2, all © John Bowdler. Two interior views - 1, 2, both © Gerard Charmley (2011). Link. Wesleyan Chapel. © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Llanbrynmair, Hen Capel (Welsh Independent), originally dates from 1739. Two interiors - 1, 2. All © Gerard Charmley (2014). Grade II listed.
Llanddew, St. David. SO 054 307. © Simon Atkin. Another view. © Eirian Evans. Link.
Llandefaelog Church, CiW, near Brecon. SO 028 358. © Martin Briscoe.
Llandefalle, St. Matthew (but see link). © Eirian Evans. Link.
Llandegley, St. Tecla. SO 139 628. © Bruce Read. Link.
Llanddewi Ystradenni, St. David. SO 108 686. © Bruce Read.
Llandewi'r Cwm, (near Builth), St. David. © Martin Briscoe.
Llandinam, St. Llonio. © Mark Summers. Link. Presbyterian Church. © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Llandrinio, St. Trinio, St. Peter and St. Paul. SJ 296 171. © Les Needham (2011). Link. Grade II* listed - link.
Llandysilio, St. Tysilio. Two more views - 1, 2. SJ 267 193. All © Dennis Harper (2014). Link.
Llanfair Caereinion, St. Mary (CiW). Link. Presbyterian Church. Both © Chris Emms (2009).
Llanfechain, Soar Chapel (Presbyterian CiW), which formally closed in 2008. Thanks to the Revd. Pam Powell M.A. for the identification. SJ 189 204. © Martin Briscoe.
Llanfihangel, St. Michael. SO 153 667. © Bruce Read.
Llanfihangel Brynpabuan, St. Michael and All Angels. Previously listed as St. Beneface of the Upper Ways, Neuadd, my appreciation to Bryan Price for the correction. SN 983 567. © Bruce Read. Link.
Llanfihangel Helygen, St. Michael. SO 046 644. © Bryan Price. Link.
Llanfihangel Nant Melan, St. Michael. Interior view. Both © Tim Hollinghurst.
Llanfrynach, St. Brynach (CiW). SO 076 258. Link. The former Mizpah Baptist Chapel, converted into two houses. SO 075 258. Both © Simon Atkin.
Llangammarch Wells, St. Camarch. Another view. Paul advises that the church has had an interesting history - the medieval church was said to be ruinous by the 1800's, and was replaced by a new church in 1850. Built in the Victorian Gothic style, it was never popular with the local people, and was described as “mean church on a abrupt eminence”. This was replaced by the present church in 1915-16, with the tower added in 1927. A carved medieval stone is set into the porch, which Paul suggests should be moved to somewhere better protected from the elements. SN 9350 4731. All © Paul Wood (2017). Coflein entry.
Llangasty-Tallyllyn, St. Gasty (CiW). SO 133 261. Interior view. Both © Simon Atkin. Link.
Llangattock, St. Cattwg. SO 2108 1787. From an old postcard in Reg Dosell's Collection. A modern view, © Paul Wood (2016). Link. Bethesda Congregational Church. © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Llangedwyn, St. Cedwyn (CiW). © Peter Morgan (2013). Link.
Llangors, St. Paulinus (CiW). SO 135 276. Link. Former Penuel Baptist Chapel. dating from 1869, now a private residence. SO 135 275. Both © Simon Atkin.
Llangunllo, St. Cynllo. Another view. Both © John Bowdler. Link.
Llangurig, St. Curig. © Graeme Harvey. Link. The former Ebenezer Chapel (Calvinistic Methodist, 1904). © Gerard Charmley (2010). Wesleyan Chapel. © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Llangynidr, Sardis Baptist Chapel, the present building dates from 1858. SO 153 202. © Simon Atkin.
Llangynog, St. Cynog (1792, re-built 1894). Two interior views - 1, 2. Link. Carmel Methodist Chapel (1875). Ebenezer Methodist Chapel, now a private residence. Built in 1895, the date-stone records that it was laid by one T. A. Jones from Williamsburgh, Iowa. Penuel Chapel (1826, re-built 1868). All © Peter Morgan (2013).
Llanleonfel, Church (no dedication). Standing alone in a field, this church is thought to be of ancient foundation, though the present structure is mainly of the 1870's. Another view. SN 9388 4994. Both © Paul Wood (2015).
Llanllwchaiarn, Church of Llwchaiarn. SO 124 925. From an old postcard in Steve Bulman's Collection. Link.
Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant, St. Dogfan. Link. Bethesda Chapel (Calvinistic Methodist, 1828). As can be seen here, it used to have a small spire. Both © Peter Morgan (2013).
Llansantffraid-Cwmdeuddwr, St. Bride (CiW). © John Bowdler. Another view, © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Llanwddyn, St. Wddyn. Another view, two interior views - 1, 2, and the font. SJ 022 192. Link. Bethel Chapel. Another view, and the date-stone for 1874. SJ 016 191. All © Dennis Harper (2014).
Llanwrtyd, St. David. Another view, and a "pillar stone", believed to be of 7th - 9th century date. The church is said to be of 6th or 7th century foundation. SN 8636 4779. All © Paul Wood (2017). Link (many more photos).
Llanwrtyd Wells, Bethesda Calvinistic Methodist Chapel (1808, re-built 1867, enlarged 1907). SN 878 466. © Mike Berrell. Another view, © Janet Gimber (2014). An earlier Methodist meeting place survives, though not obvious to the casual viewer. In what is now the Drovers Rest Tea Rooms is a cellar, used by the first Methodists during the 19th century, as described on a plaque. Another view. All © Janet Gimber (2014). Congregational Chapel. SN 880 468. © Mike Berrell.
Llanymynech, St. Agatha on Rectory Lane. SJ 268 208. © Mike Berrell (2010). Three additional views - 1, 2, 3, all © Dennis Harper (2014). Link. Presbyterian Church of Wales on Chapel Lane. SJ 267 207. © Mike Berrell (2010).
Llanynis, St. David. SN 9983 5086. © Paul Wood (2017). Link. The very brief Coflein entry.
Llanyre, St. Llyr. SO 043 624. © Bruce Read.
Llanywern, St. Brynach. © Martin Briscoe.
Lower Chapel, St. Michael. Two interior views - 1, 2. SO 028 359. Bethesda Chapel (Presbyterian Church of Wales). SO 028 357. Link. All © Mike Berrell (2013).
Llowes, St. Meilig. Another view, and an interior view. All © Tim Hollinghurst. Link1. Link2.
Llyswen, St. Gwendoline. © Eirian Evans. Link.
Maesmynis, St. David. Salem Chapel. Both © Martin Briscoe.
Maesyrhelem, Baptist Chapel. Another view. Both © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Maesyronnen, U.R.C. - the oldest Nonconformist chapel in Wales. At one time it was a cow-shed. Two interior views - 1, 2. All © Gerard Charmley (2011). Link.
Montgomery, St. Nicholas. SO 22368 96517. © Chris Emms (2009). Another view, © Simon Edwards (2012). Link. Grade I listed. Presbyterian Church (1885). SO 22307 96653. © Steve Bulman (2018). Grade II listed. The former Wesleyan Methodist Chapel (1903). SO 22288 96717. © Steve Bulman (2018).
Nantgwyllt, the Church. Another view, and an interior view, all © John Bowdler.
Nantgwyn, Chapel. © Eirian Evans.
Nantmel, St. Cynllo. SO 035 665. © Dorothy Turley. Another view. © Bruce Read. Two further views - 1, 2, both © John Bowdler. Link.
Neuadd, Pisgah Baptist Chapel. SN 981 563. Both © Bruce Read.
New Radnor, St. Mary. © Dorothy Turley. Two further views - 1, 2, both © John Bowdler. Link.
Newbridge-on-Wye, All Saints - dates from 1883. SO 015 582. Pentref Baptist Chapel (1879). Another view. SO 014 583. All © Bruce Read. Another view of All Saints. © Eirian Evans.
Newchurch, St. Mary. Two interior views - 1, 2. Calvinistic Methodist Church. All © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Oakley Park, Presbyterian Chapel. © Eirian Evans.
Old Church Stoke, a former chapel, now in residential use. © Chris Kippin.
Old Radnor (Pencraig), St. Stephen. Interior view. Both © Tim Hollinghurst. Interior view, from an old postcard in Steve Bulman's Collection. Link.
Painscastle, Adullam Baptist Chapel (1848). Painscastle Congregational Church. Both © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Pant-Mawr, Capel Uchaf (Calvinistic Methodist, 1874) was re-built on the site of an earlier building. Another view. Both © Gerard Charmley.
Patrishow, St. Ishow. From an old illustration (mid 1930's) in Colin Waters' Collection. An old postcard view of the screen, from Christopher Skottowe's Collection. Link.
Pen Ithon, Baptist Chapel (1908). SO 088 827. © Mike Berrell.
Pen-y-Bont-Fawr, St. Thomas (1855, CiW). Interior view. Link1. Link2. Bethania Chapel (1867). All © Peter Morgan (2013).
Pencelli, St. Meugan at Llanfeugan (though there is no village of that name). © Tim Hollinghurst. Link.
Penegoes, chapel. Can you give it a name? © John Bowdler. Thanks to Mike Berrell for advising that this is Ebeneser.
Pengenffordd, Moriah Presbyterian Chapel. Rear view, showing the gallery stairs. Both © Gerard Charmley (2010).
Pentrefelin, Salem Chapel (1845, renovated 1926). © Peter Morgan (2013).
Penybont, The Pales Meeting House (Society of Friends). © Ken Taylor. Friends Meeting House. © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Penybontfawr, Pen-Nebo Wesleyan Chapel (1890 - date-stone). Both © Peter Morgan (2014).
Penygarnedd, Carmel Wesleyan Chapel (1884 - date-stone). Both © Peter Morgan (2014).
Pilleth, St. Mary (CiW). Interior view. SO 256 822. Both © Ken Taylor. Two further views - 1, 2, and the Holy Well, all © John Bowdler. Link1. Link2.
Presteigne, St. Andrew. © Dorothy Turley. Two further views - 1, 2, and an interior view, all © John Bowdler. Link. Baptist Church. The date-stone isn't entirely clear in the original, but I think it says "Built 1845, Enlarged 1885". © Gerard Charmley (2011). Methodist Church, originally Primitive Methodist. © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Rhosgoch, Hermon Congregational Chapel. © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Rhydybont, Independent Chapel. The date-stone has dates 1778, 1829 and 1911. © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Rhydycul, Elim Chapel (1839). © Peter Morgan (2013).
Sarn, Holy Trinity. Both © John Bowdler.
Snead, St. Mary the Virgin. Two further views - 1, 2, two interior views - 1, 2, the font and pulpit, and a carved head. SO 316909. All © John Bowdler (2010). Link1. Link2.
Talgarth, St. Gwendoline (CiW). © Gervase N. E. Charmley. Another view. © Gerard Charmley (2011). Link. Bethlehem Calvinistic Methodist Church. © Gervase N. E. Charmley. U.R.C., originally Bethania Congregational Chapel. © Gerard Charmley (2011). Tabernacle Baptist Chapel. © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Tallachddu, St. Mary. Medieval, but restored in Victorian times, Eirian describes it as "delightful". © Eirian Evans.
Tanhouse, Presbyterian Church (formerly Welsh Calvinistic Methodist). © Ken Taylor.
The Pound, Hepzibah Baptist Chapel. © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Trefecca, Coleg Trefecca Chapel. Coleg Trefecca is a training centre run by the Welsh Presbyterian Church. The college building was originally built as the home of Howell Harris' "Trefecca Family", a religious community. The original chapel is the closer wing here. Both © Gervase N. E. Charmley. Link.
Tretower, St. John the Evangelist. © Gervase N. E. Charmley. Link. Zoar Chapel (1844), © Gerard Charmley (2011).
Upper Chapel, Ebenezer Chapel. SN 998 417. © Simon Atkin.
Whitton, St. David (CiW). SO 270 673. © Ken Taylor. Another view, interior, and the font, all © Steve Bulman (2014).
Yardro, Baptist Chapel. © Gerard Charmley (2011). | 2019-04-22T08:15:44Z | http://churches-uk-ireland.org/powys.html |
Another proposal for an assisted living facility in Tredyffrin Township is on the Planning Commission agenda for Thursday, December 20 – this time its Russell Road in Paoli.
My first thought is how many assisted living facilities is enough? For many years, the township only had one – Highgate at Paoli Point with 80 apartments.
Then came the community battle over the long-abandoned Jimmy Duffy property on Lancaster Avenue in Berwyn and the subsequent construction of Daylesford Crossing, a 3-story assisted living facility by Sage Senior Living which opened August 2015 with 93 apartments.
The approval for the Daylesford Crossing project was a long, drawn out process in 2012 which required a text amendment to zoning to permit senior living facilities as a by-right use in C-1 (commercial) zoning. It was argued at the time that the zoning change to C-1 was ‘spot-zoning’ to accommodate this specific project. Others, including myself, questioned what this change would mean for future C-1 development in the township.
Meeting with success with the development of Daylesford Crossing, Sage Senior Living is building Echo Lake at Atwater in the western part of Tredyffrin Township. Echo Lake’s senior living is a massive 3-story, 250-apartment property with 160 independent living apartments and 90 assisted living and memory care apartments, set to open in January 2019.
And then we have under construction in Devon (close to Whole Foods) Brightview Senior Living, the gigantic 450+ ft. long, five-story, 55-ft high building totally 181,000 sq. ft. on E. Conestoga. (As a reference point, Daylesford Crossing on Lancaster Ave. is approx. 80,000 sq. ft.). When completed Brightview Senior Living will have 196 beds.
During the last six years, the township has grown from one assisted living facility (Highgate at Paoli Pointe) to four – Daylesford Crossing, Echo Lake and under construction Brightview. Developers are flocking to the township with their assisted living proposals. Earlier this year, the township Planning Commissioners reviewed an assisted living facility proposal for the Aquilante Catering property on Cassatt Road. The 300 bed project was met with an organized effort of neighbor opposition and the plans appear to have been withdrawn.
Now, this coming week finds another proposed assisted living facility in front of the Planning Commission. Solera Senior Living has submitted a preliminary land development project for Russell Road in Paoli. Zoned C-1, the applicant wishes to demolish two existing office buildings (Synthes), consolidate three separate parcels and construct a 3-story, 116 bed assisted living facility. For those that may not know – Russell Road connects to Maple and Old Lancaster Avenues. Another developer seeking to build an assisted living facility in the township as a ‘by-right’ use in C-1 zoning.
Unlike the location of Daylesford Crossing on 4-lane Lancaster Avenue, Russell Road is a narrow residential street in Paoli. The proposed 3-story assisted living facility on Russell Road would be at higher elevation than the residential homes which sit in the valley below the planned construction.
Russell Road has no curbing and its resident’s battle major stormwater issues every time its rains – I cannot imagine how a large assisted living building and the associated additional stormwater runoff could possibly be managed. In addition to stormwater problems, placing a massive assisted living facility in the middle of this community is going to threaten the quality of life for the neighborhood, change its character and increase traffic.
There are many reasons that I do not support an assisted living facility at the Russell Road location but an obvious question should also be asked – does the township really need another one of these facilities? Daylesford Crossing is not fully occupied and it opened over 3 years ago – plus Echo Lake opens next month and presumably Brightview sometime in 2019. When is enough – enough? Or is it a case of “build it, and they will come”?
Another factor that needs to be considered with these proposed redevelopment projects (and sadly one that is often overlooked) is our local volunteer fire companies and emergency responders. Already burdened with staffing and funding needs, how are they supposed to keep up the increased demands of these assisted living facilities? Is Paoli Fire Company and Berwyn Fire Company notified when these types of land development proposals are under consideration?
Here’s the agenda for the Planning Commission meeting on Thursday, December 20, 7 PM at the township building.
Tredyffrin’s C-1 Zoning Ordinance Change … Still Looks Like Spot Zoning to Me!
Until 11 PM last night, Daylesford neighbors and members of our community reasoned, argued, cajoled and attempted to change the minds of Planning Commissioners in regards to the proposed change to C-1 zoning to allow the use of assisted living facilities. Unfortunately, the Planning Commissioners ignored the dissenting voices of the community and recommended the C-1 zoning change.
The Planning Commission meeting started with 8 Commissioners (Tom Cooper absent) but when the agenda moved to the C-1 zoning change, the PC Chair Bob Whalen recused himself, leaving the meeting without explanation.
Attorney Denise Yarnoff, representing Ed Morris, the developer for the proposed assisted living facility (ALF) at the Jimmy Duffy catering site, wrote the C-1 zoning amendment change and its subsequent re-written version. Acting PC chair, Trip Lukens, asked that Yarnoff and Trisha Larkins, president of the Daylesford Neighborhood Association, provide opening remarks. Lukens requested Yarnoff and Larkins to confine their remarks to the C-1 zoning change only versus the specific proposed project – the assisted living facility at the Jimmy Duffy catering site.
Although asked repeatedly to speak up, Ms. Yarnoff words were often barely audible to the audience. Standing directly adjacent to the dais, apparently it was more important for the Planning Commissioners to hear Ms. Yarnoff than the audience members. Whether by design or not, I probably only heard about one-third of Yarnoff’s remarks. However, as any good attorney, throughout the evening, Yarnoff provided an explanation or response to any question or concern posed by the public, Planning Commissioners or township staff. It was unclear to me (and remains so) why Yarnoff was deemed the ‘expert’ on all things related to assisted living facilities, the township’s comprehensive plan, process and the like.
In contrast to Yarnoff’s, Ms. Larkins had prepared a PowerPoint presentation to explain the timeline for the zoning change, other municipality ALF comparisons and a background (explanation) as to why the DNA opposed the proposed C-1 zoning change. Thorough and professionally delivered, Larkins repeatedly made the case that the DNA did not oppose ALFs in the township; it opposed a zoning change to permit assisted living usage in C-1.
After Yarnoff and Larkins presented their opening remarks, the meeting started a downhill spiral and to many in the audience, quickly became out of control. Although Lukens had asked that the C-1 zoning change be the focus of the discussion, every couple of minutes the comments and suggestions returned to the Jimmy Duffy site and whether the changes would work for that project.
Resident after resident questioned the PC as to why the ‘rush’ to make this decision; why not wait for the results from the $100K consultant hired to review commercial zoning in the township. Like so many, I was frustrated that no matter what the issue, the Planning Commissioners deferred to Denise Yarnoff; wanting to make sure that their changes would fit the proposed ALF project. In desperation, I told the PC members that it is no wonder that we believed this C-1 change to be ‘spot zoning’ – every time the public brings up a point, you defer to Yarnoff and the plan. Lukens stated that he wanted the C-1 ordinance change to be about all C-1 properties but there was no discussion to support his opinion. Is development so important in this township, that we cast aside reasonable discussion, review of other municipal ordinances, ignore the township’s comprehensive plan and instead do whatever a developer wants, so the project ‘works’?
Density. Minimum Lot Area of not less than 650 square feet per unit.
At least 10 percent of the lot area shall be provided as passive recreational space for the residents of the ALF. Such space shall include outdoor seating areas, interior courtyards, pedestrian walkways and/or similar facilities.
The maximum number of beds per Assisted Living Facility building shall not exceed 100.
Prior to voting, the public continued to weigh in with their displeasure. There was not one person in the audience who favored pushing this ordinance change through including attorney Dan McLaughlin, vice chair of the Zoning Hearing Board. McLaughlin lives in the Daylesford neighborhood and offered very impassioned, effective remarks as to why the Planning Commissioners needed to hold off taking a vote until all questions were answered. I did not think it possible that the Commissioners could ignore McLaughlin; but they did. Trip Lukens called for a vote on the C-1 zoning ordinance change stating he would abstain due to the 10% open space requirement. Without pause, the remaining six PC members voted to recommend the C-1 zoning change to the Board of Supervisors.
No one will convince me that the PC vote to change C-1 zoning ordinance change was not based on one developer and one development project. Every decision on what to include in the ordinance change balanced against the backdrop of whether it would fit the proposed assisted living facility at the Jimmy Duffy site.
With so many, many unanswered questions surrounding this project, including the use of the R-1 parcel, grandfathered usage, invalid sketch plan, etc., how could the Planning Commissioners refuse to do their homework and instead, push it on to the Board of Supervisors. I thought it was the responsibility of the Planning Commissioner to thoroughly understand and vet the situation before recommending it to the supervisors. Guess not. Rather than relying on the expertise of the Planning Commissioners, it will now be up to the supervisors to find the answers.
Updated Draft C-1 Zoning Ordinance Amendment … Looks Like ‘Spot Zoning’!
Per the July Planning Commission meeting, attorney Denise Yarnoff returned to the drawing board to add her style of regulations to the proposed C-1 zoning text amendment change. If you recall, her client Ed Morris, presented a sketch plan to the Planning Commission for an assisted living facility on the old Jimmy Duffy catering site on Rt 30 in Daylesford.
Ms. Yarnoff’s first draft of the C-1 zoning ordinance change was met with great displeasure from many in the community; vague and without associated restrictions or requirements for assisted living facilities. More or less, an ‘anything goes’ kind of approach to the zoning ordinance change … no restrictions in the way of height, buffer, lot size, bed density, nada. In other words, the proposed zoning change suggested a carte blanche approach for developers; i.e. build any size assisted living facility on any lot size in C-1 commercial zoning districts in Tredyffrin Township. No surprise that Daylesford neighbors, and many other community members, balked at Ms. Yarnoff’s initial draft ordinance.
To be clear; Denise Yarnoff wrote the draft zoning text amendment change for Tredyffrin Township but on behalf of her client, developer Ed Morris. Although I still do not understand this process of having a developer’s attorney write township ordinances, apparently, it is legal and that other municipalities handle this type of situation similarly. As I said in an earlier post, ‘if’ (and that is a big ‘if’) I buy into the reasons (financial, etc.) that a developer’s attorney can write a draft township ordinance amendment, I think that any revisions to the document need to come from the township (either staff or Planning Commissioners). At least in the case of the proposed C-1 zoning ordinance amendment change, this was not how it was handled … Ms. Yarnoff did the rewrite on the text amendment and has resubmitted it to the township for next week’s Planning Commission meeting.
The assisted living facility shall be licensed by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Looking at this list, I would expect nothing less from a good real estate attorney – the client is paying her hourly rate and she needs to get the best deal for him that is possible; I get it. However, seriously, I am embarrassed for Ms. Yarnoff … I’m no attorney, but is this the best that she could come up with? Does she think that these are acceptable restrictions?
Bed density was one of the major problems that many neighbors and township residents had with the Morris sketch plan of the proposed assisted living facility. His plan suggests 93 beds/79 units on the 1 acre C-1 Jimmy Duffy site — a higher bed density than anywhere in the county, including the downtown West Chester. Because so many residents took issue with bed density, it made sense that Ms. Yarnoff would probably lower that number, make it less dense in the re-write of the proposed zoning ordinance amendment. Not so … in restriction #4, Yarnoff increased the permitted bed density to 120 beds! So much for listening to township residents.
Looking at #2 of Ms. Yarnoff’s restrictions which requires that assisted living facilities in the township be built within ¼ mi. of a regional train station. Doesn’t that restriction make it convenient for the ‘Jimmy Duffy Assisted Living’ project? How in the world can this restriction in the proposed zoning ordinance change not be viewed as ‘spot zoning’. How many C-1 properties, other than the Jimmy Duffy location, could meet this restriction?
How about #6 on Ms. Yarnoff’s list of restrictions — licensing. Isn’t licensing already a state requirement for assisted living facilities. How does this add to the proposed zoning amendment change?
Lot size … where exactly is the lot size requirement in this proposed zoning change? Without offering any lot size restrictions, is Ms. Yarnoff suggesting that ‘anything goes’? In Tredyffrin, build an assisted living facility on a postage stamp lot and it can have 120 beds! Don’t we need a minimum number of acres for assisted living facilities in Tredyffrin Township? Remember, currently assisted living facilities is included in the township’s Institutional Overlay (IO) district — with a 10-acre requirement. Some argue that the 10-acre restriction is antiquated and needs updating. However, I cannot believe that the township needs to go from 10 acres down to no acreage requirement for assisted living facilities.
And folks, remember that the township recently signed a $100K contract for consultants to review and make recommendations on commercial zoning in the township. What about waiting for those results before we make a change that will affect commercial zoning in the entire township? The next opportunity for public input is on Thursday, August 16, 7 PM at the Planning Commission meeting.
What is the Price Tag for Economic Development in Tredyffrin Township?
What is the price tag for economic development in Tredyffrin Township? Is it economic development at any cost; or is the answer to the question … whatever it takes.
Is it OK to ‘green light’ a land development project in Tredyffrin Township even if it doesn’t meet current zoning regulations? Is it OK to change zoning usage to suit a particular developer (and his plan) simply for the sake of economic development? Is it OK to change zoning to accommodate a specific project and developer … and by so doing, change zoning for the entire township? Is it OK to have developers and their attorneys create zoning ordinance amendment changes to Tredyffrin Zoning Code … to suit their particular needs?
I’m talking about the old Duffy Catering site on Lancaster Ave. and the proposed assisted living facility. No land development plan has been ‘officially’ filed with the township, yet there are some appointed and elected officials who seemingly already have the facility built! Facts and the required process seemed to have been discarded in favor of what ‘some’ officials believe should be the desired outcome. In this case, that means change zoning to allow a developer to construct a multi-story assisted living facility on barely 1 acre of commercial property when current zoning only permits such use on 10 acres as an institutional overlay.
At first blush, a resident might think that building an assisted living facility on the old Duffy property on Route 30 is a good idea. Before knowing all the facts, I probably would have agreed that this sounds like a good use for the property. I’m not opposed to an assisted living facility in Tredyffrin Township and …, as long as an open and transparent process is followed, all questions are answered and no rules are changed or broken, such a project could have my complete support.
I need to be very clear … this requested zoning ordinance amendment change is for all C-1 zoned property in Tredyffrin Township. The developer and some of our local officials would like to have it both ways. On one side, they refuse to admit that this requested zoning amendment change permitting assisted living facilities as a usage in C-1 zoning is ‘spot zoning’. But on the other hand, they would have us believe that there would be no plans for assisted living facilities in any other C-1 locations. Sorry, but I don’t think they can have it both ways.
: the illegal singling out of a small parcel of land within the limits of an area zoned for particular uses and permitting other uses for that parcel for the special benefit of its owners and to the detriment of the other owners in the area and not as a part of a scheme to benefit the entire area.
I would love for someone to explain to me how changing zoning to suit a specific developer and his plan is not ‘spot zoning’ … looks to me like the Duffy assisted living project fits Webster’s definition!
The draft plan for this assisted living facility indicates a bed density of 93 beds on 1 acre. It is my understanding that this level of proposed 1-acre residential density for the Duffy property does not exist anywhere else in all of Chester County! It is also interesting to note, that changing C-1 to permit an assisted living facility usage also has not occurred in Chester County. Commercial zoning is for the regulations of goods and services not people; which is why assisted living facilities would typically be found in residential zoning code not in commercial zoning code.
§208-99. Nonconforming buildings or uses.
D. Restoration. Building reconstruction to restore a building containing a nonconforming use shall commence within one year of the date the building was destroyed or condemned and shall be carried on without interruption.
E. Discontinuance. If a nonconforming use of land or of a building ceases or is discontinued for a continuous period of one (1) year or more, subsequent use of such building or land shall be in conformity with the provisions of this chapter.
The Duffy property has sat vacant (and for sale) for at least 4 years, which means (according to Tredyffrin Zoning Code above) that the developer for this proposed assisted living facility cannot use the R-1 parcel for parking in his plan. Clearly exceeding the discontinued use of 1 year per the Tredyffrin Zoning Code, no grandfathering on the R-1 parking is permitted. We can add this to the list that makes this proposed assisted living facility at this particular location problematic. Or, is it possible that our elected officials may just ignore the township’s Zoning Code to accommodate the project?
We should not forget that two months ago, our supervisors voted to spend $100,000 for consultants to review the township’s existing commercial zoning and make recommendations. If the township is spending $100K for professional zoning advice, it would seem that there should be a moratorium on any zoning changes until the zoning expert has an opportunity review and weigh in. My guess is that setting precedent by changing C-1 zoning to include assisted living facilities without any regulations or restrictions would not be something that most zoning experts would think is a good idea. If an assisted living facility as a usage in C-1 zoning is so important, why wasn’t it included in the update of the township’s comprehensive plan completed just 3 years ago, in 2009?
Why is there such a sense of fait accompli among some of the appointed and elected officials in this township in regards to this project? The proposed assisted living project may have started out as a ‘not in my backyard’ (NIMBY) zoning battle between a Daylesford homeowner and a developer but now has many of us in the community asking questions. Perhaps originally only concerned for her backyard, Trisha Larkin, the Daylesford Neighborhood Association president is now taking a stand for her neighborhood and for the township.
An online ipetition has been created to “Oppose Ordinance Amendment adding Assisted Living Facility use in Commercial (C-1) Zoning in Tredyffrin Township”. Changing C-1 zoning to include assisted living is not just a Daylesford neighborhood issue; it is a township wide change. If you would like to add your name to the petition, click here.
For some of the appointed and elected officials in this township, the requested C-1 zoning change to permit assisted living facilities may be a fait accompli, but for some residents, that decision may be far from over.
Again, I ask … what is the price tag for economic development in Tredyffrin Township? | 2019-04-19T17:01:38Z | http://pattyebenson.org/tag/assisted-living-facility/ |
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Rome did not disappoint! After doing my laundry in the sink and hanging it up on the clothesline I rigged, which extended from a coat hanger to the hanging shower basket, I headed off to the Colosseum.
Feeling a little defeated from the day before, I wasn’t in any hurry to tackle the masses. After blogging and doing my “chores”, I finally left my Airbnb around 12:30pm. Despite my mishap, I have been otherwise prepared, and made sure I booked my accommodation very close to the Colosseum – just a 5 minute walk to the ancient site and metro station.
The mid day sun was beating down and the back of my shirt was wet before my 5 minute walk to the ancient ruins was complete. As I walked across the open area with men selling umbrellas, water, selfie sticks, and any other piece of junk they could convince you to buy, I held on very tightly to my bag! My money was tucked away in my money belt, and my passport hidden carefully at my studio apartment. I debated heavily whether or not to keep it in my possession. My eventual rationale: I could bring it with me and invite the possibility of an unknown number of potential thieves to take it, or I could leave it at the Airbnb where only the owner, with excellent reviews, had access to the room. I decided my chances were better there and tucked it away behind a piece of furniture, just for safe measure. (I then put a note in my phone of it’s whereabouts, as I have a habit of putting things in “safe places” and then forgetting where they are)!
I walked around the side of the Colosseum, past the Arches of Constantine and Titus, and over to the ticket booth at the entrance to the Roman Forum.
I there presented the voucher for my previously purchased audio tour. History never interested me in school, and I knew I would appreciate a tour to help me understand everything. With my funds in jeopardy, I was lucky to be attending the sites on the first Sunday of the month, which is FREE! The lady took my voucher and handed me my ticket, but no audio tour. I told her I’d purchased it and she informed me I had to download it beforehand. Well, that would’ve been nice to know since my internet access has been minimal and my pocket wifi has only been working about 20% of the time. I decided I was going to have to depend on the signs. Unfortunately, I don’t feel like I really know much more than I did before I arrived. The signs are frequently posted and quite descriptive, but they discussed many people of whom I’d never heard. I apparently need to brush up on my Roman Empire history. Sorry, Mr. Maruszak.
Regardless of my lack of understanding, the ancient ruins are absolutely fascinating. It’s truly hard to imagine just how old those pieces of marble are, or to fathom how men could lift gigantic marble and granite columns weighing tons up to a standing position. We don’t know hard work. How long would it take to build some of those structures, and to carve such elaborate designs? How long did it take to make each brick, and then to lay each of them? Simply unbelievable. Even more impressive is how advanced they were for their time. It has definitely promoted an interest to learn a little more about it.
As I stood there amongst old buildings and roads, game fields, homes, and tombs, I felt nervous just to reach out and touch them. Most everything was roped off, but on occasion there was an opportunity to reach out and run my fingers along something centuries old. It felt so surreal to think that some of those structures have been there since before Christ.
I walked every inch of the Forum and then went up to what I thought was Palatine Hill, according to the sign with the arrow. I saw one large structure under restoration and figured that was it. Ha! Shows what little I know about the Roman Empire. I know I’m not alone, but it’s slightly embarrassing! As it turns out, Palatine Hill is a very large area that I completely missed. In my defense, I saw an area that I wanted to go to (which was actually Palatine Hill, but I couldn’t figure out how to get there). I was excited to go to the Colosseum, anyway.
I walked right in without waiting. It really pays to buy your tickets in advance. I walked toward the center, and there it was. I’d seen pictures that really depicted exactly what it looks like. There’s no replacement for being there and experiencing it, though. As I walked around in a circle I came upon an American giving a tour. She was extremely good and gave really interesting little tidbits about different parts of the Colosseum. I didn’t want to take advantage of her by listening for free, but I sucked up as much as I could without it being obvious. Incidentally, I kept running into her! I think I came upon her or she came upon me on 3 different occasions.
I learned where the Emperor would sit; there was a tunnel from Palatine Hill to his seats so he wouldn’t have to walk amongst the common people to get to the event.
There were exits on either side: one for the winners, and one for the losers/dead gladiators and animals. There were women who fought. There were men with spears who were positioned around the perimeter of the arena and their job was to prevent wild animals from jumping out. Only 20% of gladiators perished.
People carved graffiti, such as the names of their favorite fighters, into the seats. Women sewed and reapplied their makeup, as evidenced by hair pins and needles extracted from the ruins. They ate and drank. In fact, attendees were really not much unlike those of us who go to events today! The wealthy politicians sat in the lowest seats, those with horses were in the next level and the middle class and poor up top – again, much like today! 🙂 I also learned in a later tour that the reason why part of the wall of the Colosseum is missing is because of attacks on Rome in WWII. That’s a bummer.
Suddenly the sky became a familiar shade of dark blue and gray and there were occasional small rumblings from afar. I was hoping it would miss my location, but alas, it did not. It rained. Then it rained harder. Then it poured. Then it poured harder. The minutes were passing quickly and I was worried the storm was going to keep me from getting to see all I had planned to visit. Finally it began to let up and I decided a few sprinkles weren’t going to hurt me. I set out to find the Pantheon.
On my way, I walked down a wide cobblestone street with ancient ruins on either side, and beautiful landscaping. The just-wet street glistened and I soaked up the charming scene. On my left was the gorgeous and gigantic Monumento a Vittorio Emanuele II. The front had gorgeous flowers and fantastic, grand sculptures.
I walked through the Piazza Venezia and carefully chose one of the six roads that came off it. I had heard Italian driving was crazy, and it absolutely is. I saw one stop sign the entire day, and found it really doesn’t mean anything to Italian motorists. There’s no right of way. Everyone has the right of way, and if you’re not an aggressive driver, you’ll never get anywhere. Hoofing it was becoming an increasingly appealing option.
To my surprise, I chose the correct road. I continued onward and decided I would hit the Pantheon before my Rome Illuminated at Night tour, and try to see the Piazza di Popolo after the Vatican the following day. I didn’t want to feel rushed and I was getting extremely hungry. I’d brought my protein bar and ate half of it while in the Roman Forum. It filled me up for a short time, but I was going to need something cheap – and soon. As I walked down the street there were several little restaurants with quaint little patios. I looked at a few menus and decided they were probably too expensive for my current and suddenly broke situation. I eventually came to a little restaurant slightly off the beaten path. Il Ristorante di Falchetto had an affordable menu, and a very kind server who invited me to take any seat on the empty patio. Under normal circumstances I would be hesitant to eat somewhere that other patrons weren’t present, but at 5pm, it was quite early for dinner. (Italians don’t eat dinner until at least 8:00pm)!
I took a seat on the patio and my server took my drink order – sparkling water and white wine. I decided on just an entree to save money. I wanted it to be inexpensive, while also a typical Italian food. I decided on the Gnocchi [nyawk-kee] with marinara sauce and buffalo mozzarella cheese. While I was waiting for my meal, my server brought me bread and then set out a bottle of olive oil, a container of red wine vinegar, salt and pepper. I didn’t think Italians really ate the bread with oil and vinegar. Then came my gnocchi. It was the best I’ve ever had. Hands down. I have heard that Americans typically don’t like true Italian dishes because they don’t taste like our Americanized versions. I was pleased that I loved it. 🙂 After I ate every last bite, and then soaked up every last drip of marinara sauce with my remaining bread, the server came back and offered me dessert. I haven’t had any traditional Italian desserts (other than loads of gelato), but after perusing the menu and prices, I decided maybe I should wait until my finances are squared away.
When the server came back I politely told him I decided against the dessert due to my cards recently being stolen. When he brought my ticket, he also brought me some real house-made Italian cookies!
My experience with Italians is that they are generally very friendly, and he was no exception. When I left, I stopped at the restroom since I didn’t know when my next opportunity would be. On my way out I was surprised to find he and 5 other staff eating a meal together at a back table. They were serving patrons and dining together at the same time. I found it so odd as this would never happen back home, but at the same time I loved it! Italian culture is truly about enjoying great food and wine with great family and friends. It’s about relationships more than anything! It put a smile on my face! As I walked out, I told him in my very best Italian: “Grazi! Sei motto simpatico!” (Thank you! You are very kind)! He became shy and lowered his head slightly and responded “Prego.” (You’re welcome).
I very happily walked down the narrow cobblestone pathway, on toward the Pantheon. While strolling through I came upon a 14 year old Boxer named Frank. He was the complete opposite of mine – calmly chilling in the street, whereas mine would be jumping around excitedly. I can only hope that mine will live that long (or longer) and they will be as calm as him! He wasn’t leashed, and would just sit or lie down waiting for his master to quit talking. When he did get up, he sauntered very slowly. At that age, he’s earned the right to go at his own pace. I wanted to pet him so bad, but his master, whom I briefly talked with, didn’t invite me to do so. I’m sure Frank is as docile as they come, but I don’t make a habit of petting stranger dogs.
Bam! Pantheon. Right there in front of me the whole time. As I later learned in my Rome At Night Tour, the Pantheon is one of the best preserved buildings in Rome. Wouldn’t it be nice if they built things like that these days? The doors were closed but the front was impressive. Each of the 24 granite columns weigh 5 tons each. Again, you have to wonder how they managed to build such a structure without modern technology. Not only that, how did they get the granite from Point A to Point B in order to build it?
I decided it was time to head toward the Spanish Steps. I wanted to allot myself some extra time in case I got lost. As it turns out, I didn’t get lost and was able to make it directly to the Piazza di Spagna. I decided with my extra time I would sit on the steps with hundreds of other tourists while I waited for my night tour to start.
Finally 7:30pm rolled around. I went to the meeting place and found the group had been divided into two smaller groups due to the overall size. I was delighted to be with the smaller group. I like a more intimate setting to facilitate learning. I feel it’s a little more personal and you get more bang for your buck. We had to wait a little longer as there was one other person coming. Soon she arrived and the tour began. Our group consisted of an Indian family: parents and an adult son and daughter, a tall, blonde 26 year old Australian girl by the name of Karen, and myself. Karen and I hit it off from the start! She and I are very much alike and both traveling solo right now. Our group was led by a delightful girl from Lithuania by the name of Egle. She has lived in Denmark, Vienna and now in Italy for the past year. She did a great job and made the tour entertaining and fun.
We started at the Spanish Steps, talked about Bernini’s Fontanta della Barcaccia, and the first tea store in Rome established by two confident British women who thought they might make a killing bringing tea to Rome (and they did).
We walked by the first McDonalds of Rome, which was initially built with typical Roman architecture. When McDonalds found out it didn’t look like McDonalds, they made them change it. We stopped at a drinking water fountain that emptied into a trough. Because of all the aqueducts, there is enough water to have multiple drinking fountains throughout the city. The water that isn’t used is sent back out to the river. We went to Trevi Fountain and I was just as devastated as I thought I would be. The Trevi Fountain is being restored and is completely barricaded off, with the water drained. Some of the sculptures are impossible to see.
Nonetheless, I had to make the best of it and throw a coin in. Egle informed us of the legend: You must throw a coin with your right hand over your left shoulder into the fountain. If you throw one coin, you will fall in love with Rome and will come back. If you throw a second coin, you fall in love with an Italian. One coin was sufficient for me! My mother would kill me for throwing a second one with the threat of falling in love with an Italian man and never coming home.
We walked through the streets and saw many more monuments and sculptures, significant both politically and religiously. Eventually we ended up at the Pantheon just past dusk. The Pantheon and piazza were beautiful with all the lights. We took a few pictures and it was then time to head into a nearby restaurant where we would have wine and appetizers. We had real mozzarella sticks (more like patties), fried zucchini blooms with mushrooms, penne pasta with marinara sauce, panini, peanuts and chips. In place of wine I had the typical Italian “spritz”. I don’t know what’s in it, but it’s orange and heavy on the alcohol! I was afraid the food and drinks would be an additional expense, but it ended up being included with the tour. Great! “Free” dinner! I could make that protein bar last a little longer!
We ended our tour at the Piazza Navona – a beautiful piazza with another beautiful Bernini fountain. We said our “Ciao’s”, Egle added me on Facebook, and then Karen and I went out to enjoy Rome at night together!
We wanted a wine bar but all we could find were restaurants. We walked and walked having no idea where we were going. The streets were much quieter, and I felt safe. We turned a narrow corner and there was a quaint little restaurant called Papa’s. We decided the patio there would be perfect for a glass of wine.
Meanwhile, I had been in contact with Aurelio. Aurelio had been a foreign exchange student in my friend Malorie’s class waaaaaaay back in high school. (Malorie is joining me in Florence soon). When she told us she had a connection, I friended him on Facebook in case I should need any help while on my own. Whaddya know? I needed help! We had planned to meet up anyway if possible, but after my credit cards were stolen, I had to buy a train ticket to Siena with my credit card number that Malorie is bringing me as I can’t purchase a bus ticket online. Once I made the purchase, I needed it printed. I asked Aurelio if he would have the ability to print the tickets for me, and as he was working in his office for the day, it was no problem. While Karen and I were enjoying our wine, Aurelio sent me a text to let me know he was out with friends having dinner and that we were invited to come when we were done. He sent me his location, and he was only 0.2 miles away! Just a 5 minute walk! Karen and I finished our wine and gushed about gelato on the walk over. We arrived to the restaurant and Aurelio was there with another couple and their adorable little 8 month old baby. He was such a good baby – always smiling and never cried. Aurelio asked if we wanted a glass of wine and we both decided to have ONE more. He then offered me a bite of the typical Roman dish he was eating: artichokes and lamb liver and kidneys. Sounds delightful, right? When in Rome…. (I’ve been waiting for an opportunity to use that phrase)!!!!!!!! I didn’t really want to eat it, but I want to be cultured and push my limits so I had a bite. It actually didn’t taste that bad. In fact, it tasted good, with a strange texture, but just knowing what I was eating was too much. I then had a bite of his friend Daniela’s meal. It was a typical Roman dish, too, but I can’t remember what it was. It was also good, and as I remember, less disgusting sounding.
Soon it was time to leave and Karen and I learned Aurelio’s friend Marco had paid for our wine. I’m telling you! Those Italians are so nice! (The ones who aren’t thieves, anyway).
We then went for a walk around Rome, stopping for the most amazing gelato ever. I had Cocco, Chocolate and…. I don’t remember the other flavor. What I do remember is that it was especially delicious. Aurelio informed us many gelaterias use a powder to make their gelato, but this one makes it from real ingredients. In addition, the cone was crisp.
I’ve had cones that were so stale I could crumple it in my hand without it breaking. Ick. We continued on through Rome seeing the Senate, which was guarded, and Caesar’s murder site. The blazing sun had retreated hours before leaving a perfect night.
Wow! Look at the time! It was already after midnight! Marco and Daniela were tired. The baby was passed out in the stroller. (Sidetone: Karen asked how a mother pushes her baby in a “pram” with the uneven cobblestone streets. Would you believe there are springs on the wheels? That’s right! Roman strollers have shocks)! Karen’s phone was about to die, so she needed to head back to her hotel, and my Vatican tour was scheduled to start at 8:10am so I needed to go, too. It took us a good 10 minutes to determine how they were going to help Karen and I home. Unfortunately Karen couldn’t remember the name or address of her accommodation, so that took some time. Aurelio finally grabbed a taxi for her and sent her on her way. I walked back with them to Marco and Daniela’s house, and then hopped in the Smart car with Aurelio for my ride home. I can now check “riding in a smart car” off my list.
On the way to my Airbnb he detoured to show me something special in Rome – something the tours don’t tell you about! While it was late, this is just the kind of thing I love about having an insider! I might be getting this wrong, but he took me to the site of the Swiss Guard (the Pope’s secret service). Aurelio insisted Rome is magical and set out to prove it. He told me you could see St. Peter through a keyhole. Of course this didn’t mean anything to me until we actually got to the keyhole. He brought me to a big green door with the Swiss Guard emblem on it and had me look through the keyhole. (We actually had to wait our turn, as 2 other people were looking ahead of us). Soon it was my turn. I looked through the hole and I saw greenery, like hedges on either side of a sidewalk and at the very end, what looked like a bronze sculpture. When I told Aurelio what I saw, he just laughed at me and took me to a different door to try to get into the gardens. Unfortunately, the door was locked, so he told me what I was actually seeing it St. Peter’s Basilica far away. There is a direct line between the keyhole and the Basilica dome. We went back to the keyhole and I looked again. I could totally tell what I was seeing that time and I was astonished! It was gorgeous and I took the next 5 minutes trying to get an adequate photo. Impossible. Sometimes you just have to enjoy the moment.
Aurelio then took me home, and feeling concerned for my recent unfortunate events, insisted that I take some cash from him. Again, I tried to decline but he made me. I told him I’d return what I didn’t use with Malorie when she gets to Rome on the 14th, and anything I did use would be repaid.
I hurried inside, jumped in the shower and washed the Roman Forum off my feet and passed out!
It was an incredible day in Rome. I met some really great people, learned a lot about the city and had so much fun. My day in Rome is exactly what I’ve had in mind for this trip!!! So thankful for these experiences and people. I’m also thankful my faith in people on this trips is on the way to being restored. | 2019-04-19T03:04:50Z | http://agirlandherwanderlust.com/rome-ing/ |
Much has been written about the Third International Math and Science Study results, the differences among Western, European, and Asian mathematics instruction, student expectations, teacher preparation, resource materials, and so on. When one "peels away the onion" to find out what really works well in teaching mathematics, it is no surprise that successful endeavors focus on using patterns ("Time To Solve the Math Education Equation," May 6, 1998).
The brain is a pattern-seeking organ and, as such, naturally responds to developing and extending patterns using sight and tactile senses. For students to understand the concepts behind the algorithmic bridge that is needed to solve problems, a foundation of recognizing and constructing patterns is necessary. There is no magic bullet to learning mathematics better than the way we are now, but there are proven ways to improve things. For example, we must pay close attention to the neurological research on how humans take in information and convert it to knowledge.
Close examination of exemplary mathematics classrooms populated with average, backyard kids, reveals an environment of student and teacher modeling, pattern development and expansion, and solving real-world problems based on those ever-widening circles of intra-related geometrical or arithmetical constructs. Developing patterns this way takes a lot of time and focus, at the expense of the zillion other topics to be addressed. Teachers need substantial training in this pedagogy in order to understand that once students (or adults) learn how to recognize, develop, and extend patterns of increasing complexity, they will be able to use these keys to unlock numerous problems previously untouchable due to their strategically hidden solutions, usually embedded in some complex algorithm.
A natural result of all of this is a compacting of the curriculum ("less is more" again). For example, a time-honored ritual in algebra is teaching factoring as a "stand alone" topic. It is no surprise that developing pattern recognition for the families of ax2+bx+c and their geometric features renders teaching all the derivations of this generality as separate pieces unnecessary.
I served on the original Hooked on Phonics board of advisers--with pride, I must say. I thus find your article "Reborn 'Hooked on Phonics' Switches Strategy," April 22, 1998, an unfair rebuke of the first edition of this program.
For example, it is erroneous to say that the original Hooked on Phonics did not provide "follow-along reading activities and simple storybooks" coordinated with its phonics instruction element. This "reading practice" was an integral part of its package.
Nor was this version of Hooked on Phonics unproved. In fact, it commissioned a well-designed study of its merit in Inglewood, Calif., the findings of which were collected and analyzed independently. Parents and principals were amazed at the reading growth of the low-income children in this investigation.
On the other hand, it is true to say that the advertising campaign of the beginning Hooked on Phonics was deliberately offensive to the reading-instruction establishment (especially the International Reading Association and the National Council of Teachers of English), which was strongly committed to experimentally unverified "whole language" teaching. These Hooked on Phonics ads revealed to the nation the learning-to-read disaster that whole-language instruction causes. It correctly described how direct and systematic teaching of phonics information produces the greatest written-word-recognition skill possible.
Then, suddenly, with no warning, the Federal Trade Commission announced to the mass media that the many testimonials from satisfied customers, released by the early-edition Hooked on Phonics, constituted fraud. As everyone knows, the FTC normally allows that testimonials are the lifeblood of the advertising industry. There thus obviously was some other reason why the FTC forced the initial Hooked on Phonics into bankruptcy.
For the true reason for this outrageous governmental abuse we must look to who profited from the demise of the original Hooked on Phonics. It certainly was not the program's millions of satisfied users, who were given a money-back guarantee. This leaves the advocates of whole-language instruction, who were ecstatic with the FTC's decision.
The best advice to the new Hooked on Phonics is this: Don't get too successful in teaching children to read. In that event, you likely will suffer the same fate as your predecessor.
Your recent article on California colleges in the aftermath of affirmative action curbs states that minority admissions have dropped for the first time as a result of California's Proposition 209, which prohibits racial and gender preferences in admissions ("California Colleges Going All Out To Woo Minority Students," April 29, 1998). Much of the article is about the efforts of the University of California, Davis, to increase the recruiting of minorities. It cites large percentage drops in minority enrollment and states that UC-Davis officials are disappointed that their efforts failed to produce more minority acceptances.
Accompanying the article is a chart showing the University of California's admissions by ethnicity for 1997 and 1998. A little simple arithmetic shows that the data in the chart simply do not support any of your conclusions. You neglect the fact that the number of white students accepted also declined from 1997 to 1998. When the actual minority data from the two years are compared, there is a relative increase in minority population, up from 49.1 percent in 1997 to 51 percent in 1998.
It would be interesting to understand why UC-Davis officials are "disappointed" that only half of the university is composed of minority students.
Jay P. Greene notes that in evaluations of bilingual education, studies in which random assignment has been done show bilingual education to be effective ("Rescuing Education Research," April 29, 1998). He also states that studies without random assignment show different results, which, he suggests, is why experimental results in this field are not readily accepted.
I reviewed 13 published studies in which researchers failed to randomize or otherwise control for initial differences (in Under Attack: The Case Against Bilingual Education, Language Education Associates, 1996). In 11 studies, there were positive effects for bilingual education, and in two there was no difference. I also concluded that several studies in which all-English approaches appeared to be better suffered from mislabeling: What was labeled "immersion" was often bilingual education, with a significant amount of instruction done in the primary language.
Mr. Greene is of course correct when he says that studies in which random assignment has been done should carry more weight. But the results of studies without random assignment should not be ignored, especially when there is no reason to suspect that differences between the groups existed, and when results are so consistent.
For many years, I have looked to Education Week for balanced, accurate coverage of the issues and controversies in the education of public school pupils. This makes your story on California's Proposition 227 doubly disappointing ("What Price English?" April 29, 1998).
The proposition launched by Ron K. Unz is not only about bilingual education. If it passes, it will negate the work of many teachers dedicated to teaching English as a second language. The International Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages, or TESOL, and its California affiliate, CATESOL, have taken principled stands against Proposition 227 because it ignores the difficulty of learning a second language for academic purposes, invents new terminologies (exactly what is "sheltered English immersion"?), and dictates local district policy and methodology.
I have taught English as a second language in California for more than 18 years. It may be news to Mr. Unz and to you, but most K-12 school districts already have ESL curricula designed for students who are learning the language. But even with specially designed and adapted curricula, and even for the brightest and best students in our classes, language learning is difficult. Though it is possible to speak English conversationally after 183 days of instruction (the California school year), it is the rare child or adolescent who can immediately and successfully compete on grade level in all subject areas with native English speakers. Proposition 227 would require second-language learners to compete on grade level after the single year of so-called sheltered English immersion.
Where are the interviews with TESOL professionals, where are the visits to ESL classrooms, where are the interviews with students in their second or third year of English-language learning? Where is a balanced perspective? By reducing the Unz proposition to a simplistic referendum on bilingual education, you have done California ESL teachers and their students a grave disservice.
I wholeheartedly agree with Edgar H. Schuster's Commentary "Our Tests, Ourselves," April 8, 1998. Mr. Schuster argues that the assessment of students' knowledge can also indicate teacher effectiveness and content taught. Testing in its traditional sense is only one tool of many that can indicate learning and retention. Other "arrows in a teacher's quiver," as Mr. Schuster puts it, may include performance assessment, questioning techniques, assignments, and portfolios.
The fact that some teachers neglect their students' learning by reducing the number of strategies they employ is completely unacceptable. In a profession that must attend to students' individual learning needs, it is up to the professionals to lead their students in multiple directions to understanding and to be sure that those students are learning to the best of their abilities. If teachers are willing to offer less than 100 percent to their students, it is inconceivable that they could expect anything more in return.
As a former teacher and current graduate student in education, I am fully aware of the amount of work it takes to reach all students. I am also aware that those educators who commit themselves to their students' understanding, and who will settle for no less, make the best practice-teachers. These are the teachers that students respect, admire, and search out as personal role models.
After reading Mr. Schuster's Commentary, I realized that we need to constantly reflect upon and face the realities of the classroom. A test cannot be regarded as a universal assessment instrument in an orchestra of student, teacher, and curricular evaluation.
Three cheers for David H. Porter and other parents who recognize the importance of music study and insist that their children have a complete education that includes the study of music ("Music and Brainpower," April 29, 1998). Despite the overwhelming evidence that music makes a difference, many schools across America are shortchanging our children. When budget problems surface and tough curricular decisions have to be made, comprehensive and sequential music programs are often the first to be put on the chopping block. Those of us who care about our children and their musical and intellectual needs must speak up and take action.
Readers can obtain more information by calling our national office at (800) 336-3768.
The writer is a professor of music at San Francisco State University in San Francisco.
I read with great interest your article "In Texas, the Arrival of Spring Means the Focus Is on Testing," April 29, 1998. On page 21, there is a photograph of the flags flying outside the Los Fresnos district's central office. The district is proudly flying its "recognized status" flag under the state flag of Texas. Amazingly, however, Los Fresnos is flying the Texas flag upside down. (The red is supposed to be on the bottom, making the five-pointed star point toward the heavens.) Does this mean that Los Fresnos still considers itself "in distress"?
Perhaps it is unsurprising that Robert Slavin finds our Commentary on his "Success for All" program ad hominem ("The Diogenes Factor," April 8, 1998; "Slavin Responds to Essay's 'Ad Hominem' Critique," April 29, 1998). We merely point out, however, that as developer of a widely disseminated, revenue-generating program, Mr. Slavin may not be in the most disinterested position to evaluate the worth of competitive schoolwide-reform programs, including his own. When he ranks his Success for All program above the others, readers, not we, must draw their own inferences about the purity of motives that he claims.
Actually, our Commentary's focus was on the problems of research bias in program evaluations, particularly when developers evaluate their own government-sponsored programs. Success for All provides a good example. We pointed out that Mr. Slavin put forth only positive evidence for Success for All and left out negative evidence of his own and others. Success for All self-evaluations, moreover, employed subjects and assessment instruments favoring the program, and employed Success for All schools with clear advantages over control schools. These are substantive--not ad hominem--points, which Mr. Slavin ignores in his letter.
Mr. Slavin criticizes us for pointing out that independent, national Title I evaluations have shown little or no effect of the federal compensatory education program, which has expended more than $100 billion during the past quarter-century. We maintain, nonetheless, that it ill serves Congress, educators, taxpayers, and students to bury such research. Rigorous, independent evaluations are required to improve programs or terminate ones that consistently fail.
I was flabbergasted by Robert Slavin's response to Herbert J. Walberg and Rebecca C. Greenberg's Commentary criticizing the claims for Success for All.
Particularly disappointing was Mr. Slavin's response to the reference that a study by Richard Venezky of the flagship Success for All demonstration sites in Baltimore found that by the end of 5th grade the average Success for All student declined to almost 2.4 years below grade level. Mr. Slavin defended his program against what most would view as an educational disaster by saying that Success for All students did substantially better than control students and that Success for All does not guarantee that all students will reach grade level. To defend such a terrible result on the basis that control students were even worse off shows no regret for the terrible performance of Success for All students and a callous disregard for the achievement of students--especially given the high cost of the program. Mr. Slavin's characterizing the sharp decline of the average Success for All student after the 3rd grade as students not reaching grade level is so gratuitous and biased that it makes me question the accuracy of his other supposed research-based claims.
Mr. Slavin's failure to disclose the student decline in his published articles about the Baltimore Success for All demonstration site is hypocritical because he has long criticized other approaches, and Title I in general, as a failure because early gains were not sustained. He presented the schoolwide approach of Success for All as the cure. Clearly, the early gains of Success for All students were not sustained, and he should have labeled the experiment a failure. Further, this omission is dangerous because Mr. Slavin used his reported results from the Baltimore project to convince almost everyone that a largely homogeneous schoolwide intervention with a major focus on K-3 is the way to go, and that specialized programs are not needed after the 3rd grade and are ineffective. As a result, he has misdirected the field to overinvest in K-3 and divest itself of specialized programs, and he has inhibited investment in the development of better-specialized programs.
Mr. Walberg and Ms. Greenberg's criticism of Mr. Slavin for selective disclosure of results is valid and long overdue.
The example of an African-American teacher drawn by Jacqueline Jordan Irvine and James W. Fraser ("Warm Demanders," May 13, 1998) would probably finish her remonstrances to the boy, Darius, with words of encouragement and approval: "I believe in you, Darius. Now let's get this act together." To omit those words of affirmation seems to imply that negativity and harshness are the only indicators of the cultural differences demonstrated by African-American teachers.
The Commentary asks whether culturally responsive teaching styles are included in the process of national board certification. As an African-American, national-board-certified teacher, and as a member of the board of directors of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, I can give personal assurance that not only does the national board include intensive attention to cultural and ethnic differences in teaching styles, but it also seeks to recognize language barriers, teaching demographics, or historical inequities that might affect a candidate's certification.
Ms. Irvine and Mr. Fraser assert that the teaching practice of Irene Washington, presented in their Commentary, would not meet local or national performance standards. Since Ms. Washington is a hypothetical case, and we do not have a full measure of her teaching performance, we cannot draw conclusions. But the description of Ms. Washington's culturally responsive teaching style falls within the NBPTS standards' expectations regarding contextual practice. In fact, the African-American teachers who are now nationally certified teach across the full range of environments and use skills and styles appropriate to their students. I am confident that with continued conversations, the appeal of the board's already strong standards and assessments will grow among teachers of all backgrounds and teaching contexts.
Ms. Irvine and Mr. Fraser cite teaching behaviors of effective African-American teachers as employing a style filled with rhythm and response, as working as advocates for their students, using cultural experiences to link new concepts, using slang to relate to the lives of their students, and as teaching with authority and discipline to effect positive change. Not only do I, as an African-American who is board certified, employ all of these methods and more in my classroom, but so do most of the most effective teachers I have met, regardless of race, in my travels across the country as the 1997 National Teacher of the Year. An effective teacher must be culturally responsive to the students in his or her classroom, and the board has recognized and celebrated that fact since its inception.
Each set of NBPTS standards requires that accomplished teachers know their students well and practice in a way that best advances the learning goals of the students. Candidates for national certification must compile an extensive portfolio documenting their knowledge and analyzing their teaching skills in the context of knowing their students. Not only are multiple paths to knowledge allowed, they are required of accomplished practitioners. Accomplished teachers who respond to the needs of all students have a repertoire of strategies at their disposal and use them effectively.
As reported in the Commentary, African-American teachers have achieved national certification at a lower rate than candidates in other racial groups. In fact, because African-Americans historically have experienced differential pass rates in standardized and norm-referenced testing, the national board chose to develop and adopt a performance- and criterion-based assessment, hoping this new type of assessment would avoid sources of alleged bias observed on other tests. The board decided at the outset to confront head-on the issue of adverse impact in the development of its policies, standards, assessments and to support an extensive research program to identify and eliminate all potential sources of bias that could threaten the fairness of national board certification.
The national board has closely examined the outcomes of each assessment administration for sources of the adverse impact on groups. We were dismayed to learn that in our first few administrations, African-American candidates did not perform as well as other groups. Ms. Irvine and Mr. Fraser suggest several explanations for the lower certification rate: "racism that continues to assure limits on the preparation of people of color at every stage of their schooling; lack of mentoring and adequate professional development; culturally specific styles of writing and reflection; and racial interactions between assessor and candidate." Several of these factors are outside the responsibility of the NBPTS, but it has considered them all in an attempt to find either correlative or causative factors.
Part of the NBPTS's ongoing research focuses on assuring the equality of our standards and assessments across teaching contexts. Studies have examined interactions by race between assessors and candidates, the level of candidate support, writing demands in the assessment, demographic factors, and teaching context. None of these studies has revealed consistent or significant differences by race, teaching context, or educational background that explain the lower pass rate for African-Americans. Extensive studies of the scoring methodology have revealed no differences between the way white or African-American assessors score performances of white or African-American candidates.
Nevertheless, these studies have helped us strengthen the certification system. We have identified ways to make instructions clearer for all candidates. We have made everyone aware of the demands of the assessment process and disclosed scoring guides so that there is no mystery about the level or quality of performance necessary to achieve national board certification. We have encouraged and facilitated extensive local networks of support for all candidates. As noted by Ms. Irvine and Mr. Fraser, the pass rate overall has risen, and for African-Americans, it has risen at a faster rate in the four years in which the system of national board certification has been available.
Despite the fact that NBPTS-commissioned studies have revealed no bias in our work, and no clear indicators of what might underlie the differential pass rates of African-Americans, the national board is not satisfied with this differential outcome and has expanded its studies and other program strategies. We have raised, in fact, the very questions about valuing culturally responsive teaching raised by Ms. Irvine and Mr. Fraser. In 1996, Lloyd Bond of the University of North Carolina launched five studies, working with a panel that included some of the people referred to in the Commentary: Treana Adkins-Bowling, Ceola Baber, Gloria Ladson-Billings, Katy Dula (a national-board-certified teacher), Joyce Elliott, Michelle Foster, David Haynes, Tchaiko Kwayana (a national-board-certified teacher), Robert Linn, and Paul Ramsey. Mr. Bond reports that panel members were able to identify instances of cultural markers across performances, but not a consistent pattern of impact on teachers' assessment scores. The national board is continuing its investigations and welcomes the participation of additional experts.
The Irvine-Fraser Commentary asks the question of "who is setting and defining the standards," possibly implying the lack of African-American representation. The national board is an unprecedented coalition of teachers, school board members, administrators, governors, business leaders, and parents. A broad array of policies and procedures have been implemented to assure that racial, ethnic, and gender diversity is included in every aspect of its work. Forty percent of the NBPTS's 63-member board of directors, which creates the policies guiding our work, are members of minority populations; the largest number of these are African-Americans. The standards committees, whose task is to create the high standards of accomplished practice against which teachers are measured, number almost 500 educators, including a 25 percent minority membership. Similar levels of minority participation are found in the scoring system. These hundreds of outstanding educators have brought to the table exactly the sort of vigorous debate about including culturally responsive practice that Ms. Irvine and Mr. Fraser call for in their Commentary.
The mission of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards is to improve teaching by helping to create a professional place where accomplished teaching is encouraged and lauded. I believe in the potential of national board standards and performance assessments to improve teaching among all teachers--and thus, improve learning opportunities for all students. I am very proud to be a national-board-certified teacher and an active member of the board of directors of an organization that welcomes discussion, recognizes and honors diversity, and celebrates accomplishment and excellence.
The writer is a member of the board of directors of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards and was the 1997 National Teacher of the Year. | 2019-04-19T09:02:29Z | https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/1998/05/20/36letter.h17.html |
Shopping for an ADHD diagnosis?
One of the members of the ADD Forums discussion board recently claimed she knows a family who got a diagnosis of ADHD for their child to be able to enroll that child in a gifted program (see posts #42 and #52 of the thread “Re: Unwrapping the Gift of ADD” Program).
I find it hard to believe that there really are people who would do that. I have never met a parent who wanted their child to be diagnosd with ADHD.
Guest of the sixth lecture (Tuesday, April 29, 2008) in the Unwrapping the Gift of ADD series was Cathy A. Corman, Ph.D.
Cathy Corman, a former assistant professor of history at Harvard University, with a Ph.D. from Yale’s Program in American Studies, and a mother of triplets all of whom have learning differences and ADD, is a co-author of Positively ADD: Real Success Stories to Inspire Your Dreams , a book for 9 to 12-year-olds which she co-wrote with Dr. Edward M. Hallowell, published in 2006 by the Walker Books for Young Readers.
Corman discovered that there were no books for children about adults thriving with ADD, people who are happy in life, showing that ADHD doesn’t have to hold one back.
The people Corman and Hallowell interviewed for the book recall having lots of trouble in school, being kicked out of class, feeling ashamed and guilty, or flunking college. However, as adults, they have found a way to turn their ADHD into a “gift†– they come to terms with the diagnosis and found their strengths coming from it.
In closing, Corman emphasized that children with ADHD also need to find a passion, find something that’s fun and that they’re good at, just like the people profiled in Positively ADD: Real Success Stories to Inspire Your Dreams .
You can also read what another successful person (an attorney!) with ADD had to say about this show on the discussion about the series carried on the ADD Forums discussion board.
Guest of the fifth lecture (Monday, April 28, 2008) in the Unwrapping the Gift of ADD series was Dr. Peter S. Jensen.
Dr. Jensen earned his medical degree from George Washington University Medical School and currently is the CEO and Director of the REACH Institute, the Resource for Advancing Children’s Health, created “to accelerate the acceptance and effective use of proven interventions that foster children’s emotional and behavioral health†(formally launched in July, 2007).
From 1989 to 2000, Dr. Jensen was the Associate Director of Child and Adolescent Research at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and while at NIMH he served as the lead NIMH investigator on the six-site NIMH and Department of Education-funded study of Multimodal Treatment of ADHD (the MTA Study). He has also been involved with the follow-up study of children who participated in the initial MTA Study, the findings of which are discussed in a July 20, 2007 press release from the NIMH titled “Improvement Following ADHD Treatment Sustained in Most Children, But Linked Problems Persist Into Adolescence – Major Follow-up Study”.
Dr. Jensen is also a co-chair of the School Mental Health Alliance, “a coalition of over 25 organizations with interests in advancing school-based mental health services,†which in 2005 released a 37-page-long position paper “Working Together to Promote Academic Performance, Social and Emotional Learning, and Mental Health for All Children,†distributed to members of the Senate by Senators Pete Domenici and Edward Kennedy.
Last but not least, in addition to writing numerous articles for scholarly and academic journals, Dr. Jensen is also the author of Making the System Work for Your Child with ADHD (Making the System Work for Your Child) , published in 2004, by Guilford Press; co-author of Toward a New Diagnostic System for Child Psychopathology: Moving Beyond the DSM , published in 2006 also by Guilford Press, and co-editor of Parent Empowerment Advisors Guide (Improving Children’s Mental Health Through Parent Empowerment: A Guide to Assisting Families) published by Oxford University Press in 2008.
Later in the program Dr. Jensen discussed adult ADHD, and the need for practitioners to be adequately trained and educated in diagnosing adult ADHD which manifests itself differently than childhood ADHD, and might show up in being inattentive, impulsive, missing deadlines, and failing to make up to promises. He commented that even though the Civil Rights Law guarantees accommodations for people with disabilities, many individuals with ADHD are unwilling to admit that they have ADHD to their boss and co-workers and request for accommodations for the fear of losing their job. Yet, Dr. Jensen noted, even adults need to have a supportive team around them to succeed – their spouse, their family, their doctor, maybe a coach, and if possible an understanding boss and co-workers.
The idea that non-verbal autistics have low IQ in general and are unaware of their surroundings is a myth that has to be debunked.
Consider Amanda Baggs, featured in the article “The Truth About Autism: Scientists Reconsider What They Think They Know†by David Wolman in the March 2008 issue of Wired Magazine.
The 27-year-old Amanda Baggs is autistic and “non-verbal†– she cannot speak, but that does not mean she does not communicate. If it wasn’t for technology, nobody would know what she’s thinking, how she’s feeling, and, quite frankly, that she’s a pretty amazing person. Luckily, she can communicate through the DynaVox VMax computer and through her very powerful YouTube videos and her blog Ballastexistenz, has become an advocate for human rights for the disabled and for the acceptance of people like her.
Baggs’s “In My Language†video, “is a statement about what gets considered thought, intelligence, personhood, language, and communication, and what does not.†I hope you’ll watch it.
David Wolman’s piece also mentions an article by Michelle Dawson, Isabelle Soulières, Morton Ann Gernsbacher, and Laurent Mottron, titled “The Level and Nature of Autistic Intelligence†published in the August 2007 issue of the Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, published by Blackwell Publishing.
You can’t see the full text of the article unless you are a member of the Association for Psychological Science or have a subscription to the journal, but you can see the abstract.
Current APS President, Morton Ann Gernsbacher, the Vilas Research Professor and Sir Frederic C. Bartlett Professor of Psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a co-author of “The Level and Nature of Autistic Intelligence†wrote for the April 2007 issue of the Observer (also published by the APS) an article titled “The True Meaning of Research Participation†which is worth reading as well.
The association organizes an annual national conference, which this year will take place on July 10-13, 2008 at the Hyatt Regency Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Members of ADDA also receive FOCUS, the quarterly publication of the organization and have access to weekly teleclasses on ADHD.
Linda S. Anderson, current president of ADDA, also MA, MCC, SCAC, a member of the International Coach Federation (ICF), a Golden Circle member of the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO) and co-founder of the Philadelphia NAPO chapter, and founder of Getting Clear coaching practice, specializing in coaching adults with ADHD.
Evelyn Polk Green, MS.Ed, President Elect, a Past President of the CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) National Board of Directors, an adult with AD/HD and the mother of two sons, both of whom are also diagnosed with AD/HD.
The guest of the third session (Wednesday, April 23, 2008) in the Unwrapping the Gift of ADD Series was Kathy Kolbe.
Kathy Kolbe is the daughter of Eldon F. Wonderlic, a pioneer in the field of Industrial Psychology (cognitive testing) and founder of Wonderlic,Inc.
During the show, Kolbe recalled how she used to ask her father about his tests and questioned the premise and the importance of cognitive (or IQ) testing. She disagreed with the idea that someone’s intelligence is the most crucial measure of a person and wondered “how how smart you are can have anything to do with what you can do in this world.†She thought there’s more to a person than intelligence and her father suggested she go and try to find it out.
So she did and founded Kolbe Corp.
Kolbe emphasized during the show that everyone was created to be perfect at something, so there are no best (and worst) among us, we just have a different way of seeing and doing things. We all can be successful and happy in life if we have the freedom to do things the way that shows our strengths. We also have to allow children to do the same.
You can also read about this idea in Kathy Kolbe’s books: The Conative Connection : Acting on Instinct published in 1997; Powered by Instinct: 5 Rules for Trusting Your Guts published in 2003; and Pure Instinct published in 2004.
When asked why we need to know about “conation,†Kolbe answered that there’s a tendency to misidentify ADHD as a cognitive issue, when in fact, it’s just the matter of Modus Operandi.
While talking about schools, school rules, and curriculum Kolbe said something I found very interesting – that while 20% of general population has a tendency to insist on structure, following procedures, etc., as much as 70% of teachers are like that (because they instinctively choose a profession that is highly structured and organized).
Children whose MO is different from their teachers’ MO, suffer at school and are told that they have a problem, when in real world their tendency to multitask, be always “on the go†and skip the details for the big picture usually turns out to be a great strength.
Another interesting thing Kolbe said about schools is that it’s an environment where everyone has the same job, which has to be done the same way, every day after day, while in the real workplace there may not be much consistency, pretty much everyone does something different or in a different way and employees often need to switch gears, jump from project to project, etc.
Kolbe also talked about relationships and how a lot of conflicts are due to the fact that people don’t understand the “nature†of the other person and try to change them when in reality, that’s impossible and just makes the other person miserable.
To measure people’s Modus Operandi and help them explain what they’re good at, the company offers several “Kolbe Indexes/Instinct Assessments†which can be taken online (for a fee of course). You can see the questions and sample results without paying. If you don’t have much time to spend on the Kolbe Corp. site, at least view (listen to) the Sample Result for Youth (you have to allow pop-ups to be able to open that).
The guests of the second session (Tuesday, April 22, 2008) in the Unwrapping the Gift of ADD Series were Garret LoPorto and Rebecca Shafir.
Garret LoPorto, a successful entrepreneur with ADHD, is the author of The Da Vinci Method – Break Out & Express Your Fire , published in 2005, by (I believe) his own company, Media for Your Mind, Inc.
LoPorto shared that despite great social life in school he had a low self-esteem as a student and dropped out of college. When he started his own business, he realized the traits of ADHD which caused trouble for him in college were helping him be successful in his business.
Apparently on the Myers Briggs Personality Tests people like that are categorized as N (Intuition) types who intuitively “pay more attention to the patterns and possibilities that they see in the information they receiveâ€) and P (Perceiving) types who “use their perceiving function […] in their outer life†and prefer “a more flexible and adaptable lifestyleâ€).
LoPorto calls this combination the Da Vinci personality and as examples lists among others: Richard Branson (owner of the Virgin Empire), Bill Clinton, Ben Cohen (co-founder of Ben & Jerry’s), George Lucas (Creator of Star Wars), and others.
During the show Rebecca said that while the traditional neurofeedback methods requires on average 40 to 60 or more visits, with the LENS method the patients see improvement with an average of 15 sessions.
Dr. Hallowell pointed out that while both methods anecdotally have great results, it can’t be said that they are “scientifically proven†yet, because there have not yet been any double-blind studies done to prove their effectiveness.
The difference between both methods is that you can listen to the “Da Vinci Brainwaves†when and where you feel like it – you choose the CD and the time; but you have to monitor your reaction yourself – LoPorto cautioned to listen to only one rotation at a time.
With the LENS method you have to make an appointment and travel to the clinic, making it more inconvenient than the Da Vinci Brainwaves, but a trained technician monitors your brainwaves and can adjust the “feedback†as not to overdo the amount of stimulation.
One of the most recognizable people in the ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ) circles, Dr. Ned Hallowell, author of, among others, Driven To Distraction: Recognizing and Coping with Attention Deficit Disorder from Childhood Through Adulthood ; Delivered from Distraction: Getting the Most out of Life with Attention Deficit Disorder ; and The Childhood Roots of Adult Happiness: Five Steps to Help Kids Create and Sustain Lifelong Joy , and founder of the Hallowell Center is on a campaign for people to recognize and accept that ADHD is not a disability and hindrance but a gift that one has to unwrap.
Today (April 21, 2008) was the first of a series of eight one-hour lectures that he and Dr. Kenny Handelman organized to be aired on the Internet through their web site, www.unwrappingthegiftofadd.com.
What Dr. Hallowell and Dr. Handelman are saying is that looking at ADHD as a disability and pathology is wrong and leads to a “downward spiral†of thinking that “this ‘disorder’ is going to ruin [...] lives.†What they propose instead is thinking of ADHD as a gift.
During the first lecture Dr. Hallowell was saying that distractibility is basically a higher form of curiosity.
As far as impulsivity goes – Dr. Hallowell linked impulsivity with creativity which, as he says, depends, and in fact thrives on spontaneity and lack of inhibition.
It’s all very positive and hope inspiring. I think I should read “Find the Genius in ADD†at the beginning of each day to remember its message when my son makes a mess in the kitchen while getting too enthusiastic with vinegar and soda or carves with a nail a big heart and “I love you†on another piece of furniture (like he did on my antique dresser).
By the way, a guest speaker during the first lecture was Blake Taylor, an 18-year-old who was diagnosed with ADHD at five, who recently published a quickly-gaining fame book ADHD & Me: What I Learned from Lighting Fires at the Dinner Table , published by the New Harbinger Publications. He said that because his mother treated his ADHD as a gift from the beginning and motivated him, it made a difference in how he viewed his ADHD. Now, he’s a student at UC, Berkeley.
I already mentioned Beyond the Wall: Personal Experiences with Autism and Asperger Syndrome , by Stephen Shore, published by the Autism Asperger Publishing Company (AAPC), in the post “Understanding Autism (for Dummies, by Stephen Shore)†but I’d like to add a few words about it.
It’s an autobiography and while someone might think that writing an autobiography is an exercise in vanity, what makes this autobiography so interesting is reading about growing up and life in general from a point of view of a person with autism.
Overall, Beyond the Wall , game me a lot of “Oh, that’s why..†moments. Stephen Shore remembers (and writes about) events that happened when he was very young and pretty much non-verbal. He explains how he could not explain to his parents that the reason he hated haircuts was because he could feel each single hair being pulled and that it hurt. He also recalled how trips to a grocery store used to cause sensory overload because of the overpowering mixture of smells in the produce section and the flickering of lights overhead. After reading that I finally understood my son’s behavior whenever we go shopping – the sensory overload may be just too overwhelming for him and that’s why he goes “wildâ€.
Check it out, I hope you’ll find this book interesting and learn something new as well.
The term “spectrum disorder†is very important here, because the severity of the disability varies from person to person.
Stephen Shore places himself as a non-verbal four-year-old in the middle of the wedge – true, he was non-verbal, but despite not being able to talk, he was able to interact with his mother. The different shapes in the wedge are supposed to represent a variation in autistic characteristics – there is more variety among individuals with moderate autism in how they behave and which functions are impaired.
On the right side of the wedge are people with the so called “HFA – highly functioning autism†or “AS – the Asperger Syndrome.†At this point on the spectrum, the variation among people is the largest and each person’s autism might manifest itself in a completely different manner.
You can go to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention section “Autism Information Center†to see the full definition for each disorder.
3) restricted, repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interest, and activities.
The DSM makes a distinction between 299.00 and Asperger’s Disorder, which shares the code 299.80 with Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (Including Atypical Autism). But only the requirement for “qualitative impairments in communication†is missing from the definition for 299.80.
The most important word in this definition is “or.” To get a diagnosis of PDD-NOS not all three areas (social, communication, and behavior) from the autism diagnosis have to be impaired; it could be just one. So a child could get a diagnosis of PDD-NOS even if he or she was not exhibiting “restricted, repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interest, and activitiesâ€â€” the requirement for both the Autistic Disorder and the Asperger’s Disorder diagnosis. | 2019-04-22T19:06:04Z | http://giftedspecialneeds.com/?m=200804 |
Therapeutic protein formulation is no easy task. Biological drugs may be destined for prefilled syringes or glass vials, or they may be made into lyophilized powders that will be reconstituted in a clinical setting. No matter what their final state will be, recombinant proteins must remain potent and efficacious during storage. In recent years, pharmaceutical companies have turned increasingly to high-concentration protein formulations. Such drug formulations can offer patients the convenience of self-injection — instead of a trip to the hospital for an intravenous infusion treatment.
But these new formulations present a problem. Higher concentrations can exacerbate already existing tendencies for proteins to behave poorly. Such formulations are more likely to form aggregates that can reduce potency or even, perhaps, incite an immune-system responses. High-concentration formulations also tend to be more viscous, which can interfere with the plunging action of prefilled syringes. These principles apply to all proteins: monoclonal antibodies, vaccine components, enzymes, and so on.
“There’s no such thing as a well-behaved protein,” says Tom Laue, director of the University of New Hampshire’s Biomolecular Interaction Technologies Center.
Clinicians and patients are both pushing for subcutaneous delivery of biologic medications. Subcutaneous injection is easier to perform than intravenous injection as well as less expensive, and such drugs could be administered in a clinic or even at home, rather than in a hospital. A subcutaneous formulation must deliver the same dose of medicine in a 1-mL or 2-mL syringe that is delivered by a much higher volume of 250 mL or more in IV infusion — because intravenous formulations can be lower in concentration. Doses of 100 mg/mL or more are routine in the high-concentration field, but they can go much higher.
For an example of the competitive advantage that can come with a good formulation and delivery method, you need look no further than at drugs that target the proprotein convertase subtilisin/ kexin type 9 (PCSK9). This protein breaks down the low-density lipoprotein (LDL) receptors that otherwise remove excess cholesterol from the body. Pfizer, Amgen, Sanofi, and Regeneron all have clinical programs working with anti-PCSK9 antibodies. And Amgen recently announced that its drug reduced patients’ LDL by 55–66% in clinical trials. Alirocumab, in codevelopment with Sanofi and Regeneron, cut levels by around 47%. Those drugs are likely to be intended for patients who are unable to take statins or who have inherited high-cholesterol levels. Given the similar efficacy of the two antibodies, drug delivery is likely to be a key differentiator between them.
“The PCSK9 antibodies we’ve seen data for so far are not much differentiated in efficacy and safety,” Mark Purcell, an analyst with Barclays, wrote in a note to clients (4), “making dosing convenience a potential source of competitive advantage once multiple agents are on the market.” The companies are all developing injection devices that they hope will be easy for patients to use while minimizing injection volume.
Amgen is taking a dual track with a spring-loaded auto-injector and a disposable topical device. The latter will include an adhesive backing that allows patients to place it on their skin and then press a button to inject the drug. Sanofi is developing an autoinjection pen and a prefilled syringe, both of which it will be testing in clinical trials. Pfizer is also developing an autoinjector device.
In biotherapeutics development, selecting the right candidate proteins from discovery involves a number of physicochemical testing processes intended to eliminate molecules that could have formulation, delivery, or manufacturing problems later on. Often only small amounts of material are available for these analytical tests, and parameters such as viscosity and physicochemical stability of formulations become critical quality attributes (CQAs) that determine whether a molecule is selected for further investment.
Because most biological molecules are unable to withstand the rigors of gastrointestinal delivery, most are administered through intravenous, intramuscular, or subcutaneous injection. Concentrations of the active molecules must be high — typically ≥100 mg/mL — to compensate for short plasma half-lives. One major challenge is to develop high-concentration formulations (for maximum effectiveness) that can be injected at low volume (for patient comfort). High concentration of biopharmaceuticals often creates high viscosity and potential stability/delivery problems.
Determining viscosity at a very early stage is therefore crucial. A new instrument (Viscosizer 200) for such measurements combines ultraviolet area imaging with microcapillary viscometry to deliver rapid, high-throughput, and nondestructive viscosity and molecular size measurements for biopharmaceutical formulations. It is an early development from the Bioscience Development Initiative established by Malvern Instruments. Through that program, Malvern partners with industry and academia to rapidly identify and assess analytical problems and bottlenecks within biopharmaceutical development and manufacture, then to identify, prototype, and deliver solutions (1).
1 Lewis EN. How to Hit a Moving Target. BioProcess Int. 11(11) 2013: 42–46.
Other Applications: Even if the final drug product isn’t high in concentration, proteins can be at high concentrations during their manufacturing processes. For example, in ion-exchange column chromatography, the process-stream concentration may be kept high to reduce volume and speed up the purification process.
First and foremost among the problems presented by highly concentrated formulations are viscosity and aggregation. “Those are the two very big issues that everybody talks about,” says Bukrinski. Protein characteristics that affect the potential for both viscosity and aggregate formation include hydrophobicity, charge patches and dipole interactions, and self-association.
Burge agrees. “You just can’t go beyond a certain viscosity. Because they’re smaller than typical syringes, prefilled syringes need to have higher protein concentrations to meet dosage requirements, so their formulations have higher viscosities.” Viscosity also causes problems during manufacture and purification, for example by hindering filtration steps. “There, viscosity is a huge problem,” says Bukrinski.
Aggregated protein particles can gum up the works during purification operations, cause denaturation and thus affect clinical potency, or even prompt an immune response in recipient patients. “You want to make sure your drug does not associate in the formulation, or if it does, it does so in a reversible manner and dissolves relatively quickly,” says Laue.
“We don’t have a good understanding of the properties of aggregates that can lead to an immune response,” Topp points out, “so it’s difficult to pin down what to measure.” In fact, disagreement remains over the significance of aggregates, at least when it comes to immunogenicity. Biotechnology industry representatives have argued that aggregates were a problem in products such as antibodies and blood isolates, the earliest of which were less pure than today’s biologics. Those early problems, in addition to more current data, have regulators and researchers such as Topp concerned that immune responses are still an issue.
One example is pure red cell aplasia (PRCA) apparently caused by aggregates in Johnson & Johnson’s Eprex erythropoietin product, which is used to treat anemia associated with chronic kidney disease (5). Before 1998, three reports suggested that the product could cause an immune response against the therapeutic protein that could cross-react with endogenous erythropoietin. In 1998, Johnson & Johnson modified the formulation for products marketed outside the United States, replacing human serum albumin as a stabilizer with polysorbate 80 and glycine. By 2002, the number of reported PRCA cases had jumped to 112, so the company withdrew the product from the market.
An analysis suggested that polysorbate 80 leached molecules from uncoated rubber stoppers in Eprex syringes. Those leached molecules may have acted as adjuvants, encouraging an immune response. More recently, two cases of PRCA arose as a result of subcutaneous administration of the biosimilar epoetin HX575 to patients with chronic renal failure during a premarketing trial. That problem may have occurred as a result of tungsten contamination during syringe manufacture. The metal contaminant may have caused denaturation and aggregation, which in turn could have caused an immune response (6).
Measuring Aggregates: Such concerns have prompted the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and many biopharmaceutical companies to emphasize measuring aggregates in protein drug products, particularly focusing on the subvisible size range. Many analytical techniques are available for doing so, but they don’t produce consistent results across platforms. Methods include dynamic light scattering (DLS), resonant mass measurement, Coulter counting, microflow imaging (MFI, Figure 1), field-flow fractionation (FFF), atomic force microscopy, analytical ultracentrifugation, and nanoparticle tracking analysis.
A protein’s solubility and viscosity both depend on proximity energies at particle interfaces. Higher concentrations reduce the interstitial spaces, increasing the effects of proximity energies. Attractive and repulsive forces affect the tendency for proteins to stick together. Van der Waals interactions are repulsive and operate at very close range. Hydrogen bonds and various dipole interactions are attractive forces that must be minimized to reduce aggregation and viscosity.
Two forces can be either attractive or repulsive, depending on circumstances. Charge–charge interactions are repulsive for same electrical charges or attractive for opposite charges. Desolvation energy involves expulsion of solvent molecules (typically water) from the space between two particles as they push closer together. On hydrophobic surfaces in an aqueous solution, desolvation can occur very rapidly, bringing surfaces close together and heightening viscosity. But in the presence of carboxyl groups, water molecules form hydrogen bonds with protein surfaces and stay put. The water molecules then cannot displace one another, which creates a buffer zone between proteins and discourages aggregation, keeping viscosity low.
Excipients such as detergents can reduce protein– protein interactions by binding hydrophobic areas. Increasing salt concentration of a solution weakens all electostatic interactions. So adding salt may increase aggregation by weakening charge–charge repulsion or decease it by weakening dipole attractions. Dipolar excipients (e.g., arginine) raise the dielectric constant and weaken all electrostatic interactions.
“The methods can give conflicting results,” says Topp, “and no one really knows which is right. That makes it difficult to calibrate across instruments and makes the picture even more cloudy.” The problem is complicated by a lack of reference standards for protein aggregates in the relevant size range: roughly between 2 nm and 1 µm in size.
Larger particles can be detected using light obscuration, but this method is limited in range to those at least 1 µm in size. “It has been known for a long time that light-obscuration doesn’t catch all particles,” says Topp. At the other end of the scale, high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is adept at measuring small particles up to 5 nm — from monomers and dimers up to about multimers of 10 proteins or so.
Championed by ProteinSimple, microflow imaging uses digital microscopy and microfluidics to collect images of particles in solution. The ProteinSimple system creates a database of particle count, size, transparency, and morphology. Particles can be accurately sized at 1 µm and larger, with morphology quantitative at 5 µm and larger. But there remains a gap between 100 nm and 1–2 µm for which few reliable technologies are available.
Some new techniques are making inroads into that range. Nanosight nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA, Malvern Instruments) uses laser light-scattering to analyze particles in the 10- to 200-nm range. From a scattering pattern, the system’s software infers Brownian motion of particles, which in turn is used to calculate each particle’s hydrodynamic radius. The instrument measures each particle individually.
Another approach in this size range is resonant mass measurement, as represented by the Archimedes instrument, also from Malvern. According to the company, it detects and counts particles in the size range of 50 nm to 5 µm. As a sample flows through a microfluidic chamber, particles come into contact with a tiny cantilever that resonates with a specific frequency. The subtle shift in frequency caused by each particle allows calculation of that particle’s buoyant mass, dry mass, and size. Those traits allow the instrument to distinguish between protein aggregates and leachable contaminants such as silicone oil.
DLS can detect very small particles, but it can’t count them, and its results might be skewed because large particles can interfere with the light scattering of smaller particles. A mixture of particle sizes can muddy the results. On the other hand, techniques such as size-exclusion chromatography (SEC) and analytical ultracentrifugation can disrupt aggregates during the analysis. “What you measure may not be what you initially had in the sample,” says Topp.
Robustness — that is, repeatability with reliable accuracy — would be a boon to laboratories that struggle with irreproducibility of aggregate measurements. It’s challenging because aggregates are affected by many factors, including solution pH and the size and number of dilutions.
With all protein formulations, the choice of container is important. But it’s even more critical with high protein concentrations. Stoppers and needles might contain leachable components such as metals and synthetic polymers and additives that could seed particle formation or cause product degradation. Proteins can be the instruments of their own demise because they sometimes act like detergents.
At PepTalk 2014 in Palm Springs this past January, Wenjin Cao (Amgen, Inc.) presented “Mitigating the Challenge of Slow Reconstitutiton of Lyophilized High-Concentration Protein Formulations” based on teamwork with coauthors from Amgen, Gilead, Hospira, and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals. Cao explained that lyophilized highly concentrated protein formulations can take a long time to reconstitute, which can limit their practical use and commercial marketability.
Cao discussed a systematic approach to facilitating reconstitution of a 57-kD, 100-mg/mL Fc-fusion protein with stability issues that necessitated freeze drying. Many strategies can provide nominal improvement in reconstitution times: e.g., adding wetting agents to diluents, incorporating high-annealing steps in the lyophilization cycle, and reconstitution in a vacuum. Cao reports that reducing the diluent volume has significantly decreased reconstitution time by four to seven times for some highly concentrated protein formulations.
The team’s efforts to improve reconstitution time for their product included correlating lyophilized cake porosity with reconstitution time (and using diluents to shorten it); characterizing the lyophilization cycle (inducing mannitol crystallization to shorten reconstitution time); and exploring multiple reconstitution strategies (with half the fill volume and under vacuum). They found that reconstitution times correlate to cake crystallinity: Partly crystalline cakes reconstitute faster than amorphous ones. And highly concentrated formulations usually make for amorphous freeze-dried cakes — for which dissolution typically follows a slow erosion of the cake structure.
Ultimately, the team discovered that highly concentrated protein formulations need a lot of sucrose for sufficient stabilization. That translates to long reconstitution times, which made the formulations sensitive to reconstitution procedures, posing some difficulty in clinical settings. Some diluents (particularly high-concentration surfactants) reduced reconstitution time, but not significantly. Modifying the annealing step of the lyophilization process didn’t change crystallinity or reconstitution time much. But half-volume reconstitution did.
Types of Container: High-concentration protein formulations can present difficulties when used with parenteral devices. When such a formulation encounters the surface of a plunger, a barrel lubricant, or contaminants left over from device manufacturing (e.g., tungsten particles), aggregation could result (7). Metals such as tungsten can leak from even treated rubber stoppers. Glass prefilled syringes can introduce silicone oil droplets, tungsten, and container components that negatively affect proteins.
“It can be as innocuous as a few droplets of oil that don’t harm the patient,” says Burge, “or these things can cause real problems for the proteins that could make them less safe or [reduce] their efficacy.” Leachables are a significant enough consideration that companies such as Becton Dickinson and Vetter Pharma (both of which design custom syringes, auto-injectors, and other delivery vehicles) include a leachables profile along with each device they develop.
Excipients can help, but only a few are applicable for reducing leachables in parenteral formulations. Metal chelators such as ethylenediaminetetraacetic (EDTA) and diethylenetriaminepentaacetic (DTPA) acids can assist formulators with these problems, as can antioxidant amino acids such as methionine or cysteine. But better devices would present an ideal solution. “There’s more emphasis built into the device side now,” Bilikallahalli says, “trying to come up with more compatible systems that can carry a number of biologic molecules such as vaccines, cell and nucleic-acid therapeutics, and proteins.” Some efforts to coat needle surfaces to prevent leaching are also in progress.
In recent years prefilled syringes have gained momentum within the biopharmaceutical industry. Burge describes an industry-wide move toward them.
Meanwhile, transdermal microneedles are also gaining interest. Some studies have suggested that transdermal administration can lead to better uptake into the lymphatic system than traditional subcutaneous injection provides (9, 10). More studies need to be done on a broad range of formulations, but Burge suggests that current data indicate that this mode of drug delivery could have great potential.
Materials: Containers can be made of glass or plastic. The latter is popular in earthquake-prone places such as Japan as well as with companies desiring lighter-weight inventory. High-concentration formulations increase the potential for material loss. “Japan lost hundreds of millions of dollars to the 2011 earthquake,” Burge reports. Plastic syringes don’t shatter easily, and they can have fewer [different] leachable components than glass. European and American companies still mainly use glass syringes, but Burge points out that many acknowledge the associated challenges (8).
Plastic has its own drawbacks. It can be permeable to oxygen, and some proteins are more likely to adhere to a plastic surface than a glass one, which can potentially lead to instability or degradation. Terumo Medical is a leading supplier of plastic syringes and has amassed great experience in working with proteins.
Antibody–drug conjugates (ADCs) face some unique formulation problems. The same degradation pathways are likely to be found for both naked and conjugated antibodies, but the linkers that bind toxins to antibodies can be troublesome. Those links are not always stable, and their failure can cause free protein to leak into solution. In some cases, this may necessitate a lyophilized formulation.
Linker technologies generally use either the side-chain amino group of a lysine or the sulfhydryl side chain of a cysteine. The latter is typically more stable in liquid formulations because the chemistry that targets cysteines is more specific than that targeting lysines. As a result, when lysine is used, off-target amino acids can be conjugated to the linker. In a liquid environment, those tend to form less-stable covalent bonds than does cysteine, according to Juan Davagnino, senior director of biopharmaceutical development at KBI Biopharma. Depending on the chemistry used by a given conjugation, the formulation group can determine whether a liquid or lyophilized formulation will be necessary.
ADCs also face solubility issues. The more toxins are bound to an antibody — the higher the drug–antibody ratio (DAR) — the more hydrophobic the final product tends to be, and that reduces solubility. The number of links per antibody inevitably varies, so each product is a mixture of molecules with different numbers of toxins attached. Those with more toxins tend to come out of solution first, another factor that often leads to lyophilization as the formulation of choice.
Because of those issues, ADCs are seldom used at higher concentrations. So ADCs are unlikely to be used subcutaneously, according to Davagnino. However, high amounts are still required for dose-escalation studies.
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Those issues call for extensive screening of different formulations, extended development timelines, and sometimes even novel excipients not used with most antibodies. At present, all these novel proteins are still in early development at several companies, so for now, higher concentrations will be needed largely for their dose-escalation studies.
A number of excipients can be added to formulations to stabilize proteins by suppressing aggregation and surface adsorption. In liquid formulations, buffers with phosphate or histidine and a small amount of detergent can be useful. Excipients for lyophilized formulations include sucrose, trehalose, mannitol, and glycine, among others.
microbial growth inhibitors such as benzyl alcohol.
However, some researchers are pushing the field forward. Topp’s group is working on novel excipients designed to cover exposed hydrophobic residues on the surfaces of proteins. Their goal is to stabilize the native protein structure by preventing hydrophobic interactions that can lead to aggregation. These excipients — called artificial chaperones — mimic naturally occurring protein ligands, to act as a protective coating over aggregation-prone sites on the molecules.
The challenges of highly concentrated protein formulations are not likely to be resolved any time soon. Most of these problems are solvable, however; formulation troubles rarely undermine a drug development program to failure. However, they can add time and expense to that program, and ultimately they could limit formulation applications for some drugs. But new excipients, technologies, assays, and containers should help manufacturers circumvent these potential roadblocks.
They’d better, Burge warns. “I don’t think the pressure from clinicians or from pharmaceutical companies is going to go away.” Highly concentrated formulations are the inevitable next generation of parenteral biologics.
Based in Bellingham, WA, Jim Kling is a freelance science writer with a background in organic chemistry and over a decade of experience covering topics from biotechnology to astrophysics to archeology. His credits include WebMD, The Washington Post, Scientific American, Technology Review, and Science magazine. He also occasionally writes science fiction; [email protected].
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Thank you so much for providing such an informative article.
As a company specializing in high concentration formulation development, we agree that this is a problem for some development stage compounds and an opportunity for lifecycle management. Currently only three products have been approved at 200mg/ml but many other firms are interested in reaching these levels to fit in syringes or small pumps. Patients have rewarded innovators in IgG when they have reduced volumes and made chronic therapy easier. EXCELSE technology provides another option not mentioned in the article. | 2019-04-26T14:27:48Z | https://bioprocessintl.com/manufacturing/formulation/highly-concentrated-protein-formulations-351576/ |
Veterinarians who use homoeopathy and other natural therapies are finding that a large part of their work calls for the treatment of animals with allergies, particularly itchy or infected allergic skin conditions, for which these therapies are usually successful.
Most people have owned or known a pet animal that has suffered from an allergic skin condition and has required cortisone treatment to stop the animal chewing itself raw. A very occasional hit of cortisone is warranted to give relief while the cause is brought under control, if this is possible.
However, repeated or continuous use of cortisone is likely to weaken the animals immune system causing not only the drug to be less effective, but a variety of side-effects such as reduced liver and adrenal function, ending in illness and shortened lifespan. Symptoms of liver and adrenal stress are drinking excessive water, becoming depressed, overweight or bloated or getting frequent infections such as pancreatitis.
In some cases, antihistamines and essential fatty acids can reduce allergy but often are not dramatically effective. Dermatological desensitization injections can give good results in about 60% of cases but can take several months to work so the animal often needs to stay on cortisone in that time.
Happily, there are now significantly effective alternatives to this scenario.
Natural Diet is generally recommended by holistic practitioners. If the animal is given the type of food that nature intended it to have, then it will be much easier for the animal’s system to digest and process the correct nutrients in the optimal combinations for immune system health.
This approach to treating allergies is a cheap and easy thing the animal owner can do at home. We often have people phoning our clinic from distant country areas. Often, if we suggest a natural diet with adequate natural nutrient supplements, especially fatty acids, we can often solve their problem without the need to seek further professional help.
A natural diet can work in many cases at a simple level by removing from the diet such substances as colourings, preservatives and cereals which may be allergens, but also more importantly, allows a more effective uptake of nutrients such as fatty acids, zinc, selenium and many others which the immune system needs to function effectively. The more research is carried out into nutrition, the more we realise that nutrient uptake is a complex interrelationship between many components and factors of the food and the animal’s physiology. Only nature really knows best so as close as we can get to a whole raw carcass, the more suited it will be to a carnivore’s digestion.
The very act of a dog or cat chewing (or even growling and “attacking” ) raw meat and bone is thought to release endorphins and digestive processes which cause more effective digestion of food. Even the best quality dried and tinned dog foods on the market, although far better than the cheap ones, are not what nature intended dogs and cats to eat. Even though all nutrients may have been added and are listed on the side of the packet, they will not necessarily end up digested by the dog. Dried pet food is hard and cooked (for a long shelf life) and generally has a significant cereal content (cheap and again stores well). The problem is, dogs and cats eat only a small amount of cereal naturally, and they digest their nutrients best from not hard cooked food but sloppy, slimey, partly fermented gut contents of the carcasses they kill (mainly vegetable matter, very little cereal). In the case of dogs, also from rotting fruit, berries and herbivore dung from the jungle floor; all highly rich in trace elements, vitamins and fatty acids in a highly digestible form. To take the place of these in a modern diet, a combination of kelp, yeast, dolomite, flax oil and fish oil added to the natural diet of meat, veges and fruit, will supply the missing and essential nutrients. There are several ready-made products which are easier and often cheaper than making your own which can be bought from most vets, health food shops and pet supply shops, such as Missing Link, Miracle Mix and Powerblend.
To save you cooking especially for the dog, just keep a bowl on the kitchen sink. In it goes your left over muesli, fruit, low-fat yoghurt and cheese, egg, porridge, veges, salad, bruised fruit from fruit bowl, sultanas, over-ripe bananas and any other healthy left-overs. You can cook up lentils, beans, sweet potato, ordinary potato, carrots, spinach, broccoli, cauli, zucchinis etc. or better still pulp raw any of the above. Then add raw meat and offal, the kelp, oil etc. or a spoonful of the complete nutrient additives (as described above) and serve. A raw chicken wing or neck or raw lamb shank etc for a small dog or cat several times a week, or if you cannot find a raw meaty bone the animal will chew up thoroughly and safely, then a large raw marrow bone once a fortnight for a larger dog, will keep the teeth clean but not over-wear them, with dairy/soy products for calcium intake to replace not ingesting bone. Traditional Chinese medicine observes the fact that people and animals with certain personality types or with certain symptoms can benefit from specific balancing foods, which may help when choosing the meats, vegetables or fruits to be used. For example, very skittish, scattered animals would be better with beef, which comes from the slow, grounded cow, rather than chicken meat which comes from a skittish and scattered chook! Hot skin conditions, which feel hot or are worse in hot weather or require cooling to settle the animal’s itching, would benefit from cooling foods such as melons, grapes and salad rather than warming foods such as cooked vegetables. (For more on this see Cheryl Schwartz’s book “Four Paws Five Directions,” an excellent book on Chinese medicine for pet owners.) Obviously, we all know healthy looking animals who eat tinned and dried pet food, but their digestions are very efficient. Some animals may, therefore, manage fine on processed food or a combination of raw or cooked or processed. It is important that the diet suits the individual animal, regardless of theory, and also that the pet owner is not stressed or resentful of preparing their pet’s food ( animals are very sensitive to emotions – for more on this read Laura Esquivel’s book “Like Water for Chocolate”!). So for prevention, or especially if health problems are present on a processed food diet, then swapping to a natural diet is highly recommended in most cases.
Homoeopathy is the prime natural modality for treating chronic (long-term) skin conditions and other allergic symptoms. Choosing exactly the right remedy from the many hundreds possible is a fine art. A homoeopathic veterinarian or homoeopath experienced in treating animals is likely to successfully treat most cases.
Homoeopathy is the use of a highly diluted medicine which would in higher concentration actually cause the same symptoms that are to be treated. They work by gently nudging the immune system into healing itself of those same symptoms.
A homoeopathic remedy in general does not contain any of the original substance so cannot be toxic; the remedy works because the energy field or magnetic field or “fingerprint” of the substance is retained bound to the water molecule during the making of the remedy, which is achieved by shaking or “succussing” the solution.
(The presence of this energy field can be seen by placing a leaf on photographic film in the sun and observing the “aura” around the leaf left on the film).
For example, homoeopathic salt, highly diluted or ”potentised”, actually helps treat any symptoms similar to those that would be produced by an overdose or excess of salt, such as thirst and excessive water drinking, weakness, dry, itchy skin with hair loss and eventually anaemia or kidney failure. So some animals with a skin allergy and cortisone side-effects may fit these symptoms, as may an old cat with kidney failure with all these symptoms, so both may be improved with a homoeopathic remedy made from salt, even if the cause of the problem has nothing to do with eating salt, and the disease processes causing the same symptoms are different. It is the symptoms only that are important, regardless of what caused them. The remedy needs to fit as accurately as possible the list of symptoms of the patient, including personality, past diseases, emotions and physical symptoms.
The homeopathic consultation will therefore consist of asking the owner to provide many details about the animal’s personality, liking for different foods, habits and what makes the symptoms better or worse, so the owner who knows the pet best should be the one to attend the consultation. This is therefore a much deeper, more thorough and more individualized treatment than just giving the same conventional drugs to all patients.
Often, it will be noticed in the homoeopathically treated patient that they feel a lot better in themselves, behaviour often improves and other “unrelated” symptoms also resolve because the treatment is balancing and strengthening the whole body into curing itself instead of relying on a drug to just suppress certain symptoms.
we use kinesiology to diagnose and desensitize the animal to specific allergens (see NAET below). This method is particularly the treatment of choice for respiratory or digestive allergies, but has a high success rate for skin allergies too.
acupuncture is a good option for respiratory and digestive allergies but not so good for skin allergies.
Herbs can be very useful as a drug alternative, especially for animals whose systems are reliant on, and weakened by, long-term cortisone use, and are not yet vital enough to benefit from homoeopathics.
Many herbalists would use only herbs to treat skin.
I have found that particularly Chinese herbs can give a powerful and long-lasting effect even with a 2-4 week course, but it is essential that an individual and thorough Chinese diagnosis is made by a qualified practitioner for that individual animal, as Chinese herbs can be very powerful. The Chinese theories on different food types for individuals would fit in very well here.
Ayurvedic (Indian) herbs are gentler than Chinese herbs but can be very good for detoxification from drugs and again fit the personality and body type of the individual patient. They contain some common culinary herbs and spices such as pepper, coriander and tumeric, so lend themselves to incorporation with diet on an ongoing basis without much fuss. They do still need practitioner prescription to type the patient to start off with. (We are using these herbs increasingly in my clinic).
Traditional herbs, such as clivers, nettle, burdoch, dandelion, licorice and St. Mary’s thistle are easy to obtain, safe and are good for liver detoxification from drugs and to specifically treat the skin. Digestive allergies can be helped by slippery elm bark, agrimony, marshmallow, aloe vera and licorice. I find that other modalities, especially homoeopathy, are often needed to produce a long-term effect without the need for ongoing treatment, but are useful to use at the same time.
First-aid topical washes (to use until the problem responds to the internal treatments) are sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) baths, to which can added ; lavender oil or tea, calendula (marigold) tea or tincture, chamomile oil or tea.
Some older animals may present with allergic skin conditions secondary to underlying kidney, adrenal or liver degeneration. In these cases, treating with specific herbs for these organs can then benefit the skin.
Flower Essences are useful in cases where a major cause of the unbalanced immune system is a stressful event or attitude. Counselling regarding management of an existing cause of stress can often help.
I often notice while taking the animal’s history that the skin became worse after an emotionally upsetting event such as a car accident, another animal in the house dying, the owner separating from their partner etc. While homoeopathics are chosen with the emotions in mind (eg ignatia for after effects of grief, hepar sulph is associated with anger), sometimes we need flower essences or other therapies to deeply shift the emotional basis to a disease.
Flower essences are very dilute solutions of non-toxic flowers and are similar to homoeopathics in their great dilution and the fact that they work on the energy body initially, before having an effect on the physical body. There are many sets from different countries. The best known are the Bach flower remedies from England which have been in use since the 1930’s. The practitioners at the Bach Centre, near Oxford, have a 90% success rate in treating physical ailments by using Bach Flower essences for the specific emotional imbalances present in the patient.
I use many different sets (Bach, Australian Bush, WA Living Essences, Himalayan etc) and often there will be an essence from four or five sets in one bottle for an animal’s prescription.
Within a few days, the dog stopped licking his feet. In this case, the rest of the dog’s coat was normal, so diet was not so much an issue as the emotions.
Frequently we see, as in the case above, a correlation with the dog’s and owner’s emotional issues. In many cases it helps to point this out and much can be achieved with management of the situation rather than treating the animal which could be just a “symptom” of the family problem. In the above case, it would have been of more long term benefit to the whole household to get temporary help in caring for the baby, because the dog was merely drawing attention to the fact that the owner was not coping.
Sometimes just talking about the whole picture can achieve more than prescribing remedies for the animal.
Other modalities such as reiki, psychic healing and kinesiology can help with diagnosis and treatment of such cases in a holistic or “big picture” way.
Kinesiology, especially NAET (Nambudripad’s Allergy Elimination Technique is a very exciting new hands-on, totally drug free treatment which successfully treats allergy in about 80% of patients.
Kinesiology is a well known modality which involves measuring and strengthening the energy field of the body in order to improve health.
It is possible to detect if a substance weakens the energy field (and therefore is an allergen) by holding it against the patient and checking the strength of a particular muscle group, then rechecking without the substance to compare the difference. This is called Muscle Response Testing and in skilled hands is a very accurate alternative to conventional allergy testing and involves no needles or drugs.
A further technique has been developed by an American acupuncturist and chiropractor, Deborah Nambudripad, whereby it is possible to desensitize the body to the allergen by grounding the body’s energy field using a simple chiropractic procedure while holding the allergic item in the body’s energy field. This, in effect, conditions the body into being grounded or balanced in the presence of the allergen (instead of going into fright and flight or an unbalanced state which is what an allergic reaction is).
Normally, only about two or three allergens can be desensitized every five days or so. If the patient has a very long list of allergens, then it can take a few weeks to clear them all. It is possible with this therapy (unlike most other natural therapies) to keep the patient on cortisone until the allergens are cleared enough to reduce the need for them, although normally it is preferred to use the above natural therapies mentioned.
We use NAET (Nambudripad’s Allergy Elimination Technique) if homoeopathy, diet etc have not given good enough results, or if the patient cannot be withdrawn from cortisone at all. The really amazing thing about NAET is that it can desensitize to emotionally weakening sentences or thoughts, such as “I was the ugly puppy and I use my skin condition to keep me ugly” or “I am allergic to floor-cleaning products because my owner puts me outside when she cleans the floor and then I feel unwanted”. We have had many dogs literally stop itching twenty-four hours after such sentences have been cleared using kinesiology. The notable thing about this method is that many allergens turn out to be in and around the house; not the normal things on standard dermatological injection or blood testing kits (which are generally only plant pollens or insects). Also there are often emotional associations to these substances which need to be cleared to get results, which cannot be done with desensitization injections. | 2019-04-24T20:33:37Z | http://www.claremiddle.com/article-1-treating-allergic-dogs-and-cats-without-drugs/ |
The dispersal ability of queens is central to understanding ant life-history evolution, and plays a fundamental role in ant population and community dynamics, the maintenance of genetic diversity, and the spread of invasive ants. In tropical ecosystems, species from over 40 genera of ants establish colonies in the stems, hollow thorns, or leaf pouches of specialized plants. However, little is known about the relative dispersal ability of queens competing for access to the same host plants.
We used empirical data and inverse modeling—a technique developed by plant ecologists to model seed dispersal—to quantify and compare the dispersal kernels of queens from three Amazonian ant species that compete for access to host-plants. We found that the modal colonization distance of queens varied 8-fold, with the generalist ant species (Crematogaster laevis) having a greater modal distance than two specialists (Pheidole minutula, Azteca sp.) that use the same host-plants. However, our results also suggest that queens of Azteca sp. have maximal distances that are four-sixteen times greater than those of its competitors.
We found large differences between ant species in both the modal and maximal distance ant queens disperse to find vacant seedlings used to found new colonies. These differences could result from interspecific differences in queen body size, and hence wing musculature, or because queens differ in their ability to identify potential host plants while in flight. Our results provide support for one of the necessary conditions underlying several of the hypothesized mechanisms promoting coexistence in tropical plant-ants. They also suggest that for some ant species limited dispersal capability could pose a significant barrier to the rescue of populations in isolated forest fragments. Finally, we demonstrate that inverse models parameterized with field data are an excellent means of quantifying the dispersal of ant queens.
Copyright: © 2011 Bruna et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Funding: This research was supported by Grants DEB-0453631 and DEB-0452720 from the US National Science Foundation (http://nsf.gov). Publication of this article was funded in part by the University of Florida Open-Access Publishing Fund. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.
The approximately 14,000 species of ants (family Formicidae) account for roughly one-third of the world's insect biomass . The dispersal ability of foundress queens is central to understanding ant life-history evolution, and also plays a fundamental role in ant population and community dynamics, the maintenance of genetic diversity, and the spread of invasive ant species , , , . However, with the exception of a few well-studied species , , little is known regarding the distances queens typically disperse when they leave their colonies to found new nests or the maximum distances they are capable of dispersing (but see e.g., , , ). This is because techniques commonly used to track dispersing animals (e.g., mark-recapture methods, radio transmitters) are rarely applicable to ants given their size, the structural complexity of the habitat through which they disperse, and the difficulty in identifying and surveying all potential nesting sites. Though genetic techniques for estimating dispersal appear promising , , their application may be limited owing to their stringent assumptions and challenges in sampling intensively enough to accurately estimate dispersal.
The dominance of ants is particularly pronounced in the tropics, where in addition to their numerical superiority they are critical predators, herbivores, ecosystem engineers, and agricultural pests . Species from at least 40 genera of tropical ants also establish colonies in the specialized stems, hollow thorns, leaf pouches, or petioles of plants known as ‘myrmecophyes’; these ants defend host-plants against herbivores and prune encroaching vegetation , . Multiple ant species often vie for the same species of host-plant , , and vacant plants in which queens can establish colonies are a limiting resource for which there is intense competition , , . Theory suggests that interspecific differences in the dispersal capability of ant queens play a key role in the maintenance of diversity in these communities, either via tradeoffs between dispersal ability and other life-history traits (e.g., competitive ability, colony fecundity), or from the interaction of dispersal limitation with spatial heterogeneity in host-plant density (reviewed in ). Studies in multiple plant-ant systems have demonstrated inequities in the competitive ability of ant queens or colonies , , plant and colony distribution consistent with habitat partitioning and patch dynamics , , and patterns of colonization that imply dispersal limitation , , or interspecific variation in dispersal ability , . Nevertheless, drawing general conclusions regarding the importance of dispersal for plant-ant coexistence requires quantitative descriptions of dispersal for multiple ants competing for access to the same host-plants.
The biology of myrmecophytes provides a unique opportunity to circumvent the challenges associated with quantifying ant queen dispersal in other systems. The ant species that nest in these plants do so obligately, and each is associated with a limited subset of plant species . Consequently, all ant colonies in a site, as well as all nesting sites to which queens could potentially disperse, can be readily identified by mapping the distribution of host plants , . We mapped all individuals of the understory shrubs Maieta guianensis and Tococa bullifera (both Melastomataceae) in 9 hectares of primary forest in the central Amazon (Figure 1). These two plant species serve as hosts for three species of ant symbionts that nest exclusively in their domatia: Crematogaster laevis, Pheidole minutula, and an undescribed species of Azteca , , . Crematogaster laevis competes for access to host plants with both Azteca sp. and P. minutula (Figure 2), and it has been hypothesized that superior dispersal ability promotes its persistence in this system despite the inferior competitive ability of queens competing for access to host-plant seedlings , the poor defense colonies provides host-plants against herbivores , its low rates of colony persistence , and the high mortality rates of the host plants it occupies . After mapping all colonies of the three ant species, we transplanted vacant, greenhouse-grown seedlings of their host plants (N = 50 individuals of each species) into the central hectare of the plot and repeatedly surveyed them for colonization by ant queens (see Materials and Methods). These data, coupled with the location and size of established colonies, allowed us to estimate a probability density function describing the spatial redistribution of successfully dispersing queens (i.e., the ‘dispersal kernel’) of each ant species using ‘inverse modeling’ – a technique developed by plant ecologists to estimate the distances seeds are dispersed from fruiting trees , , . To our knowledge this is the first application of inverse modeling techniques to calculate the dispersal kernels of animals.
Figure 1. Map of established ant colonies and target seedlings.
Location and size of plants hosting colonies of Azteca sp., Crematogaster laevis, and Pheidole minutula and the location of experimentally planted seedlings (“trap plants”) of Maieta guianensis and Tococa bullifera.
Figure 2. Focal community of ant-plant mutualists.
Graphical depiction of the Amazonian plant-ant community used to quantify dispersal capability of ant queens. Values by arrows are the percentage of host-plants colonized by each species of ant in our 9-ha study site.
The median distance from colonized seedlings to the nearest potentially reproductive colony was significantly different among ant species (Kruskal-Wallis, H = 13.96, df = 2, p<0.001, Figure 3); experimentally transplanted vacant seedlings (hereafter, “trap plants”, analogous to seed traps used in plant ecology) colonized by Crematogatser laevis queens were significantly further from reproductive colonies than those trap plants colonized by queens of either Azteca sp. or Pheidole minutula (Steele's Nonparametric Multiple Comparison Test , Table 1). However, this is not because established C. laevis colonies were located further from trap plants. There was a significant difference among colonies of the different species in their proximity to trap plants (Table 2), but P. minutula colonies were actually further from trap plants than those of C. laevis (average distances from trap plants to colonies: Azteca sp.: 116.09 m±59.84 SD, C. laevis: 130.88 m±60.60 SD, P. minutula: 137.59 m±53.69 SD, Figure 4). Instead, our inverse models suggest C. laevis queens establish colonies furthest from natal colonies. Assuming a log-normal kernel (see Materials and Methods), the modal dispersal and colonization distance of Crematogaster laevis queens is double that of Pheidole minutula queens (40.1 m and 18.9 m, respectively) and eight-fold that of Azteca sp. (5 m; Table 3, Figure 5). The kernels also had very different shapes (Figure 5), suggesting that the maximal colonization distance of C. laevis is approximately 80 m, while queens of Azteca sp. may be capable of infrequent movements in excess of 400 m.
Figure 3. Distance from colonized seedlings to the nearest reproductive ant colony.
Histograms of the pairwise distances from each colonized trap plant to the nearest reproductive colony of the ant species that colonized it. A) Pheidole minutula: mean pairwise distance = 10.91 m±5.26 SD, B) Crematogaster laevis: mean pairwise distance = 37.49 m±25.92 SD, C) Azteca sp.: mean pairwise distance = 12.30 m±6.53 SD.
Figure 4. Pairwise distances from established colonies to trap plants.
Histograms of the distance from trap plants to colonies for each of the three focal ant species. The X axis shows the percentage of all colony-trap pairwise comparisons. A) Pheidole minutula: mean colony-trap distance = 137.59 m±53.69 SD, B) Crematogaster laevis: mean colony-trap distance = 130.88 m±60.60 SD, C) Azteca sp.: mean colony-trap distance = 116.09 m±59.84 SD.
Figure 5. Dispersal kernels for three species of Amazonian plant-ants.
Dispersal kernels (i.e., probability density functions describing the spatial redistribution of queens around reproductive colonies) for ant queens obligately nesting in Tococa bullifera or Maieta guianensis. These kernels are scaled for a colony housed in a plant of the median size observed in our 9-ha study plot.
Table 1. Result of Steel's Test comparing the median distance of colonized trap plants to the nearest reproductive colony for all pairwise comparisons of ant species.
Table 2. Nested Analysis of Variance comparing the average distance of trap plants to colonies of the three ant species (Crematogaster laevis, Azteca sp., Pheidole minutula) mapped in our 9 ha study site.
Table 3. Maximum-likelihood parameter estimates (MLE) and 95% support intervals (SI) for inverse models estimating the dispersal kernels of three mutualist ant species nesting in two species of Amazonian ant-plants.
We were able to estimate the shapes of effective dispersal kernals for queens of three ant species. The dispersal kernel for Crematogaster laevis had the greatest mode, suggesting that it generally disperses further than either ant species with which it competes for access to host plants. However, our results also revealed the potential for long-distance dispersal events by Azteca sp. That potential partner ant species differ significantly in their capacity to disperse to and colonize host-plants plants may help explain patterns of colonization and ant colony distribution previously observed in this and other , , ant-plant systems. Along with the lack of specialized entrances to domatia (i.e., “lock-and-key” mechanisms, sensu ), interspecific differences in dispersal and colonization success may also be important mechanisms inhibiting the evolution of further specialization in ant-plant systems, in which there are often large differences in the quality of defense and host plant fitness associated with different ant partner species , , , .
It has previously been suggested that smaller body size, and hence flight muscles, may explain why the Pheidole minutula queens have lower dispersal distances than those of Crematogaster laevis; the same appears to be true in other ant-plant systems . However, the Azteca sp. queens have the lowest modal dispersal distance of these three species, despite being similar in size to C. laevis. Given the potential for long distance dispersal by queens of Azteca sp., we hypothesize that this shorter modal dispersal distance instead reflects their superior efficiency at finding host plants. Testing this hypothesis will be challenging – it remains a mystery how plant-ant queens in flight identify host-plant seedlings against a backdrop of hundreds of other plant species , . However, it is likely they use a combination of visual and olfactory cues, as is the case with phytophagous insects . Indeed at short distances, queens have been shown to use volatiles emitted by plants to discriminate host-plants from closely related but non-myrmecophytic species , , . It may be that Azteca sp. queens have the ability to detect these volatiles at greater distances than their competitors, superior abilities to identify the shape of plants and the characteristic venation patterns of host-plant leaves, or both.
It is notable that the modal ant queen dispersal distances we estimated with inverse models are shorter than the average distances inferred using other techniques , , and well below the potential dispersal capacity suggested by observations of ants in novel or experimentally created habitat patches , . If host plant density is greater in our sites than in other systems, then queens might only be required to disperse short distances to find vacant host plants. A more likely explanation, however, is that previous studies have overestimated dispersal. This could result from not exhaustively mapping all potential source and destination host-plants in a site , , thereby missing many short-distance dispersal events.
Our study has two important caveats. First, it was conducted entirely during a three month period during the dry season. Little is known regarding the environmental cues that stimulate the nuptial flights of ant queens in tropical forests , but the colonization of seedlings by Pheidole minutula in our field sites appears to be closely linked to precipitation (; see also for evidence from Peru of similar seasonality in colonization of Cordia by Allomerus octoarticulatus). If this seasonal variation in host plant colonization by P. minutula is common, then caution should be taken in estimating the total number of colonizations per year using our data. Second, we could be overestimating dispersal distances for all three species if queens arrive at experimental seedlings but left without attempting to colonize them or died prior to entering domatia. The low density of vacant plants , probably makes it extremely costly for a queen to disperse again once she has arrived at a host-plant seedling, and extensive field observations indicate that upon arriving at a seedling queens of all three focal taxa immediately shed their wings and attempt to enter domatia (HLV and TJI, personal observation). Some queens will probably die prior to colonizing the seedling on which they land, however, and there is some experimental evidence that P. minutula successfully enters domatia at a higher rate than C. laevis . It is therefore possible that using colonization of trap-plants by queens as a proxy for dispersal means that our results are conservative estimates true dispersal ability, especially for C. laevis. If so, our estimates of dispersal might best be called ‘realized dispersal’, i.e., dispersal followed by successful colonization , .
In conclusion, our results have implications for the study of plant-ant diversity in tropical ecosystems. First, tropical forests are increasingly fragmented by human activities, which isolates populations of ant-plant partners . The mating system of social insects makes them particularly susceptible to inbreeding , and isolated populations are frequently smaller than those in unbroken forest . If the distance separating fragments proves a barrier to dispersal for queens of some species, this will increase the likelihood that isolated populations of ants and their host-plants could suffer the detrimental effects of demographic, environmental, or genetic stochasticity . Second, a critical but rarely documented requirement of some mechanisms that promote coexistence in ant-plant communities is that poorer competitors or habitat specialists are superior dispersers. Our results are consistent with this hypothesis, but also suggest that attempting to categorize species as “good” or “poor” dispersers when testing models of competition-colonization tradeoffs is overly simplistic – is the best disperser the one that has the greatest potential dispersal distance or the one that dispersers further on average? Finally, we show that an inverse modeling approach can help overcome the challenges in quantifying ant dispersal in structurally complex habitats, not the least of which is the difficulty in documenting rare long-distance dispersal events .
All research was conducted with the approval of Brazil's National Council of Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq, Permit Number 276/2005) and the Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA, Permit Number 226/2005).
Fieldwork was conducted January–September 2007 in Reserve #1501 of the Biological Dynamics of Forest Fragments Project (BDFFP). This 1,000 ha reserve is located 70 km north of Manaus, Brazil (2°30′S, 60°W) and is embedded in a large (>10,000 ha) expanse of primary forest. The habitat is non-flooded lowland rain forest, with a 30–35 m tall canopy and an understory dominated by stemless palms. Soils in the sites are highly acidic and nutrient poor xanthic farralsols with poor water retention capacity . Annual rainfall ranges from 1,900–3,500 mm per year, and there is a pronounced dry season from June–October .
Tococa bullifera (Melastomataceae) is an understory shrub that grows to a maximum height of 2–3 m. It has two pouches at the base of each leaf in which ant queens establish colonies , . Maieta guianensis (Melastomataceae), also an understory shrub, grows to a height of 1.5 m , . It has highly dimorphic paired leaves, with a pair of foliar pouches at the base of the larger leaves in which ants nest. In our study sites two ant species are associated with M. guianensis; most plants contain colonies of Pheidole minutula (95%), with the remainder occupied by Crematogaster laevis (5%). The ant associates of T. bullifera are an undescribed species of Azteca (67%) and Crematogaster laevis (∼33%) (Figure 2). These frequencies are similar to those reported in previous surveys conducted in our field sites . Although a previous study conducted in our study sites has treated the Azteca species that colonizes T. bullifera and M. guianensis as the same one colonizing the sympatric myrmecophyte Cordia nodosa (Boraginaceae), this appears to be a misidentification resulting from the use of worker morphology to differentiate species. The complex taxonomy of Azteca requires using queens to distinguish species ; differences between Azteca queens from C. nodosa and those from T. bullifera in size, coloration, the shape of the propodeum, and the number of propodeal hairs strongly suggest these are distinct species (T. Izzo, unpubl. data). Although seedlings of both plant species can harbor incipient (i.e., non-reproductive) colonies of more than one ant species, adult plants house just a single colony of only one species. In addition to scavenging for insects on the leaf surface, resident ants tend coccids for honeydew inside domatia , .
From January–July 2007 we demarcated a 9-ha plot at reserve 1501 and then marked and mapped all Maieta guianensis and Tococa bullifera in the plot (Figure 1). For each plant we recorded the identity of its ant resident estimated its size by counting the number of domatia bearing leaves. We mapped a total of 217 M. guianensis (n = 10 with Crematogaster laevis colonies, n = 207 with Pheidole minutula colonies) and 79 Tococa bullifera (n = 26 with C. laevis colonies, n = 53 with Azteca sp. colonies).
Because colony size in Amazonian plant-ants is limited by the number of host-plant domatia , we used domatia number as a proxy for colony size. To estimate queen production as a function of colony size we destructively sampled 67 Tococa bullifera with Crematogaster laevis, n = 83 T. bullifera with Azteca sp., n = 87 Maieta guienensis with C. laevis and n = 101 M. guianensis with Pheidole minutula, all from nearby locations outside of the focal study area. Of these, 9, 9, 11, and 36 colonies (respectively), were reproductive. We used these reproductive colonies to estimate the relationship between colony size and queen production (Table 4); linear regression provided a better fit to the data than non-linear models (results not shown).
Table 4. Results of linear regressions testing for a relationship between the number of domatia a plant has and the number of queens counted in that a plant.
We then established an array of greenhouse-grown seedlings in the center of the 9-ha plot (Figure 1). The array was composed of n = 50 M. guianensis (for colonization by Pheidole minutula or Crematogaster laevis) and n = 50 T. bullifera (for colonization by Azteca sp. or C. laevis). Seedlings had at least two fully expanded leaves with domatia and were arranged in a grid with species alternating and plants separated from each other by 10 m. Seedlings of T. bullifera were grown from seeds collected in Reserve 1501 and germinated in a shade house in moist sand; because of the difficulty in germinating M. guianensis seeds we collected vacant M. guianensis seedlings in the reserve and transplanted them to containers filled with local soil and maintained in the same shade-house. From July–September 2007 we surveyed the target seedlings 15, 35, and 90 days after transplanting to record the presence and species identity of queens. All queens found were removed to allow for subsequent colonization, which previous work has shown does not influence the probability of re-colonization . There were n = 17 colonizations by C. laevis, n = 23 by Azteca sp., and n = 25 by P. minutula. Crematogaster laevis colonized n = 15 of its 100 potential host plant seedlings (15%), while Pheidole minutula colonized n = 17 out of 50 (34%) and Azteca sp. colonized n = 17 out of 50 (34%), while the remaining events were repeat colonizations of individual seedlings.
We used inverse models , parameterized with the observational and experimental data described above to characterize the colonization of host plants by queens of our three focal species. This method assumes that observed spatial variation in colonization of host plants by queens is a multiplicative function of queen production, which is based on the size of potential queen sources (i.e., host-plant size), and local dispersal, which is modeled with a dispersal kernel that accounts for proximity of the sources to experimental host seedlings. For thorough reviews of inverse models and their construction, assumptions, and application see , , .
The total number of dispersing queens, t, produced by a colony was estimated as a linear function of the number of domatia its host plant has as follows: (1)where the parameter a determines the steepness in the increase in queen production with the number of domatia, and b determines the intercept of the domatia-queen production relationship.
where d is the observed distance between the colony and the vacant host plant seedling, X0 is the distance at which maximum recruitment occurs (i.e., the mode of the dispersal kernel), Xb determines the breadth or spread of the dispersal kernel, and η is a normalization constant equal to the arcwise integration of the dispersal kernel .
Combining local queen production Q and the dispersal kernel results in a model for the potential number of queens in trap plant i over the course of our sampling interval: (3)where tk is the number of queens of k = 1…n colonies within the maximal dispersal distance (in meters) suggested by our model in the 9 ha plot, dik is the distance from host plant i to source plant k, and f() is the lognormal dispersal kernel. For all analyses we assumed that the expected density of queens in a host plant follows a negative binomial distribution, reflecting the high degree of clumping observed in the data . We used simulated annealing, a global optimization algorithm, to find the parameter values that maximized the likelihood of observed recruitment densities. We also calculated asymptotic 95% support limits for all the parameters. These Analyses were conducted using R v2.9.2 statistical software and the packages “Likelihood 1.3” and “NeighLikeli 1.0”, as were all statistical analyses.
We thank Scott Powell, W. Getz, and three anonymous reviewers for comments on the manuscript and Emilia Zoppas de Albuquerque, Wesley Dáttilo and Osmaildo Ferreira da Silva for assistance in the field. The BDFFP staff provided invaluable logistical help; this is publication 582 in the BDFFP technical series. Data used in this paper have been archived at Dryad (www.datadryad.org): doi:10.5061/dryad.h6t7g.
Conceived and designed the experiments: EMB BDI HLV TJI. Performed the experiments: TJI. Analyzed the data: EMB MU BDI HLV TJI. Contributed reagents/materials/analysis tools: MU. Wrote the paper: EMB BDI HLV MU TJI.
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Is the Subject Area "Species colonization" applicable to this article? | 2019-04-22T00:18:14Z | https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0022937 |
BG now has its 13th commitment for the Class of 16. This young man is very familiar with the Doyt, since he is the brother of Aaron Foster, a BG CB/S who had an INT in the championship game over NIU. He started all 14 games in his senior season and had an NFL tryout with the Cowboys.
Evan is 6'1" and 190 pounds and projects (I would imagine) at S, based on the write up above. His only offer at this point was from EMU.
Welcome to the Falcons, Evan.
BG continues to be active on the recruiting trail with early commits, lining up two more that I picked up over the weekend.
The higher-ranked of the 2 is TE AJ Garson of Oxbridge Academy in West Palm Beach. Oxbridge Academy is college prep academy (but not a post-graduate one). The Academy appears to be a pretty high end operation. AJ played TE and LB, but this article from a local paper (where much of the remainder of the information was also gathered) says BG plans to play him at TE.
Why. Well, he's 6'6" and 230 pounds and runs a 4.7 40. If that's something you might be interested in.
He is a 2-star recruit on Rivals with offers from Cincinnati, Colgate, Oregon State and Idaho.
The other is Cameron Jefferies, a slot WR and CB from Riverside HS, which is in Painesville, OH. He is not ranked on Rivals, which projects him at DB, which would also be my guess. Based on the article, he wasn't getting any feelers until he had a couple good camps and then BG and UT both offered him in short succession and he decided to commit to BG.
He's only 5'9" which he feels limited his recruiting, but he has still reached his goal of playing D1 football. His profile on 24/7 sports reports that he ran a 4.4 40-yard dash.
AJ, Cameron. Welcome to the Falcons.
Can't express how proud I was a minute ago to see Richaun Holmes picked #37 (early second round) by the Philadelphia 76ers, and they show highlights of him playing in the Stroh. Richaun has truly earned his way here, and it was privilege to have him at Bowling Green. Thanks to him. And I think we have created a few 76er fans in Northwest Ohio. Richaun, you are forever in our hearts.
So courtesy of the Sentinel, the ramifications of the May 29 night at Liquid continue to land on the BGSU football program. DB Will Watson has been charged with a misdemeanor assault and has been suspended indefinitely.
Bryan Thomas was charged with felonious assault and was suspended indefinitely as well. WR Robbie Rhodes was charged as well, though I have not heard anything from the team on his status. Maybe I missed it.
Anyway, I'm not going to belabor the point. These all stem from one incident, and I made my point here about this type of thing.
He is from Shaker Heights and played WR and DB, but apparently projects to WR at BG. He actually committed last year, then de-committed.
He then signed to play at the University of Cincinnati. Apparently, that didn't happen and he is taking classes at Lakeland CC to shore up his academics. This report from a UC blog says he did not qualify academically.
His plan is to enroll in BG in January 2016 and be ready to roll for spring ball.
The Falcons landed a verbal yesterday and according to Rivals, he is a 3-star player. His name is Odell Spencer and he plays for Shaker Heights over in the Cleveland area.
According to rivals, he is our 2nd 3-star player---the other is Chance Weitz.
Spencer was listed at 5'10", 165, in the article cleveland.com did on the last signing day about players to watch for the next signing day. In the article, they said he had "terrific speed off the line and [is] very athletic."
According to Rivals, he had offers from Old Dominion, Akron and Buffalo.
During his junior season, he had 33 receptions for 461 yards...a 14.6 yard average. He scored 4 TDs, and 2 of them came in their final game of the season. His best game was against Parma where he caught 9 passes for 82 yards and a TD.
He played on a good team--they went 8-2 last season.
Welcome to the Falcons, Odell!
This is a guy who clearly can contribute on either side of the ball.
So....Welcome to the Falcons, Odell!!
Some summer excitement for Falcon fans will come tomorrow during the NBA draft. Why, you might add, when the last Falcon picked in the NBA draft was in 1998 and the last MAC player drafted was Chris Kamen in 2003.
The answer is that Richaun Holmes is making a run at being drafted...according to this compilation of mock drafts on Hustle Belt, he could go as high as 36. Whichever, there seems to be a consensus that Holmes has played his way into being drafted following the end of his career at BG.
He has a site on NBA.com. You really should check it out...in addition to the ability to spin Richaun round and round, you can learn that he is actually 6'10" (BG listed him as 6'8"), has a 7'2" wingspan, 36" vertical jump and 9% body fat.
That's right. 9% body fat.
NBA projection: Holmes showed NBA teams what he could do against a higher level of competition when he averaged 14.7 points, 6.3 points, 3.7 blocked shots and 2.0 steals in the Portsmouth Invitational, thus earning him a spot in the Chicago pre-draft combine. He’s got a chance to wind up on an NBA roster because of his defensive ability, but also his improvement as a face-up offensive player.
Also, there's a very compelling story from NBA.com about Holmes' improbable journey to where he is today. Note credit to Louis Orr for seeing the talent and recruiting them, and then note the credit given to Coach Jans for getting the obviously talented Holmes up to the next level.
"It was a huge culture change," Clapacs [former BG DBO] said. "He had never been pushed that hard in his life, or worked that hard in his life. But coach Jans didn't have to ride him. Once Richaun bought in, he was bringing it hard every day. When he broke through those barriers, that's when he took off."
Holmes' senior-year numbers—14.7 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.7 blocks—weren't drastically different than the season before. But his field-goal percentage jumped from .507 to .563, and his 3-point percentage, a barely acceptable .300 as a junior, soared to .419.
I'm not going to lie. I would not have expected this to happen when BG's season ended in late March. I never really thought of Holmes as an NBA player, maybe just because it is so rare in the MAC and he was a good player but never the best player in the conference. I figured he would have a very productive career in Europe, but would never have guessed he would even be discussed as a draftee.
Which shows what I know, though I would ask you if you thought he would be drafted in March. I will be watching and pulling hard for him on Thursday. Drafted or not, he is a Falcon forever and always in our hearts. Thanks for being a Falcon, Richaun.
The Falcons have a new verbal, this one is Drew Beesley, a 2-star (Rivals) player from Warren, MI, where he attends De LaSalle Collegiate High School. All the recruiting sites list him as an "H-TE" which means he's an H-back, which is a means he's a hybrid player who plays in the backfield and catches passes. However, he was very productive as a DE in HS, and I find it a little hard to believe he won't play that at BG. Anyway, time will tell.
He's good sized...6'3" and 220. He had offers from Air Force, UT, WMU, NIU, EMU, and Ball State...so obviously a valued player. (I saw a CMU offer, too).
Also, and I think this is important, the Air Force offer indicates strong academics. Drew is at least the 2nd player BG has gotten with service academy offers. It will be interesting to watch the class develop as it relates to academics and how that might reflect the priorities of the coaching staff.
While he put up modest numbers at tight end, eight catches for 120 yards with a touchdown, he shined on the defensive side of the ball with 60 tackles, 19 solo, and 20 tackles behind the line of scrimmage.
He finished the season with five sacks, a forced fumble and eight quarterback hurries.
He was a well-honored player, earning all-Catholic, Central Division, honorable mention-All metro, a Macomb County All-Star and honorable mention All-State.
He is the second "ranked" recruit for BG in this class, which now consists of 9 commits.
Welcome to the Falcons, Drew.
There's an additional update on the website for the men's basketball program, and that is the fact that Jovan Austin is no longer listed. He now joins his JUCO teammate Delvin Dickerson as being one of two players not returning after the Jans departure. I don't know what happened. There was a lot of turmoil and he basically announced he was leaving and then he was back and now he's gone, so I am going to assume something in there didn't work out right.
The other point is that Ismail Ali...the JUCO PG from earlier this week, is now the backup PG to Pep Joseph.
The ramifications continue to spread from the May 29 fight that has already resulted in criminal charges and the suspension of Bryan Thomas, a Falcon defensive end. Today we learned that charges were filed against WR Robbie Rhodes from the same night in what authorities believe are related incidents. This is a little convoluted and I don't want to confuse the issue, so I recommend you read the account from the Sentinel directly.
Robbie Rhodes transferred here from Baylor after he was dismissed from the team for "multiple drug related incidents", per ESPN.
I expect our program to win and to represent the University in a good light--not a perfect light, but a good light.
And as I said with the Bryan Thomas post, no one should be satisfied with the string of incidents related to our football program.
There is no word on how the charges will impact Rhodes on the football field.
As trumpeted on social media, BG landed two more football verbals yesterday, bringing the total up to 8 players so far.
The first is Andrew Armstrong of Youngstown Cardinal Mooney. I know I have written often about how glad am I when we get guys from Pittsburgh, but let me say the same rule applies to Youngstown. My guess is those guys are going to be harder to get with Pelini in town, but these guys are raised on a culture of football.
Also, for all the talk about the State of Bowling Green under Clawson, Babers is getting more results in Ohio than Clawson ever did.
Armstrong played TE and S at Cardinal Mooney. However, a tweet from a BG assistant referred yesterday (without names) to getting 2 LBs, so I am going to guess that is where they are projecting Armstrong. Hustle Belt tells us that he is 6'2" and 215 lbs, and had offers from Bucknell, Colgate, Holy Cross and Robert Morris.
Young man is a ball hawk. He had 5 interceptions and two of them were pick-sixes. He was one of only 4 underclassmen on the Divison IV all-district defensive team. He was also special mention all-state. He also played baseball and basketball...my bias for multi-sport athletes is also clear.
The other young man is Jerry Judd of Streetsboro, which is north of Kent and east of Hudson. According to Hustle Belt, Judd is 6'1" and 190 pounds and played QB and LB for Streetsboro. I am guessing he projects to a LB at BG. He was very productive at QB, He was the team's leading rusher with over 11 yards per carry and 1,500 yards and a ridiculous 25 touchdowns. He also threw for 1,200 yards and 10 TDs as well. He also had 40 tackles, 3 sacks, 2 INTs and 1 pick six.
He was first team Division IV all-district and special mention all-state. (He received similar honors in basketball).
Again from Hustle Belt...he had no specific offers but strong interest from Toledo, Ohio, Navy, Air Force, Youngstown State, and James Madison.
One last thing...when you look at the other offers, you can see that there are very likely no academic issues with these two.
Welcome to the Falcons, Andrew and Jerry.
BG has filled its last open men's basketball scholarship with a PG from California. His name is Ismail Ali and he played for Antelope Valley CC in the California Community College Athletic Association. As you can see, he's 6'1" tall. As a sophomore he started 25 of their 29 games and had 6.3 assists per game over 2.4 turnovers. Also, he was playing on a team that scored 83 per game, so that has to be taken into account. He scored about 9 points per game, shooting 44% and 42% on 3FG, although they were rare.
In HS, he scored 10 PPG and had 4 assists in his senior season. You can see here what some scouts said about him as a HS player...article also says that he had mid-major interest while in HS.
One other interesting tidbit above. Ali will be the fifth straight PG from Antelope to play D-1 ball. BG has two PGs back next year, but both are seniors, but Ali can help provide some transition into the next year. Also, Joseph and Austin have both played 2-guard from time to time.
Welcome to the Falcons, Ismail.
Update: It appears that Ismail will be the backup PG, as explained in this subsequent post.
Good news on the football front for a former Falcon. DJ Lynch was a mini-camp invitee for the Patriots. Being a camp invitee is really tough. You don't have a contract and you are already behind the actual UDFAs. Normally, nothing is heard again after they go to camp.
Which makes the case of DJ Lynch notable. Lynch has been signed by the Patriots as a UDFA, which is excellent. Thought the same thing when Chris Jones went there...when the Patriots are interested in you, that's a good sign. Still a tough job to make the roster as a UDFA, but its an accomplishment even to get onto the field. Go get'em DJ. You are always a Falcon and forever a champion.
So. When last we spoke....well, things were not so good. There was a lot of turmoil around the Jans departure, which was a traumatic event. A website called verbalcommits.com listed, as various times, that 7 of BG's players were leaving the program.
The roster has been updated now on the website, and it indicates that BG has lost one player...Delvin Dickerson. Jovan Austin had his release, seemed to be leaving...then we heard he wasn't and he is still on the roster.
The others reported to be leaving? Denny, Gomez, Tisdale, Parker. Still on the roster.
I never really wrote very much on the "departures" because I don't like to talk about our players--who are people--unless it is something I observed or is from a 3rd party post. Even when verbalcommits has a commit, I look for something that confirms it...usually the player's own twitter feed. (Once, even this got me off the right path, but enough about that).
I have no idea...for all I know those guys did intend to leave at some time. Until they have a release, they aren't going.
Anyway, BG did lose two of the three signees. Jalone Friday went to Abilene Christian--and Jamir Andrews is going to Albany. Malik Hluchoweckyj stayed with BG...and then Demajeo Wiggins and Wesley Alcegaire signed are on the roster and Antwon Lillard is committed but is not on the roster yet.
F: Wiggins, Parker, Worrell and Mayleben.
Obviously, you have a big hole down low, which is something we knew was going to happen but got worse with Dickerson leaving. Some of the guards--Tisdale, Lillard, Denny--have the ability to play 3... but not 4.
Two early keys. I thought Josh Gomez improved late in the year. If Huger can give the the old Big Apple to Big Apple coach-up, that would be huge. And we have not seen a lot out of Rasheed Worrell so we don't know what to expect, but any contribution from him would be big.
The team will still have 4 seniors and 4 juniors, so not too young. Anyway, lots more to come on that in the future, but for now that's the state of play as I know it.
The NCAA has adopted new NCAA rules for men's basketball. I think there are some interesting things and, if implemented, will help to make the game more enjoyable and have less downtime.
The change that is getting the most play is the move to the 30-second shot clock. BG played in the CIT last year, which used that kind of clock. I didn't think that it made that much of a difference...and in fact I don't even think it caused more potential. For too many teams, offense is pound the ball for 30 seconds and then run a 5-second play, so we get 5 seconds removed from that. Maybe some of the other rules changes will help improve that, too.
The change that is getting the least amount of attention is that coaches will no longer be able to call time out during live play. For those of us who are old this falls under the category of "this is how it used to be" but it will make a big difference. The best example will be coaches calling timeout like crazy during a scramble for the ball on the floor and getting the TO when their team gets possession for an infinitesimal period of time. Also, on inbounds plays it will make a big difference. Essentially, someone on the floor will have to be aware enough to call timeout or get instruction from the bench to call time out. I'm 100% for this change. Teams that play good defense should not have to deal with offenses bailing themselves out.
Speaking of timeouts, another long overdue change has to do with timeouts. The number of timeouts in the 2nd half of a game are ridiculous and unnecessary. What is going to happen is that teams will only be able to carry over 3 timeouts to the 2nd half...and this is an improvement. The other improvement is that when a timeout is called within 30 seconds of a scheduled media timeout (or after), than this is counted as the media timeout. This is also long overdue. You used to have situations where a team called a timeout, you sat through the timeout and then at the next whistle there was another timeout.
These are exactly what the game needs. The NCAA started with them last year, but the games were ridiculously foul-heavy and I sensed that they backed off. I am totally in favor of all these things. The game will thrive with more freedom of movement and if there's an adjustment period with fouls, so be it. Similarly, the setting of screens has gotten incredibly bad and officials seem to call a quota of two moving screens a game just to say they did. Players are commonly leaning into screens or not set or even moving with the defender, especially when the ballhandler drives around the screen.
The game can be so good and if players are making plays in space with movement and passing it will be much more entertaining.
Some exciting news from the MAC as it relates to TV coverage for football and basketball. This is very exciting news for the MAC as it continues to garner more TV coverage, which coaches swear helps recruiting. I am not sure what is meant by a "sublicense" but Jeremy Guy of the MAC has tweeted that both ESPN and CBS will broadcast mid-week games.
First, as there are more sports channels, it would stand to reason that they need content and the MAC is right there to provide it. I'm glad to see the conference stepping up and making sure we are included.
Second, as long as we are suffering (as live fans) through the weekday games, at least this gets more benefit out of it.
Finally, along the lines of the football recruiting benefits of TV, more national basketball telecasts would hopefully do the same.
Hannibal First Team All-State defensive back Jerry McBride makes a verbal commitment to Bowling Green. Falcons are getting a good one.
Some good news for the Falcon football program, as they received another verbal commitment--this one from ATH/CB Jerry McBride III of Hannibal, MO. McBride is 6'0" and 194 pounds with a 4.49 40-yard dash. He is reported to have had offers from Ohio, North Dakota, and Western Illinois. Notably, BG's new DC came here from WIU, so you wouldn't be surprised if there was a linkage in there somewhere.
Hustle Belt spoke to McBride, and he said BG has told him he will be a Safety when he gets to the Doyt.
He was a very productive player. In fact, as a junior he was first-team All-Missouri and KQHA's Iowa-Missouri Defensive player of the year. He is reported to have generated the following numbers.
57 tackles, 8 takeaways, 5 Interceptions, including a pair of pick-six interceptions during his Junior Year.
So, is that something you might be interested in?
Welcome to the Falcons, Jerry.
So, on top of the Thomas news, here is a tragedy. The father of BG WR Ronnie Moore was shot and killed over the weekend in Florida. You can check out the circumstances and the reaction here, but it is a total nightmare all around. Condolences to Ronnie, his family and loved ones.
And we're official. Bryan Thomas has been indefinitely suspended from the #BGSU football team. Announced today by Dino Babers.
#BGSU football: Bryan Thomas has been indefinitely suspended from #Falcons football team. Charged w/ felonious assault over weekend.
@Thomas_Schmeltz Suspended #BGSU football player Bryan Thomas is listed in Wood County jail on $50,000 bond, charged w/ felonious assault.
That's an ouch, partly depending on how long the suspension lasts and partly not dependent on that at all.
On the dependent side, Thomas, who was recently awarded a 6th year by the NCAA, was a key returnee on a defense for which that is a scarce resource. He was the only BG player on any of Phil Steele's top 4 defensive All-MAC pre-season teams and the Falcons were relying on him as one of the few proven players on defense. If he does not play this year, a tough situation gets tougher.
The non-dependent part is that the Thomas situation is part of what has been a regrettable string of negative stories for the football team. I'm not going to catalog them because that's been done enough, but suffice it to say that it is too many and it is something no BG fan should be satisfied with. We expect our program to be successful and be good representatives of our university, and we're not getting that done right now.
More as more is learned.
BG's men's basketball team picked up another commit for the '15 season, helping to rebuild after losing two recruits and Delvin Dickerson from last year's players and commits. This young man is a wing player who appears to match best as a SG. He's Antwon Lillard, who is 6'5", 170 lbs and a highly decorated player. He played at Cleveland Central Catholic, where he was the leading scorer at 18.9 PPG.
He was the Division II District Player of the Year, and first team All-Ohio. He was also first-team cleveland.com for the area.
If you google Antwon, the thing you will find most of all is that he was the player who was called for hanging on the rim on what appeared to be a game-sealing dunk in the state final, giving Defiance the victory.
First, he took his team to the state final. Second, that's something that happens but it doesn't negate or frankly even touch what he did as a HS player in Ohio. Whether he ends up being a great MAC player will be revealed in time, but it doesn't have anything to do with one play in a state title game.
Welcome to the Falcons, Antwon. | 2019-04-21T15:01:57Z | http://orangeandbrown.blogspot.com/2015/06/ |
Formula One is like a game of snakes and ladders - the object is to get to the end, get to the goal, but along the way there are things that can help push a driver forward to the goal, and there are things that can slide a driver backwards, down and away.
With just twenty racing seats in the series, just getting into Formula One is now a goal in itself, but the ultimate ambition of any racer is to take the title, as any of thousands of interviews will attest - any driver when asked will say that he wants to be the Formula One World Champion, whether his abilities are sufficient to the task or otherwise.
Ability will help you to get there, but luck will always play a part - every driver needs to come across a ladder in their career, all the while looking out for the snakes. Kimi Raikkonen had a manager he trusted to help him move up, but it wasn't until Peter Collins told David Robertson "you should take a look at this guy - he is good"; wasn't until Robertson paid for a year in Formula Renault; wasn't until he told Peter Sauber what he'd been told himself; - that the ladder appeared. Even talent needs a ladder, a step up along the way.
But we can't judge luck, we can't measure it against another's luck and make an empirical decision about its worth. What we can judge is talent, how it manifests itself, how it makes itself known.
Ferrari have come in for a beating this year for failing to live up to their recent past, for failing to dominate Formula One as so many people have become accustomed to them doing. In a way the team have been a victim of their own success, but the comparison needs to be against their competitors and not their history, and in that comparison Ferrari are coming out behind.
By racing in a version of last year's benchmark car, no matter that it's a highly modified version, and failing against the competition shows more irrefutably the levels of improvement in Formula One year on year than any collection of words could. Put plainly, the car that was the class of the field has been improved, but the competition has come up with new cars that make their own older ones look like a different, lesser, series.
So it's clear to see that Ferrari have found a snake - their modifications weren't good enough, nor those of their effectively exclusive tyre manufacturer Bridgestone - and the decisions they are making with the new car bear the hallmarks of plans made in haste.
The old car wasn't quick enough, but it was reliable and known - Rubens Barrichello pushed it onto the podium from a lowly start in Melbourne, through a combination of familiarity and dependability - while the new car, rushed to the racetrack to answer the improvements of the other teams, seems fast but fragile, lacking in the bulletproof consistency that has been a hallmark of Ferrari's cars this decade.
Perhaps it's to be expected that Ferrari would slide backwards one day - no team dominate a sport forever, no collection of people can excel permanently - but what of their drivers? Barrichello, once derided for his impetuous nature which manifested itself in wildly differing performances, has been fairly metronomic in his driving this year - he is not improved, he is not sliding back, he is driving at Barrichello level, which despite the thoughts of his critics is better than a number of his competitors week in, week out.
His drive in Melbourne from eleventh on the grid to second was flawless, an example if it were needed of the level Barrichello performs at after so long at the heart of the Ferrari machine, when the competition doesn't perform to perfection. His Malaysian qualifying was indicative of the reduced abilities of his team against the others, but nonetheless he managed to push his recalcitrant machine into the points before its untimely demise, while Bahrain was a further indication of the decline of his team.
Schumacher, on the other hand, has underperformed relative to his own, admittedly towering, history, even taking into account Ferrari's slide. Caught out by the weather in qualifying in Melbourne, the expectation was of a masterclass of overtaking and pure racing ability, such as he has provided so many times in the past.
That he struggled comparatively to his teammate was clear, but his part in the collision with Nick Heidfeld was amateurish at best, a possible indication that so many years at the front of the grid have dulled his ability, or appetite, for wheel to wheel racing in the pack. In Malaysia too he looked anonymous, following Barrichello at some distance while he was in the race, and then taking advantage of retirements to scrape a points finish.
Against this is Bahrain, of course, when a fast but fragile new car allowed him to compete from the front after qualifying, until his first car malfunction in years took him out of the event. The performance was what we expect of the seven times Champion, but not enough to outweigh the poor performances of the opening two rounds. While it is safe to assume that Schumacher will improve over the season, at present he has found a short snake backwards.
In comparison Renault have found a large ladder, and they are climbing it with gusto. Three pole positions, three wins and a commanding lead in both Championships are all the proof needed.
Fernando Alonso too has stepped up after sliding backwards last year in comparison to then teammate Jarno Trulli - his storming drive through the field in Australia was second only to Barrichello's equally meteoric rise, while his dominant performances in Malaysia and Bahrain point to a young driver who has found the maturity needed to pair with his already sparkling pace.
Giancarlo Fisichella's start has been markedly different to his teammate. A lucky result in qualifying gave him a race result on a plate in Melbourne, where the Italian's composure shone through - while his race looked simple on the outside, a quick look at the laptimes shows that, when needed, Fisichella could increase his performance at will to keep a steady gap behind him to his pursuers.
This composure abandoned him in Malaysia, however, when struggling with an ill-mannered car threw Fisichella into the clutches of the pack. There was no sign of his maturity in an ill-conceived attempt to keep a fast charging Mark Webber behind him, sliding through the dust off the racing line and into the chasing Williams. An awful second qualifying session in Bahrain is all that we have to look at for the weekend given his car problems in the race, but the season so far has been a slight backwards step from pre-season expectations.
Toyota's ladder has been almost as high as Renault's. While performance at the top is different to that further back - the fiercer the competition, the more difficult it is to take the fractional improvements on offer and utilise them to positive affect - the fact that Toyota have leapt out of the backmarker pack and are now competing towards the front is proof positive of a genuine rise.
Jarno Trulli, long derided for his lack of race results in underperforming teams until a stunning first half of 2004 regenerated his career, has improved again this year, running as comfortably at the front as he did all those years ago in Austria driving a Prost that had no business leading a race but nonetheless was.
A fortunate qualifying result in Melbourne flattered to deceive, with a tyre-chewing rear end pitching Trulli back into the pack, but the level of improvement both team and driver could force upon the car was an indication of the steps forward both have made. Top three qualifying results in the next two races were no flukes, and Trulli annexed second place behind a better car, and ahead of other superior vehicles, on talent alone. Results this year have shown the Italian has stepped up into the top flight of drivers.
On the other side of the garage Ralf Schumacher has seemed to be marching on the spot. It's a harsh representation, but for a man hoping to come in and dominate a team in the manner of his brother, he has been handed a beating by his less fancied teammate. Trulli has long been considered a master of qualifying, which has gone against him when his car wasn't able to manage the race performance he coaxed out of it in a fast lap, but the comparison in qualifying was always going to be a harsh one for Schumacher.
Unfortunately for the German, his race performances have been similar to those seen in his past; he looked ordinary fighting for position in the first two races, and while Bahrain was a marked improvement in that area he has always managed to compete on his day, albeit inconsistently. In a field full of ladders and snakes, young Schumacher has rolled the dice and landed on neither, but he will need to take a step up soon if he wants to be more than a speck in his teammate's mirror.
After an off-season more notable for the battle over the second race seat than for impressive laptimes, Williams bosses admitted that all was not well within the team in respect to pushing the car forward. Problems with the new windtunnel were the main culprit, and the team sheepishly confessed that a lot of the work would need to be reconsidered.
It was a surprising admission, yet more remarkable was the turnaround in performance between the last few tests and the first few races - for a team who were so harsh in their self-criticism, their performance looks worthy at least of podium finishes at present, which against recent times has to be seen as at least a slight step forward.
The question has been whether, after the much-discussed dispensing of former drivers Juan Pablo Montoya and Ralf Schumacher, Williams had the driving talent to push the team up the grid. Both Mark Webber and Nick Heidfeld have looked impressive in their former teams while driving in the midfield, but what people wanted to know was could they transfer this talent into the front end furnace.
Webber has always looked as though he would end up in a front running team, and now it has come to pass. With a qualifying talent comparable to Trulli - he has put a wayward Jaguar on the front row of the grid - this season was going to show if he had a racing ability to match.
So far he has lost a spot at the start in his home race but was unable to find a way past a slower car on a narrow track, run at a strong, podium level pace and overtaken cars before being taken off in a racing incident, and defended strongly but ultimately futilely against a clearly faster car. Against this he has had a car with a detuned engine for at least one race, and been driving with a broken rib that just last week forced him out of a test early because of the pain. A push, then, but Webber will need improvement from both his team and himself.
Heidfeld and Webber seem to be alternating in performances - the German slipped backwards in Melbourne, was there to pick up the pieces after Webber dropped out of Malaysia, and was the innocent victim of an engine problem in Bahrain. While Heidfeld has been slower than his teammate, the gap is not huge, and if anything the competition between the pair has been entertaining to watch. However, like Webber, Heidfeld will need to improve his game if the team do.
On pure speed, McLaren have stepped up a level from an incredibly disappointing 2004, but the team haven't been able to show it when it counts. Third driver Pedro de la Rosa showed this by claiming the fastest lap in Bahrain, but changes to the tyres have meant that McLaren are as yet unable to generate enough heat into their rear tyres in qualifying to push the drivers up the grid and give them the opportunity to fight at the front. Until they solve this problem, the step forward is a small one.
Kimi Raikkonen's season with a misbehaving car last year has given him the ability to wait for a race to come to him, and the podium in Bahrain was due reward for his patience. His driving has been solid rather than inspiring, but car problems and wayward driving in Melbourne, and a tyre blowout in Malaysia, have conspired to make his results look less than they otherwise might. Bahrain was a good race for the Finn, but at present Raikkonen is largely meeting expectations, rather than exceeding them.
Teammate Montoya is not yet performing at Raikkonen's level - any driver new to a team can be expected to struggle slightly in his new surroundings, but for a man tipped for Championship glory the results have been disappointing. Montoya was unruly in Melbourne and appeared sluggish in Malaysia, running off the pace of his teammate despite picking up points in both events. For a top line driver in a pace-setting car his performance has not been up to expectation, although his off track injury ahead of Bahrain has denied us the opportunity to see if an improvement is underway.
Of all of the teams, BAR had found the longest snake, falling well away from their top line performances of 2004. BAR are the only team to have failed to reach the finish with either driver in any race, and when their drivers have been on track they have generally been down the order before the onset of car problems. In testing they've shown the pace they've been missing in public, but there are no prizes for winning outside of the races.
Given these problems is it hard to evaluate just how the drivers have performed - other than in Melbourne, where both drivers were pulled into the pits a lap before the end, Jenson Button has 51 race laps, Takuma Sato has 28, and fill in driver Anthony Davidson a mere two.
Button and Sato spent most of the Australian race sandwiched between the Sauber pair, while they both struggled in minor points positions in Bahrain before succumbing to car problems. Sato appears to have come to terms with his teammate's race speed, which indicates a small step forward, but with insufficient laps and an ill-performing car the only thing that is certain is that the team's current woes are not induced by their drivers.
In stark contrast, Red Bull have turned around the inadequate performances of last year's Jaguar to put the team far higher up the grid than anyone gave them any prospect of reaching. With a new management organisation, as well as a lot of change of personnel in the team, the improvement can't be attributed to any one thing, and the only question mark will be how long they will last against competitors with far more resources at their disposal.
David Coulthard is used to running at the front of the field and has used that experience to be one of only two drivers - the other being Alonso - to have scored in every race this year. In many ways, the move to Red Bull has done Coulthard wonders; he looks refreshed and happy, and that has translated into better performances on track. A fortunate qualifying session in Melbourne was filtered through experience into points, while some strong showings in the next two races point to a step up from the underperforming McLaren driver of last year.
Christian Klien has possibly made an even larger step up from the surly, wayward driver of 2004 - this year's model seems to have opened up and looks to be even enjoying himself after a year where he seemed at times to be in the paddock against his will. Two solid points' finishes were an indication of the move forward Klien has made, while a breakdown on the grid in Bahrain was merely unlucky ahead of handing over the drive for the time being to Vitantonio Liuzzi, rather than a reason to sulk. Their advertising seems to be true - in motor racing at least: Red Bull does seem to give you wings.
Sauber, having had their wings clipped when their sponsor turned competitor, are on a slide down the grid this year. Propping up the back of the grid is not where the team wanted to be when they commissioned the new windtunnel and supercomputer for their design team and, a lack of sponsorship notwithstanding, the sudden slide in performance is as alarming for the team as it is surprising for everyone else.
The most obvious change in a team who pride themselves on consistency is Jacques Villeneuve, whose loss of form is less blip, more nosedive, even after an erratic 2003. The Canadian looked lost at sea filling in for the final three races last year, and if anything has fallen back since then, admitting as much to reporters in Malaysia.
After a lucky break in qualifying in Melbourne he dropped like a stone in the race, finishing the race behind teammate Felipe Massa, who had started at the back of the grid. In Malaysia he was again off the pace before throwing the car off the road in the race, while in Bahrain he outqualified only the Jordans and Minardis before following his teammate around in the race. With question marks over his continued future in Formula One, it just remains to be seen how long the snake Villeneuve has found will stretch.
Massa is perhaps being flattered by the poor performance of his teammate, but it is hard to tell how well he is driving without an effective yardstick. His drive in Melbourne was impressive, jumping up to thirteenth on the first lap in a very heavy car and holding on for a tenth place finish, while a points finish in the ill-handling car in Bahrain and keeping Michael Schumacher behind him until his first stop in Malaysia were notable achievements. The results point to a small step up, but it is hard to point to more until he has some competition from the other side of the garage.
Behind Sauber is the second race, the effective Scholarship Class of Formula One. Jordan and Minardi are unable to hope for more than to race against each other this year, somewhat through problems of their own making.
Jordan have been sold to the Midland Group, who have stated that they will put in the bare minimum of funding this year ahead of a re-launch as Midland in 2006. They've been true to their word - all three drivers are bringing funds to the team, there is apparently no one looking for addition funds in the form of sponsorship, and with a large number of staff having left in the off-season, the team are relying on the input of a number of inexperienced ex-Carlin Formula Three mechanics and engineers, which has resulted in the inevitable slide backwards.
Narain Karthikeyan has achieved as much as could be expected - he has mostly kept his car on the road and has shown good speed relative to his competition. Qualifying 2.5 seconds faster than teammate Tiago Monteiro in Melbourne showed what he was capable of, and he wasn't overawed by the more experienced drivers around him on the grid. Malaysia was another solid race, while Bahrain saw a dip in form in second qualifying to drop behind Monteiro on the grid ahead of an early retirement. Apart from that lap, Karthikeyan has been a worthwhile addition.
Monteiro, on the other hand, has struggled with the car from day one. While the inability of his team to do anything more than field a car hasn't helped, he has been left behind by his teammate and is struggling for form. Monteiro has made the finish of all three races and been ahead of the Minardis when he did, but that's no great recommendation for a driver.
Minardi, as ever, have struggled at the back with cars that almost creak with age in the pitlane. After a dramatic first weekend back in Melbourne, where team boss Paul Stoddart went to court to ensure his team's entrance to the grid, the Italian team have gone on with their business and awaits the debut of the all-new PS05 in the hope that it will at least push them past the Jordan pair. It's hard to slide backwards from the rear of the grid, but they aren't stepping up either.
Christijan Albers was highly rated before arriving in Formula One but hasn't got much speed out of a chassis which, to be fair, was raced by Mark Webber as far back as 2002. He had car problems in both qualifying and the race in Melbourne, limped around to finish last in Malaysia, and finished behind Patrick Friesacher in Bahrain. While no one could expect miracles in a Minardi, he needs to at least match his teammate.
Friesacher knows all about the snakes and ladders of motorsport, having gained sponsors, lost sponsors, done the same with his management, and spent more time in Formula 3000 than was strictly wise. However, he is in Formula One at last and making the most out of it - he has outqualified his teammate twice, and outraced him as well. Some poor luck in Malaysia where he spun on oil deposited by an exploding BAR has been the only blot on his copybook so far.
But perhaps Friesacher's most important performance was finding the ladder into Formula One in the first place. By getting in he was given the chance to show that he can perform at the top level, and by default that many other drivers could too, if they had the possibility.
Which is what each of the drivers wants to do - having found the ladder into the sport, they are all hoping that their abilities are enough to keep them away from the snakes. | 2019-04-23T04:06:29Z | http://www.davidcameron.it/other/snakes-and-ladders |
Security departments have their hands full. The first half of my career was government-centric, and we always seemed to be the “no” team, eliminating most initiatives before they started. The risks were often found to outweigh the benefits, and unless there was a very strong executive sponsor, say the CEO or Sector President, the ideas would be shelved.
More recently, as a response to the security “no” team, IT staff started several “Shadow IT” projects. People began using cloud computing systems and pay-as-you-go strategies on a corporate credit card to quickly develop and roll-out projects before anyone in security could get a word in.
These “beg forgiveness” aspects hamstrung security on several projects, especially if a data leakage incident occurred or breach was in progress. What’s more, we weren’t unique in seeing shadow projects. These projects increasingly become the norm as IT staff looking to move initiatives forward come up against cybersecurity professionals hell-bent on maintaining security and, who know that in the event of a breach, heads could easily roll. Most likely theirs.
Trust messages needs to come from outside of the department, even if it’s ghostwritten or created internally. Be it the CTO, CFO or CEO, there needs to be a bit of understanding that risk comes in many forms, and the Security Department takes all of those into account before approving or denying projects.
Many compliance frameworks have an HR or training domain, and some security departments successfully use this for mandatory training for topics like phishing. When a non-infosec colleague clicks on a fake attack, the trust point may be reiterated with a reminder of example fines and the costs. Breach notifications or PCI violations aren’t cheap after all.
Share a couple of department wins, where the security team found involvement early in the process and added value to the program deployed. Look for examples like oAuth or Single Sign On (SSO) simplifying a portal’s usage or a project where business continuity planning or encryption helped pass an acceptance audit.
Demonstrating that security builds team success and is no longer the “no” department pays dividends.
Lastly, extend the educational aspect beyond testing for ignorance. See if your organization offers reimbursement or even bonuses for security certifications, and stand-up internal lunch-and-learn or video conference preparation sessions. If your organization doesn’t provide an across-the-board financial incentive, maybe fund a raffle for five of the folks who pass the test to receive a spot bonus.
Hopefully, you’ll find these as an opportunity to impress upon the rest of the corporation the importance of the CISO’s office. There’s a long history of “no;” without efforts on the infosec staff’s part, that image will linger well past its truth.
Most small businesses adopt some sort of cloud offering, be it Software as a Service like Quickbooks or Salesforce, or even renting computers in Amazon Web Services or Microsoft’s Azure, in an Infrastructure as a Service environment. You get Fortune 50 IT support, including things that a small business could never afford, like building security and power fail-over with 99.999-percent reliability.
While cloud has great advantages, you must know your supply chain. Cloud providers use something called the shared responsibility model. Their risks and vulnerabilities become yours, so choosing a discount provider may open you up to compliance issues you never thought possible. That said, cloud does allow small business to focus on their competitively different things, leaving the technical aspects to others for essentially a pay-as-you-go utility computing.
In today’s increasingly complex security environment, following these three top security tips will go a long way to letting small business owners concentrate on running their business rather than keeping up with the latest security issues.
Let’s talk about authentication, typically referred to as passwords. The first thing to establish is “something you know,” like a pin or password. The worst thing anyone can do in today’s day and age is use one username with one password. If any one of the sites used becomes compromised, the username/password combination will be sold on the Dark Web as a known combination. The lists are huge, but infinitely faster on other banking or e-commerce sites that implement effective security. This happened in the Yahoo! breach that nearly scuttled the Verizon acquisition a couple years ago, sending ripples throughout the web and forced resets by nearly every company in the world.
At the very least, use a unique password with between eight and (preferably) 16 characters. Characters are more than numbers and letters. The more of the keyboard utilized, the longer testing every combination in a brute force attack becomes.
Password managers such as LastPass or KeePass will make keeping these organized easier, and they synch across the various phone, laptop and desktop devices through cloud providers like Dropbox, Box and OneDrive. Many of these are now tying in to the “something you are” such as fingerprint or facial recognition.
The next step up is a technique known as one-time passwords. They are much more than one-step effective and take the something you know to also include “something you have” in your mobile device. That’s why banks and financial trading firms incorporated the technology a few years ago.
As security gets better, so, too, do the hackers. SIM-card duplication and other attacks gave rise to something call soft tokens from Google Authenticator and Authy. The apps use a synchronized clock and the same hard mathematics in cryptography to make a system where the next number is easy to compute in the valid minute of use but the previous is impossibly difficult before the timer clicks over to the next one.
Currently, the most secure consumer password scenario comes from mathematics developed in the late 70’s called public key cryptography. This is the same technology in the soft token apps but in a purpose-built device, typically seen as a key fob or USB from manufacturers like Entrust, RSA or Yubi. This takes the one-time password to the next level by self-erasing on any attempt to get to the originally entered number.
Lastly, follow your industry/vertical’s rules early.
European Union’s General Data Protection Directive (GDPR).
The security industry is understaffed. By a lot. Previous estimates by the Ponemon Institute suggest as much as 50 percent underemployment for cybersecurity positions. Seventy percent of existing IT security organizations are understaffed and 58 percent say it’s difficult to retain qualified candidates. ESG’s 2017 annual global survey of IT and cybersecurity professionals suggests the biggest shortage of skills is in cybersecurity for at least six years running. It’s a fast moving field with hacker’s crosshairs constantly targeting companies; mess up and you’re on the front page of the Wall Street Journal. With all of the pressure and demand, security is also one of the best paying segments of IT.
Cybersecurity is a different vernacular, with a set of acronyms and ideas far outside even its information technologies brethren. For the gold standard as a security professional, the title to have is the Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) from the ISC2 (isc2.org). The requirements grow increasingly strict since my testing in 2001. Not lax, mind you, but five-year industry minimums and certified professional attestation gives the credential even more heft. There is an associate version available, the Associate Systems Security Certified Practitioner (SSCP) that eliminates the time and sponsorship minimums and would be appropriate for someone new to the field.
Adding to the professional shortages are new IT delivery methods, a la cloud computing. Amazon Web Services is the giant in the space, offering several certifications for cloud architecture and implementation. Microsoft and Google round out the top three. These, too, are hot commodities, as cloud is a relatively nascent industry and not very well understood. Layer security onto the cloud platform, and you find certifications such as the Cloud Security Alliance’s Certificate of Cloud Security (CCSK) and, again, the ISC2’s Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP). In 2017, Certification Magazine listed cloud security certifications as some of the highest salary increases available to an IT professional.
One caveat to all of the excitement of underemployment: recruiters, headhunters and hiring managers. Position requirements are sometimes outlandish or poorly vetted, such as the requisition asking for 10 years of cloud and 20 years of security experience. Amazon Web Services started in 2006. Microsoft Azure and Google Compute Platform were seen as cannibalistic to existing revenue streams. Even five years of cloud industry experience is a lifetime, and the industry moves so fast that AWS’s Certified Solutions Architect (AWS-ASA) requires re-certification every two years vs. the standard three for the rest of IT. They, too, have a security exam recently out of beta, the AWS Certified Security Specialty, though it requires one of their associate certifications first.
If you have the appetite for learning, add privacy to the mix. The number of industry vertical regulations (healthcare’s HIPAA, Payment Card Industry’s PCI-DSS, finance’s FINRA/SOX, etc…) and regionally specific requirements (EU’s GDPR) have the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP), offering eight Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP) certifications. As an IT professional in the US, the Certified Information Privacy Technologist (CIPT) and CIPP/US are probably the most attainable and attractive.
The Cloud Security Alliance’s Software Defined Perimeter Working Group set out to author a comprehensive resource on the terms and definitions within software defined perimeter (SDP) architectures. SDP has changed since the working group’s inception in 2014, so the Working Group went about creating a glossary to reflect this evolution, holding a series of regular meetings over the course of the last eight months to bring the new Software Defined Perimeter Glossary, a free industry resource, to fruition.
Compiling the information in this document was meant to minimize misinterpretation about SDP and provide a succinct understanding of the architecture. A balance was struck between length of the definitions and clarity with reliance on the reference source as the final arbiter. The result is a common language to communicate, understand, debate, conclude, and present the results of the SDP framework.
As a reference document, the Software Defined Perimeter Glossary brings together SDP-related terms and definitions from various professional resources. These terms, and the supporting information, cover a broad range of areas, including the components of SDP and common supporting technologies.
The SDP Glossary was intended as a reference document to draw enterprises (and service providers) that are interested in learning more about the underlying technologies and protocols. Those that are new to SDP will notice many familiar technologies involved, expediting their awareness of SDP. Ultimately, we see this glossary as a tool to familiarize practitioners with the Software Defined Perimeter.
Awareness of the SDP toolkit is the first step to its adoption. Based on this glossary revision effort, we’re pleased to see this level of familiarity. The SDP Working Group is confident that SDP will continue to gain momentum, but realistic that we, as its proponents, have some work to do. Clearly organizations face challenges in making the case for using SDP instead of traditional security technologies.
CSA plans to fill this gap with further SDP resources and information. The glossary, along with the SDP Specification v2 (Read SDP Specification v1) and SDP Architecture Guide, are vital pieces of SDP adoption and deployments within the industry.
Download the Software Defined Perimeter Glossary.
Coalfire has been involved with implementing CDM for various agencies and is the largest Third Party Assessment Organization (3PAO), having done more FedRAMP authorizations than anyone, uniquely positioning us to help customers think through this challenge. However, these concepts and challenges are not unique to the government agencies that are a part of the CDM program; they also translate to other government and DoD communities as well as commercial entities.
To review, Phase 1 of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) CDM program focused largely on static assets and for the most part excluded the cloud. It was centered around building and knowing an inventory, which could then be enrolled in ongoing scanning, as frequently as every 72 hours. The objective is to determine if assets are authorized to be on the network, are being managed, and if they have software installed that is vulnerable and/or misconfigured. As the cloud becomes a part of the next round of CDM, it is important to understand how the approach to these objectives needs to adapt.
Cloud services enable resources to be allocated, consumed, and de-allocated on the fly to meet peak demands. Just about any system is going to have times where more resources are required than others, and the cloud allows compute, storage, and network resources to scale with this demand. As an example, within Coalfire we have a Security Parsing Tool (Sec-P) that spins up compute resources to process vulnerability assessment files that are dropped into a cloud storage bucket. The compute resources only exist for a few seconds while the file gets processed, and then they are torn down. Examples such as this, as well as serverless architectures, challenge traditional continuous monitoring approaches.
Dynamic cloud environments highlight the inadequacies of performing active and passive scanning to build inventories. Assets may simply come and go before they can be assessed by a traditional scan tool. Each of the major cloud services providers (CSPs) and many of the smaller ones provide inventory management services in addition to services that can monitor resource changes – examples include AWS’ System Manager Inventory Manager and Cloud Watch, Microsoft’s Azure Resource Manager and Activity Log, and Google’s Asset Inventory and Cloud Audit Logging. There are also quality third-party applications that can be used, some of them even already FedRAMP authorized. Regardless of the service/tool used, the key here is interfacing them with the integration layer of an existing CDM or continuous monitoring solution. This can occur via API calls to and from the solution, which are made possible by the current CDM program requirements.
For resources that are going to have some degree of persistence, agents are a great way to perform continuous monitoring. Agents can check in with a master to maintain the inventory and also perform security checks once the resource is spun up, instead of having to wait for a sweeping scan. Agents can be installed as a part of the build process or even be made part of a deployment image. Interfacing with the master node that controls the agents and comparing that to the inventory is a great way to perform cloud-based “rogue” asset detection, a requirement under CDM. This concept employed on-premises is really about finding unauthorized assets, such as a personal laptop plugged into an open network port. In the cloud it is all about finding assets that have drifted from the approved configuration and are out of compliance with the security requirements.
For resources such as our Coalfire Sec-P tool from the previous example, where it exists as code more than 90 percent of the time, we need to think differently. An agent approach may not work as the compute resources may not exist long enough to even check in with the master, let alone perform any security checks.
IaC is used to deploy and configure cloud resources such as compute, storage, and networking. It is basically a set of templates that “programs” the infrastructure. It is not a new concept for the cloud, but the speed at which environments change in the cloud is bringing IaC into the security spotlight.
Now, we need to consider how we can perform assessment on the code that builds and configures the resources. There are many tools and different approaches on how to do this; application security is not anything new, it just must be re-examined when we consider it part of performing continuous monitoring on infrastructure. The good news is that IaC uses structured formats and common languages such as XML, JSON, and YAML. As a result, it is possible to use tools or even write custom scripts to perform the review. This structured format also allows for automated and ongoing monitoring of the configurations, even when the resources only exist as code and are not “living.” It is also important to consider what software is spinning up with the resources, as the packages that are leveraged must include up-to-date versions that do not have vulnerabilities. Code should undergo a security review when it changes, and thus the approved code can be continuously monitored.
Setting asset expiry is one way to enforce CDM principals in a high DevOps environment that leverages IaC. The goal of CDM is to assess assets every 72 hours, and thus we can set them to expire (get torn down, and therefore require rebuild) within the timeframe to know they are living on fresh infrastructure built with approved code.
Sampling is to be used in conjunction with the methods above. In a dynamic environment where the total number of assets is always changing, there should be a solid core of the fleet that can be scanned via traditional means of active scanning. We just need to accept that we are not going to be able to scan the complete inventory. There should also be far fewer profiles, or “gold images,” than there are total assets. The idea is that if you can get at least 25% of each profile in any given scan, there is a good chance you are going to find all the misconfigurations and vulnerabilities that exist on all the resources of the same profile, and/or identify if assets are drifting from the fleet. This is enough to identify systemic issues such as bad deployment code or resources being spun up with out-of-date software. If you are finding resources in a profile that have a large discrepancy with the others in that same profile, then that is a sign of DevOps or configuration management issues that need to be addressed. We are not giving up on the concept of having a complete inventory, just accepting the fact that there really is no such thing.
Building IaC assets specifically for the purposes of performing security testing is a great option to leverage as well. These assets can have persistence and be “enrolled” into a continuous monitoring solution to report on the vulnerabilities in a similar manner to on-premises devices, via a dashboard or otherwise. The total number of vulnerabilities in the fleet is the quantity found on these sample assets, multiplied by the number of those assets that are living in the fleet. As we stated above, we can get this quantity from the CSP services or third-party tools.
There are many different CSPs out there for the endless cloud-based possibilities, and all CSPs have various services and tools available from them, and for them. What I have reviewed are high-level concepts, but each customer will need to dial in the specifics based on their use cases and objectives. | 2019-04-19T10:56:30Z | https://blog.cloudsecurityalliance.org/tag/security/ |
公开了一种开关电源，在发送停止操作的指令时该开关电源能够防止输出电压(Vout)波动或下冲。 Discloses a switching power supply, when sending an instruction of stopping the operation of the switching power supply capable of preventing undershoot output voltage (Vout) or fluctuations. 根据本发明的开关电源应用具有初级线圈和次级线圈的变压器、连接在变压器的输入端和初级线圈之间的开关电路、连接到变压器的次级线圈的整流器、位于整流器的随后级上并包括输出电容器的滤波电路、控制开关电路的控制电路和响应停止开关操作的指令至少使用存储在输出电容器中的能量给控制电路提供操作电压的操作电压产生电路。 The switching power supply applications of the present invention has primary and secondary coils of the transformer is connected between the input terminal of the transformer primary coil and a switching circuit, a rectifier connected to the secondary winding of the transformer, the rectifier is then positioned on the stage and comprising an output capacitor filter circuit, control circuit and the switching circuit in response to an instruction to stop the switching operation at least in the energy storage capacitor to the output control circuit provides the operation voltage of the operating voltage generation circuit. 因此，本发明的开关电源基本线性地降低了输出电压(Vout)。 Thus, the switching power supply according to the present invention substantially reduce the linear output voltage (Vout).
本发明涉及一种开关电源，更具体地说，涉及一种在开关电源的操作停止时能够防止输出电压Vout下冲和波动的开关电源。 The present invention relates to a switching power supply, more specifically, red can be prevented and fluctuation of the output voltage Vout of the switching power supply stops the operation relates to a switching power supply.
开关电源广泛地用作电子和电器设备比如计算机的电源。 Switching power supply, such as widely used as electrical and electronic equipment of the computer.
附图7所示为常规的开关电源的电路图。 7 shown in the drawings is a circuit diagram of a conventional switching power supply.
如在附图7中所示，常规的开关电源由变压器T1、位于变压器T1的初级侧的开关电路和位于变压器T1的次级侧上的自驱动型整流器和滤波电路。 Self-driven rectifier and smoothing circuit on the secondary side 7, as shown in the drawings, the conventional switching power supply transformer T1, the switching circuit is located in the primary side of the transformer T1 and the transformer T1. 开关电源降低在提供到位于初级侧上的开关电路上的电压Vin中的DC(直流)输入电压以产生DC输出电压Vout并将它提供给负载。 In the switching power supply provided to the reduced voltage Vin is located on the switching circuit on the primary side of the DC (direct current) input voltage to generate a DC output voltage Vout and supplies it to the load. 在附图7中，负载表示为电阻部件RLoad、电容部件CLoad和电阻部件LLoad。 In Figure 7, the load RLoad represents a resistance component, the capacitance component and a resistance member CLoad LLoad.
控制电路10基于输出电压Vout控制包括在初级侧的开关电路中的主开关Q1和Q2。 The control circuit 10 based on the output voltage Vout control switch circuit comprises a main switch Q1 on the primary side and Q2. 具体地说，在输出电压Vout相对于所需的电压增加时控制电路10降低主开关Q1和Q2的占空系数以降低提供到负载的电功率，而在输出电压Vout相对于所需的电压降低时控制电路10升高主开关Q1和Q2的占空系数以增加提供到负载的电功率。 More specifically, the output voltage Vout relative to the voltage increasing control circuit 10 is required to reduce the main switches Q1 and Q2 to reduce the duty factor of electric power supplied to the load, and the output voltage Vout relative to the voltage required to reduce the control circuit 10 increases the main switches Q1 and Q2 to increase the duty factor of electric power supplied to the load. 因此，提供到负载的输出电压Vout可以总是稳定在所需的电压上。 Thus, the output voltage Vout supplied to the load can always be stabilized at a desired voltage. 因为控制电路10属于初级侧，所以控制电路10不能直接接受输出电压Vout。 Since part of the primary side control circuit 10, the control circuit 10 can not directly accept the output voltage Vout. 因此，通过隔离电路20给控制电路10提供与输出电压Vout相关的电压Vout'。 Thus, the isolation circuit 20 by the control circuit 10 to provide the output voltage Vout is a voltage Vout '.
通过运行由晶体管Tr1、电阻R1和齐纳二极管Z1组成的操作电压产生电路产生控制电路10的操作电压Vcc。 Generating circuit generates operating voltage Vcc by the control circuit 10 by the operation of the operating voltage transistor Tr1, a resistor R1 and zener diode Z1 thereof. 电容器C3连接在控制电路10的电源端子之间以稳定操作电压Vcc。 The capacitor C3 is connected between the power supply terminal of the control circuit 10 to stabilize the operating voltage Vcc. 在操作开关S1处于接通状态时启动操作电压产生电路，而在操作开关S1处于切断状态时停止操作电压产生电路。 When switch S1 is operated in the ON state voltage generating circuit starting the operation, the operating voltage generation circuit is stopped when the operation switch S1 is in off state. 从外部可以控制操作开关S1。 Operation of switch S1 may be controlled from the outside. 在要开始在附图7中所示的开关电源的操作时，接通操作开关S1；在要开始终止在附图7中所示的开关电源的操作时，切断操作开关S1。 To start the operation in the switching power supply 7 is shown in the figures, the ON operation of the switch Sl; at the termination operation to start the switching power supply 7 is shown in the figures, the cutting operation of switch S1.
包括在次级整流器中的整流开关Q3和Q4通过变压器T1的次级电压自驱动。 In the secondary rectifier comprising rectifying switches Q3 and Q4 driven by the secondary voltage from the transformer T1. 此外，电阻R2和R3分别插入在整流开关Q3和Q4的栅电极和源电极之间，以防止整流开关Q3和Q4的栅电极处于浮动状态。 In addition, the resistors R2 and R3 are inserted between the rectifying switches Q3 and Q4 the gate and source electrodes to prevent the rectifier switches Q3 and Q4 and the gate electrode in a floating state.
接着，解释在附图7中所示的常规的开关电源的操作。 Next, explaining the operation of the conventional switching power supply 7 is shown in the figures.
附图8所示为在附图7中的常规的开关电源的操作的时序图。 BRIEF timing diagram of a conventional switching power supply 7 of the drawings in the operation shown in FIG.
如附图8所示，在操作开关S1处于接通状态时，在控制电路10的控制下以预定的开关频率将主开关Q1和Q2的栅源电压VGS(Q1)和VGS(Q2)交替地激励到较高的电平。 When as shown in the drawings, the operation of the switch S1 is in the ON state 8, under the control of the control circuit 10 at a predetermined switching frequency of the main switches Q1 and Q2 of the gate-source voltage VGS (Q1) and VGS (Q2) alternately incentive to a higher level. 结果，变压器T1的初级电压VLP的极性交替地反向，因此初级侧电容器C1和C2交替地充电和放电。 As a result, the primary voltage of the transformer T1 VLP alternately reversed polarity, and therefore primary-side capacitors C1 and C2 are alternately charged and discharged.
与初级侧的操作同步地，在变压器T1的次级线圈Ls1和Ls2上出现的次级电压的极性也交替地反向，因此以预定的开关频率交替地使整流开关Q3和Q4处于接通状态。 , The polarity of the secondary voltage appearing on the secondary winding Ls1 and Ls2 of the transformer T1 is also reversed alternately in synchronism with the operation of the primary side, and therefore a predetermined switching frequency alternately switches Q3 and the rectifier Q4 is turned on status. 更具体地说，在由于栅源电压VGS(Q1)处于高电平使主开关Q1处于接通状态的同时，整流开关Q3的栅源电压VGS(Q3)上升到比它的阈值电压高在初级线圈Ls2上出现的电压(次级电压)的电压，由此整流开关Q3接通。 More specifically, since the gate-source voltage VGS (Q1) at a high level while the main switch Q1 is in the on state, the rectifier switch gate-source voltage of VGS Q3 (Q3) than its rise to the high threshold voltage in the primary voltage (secondary voltage) occurring on the coil Ls2, thereby rectifying switch Q3 is turned on. 在另一方面，在由于栅源电压VGS(Q2)处于高电平使主开关Q2处于接通状态的同时，整流开关Q4的栅源电压VGS(Q4)上升到比它的阈值电压高在初级线圈Ls1上出现的电压(次级电压)的电压，由此整流开关Q4接通。 On the other hand, since the gate-source voltage VGS (Q2) at a high level that the main switch Q2 in the ON state at the same time, the rectifier switch of the gate-source voltage VGS Q4 (Q4) than its rise to the high threshold voltage in the primary voltage (secondary voltage) occurring on the coil Ls1, thereby rectifying switch Q4 is turned on.
结果，对交替反向的极性的次级电压进行了整流。 As a result, the secondary voltage polarity is alternately reversed rectifying. 通过滤波电路对经整流的电压进行滤波，该滤波电路由输出电抗器Lout和输出电容器Cout组成，因此产生了稳定的输出电压Vout。 Filtering the rectified voltage by the filter circuit, the filter circuit from the output of the reactor Lout and the output capacitor Cout composition, thus producing a stable output voltage Vout.
在另一方面，在某一时间切断操作开关S1时，控制电路10的操作停止，因为晶体管Tr1切断，因此整流开关Q1和Q2处于切断状态。 In the other hand, at a time off the operation switch S1, the control circuit 10 stops the operation, since the transistors Tr1 off, thus rectifying switches Q1 and Q2 in the off state. 即停止了开关操作。 The switching operation is stopped.
然而，因为在操作开关S1切断时停止了开关电路的操作，因此整流开关Q3和Q4中的一个或另一个开关处于接通状态，并且反向电流开始从输出电容器Cout和负载的电容部件CLoad流到输出电抗器Lout。 However, since the stop operation of the switching circuit when the switch S1 is operated shut off, the rectifier switches Q3 and Q4 in one or the other switch is in ON state, and a reverse current starts to flow from the capacitive component of the output capacitor Cout and the load CLoad the output reactor Lout.
附图8所示为在整流开关Q3响应操作开关S1的切断首先保持在接通状态的情况。 Figure 8 shows the operation of the switch S1 off in response to first rectifier switch Q3 remains in the ON state. 在这种情况下，因为停止了初级侧的开关电路，所以整流开关Q3的栅电极的电荷的放电通路实质仅仅为电阻R2。 In this case, since the switching circuit on the primary side is stopped, so that the substance of the charge discharge path switching gate electrode rectifier Q3 is merely resistor R2. 因此，由于流经电阻器R2的电流的作用，整流开关Q3的栅源电压VGS(Q3)渐渐下落。 Thus, due to the current flowing through the resistor R2, the rectifier switch of the gate-source voltage VGS Q3 (Q3) gradually falling. 在这个期间，流到输出电抗器Lout的反向电流继续。 During this period, the output reactor Lout flowing reverse current continues.
在另一方面，由于通过输出电容器Cout和负载的电容部件CLoad的放电和来自整流开关Q3的栅电极的电荷通过电阻R2的放电造成输出电压Vout和次级电压降低，在因为整流开关Q3的栅源电压VGS(Q3)下落到它的阈值电压以下造成整流开关Q3切断时，在变压器T1上的逆程电压上升。 On the other hand, since the discharge resistor R2 causing the secondary voltage and the output voltage Vout decrease by charge capacitive components of the output capacitor Cout and the load CLoad discharge from the rectifier and the gate electrode of the switch Q3, as the gate of the rectifier switch Q3 source voltage VGS (Q3) when it drops below the threshold voltage caused by the rectifier switch Q3 off, the flyback voltage in the transformer T1 increases. 逆程电压通过变压器T1升高了在开关电路中的内部电压Vp，并升高了整流开关Q4的栅源电压VGS(Q4)。 Voltage flyback transformer T1 by raising the internal voltage Vp in the switching circuit and the rectifier switch raises the gate-source voltage VGS (Q4) Q4 of. 因此，整流开关Q4保持接通。 Thus, the rectifier switch Q4 remains on.
如附图8所示，因为通过整流开关Q4流到输出电抗器Lout中电流的方向临时变成正向，因此在这个期间对输出电容器Cout和负载的电容部件CLoad进行充电，因此输出电压Vout增加。 As shown in Fig. 8, since the output of the reactor flows through a rectifying switch Q4 becomes a temporary current in the forward direction Lout, thus charging the output capacitor Cout and the load capacitor CLoad member during this period, the output voltage Vout increases .
然后，在流到输出电抗器Lout的电流的方向反向时，由于通过输出电容器Cout和负载的电容部件CLoad的放电和来自整流开关Q4的栅电极的电荷通过电阻R3的放电造成输出电压Vout和次级电压降低，整流开关Q4的栅源电压VGS(Q4)逐渐下落。 Then, when the flow direction of the reactor Lout output current is reversed, since the output voltage Vout caused by the discharge resistor R3 through the charge discharge capacitor CLoad member and the output capacitor Cout and the gate electrode of the load from the rectifying switch Q4 and secondary voltage decreases, the rectifier switch of the gate-source voltage VGS Q4 (Q4) is gradually falling. 然后，由于整流开关Q4的栅源电压VGS(Q4)下落到它的阈值电压之下，在整流开关Q4切断时，在变压器T1上的逆程电压再次上升，该逆程电压通过变压器T1升高了在开关电路中的内部电压Vp，并升高了整流开关Q3的栅源电压VGS(Q3)。 Then, since the rectifier switch Q4 of the gate-source voltage VGS (Q4) drops below its threshold voltage, when the rectifying switch Q4 off, the flyback voltage in the transformer T1 increases again, the voltage across the flyback transformer T1 increases the internal voltage Vp in the switching circuit and the rectifier switch raises the gate-source voltage of VGS Q3 (Q3). 因此，整流开关Q3保持接通。 Thus, the rectifier switch Q3 remains turned on.
这种操作周期性地进行直到输出电容器Cout和负载的电容部件CLoad被次级侧电路和负载的电阻部件RLoad所消耗。 This operation is periodically performed until the output capacitor Cout and the load capacitor CLoad member of the secondary side circuit is consumed by the resistance member and the load RLoad. 因此，输出电压Vout逐渐降低同时在比开关周期长得多的周期上产生波动，此外，在开关电路中的内部电压Vp逐渐增加。 Thus, the output voltage Vout is gradually reduced while fluctuations in the period much longer than the switching period, in addition, the internal voltage Vp in the switching circuit is gradually increased.
如上文所描述，在常规的开关电源中，因为输出电压Vout并不是线性下降，而是逐渐下落，同时在比开关周期长得多的周期上产生波动，即使发出了停止操作开关电源的指令(开关S1切断)，在负载中仍然可能产生某些故障。 As described above, in the conventional switching power supply, since the output voltage Vout is not linear decrease, but gradually drops, while fluctuations in the period much longer than the switching cycle, even if the operation stop instruction is issued to the switching power supply ( switch S1 off), it may still have some fault in the load. 例如，可以将负载设计成识别开关电源的操作何时已经停止并在输出电压Vout已经下落到预定电压之下时执行一定的操作。 For example, the load may be designed to recognize when the operation of the switching power supply has been stopped and the output voltage Vout has fallen to perform certain operations below a predetermined voltage. 但是如果输出电压Vout逐渐降低同时波动，则识别开关电源是否已经停止变得较困难。 However, if the output voltage Vout is gradually decreased while fluctuating, it is recognized that the power switch has become more difficult to stop.
此外，在常规的开关电源中，因为在操作终止的过程中在开关电路中的内部电压Vp逐渐增加，所以可能损失了在初级侧使用的电部件。 Further, in the conventional switching power supply, since the internal voltage Vp gradually increases in the switching circuit during the operation is terminated, it may damage the electrical components used in the primary side. 这增加了开关电源的成本。 This increases the cost of the switching power supply.
此外，在常规的开关电源中，因为在操作终止的过程中较大的电流流经输出电抗器Lout、变压器T1的次级线圈Ls1和Ls2和整流开关Q3和Q4，并且因为输出电抗器Lout、变压器T1的次级线圈Ls1和Ls2和整流开关Q3和Q4释放了释放大量的热，所以可能降低开关电源的可靠性。 Further, in the conventional switching power supply, since a larger current flows through the output reactor Lout during the operation is terminated, the transformer T1 secondary coil Ls1 and Ls2 and the rectifying switches Q3 and Q4, and a reactor Lout as the output, transformer T1 secondary winding Ls1 and Ls2 and the rectifying switches Q3 and Q4 release a large amount of heat release, it may reduce the reliability of the switching power supply.
在负载的电阻部件RLoad变大时这些问题更加突出。 When the resistance of the load RLoad member increases these problems become more prominent. 因此，在轻负载的情况下在发出了终止操作的指令时，问题非常严重。 Accordingly, in the case of a light load in issuing an instruction to terminate the operation, the problem is very serious. 此外，因为在负载的电容部件CLoad变大时这些问题更加突出，因此电功率提供给具有较大的电容部件CLoad的负载时这些问题也非常严重。 Further, since the capacitive load CLoad member increases these problems become more prominent, thus the electrical power to the member has a large capacitance load CLoad also serious problems.
在另一方面，虽然在负载的电阻部件RLoad相当小(即负载较重)时这些问题并不严重，但是在这种情况下，在由于输出电压Vout的下冲(undershoot)的缘故在操作终止的过程中在负载中可能出现某些故障。 On the other hand, although the resistance of the load RLoad member relatively small (i.e., heavy load) These problems are not serious, but in this case, since the undershoot of the output voltage Vout (undershoot of) operation terminates sake some of the process may malfunction in the load. 例如，在输出电压Vout变为负时，在负载中使用的集成电路(IC)中的寄生二极管等可能接通。 For example, when the output voltage Vout becomes negative, an integrated circuit (IC) for use in the load parasitic diode may be turned on. 由于这造成了较大的电流流经IC，因此IC可能产生故障或被损坏。 Since this causes a larger current flows through the IC, IC thus may malfunction or be damaged.
附图9所示为在操作终止的过程中输出电压Vout的下冲的时序图。 BRIEF is a timing chart of the output voltage Vout during the punch operation is terminated in the FIG. 9.
如在附图9中所示，在通过切断操作开关S1来停止初级侧的开关电路的操作时，流经电阻部件RLoad的电流IRLoad从输出电压Vout的输出电流ILout改变到输出电容器Cout的放电电流ICout，并且在负载的电抗部件LLoad上的电压VLLoad上升，因此电流继续流动。 As shown in the drawings 9, when the operation is stopped by switching off the primary side switching circuit switch S1 is operated, a current flowing through the resistor IRLoad member RLoad is changed from the output current to output voltage Vout ILout discharge current of the output capacitor Cout ICOUT, VLLoad rises and the voltage on the reactance component of the load LLoad, current continues to flow. 结果，输出电压Vout变为负，即出现了下冲。 As a result, the output voltage Vout becomes negative, i.e., undershoot occurred. 然后，如果下冲电压达到整流开关Q3和Q4的体二极管的正向电压Vf，则这些体二极管接通。 Then, if the undershoot voltage rectifier switch reaches the forward voltage Vf of the body diode of Q3 and Q4, the body diode which is turned on. 结果，电流开始流经由整流开关Q3(体二极管)、变压器T1的次级线圈Ls1、输出电抗器Lout和输出电容器Cout组成的LCR串联电路和由整流开关Q4(体二极管)、变压器T1的次级线圈Ls2、输出电抗器Lout和输出电容器Cout组成的另一LCR串联电路。 As a result, a current starts flowing through the LCR series circuit comprising a rectifier switch Q3 (body diode), a secondary coil LsI, output reactor Lout and the output capacitor Cout is composed of transformer T1 and a rectifying switch Q4 (body diode), a transformer T1 secondary another series LCR circuit coils Ls2, the output of the reactor Lout and the output capacitor Cout thereof. 因此，下冲电压的峰值钳位在-Vf的周围。 Thus, the clamp around the peak overshoot voltage at the -Vf.
在此，在电阻部件RLoad、电抗部件LLoad和输出电容器Cout之间的关系满足公式(1)时，这些LCR串联电路振荡。 Here, the resistance RLoad member, the relationship between the member and an output capacitor Cout LLoad reactor satisfy the formula (1), LCR series circuit of these oscillations. 结果出现下冲。 The results undershoot occurs. RLoad2<4·LLoadCout...(1)]]>从公式(1)中可以看出，在电阻部件RLoad较小时(在负载较重时)易于产生下冲。 RLoad2 & lt; 4 & CenterDot; LLoadCout ... (1)]]> from equation (1) can be seen, is small (when the load is heavy) undershoot easily generated in the resistive member RLoad. 为了防止开关电源产生下冲，因为电阻部件RLoad和电抗部件LLoad都属于该负载，所以需要足够电容的附加的电容器Cex与输出电容器Cout并联。 In order to prevent undershoot switching power supply, since the resistance component and reactance component LLoad RLoad fall of the load, it is necessary to enough additional capacitance capacitor Cex parallel with the output capacitor Cout. 这就导致了不希望地增加部件的数量。 This leads to undesirably increases the number of components. 通过公式(2)可以表示防止下冲附加的电容器Cex所需的电容。 By the equation (2) may be required to prevent undershoot represent additional capacitance capacitor Cex. Cex>4·LLoadRLoad2-Cout...(2)]]>因为在电阻部件Road较小时这种问题较突出，因此在使用开关电源驱动要求较低的电压和较大的电流的负载比如服务器计算机时它变得较严重。 Cex> 4 & CenterDot; LLoadRLoad2-Cout ... (2)]]> This problem is more prominent because of the resistance member is small Road, so the use of a switching power supply requires a lower drive voltage and a large current load such as a server computer when it becomes more serious.
如上文所解释，常规的开关电源具有两个主要的问题：一个问题是在发出了停止开关电源的操作的指令时输出电压Vout逐渐降低同时在非常长的周期时间上波动；另一个问题是在发出了停止开关电源的操作的指令时在输出电压Vout中出现下冲。 As explained above, the conventional switching power supply has two main problems: a problem is issued an instruction to stop the operation of the switching power supply when the output voltage Vout is gradually decreased while fluctuating in a very long period of time; Another problem is red in the output voltage Vout when the instruction is issued to stop the operation of the switching power supply. 在电阻部件Rload较大时前一问题变得突出，而在电阻部件Rload较小时后一问题较突出。 Before a problem becomes a large resistor Rload projecting member, while the resistor Rload member is smaller than the latter problem projections. 后一问题是否出现取决于整流器是否是自驱动型。 The latter depends on whether the problem occurs if the rectifier is self-driven.
因此本发明的一个发明目的是提供一种开关电源，在发出停止开关电源的操作的指令时该开关电源能够防止输出电压Vout下冲。 It is therefore an object of the present invention is to provide a switching power supply, when the power supply stop switch instructs an operation of the switching power supply capable of preventing undershoot output voltage Vout.
因此本发明的另一个发明目的是提供一种开关电源，在发出停止开关电源的操作的指令时该开关电源能够防止输出电压Vout波动。 Thus a further object of the present invention is to provide a switching power supply, when the stop switch instructs the switching operation of the power supply output voltage Vout can be prevented from fluctuating.
因此本发明的另一个发明目的是提供一种开关电源，在发出停止开关电源的操作的指令时该开关电源能够防止开关电源的内部电压Vp逐渐增加。 Thus a further object of the present invention is to provide a switching power supply, when the stop switch instructs the switching operation of the power supply switch capable of preventing an internal power supply voltage Vp gradually increases.
因此本发明的另一个发明目的是提供一种开关电源，在发出停止开关电源的操作的指令时该开关电源能够防止大量的电流流经输出电抗器Lout、变压器T1的次级线圈Ls1和Ls2和整流开关Q3和Q4。 Thus a further object of the present invention is to provide a switching power supply, when the power supply stop switch instructs the operation of the switching power supply capable of preventing a large amount of current flows through the reactor Lout of output, and a transformer T1 secondary coil Ls1 and Ls2 rectifying switches Q3 and Q4.
通过包括如下结构的开关电源可以实现本发明的上述目的和其它的目的：具有初级线圈和次级线圈的变压器；连接在变压器的输入端和初级线圈之间的开关电路；连接到变压器的次级线圈的整流器；控制开关电路的控制电路；以及第一和第二操作电压产生电路，每个操作电压产生电路产生控制电路的操作电压；由第一操作电压产生电路所产生的第一操作电压和由第二操作电压产生电路所产生的第二操作电压彼此具有不同的值。 It can be achieved by a configuration of the switching power supply comprising the above objects and other objects of the present invention: a primary and secondary coils of a transformer; a switching circuit connected between the input terminals of the transformer and a primary coil; connected to the transformer secondary rectifier coil; control circuit for controlling the switching circuit; and a first and second operating voltage generating circuit, each of the operating voltage generation circuit generates operating voltage of the control circuit; a first operating voltage generated by the circuit generated by the first operating voltage and a second voltage generating circuit by the operation of the second operating voltage generated having values different from each other.
在本发明的优选方面，第一操作电压产生电路包括确定第一操作电压的值的第一齐纳二极管，第二操作电压产生电路包括确定第二操作电压的值的第二齐纳二极管，第一齐纳二极管的齐纳电压和第二齐纳二极管的齐纳电压彼此具有不同的值。 In a preferred aspect of the present invention, the first operating voltage generation circuit includes a first operation of determining a value of the voltage of the first Zener diode, the second operating voltage generating circuit comprises a second Zener diode determining a second value of the operating voltage, the first Zener diode and a second Zener voltage of the Zener voltage of the Zener diodes having mutually different values.
在本发明的进一步优选方面，第一操作电压产生电路进一步包括与第一齐纳二极管并联的操作开关。 In a further preferred aspect of the present invention, the first operating voltage generating circuit further includes an operation switch of the first zener diode connected in parallel.
在本发明的进一步优选方面，开关电路包括在变压器的输入端和初级线圈之间串联的第一和第二变换器。 In a further preferred aspect of the present invention, it comprises a switching circuit between the transformer input and in series with the primary winding of the first and second inverters.
在本发明的进一步优选方面，控制电路包括控制第一变换器的第一变换器控制电路和控制第二变换器的第二变换器控制电路，第一操作电压产生电路给为第一和第二变换器控制电路所公用的电源线提供第一操作电压，而第二操作电压产生电路给该电源线提供第二操作电压。 In a further preferred aspect of the invention, the control circuit includes a second inverter controlling the first converter and a first inverter control circuit controlling the second inverter control circuit, a first voltage generation circuit for operating the first and second inverter control circuit to provide a first power supply line common to the operating voltage, and the second operating voltage generating circuit providing a second power supply line to the operating voltage.
在本发明的进一步优选方面，在第一操作电压产生电路处于有效状态时启动第一和第二第二变换器控制电路，在第二操作电压产生电路处于有效状态时停止第一和第二第二变换器控制电路。 In a further preferred aspect of the present invention, generation start circuit in the active state the first and second inverter control circuit in a second operation a first voltage, the second voltage generating operation of the first and second stops when the circuit is in the active state two inverter control circuit.
在本发明的进一步优选方面，第一变换器控制电路的最小操作电压和第二变换器控制电路的最小操作电压彼此具有不同的值。 In a further preferred aspect of the invention, the minimum operating voltage of the first inverter circuit and a second control inverter control circuit having a minimum operating voltage of mutually different values.
在本发明的进一步优选方面，该开关电源进一步包括使用在变压器的初级侧上的辅助线圈上出现的电压，将第三操作电压提供给电源线的辅助电源电路。 In a further preferred aspect of the present invention, the switching power supply further includes a voltage appearing on the primary side of the transformer on the use of the auxiliary coil, the third operating voltage supplied to the auxiliary power supply circuit of the power supply line.
在本发明的进一步优选方面，第三操作电压高于第一和第二操作电压。 In a further preferred aspect of the present invention, the third operating voltage higher than the first and second operating voltages.
在本发明的进一步优选方面，第一变换器是从反向变换器和升压变换器中选择的，并且第一变换器是从半桥变换器、正向变换器、全桥变换器和推挽变换器中选择的。 In a further preferred aspect of the present invention, a first transducer is selected from the boost converters and the inverters, and the first converter from the half-bridge converter, a forward converter, a full bridge converter and the push selected pull converter.
在本发明的进一步优选方面，整流器是自驱动型的。 In a further preferred aspect of the present invention, the rectifier is self-driven.
根据本发明的这些方面，因为由第一操作电压产生电路所产生的第一操作电压和由第二操作电压产生电路所产生的第二操作电压不同，因此控制电路可以在正常操作的过程中使用从一个操作电压产生电路提供的操作电压进行操作，并且在发送了停止开关电源的操作的指令之后使用从另一个操作电压产生电路提供的操作电压进行操作。 According to these aspects of the present invention, the second operation of the first operating voltage and the voltage generated by the second circuit as the operating voltage generation circuit generated by the first operating voltage difference generated, the control circuit may be used during normal operation of using the generated operating voltage provided by the circuit operation after the operating voltage from another voltage generating circuit operation of the operating voltage supplied from an operation, and transmits an instruction to stop the operation of the switching power supply. 即，在发送了该指令之后可以继续开关操作。 That is, after transmitting the command to continue a switching operation. 因此，因为输出电压基本线性地降低并且没有波动或下冲，因此可以有效地避免负载的故障。 Thus, since the output voltage decreases linearly and substantially without overshoot or fluctuation, it is possible to effectively prevent failures of the load.
具体地说，在整流器是自驱动型的情况下，在发送了停止开关电源的操作的指令时防止在初级侧上的开关电路中的内部电压逐渐增加。 Specifically, in a case where the rectifier is self-driven, to prevent internal voltage switching circuit on the primary side is gradually increased when transmitting the instruction to stop the operation of the switching power supply. 因此可以有效地保护在初级侧上使用的电部件不受损坏。 It can be effectively used to protect the electrical components from damage on the primary side. 此外，因为不需要使用耐高压的部件，因此降低了开关电源的成本。 Further, it is not necessary to use high voltage components, thus reducing the cost of the switching power supply. 此外，因为在发送指令时较大的电流不流经输出电抗器、变压器的次级线圈和整流器，因此可以提高开关电源的可靠性。 Further, since the transmission instruction when a large output current does not flow through the reactor, the secondary winding of the transformer and the rectifier, thus improving the reliability of the switching power supply.
因此，本发明的开关电源适合于作为给具有较大电容部件CLoad的负载提供电功率的开关电源。 Thus, the switching power supply of the present invention is adapted to provide electrical power to a load having a large capacitance of the switching power supply member CLoad. 此外，本发明的特别适合于作为给易于经常呈轻负载状态的负载提供电功率的开关电源。 Further, the present invention is particularly suitable for use as a load having often easy to light load state of the switching power supply to provide electrical power. 此外，本发明的开关电源还适合于给要求较低的电压和较大的电流的负载(比如服务器计算机)提供电功率的开关电源。 Further, the switching power supply of the present invention is also suitable for less demanding voltage and large current load (such as a server computer) to provide electrical power to the switching power supply. 即，根据本发明，即使在较重的负载状态或较轻的负载状态下发送了停止开关电源的操作的指令，该开关电源也能够基本线性地降低它的输出电压。 That is, according to the present invention, the transmission power switching instruction operation is stopped even under heavy load state or a lighter load state, the switching power supply can be substantially linearly reduces its output voltage.
本发明的上述目的和其它目的还可以通过如下的开关电源实现，该开关电源包括：具有初级线圈和次级线圈的变压器；连接在变压器的输入端和初级线圈之间的开关电路；连接到变压器的次级线圈的整流器；位于整流器的随后级上并包括输出电容器的滤波电路；控制开关电路的控制电路；以及响应指令以停止开关操作，至少使用存储在输出电容器中的能量给控制电路提供操作电压的装置。 The above object and other objects of the present invention may also be implemented by switching power supply, the switching power supply comprising: a transformer primary and secondary coils; a switching circuit connected between the input terminals of the transformer and a primary coil; connected to the transformer rectifier secondary coil; and a filter circuit comprising an output capacitor of the rectifier is then positioned on the stage; a control circuit for controlling the switching circuit; and in response to an instruction to stop the switching operation, the energy stored in the output capacitor at least in the operation of the control circuit provided voltage apparatus.
在本发明的优选方面，在正常操作的过程中从该装置中提供的操作电压低于提供给控制电路的操作电压。 In a preferred aspect of the present invention, the operating voltage supplied from the device during normal operation lower than the operating voltage supplied to the control circuit.
根据本发明这些方面，该开关电源能够基本线性地降低它的输出电压而不波动或下冲。 According to these aspects of the present invention, the switching power supply can be reduced substantially linearly without its output voltage fluctuations or undershoot. 因此能够有效地避免负载的故障。 Therefore possible to effectively avoid failure load. 具体地说，在整流器是自驱动型的情况下，在发送了停止开关电源的操作的指令时能够防止在初级侧的开关电路中的内部电压逐渐增加。 Specifically, in a case where the rectifier is self-driven, while sending an instruction to stop the operation of the switching power supply of the internal voltage can be prevented in the switching circuit on the primary side is gradually increased. 因此可以有效地保护在初级侧上使用的电部件不受损坏。 It can be effectively used to protect the electrical components from damage on the primary side. 此外，因为不需要使用耐高压的部件，因此降低了开关电源的成本。 Further, it is not necessary to use high voltage components, thus reducing the cost of the switching power supply. 此外，因为在发送指令时较大的电流不流经输出电抗器、变压器的次级线圈和整流器，因此可以提高开关电源的可靠性。 Further, since the transmission instruction when a large output current does not flow through the reactor, the secondary winding of the transformer and the rectifier, thus improving the reliability of the switching power supply.
本发明的上述目的和其它目的还可以通过如下的开关电源实现，该开关电源包括：具有初级线圈和次级线圈的变压器；串联连接在变压器的输入端和初级线圈之间的第一和第二变换器；连接到变压器的次级线圈的整流器；控制第一和第二变换器的控制电路；以及响应指令以停止开关操作，从而第一和第二变换器的顺序停止第一和第二变换器的操作的装置。 The above object and other objects of the present invention may also be implemented by switching power supply, the switching power supply comprising: a transformer primary and secondary coils; connected in series between the input terminals of the transformer primary winding and first and second converter; rectifier connected to the transformer secondary winding; and a second control circuit for controlling the first transducer; and in response to an instruction to stop the switching operation, thereby sequentially stopping the first and second converter converting the first and second device's operation.
在本发明的优选方面，在发送指令时的时刻到停止第二变换器的操作的时刻的期间中，该停止装置应用从变压器的次级侧提供的能量使第二变换器的操作继续。 During the time in a preferred aspect of the invention, the time when sending the instruction to stop the operation of the second inverter, the stop means provided by the application of energy from the secondary side of the transformer so that continued operation of the second converter.
根据本发明这些方面，该开关电源能够基本线性地降低它的输出电压而不波动或下冲。 According to these aspects of the present invention, the switching power supply can be reduced substantially linearly without its output voltage fluctuations or undershoot. 因此能够有效地避免负载的故障。 Therefore possible to effectively avoid failure load. 具体地说，在整流器是自驱动型的情况下，在发送了停止开关电源的操作的指令时能够防止在第二变换器中的内部电压逐渐增加。 Specifically, in a case where the rectifier is self-driven, when sending the instruction to stop the operation of the switching power supply can be prevented in the second internal voltage converter increases gradually. 因此能够有效地保护在初级侧上使用的电部件不受损坏。 It can be effectively used to protect the electrical components from damage on the primary side. 此外，因为不需要使用耐高压的部件，因此降低了开关电源的成本。 Further, it is not necessary to use high voltage components, thus reducing the cost of the switching power supply. 此外，因为在发送指令时较大的电流不流经输出电抗器、变压器的次级线圈和整流器，因此可以提高开关电源的可靠性。 Further, since the transmission instruction when a large output current does not flow through the reactor, the secondary winding of the transformer and the rectifier, thus improving the reliability of the switching power supply.
通过阅读下文参考附图的描述本发明的上述目的和其它目的和特征将会更加清楚。 By reading the description above and other objects and features of the invention will become more apparent with reference to the accompanying drawings.
附图1所示为说明本发明的优选实施例的开关电源的电路图。 BRIEF DESCRIPTION switching power supply of the preferred embodiment of the present invention is a circuit diagram shown in FIG.
附图2所示为在负载的电阻部件RLoad相当大时在附图1中所示的开关电源的操作的时序图。 BRIEF is a timing chart when the resistance of the load RLoad considerable part in the switching power supply 1 shown in the drawings in the operation shown in FIG.
附图3所示为在附图2中所示的时序图的原理部分的放大时序图。 The drawings is a schematic timing chart shown in FIG. 2 is an enlarged portion of a timing chart shown in FIG.
附图4所示为在负载的电阻部件RLoad相当小时在附图1中所示的开关电源的操作的时序图。 In the drawings is a timing diagram of the load resistance RLoad rather small operating member in the switching power supply shown in FIG. 1 in FIG. 4.
附图5所示为在附图1中所示的开关电源的变型实例的电路图。 In the drawings figures 1 a circuit diagram of the switching power supply shown in the modified example 5 as shown in FIG.
附图6所示为作为本发明的另一优选实施例的开关电源的电路图。 The switching power supply further preferred embodiment of the present invention is a circuit diagram of FIG. 6 figures.
附图7所示为说明常规的开关电源的电路图。 BRIEF DESCRIPTION is a circuit diagram of a conventional switching power supply shown in FIG.
附图8所示为在附图7中所示的常规的开关电源的操作的时序图。 BRIEF timing diagram of a conventional switching power supply shown in figures 7 of operation shown in FIG.
附图9所示为在发送了停止开关电源的操作的指令时输出电压Vout的下冲的时序图。 Undershoot a timing chart when the output voltage Vout as shown in FIG. 9 transmits an instruction to stop the operation of the switching power supply.
参考附图详细地解释本发明的优选实施例。 Illustrate preferred embodiments of the present invention in detail with reference to the drawings.
附图1所示为作为本发明的优选实施例的开关电源的电路图。 BRIEF switching power source as a preferred embodiment of the present invention is a circuit diagram of the embodiment shown in FIG.
如附图1所示，本实施例的开关电源可以降低提供到一对输入功率端子41和42中的DC(直流)输入电压Vin以在一对输出功率端子43和44之间产生直流输出电压Vout并将该DC输出电压Vout提供给负载。 As shown in Figure 1, the switching power supply according to the present embodiment can reduce the power supplied to a pair of input terminals and the 42 DC 41 (DC) input voltage Vin a DC output voltage generated between the pair of output terminals 43 and 44 the DC output voltage Vout and Vout supplied to the load. 本实施例的开关电源由连接到输入功率端子41和42的反向变换器电路50、连接到反向变换器电路50以激励变压器T2的初级线圈Lp11的半桥变换器电路60、控制反向变换器电路50的反向变换器控制电路71、控制半桥变换器电路60的半桥变换器控制电路72、在正常操作的过程中为反向变换器控制电路71和半桥变换器控制电路72产生工作电压Vcc的辅助电源电路80、在操作的开始的过程中产生工作电压Vcc的第一操作电压产生电路90、在操作的终止的过程中产生工作电压Vcc的第二操作电压产生电路100、位于变压器T2的次级侧上的自驱动型整流器110和连接在整流器110和输出功率端子43和44之间的滤波电路120。 Switching power supply according to the present embodiment comprises a power terminal 41 is connected to the input circuit 42 and inverters 50, 50 connected to the inverting converter circuit to energize the primary winding of the transformer T2 Lp11 half-bridge inverter circuit 60, the reverse control inverters inverter circuit 50 of control circuit 71, a control half bridge converter circuit 60 half-bridge inverter control circuit 72, during normal operation of the control circuit 71 and the half bridge buck converter inverter control circuit 72 auxiliary power supply circuit 80 generates the operating voltage Vcc, the operating voltage to produce a first operating voltage Vcc during the beginning of the operation generating circuit 90 generates the operating voltage Vcc during operation of terminating operation of the second voltage generating circuit 100 , self-driven rectifier on the secondary side of the transformer T2 is connected between the rectifier 110 and the output power terminal 110 and a filter circuit 43 and 44 120.
此外，在输入DC电源和输入功率端子41之间提供操作开关S11。 Further, there is provided an operation switch S11 between the input DC power supply and the input terminal 41. 为了启动开关电源，必需从外部将操作开关S11改变到接通状态。 In order to start the switching power supply, it is necessary from the external operation switch S11 is changed to the ON state. 虽然操作开关S11并不是包括在开关电源中的部件，但是它可以是包括在开关电源中的部件。 While the switch S11 is not the operation member comprises a switching power supply, but it may be a member in the switching power supply.
反向变换器电路50包括主开关Q11和Q12和虑波电抗器Lb。 The buck converter circuit 50 includes a main switch Q11 and Q12 and consider Reactor Lb. 如在附图1中所示，主开关Q11和虑波电抗器Lb串联连接在高压侧输入功率端子41和半桥变换器电路60之间。 As shown in the drawings, the main switch Q11 and consider Reactor 1 Lb connected in series between the power input terminals 41 and a half-bridge inverter circuit 60 on the high side. 主开关Q12连接在低压侧输入功率端子42和主开关Q11和虑波电抗器Lb的节点之间。 Main switch Q12 is connected between the low voltage side of power input terminals 42 and Lb main switch Q11 and node considered Reactor. 反向变换器电路50可以降低在输入功率端子41和42之间提供的输入电压Vin以在一对内部线45和46之间产生直流内部电压Vp。 The buck converter circuit 50 may reduce the input voltage Vin between the input terminals 41 and 42 to provide power to generate a DC voltage Vp between the inner pair of inner lines 45 and 46.
半桥变换器电路60包括串联连接在该对内部线45和46之间的主开关Q13和主开关Q14和串联连接在该对内部线45和46之间的初级侧电容器C11和C12。 60 includes a series half-bridge converter circuit connected between the main switch and the main switch Q14 and Q13 connected in series between the 45 and 46 on the inner wire is connected between the lines 45 and 46 of the internal primary side capacitor C11 and C12. 如附图1所示，变压器T2的初级线圈Lp11连接在主开关Q13和主开关Q14的节点和初级侧电容器C11和C12的节点之间。 As shown in Figure 1, transformer T2 primary coil Lp11 connected between the node and the primary-side capacitor C11 and C12 of the node main switch and the main switch Q13 and Q14.
反向变换器控制电路71是这样的电路：它控制包括在反向变换器电路50中的主开关Q11和Q12的开关操作以便在反向变换器控制电路71的控制下以预定的停滞时间依次使主开关Q11和Q12进入接通状态。 Buck converter control circuit 71 is a circuit: which comprises the control circuit 71 controls the inverter circuit 50 in a reverse switching operation of the main switch Q11 and Q12 in order to control the buck converter in a sequence of a predetermined dead time the main switches Q11 and Q12 into the on state. 反向变换器控制电路71基于输出电压Vout的电平控制主开关Q12的占空系数。 Duty ratio control circuit 71 controls the buck converter main switch Q12 based on the level of the output voltage Vout. 具体地说，在输出电压Vout相对于所需的电压增加时反向变换器控制电路71降低主开关Q12的占空系数以降低通过内部线45和46提供到半桥变换器电路60的电功率，而在输出电压Vout相对于所需的电压降低时升高主开关Q11的占空系数以增加通过内部线45和46提供到半桥变换器电路60的电功率。 Specifically, the buck converter control circuit when the output voltage Vout is increased with respect to the desired voltage reduction of the main switch 71 Q12 to reduce the duty factor of electric power supplied to the half bridge converter circuit 60 through internal lines 45 and 46, in the output voltage Vout is increased with respect to the space factor when the main switch Q11 is reduced to increase the voltage necessary for the electric power supplied to the half-bridge converter circuit 60 through internal lines 45 and 46. 因此，给半桥变换器电路60提供了具有稳定的电平的内部电压Vp，该稳定的电平取决于直流输入电压Vin和主开关Q12的占空系数。 Thus, a half-bridge converter circuit 60 provides a stable level of the internal voltage Vp of, the stable level depends on the duty cycle DC input voltage Vin and the main switch Q12.
因为反向变换器控制电路71属于初级侧，所以反向变换器控制电路71不能直接接收输出电压Vout。 Since the buck converter control circuit 71 belongs to the primary side, the buck converter control circuit 71 can not directly receive the output voltage Vout. 因此通过隔离电路130给反向变换器控制电路71提供与输出电压Vout相关的电压Vout'。 Accordingly to the reverse converter control circuit 71 through an isolation circuit 130 provide the output voltage Vout is a voltage Vout '. 下文将解释反向变换器控制电路71的最小操作电压。 Buck converter will be explained below minimum operating voltage control circuit 71.
半桥变换器控制电路72是这样的一种电路：它控制包括在半桥变换器电路60中的主开关Q13和主开关Q14的开关操作以便主开关Q13和主开关Q14依次以固定的占空系数进入接通状态。 Half-bridge inverter control circuit 72 is a circuit: which includes a main control switch and the main switch Q13 at half-bridge converter circuit 60 operates to switch the main switch and the main switch Q14 Q14 Q13 turn fixed duty factor enters the on state. 因此，在该对输出功率端子43和44之间出现了具有稳定的电平的输出电压Vout，该稳定的电平取决于内部电压Vp和变压器T2的匝数比。 Accordingly, between the pair of power output terminals 43 and 44 there has been a stable output voltage Vout of the level, the level of stable internal voltage Vp depends on the turns ratio of the transformer T2. 下文将解释半桥变换器控制电路72的最小操作电压。 Hereinafter will be explained the control half bridge converter circuit 72 a minimum operating voltage.
辅助电源电路80是这样的一种电路：用于在正常操作的过程中产生用于反向变换器控制电路71和半桥变换器控制电路72的工作电压。 Auxiliary power supply circuit 80 is a circuit: means for generating a buck converter control circuit 71 and a half-bridge inverter control circuit voltage 72 during normal operation. 辅助电源电路80由二极管桥路B、滤波电容器C13和C14、晶体管Tr11和电阻R11和R12构成。 Auxiliary power supply circuit 80, a smoothing capacitor C13 and C14, transistor Tr11 and the resistors R11 and R12 includes a diode bridge B. 二极管桥路B是对在变压器T2的初级侧上的辅助线圈Lp12上出现的电压进行整流的电路。 B is a diode bridge circuit voltage appearing on the secondary winding Lp12 on the primary side rectifying transformer T2. 在二极管桥路B的输出节点之间出现的电压通过滤波电容器C13进行滤波以产生辅助功率电压Vsub。 Voltage appearing between the output node of the diode bridge B is filtered by filter capacitor C13 to produce auxiliary power voltage Vsub. 晶体管Tr11连接在二极管桥路B的高压侧输出节点和Vcc线之间。 Transistor Tr11 connected between the high-voltage side line Vcc and an output node B of the diode bridge. 电阻R11连接在晶体管Tr11的基极和发射电极之间。 Resistor R11 is connected between the transistor Tr11 the base and emitter electrodes. 二极管桥路B的低压侧输出节点直接连接到内部线46。 A low pressure side of the diode bridge output node B is directly connected to the inner wire 46. 在半桥变换器电路60开始开关操作时具有上述结构的辅助电源电路80使用在辅助线圈Lp12上出现的电压将具有预定的电平的操作电压提供给Vcc线。 Auxiliary power supply circuit having the above structure when the half-bridge inverter circuit 60 starts to switch 80 using the voltage appearing on the secondary winding Lp12 having a predetermined level of operating voltage supplied to the Vcc line. 通过辅助电源电路80提供到Vcc线的操作电压称为“Vcc1”。 It is supplied to the Vcc line 80 through an auxiliary power supply circuit operating voltage referred to as "Vcc1".
第一操作电压产生电路90是这样的一种电路：用于在操作开始的过程中产生用于反向变换器控制电路71和半桥变换器控制电路72的操作电压。 A first operating voltage generating circuit 90 is a circuit: means for generating a buck converter control circuit 71 and a half-bridge converter control circuit 72 of operating voltage during the start of operation. 第一操作电压产生电路90由晶体管Tr12、电阻R13、齐纳二极管Z11、二极管D11和操作开关S12构成。 A first operating voltage generating circuit 90 includes a transistor Tr12, a resistor R13, the zener diode Z11, the diode D11 and the operation switch S12. 如附图1所示，晶体管Tr12和二极管D11串联连接在高压侧输入功率端子41和Vcc线之间。 As shown in the drawings, the transistor Tr12 and a diode D11 connected in series between the high side input terminal 41 and the power line Vcc. 电阻R13和齐纳二极管Z11串联连接在高压侧输入功率端子41和低压侧输入功率端子42之间。 Resistor R13 and the zener diode Z11 connected in series between the input side of the high voltage power input terminal 41 and a low side power terminal 42. 电阻R13和齐纳二极管Z11的节点连接到晶体管Tr12的基电极以使齐纳二极管Z11的齐纳电压Vz11应用到晶体管Tr12的基电极。 Resistor R13 and the zener diode Z11 is connected to the node of the transistor Tr12 to make the base electrode of the zener diode Z11 Vz11 Zener voltage applied to the base electrode of the transistor Tr12. 因此，在晶体管Tr12进入接通状态时提供到Vcc线的电压可以表示为：VZ11-2Vth(这里Vth表示在晶体管Tr12的基极和发射极电极之间的电压和二极管D11的正向电压两者)。 Thus, the voltage Vcc is supplied to the line may be expressed as when the transistor Tr12 enters the on state: VZ11-2Vth (where Vth represents both the forward voltage between the base electrode of the transistor Tr12 and the emitter electrode of the diode D11 and the voltage ). 通过第一操作电压产生电路90提供到Vcc线的操作电压称为“Vcc2”。 A first operating voltage generated by circuit 90 is supplied to the operating voltage Vcc line referred "Vcc2".
在本实施例中，选择齐纳二极管Z11，其齐纳电压VZ11表示如下：Vcc1＞Vcc2因此，仅在开关电源操作开始时启动第一操作电压产生电路90。 In the present embodiment, the Zener diode Z11, the zener voltage VZ11 which is expressed as follows: Vcc1> Vcc2 Thus, the first operation starting voltage generating circuit 90 only when the switching power supply operation starts. 在半桥变换器电路60开始开关操作之后，晶体管Tr12进入切断状态以使第一操作电压产生电路90不包括在开关电源的操作中。 After the half-bridge inverter circuit 60 starts the switching operation, transistor Tr12 enters the off state to the first operating voltage generating circuit 90 does not include an operation in the switching power supply.
包括在第一操作电压产生电路90中的操作开关S12连接在齐纳二极管Z11的相对端之间。 Generating circuit comprises operation switches S12 90 is connected between the opposite ends of Zener diode Z11 in the first operation voltage. 为了启动开关电源，必需从外部切断操作开关S12。 In order to start the switching power supply, the switch S12 off operation is necessary from the outside. 即，为了启动开关电源，操作开关S11必需接通而操作开关S12必需切断。 That is, in order to start the switching power supply, necessary for the operation switch S11 is turned off while the operation switch S12 necessary. 可以通过切断操作开关S11或通过接通操作开关S12来终止开关电源的操作。 It may terminate operation of the switching power supply by turning off the operation switch by operation of the switch S12 or S11.
第二操作电压产生电路100是这样的电路：用于在操作终止的过程中产生用于反向变换器控制电路71和半桥变换器控制电路72的操作电压。 Second operating voltage generation circuit 100 is a circuit: means for generating during operation of the termination for the reverse converter control circuit 71 controls the operation of the voltage converter and a half-bridge circuit 72. 第二操作电压产生电路100由晶体管Tr13和Tr14、齐纳二极管Z12和二极管D12构成。 Second operating voltage generating circuit 100 is constituted by the transistors Tr13 and Tr14, a Zener diode Z12 and a diode D12. 晶体管Tr13和二极管D12串联在连接内部线45和Vcc线之间。 Diode D12 and the transistor Tr13 are connected in series between the Vcc line 45 and the inner wire. 晶体管Tr14连接在内部线45和晶体管Tr13的基电极之间。 Transistor Tr14 connected between the base electrode 45 and the inner line of the transistor Tr13. 齐纳二极管Z12连接在晶体管Tr13的基电极和内部线46之间。 Zener diode Z12 is connected between the base electrode of the transistor Tr13 and the inner wire 46. 晶体管Tr14的栅电极和源电极短接以使晶体管Tr14作为恒流元件使用。 The gate electrode of the transistor Tr14 and the source electrode of the transistor Tr14 to shorting used as a constant current element. 可以使用电阻器替代晶体管Tr14。 A resistor may be used alternatively transistor Tr14.
将齐纳二极管Z12的齐纳电压VZ12设置成低于齐纳二极管Z11的齐纳电压VZ11。 Zener diode Z12 VZ12 Zener voltage of the Zener diode is set lower than the Zener voltage Z11 VZ11. 因此，在操作开关S11处于接通状态并且操作开关S12处于切断状态时，因为晶体管Tr12的基极电压低于晶体管Tr13的基极电压，所以在晶体管Tr13的基极电极和发射极电极之间施加一个比晶体管Tr13的阈值电压更低的电压，然后将晶体管Tr13保持在切断状态。 Thus, the operation switch S11 is in the ON state and the operating state of the switch S12 is off, because the base voltage of the transistor Tr12 is lower than the base voltage of transistor Tr13, it is applied between the base electrode of the transistor Tr13 and the emitter electrode a voltage lower than the threshold voltage of the transistor Tr13, the transistor Tr13 and then held in the off state. 在晶体管Tr11处于切断状态时，第二操作电压产生电路100并不包括在开关电源的操作中。 When the transistor Tr11 is in the off state, the second operation comprises a voltage generating circuit 100 is not operating in the switching power supply.
在晶体管Tr13进入接通状态时，施加到Vcc线的电压表示为：VZ12-2Vth(这里Vth表示在晶体管Tr13的基极和发射极电极之间的电压和二极管D12的正向电压两者)。 When the transistor Tr13 enters the on state, the voltage Vcc is applied to the line is expressed as: VZ12-2Vth (where Vth represents both the forward voltage between the base electrode of the transistor Tr13 and the emitter electrode and the voltage of diode D12). 通过第二操作电压产生电路100提供到Vcc线的操作电压称为“Vcc3”。 Generating circuit 100 is supplied to the operating voltage Vcc line called "Vcc3" by a second operating voltage.
因为齐纳二极管Z12的齐纳电压VZ12低于如前文所指出的齐纳二极管Z11的齐纳电压VZ11，因此在Vcc2和Vcc3之间的关系可以表示为：Vcc2＞Vcc3因此，由于操作开关S11切断或者操作开关S12接通的缘故，仅在晶体管Tr12处于切断时启动第二操作电压产生电路100。 Because the zener diode Z12 is lower than the Zener voltage VZ12 As previously noted the Zener diode Z11 Zener voltage VZ11, and therefore the relationship between Vcc2 and Vcc3 can be expressed as: Vcc2> Vcc3 Thus, since the operation switch S11 off or because of the operation of the switch S12 is turned on, the second operation starting voltage generating circuit 100 only when the transistor Tr12 is turned off.
在本实施例的开关电源中，反向变换器控制电路71的最小的操作电压设置成低于Vcc2并且等于或大于Vcc3，而半桥变换器控制电路72的最小的操作电压设置成低于Vcc3。 The minimum operating voltage of the switching power supply according to the present embodiment, the buck converter control circuit 71 is set lower than Vcc2 and Vcc3 greater than or equal to, half-bridge converter control circuit and the minimum operating voltage is set lower than 72 Vcc3 . 因此，在辅助电源电路80或第一操作电压产生电路90处于有效状态时反向变换器控制电路71可以驱动主开关Q11和Q12，而在第二操作电压产生电路100处于有效状态并且辅助电源电路80和第一操作电压产生电路90都不处于有效状态时反向变换器控制电路71不能驱动主开关Q11和Q12。 Accordingly, a control circuit 71 when the buck converter circuit 90 can be driven in the active state of the main switch Q11 and Q12 operating at a first voltage or the auxiliary power supply circuit 80, while in a second operating voltage generating circuit 100 is active and the auxiliary power supply circuit the buck converter 80 and control circuit 71 when a first voltage generation circuit 90 is not operating in an active state can not drive the main switches Q11 and Q12. 在辅助电源电路80、第一操作电压产生电路90和第二操作电压产生电路100中任一个处于有效状态时半桥变换器控制电路72就能够驱动主开关Q13和Q14。 In the auxiliary power supply circuit 80, a first operating voltage and second operating voltage generating circuit 90 generating circuit 100 when any of a half-bridge converter in the active state control circuit 72 can be driven main switches Q13 and Q14.
整流器110由整流开关Q15和Q16和电阻R14和R15构成。 Rectifier 110 is constituted by rectifier switch Q15 and Q16 and resistors R14 and R15. 整流开关Q15连接在变压器T2的次级线圈Ls11和低压侧输出功率端子44之间。 Rectifier switch Q15 is connected to the secondary winding of the transformer T2 and the low-side output power Ls11 between the terminal 44. 整流开关Q16连接在变压器T2的次级线圈Ls12和低压侧输出功率端子44之间。 Rectifier switch Q16 is connected to the secondary winding of the transformer T2 and the low-side output power Ls12 between the terminal 44. 整流开关Q15的栅电极连接到次级线圈Ls12，而整流开关Q16的栅电极连接到次级线圈Ls11。 The gate electrode of the rectifier switch Q15 is connected to the secondary coil Ls12, the gate electrode and the rectifier switch Q16 is connected to the secondary coil Ls11. 即，整流器110是自驱动型的。 That is, the rectifier 110 is a self-driven. 此外，电阻R14和R15分别插入在整流开关Q15和Q16的栅电极和源电极之间，以防止它的栅电极处于浮动状态。 Further, resistors R14 and R15 are inserted between the rectifier switch Q15 and Q16 the gate electrode and the source electrode to prevent its gate electrode is in a floating state.
滤波电路120由连接在整流器110的整流端和高压侧输出功率端子43之间的输出电抗器Lout和连接在该对输出功率端子43和44之间的输出电容器Cout构成。 A filter circuit connected to the rectifier 120 and the high-side output end of the rectifier 110 output terminal Lout between the reactor 43 and connected to the power output terminal of the output capacitor between 43 and 44 Cout configuration.
通过电阻部件RLoad、电容部件CLoad和电抗部件LLoad可以表示负载，该负载不是包括在开关电源中的元件，并且它连接在该对输出功率端子43和44之间。 RLoad member by resistance, capacitance and reactance components CLoad member LLoad may represent load, which are not included in a switching power supply element, and it is connected between the pair of power output terminals 43 and 44.
接着，解释本实施例的开关电源的操作。 Next, to explain the operation of the switching power supply according to the embodiment.
附图2所示为本实施例的开关电源的操作的时序图。 BRIEF timing diagram illustrating operation of the switching power supply of the present embodiment shown in FIG.
为了启动本实施例的开关电源，操作开关S11必需改变到接通状态，并且必需从外部将操作开关S12改变到切断状态。 To start the switching power supply according to the present embodiment, the operation is necessary to change the switch S11 to the ON state, and it is necessary from the external operation switch S12 is changed to the OFF state. 在操作开关S11改变到接通状态并且操作开关S12改变切断状态时，Vcc线的电平变为Vcc2，因为在第一操作电压产生电路90中的晶体管Tr12接通。 In operation switch S11 is changed to the ON state and the switch S12 is changed when the operation off state, the level of the Vcc line Vcc2 is changed, since the voltage generating circuit 90 in the first operation of the transistor Tr12 is turned on.
由于这个缘故，反向变换器控制电路71和半桥变换器控制电路72都启动。 For this reason, the inverter control circuit 71 and the reverse half-bridge inverter control circuit 72 are activated. 具体地说，反向变换器控制电路71基于电压Vout'以一定占空系数依次使主开关Q11和Q12进入接通状态，而半桥变换器控制电路72以固定的占空系数依次使主开关Q13和Q14进入接通状态。 Specifically, the buck converter control circuit 71 based on the voltage Vout 'at a certain duty ratio turn the main switch Q11 and Q12 into the on state, while the half-bridge inverter control circuit 72 at a fixed duty cycle of the main switch sequentially Q13 and Q14 into the on state.
由于这个缘故，因为变压器T2的初级电压VLP11的极性交替地反向，并且与初级侧的操作同步，因此在变压器T2的次级线圈Ls11和Ls12上出现的次级电压也交替地反向，因此整流开关Q15和Q16交替地依次进入接通状态。 For this reason, since the polarity of the transformer T2 primary voltage VLP11 alternately reversed and synchronized with the operation of the primary side, the secondary voltage thus appearing on the secondary winding of the transformer T2 Ls11 and Ls12 is also reversed alternately, Thus the rectifier switch Q15 and Q16 alternately turn into on state. 结果，对交替反向的极性的次级电压进行了整流，并且通过滤波电路120对所整流的电压进行滤波以产生稳定的输出电压Vout。 As a result, the secondary voltage polarity alternately reversed were rectified, and the rectified voltage is filtered by the filtering circuit 120 to produce a stable output voltage Vout.
如附图3所示，在半桥变换器控制电路72的控制下在主开关Q13和Q14相互切换时，流经输出电抗器Lout的电流ILOUT的频率变成开关频率的两倍，而流经变压器T2的初级线圈Lp11的电流ILP11的频率变成与开关频率相同。 As shown in Figure 3, the half-bridge inverter control circuit when the main switch Q13 and Q14 switched to each other, the frequency of the reactor Lout through the output current becomes twice ILOUT the switching frequency under control of the 72, flows through ILP11 frequency of the current in the primary coil of the transformer T2 Lp11 becomes the same as the switching frequency. 在流经输出电抗器Lout的电流ILOUT的方向为正向的情况下，对输出电容器Cout进行充电；在流经输出电抗器Lout的电流ILOUT的方向为负向的情况下，输出电容器Cout放电。 In the direction of the reactor Lout through the output current of the forward ILOUT case, the output capacitor Cout is charged; in the direction of the reactor Lout through the output current ILOUT is negative direction, the output capacitor Cout is discharged.
在主开关Q13处于接通状态的周期中，在流经变压器T2的初级线圈Lp11的电流ILP11的方向为正向的同时初级侧电容器C11放电，而在流经变压器T2的初级线圈Lp11的电流ILP11的方向为负向的同时对初级侧电容器C11进行充电。 In the period of the main switch Q13 in the ON state, the positive side of capacitor C11 is discharged while the primary direction of the current ILP11 LPl 1 flowing through the primary coil of the transformer T2, and through the transformer primary coil in the current T2 LPl 1 ILP11 while the negative direction of the primary-side capacitor C11 is charged. 虽然在附图3中没有示出，在主开关Q14处于接通状态的周期中，在流经变压器T2的初级线圈Lp11的电流ILP11的方向为正向的同时对初级侧电容器C12进行充电，而在流经变压器T2的初级线圈Lp11的电流ILP11的方向为负向的同时初级侧电容器C12放电。 Although not shown in Figure 3, in the on-state period of the main switch Q14, the primary coil ILP11 direction of the current flowing through the transformer T2 Lp11 forward while primary side capacitor C12 is charged, but discharging the negative direction while the primary side capacitor C12 ILP11 direction of the current flowing through the primary winding of the transformer T2 Lp11.
在通过半桥变换器电路60的开关操作所产生的电压出现在变压器T2上的辅助线圈Lp12上时，辅助电源电路80将操作电压Vcc1提供给Vcc线的电平。 When the voltage generated by the switching operation of half-bridge converter circuit 60 appears in the transformer T2 secondary coil Lp12, the auxiliary power supply circuit 80 is supplied to the operating voltage Vcc1 level Vcc line. 然后，停止第一操作电压产生电路90。 Then, the operation stops a first voltage generating circuit 90.
在另一方面，在操作开关S12在所需的时间上充电到接通状态时，晶体管Tr12切断，因为它的基极电压降低了。 In the other hand, the charging operation switch S12 to the time required in the ON state, the transistor Tr12 off because its base voltage is reduced. 在晶体管Tr12切断时，晶体管Tr11也切断，因为它的基极电压也降低了。 When off the transistor Tr12, the transistor Tr11 is also off because its base voltage is also reduced.
由于这个原因，Vcc的电平降低，然后晶体管Tr13接通，因为在它的基极和发射极电极之间的电压超过它的阈值电压。 For this reason, the Vcc level decreases, and the transistor Tr13 is turned on, since the voltage between its base and emitter electrodes exceeds its threshold voltage. 然后，Vcc线的电平变成Vcc3，因此反向变换器控制电路71的操作终止。 Then, the level of the Vcc line becomes Vcc3 is, thus terminating the reverse operation of the converter control circuit 71. 即，主开关Q11和Q12都呈切断状态。 That is, the main switch Q11 and Q12 off state were tested. 在另一方面，因为将半桥变换器控制电路72的最小操作电压设定成低于Vcc3，因此主开关Q13和Q14继续开关操作。 On the other hand, since the half-bridge converter control circuit 72 is the minimum operating voltage Vcc3 is set lower than, the main switch Q13 and Q14 thus continue switching operation.
因此，整流开关Q15和Q16也以正常的开关频率继续开关操作，并且整流开关Q15和Q16都不会象常规的开关电源那样保持在接通状态。 Thus, the rectifier switch Q15 and Q16 are also normal switching frequency of the switching operation to continue, and the rectifier switch Q15 and Q16 are not held in the ON state as that of the conventional switching power supply.
如前文所述，根据本实施例的开关电源，在通过接通操作开关S12发送停止开关电源的操作的指令之后，主开关Q13和Q14仍然继续开关操作，因此存储在负载的电容部件CLoad和输出电容器Cout中的能量逐渐被负载的电阻部件RLoad、主开关Q13和Q14、整流开关Q15和Q16等消耗掉，因此降低了输出电压Vout。 As previously described, the switching power supply according to the present embodiment, after the operation switch S12 is turned on by the operation instruction to stop the transmission of the switching power supply, a main switch Q13 and Q14 continue a switching operation, and therefore the capacitance storage means and the output load CLoad energy in the capacitor Cout is gradually RLoad resistance of the load member, the main switch Q13 and Q14, Q15 and Q16 rectifier switch and the like is consumed, thereby reducing the output voltage Vout. 在这个期间，由于主开关Q13和Q14继续以正常的开关频率进行开关操作，因此输出电压Vout并不会象常规开关电源那样降低而且波动，但输出电压Vout基本线性地降低。 During this period, since the main switch Q13 and Q14 continue a switching operation to normal switching frequency, so that the output voltage Vout does not decrease but unlike the conventional switching power supply fluctuations, the output voltage Vout is reduced substantially linearly.
此外，在本实施例的开关电源中，即使在操作开关S12改变到接通状态时主开关Q13和Q14仍然继续开关操作。 Further, in the switching power supply according to the present embodiment, the main switch Q13 and Q14 continue a switching operation even when the operation switch S12 is changed to the ON state. 因此，与常规的开关电源不同的是，不会产生逆程电压，因此在开关电路中的内部电压Vp不会增加。 Thus, the conventional switching power supply is different, the flyback voltage is not generated, so the internal voltage Vp in the switching circuit does not increase. 在开关电路中的内部电压Vp如附图2所示那样线性地降低。 Internal voltage Vp in the switching circuit as shown in Figure 2 decreases linearly as. 在另一方面，在Vcc线电平降低了半桥变换器控制电路72的最小操作电压时，所有的开关操作都终止。 On the other hand, the line Vcc level is lowered when the minimum operating voltage of the half-bridge inverter control circuit 72, all the switching operation terminates. 在这时，因为已经消耗了存储在输出电容器Cout和负载的电容部件CLoad中的大部分能量，因此输出电压Vout不会象常规的开关电源那样在非常长的时间周期上波动。 At this time, since most of the energy has been consumed in the capacitive storage means output capacitor Cout and the load CLoad in, the output voltage Vout is not unlike conventional switching power supply fluctuation as a very long period of time.
此外，因为在操作开关S12改变接通状态之后主开关Q13和Q14的开关操作与在正常的操作过程中的开关操作相同，因此流经输出电抗器Lout的电流与正常操作的电流相同，并且没有异常电流流动。 Further, since after the operation state of the main switch S12 is turned on to change over switch Q13 and Q14, and the switching operation during normal operation of the same, so the reactor Lout through the output current of the same current normal operation, and no abnormal current flow.
这里N1表示变压器T2的初级线圈Lp11的匝数，N2表示变压器T2的次级线圈Ls11和Ls12的匝数。 Where N1 denotes the number of turns of the primary winding of transformer T2 Lp11, N2 represents the secondary winding of the transformer T2 and Ls12 Ls11 turns.
从公式(3)中可以看出，根据本实施例，因为将初级侧电容器C11和C12的电容加入到公式(1)中，所以LCR串联电路阻止了振荡。 From equation (3) it can be seen, according to the present embodiment, since the primary-side capacitor C12 and the capacitor C11 added to the formula (1), the series circuit of LCR oscillation is prevented. 因此，通过应用初级侧电容器C11和C12的电容但不使用任何附加的电容器Cex可以防止输出电压Vout的下冲。 Thus, by using the primary-side capacitor C11 and the capacitor C12 without using any additional capacitor Cex it is possible to prevent the overshoot of the output voltage Vout.
附图4所示为在附图1中的开关电源的操作的时序图，在该图中负载的电阻部件RLoad相当小。 Figure 4 shows a timing diagram illustrating operation of the switching power supply 1 in the accompanying drawings, in which FIG load RLoad relatively small resistive component.
如附图4所示，在初级侧电容器C11和C12的电容即使不满足公式(3)的情况下，即使在负载的电抗部件LLoad上的电压VLLoad上升，因为LCR串联电路不满足振荡条件，因此输出电压Vout也不会变为负。 As shown in the drawings, the primary-side capacitor C12 and the capacitor C11 is not satisfied even when the equation (3), the voltage on the even VLLoad reactance means LLoad load 4 is increased, since a series circuit of LCR oscillation condition is not satisfied, and therefore The output voltage Vout does not become negative. 即，可以防止输出电压Vout的下冲。 That is, it is possible to prevent undershoot of the output voltage Vout.
如上文所解释，根据本实施例的开关电源，因为通过接通操作开关S12终止开关电源的操作而不产生在常规的开关电源中出现的各种问题，因此可以通过在接通状态下的操作开关S11启动和终止本实施例的开关电源的操作。 As explained above, the switching power supply according to the present embodiment, since without causing various problems in the conventional switching power supply by turning on the operation switch S12 terminates the operation of the power switch, can be operated in the on state by and termination of this embodiment of the switching power supply to start operating switch S11. 因此，本实施例的开关电源特别适合于操作开关S11设置在开关电源之外的情况。 Thus, the switching power supply according to the present embodiment is particularly suitable where the operation switch S11 is provided outside the switching power supply.
此外，在本实施例的开关电源中，因为在正常操作的过程中停止了第一操作电压产生电路90，同时通过辅助电源电路80给Vcc线提供操作电压，因此在正常操作的过程中在第一操作电压产生电路90中不会产生电损失。 Further, in the switching power supply according to the present embodiment, since the operation is stopped during normal operation of the first voltage generating circuit 90, while 80 provides the operating voltage Vcc through the auxiliary power supply circuit to the line, and therefore during normal operation of the an operating voltage generating circuit 90 does not generate electrical losses.
此外，因为本实施例的开关电源通过两个串连变换器电路、反向变换器电路50和半桥变换器电路60执行输入电压Vin的压降，因此可以降低在每个变换器电路中产生的电损失，因此可以总体地提高转换效率。 Further, since the switching power supply according to the present embodiment, by two series-connected inverter circuit, the inverter circuit 50 and the reverse drop of half-bridge inverter circuit 60 performs the input voltage Vin, it can be reduced in each converter circuit generated loss of electricity, thus improving the overall conversion efficiency.
虽然附图2和4所示为通过接通操作开关S12终止本实施例的开关电源的操作的情况，但是通过切断操作开关S11也可以终止它。 Although the drawings of the present case is terminated by turning the operation switch S12 embodiment of the switching power supply shown in Figure 2 and 4 operation, but by the cutting operation of the switch S11 may be terminated. 还是在这种情况下，与接通操作开关S12的情况类似，可以终止开关电源的操作而不产生在常规的开关电源中出现的各种问题。 Also in this case, in the case of turning on the operation switch S12 is similar to operation of the switching power supply may be terminated without generating problems occurring in the conventional switching power supply.
在本实施例的开关电源中，虽然包括在第二操作电压产生电路100中的晶体管Tr13的集电极电极和晶体管Tr14的漏极电极都连接到内部线45，但是它们也可以连接到包括在辅助电源电路80中的二极管桥路B的高压侧输出节点，如附图5所示。 In the switching power supply according to the present embodiment, the drain electrode and the collector electrode of the transistor while the transistor Tr13 100 includes a generating circuit in the second operation voltage Tr14 are connected to inner wire 45, but they may also be connected to the auxiliary comprises voltage output node of the power supply circuit 80 B of the diode bridge, as illustrated in FIG. 在附图5中所示的开关电源可以执行与在附图1中的开关电源的操作几乎相同的操作。 In the switching power supply shown in FIG. 5 may be performed with the operation of the switching power supply 1 in the drawings is substantially the same operation.
接着，解释本发明的另一优选的实施例。 Next, to explain another preferred embodiment of the present invention.
附图6所示为本发明的另一优选实施例的开关电源的电路图。 A circuit diagram of a switching power supply according to another preferred embodiment of the present invention are shown in FIG. 6.
如在附图6中所示，除了增加附加的电路140以外，本实施例的开关电源具有与在附图1中所示的开关电源相同的结构。 As shown in Figure 6, except the added additional circuitry 140, the switching power supply according to the present embodiment has the switching power supply 1 shown in the figures in the same structure.
附加电路140由串联连接在内部线45和46之间的附加电容器Ca和附加电阻器Ra构成，它用于防止LCR串联电路振荡。 Additional additional capacitor 140 is connected between the internal circuit lines 45 and 46 by an additional series resistor Ra and Ca configuration, a series circuit of LCR for preventing the oscillation. 在本实施例中，在满足公式(4)时，LCR串联电路振荡，由此产生下冲。 In the present embodiment, at the time of satisfying the formula (4), LCR series circuit of the oscillation, thereby generating undershoot. RLoad2<4·LLoadCout+(N1N2)2·(cl1+cl2)+(2·N1N2)2·Ca...(4)]]>从公式(4)中可以看出，根据本实施例，LCR串联电路仍然非常强地抑制了振荡，因为附加电容器Ca的电容加入到公式(3)中。 RLoad2 & lt; 4 & CenterDot; LLoadCout + (N1N2) 2 & CenterDot; (cl1 + cl2) + (2 & CenterDot; N1N2) 2 & CenterDot; Ca ... (4)]]> As it can be seen from equation (4), according to the present embodiment, LCR series circuit is still very strongly suppressed oscillation, because the additional capacitance of the capacitor Ca is added to the formula (3). 因此，本实施例的开关电源适合于在仅仅通过利用初级侧电容器C11和C12的电容不能防止输出电压Vout的下冲的地方，即在满足公式(3)时。 Thus, the switching power supply according to the present embodiment is adapted to place the output voltage Vout can not be prevented simply by using the primary-side capacitor C12 and the capacitor C11 of the punch, i.e. when satisfying the formula (3). 因为附加电容器Ca和附加电阻器Ra构成了时间恒定电路，在正常操作的过程中附加电路140并不影响开关电源的操作。 Because the additional capacitor Ca and resistor Ra constitute additional time constant circuit, during normal operation of the addition circuit 140 does not affect the operation of the switching power supply.
附加电路140可以加入到在附图5中所示的开关电源中。 Additional circuitry may be added to the switching power supply 140 in FIG. 5 of the drawings.
因此参考具体的实施例已经示出并描述了本发明。 Thus with reference to specific embodiments have been illustrated and described in the present invention. 然而，应该注意的是本发明并不限于所描述的详细结构，在不脱离所附加的权利要求的范围的前提下可以作出变型。 However, it should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the structure described in detail, modifications may be made without departing from the appended claims range.
例如，在上述的实施例中，通过给齐纳二极管Z12设置低于齐纳二极管Z11的齐纳电压VZ11的齐纳电压VZ12可以实现所需的操作。 For example, in the above embodiment, the desired operation can be achieved by a zener diode Z12 is set lower than the zener diode Z11 Zener voltage of the Zener voltage VZ11 VZ12. 然而，可以允许齐纳二极管Z11的齐纳电压VZ11和齐纳二极管Z12的齐纳电压VZ12具有相同的值或者齐纳二极管Z11的齐纳电压VZ11低于齐纳二极管Z12的齐纳电压VZ12，只要在操作开关S11处于接通状态同时操作开关S12处于切断状态时，晶体管Tr12的基极电压高于晶体管Tr13的基极电压。 However, a zener diode may be allowed Z11 VZ11 and the Zener voltage of the Zener voltage of the Zener diode Z12 has a zener voltage of VZ12 VZ11 same value or the zener diode is lower than the zener diode Z11 Z12 Zener voltage VZ12, as long as in operation switch S11 is in the oN state while the operation switch S12 is in the off state, the base voltage of transistor Tr12 is higher than the base voltage of transistor Tr13.
此外，在上述的实施例中，通过将反向变换器控制电路71的最小操作电压设置成高于半桥变换器控制电路72的最小操作电压可以实现所需的操作。 Further, in the above embodiment, the minimum operating voltage by the buck converter control circuit 71 is set higher than the half-bridge converter control circuit 72 a minimum operating voltage required for the operation can be realized. 然而，可以允许这些最小操作电压具有相同的值或者反向变换器控制电路71的最小操作电压低于半桥变换器控制电路72的最小操作电压，只要在例如通过在反向变换器控制电路71的Vcc输入端和Vcc线之间增加一个或串联的多个二极管启动第二操作电压产生电路100时，在半桥变换器控制电路72保持在有效状态的同时，停止反向变换器控制电路71。 However, these minimum operating voltage may be allowed to have a minimum operating voltage of the same value or buck converter control circuit 71 is below the minimum operating voltage of the half-bridge inverter control circuit 72, as long as for example by a reverse converter control circuit 71 or an increase in series between the Vcc input terminal and the Vcc line a second plurality of diodes operation starting voltage generating circuit 100, the half bridge converter control circuit 72 while remaining in an active state, the control circuit 71 stops inverters .
此外，在上述的实施例中，变压器T2的初级侧电路由串联连接的反向变换器电路50和半桥变换器电路60构成；然而，变压器T2的初级侧电路并不限于这种结构，也可以串联使用其它的变换器电路作为变压器T2的初级侧电路。 Further, in the above embodiment, the buck converter circuit at the primary side circuit of the transformer T2 is connected in series by a half-bridge inverter circuit 50 and 60 constitute; however, the primary side circuit of the transformer T2 is not limited to such a configuration, It may be used in series as other inverter circuit of the primary side circuit of the transformer T2. 例如，可以使用升压变换器电路等类似的电路替代反向变换器电路50，以及使用正向变换器电路、全桥变换器电路、推挽变换器电路等替代半桥变换器电路60。 For example, a boost converter circuit similar circuits and other alternative buck converter circuit 50, and the use of a forward converter circuit, instead of the half-bridge inverter circuit 60 full-bridge inverter circuit, a push-pull converter circuit.
此外，在上述的实施例中，整流器110是自驱动型的。 Further, in the above embodiment, the rectifier 110 is a self-driven. 然而，因为不管整流器是否是自驱动型的，在操作终止的过程中输出电压Vout下冲的问题都会出现，因此也可以使用通过驱动电路控制的同步型整流器或使用二极管的普通型整流器替代自驱动型的整流器110。 However, since regardless of whether the rectifier is self-driven, the output during operation of terminating the backlash problem appears voltage Vout of, and therefore may be used by an ordinary rectifier synchronous rectifier or diode driving circuit for controlling an alternative self-driven type rectifier 110.
此外，在上述的实施例中，虽然反向变换器控制电路71和半桥变换器控制电路72都属于变压器T2的初级侧，但是它们也可以属于变压器T2的次级侧。 Further, in the above embodiment, although the inverter control circuit 71, and a reverse half-bridge inverter control circuit 72 belong to the primary side of the transformer T2, but they may also belong to the secondary side of the transformer T2.
如上文所述，根据本发明的开关电源，可以以如下的方式终止开关电源的操作：输出电压Vout基本线性地降低而不会有波动或下冲。 Operation As described above, the switching power supply according to the present invention, the switching power supply may be terminated in the following manner: the output voltage Vout decreases linearly substantially without undershoot or fluctuate. 因此可以有效地避免负载的故障。 It is possible to effectively prevent failures of the load. 此外，根据本发明的开关电源，在发送了停止开关电源的操作的指令时防止在初级侧上的开关电路中的内部电压Vp逐渐增加。 Further, the switching power supply in accordance with the present invention, a switching circuit to prevent internal voltage Vp on the primary side is gradually increased when transmitting the instruction to stop the operation of the switching power supply. 因此可以有效地保护在初级侧上使用的电部件不受损坏。 It can be effectively used to protect the electrical components from damage on the primary side. 此外，因为不需要使用耐高压的部件，因此降低了开关电源的成本。 Further, it is not necessary to use high voltage components, thus reducing the cost of the switching power supply. 此外，因为在发送指令时较大的电流不流经输出电抗器Lout，因此可以提高开关电源的可靠性。 Further, since the transmission instruction when a large current does not flow through the reactor Lout of the output, thus improving the reliability of the switching power supply.
因此，本发明的开关电源适合于作为给具有较大电容部件CLoad的负载提供电功率的开关电源。 Thus, the switching power supply of the present invention is adapted to provide electrical power to a load having a large capacitance of the switching power supply member CLoad. 此外，本发明的开关电源特别适合于作为给易于经常呈轻负载状态的负载提供电功率的开关电源。 Further, the switching power supply of the present invention is particularly suitable as a load having often easy to light load state of the switching power supply to provide electrical power. 此外，本发明的开关电源还适合于给要求较低的电压和较大的电流的负载(比如服务器计算机)提供电功率的开关电源。 Further, the switching power supply of the present invention is also suitable for less demanding voltage and large current load (such as a server computer) to provide electrical power to the switching power supply. 即，根据本发明，即使在较重的负载状态或较轻的负载状态下发送了停止开关电源的操作的指令，该开关电源也能够基本线性地降低它的输出电压。 That is, according to the present invention, the transmission power switching instruction operation is stopped even under heavy load state or a lighter load state, the switching power supply can be substantially linearly reduces its output voltage.
1.一种开关电源，包括：具有初级线圈和次级线圈的变压器；连接在变压器的输入端和初级线圈之间的开关电路；连接到变压器的次级线圈的整流器；控制开关电路的控制电路；以及第一和第二操作电压产生电路，每个操作电压产生电路产生控制电路的操作电压；由第一操作电压产生电路所产生的第一操作电压和由第二操作电压产生电路所产生的第二操作电压彼此具有不同的值。 1. A switching power supply comprising: a transformer primary and secondary coils; a switching circuit connected between the input terminals of the transformer and a primary coil; rectifier connected to the secondary winding of the transformer; a control circuit for controlling the switch circuit ; and first and second operating voltage generating circuit, each of the operating voltage generation circuit generates operating voltage of the control circuit; a first operating voltage generating circuit by the first operating voltage and the generated voltage generated by the second operation circuit generated second operating voltages having different values from each other.
2.如权利要求1所述的开关电源，其中第一操作电压产生电路包括确定第一操作电压的值的第一齐纳二极管，第二操作电压产生电路包括确定第二操作电压的值的第二齐纳二极管，第一齐纳二极管的齐纳电压和第二齐纳二极管的齐纳电压彼此具有不同的值。 2. The switching power supply according to claim 1, wherein the first operating voltage generation circuit includes a first operation of determining a value of the voltage of the first Zener diode, a second operation of the voltage generating circuit comprises determining a second value of the operating voltage two Zener diodes, the Zener voltage of the zener voltage of first zener diode and a second Zener diode having mutually different values.
3.如权利要求2所述的开关电源，其中第一操作电压产生电路进一步包括与第一齐纳二极管并联的操作开关。 The switching power supply according to claim 2, wherein the first operating voltage generating circuit further includes an operation switch of the first zener diode connected in parallel.
4.如权利要求1所述的开关电源，其中开关电路包括在变压器的输入端和初级线圈之间串联的第一和第二变换器。 4. The switching power supply according to claim 1, wherein the switching circuit includes a first inverter and a second input terminal of the transformer between the primary winding and in series.
5.如权利要求2所述的开关电源，其中开关电路包括在变压器的输入端和初级线圈之间串联的第一和第二变换器。 The switching power supply according to claim 2, wherein the switching circuit includes a first inverter and a second input terminal of the transformer between the primary winding and in series.
6.如权利要求5所述的开关电源，其中控制电路包括控制第一变换器的第一变换器控制电路和控制第二变换器的第二变换器控制电路，第一操作电压产生电路给第一和第二变换器控制电路所公用的电源线提供第一操作电压，而第二操作电压产生电路给该电源线提供第二操作电压。 6. The switching power supply according to claim 5, wherein the control circuit comprises a second inverter controlling the first converter and a first inverter control circuit controlling the second inverter control circuit, the first operation to the first voltage generating circuit a converter control circuit and a second power supply line common to provide a first operating voltage, and the second operating voltage generating circuit providing a second power supply line to the operating voltage.
7.如权利要求6所述的开关电源，其中在第一操作电压产生电路处于有效状态时启动第一和第二第二变换器控制电路，在第二操作电压产生电路处于有效状态时停止第一和第二第二变换器控制电路。 7. The switching power supply according to claim 6, wherein the operating voltage is generated in the first and second start of the first second inverter control circuit for generating a voltage in the second operation is stopped in the active state of the circuit when the circuit is in the active state a second inverter and a second control circuit.
8.如权利要求6所述的开关电源，其中第一变换器控制电路的最小操作电压和第二变换器控制电路的最小操作电压彼此具有不同的值。 8. The switching power supply according to claim 6, wherein different values of the minimum operating voltage of the first inverter and a second inverter circuit controlling the minimum operating voltage of the control circuit to each other.
9.如权利要求6所述的开关电源，其中进一步包括使用在变压器的初级侧上的辅助线圈上出现的电压，将第三操作电压提供给电源线的辅助电源电路。 The switching power supply as claimed in claim 6, further comprising the use of a voltage appearing on the primary side of the transformer secondary winding, the third operating voltage supplied to the auxiliary power supply circuit of the power supply line.
10.如权利要求9所述的开关电源，其中第三操作电压高于第一和第二操作电压。 10. The switching power supply according to claim 9, wherein the third voltage is higher than the operating voltage of the first and second operations.
11.如权利要求4所述的开关电源，其中第一变换器是从反向变换器和升压变换器中选择的，并且第一变换器是从半桥变换器、正向变换器、全桥变换器和推挽变换器中选择的。 11. The switching power supply according to claim 4, wherein the first converter is selected from the boost converter and buck converter, and the converter from the first half-bridge converter, a forward converter, a full converter and the selected bridge push-pull converter.
12.如权利要求1所述的开关电源，其中整流器是自驱动型的。 12. The switching power supply according to claim 1, wherein the rectifier is self-driven.
13.一种开关电源，包括：具有初级线圈和次级线圈的变压器；连接在变压器的输入端和初级线圈之间的开关电路；连接到变压器的次级线圈的整流器；位于整流器的随后级上并包括输出电容器的滤波电路；控制开关电路的控制电路；以及响应指令以停止开关操作，至少使用存储在输出电容器中的能量给控制电路提供操作电压的装置。 13. A switching power supply comprising: a transformer having a primary coil and a secondary coil; a switching circuit connected between the input terminals of the transformer and a primary coil; rectifier connected to the secondary winding of the transformer; rectifier located on the subsequent stage and an output filter circuit comprises a capacitor; a control circuit for controlling the switching circuit; and in response to an instruction to stop the switching operation, at least the energy stored in the output capacitor means to the operating voltage control circuit provides.
14.如权利要求13所述的开关电源，其中在正常操作的过程中从该装置中提供的操作电压低于提供给控制电路的操作电压。 14. The switching power supply according to claim 13, wherein the operating voltage supplied from the device during normal operation lower than the operating voltage supplied to the control circuit.
15.如权利要求13所述的开关电源，其中整流器是自驱动型的。 15. The switching power supply according to claim 13, wherein the rectifier is self-driven.
16.如权利要求14所述的开关电源，其中整流器是自驱动型的。 16. The switching power supply according to claim 14, wherein the rectifier is self-driven.
17.一种开关电源，包括：具有初级线圈和次级线圈的变压器；串联连接在变压器的输入端和初级线圈之间的第一和第二变换器；连接到变压器的次级线圈的整流器；控制第一和第二变换器的控制电路；以及响应指令以停止开关操作，从而以第一和第二变换器的顺序停止第一和第二变换器的操作的装置。 17. A switching power supply comprising: a transformer primary and secondary coils; connected in series between the first and second inverter input terminals of the transformer and a primary coil; rectifier connected to the secondary winding of the transformer; a first control circuit and a second inverter; and in response to an instruction to stop the switching operation, so that the order of the first and second transducer means stopping the operation of the first and second transducer.
18.如权利要求14所述的开关电源，其中，在发送指令时的时刻到停止第二变换器的操作的时刻的期间中，该停止装置应用从变压器的次级侧提供的能量使第二变换器的操作继续。 18. The energy during the time of the switching power supply of claim 14, wherein, at the time when the transmission instruction to stop the operation of the second converter in the application to provide stop means from the secondary side of the transformer of the second continued operation of the converter.
19.如权利要求17所述的开关电源，其中整流器是自驱动型的。 19. The switching power supply according to claim 17, wherein the rectifier is self-driven.
20.如权利要求18所述的开关电源，其中整流器是自驱动型的。 20. The switching power supply according to claim 18, wherein the rectifier is self-driven.
FR2928058B1 (en) 2008-02-21 2010-02-19 Schneider Toshiba Inverter speed drive including a protection device against overcurrent and overvoltage. | 2019-04-24T18:15:19Z | https://patents.google.com/patent/CN1424812A/en |
In today’s economy, paying for a college degree program can be challenging. Thankfully there are a host of public and private scholarships to help you secure a top-quality education. Explore some of the most interesting and valuable college scholarships below. Some of the scholarships are IT-specific, but many apply to all disciplines and career paths.
New scholarships are added and updated every month! Discover and apply to the best contests, sweepstakes and merit-based tuition assistance programs for you, then connect with an admissions advisor at an accredited school for free help building a personalized learning plan and financial aid strategy.
Got the 411 on an interesting scholarship we're not listing? Please tell us.
The Foot Locker Scholarship is awarded to students who demonstrate excellence in academics, on the sports field and in their community. Twenty (20) winners, a.k.a. "scholar athletes," will receive a $20,000 scholarship to use towards the tuition of an accredited college or University.
To enter the Foot Locker Scholarship Contest, submit the short registration form and a written recommendation from a non-family member. You will also have the option to submit additional materials, such as additional recommendations, pictures and videos.
Know a student athlete who's deserving of the Foot Locker Scholarship? Go to the application page and nominate them.
The Vote Up or Shut Up Contest from DoSomething.org will award a $10,000 college scholarship to a teenager or young adult who helps spread their message of voter awareness. To enter this contest, simply visit the link below and enter the phone numbers of five friends or classmates who are "unlikely to vote" so DoSomething.org can "send them a message."
DoSomething.org is an organization with a mission to promote positive social change among America's teenage and young adult population.
CaptainU - America's leading web-based collegiate sports recruiter - is awarding a series of $2,000 scholarships to driven student-athletes who seek to take their game and education to the next level. The CaptainU $2,000 Student-Athlete Scholarship is open to all student-athletes (high school Freshmen, Sophomores, Juniors & Seniors as well as Junior College students) planning to attend an accredited 4-year program at college or university.
CaptainU $2,000 Student-Athlete Scholarship applications are judged on profile completeness, recruiting activity on CaptainU.com, and promotion of CaptainU. The first scholarship winner was announced on the CaptainU Facebook fan page on December 30, 2012.
Visine's first ever Students with Vision Scholarship Program will grant ten $5,000 merit-based scholarships to 10 different applicants who demonstrate a clear and unique vision, strong ambition and determination to bring their dream to life. In addition to academics, financial need, extracurricular and community service activities, each student's personal story of how they are striving to achieve their goals will be weighted heavily in choosing the Visine scholarship winners. Personal stories can be submitted in video or essay format.
"For years, Visine Eye Drops have been a tool that helps people take care of their eyes so they can focus on their goals, whether they be everyday or lifelong. With the Visine 'Students with Vision' Scholarship Program, we hope to take that extra step to provide talented and motivated students with the necessary building blocks for success," says Stephanie Kaul, Group Brand Director at Johnson & Johnson Personal Care.
The "Frame My Future" Scholarship Contest is not your typical college scholarship; there are no long forms to complete or long list of eligibility requirements. Sponsored by diploma framing company Church Hill Classics, the "Frame My Future" Scholarship Contest is a fun and creative way to earn scholarship money.
To enter, applicants must submit an original creation with one image (in JPEG or PNG format) that expresses what you hope to achieve in your personal and professional life after college. Some entry ideas include: photograph, poem, short typed explanation, collage, drawing, graphic design, painting, or anything else you can dream of and capture with a single image. Your entry must be your original work and must follow the theme - This is how I "Frame My Future."
The Document Management and Graphic Communications Industry (DMGCI) Scholarships is a collection of academic scholarships for creative design professionals including over 40 annual awards worth up to $5,000 apiece. The application below lets you apply to all 40+ scholarships. The scholarships are sponsored by companies and individuals involved in the digital communications industry, including Canon USA, Eastman Kodak, HP and others.
Scholarship selection criteria include scholastic achievement, essay, participation in school activities, community service, organizational affiliations, education objectives and recommendations. This scholarship program was initiated by the Electronic Document Systems Foundation (EDSF) in 1999 to recognize and support the next generation of graphic design professionals.
The College JumpStart Scholarship is an semi-annual, merit-based scholarship open to high-school sophomores, juniors & seniors, college students, and non-traditional students. Financial need is not considered for the College JumpStart Scholarship; the main requirement is that you are committed to going to school and can express your goals for getting a higher education (by answering one of the following questions). There are numerous awards for winners of the College JumpStart Scholarship fund, including a $1,500 scholarship for first place, a $750 scholarship for the runner-up, and multiple $250 scholarships for honorable mentions.
How will winning this scholarship help you attain your goals?
Explain your community service/volunteering experience and how it has affected your life and outlook.
The "From Failure to Promise" Essay Contest scholarship is open to high school seniors, undergraduate, and graduate-level college students. To be considered, contestants must submit a 1000+ word essay that addresses the following two questions: How has the book, "From Failure to Promise: An Uncommon Path to Professoriate" positively impacted your pursuit of success and promise? What is your commitment to improving the lives of global citizens once you've reached your destined promise? Essay contest winners will be selected based on originality, quality of research, and effectiveness of presentation.
Contestants must be a high school senior, undergraduate, or graduate college student with at least a 3.0 GPA, and planning to pursue a degree at an accredited school in the U.S.
The America's Best Blogging Scholarship is available to undergraduates, graduate-level college students and incoming freshmen. To be considered for America's Best Blogging Scholarship, applicants must write a blog post that addresses the following question: "How do you plan to positively impact your community and nation upon graduation?"
To enter, simply post your answer on any blog platform (Facebook doesn't count), embed the Blogging Scholarship badge to make it official (grab the embed code from www.yourlocalsecurity.com/scholarship/apply), like it on Facebook or Google+, then submit the URL of your blog via the link below. Winning entries will be selected based on content and social validation (Tweets, Google +1s, Facebook Likes, Stumbles, etc.). Your blog must contain unique information about you and/or your interests. No spam blogs.
The Dr Pepper Tuition Giveaway is an exciting contest in which Dr Pepper is giving away over $1,000,000 in college scholarships for the 2015 school year! Prizes range from $5,000 to $100,000 in tuition payments. One of the neatest features of Dr. Pepper's scholarship is that your award can be used toward future college tuition AND to pay off previously incurred student loans -- students with college loan debt should definitely pursue this syrupy sweet opportunity!
To enter for your chance to win the 2014 - 2015 Dr. Pepper Tuition Giveaway, simply visit the application link below and tell Dr. Pepper your One-of-a-Kind Goal. You can even nominate your friends! You and your peers will vote on the winners and track votes in real-time on their nifty leader board. Once you reach 50 votes you will be asked to submit a video for the final leg of the contest. Best of luck!
Over 1 million dollars in scholarships, ranging from $5K to $100K each.
U.S. resident ages 18 - 24 | Applicants of 25+ yrs are still eligible for $5,000 awards, just not the grand prize.
The Gen and Kelly Tanabe Scholarship provides deserving students of all ages with scholarships that can be used to pay for college or graduate school. The scholarship is a merit-based program which means financial need is not considered. The Gen and Kelly Tanabe scholarship winner is chosen based on the quality of a 250-word personal statement you must submit to enter. The award may be used for tuition, room and board, books, or any related educational expense. Past academic performance is not considered as the goal is to create a level playing field.
The Scholarship is named after Gen and Kelly Tanabe who are the award-winning authors of eleven books on admission and scholarships. Together the Tanabes were accepted to all of the Ivy League colleges and won more than $100,000 in merit-based scholarships to graduate from Harvard debt-free. Gen and Kelly Tanabe tour the nation speaking about college planning and have served as expert sources for USA Today, The New York Times, CNN and US News & World Report.
The Science, Mathematics And Research for Transformation (SMART) Scholarship for Service Program was established by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to support undergraduate and graduate students pursuing degrees in Technology, Science, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines. The SMART Scholarship program aims to increase the number of gifted civilian scientists and engineers working at DoD laboratories. Additional benefits include college tuition reimbursement, paid summer internships, and government IT job placement after graduation. Download the SMART Scholarship brochure for more information.
The "Financial Connects" Financial Literacy Scholarship is open to students in sixth grade all the way up to graduate students in college, in any field of study. Scholarship applicants create an original 2-3 minute video or interactive game that promotes financial literacy and correlates with the Department of Education's financial literacy standards. View some recent winning entries here for a better idea. Applicants may participate individually or as a team. Over 100 awards are available! The "Financial Connects" Financial Literacy Scholarship Award is sponsored by the Net Literacy Alliance.
Financial Literacy scholarship contestants must be active student(s) currently enrolled in grades 6-12, or active part-time college or graduate students in a 2-4 year college or university within the United States during the contest period.
To underscore its commitment to the academic success of exceptional minority students, Xerox created the Xerox Technical Minority Scholarship program, which offers several scholarships between $1000 and $10,000 to qualified minorities enrolled in a technical degree program. The Xerox Technical Minority Scholarship is open to all undergrad or graduate college students at the bachelor level and above who are majoring in a technical field - such as Information Management, Computing and Software Systems, Material Science, Printing Management Science, Laser Optics, Chemistry, Physics, or Engineering - and maintaining a minimum 3.0 GPA.
The Sarder Scholarship, offered by New York based technical training school, NetCom Learning, was created in 2009 to advance the careers of IT professionals and spread NetCom's culture of lifelong learning. Every month the Sarder Scholarship is awarded to one driven individual wishing to begin or advance their IT career. The scholarship provides $2500 towards any publicly scheduled IT classes or IT certification bootcamps at NetCom. NetCom offers authorized training courses from leading technology vendors like Microsoft, Cisco, CompTIA, Adobe, Citrix, and Autodesk.
This is an excellent opportunity for our more adventurous scholarship-hunters. The Fulbright Grant rewards college undergrads who want to travel to a foreign country to study, teach English, or conduct research. Students in all fields of study are eligible for the Fulbright Grant, however preference is given to students whose higher education was received primarily in the United States and who have not lived in the country in which they wish to study for over six months. You must have or will have earned a Bachelor's Degree or its equivalent before the start date of the grant. Applicants in medicine must have an M.D. or its equivalent.
Fulbright Grant benefits may include: round-trip transportation to the host country, maintenance and living costs for the academic year, limited health benefits, book and tuition allowances, language study and research funding, and more.
The PossibilityU Scholarship is open to high school and undergrad college students. To enter you must create a 5-minute video that uses one of the five prompts provided below to tell us about your hopes, dreams and schemes for the way your college experience will change your world. You must post your video on YouTube and PossibilityU's Facebook page. Voting will be open to the public. The video with the most votes wins. The earlier you submit your PossibilityU video the better, as voters will have more time to "Like" it.
BookRenter.com's "Rock The World" Scholarship is your chance to win a college scholarship worth up to $25,000. This scholarship is unique because the award amount grows every time someone "Likes" The Rock The World BookRenter.com Scholarship on Facebook. (Smart social media tactic too!) Visit the Rock The World BookRenter.com Scholarship website via the link below and tell them “How you will use the scholarship," and "how your education will impact the world," to enter.” The most inspiring entry will win the scholarship.
BookRenter.com makes education more affordable by allowing students to rent textbooks for up to 80% off retail. BookRenter claims to provide students with the best prices, highest quality books, and most flexible rental experience available.
The Mark Beaumont Scholarship was established to support students who are pursuing careers specializing in the business of interactive entertainment. Possible career paths for Mark Beaumont scholarship applicants include (but are not limited to) executive leadership, law, marketing, public relations, and business development.
The Randy Pausch Scholarship Fund was established to support students who are pursuing careers specializing in the development of interactive entertainment. Possible career paths for Randy Pausch Scholarship applicants include (but are not limited to) art, animation, programming, engineering, game direction, video game design, sound design, and music composition.
The Adobe Design Achievement Awards (ADAA) is a highly competitive contest for design students to submit impressive samples of work created using Adobe software.
The competition - which showcases individual and group projects created with Adobe creative software - honors the most talented and promising student graphic designers, photographers, illustrators, animators, digital filmmakers, developers and computer artists from the world's top institutions of higher education.
In partnership with the College Board, the Siemens Foundation established the Siemens Competition in Math, Science, Engineering & Technology (STEM). The competition aims to promote excellence by encouraging high school students to undertake individual or team research projects. These projects foster intensive research that improves students' understanding of the value of scientific study and informs their consideration of future careers in cutting-edge STEM disciplines. Scholarships for winning projects range from $1,000 to an incredible $100,000 grand prize!
The deadline for the 2014 Siemens Contest has not yet been announced. Visit the link below for the latest details.
Everyone has a dream. Achieving your goals and living your dreams requires energy, drive and determination. 24Seven Energy is here to fuel your dreams with its fruit energy drinks and exclusive $1,000 Scholarship. To apply, complete the form at the link below and tell 24Seven, in 250 words or less, how $1,000 will help you realize your dream.
*As an added bonus, applicants will be eligible to win an iPad 2, just for taking the time to share your dreams. Good luck!
The LiveCitizen Scholarship Competition is open to all students ages 16 and older who are currently enrolled or plan to enroll in an accredited post-secondary education institution. To be considered, you must submit a 1-2 minute video and a 200-300 word essay answering the question "Who was the best president ever and why?" Once the video and essay are uploaded on the LiveCitizen website, the videos will be voted on. The top five highest voted videos will then be sent to the LiveCitizen staff to decide the scholarship winner. Second and third runners up will receive an Amazon Kindle. | 2019-04-21T14:39:08Z | https://www.itcareerfinder.com/it-training-funding-options/it-scholarships.html |
The purpose of Major Chords for Minors is to provide opportunity for youth to explore and cultivate their musical talent through private music instruction and to build a better community through our children.
Major Chords for Minors was established on July 14, 2011 with receipt of the IRS Determination Letter, proclaiming Major Chords for Minors a federally recognized 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. In October of 2011, Major Chords for Minors' board members conducted orientation for eight children and their families and with two contracted instructors we began teaching. Our purpose was to provide children with free private music lessons on piano and guitar to those whose families could not afford lessons.
One year later, Major Chords for Minors was giving 53 children weekly private instruction on piano, guitar, and drums, with four contracted instructors. In October of 2012 we hosted our first recital at Pit & Balcony Community Theatre and were joined by the friends and family of these students.
In that first year, two all day benefits were held with corporate sponsorships stepping up to match raised funds. Eager to share our mission with the community, we spoke to any organization who would help us to spread the word for financial support and to reach out to potential students. In addition to our fundraisers, we participated in many events across the county and region, including Wonderfest and the Cinco de Mayo Celebration on Ojibway Island, and the Saginaw Bar Association Christmas Party, to name a few.
April of 2013 found us at the Dow Event Center accepting the All Area Arts Award for Michigan’s Great Lakes Bay Region. We continued our community outreach with students performing at the Free Music Festival in Freeland, Summer Breeze Music Festival in Buena Vista, “Run For Your Life,” Pulse 3 Foundation, Saginaw Community Foundation Volunteer Appreciation Night, Mid-Michigan Children Museum’s “Day with Dad,” among others. Many of these events have now become something we participate in annually.
2014 was a busy year, with 96 weekly students and many performances. Our students were allowed a special opportuntity to perform weekly at a local coffee house's open mic night as well as work with a new performance coach to help students learn to perform together and onstage. Later that year we prepared for a recital of 85 acts, which was held at The Dow Event Center Red Room. We were joined by the students' families, friends as well as many of our donors and volunteers. With our studio continuing to grow, we hired an administrative assistant in November of 2014 and expanded our offices. From there, we began our first choir, "Vocal Chords", in order to provide an opportunity for children on our waiting list to start getting involved with music. The choir attendance rates averaged around 12 students per week.
In the Fall of 2015, Major Chords for Minors moved from it's original location - a 1200 square foot space on the corner of Court and South Mason Street - to REACH, a new community center located at 2138 N. Carolina in the City of Saginaw. We also welcomed a new project called “Major Chords for Mini Minors”, a group based music program for children ages 1-5 with adult accompaniment. With 126 students being instructed individually weekly, over 140 students on the wait list, and four instructors teaching at the same time, the move facilited the expansion of our program and created new opportunities for children to be involved in other programs located within the community center. Our new space was large enough to finally have our student lessons, choir, inventory, library, administrative offices, and Major Chords for Mini Minors all in the same location.
In December of 2015, Pam Fessler of NPR joined us at our studio for a feature story about Major Chords For Minors. Gaining national attention was a big step forward, and we are excited to see what our future holds!
We continued daily instruction for the 126 students weekly, and started forming a student band to play around town, “Lunch on the Lawn,” at the Saginaw County Administrative Building, the Mid-Michigan Children’s Museum, and others. Word spread quickly and we played as many functions through the rest of the summer, as we were asked. Our honor was when the Governor’s office called and asked us to play the Governor’s Service Awards, held this year at the Temple Theatre. Mini-Minors increased, and we added another instructor to shadow the director for six months, until she was ready to teach her own class. We also acquainted with Dr. Catherine Hennessy-Wolter, who joined our team for development and grant writing. At the end of 2016, we employed five staff members and nine instructors.
In 2017, we were excited to be offered a wing of classrooms in downtown Saginaw, at First Congregational Church. We moved in the summer, and currently reside in this location. It has offered our program better planned spaced for our needs … adding a band jam/choir room, as well as a “perfect fit” Mini-Minor room. We now have three studio supervisors (Liza Walker, Tricia Boshaw, Margie Jackson), two choir instructors (Rachel Paar and Katie Fasson), one flute instructor (Dr. Jane Girdham), five private lesson instructors (Bruce Leaman, Mike Tesch, Ryan Fitzgerald, Loren Kranz, Brad Donley), two Mini-Minor instructors (Sonja Cissell, Tiffany Wika), and two band jam instructors (Amelia Blumke, Andy Hahn), one developer/grant writer (Dr. Catherine Hennessy-Wolter), and our co-founders John & Katrina Vowell, running administration. We are proud to be able to employ many local musicians and personnel, as we roll on 2018.
I want children to experience things that I had the opportunity to experience, and more, in the their lives. I believe a child should have the opportunity in this crazy world we call home to find themselves, whether it is through music, sports, or any other activity they may enjoy.
I was raised in Saginaw and I’ve been a part of this community for 53 years. I see hope for these children, if we can all take time to learn who they really are and help guide them through positive influence. Young children can tell if an adult’s actions and what they believe in are sincere. It is our responsibility to be true.
Without the opportunity to learn music many children will enter the world as young adults with no idea who they are and what they want to do. We offer an outlet to be creative and true; a safe place to communicate and learn music. What pleases me most is to see our students learning respect, discipline and what real love and caring is all about.
When children receive music education the whole fabric of the community is strengthened. The musical benefits of learning to sing or play an instrument during youth have been well documented. Musical training in youth correlates with numerous positive lifelong outcomes, including increased self-esteem, stronger math and verbal skills, and greater college preparedness. Participating in music also correlates with a decrease in unwanted behaviors, such as classroom disruption (including dropping out of school) and drug and alcohol use. For these reasons, and especially in our inner cities where drugs, crimes, violence, and abuse are rampant, why not keep it simple?
I always knew my parochial school upbringing had a huge impact in the layout of my life, not realizing until later how impactful the musical aspect of my education was. In a classroom of about twenty boys and girls in grades 4-8, three young pianists (myself included) rotated each morning to begin the day with hymns and praises. We were all encouraged and expected to give our gifts as we had them and it was a part of everything we did. We gained valuable experience, leading church services musically, learning four-part harmonies under the direction of the hymn and choir directors, and sometimes we would have more contemporary music for special services.
I felt alone in the school: most children were one of two large families and they always had a special bond that I could not find. I didn’t understand this as a kid, but did find my place and my emotional escape through music. When I transferred out of parochial school into public school, I found that I had a unique talent that made the adjustment easier. It was obvious that even back in 1979, the basics of music taught to me through private lessons and parochial schooling were far above what others in my peer group had experienced.
Music shaped my life and became a profession in 1984, the year I graduated Swan Valley High School in Saginaw, Michigan. I began playing piano solo at private clubs and restaurants and had my first gig with a band at our local theatre company in 1986, in the musical revue, Jacques Brel Is Alive and Well and Living In Paris. The excitement of a responsive audience and playing with others to create this awesome sound of which I was a part captured me! During the run of the show I had invitations to play with others in the area and soon after the show closed I joined an area variety band and performed around the state of Michigan until 2001.
My wish is that every child has the opportunity to receive lessons and experience what music may have to offer them in their own lives.
Music benefits children and the communities in which they live throughout a lifetime. I believe music is the universal language through which we can all communicate.
Bruce began his teaching career at Major Chords for Minors when our doors opened in 2011. It gives him great pleasure sharing his love of music with the youth in his community.
Bruce’s earliest influence into the musical realm stems from his father. He specifically remembers his dad playing piano by ear, jazzing up the original versions of songs that became lullabies for Bruce and his siblings.
Although Bruce took lessons as a child, he truly began to love the instrument for his own during his young adulthood. While attending and working at Delta College in Saginaw, Bruce was allowed to use the practice rooms whenever they were empty. Playing James B. Johnson, Zez Confrey, and Scott Joplin, Bruce developed the love for piano that we see in him today.
Never without a cup of coffee or an interesting story to share, Bruce is a lover of music, people, and all things facetious.
When asked what he loves most about the piano, a slight twinkle flickered in his eyes, brows slightly furrowed. "The hammers," Bruce said, smiling. "I just love those little guys. All covered in felt. They’re so cute."
Mike has been an instructor at Major Chords since we opened our doors in 2011. Raised in a musical household, music was always within in arms reach for Mike. "I truly can’t imagine where I’d be today if it weren’t for the guitar", Mike said while readjusting the guitar strap passed down to him from his mom.
Artists such as Jimi Hendrix and The Who ultimately lead Mike to pursue the guitar. As his passion for guitar grew, his influences expanded and he gradually broadened his own tastes in music. Bob Dylan, Neil Young, and Paul Simon lie amongst Mike’s largest influences. Mike currently spends his time writing and recording his own original music and released his first full length album in the summer of 2015.
A perpetual deep thinker, Mike is often writing and rewriting his lyrics, jotting down lines whenever they may come to him. “Music has been a driving force in my life for as long as I can remember, and I want to share that appreciation with the younger generation,” Mike says.
While attending Freeland High School, the band program gave Loren ample opportunity to play and learn more about music. During his time at Central Michigan and Wayne State University, he was able to strengthen and build upon his musical foundation.
Loren's love of the drums stems from his uncle, who played professionally and often offered him pointers on the drumkit. Loren's inlfusences range from his uncle to some of his other favorite drummers, such as Steve Jordan and Levon Helm.
During a four-year gig with Ann Arbor's The Ragbirds, Loren toured through 46 states! Now gigging with his own band Barbarossa Brothers he hopes to make it to all fifty.
Ryan began playing the saxophone in the fourth grade, learning guitar, bass, drums, piano, and violin in the years after. Ryan spends the most time playing his upright double bass, which he has been playing for 16 years.
Ryan’s interest in music began at a young age. While the bass was not the first instrument Ryan played, he would often practice playing bass parts on his brother’s guitar, slowing learning covers of songs. Eventually, Ryan, Eric, and their neighbor Spencer would get together to play, covering songs by Metallica and The Offspring.
Ryan has been a part of the mid-Michigan music scene since 2005, providing him with opportunities to travel, record, perform, and teach in a multitude of settings. Ryan’s first band, Barbarossa, was formed in high school. Over the course of the next eight years, Ryan was a part of over ten different bands.
Ryan can be seen playing regularly with Bryan Rombalski and Three Worlds, Sprout, Barbarossa Brothers, and various shows throughout the season with Pit & Balcony and the Saginaw Choral Society.
Brad began playing piano under the tootalage of his grandmother at age 5 but really began studying music in depth after he got my first guitar at age 12. After transferring to Mott Middle College his freshmen year of high school, he joined their steel drum band learning to play a large variety of percussion instruments and under the instruction of James Coviak gained a love for Jazz and Music theory.
After High School, he completed an internship with luthier Bryan Galloup at Galloup School for Guitar Building and have been an active member GAL (Guild of American Luthiers) since 2006. Shortly after that, attended UofM to complete his degree in music under the tutelage of his once high school teacher James Coviak who headed the music department at UofM Flint at the time. As far as teaching private lessons, Brad started teaching his junior year in high school and have done so ever since.
Taught at Alpha Music & Instruction 2002-2006, Grand Blanc Music 2008-2016, Major Chords for Minors 2016-present.
Nick Bujouves has 17 years of experience playing bass guitar (five in the Michigan alt-rock band Dalinian) and several years of studio experience. Nick approached Major Chords in the summer of 2017 with the ambition to build them a small, but functional, recording studio. This was made possible by John Vowell bringing him aboard and also through a generous recording equipment donation made by Alex Larson.
It is Nick’s intent to provide a creative space where the young musicians feel free to express themselves more permanently through a recording medium. His primary focus is teaching the students how to navigate the digital recording landscape to simply and quickly capture their ideas, as well as introducing them to more in-depth recording techniques and methodology. He wants to foster the students to realize their creative potential – both independently and through collaboration with their peers. In his words, “It is my goal to develop the students to a point to where they no longer need me and can begin teaching each other.” Andy Reed of Reed Recording Company is a big recording hero of his!
Liza has been a lover and avid supporter of MCFM from the very beginning. Before working as a studio supervisor, she volunteered much of her time helping with fundraisers and events. As a studio supervisor, her favorite thing is to spend time with the kids and watch them learn and grow into their personalities and musical abilities.
Liza has been surrounded by music her entire life. Growing up in a family of musicians and through piano, guitar & vocal lessons she was exposed to various artists, instruments & experiences from a young age and it has carried throughout her life.
In her free time you might find her at the river, enjoying nature, drawing, or catching a live band somewhere.
Tricia was hired as a Studio Supervisor in September of 2016 but was no stranger to our studio. She began bringing her son to lessons at our first studio in 2013. She loved being around the kids and getting to watch them grow as musicians. Because of her love for children and music, she knew a position at Major Chords was the perfect fit for her and her family.
Her love and appreciation for music began when she was very young. At family gatherings, there was always some kind of music being played by her father or uncle on guitar. She remembers singing along at a very young age.
When she isn’t at the studio, Tricia loves hanging out with her family, doing crafts, cooking, gardening, and of course listening to music!
Dr. Jane Girdham started her involvement with Major Chords For Minors in the Spring of 2014. She met with the Vowells to discuss how SVSU could become involved with MCFM. Jane, who is a Professor of Music at SVSU, suggested founding a children’s choir as a way of involving a group of children on the waitlist at MCFM as well as some of her own Music Education majors.
She now supervises two SVSU Music Education majors in directing the choir, Vocal Chords. In the Summer of 2015, Jane and Heather Seaton, one of the choir directors, were awarded an SVSU grant to research the available choral programs of study and identify the one that best fits the MCFM Choir. Heather and her co-director, Emerald Joiner, have now implemented this over the course of the past year.
In February of 2016, Jane began teaching a small group of beginning flute players for MCFM and she hopes to start a second group soon.
With five years of experience teaching elementary music, including directing elementary school choirs and Orff ensembles, Sonja has always recognized the importance of music education for young children.
She also directs the children’s Christmas musical at her church and is a member of the worship team.
Her passion for music education and the impact it can make on children’s lives has her thrilled to be able to team up with Major Chords for Minors to offer Major Chords for Mini Minors to the community.
Tiffany is proud to be an instructor at Major Chords for Minors, currently teaching classes for ages 3-5. She seeks to create an environment where children can feel supported as they try new things and explore their creativity. Tiffany has been teaching mini minors classes for one year, having recently moved to Michigan from Oklahoma. She brings a variety of experience and training in classical music.
Tiffany is active in music throughout the region, as both a singer and piano accompanist. | 2019-04-26T08:22:43Z | http://majorchordsforminors.org/involved.php |
Here are the first two "new" additions to the library (with a hat tip to Council member CaptCav_CoVan).
Advising Indigenous Forces: American Advisors in Korea, Vietnam, and El Salvador by Robert Ramsey III, US Army Combat Studies Institute Occasional Paper.
Mr. Robert Ramsey’s historical study examines three cases in which the US Army has performed this same mission in the last half of the 20th century. In Korea during the 1950s, in Vietnam in the 1960s and 1970s, and in El Salvador in the 1980s the Army was tasked to build and advise host nation armies during a time of war.
The author makes several key arguments about the lessons the Army thought it learned at the time. Among the key points Mr. Ramsey makes are the need for US advi*sors to have extensive language and cultural training, the lesser impor*tance for them of technical and tactical skills training, and the need to adapt US organizational concepts, training techniques, and tactics to local conditions. Accordingly, he also notes the great importance of the host nation’s leadership buying into and actively supporting the development of a performance-based selection, training, and promotion system. To its credit, the institutional Army learned these hard lessons, from successes and failures, during and after each of the cases examined in this study. However, they were often forgotten as the Army prepared for the next major conventional conflict.
Advice for Advisors: Suggestion and Observations from Lawrence to the Present by Robert Ramsey III, US Army Combat Studies Institute Occasional Paper.
CSI is publishing this occasional paper as a supplement to Occasional Paper 18, Advising Indigenous Forces: American Advisors in Korea, Viet*nam, and El Salvador. In that important study, Mr. Robert Ramsey dis*tilled the insights gained by the US Army from its advisory experiences in Korea, Vietnam, and El Salvador. In this anthology, Mr. Ramsey presents 14 insightful, personal accounts from those who advised foreign armies in various times and places over the last 100 years. Unlike most of the monographs in our GWOT Occasional Paper series, this volume is an anthology.
The articles are from past and present advisors, and they are presented without editing or commentary. Each one presents valuable lessons, insights, and suggestions from the authors’ firsthand experiences. Readers will thus make their own judgments and analysis in support of their unique requirements.
About 9 months ago I set up up the Advisor's Log on ComapanyCommand.amry.mil which is a CoP for future, current and past company commanders. The Army for its part identified early on that Transition Teams (Border, Military, Police, Special Police and Provincial) were going to be an increasingly important effort in our long term approach to Iraq, Afghanistan, and potentially other states in the GWOT. As such the CC.mil team asked that I stand up a CDR's Log on the Advisory team subject. It has become more of a hybrid Log and Rally Point where advisors can post and share thoughts on what is going on in their location, pull down tools on IO, ISR, Force Pro, Life Support Contracts, Maintenence, articles, links (SWJ is one of them).
We see this forum (and all those that assist the advisory mission) as very important due to the increasing requirements for advisors in terms of sheer numbers, the wide range of skills and maturity needed by advisors to accomplish the mission, and the recognition that resources are limited in terms of people once you figure out that the people you need are the same people everyone needs. Many of our servicemen curently training for on on advisory duty will be going on, or are just coming out of command. Who knows, in the future the 1 year stints may just become additional Branch Qulifying jobs, which would put a whole new spin on it.
Tom Odom has a couple of papers I did up on our experiences here. SWJ is welcome to add them to the collection of resources.
I have said that I am building a MiTT/ETT reader as a parallel to a handbook. As part of that effort, I am putting together an article that deals with cultural awareness and immersion.
A short vignette type account of where you were, what you were doing, and a specific incident of where cultural understanding led to success or failure. your vignette if used would be inserted as one of a series of illustrative examples in the larger essay I am writing.
PM me if you have something.
I'm new here and still trying to find my way around your website. I'm not sure how to PM you and not even sure what that means. I lived among the Vietnamese in a rural setting for about 12 months during the war. Our small unit worked with local militia troops. I also spent many months there after the war and lived among, and had many conversations with, former friend and foe alike. I have been "immersed" in a foreign setting for nearly 13 years, still in this part of the world, and with fairly extensive travel in Laos and in Cambodia.
I could probably work something up for you with some examples which might be helpful.
Please advise if you are interested.
FSF-TT's...are they identical to ETT'S?
I am attempting to find any information concerning these newly formed FSF-TT (Foreign Security Force - Training Team). I've called random contacts down at the 162nd @ Polk to little / no avail. I have the option to stay at my current unit (Light Infantry) and deploy with them as a member of this team. What I don't want to be doing is staying in the rear strictly training / organizing forces, rather than training in addition to advising the ANA whilst on patrol, forward deployed. Any information would be greatly appreciated, thanks in advance.
Transitioning a discussion from the Iron Majors post on the blog:http://smallwarsjournal.com/blog/200...rtage/#c020176, where we diverted the discussion from why there was a shortage of Majors, to FID.
I think State Department in the lead for FID has generally been more effective than when DOD has been the lead. While hurts me to say this, and I am not attributing any talent to State (it is an organization that rejects talent generally, and embraces tenure), I think their process of under resourcing the mission (not allowing mission creep) and limiting U.S. forces in combat to largely self defense forces the host to adapt and take the lead. Agree or disagree? Why?
Historically, with Iraq perhaps being the only exception, FID operations were successful when the number of advisors was kept low, probably under 300 personnel. On the other hand, any time we sent several hundred advisors we failed? Agree or disagree? Why?
Last edited by davidbfpo; 05-21-2011 at 11:00 AM. Reason: Add link to SWJ Blog from 2008 which has new life!
2. The foreign partner has an existing government with some capacity, both on the governance level and the military level. Trying to install governments or reanimate corpses is generally a pretty dodgy venture.
Certainly a lot more to it than that, but good places to start.
If State is more successful, that may be less due to State's capacity than due to State being more likely to lead in situations where we're cooperating with a functional government.
by State having the lead? If you are referrring to situations where there is no major US military operation then the Ambassador (not DOS) is in charge of ALL USG activity including military. In such a case, the US advisory role is usually small vis the El Salvador 55. But note that the 55 were military. and the the Country team included AID and USIS etc under the leadership of 3 extraordinary Ambassadors - Deane Hinton, Tom Pickering, and Ed Corr. Our research shows tht small is bettter -see SWORD Model.
Well, for one factor, while State is still in the lead we have not yet made the tragic decision to call the intervention a "War."
I would offer the question may be better asked not in terms of State Lead vs. DoD Lead but rather in terms of FID as peacefare vs. FID as warfare.
Last edited by Bob's World; 05-21-2011 at 11:40 AM.
The Ambassador is part of DOS, and this is exactly what is meant. Once we make something a military operation, and DOD has lead until it transitions back to DOS.
I'm sure that small deployments are generally much more successful... but is that because they are intrinsically better or because they are typically used under circumstances much more conducive to success, such as when the government being assisted has a relatively high capacity of its own?
Larger military operations are typically used in cases of full or imminent state failure or in a post-regime change situation, where we are less assisting a state than trying to create one. Those situations would naturally have a lower success rate, but is that because the operations are large or because the underlying conditions are far less conducive to success?
The medicine that isn't used until the patient is in critical condition is likely to have a lower success rate. That doesn't mean it's bad medicine, it means that patients in critical condition are harder to cure.
I think Dayuhan said it well...."goals that are clear, specific, and realistic".
I think FID works when we know what we want FID to do and are willing to actually work WITH the HNSF VS imposing on them the USA method for solving a problem/ issue.
In terms of the size of force we deploy to conduct FID, I tend to agree that smaller is better but even a larger force can be effective if properly trained to understand the local language and culture, and led by people who understand how to develop & maintain a working relationship with HNSF and are willing to accept the risks that come with such an environment.
The large forces executing FID/ SFA don't meet the criteria above.
An American Ambassador is the personal representative of POTUS. His or her fomal chain of command is POTUS to AMB. SECSTATE is more on the order of CJCS - in the chain of communication not chain of command. A career FSO confirmed by the Senate as an Ambassador must (according to Amb David Passage in multiple lectures at CGSC Fort Leavenworth) resign from the Foreeign Service (to be reinstated when his ambassadorship is over). Note that a significant minority of Ambassadors are appointed from the outside - notably in the current world, Eikenberry in A'stan and now his successor, Ryan Crocker (retired). Zalmay Khalilzad was also appointed ambssador to both A'stan and Iraq from outside the Foreign Service.
In the McCaffrey Wars of the early 90s when the general claimed that MILGP commanders worked for him, he was backed by the DEPSECSTATE who had to be reminded by Amb to Colombia Morris Busby and Ambassador to Guatemala Marilyn MacAffee that they did not work for him but for Pres Clinton. Amb MacAffee ordered an ongoing military exercise shut down in 24 hours - it took 48. McCaffrey left SOUTHCOM for the drug czar office but MacAffee stayed as ambassador outlasting him and ignoring State.
So, I say again, what do we mean by DOS lead? Ever wonder why many DCMs as Charge d'Affaires seem to be afraid of their own shadows? It is because they DO work for DOS.
As you stated the AMB is the direct representative of the President, but I think most people see the role the AMB not only a representative of the President, but as a State Department employee. While an important point, the bottom line is DOD is not the in the lead. It is providing military support to our overall effort, and not transforming it into our war. In contrast a DOD lead is where the military is not only the main effort, but the U.S. military starts to take the lead in the fighting.
Getting back to the State Department issue, every FID mission I have been on the money was controlled by a person in State proper at Foggy Bottom and he-she had the final say on what would get funded and what wouldn't. Usually this person worked harder than our Iron Majors and was managing numerous programs simultaneously, so your time to ask for more received limited attention.
There is a black and white legalistic answer when State is in charge (title 22) and when DOD is in charge (title 10), but I am more interested in who is making the calls and shaping the policy. State can notionally be charge, and get run over by DOD in some cases. I haven't been on one mission where (except JTF Liberia and that wasn't FID) where the commander didn't want more resources-people. If you get more people you can do what? The answer is you can do more, which means the host nation does less and that is where the downward spiral starts.
Last edited by Bill Moore; 05-21-2011 at 06:11 PM.
We need to recall that Security Assistance is a DOS program enabled (or constrained) by the Foreign Assistance Act (FAA) of 1961 (as amended) and the Arms Export Control Act (AECA) of 1976 (as amended). Any program funded and/or controlled by these acts is subject to DOS supervision at the very least. Most FID is funded as FMS/FMF(a bit under IMET and ESF) which are all FAA programs. While there is some counternarcotics funding not under the FAA and programs of Joint Exercises (JCETs for example) and Title 10 H/CA these are merely add ons to FID programs funded by FAA. And, these "add ons" are subject to the approval of the Amb whio is advised by his Country Team (only 2 members of which wear uniforms - most of the rest are DOS).
One might be able to make a distinction between FID - a normal program run by the Amb and his CT and SFA in the midst of a major military operation. Yet, i am not sure the distinction is real or valid. I would argue that the SFA mission in Iraq was relatively successful due, in large part, to the mind meld of GEN petraeus and Amb Crocker. So, who had the lead C or P or P or C? Yes! But that is what makes the situation so unusual and it was made to work by the 2 guys on the ground. There is no standard "command relationship" that can dictate such a structure and a reluctance on the part of all presidents in my lifetime to say who is in charge of such a situation.
Your point that constrained resources makes people use what they have more effectively (and efficiently) is wise.
In 1959, a French military mission is created in Buenos Aires where French officers--all veterans from Algeria--translate Roger Trinquier, hold classes and publish articles in military revues.
In the mid-1960s, they move on to the School of the Americas where they teach American instructors and, eventually, directly teach special forces at Fort Bragg.
Special forces then put to practice what they have learned in Foreign Internal Defense programmes, particularly in Latin America.
Given the fact that Trinquier sanctions torture in Modern Warfare (1), and in the light of atrocities perpetrated in Latin America during the same period as Foreign Internal Defense programmes where in place (e.g. in El-Salvador), my question is the following: despite that FIDs programmes evolved in the right direction, to what extend is this history known and, accordingly, to what extend are FIDs controversial in the U.S.?
Source: R. Trinquier, Modern Warfare (Praeger Security International, 2006), p. 19. Nota bene, it is even more explicit in the original, French, version.
Welcome to the Small Wars world. As you read the primary sources, you'll see the first hand accounts of why these types of wars are messy, and many come to the conclusion that we should limit our involvement in others affairs unless absolutely necessary.
Usually the right thing to do is obvious. Other times... during my MTT deployment one of the hardest things we had to do as a team was sit down and get consensus about how much corruption we would tolerate in the Iraqi officers we advised. If we, per "doing the right thing all the time" as preached by [take your pick: Army, USMC, Service Academy, etc] doctrine, had decided to tolerate zero corruption, we would have had to push for the firing of two-thirds of the Iraqi officers in our battalion; the remaining one-third, we didn't have solid evidence on.
The integrity vs. loyalty dynamic is in my opinion the hardest one for leaders to negotiate at the small-unit level. The terrible choice between either not ratting out your buddies (loyalty) or standing up for what is right (integrity/ethics) has always been, and will always be, one of the demons haunting the profession of arms.
The problem is, where do you draw the line. Doing things by the book would have destroyed our ability to advise the Iraqis effectively, but "going native" and completely abrogating any semblance of professional ethics wasn't a choice either, obviously. We did end up purging the battalion of a couple of guys who were particularly egregious; this had the ancillary effect of getting the less-corrupt guys to tone it down a bit.
Me, personally, I had to place an Iraqi company commander in jail for torturing and murdering prisoners, and I had to really work hard to mentor another company to stop torturing. It was a very difficult environment to work in. At the time, tensions were very high, and a lot of violence was going on.
Last edited by MikeF; 12-07-2011 at 12:44 PM.
Did torture plus travel to historical FID?
I think I see what you are looking for - how does the inter-nation transfer of COIN doctrine and practice work, using the application of whether torture became part of FID.
Which touches upon the separate Anglo-French experience and indicates SME work to check for.
Mike, David, thank you for your inputs--very interesting although they go beyond the answer I am looking for.
To be honest my question is more superficial, i.e. if in the U.S. and the U.S. military, there has been, or is, a reluctance to use FID as it has been portrayed as leading to rather messy outcomes, including death squads in the case of El-Salvador.
P.S. Because of the sensitive nature of the subject, I just want to emphasis the fact that I am not merely looking to point fingers at someone or something just for the sake of it. I am genuinely wondering if there have been, or is, some reluctance regarding the "re-birth" of FID alongside COIN doctrine, e.g. due to the aforementioned death squads in the case of El-Salvador.
I can’t tell you the first thing about how FID is currently looked upon within the U.S. Military or by civilian policymakers within the Federal Government, but at the risk of going off-topic I do want to comment on the below.
From what I know of Salvadoran history events such as the Mozote massacre look like patterned behavior the antecedents of which precede the existence of the Special Forces or the CIA. As someone who is particular with semantics, I myself consider statements to the effect that FID lead to such events during the Salvadoran Civil War to be poorly informed. I don’t feel like that lets U.S. policymakers off the hook in regards to aid military or otherwise to the Salvadoran Government during the conflict, though. They either did not know who they were getting into bed with (i.e., were reckless), did not care who they were getting into bed with (i.e., were promiscuous), or knew who they were getting into bed with and thought they were going to be able to make an honest woman out of her (i.e., were some mix of naïve and supercilious). | 2019-04-23T08:33:01Z | http://council.smallwarsjournal.com/showthread.php?1419-Foreign-Internal-Defense-(Indigenous-Forces)&s=3b0125ecb013ff433443e80dfc5a1e26 |
When we think of negotiations, we tend to restrict our thinking to business situations like deals, compensation, office location etc. However, we negotiate in our daily lives starting as early as toddlers when children hold their parent’s hostage to have their way. To talk about some tips and tactics to help us amp up our negotiation game in every walk of life, the Society’s CFA Women’s Network hosted Laurel Bellows on November 27, 2018, at The Standard Club.
Laurel Bellows, founding principal of The Bellows Law Group, P.C. is past president of the nearly 400,000-member American Bar Association, past president of The Chicago Bar Association and past president of the International Women’s Forum Chicago and The Chicago Network. Bellows is currently serving on the Executive Committee of the InterAmerican Bar Association.
Bellows began the event with a short video clip of a comic which was aimed to explain how brains of men and women work. It was good humor that shed light on how men and women think differently and hence negotiate differently. Overall, it was a great event with simple yet important takeaways we all should focus on while negotiating. Some key themes to discussed during the event are briefly described below.
Knowing how the opposition thinks and anticipating their goals and their best alternatives for the negotiation can help you strategize your efforts.
By determining what constitutes a successful negotiation to you can help you decide what works for you and how flexible you could be during the process. It is important to think about what kind of relationship you would like to have in the future with the counter party and how their non-performance could affect you. At the end of the day a successful negotiation is when you have a viable deal for both parties.
Key is to Prepare, Prepare and Prepare. Do not negotiate with your gut! Determine authority of the person you are dealing with and make sure they can sign off on the negotiated terms at the end of the conversation. You do not want to waste time negotiating with a person who would need approval from a higher authority which almost every time leads to a counter offer to your best negotiated terms. Gather knowledge, know your opposition and visualize your deal. This process will help you figure out motivation of the deal for yourself/client, define finite priorities and be able to articulate your position succinctly in 5-7 words. If you are dealing with a difficult person, be firm and don’t be afraid to walk out! If on the phone, respectfully let the other person know you are not comfortable with their behavior towards you (especially if they are shouting) and hang up. Deciding on where to hold the negotiations, your place or theirs? Your office will enable you to take control, their office would give you the ability to walk away. Whichever the case may be, own the room you walk-in!
Clarify your position, propose creative options and be consistent to establish trust/reputation with the opposition. Never lose sight of your reputation and listen closely to your opposition. Do not plan your response while listening to them, the brain can only focus on one!
Do not have more than one best alternative to what is on the table at any given time during a negotiation. The best alternative may change constantly as you may choose one over the other but avoid having more than one at any given time. If the BATNA is no deal you walk out! Make sure you are aware that walking out could be for good.
By controlling the agenda, you will be able to focus on objectives, control information exchange timing and who makes the first offer.
Be patient and listen to your opposition. Your tone of voice matters depending on who you are against. Mirror your opposition to engage with them and build trust and be prepared to have uncomfortable conversations. It is ok to be fearful, but you may be able reframe the situation with optimism and further the conversation with curiosity.
Use accurate facts asserting informed certainty. Do not be afraid to interrupt to take control of the conversation but do so respectfully. It’s a good idea to have a default expression like a light smile to be unpredictable and be sure to practice a few default moods ahead of time. Power language is important. For example, using more ‘ands’ (positive) in place of ‘buts’ (negative) can make a difference. Try recording your ending sentence to see whether your statements have a hint of a question or uncertainty and address that. Use open questions to gather more information and use ‘blocking’ technique (answer with another question or refuse to exchange information at the time). Try to avoid impasses by talking past a ‘o’ by either stating facts or moving on to another subject.
Avoid negotiating on email unless you really must. It is easy for the opposition to say ‘no’ not leaving much room to negotiate. During team negotiations make sure you know ‘who is who’! A telephone negotiation can happen from time to time. Be prepared and have an agenda as small and simple as conveying a deadline or timeline or a mood. If you get a call suddenly, ask them call back in 5-10 minutes to make sure you are prepared and have an agenda. There is no excuse for not being prepared!
Leaving a little bit something on the table sometimes during negotiations may help build long-term relationships. Attend carefully to the dates and time concessions. After the deal, the opposition party may come up with minor changes like a week or two early delivery dates or a minor design change in packaging. It is best to either refuse outright or ask something in return. It could be a small ask even if you don’t care much about the change but if not done at that time, expect many of such nuances down the road. Just be resilient!
The CFA Women’s Network at CFA Society Chicago kicked off their series Taking it to the Next Level: Empowering Tools for Women in Finance aimed at events that optimize career development and advancement for women in the financial services area.
The first event in the series, titled Taking Control of Your Career, focused on managing and shifting the course of careers by the speaker Gail Meneley. Meneley is the co-founder of Shields Meneley Partners, a confidential advisory service to C-Suite executives and board of directors during times of organizational and professional crisis and transition. She was one of eight founders of the Center for Executive Options and served as a CEO of the Institute of Financial Education. With extensive business experience, Meneley has been widely quoted and published in multiple reputable business publications and has been the keynote speaker at national conferences and conventions. She holds a B.A. from Mundelein College of Loyola University and has participated in executive programs at the University of Texas, the University of Washington, and the University of Southern California. Additionally, she is active in many civic, cultural and business organizations including the Economic Club of Chicago, The Chicago Network, the Chicago Finance Exchange, and the Lake Forest Caucus.
Meneley presented advise on how to navigate through career transitions and or progression to the mostly female audience at a well-attended event. She touched upon some of the important, yet less discussed issues faced by women during their careers. Key takeaways from the discussion are briefed below.
Meneley could not stress enough to remain confident in periods of uncertainty and self- doubt that women are more likely to feel than their male counterparts in the workplace. Additionally, she advised women to stop selling their abilities short – both internally and externally, and ‘learn to toot their own horns’ shunning the uneasy feeling which is usually experienced by most women in the situation.
She advised women to make the expectations at work clear at the outset by carrying out discussions that may be uncomfortable like the authority to carry out assigned tasks, extent of involvement in terms of leading a project vs helping the team in a more supportive role. This should help manage responsibilities and receive deserved credit for the performed work.
If you feel you are feeling stagnating at work or disagree with any aspect of your role, she advised to discuss it with your manager before thinking of switching jobs. However, just complaining about your situation will not be fruitful and instead take up this discussion with your manager with a suggestion to resolve it.
In order to prepare yourself for the conversation, make sure you understand the root cause of your feelings. Is it the lack of opportunities or lack of responsibilities? What would it take for you to feel satisfied at your job?
Being explicit about your expectations will help your manager address them more effectively. Signing up for not so popular projects would be one way to communicate your commitment and enthusiasm at work and a way to standout from your peers. Despite your efforts and failure on your managers part to resolve your reasonable concerns may be a sign to think about alternatives to the current role.
Do you disagree with the overall business strategy?
Did you engage your manager without resolution?
Have you lost respect for the team?
Are you frustrated with the work?
If any of the above apply to you, it may be time to consider an exit. However, she cautioned to rule out any emotional reaction to a specific negative situation by giving it some time to see how you feel after a while. If after 6 months negative feelings haven’t improved or have gotten worse, it might be time for the necessary action.
Gail Meneley stressed on how one must ‘always’ continue to engage in networking and building professional and personal relationships whether they are looking for a job, looking to switch jobs or careers or content with their current employer. Constant networking should be an integral part of your overall career strategy.
Other important considerations should be self-reflection of whether you have achieved the satisfaction you expected in your current role or with your current employer? If not, what could be improved and how? What would be your favorite job and why? Do you feel like meeting your coworkers each morning? Do you see yourself managing other people?
If you feel you need to change jobs or transition into a different career path you must be thoughtful of your moves from one employer to the other and its emotional and practical implications. One very valid consideration would be the decision to relocate. If you do plan to relocate make sure it matters and is a long-term decision.
Very effectively, Meneley explained how a manager’s role differs from that of a leader. Managers, she said, have a more engineering type process to tackle people and work whereas leadership roles are more about connection of hearts and minds. Effective leaders tend to focus on what interests other people and end up making them excited about the job. To ascertain a good leader from a bad leader, look at who everyone is following. To transition from being a manger to a leader, work on your people skills and do not hesitate to seek help from a career coaching expert.
Once you have made up your mind to leave your current employer, it is important to make your exit at a positive note. Meneley emphasized to maintain a relationship of mutual respect with the employer. This would include negotiating an exit package that both parties can agree on and using exit interview as a means of keeping your reputation intact. She strongly advised against suing the employer as this could have ramifications to your employability in the future.
CFA Society Chicago hosted Blockchains – Disruptor, Panacea, and Reality, the first fintech event of a three-part series, focusing on blockchain technology and its applications. The event was held at The Chicago Club on January 17, 2018, attracting a sold-out crowd of over 200 people. The afternoon started with a keynote address and was followed by a panel discussion with industry members working in the crypto space. Those in attendance participated in Q&A session at the end of the event.
Kaal then continued to highlight the magnitude of growth possibilities within the crypto space. He displayed past year price data for Ethereum and Bitcoin (two of the most famous cryptocurrencies) and emphasized the fact that what has been seen to date can be thought of as linear growth and that exponental growth is expected by the industry. He also shared four years of ICO related market data showing a total fund raising of $6.4bn to date.
Kaal discussed how some market participants regard the rise of blockchain as a bubble; some audience participants share the same view. He went on to educate the audience with the crypto space, blockchain technology and its application beyond the talk-of-the-town cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Moving on, Kaal educated the audience on blockchain technology stating that it is similar to “having an internet” like event. With “Code being the Law”, blockchain technology is self-executing. It is a decentralized public ledger where each block (or node) in the chain can be thought of as a sheet with the footprint of a previous page along with its information. Blockchain could be referred to as a peer-to-peer (P2P) network based upon “Trust” and “Disintermediation” with a copy of the ledger stored in different computers all over the world. The result would be a transparent decentralized economy. Constant additions to the blocks in the chain would require higher computing power to modify past blocks/nodes making it difficult or next to impossible to cheat/hack this system. Lacking scalability in applications at the moment, Kaal believes that whoever can figure out a way to apply blockchain technology to enterprise facing solutions will be the next “Google” of today.
By not being physical in nature and anonymous over VPNs (Virtual Private Networks), the use of blockchain ledger faces issues concerning lack of legal remedies and/or recourse in contrast to what we have today with internet related solutions. However, legal groundwork is being carried out to deal with such issues.
Continuing the discussion on law and blockchain, Kaal geared the discussion towards Smart Contracts which are self-regulating and self-executing contractual obligations. These contracts are inexpensive, automated by code, take only minutes to execute and have automatic remittance versus 1-3 days for traditional contract execution at a comparatively higher price with manual remittance. This reduces the need for lawyers due to the nature of the contract. When a smart contract is coded, it will end with an execution and cannot be stopped by either party. However, this could lead to some issues where unexpected circumstances occur in normal business transactions requiring flexibility from parties to the transaction. Kaal also briefly touched upon the different use cases of smart contracts with varying level of complexities. The industry expects banks to spend heavily in blockchain based solutions in the coming years. He predicted that settlements may very well happen one day using this technology platform.
Kaal then steered the focus towards the funding landscape within the crypto world. He discussed venture capital interest funding blockchain based start-ups in various industries ranging widely from Finance, Government, Consumer and Media. Next, he touched upon ICOs (Initial Coin Offerings) and how they stack up against traditional Venture Capital and crowdfunding sources in characteristics for start-up funding. Kaal shared market data on how since September 2016, Ethereum was the most popular blockchain for ICOs’ assets globally. The US leads the industry with the highest number of crypto start-ups globally followed by Europe and Asia. Russia on the other hand is leading in government support for the overall technology platform with state funded academy formation and by creating a more favorable regulatory environment than the US.
The second half of the evening featured a panel discussion moderated by Wulf Kaal with speakers Colleen Sullivan, Zabrina Smith and Biju Kulathakal. Each of the panelists introduced themselves and discussed how they engage with the crypto space for their clients.
Colleen Sullivan is co-founder and managing member of Sullivan Wolf Kailus LLC, a boutique law firm based in Chicago that specializes in hedge fund, private equity, venture capital, digital assets and other alternative investment products. She discussed blockchain from a legal standpoint clarifying that ground reality for the regulatory environment is very different than what has been observed in the media. She recalled being present in South Korea when a reported surprise government “crackdown” on the crypto exchanges was merely an examination by Korean tax authorities on the tax implications of the crypto exchanges. She noted that governments are looking to exchanges to self-regulate in these unchartered territories.
Furthermore, Sullivan discussed various cases she has been working on for legal solutions around asset servicing, asset management and wealth management. Her firm has been leveraging blockchain technology for asset safety of their clients, efficient transactional authority and transparency, proof of value assessments, etc.
Next, Zabrina Smith, vice president within Northern Trust’s Market Advocacy & Innovation Research (MA&IP) team, introduced herself and described how she was working on researching ways to incorporate block chain technology to add value for global clients. Her team has been working with use cases around contracts, wealth management and other creative uses within the organization to add value and/or improve existing customer solutions. Northern Trust has been proactive in trying to apply the technology and has been working in the space as a pioneer to bring better solutions to its customers.
Finally the last panelist, Biju Kulathakal, founder of Halo Investing – first independent multi-issuer technology platform, introduced himself and described how his organization utilizes the blockchain technology for structured loans with options contracts. Halo Investing packages products from sellers like JP Morgan, Credit Suisse, and Goldman Sachs, and sells it to advisors like Schwab and others.
He presented an example of a typical transaction based on blockchain to illustrate the potential benefits like less documentation, quicker execution, lower costs and flexible issuance sizes when compared to traditional structured notes.
Implications/application of blockchain for lending securities?
Implications of blockchain for auditors?
Blockchain could be applied to automate life cycle processes reducing overall audit times and increasing efficiency for the whole process.
Benefits of leveraging blockchain technology to CDS contracts?
Blockchain based CDS contracts would be expected to be of a lower cost as no counterparty would be maintaining a ledger.
Implications of blockchain on access to asset classes?
By being able to sell part of assets, blockchain implementation would lead to increased access to assets which would otherwise be known as ‘Exotics’.
Viewing Visa as a huge notary, blockchain could result in reduced visa costs.
Where blockchain would not be a viable technology?
Blockchain would not be viable where actual enforcement is required, for example policing etc.
CFA Society Chicago hosted Brain Singer, CFA, on July 19, 2017 at The Standard Club to present on the topic – Riding the Waves: Dynamic Asset Allocation (DAA) and Evolution of Top-Down Investing.
In 2015, Singer received CFA Institute’s Distinguished Service Award and has formerly served as a board member and chair of the CFA Institute board of governors. He has written extensively on global portfolio, currency, and performance issues. In 2015, he was also inducted into the Performance and Risk Management Hall of Fame by The Spaulding Group.
Quest for a superior investment strategy has given birth to many new ideas and terms that have changed the investment landscape as it was known two decades ago. After the advent of efficient market hypothesis and rise of CAPM, we now live in the world of smart beta and where CAPM is seen as dead by many. However, Singer believes CAPM is not all that dead. He advised to consider long-term horizons rather than the short-term when evaluating the relevance of CAPM as his initial remarks. He expressed how Modern Portfolio Theory post financial crisis has been seen as wounded where risks are known to be non-static and non-symmetric and that tail size does matter. He recommends focusing on the Macro investing models with dynamic allocation strategies for dealing with systematic risks in line with return expectations.
He re-iterated validity of CAPM while discussing risk parity strategies from a passive (35% Global Equity – 65% Global Fixed Income) and an active (traditional asset allocation) standpoint.
He also presented how the understanding of betas and alpha in the pre and post CAPM world has changed. In the advent of Smart Beta – Systematized Alpha, he cautioned against considering it as a free lunch and discussed smart beta strategies. He noted that such strategies aim at exploiting “Persistent” systematic risks following an auto-pilot strategy. He also cautioned against them as being static in nature relying on back tested rule sets. Further along in the presentation, he explained how such narrow rule sets can bring about volatility and fragility in the investment process and later provided recommendations to overcome such issues.
While discussing the risk premia strategy, Singer stressed on macro diversification based on fundamentals with a long term focus. For the short term, he advised to utilize unique rule set disciplines to navigate a dynamic path and ignore the media ripples which tend to make investment management process more fragile. He explained differing strategies using an example of a village at the foot of a mountain facing the risk of an avalanche taking extreme actions such as complete evacuation of the area vs. building fences to contain the snow to tackle the risk. He discussed different strategies to cope with risks faced in the investment world based on narrow vs. broad rule sets and impact of such rule sets on the overall investment process and asset allocation.
The speaker also spent a fair amount of time to share the active currency investment strategy. Despite not being an asset class, Singer explained that active currency investment is an effective alternative investment strategy as correlation of passive and active currency with assets is very low. He noted that currencies tend to converge to equilibrium prices (using PPP and IRP) faster (average of ~4-5 years) compared to assets (average of ~8-10 years). He presented varying half-life of currencies and asset classes along with correlation of USD index with monthly MSCI returns being as low as 30%.
He shared his Antifragile Investment Process methodology consisting of identifying and assessing opportunities of value to price discrepancies and designing portfolios with integrated risk exposures. He noted that such investment processes are dynamic, imperfect, progressive and make use of evolving tool set stating it to be analogous to growth of a living organism.
Singer also shared the idea of forming an Antifragile Investment Team for which “cognitive diversity” is key as he believes such team resources back multiple ideas using “wisdom-of-crowd framework” for survival. Such teams work continually to Research, Implement, Perform and Review numerous ideas as opposed to fragile teams which resources back few ideas that cannot afford dismissal.
He concluded by making a recommendation to identify market inefficiencies as dynamic investment opportunities stating: “There needs to be a level of market inefficiency to have market efficiency”. He again stressed on following wider rule sets for asset allocation decisions for a less fragile investment process.
Domestic to US – Impact of proposed regulatory changes to Volcker Rule which may cause tail risk.
International – Follow European Union market especially outcomes of the Italian Election and monitor the risk of national banks going bankrupt.
How to tackle Behavioral Risk?
Incorporate it in Risk Premium.
Since behaviors cannot be predicted, focus on identifying significant behavioral shifts – both frequency and magnitude of signature behavioral shifts.
Short on Developed market currencies including USD (currently expensive).
Long on Emerging market currencies.
With every passing day the CFA exam gets near and candidate stress levels rise. What could help? A free event with an open bar, appetizers and pizza! CFA Society Chicago organized an event on March 29th at Hotel Allegro where candidates poured in to relax and network with their peers. They discussed what was and what was not working for them (in hopes to hear similar stories for affirmation that they are not alone!).
Kaplan Schweser, co-host of the event, sponsored a raffle prize of their Review Workshop to a candidate which was awarded to Kevin Anderson. Bijesh Toila, Lecturer at Kaplan Schweser, was sharing his wisdom helping out candidates with any concerns they had and getting feedback on study materials. He views his organization’s partnership with CFA Society Chicago to be a success and looks forward to strengthening it. The Society’s organizing committee members and executives joined the event for moral support of candidates.
We wish all the candidates best of luck on their upcoming exam and wish them success on the path to obtaining their charter! | 2019-04-24T00:26:29Z | https://blog.cfachicago.org/author/ridaiqbal/ |
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has declared that other nations are doing a better job of propagandizing the world and that the United States needs to do more. However, we already invest far more in foreign propaganda than in domestic public media, and virtually nothing in domestic media trust busting. The distinction between our domestic and foreign public media is part of what makes them both so weak in credibility (the other part is the size of the lies they tell), and Bob McChesney is right that we should invest in public media at home that actually reports on the U.S. government as on all others, and then share that abroad (if we actually want to model democracy rather than peddle a load of lies).
The current U.S. corporate media cartel pushes propaganda at home of the sort Clinton herself buys into when she claims Iraq has WMDs and should be invaded, and of the sort Clinton stars in when her thugs beat up a silent protester in front of her and CNN posts the video along with a headline falsely stating that a heckler was interrupting her. (Do Americans believe the headline or their own lying eyes and ears?) What we need most is less propaganda and more awareness of it. Protecting, rather than prosecuting or torturing, whistleblowers and real reporters couldn’t hurt too.
I’ve written a book documenting centuries of war lies ( http://warisalie.org ) and virtually all of the war lies described in that book have been facilitated, if not created, by the news media. The CIA and other agencies have generated phony news. The U.S. military has killed unfriendly reporters. But for the most part government control of information is a much more subtle collaboration between propagandists and those who pass themselves off, even to themselves, as journalists.
War lies tend to be debunked much more quickly and thoroughly than most of us hear about (unless we frequent good blogs), because most of our news reaches us by way of a small number of corporations with interlocking boards. This cartel tends to prefer the war lies to the debunking. The pushing of war lies by major media outlets is not a new phenomenon, but the transmitters of the lies have grown more powerful in recent years. They monopolize the air waves and print outlets, and they utilize the manipulative techniques of propaganda. Propaganda of the sort that appeared for World War I as it was needed, and then vanished when it wasn’t, has now become a permanent fixture in the noise boxes in our living rooms. Interestingly, it was the propaganda and censorship during World War I that began the massive elimination of numerous small media outlets.
LOREN GHIGLIONE (Medill School of Journalism, Moderator): Why can’t you say it plainly?
Bumiller spent some minutes trying to quiet the audience, to no avail. People thought a liar should be called a liar. They clearly imagined that journalism was different from stenography. You can get the president’s statements off his website. Shouldn’t a newspaper point out which parts are true and which are false? Bumiller ought to have explained that calling the president a liar would cost you your job at the New York Times.
Reporters who don’t think wars are a good idea and don’t show proper deference to the powerful don’t get assignments or promotions or keep their jobs. A good example of this can be seen in MSNBC’s cancellation of Jeff Cohen’s debate segments in October 2002. MSNBC also canceled Phil Donahue’s extremely popular program for being insufficiently pro-war, as was made clear in MSNBC executive memos. The New York Times had no tolerance for reporter Chris Hedges when he dared to speak out against war in 2003. Media workers who cheered for war, in contrast, kept their jobs or were even promoted.
Important and powerful guests are welcomed on talk shows and protected from any other guests who might challenge their propaganda. Norman Solomon’s excellent book War Made Easy: How Presidents and Pundits Keep Spinning Us to Death, reviews studies done by FAIR (Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting) of the percentage of guests on television shows who have been supporters or opponents of wars. During the first two weeks of the Gulf War, one-and-a-half percent of sources were identified as American antiwar demonstrators. Eight years later, during the first two weeks of the 1999 bombing of Yugoslavia, eight percent of the sources on ABC’s Nightline and PBS’s News Hour With Jim Lehrer were critics of the bombing. During the first three weeks of the 2003 War on Iraq, three percent of U.S. sources were antiwar. In each case, however, a huge percentage of guests were current or former members of the U.S. military.
The approach of the U.S. corporate media to war coverage is to feature lots of “experts” on war. By “experts” they clearly mean high-ranking military officials, current or retired. But if the question is whether or not to go to war, or whether or not to continue war, or whether or not to escalate war, then why aren’t experts at peace making as relevant as experts at war making? In fact, why aren’t they more relevant, given our supposed preference for peace, its legality, and the ongoing pretense of civilian control over our military? The military can offer expertise on how to start and fight a war, but should it be considered to have any authority on whether to start a war? What about interviewing former members of the military who have turned against war, or historians who could give a broader view, or scientists who could assess the likely environmental and human damage? Why are there no economists to consider the question of what we’ll pay for a war? Why are the only useful guests the people most interested in going to war? And then why must they be deferred to more as religious authorities than as apologists for controversial claims?
With such criteria for determining truth, there would be no value in interviewing spokespersons for the antiwar position, even though a large percentage of Americans agree with them. It would be obvious that they were lying since our country offers no peace medals and ribbons with which to decorate them.
Two types of guests who are featured regularly on U.S. television are (1) current military officials, who can be expected to present the Pentagon’s official position, and (2) former military officials, who will supposedly give their honest opinions, which will stand a very good chance of lining up nicely with the Pentagon’s. In 2008, we learned that the distinction between these two major categories of guests was phony. The Pentagon had recruited 75 retired military officers and given them talking points, which they presented to the media as their own thoughts. Unsurprisingly, the views of the retired generals were not dramatically different from the media norm and no one noticed that anything unusual was going on. The eventual revelation of what was going on went largely unnoticed as well, and few policies were reformed.
Challenging a sainted active war commander is, of course, not just bad journalism but also a mortal sin of unpatriotism. You won’t see it very often in the U.S. corporate media. Nor will expanding our foreign broadcast propaganda help in this regard.
Adding a phrase to the media’s vocabulary is even easier than deleting one. During the five-and-a-half months leading up to the Gulf War in mid- January 1991, major U.S. media outlets printed and aired comparisons between Saddam Hussein and Adolf Hitler several times a day. Hussein had not become a worse dictator. Nothing new had been discovered about him or Hitler. The White House had simply ordered up a fresh supply of righteous and bloodthirsty indignation. And just three years after the New Republic had supported increased military “aid” to Saddam Hussein, the magazine obligingly altered a cover photo to make his mustache look more like Hitler’s.
Strict censorship is hardly necessary as a central tool of propaganda when the dominant media outlets are saturating the airwaves and newspapers with comparisons between your desired enemy and Adolf Hitler. As long as the war message is all over page one every day, inconvenient and contradictory facts can show up on page 18 once or twice without much harm being done, although the author of that back-page story will be unlikely to see his or her name on page one in the near future. An even stronger story can safely show up on the internet as long as most people don’t hear about it. Censorship won’t be required.
Of course, the war planners keep secrets. But the media outlets keep them as well, as part of the team. This wasn’t always the case. When Daniel Ellsberg released secret records of the War on Vietnam, the New York Times published them because it feared the shame of someone’s later finding out that it had not done so. By 2005, the media culture had changed — the New York Times was by then more fearful of the possible shame of having published a revelatory story. That year, the Times published a story on the government’s illegal warrantless spying programs, explaining that it had sat on the story for a year out of fear that it might affect how people voted in elections. The Times eventually printed the story because one of its reporters was about to make it public in a book, a book that contained several other important revelations the Times never touched. When foreign newspapers or U.S. websites or international whistleblowers make secrets known, the U.S. corporate media tends to behave as if little or nothing has happened, except perhaps to report on efforts to prosecute whistleblowers.
Media outlets will suppress inconvenient news as long as possible. They’re still suppressing the news that the attack on Pearl Harbor was expected and provoked. Nearly a dozen major print and television outlets suppressed the My Lai massacre in Vietnam for over a year until an independent news service forced the story out. The major media outlets similarly suppressed their knowledge that the Iraq War was based on lies, meanwhile promoting those lies and facilitating the war. When news that has been suppressed comes out years later, members of the media are not surprised by it and claim that it’s boring, trivial, and old news, even though they’ve never published it. At the same time (forgetting that less can be more) they often claim that the information is false.
If you went back, as I did, and reviewed all the issues of the Washington Post that had come out in June, July, and August 2002, you found that, while what was happening behind closed doors in Washington and London may have been known to the Washington Post, it certainly never informed its readers. In fact, during that three month period, I found a flood of pro-war articles, editorials, and columns, many of them promoting the lies the debunking of which was supposedly old news.
The worst of the op-eds — which was placed at the top and center of the page, illustrated by a clenched fist with an Uncle Sam sleeve pounding on a map of Iraq — was by former national security advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski. The title was “If We Must Fight….” It didn’t call proponents of peace “assisters of terrorism,” as a Post column had done some months earlier, but it did assume there was no reason to work for peace.
Brzezinski offered advice to the President in a list of five recommended steps to war: First, Brzezinski joined the chorus in suggesting that the President must articulate some sort of reason for attacking Iraq. Second, Brzezinski suggested that the reason the President articulates must be that Hussein is producing weapons in defiance of the Security Council. (Brzezinski was good enough to add that Hussein did not use chemical weapons in the last war and that some reason must be provided to believe he would use them in the future). Third, the United States must take the lead in a new proposal for weapons inspections. Europe would support this, and Hussein would not, giving the United States a good excuse to attack. (Here we have Brzezinski plotting publicly as Prime Minister Tony Blair was privately to “wrong-foot Saddam” — the phrase Britain’s ambassador to the United States used privately in March 2002 to describe a process of manipulating Hussein into refusing inspections, thereby creating an excuse for war). Fourth, the United States must work for peace between Israel and Palestine, so that an attack on Iraq is not viewed together with the U.S.- backed Israeli assaults on Palestinians — a combination bound to anger quite a lot of people. And fifth, the United States should plan to occupy Iraq after demolishing it.
Remember this was the same “objective” media that had been so upset with President Clinton for missing a chance to launch a war on Iraq in 1998. This was the same media that didn’t blink when Bush’s Chief of Staff Andrew Card explained the delay until September 2002 of the most aggressive war propaganda by remarking, “You don’t introduce new products in August.” The war would be built on a planned marketing campaign, not resorted to as a last resort. This fact was not a scandal to be reported in the news or to legal authorities; this was what the Washington Post had repeatedly and publicly requested. The Post wanted war but wanted the President to sell the war well.
Media outlets reveal their anti-democratic inclinations when they conduct polls, because the results of the polls have little or no influence on the reporting. If the majority of Americans oppose a war, the war is still described in the media as necessary and inevitable, exactly as it would be if everyone supported it, perhaps more so.
Who could read that and discover that a majority of Americans wanted Bush impeached? It says it, if you look closely enough, but you almost need a course in deciphering Newspeak.
Once in a while, a media outlet will actually claim to be checking the facts of a president’s speech for accuracy. One problem with this is that assumptions that the president and the media share are not checked. The validity of the assumption that possession of weapons constitutes grounds for war, for example, is never checked in a review of whether or not there are any weapons. Another problem is that in a long speech important parts can be overlooked, even as less important parts are “fact checked.” Nonetheless, it’s interesting to fact-check the media’s fact checkers.
After President Obama spoke from the Oval Office about the wars on Iraq and Afghanistan on August 31, 2010, Calvin Woodward and Robert Burns of the Associated Press published an article called “FACT CHECK: Is Iraq combat really over for US?” which included some facts of its own that were in dire need of checking. Woodward and Burns challenged the basic pretense that the “combat mission” was over, noting that “Peril remains for the tens of thousands of U.S. troops still in Iraq, who are likely if not certain to engage violent foes.” But the authors failed to mention the mercenaries and contractors that were also in Iraq in large numbers. The authors maintained that Obama’s claim to have met his responsibilities was debatable. They did not, however, consider the United States’ legal or moral responsibilities to cease, desist, confess, and make reparations.
The reporters claimed that Iraq “is expected” to “need” the U.S. military for years. But the passive voice allowed them to avoid stating who was doing this expecting. In fact, the treaty that President Obama said he would comply with requires the removal of all U.S. forces by the end of 2011. There’s a loophole for non-Department of “Defense” forces, such as those employed by the so-called State Department. There’s no loophole for the military, no matter who expects one.
War expenses “were in place?” Woodward and Burns mean to say that the wars were already draining hundreds of billions of dollars each year, but what a terrible way to say it! The fact that we’ve wasted such sums in one year in no way lessens the impact of doing so again in the next. And doing so is not “in place.” It is a choice that must be made each time by Congress, even if Congress always makes the same choice.
Shifting the blame for budget deficits to the recession is also a bit slippery, since war and military spending, and their redirection of funds away from more useful areas, have no doubt contributed to causing the recession. The AP noted that Obama had at one point promised to withdraw all troops in 2009 and had frequently promised to withdraw “combat troops” within 16 months — “a promise essentially kept.” Actually, Obama’s quick promise at rally after rally had been to make ending the war the first thing he did, and this speech (the one being fact-checked on August 31, 2010, by the Associated Press) came after 19 months, not 16, of Obama’s presidency. Woodward and Burns also played along with the myth of the surge — on which see chapter nine.
I don’t mean to knock the novel idea of fact checking. The Associated Press should be applauded for trying at all. We just need someone to fact check the fact checkers.
Congress members behave as if once a war has begun, they must fund it forever. Similarly, many Americans behave as if once a war lie has been given credence, it must be believed forever. Even once lies are thoroughly exposed as lies and a majority of Americans comes to believe a war was based on lies, as happened with Iraq, a significant minority goes right on believing the falsehoods. I know from personal experience, and imagine you do too, that presenting some people with facts has absolutely no impact. They simply dismiss the facts or explain them away, their goal clearly being to hang onto their beliefs, not to believe what’s actually true.
Jacques Ellul may have figured this out by 1965, when he wrote: “He who acts in obedience to propaganda can never go back. He is now obliged to believe in that propaganda because of his past action.” Some recent studies suggest that this is a widespread phenomenon. In March 2010, Brendan Nyhan and Jason Reifler reported on research they had done in 2005 and 2006. They considered the fact that many Americans “failed to accept or did not find out that WMD were never found” in Iraq, and the possibility that “journalists failed to adequately fact-check Bush administration statements suggesting the U.S. had found WMD in Iraq.” The researchers presented people with news articles correcting their misunderstanding. They found that among those who placed themselves to the right of center politically, exposure to the correction made them more likely to stick to their false belief.
In 2005, Nyhan and Reifler found this result among individuals on the right, but by 2006 it was only those who considered Iraq the most important issue facing the country who refused to have their erroneous beliefs corrected by the facts. The researchers hypothesize, reasonably enough, that the waning emphasis on Iraq WMDs in the media by 2006 and the Washington elite’s shift to other justifications for the war may have caused some people to attach less importance to clinging to their erroneous beliefs, even though they would have insisted they were true a year earlier. These individuals had not necessarily dropped their belief that the war was a good thing, just their belief that the most prominent original justification for it was factual. Likewise, they had not necessarily begun to doubt the sincerity of those who had lied to them, just the accuracy of what had been claimed. But how can we understand those who became more likely to believe a falsehood when their mistake was shown to them? Presumably they experience a combination of feeling threatened by the new information and distrusting the source of the written article containing the facts. Other studies have found that when an instructor orally, directly, and in an interactive manner confronts people with correct information they tend to accept it.
Studies have also found that individuals with higher levels of self- esteem are better able to accept information that contradicts what they had previously believed. This suggests, again, that people sometimes feel their reputation and image are threatened by the possibility that they might be wrong. This is a different sort of fear than a fear of communists, or of terrorists, or of the latest version of Adolf Hitler. It can perhaps be addressed more through early childhood education than through adult education. Education of the adult population, however, is clearly the most important factor in shaping public opinion. If the war lies were not all over the media, people would not learn them in the first place. If the corrections were heard over and over again, they would get through. If our communications system allowed the presentation of a variety of voices and viewpoints and feared promoting falsehoods more than it feared being insufficiently militaristic, we wouldn’t need to investigate the widespread phenomenon of engaged citizens certain of their beliefs but completely deluded.
Whether or not that prohibition is enforced and war lies are effectively banned from our media outlets, the lies can and must be banned from our minds. And those who seek to spread them must be shamed if not punished. We can counter the media’s promotion of war lies by learning to spot them, rendering them ineffective from the start. | 2019-04-21T20:29:39Z | http://davidswanson.org/clinton-wants-more-propaganda-i-want-less/?share=google-plus-1 |
In trying to make sense of economic uncertainty, it pays to look beyond conventional wisdom for an explanatory theory of the hidden fundamentals that can drive or hinder growth. Hence this interview.
Mark Anderson is the editor, publisher, and chief correspondent of the Strategic News Service newsletter, one of the most incisive publications in its field. Ostensibly about the future of the computer and communications industries, it covers a broad range of factors that affect and are affected by those businesses: everything from technological advances to capital flows to government policies to educational innovations to advances in physics.
Anderson argues that the root cause of the crisis of 2008–09 was excess liquidity: too much money seeking rapid returns, subsidizing too much production for too few customers. That bubble burst, no subsequent engine of economic growth has proved sustainable, and the excess liquidity remains, driving some prices up and others down, and splitting the world even more dramatically into economic haves and have-nots. Three critical measures, in Anderson’s view, need to be put into place before serious recovery can get under way. The first is better protection of intellectual property. The second is the specific type of financial reform that would prevent “jackals” (short-sellers) and “vampires” (sophisticated investors who take profits without contributing either market balance or information) from dominating the market as they do today. The third is a rebuilding of the manufacturing base of the industrialized world, including an accelerated transition to green energy and technologies.
This interview is adapted with permission from a conversation conducted on May 13, 2010, before the audience at Anderson’s annual Future in Review conference. Anderson, a former venture capitalist and founder of two software companies and a hedge fund, is known for his knowledgeable readers (who often contribute to the newsletter) and his prescience: He tracks his published predictions and claims a 90 percent success rate. In this interview, he goes out on a limb. He believes that human beings, flawed though their decisions may be, have the will and the ability to avoid further crisis — or at least to bounce back from crisis in the long run.
S+B: How do you interpret the divergent points of view about where the global economy is going — the view that we’re heading for deflation and depression and need more government stimulus versus the view that our greatest dangers are inflation and deficit spending?
ANDERSON: The largest problem facing our economy in 2010 was going to be hyperinflation. All the central bankers and policymakers understood this. But a funny thing happened: The damage was so great from the meltdown this time that the time frame changed. The threat of hyperinflation is real, but it’s a long-term threat. It may come in five or 10 years; no sooner than five.
In the meantime, we are all still dealing with the consequences of the meltdown. For example, in a very strange way, the low interest rates that still exist because of the meltdown are assisting in the economic return of some parts of the economy. The economic stimulus from 2009 could never have been enacted except for the knowledge that there would be no hyperinflation in the short term.
Keep in mind — and there are still very few people who get this — that the crisis did not start because of American banking practices or subprime loans. It started because of the doubling of global liquidity over a five-year period in the 2000s. The world’s annual investment capital, the amount of money seeking rapid returns, went from US$36 trillion in 2002 to $72 trillion in 2007, just five years later. That’s what led to all the inflation we saw in real estate prices, all around the world.
If you saw that pattern early enough — and I saw it in 2007 — then watching the financial system was like being inside a warehouse where someone has poured gasoline all over the floor, and there’s a guy smoking at the far end. You know something’s going to happen. It’s just a matter of when. There were 50 different problems that could have triggered the crisis.
The key to the crisis wasn’t in the balance sheets, which were lies. Even today, bank balance sheets are lies. Nor was it the usual GDP numbers, which are made up. It was in the fund flows. The big lesson is that for the future, we’d all better start watching fund flows.
S+B: What are the fund flows telling us now?
ANDERSON: I don’t know. The worst part of this story is that people don’t measure them. They’re very hard to track, and no one’s in charge of measuring them. The numbers I just cited for 2002 and 2007 came out a year after the collapse. Even in 2007, I didn’t have them. I saw symptoms of this money flow through the price rises in petroleum markets, and through the “carry trade,” where speculators borrow in one currency to invest in another. There were trillions of dollars of “hot money”: money seeking quick returns. Where would that get invested? In stocks, bonds, commodities? A lot of it went into real estate.
ANDERSON: Or that were bogus.
S+B: And creating a kind of bubble of asset bubbles through the 2000s, in stocks, real estate, financial instruments…?
S+B: And did all of those bubbles fully burst, or is there more to come?
ANDERSON: Oh, no. All those asset bubbles burst. Real estate, stock, different countries, different markets, they all burst.
But the hot money is still with us. Today, instead of only one country, Japan, providing the near-zero interest rates that enable a carry trade, we have almost every nation except Australia competing for the interest-rate bottom. This has produced huge flows of hot money into the global liquidity pool. Although I haven’t seen any figures published, the amount of available capital, despite a slower economy, is likely to be equivalent to the totals of 2007. When the damaged parts of split economies begin to come back, this liquidity will likely create a whiplash effect, throwing countries into hyperinflation before they can respond effectively.
That is the fear of every central banker in the world, and the threat is more than plausible; it seems inevitable.
S+B: What other important trends are shaping the economy right now?
ANDERSON: The first is the conversion of the world’s abject poor to consumers, and that’s more important than the birthrate. Around the world, the next 1 billion consumers are coming online really fast — for the most part in India, China, and Southeast Asia, but also in South America. Even the poorest of these people will have cell phones and some access to technology. The “cloud” of cloud computing will be serving them, too.
Meanwhile, it’s becoming brutally clear that the economy is not going to be what it was. We’re going to return, not to normal, but to reality. There will be a war between two systems: that of the mercantilist countries, which seek to make money by obtaining foreign intellectual property (IP) and regulating trade for the sake of competitive advantage, and the free market, free trade countries: India; Australia; and those of North America, Europe, and most of South America. Most businesspeople in the West are not emotionally prepared for this war.
S+B: By mercantilists, do you mean only China?
ANDERSON: No. Japan was the original expert mercantilist, even before World War II. After World War II, the Japanese refined their model, the South Koreans refined it further, and the Chinese learned from both. Today, the Chinese model is probably more advanced than the other two. The Chinese didn’t want to wait 40 years. So whereas some Japanese and South Korean companies obtained IP in nefarious ways, only China made the acquisition of intellectual property a serious government program. It was required in the contracts of American companies doing business in China that they give away their patented designs, processes, and innovations as part of the right to trade.
The Chinese also allowed huge amounts of investment, even though they prevented outright ownership of companies by outsiders. This was clever. In effect, the Chinese said, “We will take your money and IP in exchange for access to our market — but it’s faux access. You’ll be able to sell cars and airplanes here until our companies are ready to compete, and then we’ll cut you off.” A lot of people got fooled into thinking that it was either an open or partially open market. In fact, it was just a very well-designed mercantilist program.
In the mercantilist model — which, by the way, is a very intelligent way to build a fast-growth economy — you bring together business and government leaders and set up a deliberate trade policy. You list the industries you’re most interested in and target them one by one. Cars are important because they use steel and involve a lot of employees. One test for the effectiveness of mercantilism is the number of outside products sold in that country; for example, only a handful of American cars are sold in South Korea and Japan.
The indicators so far are all in favor of the mercantilist countries winning over their free market counterparts. And as the United States and Europe lose manufacturing and intellectual property, and as we find that the return on investment for IP starts to decline, how do technology companies fare in that environment? It’s tough to make a $2 billion investment in an operating system if it shows up on the street for a dollar 10 days later in Hong Kong. This is a big problem that hasn’t been fixed.
S+B: How will free market countries try to fix it?
ANDERSON: There are only a couple of choices for the governments of the West. Choice A: Keep going as is. In that case, the value of IP will disappear. With limited returns, the whole world, essentially, will stop investing in innovation.
Choice B: The governments of the West focus on protecting IP — in trade agreements, other policies, and their public talk. There has to be almost a cultural shift, where people recognize that civilization — the discoveries, cures, drugs, chips, and advances that we’re most proud of — are all forms of intellectual property. We’ve already created geographical alliances for trade, such as the North American Free Trade Agreement. Having trade alliances based on intellectual property would make a lot more sense; countries should only trade with others that have similar protections in place. India saw this coming. After having a very loose environment for a long time, it passed one of the strictest sets of IP laws.
S+B: Could India’s approach become a model for other countries?
ANDERSON: I think it could. The idea of moving research and development to India looks better and better to companies that have been burned a few times in other countries. India is now a healthy competitor. Its people are very smart. A lot of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) graduates are brilliant programmers. The government leaders very much want to have their own industries. India will be a real player among global high-tech competitors.
S+B: What kind of impact will financial regulation have?
ANDERSON: When you look at financial meltdowns, you have to consider the role played by financial jackals, as I call them: short-sellers, unrestrained by oversight of any kind, who pile on and make money when there’s a sign of impending shortages. That’s why Bear Stearns lost $33 billion in value in two days — over a weekend, mind you, when no one was even trading. George Soros did the same thing to Britain in 1992. This year, the breakdown in Greece is another form of the same story. The central bankers of Europe didn’t understand this in the same way that American financiers did, because the U.S. has more experience with jackals.
The shorts have such an effective technique and so much power that the truth, whatever it might be, about real economic value and prospects doesn’t matter. Maybe Greece only needed €25 billion [$34 billion] to avoid default, as was said in February, or €45 billion [$61 billion], as the European Union offered in April. The amount is unimportant. What’s important is, Did you and I and 13 of our closest friends pile on and short this thing? If we did, it’s going down. Foreign exchange rates — the legitimate trading of currencies — is unimportant compared to the pressure brought by shorts.
We saw the great potential danger of this behavior in 1997 during the Asian financial crisis. Those collapses of currency didn’t occur because the countries had suddenly overreached. The jackals were simply picking off the weakest, one by one. We have to fix this problem somehow.
S+B: In other words, regulation of trading is more important than regulation of the banks.
ANDERSON: Yes. More precisely, regulation of traders would be a more effective way to regulate the big problems that exist right now in the markets. I hear Wall Street guys say with a straight face — and I think they mean it — that, “Shorts are a part of the natural order. There’s a long, and there’s a short. It’s that simple.” In other words, a short trade is just a deal where you buy an option on a falling price, and they should be allowed to continue.
But I don’t think that’s how the world works. In a short deal as it works in practice, you buy options against the share price, and then you call your friends, and they call all their friends, and then you call the press, and you tell everyone lies about how bad the company is. Then the stock goes down. And that’s not right. It’s an extremely damaging, destructive practice that has no real place in the economy.
S+B: Realistically, though, how much regulation of short selling will happen? The SEC has been publicly considering a reinstatement of the uptick rule since April 2009.
ANDERSON: Sure. Don’t push it. “It takes time to do these things.” Seriously, it’s hard to believe that we’re having a debate about whether to regulate some forms of trading. After seeing the collapse of the global economy, and having come close to the edge of destruction for all that we know and hold dear, some legislators are still arguing with a straight face that we don’t need any fixes.
We do need fixes. I hope they bring back the uptick law and institute the Volcker Rule [barring banks from proprietary speculation]. Right now, the larger banks are lobbying against this. That’s one example of why we cannot rely on lobbyists to come up with the right policies, for either the health of the economy or the health of their own industries. I recently met someone who led the banking industry’s lobbying effort, during the Clinton administration, to have the Glass-Steagall Act revoked. They spent $1 billion in cash. They’ve spent easily that much fighting the current wave of proposals.
I don’t know if we will get regulatory assistance, but we definitely need it. There is a strong possibility that it won’t get passed, or that it won’t be tough enough, and then we would go right into another financial crisis, but 10 times worse and without any remedies for the government to provide this time. How much extra debt load can the U.S., the U.K., or the E.U. take on right now?
S+B: What prospects do you see for investors in the current financial system?
ANDERSON: I think that investors ought to be very careful. Stocks in this market can move in ways that most investors couldn’t possibly anticipate. A few companies, like Goldman Sachs, have become so good at what they do that the game they’re playing isn’t the same as the game an ordinary investor plays in the market.
A few months before the crash, I was watching Goldman, and I realized that these guys were doing something in that building that nobody else did. I’m not talking about anything illegal — it didn’t have to be. For example, Goldman locates its computer servers within a small distance from the trading servers because they need the extra microseconds of transmission time. I don’t play that kind of game; very few investors can. In May 2010, the Goldman Sachs quarterly reports came out, and said they had 35 days with profits over $100 million; 78 percent of their profits came from trading. And every day was better than the day before. That pattern of profitability never happened before.
S+B: You’re saying that Goldman is the corporate equivalent of the mercantilist governments. They’re all such sophisticated financial players that they change the game for the rest of us.
ANDERSON: Yes. You can’t blame them, because they’re playing by the rules — I think, at least mostly. But the rules may have to change. If someone gets to be that good, then they become vampire investors: “I’m just going to take some blood but I’m not going to give you anything back.” That kind of trading is destructive. It doesn’t help anybody; it doesn’t correct imbalances in the market. In fact, it ensures that markets won’t work.
An estimate by Vanguard Group founder John Bogle two years ago put the amount extracted at that time at about $600 billion per year, directly removed from the American economy. Well, what if it becomes $1.2 trillion? Or $5 trillion? At what point do we wake up? Or do we just lie there with the spigot in our veins and never wake up at all?
S+B: What will happen in the general economy in the U.S. and Europe?
ANDERSON: Already, we’ve seen the economies of the U.S. and probably Western Europe split cleanly in half. Some people will be wealthy beyond their wildest dreams. They will be the people in global commerce of some kind, probably with most revenues coming from offshore.
At the same time, a lot of people will have lost their jobs forever. At the age of 35 or 45, they have lost jobs that they dreamed of retiring from, and they’re not going to get them back. For kids just out of school, the job market is so oversaturated that it could be 10 or 15 years before that gets fixed.
This kind of severe split between haves and have-nots has not happened any time before; not in the Great Depression, or in the crashes of 1987 and 2001. The time delay before a broad job market returns will be a big problem for the bottom half of the economy, and it will be difficult to see clearly because it will be clouded by averages in the statistics. The unemployment rate will be 10 percent overall, but that will mean 40 percent in some sectors and zero percent elsewhere.
S+B: Why would it take so long to fix this problem?
ANDERSON: It has two causes, and both took a long time to develop. They’ll take a long time to unravel. The first is the rise of offshoring over the past 40 years to cut costs — a strategy that is backfiring now. Companies in the West are bringing jobs back to their home countries, not for patriotic reasons, but because they found out either that they needed their expertise in-house or that part of the offshoring machine didn’t work very well. Distinguishing what to offshore versus what to produce at home has become a major business question.
The second cause was the loss of the U.S. manufacturing base as companies elsewhere outperformed American companies. Automobiles are a pretty good example, and there are some great books written about this. See, for example, Eamonn Fingleton’s In the Jaws of the Dragon: America’s Fate in the Coming Era of Chinese Hegemony [Thomas Dunne Books, 2008]. These manufacturing jobs went to Japan or South Korea, which occasionally then offshored them to China and Vietnam. The same happened with electronics. The U.S. has one DRAM [dynamic random access memory] semiconductor company left, but essentially all the others went away.
In the coming years, more Asian and Latin American companies will open plants in the U.S. and Europe, but mainly to avoid trade retribution. That, too, has been going on for 30 years. For instance, in the late 1980s, Japan was named an “unfair trading partner” under the “Super 301” U.S. tariff laws. This happened after Intel filed a complaint about semiconductor competitors from overseas, and Toyota’s top executives worried that cars would be the next product type in line. So they immediately put all their manufacturing plants for cars sold in America into the United States. It wasn’t because they loved America; it’s because they didn’t want Super 301 brought against them, too.
The U.S., in particular, is vulnerable to this problem. It should decide not to allow foreign nations to sell cars in its markets, if there is not equal access for U.S. cars overseas. The same ought to be true for steel, televisions, consumer electronics, and other categories that the U.S. has been frozen out of in trade with mercantilist nations. Why should my citizens be allowed to buy your cars, if you won’t let your citizens buy mine?
S+B: If you looked at these trends separately, none of them would strike you as a good thing. But given the way they fit together, where do you look for hope?
ANDERSON: There is some reason for hope here. Learning how to protect IP is our only path forward. Whether you’re making movies or chips, the sooner that happens, the better.
The emergence of all of the new consumers in the world is exciting. If we got some basic things right about trading, there would be lots of growth available for everybody. China, the U.S., Japan, India, and Europe could all grow. It would be a very exciting story.
S+B: How does the environmental imperative play into the growth? For example, we’re trying to boost economic growth, bring billions of people into the middle class, and stay within the carrying capacity of the planet at the same time.
ANDERSON: Like [University of California computer science professor] Larry Smarr, I call myself a long-term optimist. And I don’t see people as a threat. It seems to me that the largest businesses available — as the Chinese would tell you, and I think a lot of Americans understand — are in clean energy, alternative energy, and green technologies.
We need a big problem to solve right now. Climate change is like the next war — in fact, it could have all the economic impact of a war without being a war. It’s obvious what to do, the requirements are clear, and it couldn’t be more important. Let’s do it.
That’s the kind of leadership we need right now in many countries. I think people would love it.
S+B: Your primary audience has been technologists. What do you say to them about doing well while doing good in this environment?
I think that’s true. I believe the baby-boom generation has done a medium-to-poor job of recognizing the problems and dealing with them. But this generation is set. I’m totally encouraged about the idea of, “Here’s the baton, sorry about the mess, please do better,” and I think they will. | 2019-04-22T06:30:43Z | https://www.strategy-business.com/article/00040?gko=ad931 |
This Research in Service to Practice project, funded by the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program, is a collaboration of Pepperdine University and the New York Hall of Science. It has established a network of STEM-related Media Making Clubs comprised of after-school students aged 12 - 19 and teachers in the U.S. and in three other countries: Kenya, Namibia and Finland. The media produced by the students primarily involve videos in its first year, and will include a range of formats such as videos, short subject films, games, computer programs and specialized applications like interactive books. The content of the media produced by the students focuses on the illustration and teaching of STEM topics, where the shared media is intended to help other students become enthused about and learn the science. This proposal builds on previous work on localized media clubs by now creating an international network in which after-school students and teachers will collaborate at a distance with other clubs.
The central research questions for the project pertain to three themes at the intersection of learning, culture and collaboration: the impact of participatory teaching, virtual networks, and intercultural, global competence. The research will combine qualitative, cross-cultural and big data methods. Critical to the innovation of the project, the research team is also developing a network assessment tool by adapting epistemic network analysis methods to the needs of this initiative.
May 15, 2017 | 10:46 a.m.
Welcome to this STEM for All project! This project uses the acronym IC4 - International Clubs for Collaborative Content Creation. Our clubs have just started operating this year, and are supported by a four year NSF award. We would love to hear your thoughts about collaborative virtual media-making spaces that cross national and cultural boundaries. The four countries in which this project functions - US, Namibia, Kenya and Finland, are very different but the students find important commonalities. Our research component draws on interesting new methods. Please share comments, ideas, places we should explore, and let us know if you see a way to become involved. Thank you! -Eric Hamilton and the IC4 team.
May 16, 2017 | 08:13 a.m.
May 18, 2017 | 02:52 a.m.
May 19, 2017 | 05:38 a.m.
May 21, 2017 | 11:00 p.m.
It is so cool that Veera is running this in Finland.
May 15, 2017 | 11:22 a.m.
A one-page description of the project may also be useful, and it appears at http://bit.ly/ic4-researcher-info-page.
May 15, 2017 | 04:26 p.m.
For learners participating in this project, IC4 has become a space outside classroom for dynamic, interactive learning where students guide each other to apply concepts and engage creatively with STEM subject matter through group work, online discussions and peer feedback.
I think it's important that the projects offers a creative learning space outside school. Too often is learning associated with a brick and mortar school when learning should taking place anywhere, anytime. Lifelong learning must be nurtured so each individual will continue to thrive and contribute.
May 17, 2017 | 12:59 p.m.
Thank you for your comment Charlotte and we are still learning. In the projects that students come up with, they try out new ideas, new skills, rethink prior learning and reassemble them into new ones. Could you be having ideas and suggestions on how to nurture lifelong learning?
May 15, 2017 | 10:10 p.m.
Thank you for sharing your work. This sounds like a great way to foster international collaborations. In watching the videos, and looking over the one pager, I was curious to know how students and teachers come up with their project ideas? Are there themes that they follow, or a set of materials that aim to guide them, or is it more open?
May 17, 2017 | 01:11 p.m.
Thank you Marcelo, it is more open and in some cases project ideas arise and re-arise naturally in response to questions and reactions during the online meetups.
May 21, 2017 | 11:01 p.m.
May 15, 2017 | 11:20 p.m.
Marcelo, thank you for the question. It is pretty open-ended. On our shared space we have around fifty project ideas that participants have come up with, maybe more. And the NY Hall of Science Explainer TV group also comes up with ideas. Definitely wide open!
May 16, 2017 | 10:05 p.m.
Hey there, Eric and team. This looks really exciting! Congrats on all the hard work and thinking. How are the student projects used in their classrooms? Does the whole class do this, or an after school group? Have you thought of ways to test how useful they are to other students--I bet they're a lot more dynamic than many of the textbooks out there!
May 17, 2017 | 02:19 a.m.
Michael, in this early stage, this is all media-maker club outside of school. We are looking at ways that classes can engage, but it is first and foremost an informal science ed effort. But the videos and other artifacts are meant to be used in formal settings as well. I am trying to work with Joanne Lobata at SDSU, whose group does a lot of work on the efficacy of student created artifacts. Thank you!
May 17, 2017 | 03:21 a.m.
The students/learners come up with the videos themselves. They focus on thoughts and ideas of interest to them. After creating these videos, they are then shared with other students/learners globally.
May 19, 2017 | 05:43 a.m.
Kristine, the configuration of the teams and the structure of the work flows creates a "club" system where focus is on learners' own initiatives, demanded guidance rather than supplied instruction. It makes it easier to begin, document and learn, and hopefully, policy makers are also 'listening' to see how gains in such initiatives may be contextually sustained. In deed promising!
May 16, 2017 | 05:54 a.m.
This is an exciting venture that will help learners and teachers to break away from the chalk and talk way of learning making it easy and interesting to learn.I wish to be part of the same here in Kenya.
Charles. where are you teaching now? Your name is familiar... Are you in Nairobi or Thika? I love the expression "break away from the chalk" !
May 17, 2017 | 01:30 p.m.
Charles, the paradigm shift towards student-centred learning in Kenyan classrooms requires educators to reflect on the roles we play in and outside the classroom, and the skills we need. I am excited that you are flexible and willing to be part of the learning process.
Charles, I love the phrase "break away from the chalk!" I am a co-PI on this project from the New York Hall of Science. Eric and his team are incredible role models, demonstrating how to quickly and transparently build a strong, open international collaboration.
May 17, 2017 | 02:24 a.m.
Katherine, My liege Ateng' Ogwel, replying to you above, is an amazing partner in Kenya. Without each of you, there would be no project, so many thanks to both of you. We are so proud to partner with NYSci and with Ateng's agency within the Kenyan Ministry of Education.
May 19, 2017 | 05:48 a.m.
Eric, these are great comments. I should be able to see how the segments in which I appear have more clarity. It's sometimes amazing how you express these "things", and the connecting thread in your vision is so empowering, service to humanity. As George Pepperdine put it, "Freely ye received, freely give".
Joseph: I so appreciate your comment here and the eloquent way you connect IC4 to George Pepperdine's founding vision. Thank you!
The video was a great way to introduce the project. It also provided a glimpse at what it looks like in a classroom setting. The students fully engage when they have the independence to learn.
The IC4 club was an engaging way to begin the process of collaboration. Students had fun utilizing their creative skills. We often heard them laughing and brainstorming ideas.
I was most impressed at the quality of the research projects that students want to study. They now need the time and structure to delve into a topic. I would not be surprised if we had a group or two that begin the process of solving a world issue.
I love being a part of NSF and Dr. Hamilton's forward look at education. As a teacher, I become invested and excited every year.
May 17, 2017 | 02:25 a.m.
We love having you be a part of and helping to shape and define this work. it has been a ride we could not take without you and George.
May 19, 2017 | 05:53 a.m.
True, George and Lynette are amazing and having seen their work at Long Beach - we have a couple and a team of professionals, a pair among others, on whose shoulders we stand.
We are fortunate to have you on this time, Ms Nghifikwa!
May 17, 2017 | 03:23 a.m.
Rachel is an enormous asset to our team and we are so lucky to have her. Her incite and promise for future learners is enormous.
May 16, 2017 | 04:59 p.m.
So proud to see Pepperdine on the cutting edge! STEM and global collaboration are crucial to our future, in education and beyond.
May 17, 2017 | 02:11 a.m.
Mary, I don't know if we are on the cutting edge, but it is immensely rewarding to see students collaborate like this, and as we expected, the unexpected is always showing up!
May 19, 2017 | 05:57 a.m.
May 16, 2017 | 08:44 p.m.
This project brings students and teachers together in a global setting to collaborate as one. As students and teachers collaborate together a higher level of education takes place in the learning environmen among participants, respect, commitment, and improving teaching techniques. Student participatory teaching provides students an opportunity to become independent learners. Yet, another asset of this program is that student participatory teaching also provides students the opportunity to shape and enhance their teaching skills. This project is a great example of Education taking place in the classroom without boundaries or borders.
May 17, 2017 | 02:12 a.m.
Mr Gamez, thank you for your excellent effort in this project. I think you are right about the participatory teaching. That has to be an important priority for us. You are helping us move beyond boundaries and borders!
May 17, 2017 | 11:42 a.m.
It is wonderful to see students eager to learn from each other and to work together from different parts of the world in one single setting. It is wonderful to see how students suddenly become part of your teaching team in the classroom. Students helping you to teach students that is priceless!
You are exactly right, Jose! I am focusing on your comment that "students helping you to teach students that is priceless!" I heartily agree and I am reminded of Carol Dweck's premise that intellectual skills could be cultivated, especially in constructivist classrooms that honor many voices and viewpoints! Thank you for your comment, Jose! Do you see applications of the IC4 concept to your professional practice?
May 19, 2017 | 06:03 a.m.
Helen, these remarks "students helping you......." is true and accurate. Zach has evidence on what students are able to do during Maths Camps and we also witnessed during a holiday when we had GeoGebra Handshops in a couple of schools. Let's keep the hope and optimism, and share the little stories. I believe we do not need spectacular results, we just need to tell the story as it is.
May 16, 2017 | 10:12 p.m.
This video and overall project provides great insight on how collaborative environments are able to encourage the process of learning for students in a universal fashion. The utilization technology is able to unify the students and teachers across the world, and they are able to exchange ideas and concepts relative to what it is they are studying. This video is extremely indicative of the benefits and the positive reinforcements that the engagement of technology is able to give to the students. I can most definitely see this growing and being incorporated into varying education systems in other countries in the near future. It's very exciting to see the potential this project has.
May 17, 2017 | 08:27 p.m.
Hi Catherine: Your comment regarding as a unifying force for teachers and students is exactly what the IC4 project embodies. Activities listed for participatory teaching include brainstorming, role plays, experiments, discussions, and field trips. These are productive alternatives to traditional instruction but they usually originate with the a teacher task. The interactivity of the IC4 discussions is primarily with and among students. Technology such as Fuze enables global conversations and interactivity in real time! Thank you again, Catherine!
May 16, 2017 | 11:08 p.m.
Beautiful video, Eric and team! say more about "cyberensembles" -- what's new and different? what unique insights are emerging that go beyond the 1:1 metaphor.
May 17, 2017 | 09:03 p.m.
Hi Jeremy: Much appreciation for all you do through S.R.I.! Cyberensembles include combinations of five key activities: Inversion, Immersion, Knowledge-sharing, Querying, and Digital Media-Making in STEM Classrooms. Here is a link to one of Dr. Hamilton's early papers on Cyberensembles: http://www.learntechlib.org/p/37639.
May 19, 2017 | 06:07 a.m.
May 17, 2017 | 02:09 a.m.
Jeremy, thank you. I think once we move past the start stage on the new project, we will have more to share. But the idea behind the ensembles - to make cyber combinations - is something we have applied to classroom settings. The idea is that you can if you have strategies that each feed off of each other, and each induce high engagement, you can intensify the immersive nature of the experience. Mostly, though, we learned how to manage each of the components more effectively to more routinely induce high engagement and flow. The synergy of the combinations has not quite materialized the way we expected. But - i am convinced that the analog - what we cal neural ensembles - to have multiple activity paths that are high engagement (or rest) regularly available will produce neural activation patterns that can be very powerful. Something I have spent some time talking with Anthony Wagner at Stanford. He thinks the conjecture is sound.
May 19, 2017 | 06:15 a.m.
Eric, your response to Jeremy is revealing the ultimate, a kind of area you are reluctant to engage in for fear of losing some of us. Reminds me of the last supper in Helsinki, the discussion with Ron. I hear you my liege, am not sure if am following you!!!!
May 17, 2017 | 06:55 a.m.
Interesting thread of discussions on the student-teacher media making clubs. The idea of learners making videos on concepts in maths and science that they would like to teach others through sharing with other students in different countries/continents sounds to me more of "project-based learning'', which is GREAT!
1.Can students of different levels ,say in high school or college collaborate? What if they have conflicting information/concepts, or language barrier? 2.What's the project team trying to find out about? Is it outcomes of collaborative learning, impact of media clubs?. ....How would u measure if at all the students are learning,... because you can study about any STEM topic and make a video out of it but does this mean you understood or conceptualized the idea/concept? Outcomes of this project could be really interesting (I think) & make huge impact if this grows into a public platform with more learners ( both students & teachers) generating content and sharing.
Thank you Christine for your great questions. We are still learning as we observe students (age range 10-19) from four different countries, three different continents work together on project ideas suggested by themselves. The project seeks to nurture meaningful and scientifically rigorous collaborations that cross ages and connect cultures.
We are Investigating how digital maker‐space collaborations help others, between adolescents and teachers in different parts of the world, and how they can make a significant societal impact. Also, we examine research in multiple areas in order to advance informal STEM subject learning.
In some videos of unfamiliar problems/projects developed by students, the explanations they give go beyond what is obvious or what is explicitly taught, makes subtle connections, well supported by argument and evidence and novel thinking is displayed. Could you be having other ideas of how to measure the students learning and best ways to establish degrees of understanding?
May 18, 2017 | 03:34 a.m.
Thank you Christine about your questions and comments! I want to say something about the language barriers you asked. Here in Finland the students generally start studying English (that is used as a lingua franca in this project) when they are 9 year olds. So, for example the two clubs of 11-year-olds that are taking part in the project now, have officially studied English only 2 years, couple of hours per week.
That means that communicating in English is challenging for them. But, because the setting of the project is so exciting, students seem to forget their limitations. In online meet-ups you meet real living people from countries that are somewhere far away, and these people are interested in you and your project. That setting makes that students really want to say what they have in their minds, no matter how many grammar mistakes they do. It was so rewarding to follow those little kids eagerly trying to find the right words and expressions to say what they wanted. And, what was also a good thing, they did that together.
May 19, 2017 | 02:27 a.m.
Thank you Veera, Zach and Helen for the insightful responses. It appears that there is already deep thinking on the overall assessment of the project. I would be particularly interested in the knowledge flow within the learner networks; what is being shared, to who (is it across different age/school/culture levels and what the impact of this knowledge transfer is in the overall project setup.
Given the participatory nature of the project, I would think they would be lots of interaction between & within the learner virtual networks, this might influence direction/flow of learning, and to what extent there would be transfer & gain of knowledge....the rich troves of data might help in evaluation. Students’ reflections would be another rich source of data.
May 22, 2017 | 01:50 p.m.
Hi Christine, just to tag on to Helen, Zach and Veera (who also all work on the project), we've found that the online global meet-ups have become an important part for knowledge sharing. A participant "presents" their video, then everyone gives feedback on both the content and quality of the video making. This has led to some rich conversations on both STEM subjects and cultural awareness. At the end of the meet-ups, we have the participants write a reflection on their experience of the session. The reflections have helped us to better organize the meet-ups, which have now become an exciting part of the project.
May 22, 2017 | 02:08 p.m.
May 22, 2017 | 03:31 p.m.
Dr Teague, well-said all the way around!
May 17, 2017 | 08:00 a.m.
This is a great initiative, team! I am a great advocate for learners constructing their own understanding and sharing it. The collaboration part is interesting as students will not only learn the content, but they will also learn of the different ways of communicating mathematics across regions.
I support this initiative and would love to be part of this team!
May 18, 2017 | 12:02 a.m.
Thank you Victoria for your comment. The goal here is to have learners take control of the knowledge process and begin to see themselves as producers, not just victims of knowledge. You were at the root of implementation at Maseno University and we do value having you at the center of the research process.
May 17, 2017 | 08:20 a.m.
This seems like a fabulous project How do the students from Kenya, Namibia and Finland see each other's work? Are groups in the three countries ever working on common or shared challenges? Do you have events akin to this STEM For All Video Showcase where work across the three countries is shared and discussed? As PI for the Video Showcase I am very intrigued with your project and wonder if there are any great ideas for collaboration.
May 18, 2017 | 02:34 a.m.
The students meet each other in online global meet-ups that are organised every month. They are so excited!
During the meet-ups students chat and talk about their works. The online system that is used also allows screen sharing and that is the way the students can watch the videos together and talk about them.
May 18, 2017 | 03:40 a.m.
Hi Joni, one more thing. Yes, the students can also work on shared challenges, and the project strongly supports this kind of activity by grouping the students into global groups, so that there are members from every country in a group.
May 19, 2017 | 04:31 p.m.
Hi Joni, Veera did a great job of sharing our strategy. The participants use Microsoft OneNote to share ideas and collaborate on projects, and we have online global meet-ups among our participating schools to provide an opportunity for participants to "see" each other and share/discuss their work. The discussions during the meet-up usually revolve around projects they are working on and videos they've made-- for example, participants had some rich discussions on topics of environmental conservation, the lived experience of their country, differences in weather/seasons, and most recently, coding and robotics. Project topics so far are self-directed, rather than something assigned to the groups. Since we are still in the relatively early stages of our project, the participants' work is mainly shared within our network of clubs, but we hope to showcase their work in the future-- stay tuned!
May 21, 2017 | 12:43 p.m.
Hi Danielle, what do online global meet-ups look like, and what setups do you use?
May 21, 2017 | 11:17 p.m.
Hi Danielle and Veera, It sounds like you are experimenting with a variety of ways for students to speak to each other about common challenges. It is a great project and I will stay tuned. Should you ever be interested in them having a video showcase where they can share videos with each other and also with other peers, their community, parents, etc. and discuss the videos then let me know! Best of luck with this fascinating project.
May 22, 2017 | 12:44 p.m.
Joni, this is an intriguing suggestion. We have multiple ways that we share the videos, but something on the order of a showcase - which, let's face it, TERC definitely knows how to do :) - would help us in efforts to establish standards for publication for the students and teachers, for example. So I will discuss further with the heroes you addressed (Danielle and Veera) and other members of the team. Thank you. And say hello to JA-C.
May 22, 2017 | 01:58 p.m.
To Hiroo, the online global meet-ups are conducted in Fuze. I create a Google Doc agenda that structures the meet-up (so participants can post their video/project links they want to share, or questions they want to pose to the group). We try to limit the amount of participants to keep the meet-up intimate for conversation; no more than 2-3 students from 3 schools at a time (max 9 participants), which has helped in creating more interactions. We have the participants write reflections immediately following the session. Thanks for the question (and perhaps we will meet someday, I've heard a lot about you!).
May 22, 2017 | 03:27 p.m.
Thanks, Danielle. How do you get people in different time-zones to meet synchronously? That must be a challenge!
Are you based in the Malibu campus? I will be sure to visit when I am there next time!
May 22, 2017 | 07:02 p.m.
That's a good question-- the different time zones can be a struggle, but since we limit the number of participant/sites at each session, it helps us to narrow down a time. Some sites are restrictive on when they can meet, and some sites have participants who are able and willing (because of the global nature of the meet-up) to make the sacrifice with late nights, which we are grateful for.
I'm actually out of West LA, if you every make it there-- perhaps if Eric is teaching in the fall, we'd be on campus at the same time!
May 17, 2017 | 09:15 a.m.
Thanks for bringing me into this project, Zach. Let me know what I can do.
May 19, 2017 | 08:03 a.m.
You are most welcome Joyati! With your research interests and as a recipient of many grants including the National Science Foundation Instruction Laboratory Improvement (NSF-ILI), we will all learn a lot from you.
May 17, 2017 | 09:58 a.m.
What is especially significant to me as a 3rd-year member of Dr. Hamilton's research team, is the engagement in math concepts by students of both genders both globally and in the U.S. I am not sure that I would stay up (or get up) at 2:00am to discuss math concepts, but two weeks' ago, students in Kenya did! They slept at their school in order to participate in an online, global Fuze meet-up w/ high school math students in California. All students' insightful, engaging conversations and discussions of their STEM projects were illuminating for me. "Illuminating" is a word of hyperbole but it fits appropriately after listening to the discussions and insights of the students.
May 19, 2017 | 11:19 a.m.
May 22, 2017 | 03:40 p.m.
Okay, so this answers the question I just asked Danielle about meeting across varying time-zones. Helen/Ateng, what kind of internet bandwidth do the students have in Kenya?
May 17, 2017 | 11:41 a.m.
Awesome video! Love the collaborative space that has been developed to foster the cultural makerspace. Here are a few of my wonders. I'm sure you have so much documentation as part of the research that it would answer many of my questions. Do the teachers co-create the project via the three countries? Do they using a process to plan the projects? How often do the teachers collaborate? What documentation are you using to track their growth and their student's growth during the process? In what ways are the teachers and students reflecting on their work? Is reflection part of the analysis at the end of the study? I would love to see the teacher and student reflections as they progress through the process to see how they think and feel as result of the cypermakerspace at the various stages of their critical thinking . Very cool! Thank you for the opportunity to see into the project!
May 18, 2017 | 11:54 a.m.
You ask several great questions! The teachers meet almost weekly with the site liaisons and the students. These meetups are generally conducted through Fuze meetings. We use one note to track and record all of our data. Reflection is a HUGE part of our study. For that, we use google docs. The project is very exciting and rapidly growing!
May 19, 2017 | 08:04 a.m.
Jill, thank you so much for your insightful wonders! It is really participatory and involves students at every stage from choosing their own projects to work on, planning through to creating videos on their projects and sharing. Although, there is still a lot of variability in students designing meaningful/effective projects and strong driving questions, teachers have always come in handy.
We emphasise reflection as key part of learning and through students' personal reflections at the end of each the regular fuze meetings, individuals and groups of students working on projects have seen opportunities for growing and developing further their projects and videos.
May 20, 2017 | 03:29 p.m.
Jill, we use documentation as a tool for making learners' thinking visible, we have students videos of their own investigations, fuze recordings of learners global meetups, written notes of students' ideas and contributions on OneNote. Teachers, also do comments on students' projects that would sometimes lead to rich discussions among learners.
A curious mind leads itself to great innovations and creativity. With scientist discipline and technological advances clearly stipulated here, we can create a better world today for the future of our kids. Through practical and interactive workshop's, students gain the technical skills to design solutions to challenges.I like how the use of technology has been used to link all the students in the different countries and their facilitators in one platform. Sharing of different innovations and ideas by students in form of video helps students to benchmark from far ends. As a STEM educator, use of videos is key in workshops. I am fascinated by the project.
May 20, 2017 | 03:14 p.m.
Thank you Dickson for your comment, apart from sharing videos we are learning how learners model their interest in the project ideas being explored, how learner's support each other in constructing understanding and clarifying their own thinking of STEM concepts.
I have always been fascinated by how Eric builds international teams seamlessly. I have worked with Eric for close to 6 years now, and looking at the current research projects, makes me appreciate the foundational work done many years ago. It is interesting to see how all the different pieces that seemed disjointed 6 years ago, now combined to tell a coherent story of the how students can influence their own learning. I am encouraged of the future that holds for STEM education and the benefits of the collaborative learning environments especially for students in West.
I learned about this project through Zach Mbasu, an inspiring educator in Kenya. I love the approach and idea of connecting students in different parts of the world. Thank you for this wonderful work!
May 17, 2017 | 03:30 p.m.
Thank you very much Mr JOSEPH CARILUS ATENG' OGWEL for introducing me to this project. I want to get more involved here as an enthusiastic Kenyan educator.
Henry, do you know Zach Mbasu?
May 19, 2017 | 06:17 a.m.
May 22, 2017 | 12:38 p.m.
Very nice, and thank you. Perhaps we can visit in July.
May 17, 2017 | 05:19 p.m.
A really wonderful project! Collaborative learning on this kind wasn't yet possible when I was teaching CS. As a program evaluator, I'm always thinking about the replicability and scalability of programs. What kind of supports do you offer or are you planning to develop to help individuals and organizations establish new virtual networks and media clubs?
May 18, 2017 | 01:20 p.m.
May 19, 2017 | 10:58 a.m.
Guilty as charged! You have it right! It sounds like you're on the right track. I'd love to learn more about how you're approaching the training piece as the project evolves.
This is a great project and very innovative in terms of collaborative learning. I've had the joy of getting to monitor some of the video project collaboration as students talk and discuss ideas for their videos on onenote. It's so exciting to watch unfold and see the possibilities for education using these new methods and technologies.
May 18, 2017 | 11:35 p.m.
We are so proud you are on the team. And find it cool that the video producer came out from behind the editor to join the conversation!
May 19, 2017 | 12:31 a.m.
I wish to say that this project can benefit from focussed collaboration more than open video development across cultures and levels of education. This should be the be essence of the project. It will be interesting to see how different groups interpret and conceptualise their understanding of identified task. It will also be interesting to synch by level of technology uptake and exposure as technology levels differ by culture and regiont. Can you share some videos that have been generated.
May 19, 2017 | 06:21 a.m.
My boss and mentor, was is and will remain. Keep the beacons, Dr. Oconnor as you move ahead, we may not follow the same path but we are in the same direction.
May 19, 2017 | 05:12 p.m.
One thing I like about Marguerite's post is that directs to a different path - sort of rare for these showcase comments.
There is quite a bit to unpack in this counsel and how or why we do things the way we have. How do we connect? You know my liege Ogwel?
May 19, 2017 | 12:40 p.m.
Great work you are doing. It is really inspiring seeing students especially from underprivileged communities becoming co-creators of content. This is paradigm shift from teacher focused to student centered learning. Would love to know how this interaction with technology and content creation impact on their overall performance. How do you measure that? To what extent is the teacher involved?
May 19, 2017 | 05:13 p.m.
Tabby, we are still sorting that out as we ramp up the project. We have about 15 clubs right now, and the teacher profile differs in each!
May 20, 2017 | 03:52 p.m.
Thank you Tabby for your great questions, at the moment teachers are taking students comments on OneNote and in videos as a starting point for dialogue. Simple follow up questions like "Can you say more about that?" or "What makes you say that?" have been used to clarify students' thinking during the Fuze global meetups too.
May 19, 2017 | 01:48 p.m.
I love the fact that the seed of international collaboration is sowed into the minds of young learners. Improving learning methods is very necessary if we are to develop the researchers and innovators of generations to come. Keep up the great work!
May 20, 2017 | 01:59 p.m.
Eric and team, the assessment tool to be developed would help bring out the underlying drivers to the participation of the students. Am looking at motivational issues and soft skills beyond the affordances of the technologies.
May 20, 2017 | 03:54 p.m.
I agree! I hope that ENA helps us with this. In any case, we will formulate a new set of questions for the summer sessions.
May 20, 2017 | 02:34 p.m.
Gave my earlier reply before seeing this. As you can see: agreed!
May 20, 2017 | 04:29 p.m.
Without any doubt this is a great initiative. Students learn a lot from their peers and easily get inspired by them. The media (technology) component and international dimension can be a great motivation for students. How do I become a part of this? What are some plans on ground to extend this initiative to other countries?
May 21, 2017 | 10:57 p.m.
May 22, 2017 | 05:08 a.m.
Yes, I am currently a student at AIMS Tanzania (almost through with my program though). Mr Mbasu has visited us a couple of times, I enjoyed the sessions He facilitated in one of our school outreaches last year and I really love the vision of the African Maths Initiative.
May 21, 2017 | 12:49 p.m.
Eric and team, this is exciting work! What are some examples of projects that the students are coming up with? You had mentioned there are about 50+ so far. Also, how are the videos created being shared within the network?
May 22, 2017 | 07:05 p.m.
There's a researcher's info page link Eric provided in an earlier post, which has some examples of the projects. Since we are in the early stages, right now projects are only being shared within the network through OneNote and our online global meet-ups. As we continue, we hope to directly showcase more of the students' work!
May 21, 2017 | 01:40 p.m.
Very proud of all of you! Great job! As a person very interested in education and working on similar projects (albeit from the economically sustainable point of view), I can relate to the challenges and the potential this has. Looking forward to seeing more and perhaps a collaboration in the future.
May 22, 2017 | 12:40 p.m.
Mike, thank you for your kind comments. You are in the Rift Valley area?
May 22, 2017 | 01:11 a.m.
Dr. Hamilton has the most exceptional research team. It is a blessing and privilege to stay abreast of their work and service. I consider great pride in one of [his] many empowering quotes: "It is important for the school to wrap around the learner, rather than to have the learner wrap around the school." Thank you for your leadership, expertise and deep impact.
May 22, 2017 | 03:19 p.m.
Sonya, thank you for such heartwarming comments. We will try to live up to them!
May 22, 2017 | 12:33 p.m.
It's encouraging to read the comments, questions and expression of potential collaboration with other initiatives.
I could be getting more closely involved with the IC4 in the coming days, though not much at operational level. I should be getting to CEMASTEA after nearly 900 days of regular engagement at the Ministry of Education.
May 22, 2017 | 12:36 p.m.
This would simply be lovely. And I notice my reply is the 100th comment on the board. Yikes. Glad it is on this matter. Please give my regards to Mr Njoroge. I hope to see you mid July.
May 22, 2017 | 02:15 p.m.
Eric and team,--I'd love to check in with you on this work. Way back when I was just out of undergrad I did a Fulbright study in Kenya and was really interested in jua kali work there--which I have been thinking a lot about in my past 5 years now studying learning makerspaces/through making.
May 22, 2017 | 03:02 p.m.
Kimberly, you are at GMU? If so, please say hello to our good friend Kathy Matson, working on her PhD in CEHD. Much of this work was actually advanced through a three year Fulbright, interestingly, which took place in Namibia after being originally slated to occur in Kenya, before being transferred to the SW. This new project now has two schools in Kenya - one for students in Kibera, and one just a bit NE of the capital, in Thika. Our students don't currently have a lot of mobility, but now you have me intrigued about drawing jua kali work more into the mix. Perhaps we can interact more on this. Thank you for your note!
Sounds very cool--I know where Kibera and Thinka are (I was an exchange student at the University of Nairobi during my undergrad and then did the Fulbright work in the years after). This was back in the 90s though. I'd love to discuss more--and, yes, I'm at GMU-- Feel free to contact me --my info is here-: https://cehd.gmu.edu/people/faculty/ksherida/ I have a joint appointment in Educational Psychology in CEHD and in art and visual technology. I don't know that I've had a chance to interact with Kathy--I think she's in math education--but I'll keep an eye out for her.
May 22, 2017 | 07:10 p.m.
Maria, thank you. Where are your clubs located? | 2019-04-26T11:43:03Z | https://stemforall2017.videohall.com/presentations/942 |
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1.1.1 The revitalization of the Yau Tong Bay brownfield site has been encouraged by Government under numerous planning studies and its implementation has been largely established in the Outline Zoning Plan. The bay, upon completion not only satisfies the community needs for school, open space, housing as introduced by Government, but also will bring back the brownfield land for more environmentally friendly and non-polluting productive use. The Yau Tong Bay Development project was initiated by a group of owners who hold significant interests in Yau Tong Bay (YTB). The owners have joined together to form a joint venture and have appointed Main Wealth Development Ltd as the Project Manager for the proposed redevelopment.
1.1.2 In the past 20 years, a great deal of attention has been given to the redevelopment of the Yau Tong Bay area. On 17.6.1992, the then Governor directed the Town Planing Board to expand the coverage of the draft Cha Kwo Ling, Yau Tong, Lei Yue Mun Outline Zoning Plan to include Yau Tong Bay. Majority of the marine lot owners, in response to the Government new planning intention, has subsequently agreed to form the joint venture in cleaning up the dilapidated marine lots and redeveloping the area into productive and more friendly land uses.
1.1.3 In recycling the dilapidated bay for a sustainable new land use, high regards have been given to the residential land use in the surrounding, the accessibility of environmentally-friendly transit in the door step, the new criteria of environmental protection as well as public expectation to early urban renewal actions. It is highly essential to both Government and Community that this environmentally damaging brownfield site is able to be recycled in a timely manner, thereby removing the stigma of further contamination, accelerated environmentally degradation and potential liability associated with the bay area.
environmentally friendly reclaimation method without dredging.
CH2M Hill (China) Ltd.
David C Lee Surveyors Ltd.
Maunsell Consultants Asia Ltd.
Maunsell Environmental Management Consultants Ltd.
Maunsell Geotechnical Services Ltd.
MVA Hong Kong Ltd.
Westwood Hong & Associates Ltd.
1.1.6 The Environmental Impact Assessment Study for Yau Tong Bay Development is divided into two packages, namely, “Reclamation of Yau Tong Bay” and “Engineering Feasibility Study for the Comprehensive Development at Yau Tong Bay” under the Study Brief No. ESB-0010/1998 and ESB-0028/1999 respectively.
1.1.7 The first application for approval of the EIA Report for Package 1 (EIA-046/2000) and Package 2 (EIA-048/2000) EIA Study were formally submitted under the EIA Ordinance on 25 July and 29 August 2000 respectively. Both of the approval applications were unsuccessful because the EIA reports did not meet the requirements of the EIA Study Brief and TM as advised by the Director of Environmental Protection.
1.1.8 A series of discussions among EPD, various government departments and the environmental consultants have been made. Several working papers and Draft Final EIA Report have been submitted to substantiate the assessment results on the environmental impacts of the development to the environment. Taking into account the comments from EPD on the previous submitted EIA reports, this Final EIA report has been revised to include the assessment results on the environmental impacts generated from all possible development scenarios.
1.2.1 To proceed with the Yau Tong Bay Development, the YTB will be reclaimed and the existing marine lots will be amalgamated for the future Comprehensive Development Area (CDA) development.
1.2.2 The site is located in the eastern side of Kowloon to the south of the Eastern Harbour Crossing and is in an area of existing development. The site is bounded on the north and to the east by Cha Kwo Ling Road and existing development, to the south by Ko Fai Road and existing development and to the west by Victoria Harbour. Figure 1 shows the location of the existing Yau Tong Bay.
1.2.3 The proposed reclamation site is significantly zoned as Comprehensive Development Area (CDA) on the current Cha Kwo Ling, Yau Tong, Lei Yue Mun Outline Zoning Plan No. S/K/15/13 (Figure 4). At present, the current CDA zone at Yau Tong Bay covers a total area of about 17.4 ha for accommodating 18,000 persons. In the proposed Yau Tong Bay CDA which was endorsed by Town Planning Board in December 1998, the population of the development is about 39,000 persons.
1.2.4 The extent of Yau Tong Bay reclamation will be changed with the alignment of the proposed Western Coast Road (WCR). As advised by Territory Development Department, there are two different options on the alignment of the WCR – Coastal Option and Tunnel Option. Corresponding to these two alignment options, two different reclamation options, Full Reclamation and Minimised Reclamation are proposed in the EIA report respectively. There is still no final decision on which alignment to be adopted for the WCR.
1.2.5 In the WCR – Coastal Option, the viaduct of WCR will be built at the waterfront of Yau Tong Bay. It is recommended to extend the limit of YTB reclamation such that the viaduct foundation of the WCR could be constructed on land rather than an expensive marine structure construction originally proposed by the consultant of TDD. In addition, the extra-reclaimed land can provide a continuous waterfront promenade as recommended by the government. This reclamation option is named Full Reclamation and the area of YTB reclamation is about 18 hectares.
1.2.6 Tunnel Option is an alternative alignment for the WCR. The occurrence of this option was due to the strong objection from the public on the proposed coastal option of the WCR. The tunnel alignment of the WCR runs from Tseung Kwan O to South East Kowloon via an inland tunnel instead of running along the existing coastline. As such, the additional reclamation at the mouth of YTB for the foundation of the coastal option of WCR to be built on will be no longer required. Under the provision of the Protection of the Harbour Ordinances, the Harbour is to be protected and preserved as a special public asset and a natural heritage and there shall be a presumption against reclamation in the Harbour. The area of YTB reclamation was reviewed and subsequently reduced. For Tunnel Option of WCR, Minimised Reclamation is proposed for YTB reclamation and the area of reclamation is reduced to about 12 hectares. The two reclamation options are shown in Figure 2 and Figure 3.
1.2.7 With due consideration of the environmental impacts caused by reclamation to the harbour, a more environmental friendly reclamation method and construction sequence among other possible alternatives are recommended for the proposed reclamation. As the release of contaminants in the seabed could not be avoided during the process of dredging, and treatment and disposal of both contaminated and uncontaminated dredged marine sediment will create another environmental impacts, the reduced amount of dredging can minimize the adverse impact caused by dredging. “Drained” reclamation method is proposed for general reclamation area in order to expedite the rate of settlement. By this method, except the dredging of soft marine deposit for the foundation of new seawall and the proposed box culverts, which is considered essential in engineering points of view, no additional dredging of marine sediment will be required.
1.2.8 Apart from this reclamation method, the construction sequence is carefully designed in order to minimize the adverse environmental impacts arising from reclamation. The existing stormwater culvert will be diverted to the harbour by a temporary channel such that the discharge will not enter into the reclamation site. The permanent seawalls, which will be built prior to the bulk filling, together with the existing seawall and the temporary diversion channel will enclose the entire reclamation site, preventing the dispersal of fill material to the harbour.
1.2.9 In order to alleviate the acute shortage of filling capacity to minimize the need of new public dump site and to help extend the existing land fill life in Hong Kong, except the use of rockfill for the foundation of new seawall and sandfill for the drainage blanket to be overlay directly onto the marine deposit, it is recommended to maximize the use of public filling material for reclamation of Yau Tong Bay in principle. Imported sandfill will only be used for reclamation in the case of unstable or insufficient supply of public filling material which affect the construction programme.
1.2.10 As the scale of Full Reclamation Option is larger than that of Minimised Reclamation Option, it will be taken as the worst scenario for the environmental impact assessment (EIA). The EIA study is conducted with respect to noise, water quality, waste management, biogas risk, land contamination and visual and landscape impacts. Potential sensitive receivers and the relevant standards and assessment criteria were identified for the assessments. The present EIA study for the YTB reclamation indicated that there would be no insurmountable environmental impacts arising from the reclamation works in YTB. The major findings of the EIA study are discussed in the following sections.
visual and landscape impacts.
1.3.2 The scope also includes recommendation of mitigation measures for all identified adverse environmental impacts for the different reclamation phases, identification of residual impacts and proposing environmental monitoring and auditing (EM&A) requirements for the project. The assessment methodology adopted in the EIA Study is in accordance with the TM on EIA Process.
2.1.1 The existing seabed of Yau Tong Bay is proved to be highly contaminated. The odour arising from the contaminated seabed may have the possibility to cause nuisance to the nearby residents especially during summer time. Furthermore, when marine vessels go moorings, their anchors may disturb the seabed causing the dispersal of seabed contaminants. These released contaminated substances may migrate towards the Harbour under water current or ship movement. Continuation of the existing industrial operations may further worsen the situation.
2.1.2 Apart from the direct impacts to the nearby residents, the contaminated seabed may also endanger the public indirectly. Fishing at seafront promenade is a popular leisure activity nowadays in Hong Kong. However, fishes caught at the contaminated Yau Tong Bay waterfront may be polluted. Consumption of these polluted fishes would be harmful if not hazardous to health.
2.1.3 The proposed reclamation at Yau Tong Bay (both Minimised and Full Reclamation Options) covers up the main portion of the contaminated seabed such that the contaminated seabed can be concealed and isolated from the public. This can effectively prevent contaminants or poisonous substances in the highly contaminated Yau Tong Bay seabed from migrating into the marine water.
2.2.1 Yau Tong Bay is currently characterised by industrial operations such as shipyards, timber yards, sawmills, construction materials storage, industrial building and vehicle repair workshops. The existing environment of YTB is considered poor and is suspected to be polluted by the existing industry.
2.2.2 Several large-scale housing projects in the vicinity of Yau Tong Bay have already been commenced or substantially completed. Reclamation of Yau Tong Bay and the subsequent development on the reclaimed land provide an opportunity to remove the existing polluting industrial operations at Yau Tong Bay. It is undoubtedly to the benefits of everyone who lives or studies in Yau Tong for the bay to be reclaimed such that the nuisance caused by the polluting industrial operations such as noise impact, air quality impact, water quality impact, land contamination and visual impact could be removed as well.
2.3.1 The decommissioning of shipyards and demolition of building structures in the YTB reclamation project not only relieve the pollution problems caused by the existing industries, but also provide land to achieve important community development objectives, such as provisions of schools, residential area and government facilities.
2.3.2 The YTB reclamation will provide sufficient land for the foundation works of the viaduct of the WCR - Yau Tong Section to be carried out on land instead of constructing over water. Besides that, the height of the bridge deck of the WCR (coastal option) can be reduced significantly as the requirement of providing sufficient headroom for marine access to YTB will be waived. As a result, the construction cost of the WCR can be reduced. The implementation of the YTB reclamation project would be directly beneficial to the Coastal Option of the WCR project.
2.3.3 There is an inadequate provision of school facilities in the Kwun Tong area, the proposed development will be able to provide land resources for school provision, on top of the school facilities already provided within the gazetted CDA to support the population growth in Yau Tong and the surrounding areas. In total, there will have 8 schools (5 primary and 3 secondary schools) in the proposed Yau Tong Bay Development.
2.4.1 Another shortcoming within the Kwun Tong area is the general shortage of open space. The proposed waterfront promenade at Yau Tong Bay provides a public open space for recreational / tourism facilities and enjoyment of the public. The promenade will also serve as a mode of transport that facilitates travel for pedestrians and possibly cyclists. Cycle routes may be provided to promote tourism and encourage travel in an environmentally-friendly manner. Moreover, the promenade will also be suitable to house various utilities. The proposed development on the reclamation provides a natural sightline of the waterfront and will provide an ideal space for passive and even active recreation uses.
2.4.2 The key environmental outcomes and public benefits of the project are summarized in the attached photomontages.
3.1.1 An environmental noise impact assessment on the proposed Yau Tong Bay Development Reclamation has been conducted to predict the construction noise impacts at the Noise Sensitive Receivers (NSRs) in the Yau Tong neighbourhood.
3.1.2 The potential noise sources identified include the construction noise from reclamation works and demolition of existing buildings and, noise impact from vehicular movement on haul roads. The EIA study will cover the combined impacts of all these works on the NSRs in the vicinity in accordance with the requirements laid down in the relevant Technical Memoranda.
3.1.3 The predicted facade noise levels caused by the construction works will be within the 75dB(A) daytime construction noise standard for domestic premises throughout the whole reclamation period.
3.1.4 Prediction results show that the nearby new schools located to the north and east of the site will not be adversely affected by the reclamation works.
3.1.5 Recommendations including scheduling of work, siting of facilities, use of quiet Powered Mechanical Equipment (PME), use of temporary noise barriers and adopt good site practice have been given to further reduce the construction noise impacts.
The existing Dairy Farm Ice Factory salt water intake (DFSI).
3.2.2 Sediment plume modeling was conducted to assess the water quality impact for the different construction phases of the proposed YTB reclamation. Due to the larger reclamation extent for the Full Reclamation option than that of the Minimized Reclamation option, the former is taken as the worst case scenario for the water quality impact assessment. Nevertheless, the construction sequence and methodology will be the same for the two reclamation options and thus mitigation measures proposed at present will be applicable to both options.
3.2.3 According to the provisional construction programme, bulk filling will commence after the seawall construction and thus the plume is effectively confined in YTB. Modeling results show that no major impact is expected in the Victoria Harbour during the construction phase.
The filling rates of Phase 1 and Phase 2 reclamations should be limited to 10,000 m3day-1 and 6,000 m3day-1 respectively.
3.2.5 With the proposed mitigation measures fully implemented, it is anticipated that the size of the sediment plume of the YTB reclamation (Full Reclamation option) will be reduced, minimizing the impact on Victoria Harbour. It is also expected that the SS concentration at the WSRs will satisfy the WSD tolerable limit for SS (20 mgL-1) at the CKLSPS and YTSPS, and the in-house standard of 20mgL-1 for SS at the DFSI at all times.
The South East Kowloon Development.
It was found that the YTB reclamation only contributes to a minor impact on the water quality near YTB. With the implementation of the recommended mitigation measures, the concurrent construction activities in the Victoria Harbour are not expected to cause any unacceptable adverse impact to the Victoria Harbour and the identified water sensitive receivers.
3.2.7 The model results indicate that temporary diversion of the YTB stormwater culvert to the existing water front, south of YTB, would have negligible impact on the water quality in the Victoria Harbour and other sensitive receivers.
3.2.8 Laboratory analysis of marine sediment samples from YTB revealed that the potential release of contaminants during the dredging and surcharging works will not cause any exceedance of the UK Water Quality Standards for Coastal Surface Water, and thus, unacceptable adverse impact is not anticipated.
3.2.9 An EM&A program is recommended to ensure that the YTB reclamation works would not cause unacceptable deterioration of water quality at the neighbouring salt water intakes and in Victoria Harbour.
3.2.10 A major concern of the YTB reclamation is the potential impact on the flow through Victoria Harbour and, in turn, the water quality. Hydrodynamic modelling reveal that the changes in flow discharge rates through Victoria Harbour before and after the YTB reclamation (Full Reclamation option) would be very small and the tidal flow patterns would be similar with minor deviation near YTB. With a reduction in the reclamation area and a more streamlined waterfront for the Minimized Reclamation option, the associated hydrodynamic and water quality impacts are expected to be even smaller than those predicted for the Full Reclamation option. The results indicate that the YTB reclamation is unlikely to have any noticeable effect on the tidal flow regime and hence water quality in Victoria Harbour.
3.2.11 Although the predicted water quality at the existing CKLSPS intake will comply with the WSD target limit for saltwater intakes, a potential site have been proposed for future potential relocation of the CKLSPS to the new waterfront of YTB reclamation (Full Reclamation option). The potential water quality impact of an emergency discharge from the Yau Tong Sewage Pumping Station on the reprovisioned CKLSPS has been assessed. The model results indicate that the depth averaged water quality in terms of BOD5, SS and ammoniacal nitrogen is expected to meet the WSD standards at the reprovisioned CKLSPS; however, the E. coli standards will be exceeded. The sewage plume is shown to attach to the shoreline and is buoyant at the surface with a thickness of less than 0.4m. To avoid abstracting the sewage plume water, it is recommended that the salt water intake should be located below -2.0 mPD. The intake water would then be expected to comply with the WSD water quality standards. The optimal intake configuration should be reviewed and decided at the detailed design stage if relocation of the intake is intended by WSD.
3.2.12 The existing YTB stormwater culvert will eventually be extended to the new waterfront of YTB reclamation under whichever reclamation option. The model results indicate that the polluted stormwater in the new Kwun Tong nullah and the new YTB stormwater culvert is not expected to have any noticeable water quality impact in Victoria Harbour, and at the existing and the potentially reprovisioned CKLSPS and YTSPS.
3.3.1 The drained reclamation method is recommended for YTB reclamation to minimize the volume of dredged sediments and the potential environmental impacts. The estimated dredged volume for the Full Reclamation option is 175,150 m3, among which 82,800 m3 are classified as Category H mud. The estimated dredged volume for the Minimized Reclamation option is 112,170 m3,with 53,270 m3 classified as Category H mud. It is considered that the potential impacts of the dredging works and associated dredged sediment disposal will be minimized provided that the recommended mitigation measures, including the procedures detailed in Works Bureau Technical Circular No. 3/2000 ‘Management of Dredged/Excavated Sediment’, are implemented.
3.3.2 With the recent implementation of the new sediment management framework as detailed in WBTC No. 3/2000, a sediment sampling and testing programme for the Sediment Quality Report will be required at the design stage in accordance with the requirements of WBTC No. 3/2000. To determine the disposal requirements of dredged sediment identified as Category H (> 10 times the LCEL), Tier III biological screening (dilution test) would be required at the design stage. Biological screening would also be required for Category M sediment. Feasible disposal procedures for seriously contaminated sediments have been identified and no insurmountable impacts are anticipated. These special disposal procedures will be examined in detail at the design stage, as necessary, based on the biological screening test results.
3.3.3 Wastes generated by the reclamation works are likely to include general site wastes, workforce wastes, maintenance and chemical wastes, and construction and demolition material. Provided that the identified waste arisings are handled, transported and disposed of using approved methods and that the recommended good site practices are adhered to, adverse environmental impacts are not anticipated.
3.4.1 Organically enriched material is planned to be left in-situ beneath the YTB Full Reclamation or the Minimized Reclamation option. As methane gas could be generated under anaerobic conditions, there is a potential for this gas to be released either during construction or after development of the reclaimed area.
3.4.2 The risk of gas generation becoming a development constraint of the YTB reclamation has been assessed. The predicted methane gas generation potential is not expected to pose a constraint to the development of the proposed Full Reclamation or Minimized Reclamation option.
3.4.3 As sensitive ‘at risk’ rooms have been identified at the proposed development, it is recommended that a precautionary principle be applied. It is recommended that gas monitoring be undertaken in the immediate post-reclamation period (prior to the commencement of construction works on the reclamation) to measure methane concentrations in the fill and to determine actual rates of methane gas emissions. The review of the monitoring results would determine the extent and type of gas protection measures to be incorporated in the building design to prevent the ingress and/or accumulation of any methane gas emissions to potentially dangerous concentrations. Guidelines on criteria for evaluation of the gas monitoring results and gas protection measures requirements have been identified for both ground level and underground structures at the development. As a further precaution, naked flames should not be permitted during construction involving drilling or excavation.
3.4.4 The proposed monitoring guidelines and other precautionary mitigation measures should be examined further at the detailed design stage with regard to the specific design details of individual buildings. With the incorporation of the recommended gas protection measures in the design of the buildings together with the implementation of the recommended precautionary measures, the risk to people and property due to biogas emissions from the YTB Full Reclamation or Minimized Reclamation option, is considered to be low.
3.5.1 A detailed land contamination assessment for the site has been completed. Site investigation works, including soil testing for contamination level, were conducted in accordance with an endorsed Contamination Assessment Plan (CAP). The soil and groundwater analytical results revealed that the marine lots were partly contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons and heavy metals. High level of PCBs and PAH were also found in isolated locations. Remediation methods for treating contaminated soil and groundwater were proposed in the Remediation Action Plan (RAP). The detailed design and operations of the Biopile method for treating the petroleum hydrocarbons contaminant shall be submitted to EPD prior to commencement of the remediation. The developer should implement and complete the required remediation works to the required standard prior to commencement of any development construction works.
3.6.1 The quality of the existing landscape of Yau Tong Bay is generally poor. The access to waterfront is blocked by the shipyards, timberyards and open storage areas, and the bay is occupied by numerous vessels and barges.
3.6.2 The construction activities will have low negative impact to the landscape resource and landscape character. The negative impact would be further reduced if Reclamation Option 1 is adopted.
3.6.3 The mitigation measures proposed will minimize the potential visual and landscape impact, although, the effect is limited.
3.6.4 The extent of visual impact to adjacent lots will depend on the construction programme of these lots. In general, Yau Tong Estate Redevelopment and EHC site Phase 1 and 2 will be completed and occupied by future resident during construction phase of the project, while resident for EHC site (Phase 3) will still not move in.
3.6.5 The construction activities will have moderate negative visual impact to the future resident of Yau Tong Estate Redevelopment, EHC site (Phase 1 and 2), and Cha Kwo Ling Kaolin Mine Site, while the impact to the industrial workers at Ko Fai Road will be low. The visual impact to the existing resident at Sceneway Garden, Lam Tin Estate, Ping Tin Estate, Kwong Tin Estate, Hong Nga Court, Hong Pak Court, Ko Chun Court and Ko Yee Estate at mid level of Chiu Keng Wan Shan are considered low as their view toward the site will be mostly blocked by the housing blocks of Yau Tong Estate Redevelopment and Ko Chiu Road Estate Redevelopment (Phase 3 and 5) at year 2001, and EHC site development at year 2004 to 2006.
3.6.6 During the operational phase, the impact will remain the same as construction phase if the flat piece of reclaimed land is allowed to left idle. The impact would be reduced if construction work for proposed comprehensive development are proceed continuously after completion of reclamation work, although, there will likely be some negative impact due to the construction work.
3.6.7 Based on the above study, the landscape and visual impact are considered acceptable with mitigation measures for both Reclamation Option 1 and Option 2.
3.6.8 If coastal option of Western Coast Road is adopted, Reclamation Option 2 would be carried out and the proposed elevated structure of Western Coast Road would be constructed at the reclaimed land on western side of the project site, it would form a dominant feature along the waterfront of East Kowloon. The visual impact is considered negative. It would be beneficial to the harbour views if the Western Coast Road is built at grade on the reclaimed land directly. If such proposal is adopted, footbridges and / or subways will be provided across the Western Coast Road to improve the pedestrian linkage from Yau Tong and CDA site to the waterfront.
3.6.9 The magnitude of negative impact on both landscape and visual quality due to the proposed reclamation works at operational phase would be reduced if Tunnel Option for the future Western Coast Road is adopted (i.e. Reclamation Option 1). It would also help to minimize the impact to the coastal line of Victoria Harbour as the proposed extent of reclamation works are reduced.
4.1 The existing Yau Tong Bay engulfed by marine lots has now become a pool of stagnant water and a source of nuisance. Without this project, the industrial uses on the existing marine lots such as ship repairing, vehicle repairing, sawmills, industrial building, concrete batching plant and construction material storage may continue their operations for a very long period. No one can estimate when they will be ceased.
4.2 Housing Department has already commenced many large-scale housing projects in the vicinity of the Site. As a matter of fact, the stagnant water in the bay, together with the current industrial operations may cause nuisance to the residents of the housing estates when completed. The harmful pollutants generated by the highly contaminated industry may affect the health of existing and Yau Tong Bay future residents. Additionally, there will be some new schools opposite to Cha Kwo Ling Road of which one is in operation. These schools are vulnerable to noise nuisance generated by the operations on the marine lots.
4.3 It is foreseeable that without the implementation of the project, the environment of Yau Tong Bay will deteriorate continuously; complaints from future nearby residents against the nuisance will pose a problem and pressure for the government.
5.1 The existing Yau Tong Bay is currently characterised by industrial operations such as shipyards, timber yards, sawmills, construction materials storage, industrial building and vehicle repair workshops. The existing environment of YTB is considered poor and is suspected to be polluted by the existing industries. The stagnant water in the bay, together with the current industrial operations may cause nuisance to the future residents of the adjacent large-scale housing redevelopment projects when completed. The harmful pollutants generated by the highly contaminated industry will also affect the health of existing and Yau Tong Bay future residents.
5.2 Additionally, the future and presently operated schools in the vicinity of Yau Tong Bay are vulnerable to noise nuisance generated by the operations on the existing marine lots. It is foreseeable that complaints from future nearby residents against the nuisance will pose a problem and pressure for the government.
5.3 Reclamation of Yau Tong Bay and the subsequent development on the reclaimed land provide an opportunity to remove the existing polluting industrial operations at Yau Tong Bay. It is undoubtedly to the benefits of everyone who lives or studies in Yau Tong for the bay to be reclaimed such that the nuisance caused by the polluting industrial operations could be removed as well.
5.4 The reclamation provides an opportunity for decommissioning the existing shipyards and demolition of building structures. This project not only relieve the pollution problems caused by the existing industries, but also provide land to achieve important community development objectives, such as provisions of schools and open space for continuous seafront promenade.
5.5 The present EIA study for the YTB reclamation indicated that there would be no insurmountable environmental impact arising from the reclamation works in YTB, provided that the recommended mitigation measures for the adverse impacts during the different reclamation phases are implemented. Environmental monitoring and auditing is required to verify the efficacy of the proposed mitigation measures and to ensure that the adverse impacts are minimized and the relevant standards are complied with at all times. | 2019-04-22T08:14:33Z | https://www.epd.gov.hk/eia/register/report/eiareport/eia_0692001/P1-Executive%20Summary/P1execsum.htm |
Imagine there’s a cardboard box in the corner of your house. It’s nothing special and it’s been there for a long time -- so long that you can’t even remember what’s in it.
Let's leave the box there for the moment and let me ask you a question.
How easy is it for you, me, or any human being to be deceived? Have you ever been misled or deceived by someone and felt really hurt they may have misled you?
When we think about our relationships in the Church there’s a high level of trust because we have high expectations of each other, don’t we? I expect I can take you at your word and you expect you can take me at my word. If anyone was to in any way abuse that we’d be very disappointed.
So, how easy is it for us to be deceived?
There are lessons we need to draw from the Days of Unleavened Bread that might help us understand the cardboard box and the matter of being deceived.
I’d like to begin in Exodus 12 which are the instructions Moses, under inspiration and the direct command from God, gave to the nation of Israel as they were about to prepare to leave Egypt.
Exodus 12:14-20 So this day shall be to you a memorial; and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord throughout your generations. You shall keep it as a feast by an everlasting ordinance. 15 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses. For whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel.
If a person ate leavened bread during the Days of Unleavened Bread, the penalty was to be cut off from the nation of Israel – a very serious penalty indeed!
16 On the first day there shall be a holy convocation, and on the seventh day there shall be a holy convocation for you. No manner of work shall be done on them; but that which everyone must eat - that only may be prepared by you. 17 So you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this same day I will have brought your armies out of the land of Egypt. Therefore you shall observe this day throughout your generations as an everlasting ordinance. 18 In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread, until the twenty-first day of the month at evening. 19 For seven days no leaven shall be found in your houses, for whoever eats what is leavened, that same person shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a stranger or a native in the land. 20 You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your dwellings you shall eat unleavened bread.
6 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the Lord. 7 Unleavened bread shall be eaten seven days. And no leavened bread shall be seen among you, nor shall leaven be seen among you in all your quarters.
We take that instruction seriously and diligently rid our homes of leavening before the Days of Unleavened Bread. Leaven is a symbol of sin and the parallel for us is that if we’re not diligent in removing the spiritual leaven we may be cut off from the Kingdom of God.
At the end of these days it’s fine to eat leavening, but the lessons we have learned have to remain. It is so easy for us to think “The days of unleavened bread have finished for this year; we’ll just move on”.
Much like Israel was given the unleavened manna wandering through the wilderness, we too are to eat of the unleavened bread of Jesus Christ. Every day through the wanderings in this spiritual wilderness we have to have a commitment to remove spiritual leavening.
Do you and I recognise the leaven in our lives? We might look back over the past twelve months and be disappointed with ourselves. If we’re honest and humble before God, we realise just how much we haven’t done and just how carnal we still are. The more we are committed to God’s way of life the more we see ourselves. How diligent are we in seeking to remove the very subtle elements of our nature that lead us to sin?
James talks about the lusts that reside in our hearts, which is where sin comes from.
How about the following, do we recognise any of this kind of leaven?
Luke 12:1 In the meantime, when an innumerable multitude of people had gathered together, so that they trampled one another, Christ began to say to His disciples first of all, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy”.
Christ describes the hypocrisy of the Scribes and the Pharisees as leaven.
He’s not talking about those who are followers of Christ, who have committed their life in a covenant relationship, through baptism to God, and had their sins forgiven. They’re now in a special relationship with God through His Spirit dwelling within them. They’re called saints and the elect and are precious to God. When they sin and fall short they go before God and seek repentance.
That’s a whole different mindset to what He’s talking about here.
However, in using this example, there’s a danger I want to bring to our attention. The hypocrites, in the context of what Christ is referring to here, didn’t set out to be hypocrites. Typically hypocrites don’t recognise their hypocrisy and, as a result, are deceived.
They have a box (or many boxes) in the corner of their house that should have been removed years ago. They put a nice cloth over it, and become so comfortable with it they rest their feet on it. It has become part of who they are. It defines them.
The Scribes and Pharisees believed they were righteous. It wasn’t a charade. They actually thought they were the standard.
Luke 18:9 Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others.
Could this ever become us? Is there anybody within the body of Christ whom you or I have despised? Maybe that’s a strong word to use: disliked, not wanted to be in the same room as, may be better.
The Scribes and the Pharisees believed they had a special calling -- that they were the standard by which others should be measured.
How easy could it be for us to start thinking the same thing, to come to a similar mindset? And this mindset, as Christ clearly shows in this parable, results in other attitudes and actions that compound the leaven of hypocrisy. The result is harsh judgement, condemnation and despising others. Have you ever done that? I have.
Hypocrites don’t believe they’re hypocrites. We look back at the times when we may have harshly treated somebody, harshly judged somebody and can feel justified in what we do We may call it righteous indignation.
You may have heard me say previously that as far as the human experience is concerned I don’t believe there is any such thing as “righteous indignation”. I don’t believe any indignation we have is righteously motivated, because we are still human, and have other attitudes and mindsets that drive why we do what we do. These attitudes tend to be more carnal than godly.
You know, hypocrites don’t believe they’re hypocrites. They staunchly defend their righteousness, which is what the Scribes and Pharisees did. Their cardboard box has become a part of the furniture and is no longer recognisable for what it is.
The Pharisee and the tax collector both had a relationship with God. They both were involved in going to the temple.
11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men - extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector.
Have you ever looked around the Church and thought, I’m glad I am not like so and so. They’ve been in the Church all these years and they still haven’t got it together.
What’s the lesson? Simply put, before God it’s better to be like the tax collector. It’s time to acknowledge the box, or the boxes. It’s pretty safe to say we all have at least one box in the house, that doesn’t belong.
Additionally the leaders of the Jews, the Scribes and the Pharisees, believed they had the authority to supersede Scripture. They imposed the traditions of the elders in the place of Scripture. That’s why Jesus not only warned the apostles about the leaven of hypocrisy, but also the doctrine of the Scribes and Pharisees, because if you think about it, one follows the other.
Matthew 16:5-12 Now when His disciples had come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread. 6 Then Jesus said to them, “Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.” 7 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “It is because we have taken no bread.” 8 But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, “O you of little faith, why do you reason among yourselves because you have brought no bread? 9 Do you not yet understand, or remember the five loaves of the five thousand and how many baskets you took up? 10 Nor the seven loaves of the four thousand and how many large baskets you took up? 11 How is it you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread but to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees? 12 Then they understood that He did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
I believe we understand that at least through the inter-testamental period prior till the coming of Christ, the people of Judah did not want to go back into captivity and slavery again, and so they tried to make sure the law would never be broken. Through the process of time, and certainly by the time Christ came, they had established the traditions and oral teachings of the elders, as more important, and possibly more valid than the law of God and, as such, made the law of God irrelevant.
I think there are parallels in our time.
Let’s go to Matthew 23. This is a chapter where Christ really strongly chastises and corrects the Scribes and the Pharisees.
Matthew 23:13 But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.
Who is the door to the Kingdom of Heaven? It’s Jesus Christ. He said so Himself. What the Scribes and the Pharisees, the experts in the law were doing, caused by the leaven of hypocrisy and false doctrine, was to prevent others from entering the kingdom as well as themselves.
Why? Because they denied Christ. They denied the door. He was standing before them. He was the door, and they rejected Him.
John 8:41-47 You do the deeds of your father.” Then they said to Him, “We were not born of fornication; we have one Father - God.” 42 Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me. 43 Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word. 44 You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. 45 But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me. 46 Which of you convicts me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? 47 He who is of God hears God’s words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God.
They had bought into Satan’s lie. The lie hasn’t changed since the time Satan influenced Adam and Eve. The lie that you will not die...that God is withholding something from you. God is not giving you all the information. He is misrepresenting things, or He’s even lying to you.
For the scribes and the Pharisees, their Saviour, who had come from God, was standing before them and they couldn’t recognise Him. They were diligent and earnest yet they were deceived and didn’t know it. They truly were, as Christ says here, of their father the devil. He’s the arch deceiver.
Let’s go back to Matthew 24.
I asked at the beginning is it possible for you or me to be deceived? Notice Christ’s warning here in the Sermon on the Mount.
Matthew 24:3-5 Now as he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately saying, Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of this age. 4 And Jesus answered and said to them: Take heed that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name saying I am the Christ and will deceive many”.
Christ’s not talking about false religion. There are all sorts of permutations of preaching a false Christ and some religions don’t preach Christ at all. No, Jesus is directing His sermon to His disciples and to us. He says there will be those who come among you and preach a false Christ seeking to take a following after them. He says Don’t YOU be deceived by that.
Matthew 24:9-12 Then they will deliver YOU up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. 10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.
Who’s going to be offended? The Bible is speaking of Agape - godly love here. The Godly love of many will grow cold. You and I might think to one degree or another that has already happened, and maybe to a certain degree it has. It happened right down through the ages and will yet happen again. The only way a person can have can have Godly love is if he has God’s Holy Spirit.
The warning is that we not be deceived. How easy is it for you and I to be deceived by those who come preaching a false Christ? But he who endures to the end shall be saved; he who stands fast; he who is diligent in spiritual de-leavening and recognises the boxes he has allowed to stack up.
I mentioned to someone in Tasmania last week, How is the box coming? and he replied Which one? – which is a very honest thing to say. I think for most of us have multiple issues we know are leaven, and we’ve not been anywhere near as diligent as we need to be to get rid of them.
He who endures, he who is standing at the end, he who is characterised by an unleavened life-- not characterised by hypocrisy, but characterised by an unleavened life, will be saved.
Matthew 24:23-24 Then if anyone says to you, Look, here is the Christ or There! Do not believe it. 24 For false Christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.
I don’t believe this is talking about the deception which the false prophet and the beast are going to foist upon the world mentioned in the Book of Revelation. The language there is very specific, and talks about deceiving the world.
We need to be very careful about the language we use, and how we present what we’re doing. We know the account of Paul and Peter and others talks about false apostles and false preachers leading people away.
What can happen if we don’t get the leaven out? Christ is referring to false teachers who preach a false Christ - that is, false doctrine. He is referring to members who will betray members and to losing your first love. These are all effects of spiritual leaven and can happen when you begin to consider yourself more righteous than others. Or worse, more righteous than God. They have to improve the law; they have to add things to the law, which in some cases is nothing more than tradition. That actually happens today.
I said before that the example of Jesus Christ is what we go back to -- how He related to others, what He taught us to do. That’s the standard.
The most insidious form of deception is self-deception, thinking ourselves to be righteous. Are we capable of being deceived in this way? We need to consider how we might have allowed this particular piece of furniture to take up residence and how to get rid of it.
Proverbs 6:16-19 These six things the Lord hates, yes, seven are an abomination to Him: 17 A proud look, A lying tongue, Hands that shed innocent blood, 18 A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil, 19 A false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren.
There’s a regression here that begins with pride – I use the word “regression” deliberately. It begins with pride which then leads to the subsequent attitudes or actions. Pride will mask the other sins and we begin to rationalise and justify them. The scribes and Pharisees in the time of Christ did all these things. They were literally of their father the devil.
He rose against the throne of God. We too can allow pride to be the catalyst for the leaven of hypocrisy to be established so that before we know it, it’s a part of the furniture, and we don’t see it.
Lucifer’s heart was lifted up within him. Pride drove him to do what he did. He lied. When you think about angels who came in and out before the throne of God for eons, Lucifer was able to deceive them, to the point that a third followed him. He lied to the angels to influence them.
He led a violent attack on God’s throne and, in that sense, sought to shed innocent blood. He’s devised wicked plans to undermine the plan of God ever since. That’s why he was in the Garden of Eden. That’s why he came to try to tempt Christ. Lucifer, or Satan as he became, was always was quick to do evil.
Hypocrisy always begins with pride. We may preach the standard of Christ and the law of God, but if we’re not careful we may not be actually living it. We think we’re sincere and genuine, but we’re deceived, and this is so insidious and subtle. That’s why pride is so dangerous - we get to the point where we just don’t see it in ourselves and the leaven becomes a part of the furniture.
30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by which you were sealed for the day of redemption.
That Holy Spirit, that guarantee of salvation granted to us, by God himself, seals us. God is faithful. He will redeem us into his family at Christ’s return, if we don’t grieve the Holy Spirit.
31 Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.
This is just leaven by another name, and by extension it’s hypocrisy to have these attitudes because it’s contrary to the mind of Christ. It has to be cast out.
I’ve been better as a result of things that have happened to me. I could give you names, places and sometimes dates. But the very fact I remember it is a problem, because the only reason I do is because of the bitterness that developed.
What about you? Do you remember dates, places, and names, exactly what was said? What about evil speaking and malice? It’s leaven. Are we still trying to justify why we have a cardboard box in the corner of our house that shouldn’t be there?
Two weeks ago we looked at that word “commendable” in the New King James. The Greek word translated commendable there is translated at least 122 times in the New Testament as ‘grace’.
If we suffer wrongfully it’s an act of grace similar to, but by no means of the same enormity as, the act of grace Jesus Christ performed for us.
“If because of conscience towards God” means because of mindfulness towards God. It’s because of our awareness of the enormity God’s love for us -- that He sent His son to die for our sins -- that we are willing to follow His example.
1 Peter 2:20 For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God.
We struggle with that. Even when we are caught doing something we shouldn’t be doing we still try to justify ourselves as to why it’s okay.
1 Peter 2:21-24 For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: 22 Who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth.
Which one of us can say that?
23 who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously, 24 who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness – by whose stripes you were healed.
The sins of bitterness, resentment, anger, loud quarrelling -- whatever we have committed -- Christ bore the penalty for those sins in His body, on the tree. Then we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness.
Do we understand this mindset? This is the standard. There’s no way you or I can justify that cardboard box before God or Christ. It’s leaven that has to be put out.
The Days of Unleavened Bread should remind us every year how important it is to deleaven our lives. For to this we were called. That was the covenant agreement we made with God through and by Jesus Christ at our baptism.
Let’s go to Matthew 5:3-10 Here is the antidote, if I can use that term, to Proverbs 16 and it always begin with humility.
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called the sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
These attitudes are the antidote to hypocrisy and self-deception. It always begins with humility; someone with a broken and contrite spirit before God. There’s only one place we get that, and that’s the core conviction of Jesus Christ and Him crucified. We need to understand His mind and that He willingly did this for us.
Therefore, the place to start is where the tax collector was. You and I are all tax collectors before God. There’s not one of us here today who’s any different than anybody else. This is a level playing field. Not one of us has a right to stand up and say “I am better than so and so”. The tax collector wasn’t concerned about the Pharisee, or what the Pharisee said, because he knew the Pharisee wasn’t the standard.
I want you to imagine eternity. Start by going backwards from here.
Think about the time of Christ and what it was like for Christ on earth – what He experienced and the culture of the day.
Now go back further to the time of Israel coming out of Egypt - the incredible miracles and the power of God being revealed.
When we go even further back we come to the time of Noah when the thoughts and intents of man’s heart were only evil continually and God destroyed all of humanity except for Noah and his family.
Then think about Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. What was it like before Satan entered? What was it like to walk with God in the Garden of Eden?
Now let’s go back to John 1:1. Can you imagine what it was like when there was only God, the Father, and the Word, before there was a creation, before anything? We can’t really wrap our minds around the concept of eternity, because we just don’t understand it. It doesn’t matter how far we go back in time, there is God. He’s always there.
Now I want you to cast your mind forward.
Let’s contemplate the return of Jesus Christ. We have all sorts of understandings, at least in general terms, of what has to happen before Jesus Christ returns. Imagine Him returning in great power and glory to establish His kingdom and authority on this earth.
Then think about the Millennium and the prophecies and the insights we have as to what it will be like. An incredible change will take place on this earth. God’s law will come from Jerusalem and there will be a healing of the nations.
Go further forward and we come to the Great White Throne Judgment. Think about billions of people being resurrected, standing before Christ and being offered the life-giving waters of His Holy Spirit to open their minds. They will receive the precious gift of salvation.
New Jerusalem will then descend to earth and God, the Father, will dwell with men.
We know there’s even a glorious future beyond that and there’s always God.
Now think about your life. You have a definite beginning and, unless Christ returns soon, you’ll have a definite end of your physical life. Threescore and ten is the biblical time-frame given for our lives. Compared to eternity, it’s so insignificant. Compared to God’s glory, to His majesty and power it’s nothing. Our life is not even a blimp on the radar of eternity.
Compared to Jesus Christ and Him crucified we’re nothing. Is that how we see ourselves?
I have been crucified with Christ - the old man has been put to death.
Paul says in Colossians 3:3: For you died: The old man is dead.
You and I have been crucified with Christ.
This is the fulfilment of the Wave Sheaf Offering. It symbolises the resurrected Christ ascending to Heaven during the days of Unleavened Bread and presenting Himself as a perfect sacrifice before the Father on our behalf, so that we might have reconciliation and the remission of sins.
That resurrected Christ, the true Bread from Heaven of John 6, now lives His life in us. But I’m still a human being. l have limitations. I may not be characterised by hypocrisy. I hope I’m not, but I still live in the flesh subject to various lusts, attitudes and mindsets that don’t belong.
I’m living now “by the faith of the Son of God”, as that verse could more correctly be rendered. It’s not our faith in God, it’s the faithfulness of Christ living in us. Accepting Jesus as our Saviour should convict us to our core of who we all are. We’re all tax collectors.
Not only is it by Jesus that our sins are forgiven, but it’s only by Jesus Christ living in us that the leaven can be recognised and sin put out. Accepting Jesus as our Saviour convicts us that He’s the standard. But if the box remains, then our pride will deceive us into thinking that we’ve attained that standard already.
It’s time to acknowledge the box in the corner. And that requires humility. Humility is only genuine, sincere, and authentic when we contrast ourselves with God. Who we are in comparison to others is irrelevant. And yet we still compare ourselves among ourselves, making ourselves feel better about who we are: Because I didn’t do what that person did, I am not as bad as that person. Yes, we’re very quick to acknowledge our own sinfulness, but I am not as bad as so-and-so, who did thus and such to me. I never did that.
So we continue to slander, to ridicule, put down, demean, be filled with bitterness and anger; and we get more and more comfortable with the piece of furniture that’s wholly incompatible with the rest of the decor. It’s time to acknowledge the box in the corner. What is it we’ve let sit there year after year, after year? We’re so used to it being there we’re not even aware of its presence, and yet it imposes itself on us. It’s so much a part of us that we don’t recognise it any more.
It’s time to lift the cloth off and take a very close look at it, because somewhere, you will find hypocrisy. It might manifest itself as bitterness, resentment, gossip, ridicule, loud quarrelling, hatred, dissentions, false doctrine, man-made traditions, or whatever. There are many ways of spelling hypocrisy. However yours or mine is spelt, it is time to toss the box out. | 2019-04-20T01:14:01Z | https://www.ucg.org.au/learn/listen/sermons/the-leaven-of-hypocrisy |
Carrie Melissa Jones is the COO and founding partner of community industry resource CMX. Formerly the director of content, she’s spent the last year and a half focusing on interviewing the world’s top community builders both known and unknown as well as creating content for CMX’s workshops, ebooks, training programs and research.
In her new role, she is responsible for setting CMX on a path to a long-term operational success. Previously, Carrie consulted for dozens of companies all over the world like Coursera, Socratic, Rehabs.com, pi.co by Om Malik, The 50/50 Pledge and ran a community at Scribd, a reading app with over 80 million users. She got her starting community at Chegg where she built and engaged a community of 20,000 academic experts.
Prior to community, Carrie worked in publishing for several years. She holds a degree in english literature and communications from UCLA. She lives in Seattle, Washington, with her dog, Bruce Wayne.
00:16 Patrick O’Keefe: Hello, and thank you for joining me for Community Signal. On this episode, we’re talking with Carrie Melissa Jones. Carrie is the COO and founding partner of community industry resource CMX. Formerly the director of content, she’s spent the last year and a half focusing on interviewing the world’s top community builders both known and unknown as well as creating content for CMX’s workshops, ebooks, training programs and research.
In her new role, she is responsible for setting CMX on a path to a long-term operational success. Previously, Carrie consulted for dozens of companies all over the world like Coursera, Socratic, Rehabs.com, pi.co by Om Malik, The 50/50 Pledge and ran a community at Scribd, a reading app with over 80 million users. She got her starting community at Chegg where she built and engaged a community of 20,000 academic experts. Prior to community, Carrie worked in publishing for several years. She holds a degree in english literature and communications from UCLA. She lives in Seattle, Washington, with her dog, Bruce Wayne.
Carrie, welcome to the program.
01:12 Carrie Melissa Jones: Hey, it’s great to be here.
01:15 Patrick O’Keefe: It’s great to have you and thank you for supporting what we’ve been doing so far.
01:18 Carrie Melissa Jones: Absolutely. My pleasure.
01:20 Patrick O’Keefe: I really appreciate it. And on that note, congratulations on your recent promotion to COO of CMX.
01:25 Carrie Melissa Jones: Thank you. It’s a big step up.
01:27 Patrick O’Keefe: It’s a lot of three letter acronyms, not acronyms but three letters.
01:31 Carrie Melissa Jones: Absolutely, the more the merrier.
01:33 Patrick O’Keefe: So one thing I enjoy doing is giving pep talks to community professionals often in private. I don’t want people to sell themselves short, I don’t want people to fall into that imposter syndrome trap. I find that some people in our space write articles that essentially tell community professionals to doubt themselves and I try to be the counter balance. I try to encourage them to believe in themselves as corny as that must sound. I’ve written about this quite a bit and it seems like over the years, you and I have really connected around that topic and those pieces.
02:47 Carrie Melissa Jones: So other community professionals know this like, you’re absolutely right ’cause we hear that all the time, you should be doing this, you should be doing that, no matter which your profession you’re in, I think you hear those kinds of things a lot.
02:56 Patrick O’Keefe: That is really a funny story. And yes, there’s this pressure to kind of market. That it affects all businesses, but businesses that base themselves in education, sharing knowledge growing someone professionally. There’s this pressure to market themselves in a way that sounds really awesome. I think it’s tough to kind of balance that out, to not fall into whatever that person’s issue was, with the subscribe box, but also to communicate the value of your programs.
03:21 Carrie Melissa Jones: Right and I think, especially, if you look at how a lot of startup content is written, you see a lot of these stories, “This is how we did it, you should do it too. We’ve got 40,000 Twitter followers by doing this thing.” It doesn’t work for everybody and that’s often inauthentic and unsustainable.
03:37 Patrick O’Keefe: The reason I brought up kind of the idea of not selling yourself short is because credit is going to be a big theme on this episode of Community Signal. In December, you wrote an article about giving away credit, and how it could impact the advancement of your career, about the balance between praising the community and also promoting your own work, how do we find that balance?
04:14 Carrie Melissa Jones: Yeah. I think it’s this constant give and take between the community professional and the work that we do day in and day out. It’s like a lot of times thankless work and tiring work, emotionally exhausting work, and then the work that our community members do, at what point do we stop being humble and start taking a little bit of credit for the hours and hours that we spend doing this work?
04:38 Patrick O’Keefe: Yeah, and it’s hard because you cited a piece I’ve wrote in there about how my job is to shift praise away from me and I do believe that. I believe that, I think that core to a lot of community building is taking the spotlight that, if you wanna put it that way, that is sometime cast on the community manager or the community professional and directing that wherever you can, but there also is a time and a place to represent the value that you bring to the business. And I think where I draw the line, where I kinda see a reasonable place to draw it is that in the community, you praise the community.
05:08 Patrick O’Keefe: But, when you’re talking about your career, you’re talking with your bosses, the people who are responsible for your raises, your job or interviewing for a job with other people. It’s important to have the facts of the things you’ve accomplished. This community you started, what did it do? Or how did it grow the business? How much more did community members spend? Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera, so it’s important to have that information not just to demonstrate the ROI of community, but also to demonstrate the work that you do as a professional because those numbers you can take wherever you go.
05:44 Patrick O’Keefe: We’re not that old.
05:46 Patrick O’Keefe: Don’t make it sound that old, you’re younger than me I think, and I’m not that old.
05:49 Carrie Melissa Jones: But I mean people who have been working maybe out of the, in the workforce for maybe one to two years even who are just now getting their start in entry level community positions and so happy to have their passion in this industry, but I think there’s just… For anyone new to any profession, it can be really hard to sell your contribution, there’s that imposter syndrome feeling. And I think, without getting too political about it, or I like to shake things up [chuckle], like why not stir the pot?
07:13 Patrick O’Keefe: Yeah, I think that’s a great point and it’s… I don’t know, how do we… So someone who’s new when they’re feeling that way, “What do I take credit for? What do I don’t” I don’t know… For me I would say find a strong mentor, or find people and align yourself with people who have done what you wanna do, and find out how they got there or ask them for their input on it if you’re feeling a certain way; maybe the feelings are justified, perhaps they’re not, but find that person who’s on that path. For me personally, and obviously I’m a man, but my feeling on the type of situation where your boss doesn’t value you is to leave, if you can, right? To find an opportunity where you are valued. And like I said, I talk to community professionals a lot just like you do, and I run into these people who do doubt themselves, and sometimes for good reasons. I doubt myself everyday. Honestly, I doubt myself I think in the morning the most, when I get up. Which is a weird feeling, because it’s like you get up, you’re ready to tackle the day, and that’s when I doubt myself. I usually go to bed confident, wake up feeling like I’m garbage.
08:10 Carrie Melissa Jones: I’m the exact opposite. That’s really interesting.
08:13 Patrick O’Keefe: Well, we’ll spend some time together. You can visit me in the morning, I’ll visit you at night and we can just kind of counter-balance. Because it’s a tough thing. And it’s easy to say, especially, I try to temper everything I say with the understanding that some people have kids, and they have commitments and they can’t just leave a job. I’m single, I don’t have any dependents, I can be flexible in this area where I can say, “You know what? No,” or “You know what? I’m gonna leave.” But I think that’s the ideal, is to always align yourself with people who do support you and do credit you. And I think… I wanna believe that most of the great leaders, anyone I would think to be a great leader in this world, is doing that.
08:47 Carrie Melissa Jones: I absolutely believe that having strong mentors, or even peers, but it’s better to have a good spread of people from all different backgrounds and experience levels, so having someone who’s a little bit more experienced, is key in understanding this and that’s why it’s really, really important to be part of a community for community professionals if you have the time to do so. Yeah, I started doing these office-hour calls with our CMX members, the vast majority of which are women, and I’m seeing this being echoed across-the-board. I feel like I’m not doing enough. I feel like I don’t know how to start… Where do I begin reporting? What do I even report on? And that’s a whole other issue. I could talk about business value community and community measurements and KPIs all day, but there’s definitely this sense of where do I begin, and I think just talking to someone else whose been in your shoes, often times you’ll get a little bit unstuck, and it really is just about, as with anything, you just start somewhere.
10:15 Carrie Melissa Jones: Yeah. No, it’s really hard. It’s really, really hard. I often will actually catch myself thinking I’m not doing enough, and then I’ll feel bad that I thought that I wasn’t doing enough, and so I go down this cycle. You just have to say, “It’s okay that I feel like I’m not doing enough,” but you do have to step back. ‘Cause I’ve been working from home now, or quirky spaces, coffee shops in Seattle for about a year, almost a year and a half, it can be really hard to know when enough is enough, and again, it helps to have a community of people around you who tell you to stop or who can be good examples of what is okay. But even when I was working full-time I would still often feel that way. I was commuting four hours a day and still felt like I wasn’t… If I was on the train and not working on my commute that I wasn’t being an effective employee.
11:04 Carrie Melissa Jones: So yeah, I’m pretty intense when it comes to my work because I care about it so much, I guess.
11:11 Patrick O’Keefe: Heather Sarsons is a PhD student in economics and a doctoral fellow in the Harvard Kennedy School’s Multidisciplinary Program on Inequality and Social Policy. In December, she released a working paper analyzing the academic publishing records over the last 40 years for young economists who were then recruited by major universities. Sarsons was looking to see what, if any impact this had on those economists being offered tenure at the university. She found that when a paper was authored only by one person, the likelihood of being offered tenure was similar between men and women; a 9% boost for women, an 8% boost for men, but when the research was co-authored there was a disparity; male co-authors were 8% more likely to be offered tenure, where women only saw a 2% gain. When collaborating with other women, a female co-author received a 9% boost, whereas collaborating with a man recruited in… no impact.
12:01 Patrick O’Keefe: Conversely a man collaborating with other men saw a 7% boost, and a 6% boost when co-authoring a paper with a woman. Sarsons also studied the data tied to sociology papers and did not find this sort of disparity, this could be due to the fact with sociology papers authors tend to be listed in order of the size of their contribution, rather than in alphabetic order, as is the case with economics papers or because there are more women in sociology as economics professor Justin Wolfers wrote on The New York Times’ The Upshot blog. This definitively seems like the type of thing that varies by space and obviously leader but how can we make sure women are receiving credit for their contributions within our communities.
12:41 Carrie Melissa Jones: Yeah, when I read this it kinda confirms everything that I’ve ever experienced in my career, especially in… even in community but before that as well this idea that when women work with other women we are given equal credit in our communities but when we work with men, it’s not that the men steal credit, it’s just that there is an unconscious bias that often happens from people that see the work of women working with other men, and they just might discount it, like you said, it does vary by industry, and I’m hoping that’s maybe not so true in communities and I think actually that in communities and in community when you’re seeing movements happening, I mentioned the Black Lives Matter movement, women are working with other women to really buoy each other up and really lift each other up and give each other credit.
13:29 Carrie Melissa Jones: I think that’s so, so important in a female dominated industry like community that women, when you get up to the top as you are raising through the ranks, bring other people up with you who maybe don’t have the same privilege that you might have experienced or that others above you might have experienced. I think there’s a lot to be said for being a mentor yourself throughout your career, no matter which stage of your career that you are in. I think that communities give us the space to really identify those up and comers too, that were harder to identify, these silent organizations or in just times when it wasn’t as easy to discover people as it is now with the internet being the way that it is.
14:06 Patrick O’Keefe: If someone is managing a community, and let’s say they are a man, so they see this and they say, “Yes, this is bad, I don’t want that.” What are some things that they should look for or be wary of, not just regarding themselves but also within the community itself, and managing the community and how they interact with people, how they spotlight people. What are some things that they can do to kind of address this disparity?
14:30 Carrie Melissa Jones: That’s a really good question. And actually you are not the first man in community to ask me this question. And I think that’s an amazing sign because we need male and female allies.
14:39 Patrick O’Keefe: Look, I’m not asking for me. I’m great, I’ve got this. You don’t have to worry about me. I’m just kidding, go ahead, sorry.
14:45 Carrie Melissa Jones: I think what’s actually dangerous is why it’s so important to ask questions and to invite conversation around this, and to not be afraid of talking about it, is because unconscious bias is a real thing, and that’s what this paper is really addressing, is that there is unconscious bias around us at every turn, we can’t help it. It’s just the way that culture has risen us up in different ways and the way that we are socialized. So yeah, I would say male or female, regardless of how you identify gender-wise, I live in Seattle so we are very gender conscious here, so I’m very careful about the terms I use. Regardless of who you are as a leader of the community, it’s important to just check your bias, check your privilege at every turn, I think that’s important for everyone to do at all times actually, it’s just a good way to live.
15:30 Carrie Melissa Jones: And obviously there’s a lot to be said for gut reactions and things like that but sometimes your gut is going to lead you down the wrong path of that unconscious bias in saying, “oh, men are more likely to… ” If you look at studies of kids in school, men are more likely to raise their hands and answer questions and there could be women who are contributing in very valuable ways that maybe you are not seeing, this also happens on teams of developers, they found that a lot of female developers end up doing the, “coding housework,” they call it, which I’m not crazy about. It’s being called that because it’s not housework it’s incredibly valuable contribution that they are doing about like cleaning code and making sure things are in order.
16:49 Patrick O’Keefe: Meaningful way.
16:50 Carrie Melissa Jones: Yeah.
16:51 Patrick O’Keefe: Yeah, and so it sounds like one thing to do is to be sure to always look past the loudest people. The people who are making the most noise, you can extrapolate that however you want, the people with the most posts. The people with the most whatever. [chuckle] And it’s worth it to spend time to think about the diversity of contributors within your community in all areas, whether that be contributing content, whether that be welcoming people, whether that be… Whatever. I’m doing a very community centric example, but the point is communities have all these components; small and large, doing all these things that make the larger thing work. And it goes beyond the manager or the person responsible, because it’s all these people for the most part usually that are just contributors, just people who are in the community, who are lifting each other up. It’s important to go and really look for the people who are maybe not as loud, maybe not as recognized by their people. Maybe they didn’t win the award this year, in the community awards, maybe they didn’t get the most thank you points, right. The most like button hits or whatever, but to make sure you are making that effort, I think that seems like a small thing, I don’t know if it’s small though, but it seems like something that could be done to recognize people who maybe aren’t as likely to raise their hand as you put it.
18:17 Carrie Melissa Jones: Yeah, I don’t know how I feel about that. The women weren’t nominating themselves for promotions. It’s an internal community this company, but when a female manager wrote personal e-mails to the female employees saying “I think you should nominate yourself.” Then the women stepped up at the same rate than the men did to nominate themselves. “You know what I am doing that work, I should take credit for it.” You need to be sort of like the shepherd in that situation saying like “Hey I think you actually have some really valuable insight here, you should contribute to this conversation.” And do that to people who’s voices are a little quieter in the community. It’s really important that they don’t get drowned out and feel unseen and unheard.
18:57 Patrick O’Keefe: You know, that’s a really good point and, applies to so many things. It reminds me of the fact just in communities, I never want the people who tell me they want to join the team.
19:06 Carrie Melissa Jones: Yeah.
19:06 Patrick O’Keefe: The people who volunteer without anybody asking, I always think “well I don’t know.” But most of the people that we invite on to join us are people who would not put themselves forward, would not bother. And I think, if you really wanna build a great anything, a great team, a great speaking line up, whatever. It kinda behooves you not to just limit yourself to here’s a form, enter your name, press submit. If you truly wanna build great teams and build great collections of people. You really have to go out and identify people and seek them out yourself and reach out to them yourself. Because if you’re really only going on the people who come to you, your limiting yourself far too much to the point where you are not fielding the greatest team possible.
19:48 Carrie Melissa Jones: That’s completely true. You have to actually do the work, I’m sorry.
20:25 Carrie Melissa Jones: And so, I think a lot of tactics that people have taken, saying like “well, women should step up, they should do what men do, which is, go out and apply for all these speaking opportunities or apply for opportunities, like promotions and new jobs.” But the truth is that a lot of women, they are not socially encouraged to do that most of their lives. So you have to actually pull them out, and it’s important to do that for any kind of quieter voice in your community.
20:50 Patrick O’Keefe: It’s really interesting to me how online communities factor into these discussions, because most of them a large portion of them, are anonymous or pseudonymous communities where people really choose what they want to disclose. They can even make it up even if we encourage honesty. We don’t know what their gender is unless they self identify, even if we might know or guess based on their username, that can obviously be wrong. They are just a username on a screen unless they choose to share more. This covers not only gender but race, age, geographic location, sexual orientation, their politics, their religion, what have you. A lot of the ways that we define and divide people in society, we just can’t do that because we don’t have that information. What has often happened in my communities is that people are judged based on their posts alone. The ways that people are recognized whether that be a simple appreciation from a fellow member or a more formalized community program or being invited to join a volunteer staff. It’s really all based on their contributions and I know I’ve certainly invited people to join our staff without knowing their name let alone their gender. So the world of community is kind of, I don’t know it’s just kinda interesting to me to think about that.
22:00 Carrie Melissa Jones: Yeah, definitely, because you can be whoever you wanna be behind a screen.
22:05 Patrick O’Keefe: Yeah, good and bad.
22:06 Carrie Melissa Jones: Yeah, absolutely, I think about that a lot. If you look at Tumblr as well, you don’t know who people are. That’s a huge community, of people there who just connect over different topics and you don’t know what gender they are or what race they are. It’s really the content that matters so all that kinda fades to the background in those situations.
22:27 Patrick O’Keefe: When we talk about commitment curves, climbing the ladder and building deeper connections between the community and it’s members. It’s so important in my mind to recognize that people leave for good or at least perfectly normal reasons. It’s almost like understanding that friends can grow apart or that death is a part of life. If fighting it is, is a losing battle at times and taking it as a failing isn’t healthy. You wrote an article, What Do Your Community Members Dream of Becoming?, where you talked about celebrating churn.
22:54 Carrie Melissa Jones: Yeah, I think that really in the communities that we’re building we should be thinking about what do people actually want from their lives? As a community builder it can be your job to help people realize their dreams, and I know that sounds really cheesy. [chuckle] That’s how I am able to sleep so well at night because, I know that the work that I do is actually getting people to step up and move forward towards something that they really believe in and dream about. So, yeah. I think it’s really important that we not try to hold on to all of our community members. The example that I talked about in that article was actually Alex Hillman, he has a podcast himself called Coworking Weekly. Which is I think is ironically not a weekly podcast. [chuckle] But he was talking about how members graduate from his co-working space and how they actually have parties and they celebrate turnover basically. And it was the same thing too at Chegg, I worked with a lot of academic experts. A lot of them were kind of doing the work freelance while they figured out, I have a degree in, one of the guys had a degree in, a PhD in physics or something, and he actually had lunch with him one day and he talked to me about how Back To The Future wasn’t that unrealistic scientifically.
24:09 Patrick O’Keefe: I like the optimism.
24:10 Carrie Melissa Jones: Yeah, I know. It’s 2016, we’re one year past the 2015 mark in that movie.
24:16 Patrick O’Keefe: Yeah, and we got hover boards.
24:18 Carrie Melissa Jones: We did.
24:18 Patrick O’Keefe: Thank goodness. They’re more harmful to us than anyone else.
24:23 Carrie Melissa Jones: Right, right. [chuckle] Yeah, so we would celebrate though when they would get full-time jobs. We would obviously lose them in the community, they were too busy to come back and help students anymore, but the truth is they were a lot happier. They would be able to be surrounded in person by people who cared about what they cared about, and they were able to take the next step in their careers, really. So I think it’s always important as a community leader to be thinking about, “What’s the next step after my community? Where do people go after this?” So it kind of varies based on what you’re building your community around. It could be an education community, and people are physically graduating out of the education system going into the working world or contributing to the world in other ways.
25:03 Carrie Melissa Jones: Or if you’re building, I think I also used the example in that post of somebody using an app like Depop, which I actually don’t know is around anymore, I could be wrong, but using an app like selling their clothes on an app or something like that. What is that person actually dreaming of becoming? Maybe they want to become Instagram models. I won’t judge, you do you. Or maybe they want to become the founder of ModCloth and open their own online store, something like that. So it’s really important to think about at all turns, like, “How can I help my community members become better versions of themselves?” I think that’s a great way to just look at your job in general. That’s the ultimate top of the commitment curve there. They graduate from being a leader in your community to being just a leader out in the world, and they’ll always be ambassadors for what you did for them. If you want to look at the value of that, they will be advocates til the very end.
25:55 Patrick O’Keefe: That’s a fun way to look at it, that the top of the commitment curve is leaving. I love that, I think this is really a smart way to look at it because one thing I would always get frustrated by when I read articles about growing your membership and getting people to do more, is it’s almost like there’s no exit that’s good. It’s like, “You need to grab and hold on to people as long as we possibly can.” My goal was never to have a community that monopolized anybody’s personal time.
26:20 Carrie Melissa Jones: Yeah.
26:21 Patrick O’Keefe: I want people to have healthy lives, and so I think that sounds, like you said, corny or whatever and maybe doesn’t sound like the most serious, serious business type thing to say, but I think it’s really important to understand it, that your community exists on a path within life that people choose to get to something else.
26:39 Carrie Melissa Jones: Mm-hmm.
26:40 Patrick O’Keefe: And so yeah, my favorite comparison is SNL and how the cast of SNL is almost like a community, and they’re there for a little while and some of them become major celebrities, and they become huge movie stars. Some don’t, some go back to comedy clubs, some go back and do something else outside of the business. But it’s like a family where the ones that are really successful, they recognize what that community did for them and they come back. You see these recurring SNL cast members, people that haven’t been on in 20 years or 15 years, they come back because they got so much value out of the institution, they think so much of it and everyone involved that they recognize what it meant to them and what it did for their career, and they want to be a part of it still. I think that’s a beautiful thing. If you can capture that within your community where you do help people on to that next stage, like you said, they’ll always be ambassadors and they’ll always be a phone call away. They’ll always be able to come back.
27:30 Carrie Melissa Jones: Mm-hmm.
27:30 Patrick O’Keefe: The opportunity is there for them to mentor people in the community, for you to tell their story like, “This is where you can get to through this community. These are some of our members.” And I think that’s just a really, really powerful thing.
27:41 Carrie Melissa Jones: Yeah, that’s a perfect example. If SNL was not doing a good job, then everybody would go back. They’d quit comedy, or they would go back to whatever town they might have come from and go back to doing small shows, but they don’t. They go on to be the Will Farrells or the Adam Sandlers, so that’s how you know you’re building something really valuable, is, your alumni network, basically is gonna be extremely strong.
28:06 Patrick O’Keefe: Yeah, it’s not that I want people to leave.
28:08 Carrie Melissa Jones: Right.
28:10 Patrick O’Keefe: I should be clear about that, it’s not like I’m pushing them out the door like, “Go be President so I can claim you,” no.
28:15 Carrie Melissa Jones: You’re pretty good, though.
28:16 Patrick O’Keefe: Yeah, I mean, that would be cool. I would love to say, “Barack Obama, used to post on KarateForums.com back in the day.” There are funny stories, but it’s never taking credit. It’s just, “Hey, they were here.” There’s a rapper named Jay Electronica who’s fairly well-known and he actually posted on a community I ran for phpBB, phpBBHacks.com years ago, when he was trying to run his own site and had this forum on it and needed help. Because celebrities or future celebrities are just people like the rest of us. We sometimes forget that, I think, but they’re just people doing something and we happen to be the forum for that, so he needed help with that.
28:48 Carrie Melissa Jones: Mm-hmm.
28:49 Patrick O’Keefe: And I think those types of stories are fun.
28:54 Patrick O’Keefe: Yeah. You could be a respected rapper.
28:56 Carrie Melissa Jones: Yeah.
28:58 Patrick O’Keefe: For posting a programming forum.
29:00 Carrie Melissa Jones: Yep, exactly.
29:02 Patrick O’Keefe: CMX with Leader Networks just released a research report, Keys To Community Readiness and Growth: How Brands Prepare For Online Community. You were hoping that it builds bridges between you and other companies doing community research, but going back to that topic of credit once again, everyone wants it. Everyone wants to be seen as the authority, which enables them to sell sponsorships, conferences, training programs, memberships. We can talk about the greater good and we just did, and doing right by the community, but when your business is to sell to community professionals and the companies they work with, I think that’s a barrier you have to overcome. I was curious what does this collaboration, this bridge-building look like to you?
29:41 Carrie Melissa Jones: Yeah, that’s a really good question. I think also… Was it Bill Johnston talked about this a little bit in his interview with you, too.
29:46 Patrick O’Keefe: Yep, he did. He talked a little bit about the siloed resources, I think, were his vernacular.
29:50 Carrie Melissa Jones: Yeah, and I think that it actually does our industry a disservice to have those siloed resources. I don’t think that any of us exist in a silo, and if we’re not speaking the same language, especially I think language is so important, maybe that’s just the English major in me, [chuckle] coming out. But I think language determines reality and if we’re not all using the same terms and kind of asking the same questions and giving community professionals who are really the ones on the ground selling community internally in their organizations, if we’re not giving them resources that kind of point in the same direction, then we’re doing them a disservice, we’re doing the entire industry a disservice.
30:24 Carrie Melissa Jones: So we’ve been working, we’re a promotional partner of the Community Roundtable’s survey which I think wraps up around the 18th of March, but that’s a really important piece of research that goes out every year. I think they’re in their seventh or eighth year now, in addition to ours and we’re able to confirm each others findings through a lot of the research that we do and sort of get into more details that… There’s only so much one research report can do, can’t answer every question in every report.
30:49 Carrie Melissa Jones: And so it’s really important that we define the gaps that maybe other companies that are doing this community research including Gartner, and your Forresters, and stuff like that. And then finding the questions that still exist and especially reading those conclusions in research reports to see which questions still exist for community professionals and then instituting new research to answer those questions. That’s what really is going to professionalize this discipline. For the last 20, 30 years that this discipline has been around we’ve been working towards… Well I haven’t lived for 30 years so I can’t say that we, I guess.
31:22 Carrie Melissa Jones: But people in the community have been working towards really professionalizing this and creating strong standards, in order to get into this industry, to begin with you have to understand. Not everybody can just come in and call themselves a community professional just like not everybody can come and call themselves a lawyer, there’s things that you have to know, terms you have to follow, language you have to learn. It’s really, really gonna be important for professionalizing this and making sure that the future generation of community builders is able to get the resources they need to continue to build a world where community and business are not mutually exclusive.
32:00 Patrick O’Keefe: Carrie, thank you for joining me.
32:00 Carrie Melissa Jones: Thank you, this was really fun.
32:01 Patrick O’Keefe: We’ve been talking with Carrie Melissa Jones, the COO and founding partner of CMX at cmxhub.com and @CMX on Twitter. They have a Facebook group at facebook.com/groups/cmxhub. And you can download their new Keys to Community Readiness and Growth report at cmxhub.com/communityreadiness. You can connect with Carrie at carriemelissa.com and on Twitter @caremjo.
32:26 Patrick O’Keefe: This has been Community Signal. Visit our website at communitysignal.com for subscription options and more, Community Signal is produced by Karn Broad and I’m Patrick O’Keefe. | 2019-04-26T15:49:51Z | https://www.communitysignal.com/combating-the-biases-that-lead-to-unequal-credit/ |
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The alchemy of good curating amounts to this: placing one work of art near another makes one and one equal three. Two artworks arranged alchemically leave each intact, transform both, and create a third thing … [which] triggers cascades of thought and reaction … This chain-reaction is thrilling and uncanny.
The alchemy sparked by this duo exhibition, A torrent in the sandpit, relates to curator Emma Willemse’s recognition of the way that these two artists were dealing with two different aspects of the same issue – how meaning may be constructed and/or fragmented in today’s society. Artists Hanne-Lizé Delport and Christel Liebenberg individually present just one single animation, so providing the time and space for in-depth engagement with each work.
There are many approaches a curator may take, and this exhibition reflects Emma’s choice to work with the notion of the absurd regarding the search for meaning. This is enhanced via the artists’ medium of stop frame animation which allows for the build-up of a narrative – even an absurd narrative – and the use of a cut-and-paste type of technique which can result in visual fragmentation, distortion and weird juxtapositions of images.
Another aspect of alchemy is to do with the relationship between the curator and the two artists. Emma has been Hanne-Lizé’s and Christel’s university lecturer throughout their three years of undergraduate study, and has been closely involved with the development of their processes of conceptualisation.
This exhibition best illustrates an approach to the curating process that may be considered intimate: only two artists, only two works, and a long-term relationship of mutual trust and respect between the curator and the artists.
Hanne-Lizé Delport was born in Welkom, South Africa, 1988. She currently lives in Parow with her family.
In 2007 she started work as a picture framer at a small gallery. She enrolled for her BA in Visuals Arts at UNISA in 2010. When she sold her first painting, she used the profits to buy her first camera. From there, her journey with stop frame animation started. Stop frame became a passion that grew exponentially over time.
Hanne-Lizé began a new career as a scenic artist in the film industry, working on the sets of commercials, series and films. Some prominent features were A Long Walk to Freedom, Chronicle, The Price of Sugar, and The Book of Negroes, amongst others.
In 2013 she was part of the third year UNISA final exhibition at the Art B Gallery, and was subsequently awarded the Excellence Award for the top visual arts student of her year.
Currently, she continues her studies in Honours in Visuals Arts at UNISA.
Christel Liebenberg was born in 1973 and lives and works in Cape Town. She is currently studying towards her BA in Visual Arts at the University of South Africa.
Prior to her studies at UNISA, she worked as a scenic artist in the movie industry. She participated in the UNISA Student Exhibition in 2013 and her video was selected for screening at the Pan Rooms exhibition held at the Pantocrator Gallery in Barcelona, Spain in 2014.
Emma Willemse is a Cape Town-based artist working in a diverse range of media including suspended installation, printmaking, video, photographic processes, drawing and painting. Her works deal with themes around displacement and its traumatic effects on the individual, as well as the interlinking constructs of place, memory and identity.
She has been a lecturer in The Visual Arts Department at UNISA since 2008.
Her other lecturing activities include the facilitation of short courses, workshops and weekend retreats on a range of themes in the contemporary art field.
She has long been involved in initiating and managing community art projects as well as curating art shows and adjudicating art competitions.
I find it absurd that we have become accustomed to being submissive to capitalist systems. We don’t question and we end up naively driving the corporate systems that suppress and exploit us. Corporations are putting the ideas and equipment out there, but we are keeping them alive.
In this exhibition, I subvert these systems, using satire to turn a serious matter into something absurd, incoherent, and humorous, alluding to a sense of bewilderment – the same bewilderment I felt when I heard that an insurance company was going to sue me over a car accident that happened years previously, while knowing that I could not afford this financially. The lawyers and the people working for insurance corporations are simply "doing their jobs", so one cannot really blame them. Still, these enterprise companies were building empires on the labour, money, and ideas of the poor and the middleclass. It has gone beyond the individual. It is a system and we are part of it - whether we want to be or not.
My exhibition, Artefacts from the Sandpit and Other Lice is a series of five animations with separate titles. In these animations I subvert the serious nature of this situation, turning it into playful and, sometimes, incoherent absurdities. The process of creating the imagery in my work was serendipitous at times; it mimics aspects of the methodologies and ideologies of movements such as Surrealism, Dadaism and Absurd Theatre.
Furthermore, I was interested in finding a process to activate serendipity by using the foundation of knowledge, insight and experience that I had already obtained. With a craft knife I hand cut images from books and magazines which I juxtapose over other images that I find visually aesthetic. Although my stop-frame animations are edited digitally, they retain a sense of the raw and tactile.
A Different Shade of Yellow was created by fusing World War I images with my felt experience on the day that I received the lawyer’s letter from the insurance company. It was also the same day that I found a book that became the visual basis for my animation. An Incoherent Moment between a Worm Who Might Never Fly and a Fish-Cloud That Just Drifts By was created from my confusion around this incident, and You Can Keep Your Cycling Ladders of Trickery and Lies was created when I started to analyse the experience regarding the way corporate systems work. Go Ask the Zebra-King Who Was Pulling on That String and Parowdigm developed out of my own photographs of the lonely and obscure spaces in and around my neighbourhood that I identified with, and I turned these into mini sets.
One motif throughout my animations is the cockroach. The cockroach running within the wheel has become my metaphor for how we as individuals run around in circles, getting nowhere, but unknowingly driving these large systems.
My intention with this exhibition was to subvert ideas around the way big corporations exploit the individual even though we have become the driving force behind it. I want to convey how absurd my experience was and how baffled I am by these systems that we have accepted in our society.
Molyneux, J. 2009. Chance and Serendipity: Locating the Sublime. Thesis, Griffith University, Brisbane.
www.occupywallst.org (Accessed 1 November 2013).
I am interested in the relationship between media images and the construction of reality in contemporary society. With the proliferation of media devices and media outlets, social life has become filled with media content at every level.
In his article, An A-Z of theory, Jean Baudrillard: Hyperreality and Implosion, Andrew Robinson explains that for Baudrillard, the media contributes to the destruction of meaning as it creates excessive information, which leads to the loss of meaning and ultimately the destruction and entropy of society (Robinson 2012).
In my video, Torrent (2013)¹, I allude to our habitual intake of information and aim to raise questions regarding our ability to process and internalize the tsunami of information we are engulfed by on a daily basis. Flashing information is superimposed onto the silhouette figures and becomes an inherent and internal part of them as they perform a simple daily routine.
Information has never been as accessible and available as it is today. We walk around in a world filled with media images and texts and we use this information to make sense of the world around us. Torrent (2013) explores the effects that excessive information have on contemporary society and how we relate to information.
We all live inside the terrible engine of authority, and it grinds and shrieks and burns so that no one will say: lines on maps are silly.
The two artists whose animated films are shown in this duo online exhibition are both grappling with notions of how meaning is constructed in our society, raising questions about the role of systems and structures that steer our meaning-making pursuit. How do we navigate a path where the tension between a quest for meaning and an inherent meaningless world is a daily obstacle?
At first glance, Christel Liebenberg’s animated video Torrent (2013) shows an everyday domestic scene: a daily routine in an ordinary kitchen, a couple drinking their morning coffee. Except, instead of drinking coffee, the bodies are consuming a bombardment of broadcasted events, filling up with a montage of typical news footage.
With this video Christel is making visible the way we engage with excessive, low quality information in our everyday existence. It spills over us like a fluid, indecipherable and not really making sense. We pick up disjointed snippets, but the in-depth meaning is lost. It does not affect us or change our behaviour; in the end each person puts the coffee mug down as usual, turns away and departs to start the tasks of the day.
Hanne-Lizé Delport’s series of five short animations called Artefacts from the Sandpit and Other Lice (2013) was sparked off by a collective response to bewildering experiences in her own life, such as being sued by an insurance company years after a motor car accident, and knowingly that she cannot afford to pay the amount. Employing humour and satire, she subverts these experiences in absurd narratives where fish fall from the sky and a zebra moves on wheels. Hanné-Lize’s playful scenes are constructed from found print images, creating collages of hybridical characters.
As a two-person exhibition, these artists highlight two different aspects of the same issue. Whereas Christel suggests the loss of meaning through excessive, low quality information, Hanne-Lizé questions how meaning is constructed through systems in society. Both artists allude to a sense of absurdity.
The notion of absurdity in artworks as a response to the seeming meaninglessness of life has been recognised from as early as the farcical scenes of the Dutch painter Hieronymus Bosch (c. 1450 - August 9, 1516), such as his The Garden of earthly delights (1504), and continues into the 20th Century art movements of Dada and Surrealism. Like Dada and Surrealist artists, contemporary artists and visual culture use distorted, fragmented and hybridical images that defy rational understanding and comment on the perceived absurdity of current events and systems. The work of the fashion designer Alexander McQueen (1969 – 2010), and the artists Eva Kotatkova and William Kentridge are good examples of this notion.
The two artists in the Torrent in the sandpit exhibition use several conventions to suggest the notion of absurdity. Christel and Hanne-Lizé construct imagery through collage or montage techniques either digitally (as in the case of Christel) or hand crafted and then taken into a digital animation (as in the case of Hanné-Lize) to enable devices such as distortion, fragmentation, hybridity or subliminal visual associations which enhance strangeness. These techniques and their visual results serve as metaphors for the disruption of meaning in the videos of both artists.
In Christel’s Torrent, the bodies of the two coffee drinkers become fragmented by their transparent nature, blending with the news footage and their environment. They lose all sense of self and of a unique identity. The endlessness of the cycle is suggested in the action of the two figures: tomorrow they will drink their morning coffee again as usual, and again they will be filled up with meaningless imagery.
Whereas Christel’s video forms a complete narrative on its own, Hanne-Lizé’s series of short animations postulates a disjointed, interrupted narrative, much in the same way that she has interrupted imagery of animal and human bodies with her cut-and-paste collage technique. The action of Sisyphus’ endless attempt to push a rock up the mountain is evoked by Hanne-Lizé’s recurring theme of a cockroach, driving the wheels of a war tank through his incessant running.
The viewer of Christel’s Torrent and Hanne-Lizé’s Artefacts from the Sandpit and Other Lice is invited to engage with the imagery on a level beyond reason, and instead allow him/herself to be lured into a bizarre sequence of events that is sometimes delightfully funny and playful, yet speaking of the grand narratives of life.
The intention of the juxtaposition of the two artists in the exhibition Torrent in the Sandpit is to suggest two different ways that visual imagery could navigate the absurdity of contemporary meaning-making pursuits. The exhibition also comments on the reciprocal relationship between visual imagery and our quest for meaning in life.
This email interview was held between Emma Willemse and Mandy Conidaris in April 2014 following several telephonic conversations.
Emma, thank you so much for agreeing to curate an exhibition for outoftheCUBE. As one of our team members, you know that part of outoftheCUBE’s vision is to provide a platform for early-career artists, and as an art educator you have long been involved with such artists. Included in your career as an educator, for 16 years you have been the Cape Town-based lecturer for the UNISA Visual Arts Department. The two artists you have selected as participants in this exhibition are final year BVA (Bachelor of Visual Arts) students.
Q. This curated exhibition represents the ‘intimate’ aspect of the current outoftheCUBE curatorial statement, and features the works of two young multimedia/video artists. In addition, they are your students. By definition, you have worked intimately with them in terms of their conceptualization processes and the development of their visual imagery. In what way(s) did this insight into their thinking help you to identify the links between their works for exhibiting purposes?
A. The two works on the Torrent in a sandpit exhibition were executed in 2013 as part of the year-end exhibition of the third level BVA studies for both of the artists. However, I have been working with Christel and Hanne-Lizé since their first year studies and have been keen to see their development as artists.
I am always humbled by the experience of working with students and am continuously aware of the need to listen, to not impose and infer, but rather to facilitate the natural flow of creativity of each individual. In the beginning of 2013, it became evident that both Hanne-Lizé and Christel are grappling with concepts and ideas around the construction of meaning, although from different angles. During our monthly contact sessions, workshops and crits, the students’ ideas are sound-boarded intensely, which gives me the privilege of gaining insight in each person’s background, life experiences, and ways of thinking and doing.
Although the initial spark for identifying the links between the works was the overlapping in the conceptual interest, Hanne-Lizé and Christel are both very much their own person and my insight into their thinking was accompanied by a curiosity at how these unique qualities will play out in the eventual end products.
Q. Once identified, how did this insight into their works affect your curatorial choices/process?
A. Due to the many differences in Christel and Hanne-Lizé’s angles and approaches to the concept, and the different conceptualizing and art-making methodologies and processes (for instance, Christel’s process seems to be fed by rigorous academic research, while Hanne-Lizé’s creative process seems to be fed by obsessive making), my curatorial process was marked by asking questions about how an overlapping conceptual interest could render some kind of similarity in spite of the differences.
The construction of meaning is a universal human endeavor. How will this age-old quest be dealt with in a contemporary way, by such diverse artists? Is there a set of formal devices that is best suited for this type of concept?
It was extremely interesting to me to observe how the eventual artworks delivered certain formal parallels, such as alluding to the notion of absurdity through collage and montage techniques, or employing fragmentation, distortion or juxtaposition of images. My curatorial process was a navigation of the tension between similarities and differences, highlighting two possible ways of dealing with the notion of meaning construction.
Q. The surreal nature of the title of your curated exhibition – A torrent in the sandpit - raises questions about its meaning, which in turn reflects the concerns of these two artists, namely the construction or destruction of meaning in contemporary society. What is your own interest in the notion of absurdity, or in meaning-making within an overwhelming society?
A. When selecting the title, an image of a chaotic scene of sand blowing in all directions due to a violent storm popped up in my head – and the thought that this event has the power to blur and distort all imagery.
The title A torrent in the sandpit is a combination of the titles of the two artists’ works, and it also alludes subtly to some kind of underlying disaster, some kind of trauma in a specific place, namely the sandpit. The sandpit is usually a place where children play and build imaginary worlds. So, in a way the title suggests the link between the disaster and the imaginary place of making. How do we make meaning of absurd events?
This is a question that we are all confronted with on a daily basis. By only reading the daily headlines in the newspaper we have no option than to agree that the truth is often times more absurd than fiction.
I believe that art-making is one of the ways to navigate meaning-making, but that it will not provide precise conclusive answers. Rather the process could alleviate some kind anxiety by making friends with the inevitability of absurdity. It is then that a wonderful wicked sense of humour kicks in, as in the work of Hanné-Lize.
Q. The artists both use stop-frame animation. Would you say that this technique is well suited for a visual exploration of ideas around absurdity, and in particular for the individual concepts of these two artists?
A. As a technique that employs time as an element, stop-frame has the possibility to construct a narrative, a progression of events which does not necessarily have to make any sense and plays into the notion of absurdity. In addition stop-frame lends itself ideally to the cut-and-paste techniques that both artists use, although in different ways. These collage and montage techniques can easily be translated into absurd imagery because the possibilities of strange combinations are endless.
Q. Another aspect of intimacy in terms of this exhibition is that it features only two artists. Do you feel that this decision on your part encourages the viewer to engage more deeply with the work of each than in a larger group show?
A. By selecting only two artists dealing with aspects of the same idea, the viewer can consider two diverse ways of making. The artists are in contrast with each other, yet they also have overlapping concerns. This strategy is geared towards considering each artist’s work in-depth and weighing up the unique aspects of each work.
Q. A frequent criticism of curated shows is that the artworks are used as objects to illustrate the curator’s vision. Would you say that your decisions have served to highlight the artists and their work, and draw attention away from your profile as curator, thereby challenging this criticism?
A. I sincerely hope that my decision to include only two artists does exactly that. Hanne-Lizé and Christel are both highly talented individuals with exciting careers ahead of them. Their works are dealing with age-old issues in a contemporary, challenging and fresh way – watch their space!
Q. Expanding on the previous question, how has your work as an educator influenced your role here as curator? Or in other words, how does your role as an educator - that is, that your concern is for the students and their work rather than underscoring the part you play in its production - reflect your role here as curator?
A. My role as educator is to facilitate development, not to control or to impose. Part of this process is to allow each individual’s creative process to enfold in its own way. In addition, the highlighting of their incredible talent through this exhibition will hopefully speed up the process of taking their rightful places as professional artists in the art world.
Q. Finally, there has been much discussion around categorization of the curatorial role. You are a practicing artist who creates two-dimensional works with a strong narrative, or suspended sculptures. These works require substantial input from you during the installation process, so at one level you could be called an artist-curator. At the same time, in your role as educator, you assist students in the installation of their own work, looking for ways to help them enhance the work’s meaning by creating the correct context. In this way you could be called a curator-artist. In our curators’ comment, we quoted Polish artist Paulina Olowska – could you respond to her statement given below?
To me, it doesn’t matter who’s who – if an artist is an artist, if a curator is a curator, if a curator is an artist, or the other way round – this is an old and very constraining narrative. I opt for a new narrative, one that sees such categories loosely. It is my experience that the most rewarding practice is one that involves collaboration switching traditionally ascribed roles in order to navigate exhibition territory seamlessly, and charting the borders that are reached in the process of development. I hope that this is the future of art and exhibition-making.
A. In the art world there are many hats to wear and they all are exciting accessories to our core pursuit: to play a role in making! | 2019-04-21T09:03:49Z | http://outofthecube.co.za/artist.aspx?artistID=81 |
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Purchase your PHANTOM OF THE OPERA tickets. | 2019-04-18T16:55:30Z | http://discountedtickets.blogspot.com/2013_04_21_archive.html |
Twelve years after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Americans are once again debating the price we pay for national security amid revelations that the government spies on citizens in the name of counterterrorism. The highly-secretive National Security Agency is being forced to defend its intelligence-gathering methods against charges they violate Americans’ privacy rights. Kojo explores NSA surveillance abroad and at home, the role of leading technology companies and the consequences for individual privacy.
MR. KOJO NNAMDIAs the nation marks another anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Americans are once again debating the price we must pay to head off new threats to our national security. Documents leaked by former intelligence analyst, Edward Snowden, revealed that in the name of counterterrorism the National Security Agency is spying, not only on foreigners, but on Americans as well. The NSA collects records of our phone calls and emails from tech companies like Google.
MR. KOJO NNAMDIIt hacks into computer networks and it apparently circumvents some digital encryption. The NSA says it does not knowingly break the law that sets boundaries on what it can do, but civil libertarians say the agency is trampling on individual privacy and destroying the public's trust in the integrity of the internet and cyber security. Joining me to look at the fallout from the NSA's domestic surveillance is Alan Paller.
MR. KOJO NNAMDIHe is president of the SANS Technology Institute. Allan Paller, good to see you, again. Thank you for joining us.
MR. ALAN PALLERGood to see you, Kojo.
NNAMDIAlso joining us in studio is Marc Rotenberg. He is executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center. Marc Rotenberg, thank you for joining us.
MR. MARC ROTENBERGNice to see you.
NNAMDIAnd Christopher Soghoian is principal technologist with the ACLU Speech Privacy and Technology Project. Christopher Soghoian, thank you for joining us.
NNAMDIIf you would like to join the conversation, give us a call at 800-433-8850. How do you feel about the NSA surveillance program that collects records of phone calls and emails of ordinary Americans? 800-433-8850. Christopher, remind us of what the NSA is reportedly doing in the course of gathering intelligence? It's able to track our email and phone calls and, in some cases, actually read and listen to them. Where does it get that authority?
SOGHOIANSo it gets the authority from the law and Marc is a lawyer so he will better be able to describe what's happening there, but I can say at a technical level that the way that the NSA gets this information is by compelling the assistance of communications and internet companies. They are able to find out who we call. They're able to find out who we email and in many cases they're able to get the contents of the emails and the contents of our communications. The NSA is able to build a picture of our digital lives and this is all with the assistance of Silicon Valley and phone companies.
ROTENBERGWell, primarily two places, Kojo. One is Section 215 of the Patriot Act, the so-called business records provision. And the other is Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which is primarily directed toward non-U.S. persons, but as we've learned over the last couple of months, has provided to the government an extraordinary amount of information on U.S. persons. Both of these authorities are being used in ways that have surprised not only civil liberties groups, but lawmakers as well.
ROTENBERGCongressman James Sensenbrenner, who was the lead drafter of the Patriot Act provisions, and Section 215 in particular, said he was very surprised to learn that that provision was being used to gather up solely domestic telephone records. He said we never intended that, which I think is what most people who have looked closely at the law believe. It's been used in ways that people just did not expect it would be.
NNAMDIAlan Paller, today's paper says that for three years the NSA improperly searched a huge database of Americans' phone calls in part because no one at the agency actually understood the technology behind its system. What does that tell us about the complexity of NSA surveillance? It sounded as if what they were telling the judge in 2009 is that the machines have taken control, they just took off on their own and we couldn't quite understand what they were doing.
PALLERI don't think it was that that they were telling the judge. I think it was more that there are enclaves all over the place, and different parts of the organization have different capabilities and no one actually knows all of them. But one of the differentiations that's not being clear is the difference between gathering, as in Google has all this data on us, and using, as in sending an ad about something we just searched on that we don't want. So there's a huge difference. And when we talk about, has the capability, that comes with an authority to use that is outside of NSA.
PALLERIt looks as if they may have gone beyond their authorities, but the rule is having the data doesn't mean they get to use it. Having the data means it's there somewhere. They only get to use it if someone in the White House, the National Command Authority, says I need data about that particular problem or country or company in another country. That's when it gets used. So separating having it from using it is an important distinction. We still need balance.
NNAMDIChristopher, how are private tech companies like Google and Yahoo involved in NSA surveillance?
SOGHOIANThere's a bit of a symbiotic relationship between these companies and the government. I mean the business model adopted by Silicon Valley companies is a quid pro quo. You give them your data, they analyze it, they figure out what you're interested in and they serve you ads, and in return they give you these gray and typically free communication services. Right? So free email, free search, free social networking. And the way that these companies can figure out what we're interested in is by collecting as much information as possible.
SOGHOIANThey have an incentive to collect as much and to keep it for as long as possible. And once those companies have built these gigantic data bases of our emails and our social networking information, then the NSA can come in afterwards and ask for it. In addition to these particular companies handing over data, often the NSA can also pick the information off of the wire. So by going to the companies that operate the internet backbones, the AT&T's and Sprint's and Verizon's of the world, they can get the communications as they are on the way between our computers and Google or between our computers and Yahoo.
SOGHOIANAnd so the NSA, through its partnerships, which are both voluntary assistance and compelled assistance, can acquire the communications that we have entrusted to these private companies.
NNAMDIWe give these private companies our information, Marc Rotenberg and Alan Paller, do we give those private companies are information with the implicit understanding -- since nobody reads those very long agreements -- with the implicit understanding that, okay, it's fine for you to use that information to try to sell me or give me whatever it is you think I want or need, but please implicitly understand that you're not supposed to share that with the government. Do we somehow trust those private companies more than we trust the government?
ROTENBERGWell, Kojo, I don't know if we trust those companies more than we trust the government. I think there is the understanding that if the government comes to a private company in the course of an investigation and says, you know, we have reason to believe that, you know, one of your customers, one of your users is engaged in some criminal activity or is a suspect in a terrorist investigation, I think most people would say, in those circumstance, it would be appropriate, following a legal process, to disclose information about that individual. That's typically how we understand law enforcement access to the records that are held by private businesses about their customers and their clients.
ROTENBERGI think what's so troubling about these activities, however, is there's not individualized suspicion. In other words, they're just providing the bulk data on all of their customers, on an ongoing basis, without the government ever having to say, you know, these particular people are suspected of some kind of criminal conduct. And one of the, you know, the things that came out this summer, which I just thought was extraordinary, actually provided the basis for a lawsuit that Epic has now brought to the U.S. Supreme Court, is the order from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to the Verizon Corporation, which says essentially, give us all of the telephone records of all of your customers on an ongoing basis.
ROTENBERGAnd Verizon is currently doing that. Every single Verizon customer is having that data turned over to the government without any suspicion, concerning any particular customer. That's a problem. That's a real big problem.
NNAMDIAlan Paller, in a way, the same question to you. We trust this information to these private companies. Is there an implicit understanding that the private companies won't turn them over to government if there is no need to suspect individuals who might be involved in any kind of illegal activity having to do, in this case, with terrorism?
PALLERMy sense is that the general public doesn't focus on the question at all. They just use the technology. If it works, it works, if it doesn't, it doesn’t. It only comes up when somebody says, oh, my god, the data's being given to the government. So I think, again, when Marc talks about it's being given to the government, there's this implication, and somebody's reading it. And what I'm trying to differentiate is it being in a database somewhere, whether it's at Verizon or at NSA is irrelevant if there's no order from the White House that says you have to look for that piece of data, unless there's a rogue operation.
PALLERIf there's a rogue operation, it's a problem. Marc and I had an interaction 12 years ago when I was setting up the Internet Early Warning System. And I said we're going to collect all this data from all these computers, is that okay? And he said yes. And I said but you just beat the hell out of the government for doing exactly the same thing. And I said what's the difference. He said you're not the government. I trust the government guys more than I trust a lot of the system administrators who work in commercial organizations, but they're going to be rogue people in the government, as well.
ROTENBERGCan I jump in? I mean, first of all, I'm not sure that I remember that history.
NNAMDIYes. Let's pick up this conversation from 12 years ago, yes.
ROTENBERGFrom 12 years ago, Alan may be right, but I'm a little bit surprised. But I think, you know, what I believe or what he believes is probably not as relevant as what the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution says. And the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution, you know, talks about searches and seizures. And if you seize information, whether or not you subsequently inspect the information, whether or not you subsequently use the information, you have still triggered a Constitutional interest.
ROTENBERGAnd I simply don't accept the view that it's okay for the government to gather up all this data on individuals from private companies, without an adequate legal basis, as long as there's subsequent checks and balances, because that's essentially what that argument is. It says you really shouldn't be so concerned about this. We can gather up the data and we'll only use it for appropriate purposes. Well, I think it's a big question, it's a big legal question, whether in fact you can gather up the data. It's a question that the courts need to confront.
SOGHOIANYeah, I mean, we've also sued the NSA. There's lots of people who are suing the NSA right now. And so the ACLU filed a suit. And one of the points that we made in our litigation is that the NSA has a database of every American who's called an abortion clinic, every person who's called a suicide hotline, everyone who's called a whistleblower hotline, everyone who's called a gun shop. Whatever your views are of the government that we have right now, this data is sitting there for the next government, too.
SOGHOIANAnd, you know, you may think that, you know, that President Obama is going to respect the civil liberties of Americans, but this data is too sensitive to be sitting in a government data center. And we've seen that the oversight process doesn't work. We've seen that the intelligence apparatus has no control over how their massive surveillance capabilities are being used. And the existence of this data, the existence of this massive database should terrify every American. It's just too sensitive to exist in government hands.
NNAMDIBefore we go to the phones -- and by the way, the number is 800-433-8850 -- where do you feel the line should be between national security and personal privacy? 800-433-8850. You can send email to [email protected] or send us a tweet @kojoshow. Alan Paller, I wanted to get back to the point you made earlier when I characterized the machines as being in control of what was going on at NSA. And you pointed out that, no, what they were trying to point out was that the agency was divided in such a way that there were people in one division who did not know what was going on in another.
NNAMDIHow did 9/11, and the subsequent move among government agencies to share intelligence, make it easier for Edward Snowden to find and release this information about NSA practices?
PALLERThat's the key question. It turns out that what Snowden released was mostly what I would call promotional literature. There's other stuff he did, but a lot of it was promotional literature about capabilities that one part of the government had that they were showing to another part of the government. Prior to 9/11 all that was in enclaves. There wasn't a chance in hell that they would ever hear from each other what they have. After 9/11 there was a forced opening so that lots of people could get access to lots of different data. Snowden wasn't an intelligence analyst.
PALLERWe're all calling him that. He was a sys admin. And the sys admins all over the world have infinite access to the documents.
PALLERA sys admin is the person who works at the computer, who says, Marc Rotenberg, you may have an ID and an account and I will change your password for you. Often he, sometimes she, has complete control over the computer. The sys admins in San Francisco closed San Francisco down and it took a judge to threaten jail, in fact, put a guy in jail for a long time.
PALLERSystem administrator. Too much power.
NNAMDIThey're not intelligence analysts. Please don your headphones gentlemen, because we're about to go to the phones. We will start with Stephen, in, appropriately, Stephens City, Va. Steven, you're on the air. Go ahead, please.
STEPHENYes. Hi, Kojo. Great show today. One of the first things that I do want to get out is that I am a systems administrator. I do this work every day. One of the biggest problems that we do run into is that the Bush administration started all of this. I mean, essentially, Bush started warrantless wiretapping. Him and Cheney. What we have to look at now, is that Obama pretty much took his idea and put it on steroids, but now everybody's mad about it. So I guess that's my concern on it.
STEPHENAnd then now system administrators are getting a bad rap and it's harder for us to get jobs, especially the younger generation, to get jobs in the field because everyone's so worried about what you're capable of. Like, with me working in the field for so long, it's a big deal when I go into these large companies and say here's the information that I know. Because now it scares companies because they don't want to get in trouble with their customers.
NNAMDIYou know, it's been -- you raise several issues here, Stephen. One of them, of course, is this issue of reputation because Google and Yahoo and other companies are concerned about how this information that has been revealed by Edward Snowden is not only affecting their reputation overseas, but their bottom line and their business model, what's to be done about that. But first, Alan Paller, I'd like to hear to you respond to Stephen about systems administrators and what he thinks their reputation is suffering from as a result of this.
PALLERTheir not only reputationally at risk, they're actually at risk of jobs. One of the big reactions to the Snowden leak is to try to move the computers to common management so that individuals don't have that kind of control that they can take any documents they want and give them to anyone. So there's actually a pressure on the job in the sys admin world. The opportunity, though -- just to put my other hat on -- sys admins who understand cyber security are still in enormous, enormous demand. They really are.
NNAMDIThank you very much for you call, Stephen. Now, Marc Rotenberg, onto the legal remedies that you see occurring here. Obviously, the NSA has been involved in activity that the federal judge in 2009 thought had overstepped its boundaries, clearly a lot of people now think that there should be, if not necessarily more transparency, a more regulated environment.
ROTENBERGWell, I think that's right. And I think true transparency do achieve more accountability. I think it is appropriate to credit the president who's called for the publication of more of the court opinions, the provision of more the aggregate data about the use of the surveillance authorities so that the public is able to make some meaningful assessment of what the NSA is doing, whether it's effective, whether it should continue.
ROTENBERGHave there been abuses? Those aren't questions that can only be answered in close rooms. Those are questions now that I think have to be talked about openly and debated. And that process is now underway, which is good. At the end of the day, I think we are going to have to narrow these legal authorities. I think the problem post-9/11 is we've created this enormous surveillance infrastructure with a very low threshold and very little accountability.
ROTENBERGAnd we're seeing now, with the disclosures, what the consequences of that are. I think we need to change. I think this is a moment where we got to say let's restore some of those better safeguards we traditionally had.
NNAMDIWhat does the ACLU want to see happen, Christopher?
SOGHOIANI think we'd like to see a few things. The first thing we'd like to see is companies protecting their customers' privacy. You mentioned before that the reputations of many of these technology companies are suffering abroad and I think, you know, justifiably so. When you are an internet company, whether you're providing telephone or email or social networking or other services, you rely on the trust of your customers.
SOGHOIANAnd it's one thing for your own government to spy on you, but it's another thing entirely for another government to spy on you. And, you know, the fact is is that people around the world use services provided by American companies and the U.S. government has naturally then had an advantage in foreign intelligence matters over everyone else. Americans don't use Russian email services. Americans don't use Chinese photo-sharing websites.
SOGHOIANBut the rest of the world entrust their data to U.S. companies. And as a result, U.S. companies now have their reputations in tatters. Hopefully those companies will beef up the security of the products they offer abroad in an attempt to salvage their brands. But we hope that while they're beefing up the security of the products they offer to non-Americans, they also beef up the security of the products that they offer to Americans, too.
SOGHOIANGiven the important of cyber security in the debate today, I think it's vital that we prioritize cyber security. And unfortunately what we've learned in the last few weeks is that the NSA has been actively circumventing and sabotaging security technologies that have, you know, in order to better obtain access to communications. We need to prioritize security. U.S. companies need to prioritize the security of their customers and keep the NSA from being able to perform dragnet surveillance of their users' information.
NNAMDIGot to take a short break. If you called, stay on the line, we will get to your calls when we come back. If not, the number is 800-433-8850. One of the issues we'll be discussing when we come back, should Google and Facebook be allowed to reveal how often they hand over information to the government and what kinds of information it is? 800-433-8850. You can send us a tweet @kojoshow using the hashtag, TechTuesday, or email to [email protected]. I'm Kojo Nnamdi.
NNAMDIWelcome back to our conversation on NSA surveillance and the legacy of 9/11. We're talking with Marc Rotenberg. He is executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center. Christopher Soghoian is principal technologist with the ACLU Speech, Privacy and Technology Project, and Alan Paller is the president of SANS Technology Institute. They join us in studio. You can join us by phone at 800-433-8850, by email at [email protected], or by tweet @kojoshow.
ROTENBERGOn Monday, Yahoo asked the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to let it disclose how many requests it gets from the government to turn over data. What do you think about greater disclosure of these NSA requests? I'll start with you this time, Christopher?
SOGHOIANI mean, we're happy that these companies are seeking permission from the court to be able to provide aggregate statistics. So what they're saying is they'd like to be able to say that every year they got 300 requests from, you know, from the FBI and that this impacted 10,000 users. Those are the kind of numbers that they are asking to publish. And we think that's very reasonable.
SOGHOIANAnd of course the companies could do even more than just ask to be able to publish these reports, the companies could actively fight the orders they receive in court and we hope they will do that too.
NNAMDIAlan Paller? Companies wanting to reveal this. What do you see as the purpose in doing this? They of course want to indicate that they are not simply handmaidens of the National Security Agency.
PALLERThey're in real trouble financially abroad. Their customers are searching for alternative sources of their products and they want to act as affirmatively as they can to cut their losses. And one of the ways they're doing -- they're trying to do that to be as open as they can possibly be.
ROTENBERGWell, I think it would be good to have more information. But I would prefer that it wasn't being done as Alan suggest really for public relations purposes. I think we need to have an annual report. That's an objective basis with the data being disclosed. I think it should be established in law, very similar, by the way, to the annual reports that are produced on the use of electronic surveillance authority use in criminal investigations.
ROTENBERGThose reports have been made public almost for 40 years. And we can look at the use of electronic surveillance in traditional cases with a very clear understanding of its effectiveness and its cause. That's the kind of data we need today on the use of the FISA authorities.
NNAMDIWe've also learned that the NSA tried to keep security lax on the internet by deliberately weakening encryption programs. What's the result of that effort?
ROTENBERGWell that issue takes me way back. I mean, I was involved with legislation almost 25 years ago. The Computer Security Act and the concern back in the late 1980s was that the NSA's role in computer security and cryptography policy would have the practical consequence of making less strong tools available for internet security and privacy. And that's almost exactly what happened back in those days. And we've learned now from the recent revelations that the NSA is still doing this.
ROTENBERGAnd I think what people may not understand is, you know, it's one thing to go after foreign intelligence that you need to protect the nation's security. It's quite another thing to come back to the nation's tech companies and say we want you to install back doors. We want you to use weak encryption. We want you to do various other things so that the government can get access to the records of your customers. That creates a vulnerability that shouldn't otherwise exist.
NNAMDIGoogle said this week it will start using stronger encryption. What effect is that likely to have on intelligence gathering on individual users, Alan?
PALLERIt will make intelligence gathering harder if they implement it effectively. If they implement it badly, it will make it the same. What Marc was talking about is really an essential in what you're trying -- essential conflict in any National Security Agency. Do you want to tell people about vulnerabilities or do you want to exploit the vulnerabilities? There are two halves in that essay.
PALLEROne is actually defensive half, it's trying to protect the government and the other half is trying to gather the data and they're in that same conflict internally that you're hearing in this discussion.
NNAMDIChristopher, same question to you. Countries -- Googles and others trying to strengthen encryption. What effect is that likely to have?
SOGHOIANIt's not going to cause any problems for the NSA as long as they go through the right procedure. So intelligence agencies can obtain orders from the FISA court and then go to Google and say we would like this information on your users. And what Google is deploying is encryption between various Google offices. And that will not stop the government from getting that at all.
SOGHOIANWhat it might prevent, though, is the government getting that information without Google's assistance or knowledge by intercepting the communications in transit between Google servers. I think, in general, we want companies to be doing this. There should be only one way to get a Google user's information, that is with Google's knowledge or assistance. The government shouldn't just be able to grab it for itself.
SOGHOIANYou know, these companies, in many ways, unfortunately, have to act as a proxy for our privacy interest. The government isn't going to come and tell you and say, hey, Kojo, we want to read your emails. And so, these companies act as our agents. And if the government doesn't have to go to the companies, if they can just grab the communications as they go over the internet or go through the air, then we have no one acting as our advocates.
SOGHOIANAnd, you know, we can have a debate about how effective the companies are as our advocates, but it's even worse when the government can just grab communications by itself.
NNAMDIPut on your headphones please because we're headed for Mary Anne in McLean, VA. Mary Anne, you're on the air. Go ahead please.
MARY ANNEI just wanted to say, as an American, I have nothing to hide and nothing to fear and I really don't care if the NSA is looking at my phone calls or emails. I just try to put food on the table and want my streets to be safe.
NNAMDIWould you care if your next door neighbor were looking at your emails and your phone calls?
ANNEI really don't care. I mean, I have nothing to hide.
NNAMDII have heard this sentiment expressed on several occasions, Marc Rotenberg. What do you say in response to it?
ROTENBERGWell, as an American, I'm proud of the fact that we have a Constitution that defends our freedoms and it would concern me if our government could freely get access to our personal information without following the legal procedures that our country is based on that we fought to defend. It's a dangerous view of the world that says, you know, I have nothing to hide, go ahead, you know, look and find.
ROTENBERGI don't think people should be quite so willing to sacrifice very important freedoms. And then, of course, the next question I always like to ask somebody is, you know, well, how do you feel about your children or your spouse, are you okay on their behalf also sacrificing whatever privacy rights they might have? It's not a road I see people to go down.
NNAMDIIs it possible, Alan Paller and Christopher Soghoian, that having made the decision to give up all of this information to private companies and banks and the likes, there are an increasing number of Americans who feel, well, there are so many agencies that already know so much about me that it really doesn't matter whether the government is prying or not.
PALLERI think there's a balance here. Yes, of course, there are a lot of Americans who feel that way. And Marc's right that we don't want to give up our national rights that we fight for. But it's sort of one long story here with -- and I don't mean back to you, but there was a place called Bletchley Park that broke encryption and ran all the communications it could get their hands on. And a lot of people wouldn't be here if they hadn't because that's how we beat Germany in the last war.
PALLERThis business of breaking encryption and reading communications is an existential issue for nations. So there's a balance on how you implement it. And I love what Marc's doing to try and Chris is doing to try to bring that balance so that we minimize the impact on personal privacy. But we do need to do it and we need to do it really well.
NNAMDILet's talk more specifically about how we would do it if indeed your ideas go forward, Marc. You're pushing for greater transparency in intelligence gathering, for laws that would make the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court more accountable to the public. How would that change the way we gather intelligence?
ROTENBERGWell, one thing I think we need to do is be more focused. And, you know, I appreciate Alan's comments. I don't see this as a necessary tradeoff between protecting the nation's security and preserving individual liberty. I think we should achieve both. But I think if we can say to the government agencies that have this very broad authorities, listen, you know, show a court, show some independent decision maker that you're actually on to something that justifies gathering data.
ROTENBERGIt's not only good from a privacy perspective, it's good from an efficiency perspective. It's good to ensure that you're fulfilling the mission that you're supposed to pursue. And I think that if the NSA and other agencies are able to demonstrate that they are doing that, then I think they will have the support of the public. I think the public will say you're doing what you're supposed to be doing, you're doing it well. Okay, now we're all right with it.
ROTENBERGBut that's not where the country is today. The sense we have right now is that the agencies are not fulfilling their missions well.
SOGHOIANI mean, I'd actually like to response to the point that Alan made. Yes, the British decrypted communications during World War II, but I think it's also important to note that our Founding Fathers used encryption. The first letters from James Madison to Thomas Jefferson describing his intension to write the Bill of Rights were encrypted. And had the British had the means to break those communications, I think we would all be speaking with, well, you all will be speaking with accents.
PALLERWe'd speak with an accent.
SOGHOIANThat are slightly closer to mine. I think the fact that the Founding Fathers found it important and necessary to encrypt their communications is something that we should remember and value and, you know, I think we should be following in the footsteps of our Founding Fathers and encrypting all of our communications. To their comment of the caller who said basically, you know, I have nothing to hide so why do I care?
SOGHOIANYou don't have to be a victim of discrimination to want to live in a society without discrimination. You don't need to be the victim of racism to not want to live in a society where there is racism. And likewise, even if you have nothing to hide, there are plenty of Americans who legitimately don't want the government listening to their communications and reading their emails. And you should worry about their privacy too.
NNAMDIThank you very much for you call, Mary Anne. Finally, we go to Paul in Herndon, VA. Paul, your turn.
PAULHi, gentlemen. Hi, Kojo. This is a great topic. I'm so glad you guys are talking about this. I am a network engineer with an ISP that's got a lab over in Herndon and I've actually been a little bit privy some of the guts behind the scenes that make some of this stuff happen. And I wanted to specifically ask you guys what you thought the implications were, I don't know if you guys heard about Lavabit, the tech email company that the founder pretty abruptly and mysteriously shut down.
NNAMDII'm familiar with the discussion about that and we're running about time. And Christopher Soghoian is also familiar with it. So I'll have him respond to you.
SOGHOIANSure. There are a few companies that have decided that they want to be in the business of offering secure services to their customers. Services that cannot be wiretapped, services where the Chinese cannot break in and steal information. And there are people in the government who don't think that those companies should exist, who see them as a threat to security. You know, I think that we don't a lot about the Lavabit situation.
SOGHOIANWe don't know why the company shut down. We don't know what kind of request they receive. But, you know, I do think that companies should be allowed to offer services that are secure. A service that is secured from the Chinese is also going to be secured from the FBI. And a service that allows the FBI to get access to communications ultimately will not be secured from the Chinese.
SOGHOIANIt will not be secured from hackers. And given where we are, given the threat of cyber security, given the threat of foreign governments and hackers stealing our information, we should be encouraging more companies to offer these kinds of services that put their users' privacy and security first.
NNAMDIRunning out of time. Very quickly, but where would you draw the line, Marc, between intelligence the NSA legitimately needs to collect on U.S. citizens and spying that, well, goes too far?
ROTENBERGWell, I think in the old days, you know, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act said agent of a foreign power for the purpose of collecting foreign intelligence. That was a two-part task and the court got to take a look and was focused on an individual. I think that's the right way to go.
NNAMDIMarc Rotenberg is executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center. Marc, thank you for joining us.
NNAMDIChristopher Soghoian is principal technologist with the ACLU Speech, Privacy and Technology Project. Christopher, thank you for joining us.
NNAMDIAlan Paller is president of SANS Technology Institute. Alan, good to see you again.
NNAMDIComing up tomorrow on "The Kojo Nnamdi Show," breaking up the old line state, activists in western Maryland are launching a movement to secede, saying the culture and politics of Annapolis don't reflect their region. Then at 1:00, a young Haitian girl is given up for adoption by a father too poor to raise her. A haunting new novel by Haitian American author Edwidge Danticat. "The Kojo Nnamdi Show," noon 'til 2:00 tomorrow on WAMU 88.5. And streaming at kojoshow.org. | 2019-04-22T20:27:09Z | https://thekojonnamdishow.org/shows/2013-09-11/nsa-surveillance-and-legacy-911 |
The project 'Guerilla Beehives'has an exemplary meaning when it comes to the public perception of sustainability. It is a collaboration between the arts, design and science.
This is the end of the anthropocene. We imagine an ecosystem where all actors collaborate to keep up the resilience of the system. As artists, beekeepers, makers and thinkers, we collaborate with animals, plants, insects and bacteria. We co-design Intelligent Guerilla Beehives: supportive shelters for bee swarms. In return, the bees provide us with information on the ecosystem that is hosting the Guerilla Beehive. Driven by the intelligence, complexity and self-organisation of the Super Organism (bee swarm) we discuss and explore in a democratic way. This is not a study of-, but a development together with 'the other organism'. This collaboration should lead to a more diverse and thus more resilient system, post human and post anthropocentrism. Animal politics are taken into account. We go for an embodied experience, non-linear, immanent and interacting with the non-human other.
An emergent collective intelligence; single agents teaming up without any decision maker. Important is the arrangement and relationship of the parts which provokes the emergence of a bottom-up intelligence in this self-managed group with independent actuators. The group is build on diversity which provides resilience. They are offered a shelter -prototyped by nature- which is designed to grant equilibrium and homeostasis (variables are regulated so that internal conditions remain stable and relatively constant).
'The Disappearance of the Honey Bees' laat eveneens toe om onderzoek te voeren naar de positie van de mens tegenover de natuur in grootstedelijke context. Natuurkunde, biologie, botanica, politiek en economie maken allemaal deel uit van dit complexe ecosysteem.
Bee colonies are threatened in all industrialized nations. Given that the survival of bees is crucial for human sustainability, there is a great urgency to improve by all means the ways in which colonies could thrive.
In 2009 I founded the Brussels Urban Bee laboratory (http://urbanbeelab.okno.be), the place of action for a group of artists, scientists and technologists to observe bee colonies in non intrusive set-ups. The Urban Bee Lab is also a vehicle to raise public awareness via art installations and workshops.
The Guerilla Beehive project is one of these actions. It proposes a shelter for swarming bee colonies and supports the bees in their roles as pollinators and caretakers of biodiversity rather than as honey producers. In this project, bees, humans and plants - are working together to assure a sound basis for the further development of our ecosystem.
The pictures above present a scale model (35cm x 30cm x 30cm)) of the Guerilla Beehive. The form is inspired on a pollen grain of a Fragaria vesca (a wild strawberry). The model is sculpted in high density foam and is cladded with a skin in bioplastic, made on the basis of Psyllium ovata. The model+skin are vacuum pressed to reveal the embossed voronoi design on the front of the hive.
The hive-entrance is in between the wind-protective wings on the left side. The entrance is monitored by a camera and the processed images are send via bluetooth to a monitor. The camera is powered by a Raspberry Pi which is hosted at the other side of the beehive, in a small 3D-printed pocket. The back of the hive is decorated with a 3D-printed voronoi design in flexible filament. The solarpanel is fixed on a 3D-printed solarpanel holder.
The design of the Guerilla Beehive is inspired by nature. The content (± 40 liters) responds to the nest-needs of a bee colony living in the wild, and the mobile architecture makes it easily deployable on different spots in public space, hence its name: the Guerilla Beehive. The hive can be grafted on the wall of a building or wrapped around the branch of a tree in a park (the bees prefer a 'higher' spot, south-east oriented). The beehive has been enhanced with a sensor network in order to monitor the health of the colony without interference and thus allow better care. The Guerilla Beehive is made out of smart organic materials with usefull properties in respect to temperature fluctuation, humidity and ventilation. The hive has a high tactile potential; the flexible rubber of the outer skin and the warm and soft cork of the inner skin invite to touch and feel. All materials are biodegradable. Once the colony decides to leave the hive, the Guerilla Beehive will fall as a ripe apple from the tree and decompose completely. It is a cradle to cradle design.
Because bees are recognized as important biomarkers, the Guerilla Beehive is augmented with sensors and sensory processing algorithms that analyze the quality of pollen and propolis as well as the behavior of the bees in order to monitor the state of the ecology in the surrounding area.
The Guerilla Beehive can have a major impact on the sustainability of bees, agriculture and plant life. On top, the project innovates also in ICT by adopting a Green ICT approach at all levels: the structure of the hive is built using parametric design and is fabricated with 3D printing and milling facilities. The hive's ICT components will be powered by solar panels and microbial fuel cells using the bodies of dead bees and honey as source, so that the system is self-sufficient in terms of energy. The processing and telecommunication infrastructure will exploit techniques of low energy computation. In this project we are not only building prototypes of the Guerilla Beehive but we are also conducting field studies in urban and peri-urban areas, and we exploit the results using open source hard- and software methodologies.
An extensive rooftop garden in the centre of Brussels hosts the headquarters of the BUBL laboratory. It is giving place to several experimental beehives and instrumentation equipment. From this laboratory, data is continuously being broadcast through streaming technology.
Check the other research projects of the Brussels Urban Bee Laboratory on this project-wiki. Discover the Transparent Beehive project, the Sound Beehive project, the Color Coded Beehive, the Pollen Database, the Material Science research, the eco-data visualization, … and more research projects.
The 'wrap-around' design consists of 2 parts: 1 big bag which is hosting the nest of the bee colony, and 1 smaller bag which is housing the observation technology - at the same time, the smaller bag acts as the counter weight for the bigger bag.
The hive-part has a content of 40 liters. The outer skin is printed in rubber. It has an irregular spiky form which is inspired by the surface of a seedpod and it has qualities of camouflage when fixed to a tree. The rubber spikes adapt to variable weather conditions. At the inside, the nest-volume is lined with cork. Between the outer and inner skin there is a vacuum (similar to cell-membranes) filled with air. This air-filled space adjusts the thermoregulation in the hive and helps the bees to maintain the ideal temperature of 35°C. The cork wall has micropores (inspired by the pores in radiolaria) which allow for a humidity regulation around 55%. Both outer and inner wall are designed to manage the beehive's homeostasis.
Resilient parametric structure, modelled after pollen of the Fragaria (strawberry).
Sensors and actuators. Embedded mesh network of thermistors.
- microbial fuel cells integration.
Figure (oval): Drawing of a piece of cork by Robert Hooke (1665). The structure of the cells can be seen. Cork is taken from the bark of the cork oak tree (Quercus suber). Cork is one of the first objects ever examined through a microscope. It inspired the scientist Robert Hooke to name the individual unit of an organism a cell.
Blender modeling, inspired on a pollen grain of a Fragaria vesca (strawberry).
We make the scan of the model with a Kinnect. This device is not at all precise, so the result is rather disappointing. Anastasia decides to start the design from scratch in Rhinoceros. We also will have to integrate at once the wooden (leaf-like) frames in which the bees will build their comb. It is not the purpose to open the hive once it is inhabited by a bee colony.
The inspiration for the form of the Guerilla Beehive is a SEM picture of a pollen grain of the Fragraria (Strawberry). This shape is transferred to a first design attempt in Blender. The voronoi-like texture is rather complex. I decide to make a scale model first, in high density foam. This is a traditional sculpture, the analogue way. The HD foam is a great material to work in, can make a lot of detail (but the dust gives some allergic reaction to my skin).
I finalize the skin's texture as analogue parametric design. The result looks like the structure of a nut, or a brain. The purpose is to 3D scan this model and than lasercut it in additive cork layers.
In the meantime I do tests on laminating the HD foam-model with a bioplastic skin in the vacuum machine.
The first attempt to laminate the HD foam model, is with several layers of bioplastic material that I've prepared a day before. The material is still very wet and flexible, and there are as well translucent layers as samples with coffeemix. I think we've put these samples too soon on the HD foam model. Some of them were splitting open (due to the still very jelly-like state of the substance). The importance is to find the right moment to process these casted plastics - the status between solidifying and still flexible enough to be handled and changed.
After a few hours in the vacuum machine, I took the object out and left it overnight to dry. The next morning I took off the bioplastic layers and started anew with other material. This other material is the sheet grown out of Psyllium ovata. The substance is more compact, without water but still flexible. The sample is also bigger in size, which makes it easier to cover the object in the vacuum machine.
A few questions come up during this working process. Wouldn't it be better to first seal or fill the very porous surface of the HD foam object? What material can we use for it?
Shellac, Gesso (artist primer sealer undercoat), water based latex, water based polyurethane, PVA (wood) glue.
I did a quick test with PVA glue, and this gave an immediate result. The bio-skin was sticking better to the foam surface with glue than without. More tests should be done with Gesso or other primers.
Using a liquid mix of PVA glue and water helps to keep the lamination with bioplastics in place.
The plan is to envelop the Guerilla Beehive with a kind of net in the shape of a 'grocery bag' and hang it in a tree or attach it to the wall of a building. The net-like vector-design will be cut in a sheet of bioplastic or 3D printed.
Anastasia is finetuning for 2 weeks the model in Rhinoceros. We will cut a first 1:1 model in layers of cork.
The real thing will be milled in 10cm cork, a job done in 5 parts - so highly difficult and secure.
I was also thinking to make a new and smaller model of the Guerilla Beehive in HD foam, and make a mold of it in silicone, for castings with bioplastic. I made some drawings on how to construct the mold, and my final outcome was that it has to be a silicone one - if I stay with the same design, namely 'the brain' design. I made yet some silicone molds, and those have the advantage that you can have irregular forms that can be casted - and can be taken out of the mold later.
If I want to keep the model with the voronoi-brain design, as well as the side-flaps sticking out, I will have to work with a 2-part flexible silicon model.
This model will be really small (I think 1/2 of the other model I made) and so it will be usefull only for casting and experimenting with biopolymers and document this study.
But I hope we can still work on the 1/1 Rhinoceros 3D-file. It would be so great to work on the final design in cork.
From the point of view of a beekeeper, cork is such a nice natural product. Biopolymers cannot be used for housing a real bee colony, as this material will be eaten by the bees, as well as it will delude in water (if it rains).
We discuss or a mesh network of thermistors inside of the double wall of the hive, or the integration of an infrared camera to check what happens inside the hive.
Integrating a camera is a lot of work and (seen the experience I've build up on this technological bee observation-matter) in my eyes rather useless. For observing the wellbeing of a colony, a network of temperature/humidity sensors is much more usefull.
A camera installed in the middle of the beehive will not at all work. The middle of the beehive, this is the core of the bee-nest. This is the preferred place of the queen, where she lays her eggs, where the most of the new bees are born. There is not the place for a camera, and if you would put one, it would be covered by the bees with wax immediately.
The same thing for other places in the beehive: for a camera, you need distance. Putting a camera in the beehive and realizing good results with it for monitoring, is very very very difficult.
Unless you just want to put a camera for the exhibition (proof of concept), to see inside of the hive-design: how does the hive look inside? What is new about it? How is it made? In that case, whatever setup is possible.
But if you want to do this for monitoring bees, than it asks for a long research to see what is possible with this kind of beehive - but once more: cameras are very difficult, just simply because the choice of ultra small, wide angle, short focus and infrared cameras is extremely limited. A nice project would be to design a new lens, custommade for this kind of beehive.
But as I said: this is a very long-term project, not something you develop and realize in 2 weeks.
The last years I realised 2 different setups with cameras. They were running over a whole bee-season, but we worked the whole winter fefore the start of the season on these customised setups.
This was a setup in regular beehives (which is much easier than in a Guerilla Beehive), and it was already very difficult.
Here are some photos from the setup we introduced last year in one of our beehives (the sound beehive). It is a rather complex setup. We were working with a Raspberry Pi + a hacked PiNoir camera of Raspberry.
As the image result with the PiNoir was rather blurry, we worked afterwards with a 6mm lens (still connected to Raspberry) and 2 infrared Leds. Here are some pictures of the setup - but this setup asks for a lot of space (to host the Raspberry Pi + all cables) and also we need enough distance from the object (the bee nest).
I think we will have to go for an image-stopmotion setup (instead of video). The processing of video will not be possible in a stand alone version with solarpanel. Maybe we will have to work with a combination of Arduino and Raspberry Pi, in order to save energy consumption of the Pi and switch on the Pi only when necessary.
But everything depends on what is the goal of the project.
Is the goal bee monitoring?
Is the goal designing a Guerilla Beehive: a sustainable shelter for honeybees in context of biodiversity?
For me it is clearly the last. Therefore, an alternative is to install a mesh network of thermistors.
I think it is much more interesting and helpfull for the disappearing bees (and as well for the wellbeing of our ecosystem) to support the bees with shelters that are adapted to their needs (read: hives build out of natural materials with bee-supporting properties) than to design a bee shelter enhanced with (intrusive) technology.
Later, if we have more time and money, we can try to enhance the same model with technology that is custom developed for this model beehive: camera with custom adapted lens.
If we want to add technology right away, and one that is usefull in terms of monitoring, than we should go for the mesh network of thermistors. They measure what is most important in context of bee monitoring: the temperature and the humidity in the nest, compared to the temperature and humidity of the surrounding outside - and how they relate to each other. | 2019-04-25T10:34:55Z | https://urbanbeelab.okno.be/doku.php?id=guerillabeehive-projectpage |
You have been learning about Azure Machine Learning as a powerful tool to solve the vast majority of common machine learning problems, but it is important to consider that it is not the only tool provided by Microsoft for that purpose. A previously seen alternative is Cognitive Services, and in this chapter, we look at other systems capable of dealing with large amounts of unstructured data (HDInsight clusters), data science tools integrated with SQL Server (R Services), and preconfigured workspaces in powerful Azure Virtual Machines (Deep Learning Virtual Machines and Data Science Virtual Machines).
Microsoft Cognitive Toolkit (CNTK) is behind many of the Cognitive Services models you learned to use in Skill 3.4: Consume exemplar Cognitive Services APIs. You can find CNTK in Cortana, the Bing recommendation system, the HoloLens object recognition algorithm, the Skype translator, and it is even used by Microsoft Research to build state-of-the-art models.
But what exactly is CNTK? It is a Microsoft open source deep learning toolkit. Like other deep learning tools, CNTK is based on the construction of computational graphs and their optimization using automatic differentiation. The toolkit is highly optimized and scales efficiently (from CPU, to GPU, to multiple machines). CNTK is also very portable and flexible; you can use it with programming languages like Python, C#, or C++, but you can also use a model description language called BrainScript.
With CNTK you can define many different types of neural networks based on building block composition. You can build feed forward neural networks (you review how to implement one in this skill), Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN), Recurrent Neural Networks (RNN), Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM), Gated Recurrent Unit (GRU), and others. You can actually define almost any type of neural network, including your own modifications. The set of variables, parameters, operations, and their connections to each other are called are called computational graphs or computational networks.
As a first contact with the library, you create a Jupyter Notebook in which you adjust a linear regression to synthetic data. Although it is a very simple model and may not be as attractive as building a neural network, this example provides you an easier understanding of the concept of computational graphs. That concept applies equally to any type of neural network (including deep ones).
To follow the next example you need to install CNTK from https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/cognitive-toolkit/Setup-CNTK-on-your-machine. If you already have Python installed in your environment you only need to install CNTK using pip and the URL of the wheel package that you can find in a given website. Also, you can use an Azure Deep Learning Virtual Machine, a virtual machine with pre-installed deep learning tools. You review how to create one in the next sections.
The first thing you must include in your notebook is an import section. Import cntk, matplotlib for visualizations, and numpy for matrices. Note that the fist line is a special Jupyter Notebook syntax to indicate that the matplotlib plots must be shown without calling the plt.show method.
For this example, you use synthetic data. Generate a dataset following a defined line plus noise y_data = x_data * w_data + b_data + noise where the variable w_data is the slope of the line, b_data the intercept or bias term and noise is a random gaussian noise with standard deviation given by the noise_stddev variable. Each row in x_data and y_data is a sample, and n_samples samples are generated between 0 and scale.
The last line of the code fragment shows the dataset (see Figure 4-1).
You implement linear regression, so you would try to find an estimation of y, normally written as y_hat, using a straight line: y_hat = w*x + b. The goal of this process would be to find w and b values that make the difference between y and y_hat minimal. For this purpose, you can use the least square error (y – y_hat)2 as your loss function (also called target / cost / objective function), the function you are going to minimize.
In order to find these values using CNTK, you must create a computational graph, that is, define which are the system’s inputs, which parameters you want to be optimized, and what is the order of the operations. With all of this information CNTK, making use of automatic differentiation, optimizes the values of w and b iteration after iteration. After several iterations, the final values of the parameters approach the original values: w_data and b_data. In Figure 4-2 you can find a graphical representation of what the computational network looks like.
If you execute operations from left to right, it is called a forward pass. If you run the derivatives of each operation from right to left, it is a called backwards pass. Note that the graph also includes the loss calculation. The outputs of the ‘+’ node are the predictions y_hat and, from then on, the graph is computing the loss. The backward pass optimizes the parameter values (w and b) in such a way as to minimize the loss.
To define your computational graph in CNTK, just use the following lines of code.
Notice that everything here is a placeholder, no computation is done. This code only creates the computational graph. You can see it as a circuit, so you are connecting the different elements but no electricity is flowing. Notice that the ‘*’, ‘-‘ and ‘+’ operators are overloaded by CNTK, so in those cases the operators have a behavior different from the one they have in standard Python. In this case, they create nodes in the computational graph and do not perform any calculations.
Now paint the predictions of the model and the data on a plot. Of course, getting good predictions is not expected, since you are only preparing a visualization function that will be used later. The way in which the visualization is done is by evaluating the model at point x=0 and point x=10 (10 is the value of the scale defined when creating the dataset). After evaluating the model at these points, only one line is drawn between the two values.
The result of calling the plot function is shown in Figure 4-3. The initial values of w and b are 0, which is why a constant line is painted in 0.
Train the model using batch gradient descent (all samples are used in each iteration). You can do that because there is little data. The following script performs 600 iterations and every 50 iterations shows the model loss on the training data (it actually performs 601 iterations in order to show the loss in the last iteration). The learner used is Stochastic Gradient Descent (C.sgd) and uses a learning rate of 0.01.
Note that a test set is not being used and performance is being measured only on the training set. Even if it is not the most correct way to do it, it is a simple experiment that only aims to show how to create and optimize computational networks with CNTK.
Figure 4-4 shows the training output and the plot of the predictions. Now the prediction line is no longer zero and is correctly adjusted to the data.
This example is a very simple one, used to explain the key concepts of CNTK. There are a lot of operations (nodes in the computation graph) that can be used in CNTK; indeed there are losses already defined so you do not need to explicitly write the least square error manually (‘-‘ and ‘·2’ nodes), you can use a pre-defined operation that implements that loss. For example, you can replace loss = C.square(y – y_hat) with loss = C.squared_loss(y, y_hat). Defining the least squared error manually is trivial, but for complex ones is not so trivial. You see more examples in the next sections.
Although GPUs were initially created to perform computer graphics related tasks, they are now widely used for general-purpose computation (commonly known as general-purpose computing on Graphics Processing Units or GPGPU). This is because the number of cores that a graphics card has is much higher than a typical CPU, allowing parallel operations. Linear algebra is one of the cornerstones of deep learning and the parallelization of operations such as matrix multiplications greatly speeds up training and predictions.
Despite the fact that GPUs are cheaper than other computing hardware (clusters or supercomputers), it is true that buying a GPU can mean a large initial investment and may become outdated after a few years. Azure, the Microsoft cloud, provides solutions to these problems. It enables you to create virtual machines with GPUs, the N-Series virtual machines. Among the N-Series we find two types: the computation-oriented NC-Series and the visualization-oriented NV-Series. Over time, newer versions of graphics cards are appearing and you can make use of them as easily as scaling the machine.
Those machines are great for using the GPU but they need a previous configuration: installing NVIDIA drivers and installing common tools for data science (Python, R, Power BI…).
Visit the documentation to learn how to install NVIDIA drivers for GPUs on N-Series VMs at: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/virtual-machines/linux/n-series-driver-setup.
In this section you create a Deep Learning Virtual Machine (DLVM). This machine comes with pre-installed tools for deep learning. Go to Azure and search for it in the Azure Marketplace (see Figure 4-5).
The procedure is quite similar to creating any other VM. The only difference is when you have to select the size of the machine, which is restricted to NC-Series sizes (see Figure 4-6). For testing purposes select the NC6, which is the cheaper one.
Learn about the different GPU machines available in Azure at: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/virtual-machines/windows/sizes-gpu. Check the prices at: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/details/virtual-machines.
Once the machine is created you can connect to it by remote desktop and discover that it comes with a lot of tools installed. Figure 4-7 shows a screenshot of the desktop showing some of the pre-installed tools. This allows you to start development quickly without having to worry about installing tools. The Skill 4.2 lists most of the pre-installed applications that a Windows machine has.
Open a command window and check that the virtual machine has all the NVIDIA drivers installed and detects that the machine has a GPU connected. Use the command nvidia-smi to do this (see Figure 4-8).
After building a simple example of computation graph at the beginning of this skill, it is time to build a deep model using the same principles exposed there: create a differentiable computational graph and optimize it by minimizing a cost function. This time you use a famous handwritten digits dataset: MNIST (introduced in LeCun et al., 1998a). The MNIST dataset contains 70000 images of digits from 0 to 9. Images are black and white and have 28x28 pixels. It is common in the machine learning community to use this dataset for tutorials or to test the effectiveness of new models.
The Figure 4-9 shows the implemented architecture: a three-layer feed forward network. This type of networks is characterized by the fact that neurons between contiguous layers are all connected together (dense or fully connected layers). As has been said before, data are black and white 28x28 images, 784 inputs if the images are unrolled in a single-dimensional array. The neural network has two hidden layers of 400 and 200 neurons and an output layer of 10 neurons, one for each class to predict. In order to convert the neural network output into probabilities, softmax is applied to the output of the last layer.
This example is a modified version of the one located at: https://cntk.ai/pythondocs/CNTK_103C_MNIST_MultiLayerPerceptron.html.
Each of the neurons in the first layer are connected to all input pixels (784). This means that there is a weight associated with this connection, so in the first layer there are 400 neurons x 784 inputs weights. As in linear regression, each neuron has an intercept term. In machine learning this is also known as bias term. So, the total number of parameters of the first layer are 400 x 784 + 400 bias terms. To obtain the output value of a neuron, what is done internally is to multiply each input by its associated weight, add the results together with the bias and apply the ReLU activation function.
The neurons of the second layer are connected, rather than to the input pixels, to the outputs of the first layer. There are 400 output values from the fist layer and 200 neurons on the second. Each neuron of the second layer is connected to all the neurons of the fist layer (fully connected as before). Following the same calculations as before, the number of parameters of this second layer is 200 x 400 + 200. ReLU is also used as activation function in this layer.
The third and last layer has 10 x 200 + 10 weights. This layer does not use ReLU, but uses softmax to obtain the probability that a given input image is one digit or another. The first neuron in this layer corresponds to the probability of the image being a zero, the second corresponds to the probability of being a one and so on.
A great resource for learning about neural networks is the Geoffrey Hinton course at Coursera: https://www.coursera.org/learn/neural-networks. Another good resource is CS231n Convolutional Neural Networks for Visual Recognition at: http://cs231n.stanford.edu/.
Create a new Notebook for this exercise. If you are using a Deep Learning Virtual Machine you can run the Jupyter Notebook by clicking the desktop icon (see Figure 4-7).
First write all the necessary imports. Apart from numpy, matplotlib and cntk, you use sklearn to easily load the MNIST dataset.
Fetch the data, preprocess it and split it for training and test. The values of each pixel range from 0 to 255 in grayscale. In order to improve the performance of neural networks, always consider normalizing the inputs, which is why each pixel is divided between 255.
# Get the data and save it in your home directory.
# Split train and test.
Now that the data is loaded you can create the computational graph.
The variable hidden_layers is a list with the number of hidden neurons of each layer. If you add more numbers to the list, more layers are added to the final neural network. Those layers are initialized using Xavier Glorot uniform initialization (C.layers.glorot_uniform) and are using ReLU (C.ops.relu) as activation function. Xavier’s initialization is a way to set the initial weights of a network with the objective of increasing gradients to speed up training. ReLU activations are commonly used in deep nets because does not suffer from the vanishing gradient problem. The vanishing gradient problem refers to the fact that using sigmoids or hyperbolic tangents (tanh) as activation functions causes the backpropagation signal to degrade as the number of layers increases. This occurs because the derivatives of these functions are between 0 and 1, so consecutive multiplications of small gradients make the gradient of the first layers close to 0. A gradient close to zero means that the weights are practically not updated after each iteration. ReLU activation implements the function max(0, x), so the derivative when x is positive is always 1, avoiding the vanishing gradient problem.
Notice that this time you have used “multi-operation” nodes like the cross entropy and the dense layer. In this way there is no need to manually implement the Softmax function, or implement the matrix multiplication and bias addition that takes place under the wood in a Dense layer. Most of the time, CNTK manages the optimization of these nodes in an even more efficient way than implementing operation by operation.
Once the computational network has been built, all that remains is to feed it with data, execute forward passes, and optimize the value of the parameters with backward passes.
Probably the trickiest part of this script is the function minibatch_generator. This function is a Python generator and the variable get_minibatch contains an iterator that returns a different batch each time next(get_minibatch) is called. That part really has nothing to do with CNTK, it’s just a way to get different samples in each batch.
During the training, every 500 minibatches, information is printed on screen about the state of the training: number of minibatches, training loss, and the result of the model evaluation on a test set.
The output of the code fragment above is shown in Figure 4-10.
It is always convenient to display some examples of the test set and check the performance of the model. The following script creates a grid of plots in which random samples are painted. The title of each plot is the value of its label and the value predicted by the algorithm. If these values do not match, the title will be painted in red to indicate an error.
# The next two lines use argmax to pass from one-hot encoding to number.
Execute the code. If you use the same random seed, the samples should be like those in Figure 4-11. The value 2 has been chosen as seed because it offers samples in which errors have been made; other random seed values give fewer or no errors. A very interesting way to evaluate neural networks is to look at the errors. In the Figure 4-11 you can see that both misclassifications occur in numbers that are cut below. This kind of visualization can help you to discover bugs in data acquisition or preprocessing. Other common bugs that can be discovered visualizing errors are bad labeled examples, where the algorithm fails because it is actually detecting the correct class but the label is not correct.
The model is already properly trained and has been proven to work. The example ends here, but consider playing with some hyperparameters like the number of hidden layers/neurons, minibatch size, learning rate, or even other learners different to SGD.
In addition to what you have seen, CNTK offers you many options that have not been discussed: a lot of different operations and losses, data readers, saving trained models to disk, and loading them to later executions.
Visit the documentation to learn how to deploy your training models in different environments at: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/cognitive-toolkit/CNTK-Evaluation-Overview.
Get a complete description of each of the methods offered by the CNTK Python API at: https://www.cntk.ai/pythondocs/cntk.html.
You have seen something about neural nets on Azure Machine Learning in Skill 2.1. One section of that skill discussed how to create and train neural networks using the Azure Machine Learning module. It was mentioned that, in order to define the structure of the network, it was necessary to write a Net# script. An example was shown on how to construct a neural network with two hidden layers and an output of 10 neurons with Softmax activation. In fact, that example addressed the same problem as in the previous section: classification using the MNIST dataset. If we compare the four Net# lines and the dragging and dropping of Azure Machine Learning modules with the complexity of a CNTK script, you see that there is a big difference. This section lists the advantages and disadvantages of implementing your own neural network in CNTK as opposed to using the Azure Machine Learning module.
Specify how layers are to be connected to each other and define special connectivity structures, such as convolutions and weight sharing bundles.
It does not accept regularization (neither L2 nor dropout). This makes the training more difficult, especially with big networks. To avoid this problem, you have to limit the number of training iterations so that the network does not adjust too much to the data (overfitting).
The number of activation functions that you can use are limited and you cannot define your own activation functions either. For example, there is no ReLU activation that are commonly used in deep learning due to their benefits in backpropagation.
There are certain aspects that you cannot modify, such as the batch size of the Stochastic Gradient Descent (SGD). Besides that, you cannot use other optimization algorithms; you can use SGD with momentum, but not others like Adam, or RMSprop.
You cannot define recurrent or recursive neural networks.
Apart from the Net# limitations, the information provided during training in the output log is quite limited and cannot be changed (see Figure 4-12).
With all these shortcomings it is difficult to build a deep neural network that can be successfully trained. But apart from that Net# and log limitations, for deep architectures and to handle a high volume of data (MNIST is actually a small dataset), training a neural network in Azure Machine Learning can be very slow. For all those cases it is preferable to use a GPU-enabled machine. Another drawback of Azure Machine Learning is that it does not allow you to manage the resources dedicated to each experiment. Using an Azure virtual machine you can change the size of the machine whenever you need it.
In CNTK we have all the control during training. For instance, you can stop training when loss goes under a certain threshold. Something as simple as that cannot be done in Azure Machine Learning. All that control comes from the freedom you get from using a programming language.
Programming can become more difficult than managing a graphical interface such as in Azure Machine Learning, but sometimes building a neural network with CNTK is not that much more complicated than writing a complex Net# script. On the other hand, CNTK has a Python API, which is a programming language that is very common in data science and easy to learn. If programming is difficult for you, you should consider using tools like Keras. This tool is a high level deep learning library that uses other libraries like Tensorflow or CNTK for the computational graph implementation. You can implement a digit classifier with far fewer lines than those shown in the example in the previous section and with exactly the same benefits as using CNTK. Also, CNTK is an open source project, so there is a community that offers support for the tool and a lot of examples are available on the Internet.
Quite similar to Net#, there is a BrainScript language for CNTK that allows you to define models in a non-programmatic way. To learn more, visit: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/cognitive-toolkit/BrainScript-Network-Builder.
Deep learning models work very well, especially when working with tons of unstructured data. Those big models are almost impossible to implement in Azure Machine Learning due to the computation limitations, but for simple, small, and structured datasets, the use of Azure Machine Learning can be more convenient and achieve the same results as CNTK.
Figure 4-13 shows a summary table with all the pros and cons listed in this section. | 2019-04-22T00:43:00Z | https://www.microsoftpressstore.com/articles/article.aspx?p=2873371 |
Alexandria, Virginia (CNN) – A few hundred Mormons filed into a chapel just outside the Washington Beltway one recent Sunday to hear a somewhat unusual presentation: an Obama administration official recounting his conversion to Mormonism.
“I have never in my life had a more powerful experience than that spiritual moment when the spirit of Christ testified to me that the Book of Mormon is true,” Larry Echo Hawk told the audience, which stretched back through the spacious sanctuary and into a gymnasium in the rear.
Echo Hawk’s tear-stained testimonial stands out for a couple of reasons: The White House normally doesn’t dispatch senior staff to bare their souls, and Mormons hew heavily Republican. It’s not every day a top Democrat speaks from a pulpit owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
And yet the presentation by Echo Hawk, then head of the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs, is also a perfect symbol of a phenomenon that could culminate in Mitt Romney’s arrival at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue next year: The nation’s capital has become a Mormon stronghold, with Latter-day Saints playing a big and growing role in the Washington establishment.
The well-dressed crowd gathered for Echo Hawk’s speech was dotted with examples of inside-the-beltway Mormon power.
In one pew sits a Mormon stake president – a regional Mormon leader – who came to Washington to write speeches for Ronald Reagan and now runs a lobbying firm downtown.
Behind him in the elegant but plain sanctuary – Mormon chapels are designed with an eye toward functionality and economy – is a retired executive secretary of the U.S. Supreme Court.
A few pews further back, the special assistant to the U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan sits next to a local Mormon bishop who came to Washington to work for Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah and now leads a congressionally chartered foundation.
Mitt Romney, who would be the first Mormon president if elected, is the son of a Cabinet secretary under Richard Nixon.
Regardless of which party controls the White House, Mormonism in Washington has been growing for decades.
When Larsen arrived in Washington in the early ’80s, there were a just handful of Mormon meetinghouses in northern Virginia, where he lives. Today, there are more than 25, each housing three separate congregations, or wards, as they’re known in the LDS Church.
“There’s been an absolute explosion in Mormon growth inside the beltway,” Larsen says before slipping out of the pew to crank the air conditioning for the swelling crowd.
The LDS Church says there are 13,000 active members within a 10-mile radius of Washington, though the area’s Mormon temple serves a much larger population – 148,000 Latter-day Saints, stretching from parts of South Carolina to New Jersey.
Signs of the local Mormon population boom transcend the walls of the temple and meetinghouses.
Crystal City, a Virginia neighborhood just across the Potomac River from Washington, has become so popular with young Mormons that it’s known as “Little Provo,” after the Utah city that’s home to church-owned Brigham Young University.
Congress now counts 15 Mormon members, including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, according to the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. That means the 2% of the country that’s Mormon is slightly overrepresented on Capitol Hill.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, is the highest-placed elected Mormon in Washington.
Even many Latter-day Saints joke about Washington’s “Mormon mafia” – referring to the number of well-placed LDS Church members across town – though they cringe at the thought of being seen as part of some cabal. (Echo Hawk, for his part, left the Obama administration a few weeks after his chapel presentation for a job in the LDS Church hierarchy).
Bushman and other experts note that, despite Mormons’ growing political power, the official church mostly steers clear of politics. It’s hard to point to federal legislation or a White House initiative that bears distinctly Mormon fingerprints, while it’s easy to do the same for other faiths.
For example, the White House’s recent “compromise” on a rule that would have required religious groups to fund contraception for employees was mostly a reaction to pressure from Roman Catholic bishops.
Nonetheless, Mormon success in Washington is a testament to distinctly Mormon values, shedding light into the heart of one of America’s fastest-growing religions.
And though the official church is mostly apolitical, most rank-and-file Mormons have linked arms with the GOP. Romney’s own political evolution mirrors that trend.
Such forces help explain why Mormons’ beltway power is poised to grow even stronger in coming years, whether or not Romney wins the White House.
For many Washington Mormons, religion plays a key role in explaining why they’re here.
Larsen, who sports a brown comb-over and tortoise shell glasses, arrived in Washington in the early 1980s as an intern for Hatch, also a Mormon.
He landed the internship courtesy of Brigham Young University, his alma mater. The Mormon school owns a four-story dorm on Pennsylvania Avenue, not too far from the White House, which houses 120 student interns each year. It’s the school’s largest such program in the nation.
It’s a perfect characterization of Larsen. He grew up in Provo, in the shadow of BYU, and wanted to prove he could make it outside of Utah.
“Kids growing up in the LDS Church have been told, ‘Go ye out in the world and preach the gospel of Christ - don’t be afraid to be an example,’ ” Larsen said, sitting in the glass-doored conference room of the foundation he runs on K Street.
For Larsen, that usually means correcting misinformation about Mormonism or explaining Mormon beliefs and practices – you really don’t drink coffee, ever? – over lunch with co-workers or at business functions, rather than on-the-job proselytizing.
He learned about integrating work and faith from Hatch. He was initially shocked to discover that the senator prays in his office each morning. Larsen and Hatch developed what the bishop calls a “father-son” relationship, with the intern rising up through the ranks to become Hatch’s chief Washington fundraiser.
Now, as the head of a foundation that educates teachers about the U.S. Constitution, the bishop helps other young Mormons with job leads and introductions. Larsen was appointed to the role by Hatch and the late U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy.
Much of Washington’s Mormon professional network is still anchored by BYU, which operates a handful of big, well-connected alumni groups with major Washington chapters. The most prominent is BYU’s Management Society, a global organization whose biggest chapter is in Washington.
Patrice Pederson also knows how to work a Rolodex. A lifelong political activist, she moved from Utah to Washington last year and soon tapped into BYU’s local network.
Pederson served as the U.S.-based campaign manager for Yeah Samake, a Mormon running for president in the West African nation of Mali.
Samake traveled frequently to the U.S. to raise money and build political support, so Pederson enlisted the help of BYU’s Management Society and other groups to host events for the candidate.
Both in Washington and across the U.S., many Mormons are watching his candidacy.
“Members of the church on Capital Hill were anxious to introduce the candidate to other members of Congress,” says Pederson, sipping an herbal tea (Mormons eschew black leaf teas) in a strip mall Starbucks near her apartment in Alexandria, Virginia.
Beyond making connections, many Washington Mormons say the LDS Church provides an ideal proving ground for careers here.
Unlike most churches, it has no professional clergy; from the bishop to the organist, each role is filled by everyday Mormons, most of whom have other day jobs. As a result, Mormons take church leadership roles at an early age, speaking publicly at Sunday services almost as soon they learn to talk.
“My kids grew up in the church, and we get together for three hours on Sundays, and each member needs to get up and speak,” says U.S. Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah. “By the time they graduate, they have all these speaking assignments that other teenagers just don’t have.
U.S. Rep. Jason Chaffetz, a Utah Republican, says Mormonism provides ideal training for aspiring politicians.
“For those who grow up in the Mormon church, they are taught skills that allow them to be successful in a tough city like Washington,” says Chaffetz, who converted to Mormonism shortly after college.
Young Mormons also hone leadership skills by serving missions away from home. The missions last from one and half to two years and happen when Mormons are in their late teens and early 20s and often include intensive foreign language training.
Chaffetz, whose son is serving a mission in Ghana, says the experience is the perfect preparation for political careers.
Christina Tomlinson served her mission in nonexotic Fresno, California. But working with the Laotian community there, she acquired the foreign language skills that landed her first internship at the U.S. State Department.
When she arrived at her foreign service orientation in the late 1990s, Tomlinson was surprised to find that a half-dozen of her State Department colleagues were also Mormon. The thriving LDS community at State even runs its own e-mail list server so Latter-day Saints can find each other wherever in the world they’re stationed.
Like former presidential candidate Jon Huntsman, who used the Mandarin language skills acquired through a Mormon mission to Taiwan to help secure his job as President Barack Obama’s previous ambassador to China, Tomlinson leveraged her mission to get ahead at State, where she now serves as special assistant to the U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan.
“I’m basically the chief of staff for the president’s representative charged with implementing U.S. foreign policy towards Afghanistan and Pakistan,” she e-mailed on a recent plane ride back from the region.
Language skills acquired on a Mormon mission helped Christina Tomlinson get her start at the State Department.
But that distinctly Mormon patriotism was hard-won. From their very beginning, Mormons had tried to forge a special relationship with Washington. And for decades, they failed.
Joseph Smith, who founded Mormonism in the 1830s, petitioned the U.S. government to protect his fledgling religious community from the violent persecution it was experiencing, even meeting repeatedly with President Martin Van Buren.
But Washington refused, provoking Smith – who Mormons consider their founding prophet – to run for president himself in 1844. He was assassinated by an anti-Mormon mob in Illinois well before Election Day.
In the face of such attacks, Mormons fled west, to the territory that’s now Utah. But they continued to seek ties with Washington, dispatching representatives to the capital to lobby for statehood.
Congress refused to grant it. Instead, Uncle Sam disincorporated the LDS Church and sent the U.S. Army to police Mormon territory.
In the eyes of Washington, Latter-day Saints were flouting federal law by practicing polygamy. The feds saw the LDS Church as an undemocratic rival government that threatened Washington’s power.
Joseph Smith, Mormonism’s founding prophet, ran for president in 1844 but was killed before Election Day.
Mormons would eventually ban polygamy, paving the way for Utah statehood in 1896. But Congress nonetheless refused to seat the new state’s Mormon senator, who also served as a top church official.
For four years, the U.S. Senate held hearings to grill U.S. Sen. Reed Smoot and other church leaders, alleging that Mormons continued to practice polygamy despite promises to the contrary.
“The political trial was as much a galvanizing cultural moment as was Watergate,” says Kathleen Flake, a scholar of Mormonism at Vanderbilt University in Tenneessee.
When Smoot was eventually seated – after the LDS Church took further steps to stamp out polygamy – he managed to become a Washington powerbroker. He would chair the Senate Finance Committee and act as a presidential adviser.
Smoot’s unflagging pursuit of legitimacy in Washington, despite the city’s bias against him and his faith, symbolizes what many call a uniquely Mormon appreciation for American civic life. It helps explain the Mormon fascination with Washington to this day.
It may seen counterintuitive, but Mormons’ early exposure to persecution at the hands of other Americans – aided, Mormons say, by the U.S. government – wound up strengthening their patriotic streak.
In the face of attacks, Mormons clung to the U.S. Constitution and its unprecedented guarantee of religious freedom. They distinguished between the document and those charged with implementing it.
Mormon scripture goes so far as to describe the U.S. Constitution as divinely inspired, establishing a unique environment in which Mormonism could emerge.
Mormons began to shed their Utah-only siege mentality and fanned out in the early part of the 20th century. Their patriotic streak, which translated into military enlistments and applications for government jobs, led many to Washington.
That wave included J. Willard Marriott, the hotel chain founder, who launched his business career by opening an A&W root beer stand here. He would go on to forge the kind of deep political connections that would help make Willard “Mitt” Romney his namesake.
Washington’s Mormon community got another boost in the 1950s when President Dwight Eisenhower appointed a top church official, Ezra Taft Benson, as his agriculture secretary.
As Mormons became more accepted, they became more upwardly mobile, landing in parts of the country that could sustain careers in commerce, academia and government - another reason Washington was a big draw.
By the time there were enough Mormons in the eastern U.S. to justify the construction of the first Mormon temple east of the Mississippi River, the church chose a site just outside Washington.
The temple opened in 1974, shortly after another high-profile Mormon – George Romney, Mitt’s father – left his post as Richard Nixon’s secretary of Housing and Urban Development.
The Mormon temple outside Washington was the first such temple built east of the Mississippi River.
Unlike Mormon meetinghouses, where members meet for Sunday worship, temples are grander buildings reserved for certain rites, such as proxy baptisms for the dead.
To this day, the first monument many Washington visitors see isn’t a federal landmark. It’s the massive Mormon temple, its Georgian marble towers and gold-leafed spires looming above the trees on the Washington Beltway like an otherworldly castle.
The temple houses a J. Willard Marriott-financed mural of Jesus Christ’s second coming, which features a picture of the Washington temple itself in the background.
“Are you implying that the millennium will begin in Washington?” a temple visitor once asked Marriott, referring to Jesus’ return.
These days, the Mormon impulse toward Washington is often as much political as patriotic.
Patrice Pederson - the campaign manager for the Mormon running for president in Mali - made her first foray into politics at 15, hopping the bus from her home in the suburbs of Salt Lake City into town to intern with a Republican candidate for the U.S. House.
When then-Vice President Al Gore visited Utah, Pederson protested his speech with a homemade poster that said “Blood, Guts & Gore – Healthcare’94.” (She can’t recall the poster’s exact meaning).
Pederson’s path to D.C. speaks to the growing Mormon/Republican alliance since the 1960s, driven largely by the emergence of social issues such as abortion and gay marriage and the rise of the Christian Right.
Pederson’s roommate, Kodie Ruzicka, grew up squarely in that movement, with her mom heading the Utah chapter of Eagle Forum, a conservative Christian group founded by rightwing icon Phyllis Schlafly.
In the 1970s, when the Catholic Schlafly led a successful grassroots campaign against the Equal Rights Amendment, which would have made gender-based discrimination unconstitutional, she enlisted the help of Mormons.
To its opponents, including the LDS Church, the ERA was the work of radical feminists who wanted to upend traditional gender roles.
Today, Mormons head Eagle Forum chapters across the West, including California, Arizona and Nevada, as well as Utah.
Bridge-building between Mormons and the conservative movement helps explain the Reagan administration’s push to hire many Mormons into the White House - which further cemented the alliance. That bond continues to lure Mormons to D.C.
Ruzicka, for one, continued in the political footsteps of her mother, arriving in Washington in her mid-20s to lead a nonprofit that promotes safe haven laws, which allow young mothers to legally abandon young children at fire stations.
Beyond hot-button social issues, U.S. Rep. Chaffetz says the Mormon faith engenders support for limited government.
The LDS Church, for its part, insists it is politically neutral and that it avoids pressuring Mormon elected officials to tow a church line. “The church’s mission is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, not to elect politicians,” the church’s website says.
Mormon experts say the church’s support for a relatively strict separation of church and state is born of the U.S. government’s refusal to help Mormons in the face of early persecution.
And after being accused of setting up a rival government around the turn of the last century, the church is loath to be seen giving marching orders to LDS politicians.
The church did, however, play a leading role in passing Prop 8, California’s gay marriage ban, in 2008. Church officials called it a moral cause, not a political one.
Plenty of critics disagree. But neither Mormon bishops nor church officials are known to lead the kind of church-based legislative lobbying efforts that Catholic bishops or evangelical leaders do.
Mitt Romney himself embodies the reluctance of Mormon politicians to connect their religion and their public policy positions, in contrast to politicians of other faiths.
In recent weeks, Romney’s newfound position as the presumptive Republican presidential nominee has produced a mix of excitement and worry among Mormons. That’s especially true in Washington, where politically savvy Latter-day Saints send out frequent e-mail round-ups of Mormon media coverage to their LDS networks.
“A lot of us know it’s ultimately a good thing, but it’s hard to feel like it’s a good thing because so much of the publicity is about things you wouldn’t talk about in polite company, like my underwear,” says Pederson, referring to the enduring fascination with Mormon undergarments.
Like many conservatives, Pederson is suspicious of Romney.
For now, Pederson is working with the National Right to Life Committee’s political action committee to raise money for the Romney effort, even as she makes up her mind about how actively she wants to promote his candidacy.
Some of her calculus is about weighing political reality against her conservative idealism. And some of it is about her next professional move. It’s a very Washington place to be.
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LOL! Washington DC a mormon stronghold????? Emmm...not so much. Not only does Washington DC allow gay marriage, but Obama WON Washington DC last night. LOL! So much for the propaganda machine that is CNN, huh?
So, the past few months, I've been really concerned about a mormon in the White House because of my background with the mormon church (7th generation...ancestor even mentioned in the D&C) and how horrible I know it to truly be.
No more of CNN (which obviously supported Romnesia, the big hairy ape). No more fighting with a bunch of mormon propagandists. All that matters is that not only did creepy conservatrolls LOSE last night, but the mormon church lost the money it donated to stop gay marriage in Maryland and Maine. LOL! ON top of that, how many members are going to be questioning their religion now? After all that fasting and prayer, surely God would have seen the light and created a win for Romney, the chosen of the mormons and God himself. LOL! NOT!
So, no more of these boards. And NO more of cnn. In 4 years mormonism will be a skeleton of what it was. All of the things that have come out about it's REAL temple beliefs and godhood, etc, will hit Americans and they will put it up there with the likes of David Koresh. Younger generations are already leaving the church (I've been able to help 7 out of 13 of my nieces and nephews see the light of freedom) and as technology takes over, even more will leave behind the dinosaur led by a bunch of smelly, old, pathetic men, that is the mormon church. BYE LOSERS!!!!!
do a wiki search on the White Horse Prophecy. The Mormons have been trying to pull off this con for 150 years. And it is up to real Christians to stop them.
You are delusional! Joseph Smith was never convicted of anything. Just like Jesus Christ, he was innocent!
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The book I would have you read may not even mention unnios. I think our disagreements on this issue are rooted in fundamentally different views of human beings, the role of government, and individual liberty. I am merely curious to see how you would react to the contents of the book, which is called .Regarding all those links, I had already seen the first one, and I took a look at the others, but I don't think they prove anything. Correlation is not causation, and as the first article points out, there are all sorts of potential reasons why those 10 countries experience the success they do, and besides, judging happiness is sticky business to start with. For me, the objective is not to get the US onto a 10 happiest countries list but to allow people to make their own choices. The freedom to choose comes with consequences and the potential that people might choose to do things that don't bring them happiness. It's unfortunate that people make choices that don't bring them happiness, but I don't believe it's the role of the government to help people make better choices. If we need to have a federal government at all, it should be there to provide for the common defense. Otherwise, it should leave us alone. Every other service can easily be provided by the private sector at a much lower cost, and at much higher quality. Just look at the expense and low quality of almost all government run monopolies such as public schools, the post office, the banking system, etc..You may feel that the ends justify the means, that is, that forcing people to give up a portion of their income, provides greater happiness for society. Even if that could be proven to be true, I'd still be against it, because I think taxation is morally wrong. I see no difference between taxation and theft, except that thieves have the decency to not try and convince you that they're actually doing you a favor. Likewise with unnios, for the sake of argument let's say they lead to a happier society. For me, that still doesn't justify the labor laws we have in our country. Do I believe workers should be free to organize? Absolutely. But I also believe companies should have the right to fire any worker they discover has joined a union. If a company thinks there's a way to work out a win-win situation such that the workers get their union and the company finds a way to work with the union in such a way that it's actually a benefit for the company too, then great. But for the government to step in and tell a company they can't fire a worker for joining a union, or to tell an employee that if 50% of his co-workers vote for a union then he has to join it too, even if he doesn't want to, is, in my opinion, a gross miscarriage of the role of government and interferes with the rights of the employer and employee to negotiate on their own terms, without interference, and I think that is morally wrong for our government to have and exercise such power.I also believe that in the long-run freedom produces the best results, but that is a difficult thing to prove. Despite the contrast between the results of the Soviet and American experiments there are people who still think socialism is the way to go, and that the only reason it didn't work in the USSR is because the wrong people were in charge. I think that's ridiculous, and that socialism has failed and will ultimately fail everywhere it's tried, but intelligent people can be found on both sides of this issue, and likely always will be found on either side.Why did you put that bit about the Book of Abraham in there?
CNN WORLD report, in the war 6, 75,000 civilians killed, 7500 troops of USA and its allied forces killed 3 25 000 people wounded and $ 3.5 Trillion Dollar spent for the war. This spending of $ 3.5 Trillion Dollar is the main cause of action for the present economic crises prevailing all over the world.
After winning the war against IRAQ, the United States of America’s President Mr. George W.Bush, also admitted the same fact, and he openly stated that the Intelligence agency misguided him.
Later on, even the United Nations Organization (UNO) also certified that the IRAQ has no nuclear weapons.
I am fourth generation mormon and my family has always tried to live the teachings of Jesus Christ. There have been no divorces for 4 generations. We are not rich, but I would say prosperous with no unemployment. Some of the 5th generation have diverged from the gospel and among those divorce, unemployment, drugs, and general unhappiness and misery is rampant. I can see in my own family the fruits of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I am not saying the mormon religion is the only church that teaches the gospel. I am sure that there are families among other religions that have experienced the same fruits, but I am saying that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does teach the gospel of Jesus Christ and anyone who adheres to those teachings will see fruits of happiness, prosperity, peace and very probably good health as a result.
"I am fourth generation mormon and my family has always tried to live the teachings of Jesus Christ."
wait a sec whats wrong with trying to live like Christ?
Shep, we don't boss women around in Utah. Usually, it is the other way around. Maybe you and your wife should come to an LDS ward and find out what equality really is.
if Romney is elected, do we all get a Mormon harem? Cuz I'd be super into that... and the women would have to let us boss them around, just like in Utah, right? | 2019-04-26T16:22:30Z | http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2012/05/12/hfr-with-or-without-romney-d-c-a-surprising-mormon-stronghold/?hpt=hp_c2 |
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It will not pick up that the device is there at all. Ive looked everywhere for a driver for this cable Serial to USB. Thanks for your feedback, it helps us improve the site. In farm country, forget broadband.
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Is there any reason you need this specific model, instead of another card which would likely be supported by default in Win7? Packaging and Design The model is available in two color variations: The access to the efficient and high-end workstations Precision R can be realized by means of devices with the integrated Citrix Receiver. Email Required, but never shown. Search for drivers by ID or device name Known devices: Select type of offense: You’d be better off installing a bit OS and having done with.
Flaming or offending other users. Sign up using Facebook. Thank You for Submitting Your Review,! I am wondering if there is any the Davicom driver on bit windows. This is the first certified Citrix solution for the triggering in multi-GPU mode with 4 graphics adaptors and Citrix software XenServer6.
Note that your submission may not appear immediately on our site. Home Questions Tags Users Unanswered. The model features a bright design and some remarkable facilities that promise to make work and entertainment experience a delight.
The new workstation is intended for customers who got used to employ 3D technologies in medicine, media, software development, engineering and research fields, and who require the support of several users simultaneously on a single workstation. The Origin PC Chronos comes with a branded t-shirt and annd card box filled with all necessary stuff and instructions including the power cable and Wifi antennas.
This package supports the following driver models: Drivers may also be available for free directly from manufacturers’ websites. All the included …. If your computer is hard limited to 2GB then bit is going to be largely useless.
The chassis can be oriented horizontally or vertically, and the front Origin PC logo can be turned whichever way your prefer. Your message has been reported and will be reviewed by our staff.
Select type of offense: Since you’ve already submitted a review for this product, this submission will be added as an update to your original review. Promote cracked software, or other illegal content. Dell has taken a decisive step into the enlargement of its customer virtualization solutions and presented a new multi-user rack-mount workstation for the remote access Daviicom R Because my computer supports bit but the ethernet card driver doesn’t.
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The novelty is made in the case of SFF small form factorwhich means fairly compact dimensions – Especially if your hardware is not compatible with bit either. It runs at the nominal MHz frequency but can be overclocked to MHz; that makes 60 MHz more if compared with the etalon adapter.
I think the post meant “my computer would be limited to 2 GB”. But nowadays, everything has changed.
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The integrated IPS panel features the widest possible viewing angles — degrees in both aspects. Sort Date Most helpful Positive rating Negative rating. Enter the e-mail address of the recipient Add your own personal message: Select type of offense: The QF Silent fan rotates at the speed of —1, rpm and produces not more than Results 1—2 of 2 1. The display features Once reported, our staff will be notified and the comment will be reviewed.
The names are self-explanatory and suggest, that the difference between the two samples lies in the rotary speed and in the noise factor. In the first instance, the model positions itself as a solution for engineers, graphics professionals, animators as well as other people, searching for a large working area.
Both Cryorig products weigh According to this, there are releases of less productive CPU, but working with a moderate price tag. Therewith, the user gets a tool which combines 4 monitors within a single display. Some have a non-working cache or part thereofother — xcores, and others — a graphics block, and a fourth — a weak memory controller. Login or create an account to post a review.
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Same prob let us know if u find a fix. Why do none of the drivers want to install on Windows 10? I have the same problem with my E 64 bit. Share This Page Tweet. You must log in or sign up to reply here. What else can I try to get this reader working again with vista sp2 the smart card reader was working fine with the broadcom driver?
Tuesday, May 12, This is a service that Microsoft provides to help these manufacturers to distribute their drivers.
Mark, I’ve installed the three ControlPoint programs you listed above, and still do not have a driver for the Smart Card in Windows 7.
Seems we ALL are in the same boat What else can I try to get this reader working again with vista sp2 the smart card reader was working fine with the broadcom driver?
Did you solve the problem? Dell should have the drivers for it but i don’t see them on the website I think there are several packages you need to install to get this to work. The last updates BIOS and security were most welcome because I can use my fingerprint reader for security purpose now. EXE seems to have solved the issue.
The Dell site has drivers that will not install the upgrade on the new windows 10 that is unsupported. Mike – What laptop do you have? Friday, July 10, contadted Friday, August 6, 2: Do you already have an account? Windows 7 Hardware Compatibility https: Sunday, September 27, 6: Check with the computer manufacturer for updated drivers for that device. Thanks, Mark Want to know if your hardware will work on Windows 7?
They provide much coolness in a product without even being able to support it. I know it’s based on the Broadcom chipset, but not much else. Friday, September 18, 8: If you already know how to do it I will really appreciate your help. All of the drivers that are contained on the Windows installation disk and on Windows Update are placed there by the manufacturers of the devices.
Now my next step was to test both card reader, but I can’t even find a card that works! I have run my applicattion using the contact interface but I would like to use it whith the RFID contactless interface.
Thursday, October 29, 3: Hello aidanc, I have the same laptop and the same problem than you. Speed of the various security apps using TPM was much improved.
Windows 7 IT Pro. The laptop is a Dell Latitude E You latithde contact me on: Smart card was not working after installing winfows 10m but updating the controlpoint driver http: Ask there about any known issues with this particular hardware device or if the device is no longer supported.
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Asus Cp Desktop Pc was fully scanned at: Asus Cp Desktop Pc X How to enhance the performance of your Windows 7 Operating System with aasus help of Windows 7 Manager? Security enhancements in Windows 7 Starter Security has been the most prominent issue for IT professionals since the introduction of computers.
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I searched google i can not find the driver for my video card can not be found even on the official website. Windows 7 Forums is an independent web site and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Microsoft Corporation. Regards, Anusha 2 people were helped by this reply. I suggest you to down the AMD driver auto detect tool and then it will AutoDetect and will you in installing drivers:. Hi, Thank you for contacting Microsoft Community. To see more matches, use our custom search engine to find the exact driver.
I just want to give x50 a link where to take off because the driver can not be found. Thanks for marking this as the answer.
There is no driver for windows 7 for this wijdows card, only The machine just keeps rebooting itself, getting the same message, then repeating over and over.
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Follow the directions on the installation program screen. As far as I know, these drivers are only for Windows XP. Thanks Graphic Cards Ati radeon x help I have seven windows and If a language option is given, select your language.
But I did it but i can not find the graphics card menu called ATI Radeon x x x Series i can not find the Step 2 Could you let me do these steps and send me the link then After clicking Display reults Thank you. The time now is This site in other languages x. I can someone help? How to Install Drivers After you have found the right driver for your device and operating system, follow these simple instructions to install it.
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Find More Posts by matthatter. I am using a Sony DDLex as my monitor. Reconnect the device and power it on. To see more matches, use our custom search engine to find the exact driver. I searched google radfon can not find the driver for my video card can not be found even on the official website. Hi, Thank you for contacting Microsoft Community.
See your other post as it probably is the same answer. When it gets to the point to restart for first use, I get the BSoD and “The device driver got stuck in an infinite loop”.
My system says that i have old 6. Visit intel gbv motherboard following links: All times are GMT Gilberto gil refavela Central America, drivers must yield the right-of-way to pedestrians. You can also follow this intel gbv motherboard and read more about what Intel has to say about it. Welcome to Windows 7 Intel gbv motherboard. Introduction to Linux — A Hands on Guide This guide was created as an overview of the Linux Operating System, geared toward new users as an exploration tour and getting started bbv, with exercises at the end of each chapter.
At the official site intel says they don’t support gbv for ijtel Also, how do I log on to an Dear all, is there any way i can install windows 7 drivers on intel gbv motherboard?
After the process of flashing my bios was over, I restarted my computer, intel gbv motherboard it would not start again.
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Find whois registry for email addresses. Can i install windows 8 with intel pentium processor?
I double-checked it with my Canopus Riva running at Mhz. Find More Posts by pebbly. BSOD with install of Intel Graphics driver or install of graphics card Hi, I’ve completed a new custom build, but have had problems with BSOD from the beginning with any installation of Intel Graphics drivers or the installation of any graphics card.
Can’t install intel drivers. Welcome to Windows 7 Forums.
You kntel use more force and push it in but AOpen could have come up with a better design. If it is possible to upgrade to mb, then do intfl. Can i install windows 8 with this processor? Is it a Gateway PC? You must log in or sign inteo to reply here. Please contact system vendor for more information on specific products or systems. Note that ECC intel bx zx support requires both processor and chipset support. She also facilitated the process by communicating with intel gbv motherboard and my tech support simultaneously.
So far all looks good. You can install the vista drivers. I put the CPU back to Mhz and all the games worked again.
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Soil salinity and sodicity are two main factors limiting plant growth in irrigated agricultural land. Sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) and exchangeable sodium percentage (ESP) are two different criteria as an index of soil sodicity and salinity. Various approximate relationships between ESP and SAR have been reported for soils in different regions of the world. Since there is possibility that these relationships change substantially with clay content, mineralogy, salinity of equilibrium solution, and saturation percentage of soils, it seems essential doing specific studies for different regions. The purpose of this research was to i) find the relationship between ESP and SAR, and ii) estimate the ESP from SAR in alluvial soils of Sistan, the dry plain in east of Iran. Thus, 301 soil samples were collected from study area and analyzed. The best linear and logarithmic equations found between ESP and SAR using Datafit software were ESP = 8.89 × ln(SAR1:1) + 14.04 and ESP = 8.73 × ln(SAR1:5) + 14.59, that ESP variation was justified 78% and 76%, respectively. Then, the multi-layer perceptron neural network (MLP) and ANFIS system performance were investigated in order to estimate ESP. Results showed superior performance of MLP and ANFIS compared with the regression models. ESP estimation from SAR1:1 using ANFIS was more accurate than other models (coefficient of determination and root mean square error values were 0.99 and 0.014, respectively). These results indicate the superiority of the intelligent models in order to explain the relationship between ESP and SAR over linear and non-linear regression equations.
Gas hydrate provinces are present in at least in two areas along Brazil’s continental margin: (1) the Rio Grande Cone in the southeast, and (2) the Amazon deep-sea fan in the equatorial region. The occurrence of gas hydrates in these depocentres was first detected geophysically and has recently been proven by seafloor sampling of gas vents, detected as water column acoustic anomalies rising from seafloor depressions (pockmarks) and/or mounds, many associated with seafloor faults. The gas vents include typical features of cold seep systems, including shallow sulphate reduction depths (<4 m), authigenic carbonate pavements and chemosynthetic ecosystems. In both areas, gas sampled in hydrate and in sediments is dominantly formed by biogenic methane. Calculation of the methane hydrate stability zone for water temperatures in the two areas shows that gas vents occur along its feather edge (water depths between 510-760 m in the Rio Grande Cone and 500-670 m in the Amazon deep-sea fan) but also in deeper waters within the stability zone. Gas venting along the feather edge of the stability zone could reflect gas hydrate dissociation and release to the oceans, as inferred on other continental margins, or upward fluid flow through the stability zone facilitated by tectonic structures recording the gravitational collapse of both depocentres. The potential quantity of venting gas on the Brazilian margin under different scenarios of natural or anthropogenic change require further investigation. The studied areas provide a natural laboratory where these critical processes can be analysed and quantified.
Knowledge about the liquefaction vulnerability in Pariaman city which is prone to an earthquake is very much needed in disaster mitigation based spatial planning. The liquefaction is an event of loss of the strength of the sandy soil layer caused by the vibration of the earthquake, where the liquefaction occurs in the sandy soil layer which has loose material in the form of sand that is not compact or not solid. This research was conducted by analyzing the potential of liquefaction vulnerability based on the Conus penetration to produce Microzonation of the susceptibility of subsidence due to liquefaction at 4 locations in Pariaman city, i.e., Marunggi village, Taluak village, Pauh Timur village and Padang Birik-Birik village. The Conus penetration testing is carried out using the piezocone (CPTU) method and mechanical Cunos penetration, and approach using Geographic Information System (GIS). The results showed that the potential of liquefaction was found at the sandy soil layer of sand and a mixture of sand and silt, which is characterized by the value of Cunos resistance and local resistance each smaller than 15 MPa and 150 kPa at varying depths. Based on the results of the analysis using this method, the critical conditions of liquefaction found in the medium sandy soil to solid. The fine sand layer which has the potential for liquefaction is in sand units formed from coastal deposits, coastal ridges and riverbanks. This liquefaction vulnerability zones analysis is limited to a depth of 6.00 m due to the limitations of the equipment used. The results of the analysis show that the fine sand layer which has the potential for liquefaction occurs at a depth of> 1.00-6.00 m with the division of zones, i.e., 1) High liquefaction in the sandy soil layer which has a critical acceleration (a) <0.10 g with shallow groundwater surface; 2) Medium liquefaction in the sandy soil layer which has a critical acceleration (a) between 0.10–0.20 g with shallow groundwater surface; and 3) Low and very low liquefaction in the sandy soil layer which has a critical acceleration (a) between 0.20–0.30 g with an average groundwater deep enough surface.
Here are analysed data taken in two hydrocarbon fields ("A" and "B"), located in the western part of Sava Depression (North Croatia). They are in the secondary phase of production. The selected reservoirs "L" (in the “A” Field) and "K" (“B”) are of the Lower Pontian (Upper Miocene) age and belong to Kloštar-Ivanić Formation. Due to strong tectonics, there are numerous tectonic block, relatively rarely sampled with well and laboratory tests. Here are selected two variables for interpolation - reservoirs permeabilities and the injected volumes of field water. The following interpolation methods are described, compared and applied: Nearest Neighbourhood, Natural Neighbour (the first time in the Sava Depression) and Inverse Distance Weighting. The last one has been proven as the most appropriate for datasets with size lower than 20 points.
The Koka gold deposit is located in the Elababu shear zone between the Nakfa terrane and the Adobha Abiy terrane, NW Eritrea. Based on the paragenetic study two main stages of gold mineralization were identified in the Koka gold deposit: 1) an early stage of pyrite-chalcopyrite-sphalerite-galena-gold-quartz vein; and 2) a second stage of pyrite-quartz veins. NaCl-aqueous inclusions, CO2-rich inclusions, and three-phase CO2-H2O inclusions occur in the quartz veins at Koka. The ore-bearing quartz veins formed at 268℃, from NaCl-CO2-H2O(-CH4) fluids averaging 5 wt% NaCl eq. The ore-forming mechanisms include fluid immiscibility during stage I, and mixing with meteoric water during stage II. Oxygen, hydrogen and carbon isotopes suggest that the ore-forming fluids originated as mixtures of metamorphic water, meteoric water and magmatic water, whereas sulfur isotope suggest an igneous origin. Features of geology and ore-forming fluid at Koka deposit are similar to those of orogenic gold deposits, suggesting the Koka deposit might be an orogenic gold deposit related to granite.
Subject: Earth Sciences, Geology; drought, SPI index, Markov chain, Iran.
Presented is semivariogram and the Ordinary Kriging analyses of porosity data from the Sava Depression (Northern Croatia), as part of the Croatian part of the Pannonian Basin System. Data are taken from hydrocarbon reservoirs of the Lower Pontian (Upper Miocene) age, which belongs to the Kloštar-Ivanić Formation. Original datasets had been jack-knifed with purpose to “artificially” increased data and calculate the more reliable semivariograms. The results showed that such improvements can assist in the interpolation of more reliable maps. The both sets, made by original and jack-knifed data, need to be compared using geological recognition of non-allowed shapes (“bull-eyes”, “butterfly effects”) as well as cross-validation results. That comparison made possible to select the most appropriate porosity interpolation.
This paper introduces an application of R programming language for geostatistical data processing with a case study of the Mariana Trench, Pacific Ocean. The formation of the Mariana Trench, the deepest among all hadal oceanic depth trenches, is caused by complex and diverse geomorphic factors affecting its development. Mariana Trench crosses four tectonic plates: Mariana, Caroline, Pacific and Philippine. The impact of the geographic location and geological factors on its geomorphology has been studied by methods of statistical analysis and data visualization using R libraries. The methodology includes following steps. Firstly, vector thematic data were processed in QGIS: tectonics, bathymetry, geomorphology and geology. Secondly, 25 cross-section profiles were drawn across the trench. The length of each profile is 1000-km. The attribute information has been derived from each profile and stored in a table containing coordinates, depths and thematic information. Finally, this table was processed by methods of the statistical analysis on R. The programming codes and graphical results are presented. The results include geospatial comparative analysis and estimated effects of the data distribution by tectonic plates: slope angle, igneous volcanic areas and depths. The innovativeness of this paper consists in a cross-disciplinary approach combining GIS, statistical analysis and R programming.
The Malyy (Little) Murun massif of the Aldan Shield of the Siberian Craton has long been a kind of the geologists’ Siberian Mecca. It attracted thousands of geologists, prospectors and mineral collectors despite of its remote location. It is famous for a dozen of new and rare minerals, including gemstones charoite and dianite (the latter is the market name for strontian potassicrichrerite), as well as for specific alkaline igneous rocks. Despite of this, the age of the Malyy Murun igneous complex and associated metasomatic and hydrothermal mineral associations remained poorly constrained. In this paper, we provide extensive 40Ar/39Ar geochronological data to reveal its age and temporal history. It appeared that being unique in terms of rocks and constituent minerals, the Malyy Murun is one of multiple alkaline massifs and lavas emplaced in Early Cretaceous (~137-128 Ma) within a framework of extensional setting of the Aldan Shield and nearby Transbaikalian region. The extension has occurred 40-60 million years after the supposed closure of the Mongolia-Okhotsk Ocean and peak of orogeny in Early-Middle Jurassic.
Geologists employ high-spatial-resolution (HR) remote sensing (RS) data for many diverse applications as they effectively reflect detailed geological information, enabling high-quality and efficient geological surveys. Applications of HR RS data to geological and related fields have grown recently. By analyzing these applications, we can better understand the results of previous studies and more effectively use the latest data and methods to efficiently extract key geological information. HR optical remote sensing data are widely used in geological hazard assessment, seismic monitoring, mineral exploitation, glacier monitoring, and mineral information extraction due to high accuracy and clear object features. Compared with optical satellite images, synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) images are stereoscopic and exhibit clear relief, strong performance, and good detection of terrain, landforms, and other information. SAR images have been applied to seismic mechanism research, volcanic monitoring, topographic deformation, and fault analysis. Furthermore, a multi-standard maturity analysis of the geological applications of HR images using literature from the Science Citation Index reveals that optical remote sensing data are superior to radar data for mining, geological disaster, lithologic, and volcanic applications, but inferior for earthquake, glacial, and fault applications. Therefore, geological remote sensing research needs to be truly multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary, ensuring more detailed and efficient surveys through cross-linking with other disciplines. Moreover, the recent application of deep learning technology to remote sensing data extraction has improved automatic processing and data analysis capabilities.
The acquisition of high resolution morpho-bathymetric data on the Calabro Tyrrhenian continental margin (Southern Italy) enabled us to identify several mass-wasting processes, including shallow gullies, shelf-indenting canyons and landslides. In particular, we focus our attention on submarine landslides occurring from the coast down to -1700 m, with mobilized volumes ranging from some hundreds up to tens of millions of cubic meters. These landslides also show a large variability of geomorphic features in the headwall, translational and toe domain. Based on their morphology and distribution, four main classes of coastal/submarine landslides have been recognized: a) rocky coastal/shallow-water failures characterized by large hummocky deposits offshore; b) large-size and isolated scars with associated landslide deposits, mostly occurring on open slope environment and lower part of tectonically-controlled escarpments; c) a linear array of coalescent and nested landslide scars occurring in the upper part of tectonically-controlled escarpments and canyon flanks; d) a cauliflower array of small and coalescent scars occurring in canyon headwall. The latter two classes of landslides are also characterized by a marked retrogressive evolution and their landslide deposits are generally not recognizable on the morpho-bathymetric data. By integrating the morpho-bathymetric dataset with the results of previous studies, we also discuss the main factors controlling the variability in size and morphology of these submarine landslides to provide insights on their failure and post-failure behavior.
Carbonate precipitation induced by microorganism has become a hot spot in the field of carbonate sedimentology, while the effect of different magnesium on biominerals has rarely been studied. Therefore, magnesium sulfate and magnesium chloride were used to investigate the significant role played on carbonate minerals. In this study, Staphylococcus epidermidis Y2 was isolated and identified by 16S rDNA homology comparison. The ammonia, pH, carbonic anhydrase, carbonate and bicarbonate ions were investigated. The mineral phase, morphology and elemental composition were analyzed by XRD and SEM-EDS. The ultrathin slices of bacteria were analyzed by HRTEM-SAED and STEM. The result showed that this bacterium could release ammonia and carbonic anhydrase to increase pH, and elevate the supersaturation via a large number of carbonate and bicarbonate ions released through carbon dioxide hydration catalyzed by carbonic anhydrase. The crystal cell density of monohydrocalcite was lower in magnesium chloride medium than that in magnesium sulfate medium. The crystal grew in a mode of spiral staircas in magnesium sulfate medium, while in a concentric circular pattern in magnesium chloride medium. There was no obvious intracellular biomineralization. This study may be helpful to further understand the biomineralization mechanism, may also provide some references for the reconstruction of paleogeological environment.
The active debate about the processes governing the organic-rich sediment deposition generally involves the relative roles of elevated primary productivity and enhanced preservation related to anoxia. However, other less spotlighted factors could have a strong impact on such deposits: e.g. residence time into the water column (bathymetry), sedimentation rate, transport behavior of organo-mineral floccules on the sea floor. They are all strongly interrelated and may be obscured in the current conceptual models inspired from most representative modern analogues (i.e. upwelling zones and stratified basins). To improve our comprehension of organic matter distribution and heterogeneities, we conducted a sensitivity analysis on the processes involved in organic matter production and preservation which have been simulated within a 3D stratigraphic forward model. The Lower-Middle Toarcian of the Paris Basin was chosen as a case study as it represents one of the best documented example of marine organic matter accumulation. The relative influence of the critical parameters (bathymetry, diffusive transport, oxygen mixing rate and primary production) on the output parameters (Total Organic Carbon, and oxygen level), determined performing a Global Sensitivity Analysis, shows that, in the context of a shallow epicontinental basin, a moderate primary productivity (> 175 gC.m-².yr-1) can led to local anoxia and organic matter accumulation. We argue that, regarding all the processes involved, the presence and distribution of organic-rich intervals is linked as a first-order parameter to the morphology of the basin (e.g. ramp slope, bottom topography). These interpretations are supported by very specific ranges of critical parameters which allowed to obtain output parameter values in accordance with the data. This quantitative approach and its conclusions open new perspectives about the understanding of global distribution and preservation of organic-rich sediments.
Selenium-rich Au-Ag mineralization has been discovered in the Kremnica ore district, central Slovakia. The mineralization is hosted by a single quartz-dolomite vein hosted by Neogene propyllitized andesites of the Kremnica stratovolcano. Ore mineralogy and crystal chemistry of individual ore minerals have been studied here. The early base-metal ore mineralization composed of pyrite, sphalerite and chalcopyrite lacks selenium, whereas the superimposed Au-Ag paragenesis is Se-enriched. The Au-Ag alloys, uytenbogaardtite, minerals of the galena-clausthalite series, acanthite-naumannite series, diaphorite, miargyrite, pyrargyrite-proustite, polybasite group, minerals of the tetrahedrite group and andorite branch (andorite IV, andorite VI, Ag-excess fizélyite), freislebenite, and rare Pb-Sb sulphosalts (scaiinite, robinsonite, plagionite) have been identified here. Besides selenides, the most Se-enriched phases are miargyrite, proustite-pyrargyrite, and polybasite-pearceite, whose Se contents are among the highest reported worldwide. In addition, one new phase has been found, corresponding to a Se-analogue of pearceite containing 2.08 - 3.54 apfu Se. The style of mineralization, paragenetic situation, and chemical trends observed in individual minerals are comparable to those of Au-Ag low-sulphidation epithermal Au-Ag mineralizations of the Kremnica and neighboring Štiavnica and Hodruša-Hámre Ore Districts, however, the pronounced enrichment in selenium is a specific feature of the studied vein only.
Subject: Earth Sciences, Geology; platinum-group elements, silver, gold, Pd-tellurides, porphyry Cu-Mo, Rio Blanco –Los Bronces, Chile.
Porphyry copper-molybdenum deposits (PCDs) are the world’s most important source of copper, molybdenum and rhenium. Previous studies have reported that some PCDs can have sub-economic to economic grades of critical metals, i.e., those elements that are both essential for modern societies and subject to the risk of supply restriction (e.g., platinum group elements (PGE), rare earth elements (REE), In, Co, Te, Ge, Ga, among others). Even though some studies have reported measured concentrations of Pd and Pt in PCDs, their occurrence and mineralogical form remain poorly constrained. Furthermore, these reconnaissance studies have focused predominantly on porphyry Cu-Au deposits, but very limited information is available for porphyry Cu-Mo systems. In this contribution, we report the occurrence of critical metal (Pd, Pt, Au, Ag, and Te) inclusions in copper sulfides from the world’s largest PCD, the supergiant Río Blanco-Los Bronces deposit in central Chile. Field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) observations of chalcopyrite and bornite from the potassic alteration zone reveal the presence of micro- to nano-sized particles (<1-10 μm) of noble metals, most notably Pd, Au, and Ag. The high-resolution data show that these inclusions are mostly tellurides, such as merenskyite [PdTe2], Pd-rich hessite [Ag2Te], sylvanite [(Ag, Au)Te2] and petzite [Ag3AuTe2]. The data point to Pd (and probably Pt) partitioning in copper sulfides during the high-temperature potassic alteration stage, opening new avenues of research aimed at investigating not only the mobility of PGE during mineralization and partitioning into sulfides, but also at evaluating the potential of porphyry Cu-Mo deposits as a source for noble metals.
This work describes and interprets the presence of heavy minerals in the western Portuguese continental margin using a set of 78 bottom samples collected from 3 distinct areas of this margin: Porto, Aveiro and Nazaré canyon head areas. The main transparent heavy mineral suite (minerals with frequencies >10%), is composed by amphiboles (hornblende), mica (biotite), andalusite, tourmaline and garnet. A secondary suite (minerals with frequencies between 1 and 10%), is composed by pyroxene (enstatite, diopside and augite), staurolite, zircon and apatite. With very low frequency representing less than 1% we found rutile, olivine, kyanite, monazite, epidote, sphene, anatase, sillimanite and brookite. The main primary sources (igneous and metamorphic rocks) explain the presence of these minerals. However, the application of the principal component analysis, with a previous application of the centered log ratio transformation of the heavy mineral data, also stresses for the importance of the grain sorting as a process in controlling the heavy mineral occurrence. The importance of this process is mostly sustained by the distribution pattern of mica and of the most flattened amphibole grains in a way that these particles tend to have a hydraulic affinity to finer grained sediments.
This paper examines the effect of the aggregate type on concrete strength and more specifically how the petrographic characteristics of various aggregate rocks as well as their physico-mechanical properties influences the durability of C 25/30 strength class concrete. The studied aggregate rocks are derived from Veria-Naousa and Edessa ophiolitic complexes as well as granodiorite and albitite rocks from their surrounding areas in central Macedonia (Greece). Concretes are produced with constant volume proportions, workability, mixing and curing conditions using different sizes of each aggregate type. Aggregates were mixed both in dry and water saturated states in concretes. Six different types of aggregates were examined and classified in three district groups according to their physicomechanical properties, petrographic characteristics and surface texture. The classification in groups after the concrete compressive strength test verified the initial classification in the same three groups. Group I (ultramafic rocks) presents the lowest concrete strengths, depending on their high alteration degree and the low mechanical properties of ultramafic aggregates. Group II (mafic rocks and granodiorite) presents a wide range of concrete strengths, depending on different petrographic characteristics and mechanical properties. Group III (albite rocks) presents the highest concrete strengths, depending on their lowest alteration degree and their highest mechanical properties. Therefore mineralogy and microstructure of the coarse aggregates affects the final strength of the concrete specimens.
Field and numerical investigations at Happisburgh, East coast of England, UK, sought to characterize beach thickness and determine geologic framework controls on coastal change. After a major failure of coastal protection infrastructure, removal of about 1 km of coastal defense along the otherwise protected cliffed coastline of Happisburgh triggered a period of rapid erosion over 20 years of ca. 140 m. Previous sensitivity studies suggested that that beach thickness plays a major role in coastal recession. These studies were limited, however, by a lack of beach volume data. In this study, we have integrated the insights gained from our understanding of the Quaternary geology of the area, a novel non-intrusive passive seismic survey method, and a 3D novel representation of the subsurface source and transportable material into a coastal modelling environment to explore the role of beach thickness on the back wearing and down wearing of the cliffs and consolidated platform, respectively. Results show that beach thickness is non-homogeneous along the study site: we estimate that the contribution to nearshore sediment budget via platform down wearing is of a similar order of magnitude as sediment lost from the beach and therefore non-negligible. We have provided a range of evidence to support the idea that the Happisburgh beach is a relatively thin layer perched on a sediment rich platform of sand and gravel. This conceptualization differs from previous publications, which assumes that the platform was mostly till and fine material. This has direct implication on the regional sediment management of along this coastline. The present study contributes to our understanding of a poorly known aspect of coastal sediment budgeting and outlines a quantitative approach that allows for simple integration of geological understanding for coastline evolution assessments worldwide.
Subsurface temperature is the key parameter in geothermal exploration. An accurate estimation of the reservoir temperature is of high importance and usually done either by interpolation of borehole temperature measurement data or numerical modeling. However, temperature measurements at depths which are of interest for deep geothermal applications (usually deeper than 2 km) are generally sparse. A pure interpolation of such sparse data always involves large uncertainties and usually neglects knowledge of the 3D reservoir geometry or the rock and reservoir properties governing the heat transport. Classical numerical modeling approaches at regional scale usually only include conductive heat transport and do not reflect thermal anomalies along faults created by convective transport. These thermal anomalies however are usually the target of geothermal exploitation. Kriging with trend does allow including secondary data to improve the interpolation of the primary one. Using this approach temperature measurements of depths larger than 1,000 m of the federal state of Hessen/Germany have been interpolated in 3D. A 3D numerical conductive temperature model was used as secondary information. This way the interpolation result reflects thermal anomalies detected by direct temperature measurements as well as the geological structure. This results in a considerable quality increase of the subsurface temperature estimation.
Western Europe is the region with the highest density of published speleothem δ18O (δ18Ospel) records worldwide. Here we review these records in light of the recent publication of the Speleothem Isotopes Synthesis and Analysis (SISAL) database . We investigate how representative the spatial and temporal distribution of the available records is for climate in Western Europe, and review potential sites and strategies for future studies. We show that spatial trends in precipitation δ18O are mirrored in the speleothems, providing means to better constrain the factors influencing δ18Ospel at a specific location. Coherent regional δ18Ospel trends are found over stadial-interstadial transitions of the last glacial, especially in high altitude Alpine records. Over the Holocene, regional trends are less clearly expressed, due to lower signal-to-noise ratios in δ18Ospel, but can potentially be extracted with the use of statistical methods. Overall, this first assessment highlights the potential of the European region for speleothem palaeoclimate reconstruction, while underpinning the importance of knowledge of local factors for a correct interpretation of δ18Ospel.
The ultramafic-hosted Kairei vent field, located at 25°19′S, 70°02′E towards the northern end of the segment 1 of the Central Indian Ridge (CIR-S1) in a water depth of ~2450 m. This study aims to investigate the distribution of trace elements among sulfides of differing textures, and discuss the possible factors controlling the trace element distribution in those minerals by using LA-ICP-MS spot analyses as well as line scans. Our results show that there are distinct systematic trace element distributions throughout the different minerals：(1) Pyrite is divided into three types at the Kairei, including early-stage euhedral pyrites (py-I), sub-euhedral pyrites (py-II), and colloform pyrites (py-III). Pyrite is generally enriched in Mo, Au, As, Tl, Mn, and U. py-I have higher contents of Se, Te, Bi, and Ni, py-II are enriched in Au relative to py-I and py-III, but poor in Ni, py-III are enriched in Mo, Pb, and U but are poor in Se, Te, Bi, and Au. Variations in the concentrations of Se, Te, and Bi in pyrite are likely governed by the strong temperature gradient. Ni is generally lower than Co in pyrites, indicates that our samples precipitated at a high-temperature condition, whereas the extreme Co enrichment is likely from a magmatic heat source combined serpentinization reactions underlie the deposits. (2) Chalcopyrite is characterized by high concentrations of Co, Se, Te. The abundant of Se and Te in chalcopyrite cause by the high solubilities of Se and Te incorporated into chalcopyrite lattice at high temperature fluids. The concentration of Sb, As and Au is relatively low in chalcopyrite from the Kairei vent field. (3) Sphalerite from both the Zn-rich chimney is characterized by high concentrations of Sn, Co, Ga, Ge, Ag, Pb, Sb, As, and Cd, but depleted in Se, Te, Bi, Mo, Au, Ni, Tl, Mn, Ba, V, and U in comparison with the other minerals. The high concentration of Cd and Co is likely caused by the substitution of Cd2+ and Co2+ for Zn2+ in sphalerite. A high concentration of Pb accompanied by high Ag concentration in sphalerite indicating the Ag occurs in the microinclusions of Pb-bearing minerals such as galena. Au is generally low in sphalerite and strong correlate with Pb suggesting its presence in the microinclusions of galena. The strong correlation of As with Ge in sphalerite from Kairei suggests that they might precipitate under medium- to low-temperature with moderately reduced conditions. (4) Bornite-digenite is very low in most trace elements, except for Co, Se, and Bi. The high concentration of Se and Bi in all the sulfide minerals was observed in bornite-digenite can be explained by abundant Bi-selenide inclusions. Serpentinization in ultramafic-hosted hydrothermal systems might play an important role on Au enrichment in pyrite with low As contents. Compared with felsic-hosted seafloor massive sulfide (SMS) deposits, sulfide minerals from the ultramafic-hosted deposits show higher concentrations of Se and Te, but lower As, Sb, and Au concentrations attributed to the contribution of magmatic volatile input. Significant Se enrichment in chalcopyrite has been found from mafic-hosted SMSs indicate that the primary factor that controls the Se enrichment is its temperature-controlled mobility in fluids.
This study reports the first example of major erosion from hurricanes degrading a rocky coastline anywhere around the Gulf of California, although other sources of evidence are well known regarding the effect of inland erosion due to catastrophic rainfall in the Southern Cape Region of the Baja California peninsula and farther north. The uplifted, 12-meter terrace on the eastern shore of Isla del Carmen is the site of an unconsolidated coastal boulder deposit (CBD) consisting of large limestone blocks and boulders eroded from underlying Pliocene strata. The CBD stretches approximately 1.5 km in length, mostly set back 25 m from the lip of the terrace. The largest blocks of upturned limestone near the terrace edge are estimated to weigh between 5.8 and 28 metric tons. Waves impacting the rocky coast that peeled back slabs of horizontally layered limestone at this spot are calculated to have been between 11.5 and 14 m in height. Analysis of sampled boulders from the CBD set back from the terrace edge by 25 m suggest that the average wave height responsible for moving those boulders was on the order of 4.3 m. Additional localities with exposed limestone shores, as well as other more common rock types of igneous origin, have yet to be surveyed for this phenomenon elsewhere around the Gulf of California.
Collisional mountain belts commonly develop intramontane basins from mechanical and isostatic subsidence during orogenic development. These frequently display a relict top surface, evidencing a change interval from basin infilling to erosion often via capture or overspill. Such surfaces provide markers that inform on orogenic growth patterns via climate and base level interplay. Here, we describe the top surface from the Sorbas Basin, a key intramontane basin within the Betic Cordillera (SE Spain). The surface is fragmentary comprising high elevation hilltops and discontinuous ridges developed onto the variably deformed final basin infill outcrop (Gochar Formation). We reconstruct surface configuration using DEM interpolation and apply 10Be/26Al cosmonuclides to assess surface formation timing. The surface is a degraded Early Pleistocene erosional pediment developed via autogenic switching of alluvial fan streams under stable dryland climate and base level conditions. Base level lowering since the Middle Pleistocene focused headwards incision up interfan drainages, culminating in fan head capture and fan morphological preservation within the abandoned surface. Post abandonment erosion has lowered the basin surface by 31 m (average) and removed ~5.95 km3 of fill. Regional basin comparisons reveal a phase of Early Pleistocene surface formation, marking landscape stability following the most recent Pliocene-Early Pleistocene mountain building. Post-surface erosion rate quantification is low and in accordance with 10Be denudation rates typical of the low uplift Betic Cordillera.
Engineering properties of bedrock materials at Badlands National Park were used to develop models for Park managers to assess slope erosion and stability for fossil resource protection. Six fully instrumented sites were used to document slope conditions. Bedrock consisted of Oligocene White River Group rocks. Bulk erosion rates correlated to grain size with silty-sandy materials producing higher mass erosion rates as a function of the silt-to-clay ratio and plastic index. Data indicated that as grain size decreased, plastic index increased leading to a decrease in erodibility. These parameters were used to construct a grain-size proxy, ψ, that was substituted for grain size, D, in Bagnold’s entrainment equation and provided significant improvement in calculation of critical entrainment velocities for fine-grained materials. Hydraulic analyses of slope and pediment surface processes indicated surface roughness was a controlling factor and materials washed from rough steep slopes were effectively transported across smooth low-angle pediments with slope-to-pediment angle ratios of nearly 6:1. Slope stability modeling of ten slopes produced high factors of safety for all slopes, even under saturated conditions and was attributable to clay cohesion. All results were used to construct models that predicted years until net slope erosion equaled 2.5 cm (1 inch). Using these results, Park managers were advised to visit erosion-prone sites on a 1 to 6 year schedule, based on site geology and slope aspect, to adequately protect critical fossil resources from destruction.
External impact on the development of fluvial systems is generally exerted by changes in sea level, climate and tectonic movements. In this study it is shown that regional to local differentiation of fluvial response may be caused by semi-direct effects of climate change and tectonic movement, as for instance vegetation cover, frozen soil, snow cover and longitudinal gradient. Such semi-direct effects may be responsible for specific fluvial activity resulting in proper drainage patterns, sedimentation series and erosion-accumulation rates. These conclusions are exemplified by the study of the Tis(z)a catchment in the Pannonian Basin in Hungary and Serbia from the middle of the last glacial to the Pleistocene-Holocene transition. Previous investigations in that catchment are supplemented here by new geomorphological-sedimentological data and OSL-dating. Specific characteristics of this catchment in comparison with other regions are the preponderance of meandering systems during the last glacial and the presence of very large meanders in given time intervals.
This paper investigates the effect of alteration on the physicomechanical properties of igneous rocks from various areas from Greece used as aggregates. The studied lithologies include dunites, harzburgites, lherzolites, gabbros, diabases, dacites and andesites. Quantitative petrographic analysis shows that the tested samples display various percentages of secondary phyllosilicate minerals. Mineral quantification of studied rock samples was performed by using a Rietveld method on X-Ray diffraction patterns of the studied aggregates. The aggregates are also tested to assign moisture content [w (%)], total porosity [nt (%)], uniaxial compressive strength [UCS (MPa)] and Los Angeles abrasion test [LA (%)]. The influence of secondary phyllosilicate minerals on physicomechanical behavior of tested samples determined using regression analysis and their derived equations. Regression analysis shows positive relationship between the percentage of phyllosilicate minerals of rocks and moisture content as well as with the total porosity values. The relationships between phyllosilicate minerals in the ultramafic and mafic samples and their mechanical properties show that the total rates of phyllosilicate mineral products result negatively in their mechanical properties, while the low percentage of phyllosilicate minerals in volcanic rocks are not able to define set of their engineering parameters.
Fogo volcano erupted in 2014-15 producing an extensive lava flow field in the summit caldera that destroyed two villages, Portela and Bangaeira. The eruption started with powerful explosive activity, lava fountains, and a substantial ash column accompanying the opening of an eruptive fissure. Lava flows spreading from the base of the eruptive fissure produced three arterial lava flows. By a week after the start of the eruption, a master lava tube had already developed within the eruptive fissure and along the arterial flow. In this paper, we analyze the emplacement processes on the basis of observations carried out directly on the lava flow field, remote sensing measurements carried out with a thermal camera, SO2 fluxes, and satellite images, in order to unravel the key factors leading to the development of lava tubes. These were responsible for the rapid expansion of lava for the ~7.9 km length of the flow field, as well as the destruction of the Portela and Bangaeira villages. The key factors leading to the development of tubes were the low topography and the steady magma supply rate along the arterial lava flow. Comparing time-averaged effusion rates (TADR) obtained from satellite and Supply Rate (SR) derived from SO2 flux data, we estimate the amount and timing of the lava flow field endogenous growth, with the aim of developing a tool that could be used for hazard assessment and risk mitigation at this and other volcanoes.
Barchan dune fields are a dominant landscape feature in SE Qatar and a key element of the peninsula’s geodiversity. The migration of barchan dunes is mainly controlled by dune size, wind pattern, vegetation cover and human impact. We investigate the variability of dune migration in Qatar over a time period of 50 years using high-resolution satellite and aerial imagery and explore its relation to the regional Shamal wind system, teleconnection patterns, and limitations in sand supply associated with the transgression of the Arabian Gulf. We detect strong size-dependent differences in migration rates of individual dunes as well as significant decadal variability on a dune-field scale, which was found to be correlating with the intensity of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and the Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM). High uncertainties associated with the extrapolation of migration rates back into the Holocene, however, do not permit to further specify the timing of the loss of sand supply and the onset of the mid-Holocene relative sea-level (RSL) highstand. For the youngest phase considered in this study (2006–2015), human impact is anticipated to have accelerated dune migration under a weakening Shamal regime through sand mining and excessive vehicle frequentation upwind of the core study area.
This paper introduces a surrogate model to reduce the huge computational load in the process of simulation-optimization and uncertainty analysis. First, the groundwater numerical simulation model was established, calibrated and verified in the northeast of Hetao Plain. Second, two surrogate models of simulation model were established using support vector regression (SVR) method, one (surrogate model A, SMA) was used to describe the corresponding relationship between the pumping rate and average groundwater table drawdown, and another (surrogate model B, SMB) was used to express the corresponding relationship between the hydrogeological parameter values and average groundwater table drawdown. Third, an optimization model was established to search an optimal groundwater exploitation scheme using the maximum total pumping rate as objective function and the limitative average groundwater table drawdown as constraint condition, the SMA was invoked by the optimization model for obtaining the optimal groundwater exploitation scheme. Finally, the SMB was invoked in the process of uncertainty analysis for assessing the reliability of optimal groundwater exploitation scheme. Results show that the relative error and root mean square error between simulation model and the two surrogate models are both less than 5%, which is a high approximation accuracy. The SVR surrogate model developed in this study could not only considerably reduce the computational load, but also maintain high computational accuracy. The optimal total pumping rate is 7947 m3/d and the reliability of optimal scheme is 40.21%. This can thus provide an effective method for identifying an optimal groundwater exploitation scheme and assessing the reliability of scheme quickly and accurately.
Reactivation of pre-existing weaknesses in the upper crust can be documented using surface features, and has occurred throughout time and space, particularly in regions where the basement material dates from the Precambrian and has undergone successive deformation events. This study aims to use surface features such as fracture patterns to document evidence of such reactivation in the Paleozoic and Cenozoic of Nebraska and Kansas (units separated by an unconformity in the study area). The most prominent basement features in southeast Nebraska and northeast Kansas are oriented NE-SW, likely related to the midcontinent rift, and oriented NW-SE, likely related to fabrics from the Central Plains Orogen. These features are well defined in the potential fields data. Fracture patterns in the study area show an E-W oriented trend, as well as clearly discernable NE-SW and subsidiary N-S and NW-SE trends. The E-W trend is interpreted to be related to far-field stresses from Laramide and Ancestral Rocky Mountain orogenic events, whilst the NE-SW trend is interpreted to be related to subtle reactivation on the Mid-continent rift and related faults, observed in basement data. These movements produced stresses of sufficient magnitude to produce extensional fractures in the overlying rock units, but not sufficient to generate shear. Similarly, the ~N-S and NW-SE fracture trends are taken as evidence of subtle reactivation on the Nemaha Uplift and Central Plains Orogen systems, generating fractures but not shear movement. This contribution therefore provides a convincing case-study of the value of fracture orientations (that is, surface morphodynamics) in discerning buried tectonic trends and subtle reactivation thereon.
Climate change is increasing the occurrence of disastrous events in the world, but several disparities in population vulnerability are being registered. One of the causes of these variances is different public risk perception also due to the degree of education and knowledge of the population. In this study, some of the results obtained in a risk perception survey are presented. The survey was carried out in an area of Calabria (Southern Italy) hit by geo-hydrological events that have occurred in recent years with damage to roads, tourism facilities and private houses. A statistical interpretation of the results highlights the importance of education and knowledge to risk perception on the part of the population investigated.
The article discusses the validation process of a certain method of balancing gas contained in the pore space of rocks. The validation was based upon juxtaposition of the examination of rocks' porosity and the effects of comminution in terms of assessing the possibility of opening the pore space. The tests were carried out for six dolomite samples taken from different areas of the 'Polkowice-Sieroszowice’ copper mine in Poland. Before the rock material was ground, it was examined using the porosimetric method and subsequently subjected to the SEM analysis. After grinding, the research material was subjected to the granulometric analysis. Prior to the grinding process, the rocks' porosity fell in the range of 0.3-14.8%, while the volume of the open pores was included in the 0.01-0.06 cm3/g range. The research material was also characterized by inhomogeneous distribution of the pore volume. The grinding process was performed using an original device – the GPR analyzer. The ground samples were characterized by similar particle size distribution and mean diameters D_3.2 of about 4.0-4.5 µm. The SEM analysis revealed pores of various size and shape on the surface of the rock cores, while at the same time demonstrating lack of pores following the grinding process. The grain size distribution curves were compared with the cumulative pore volume curves of the cores before grinding. The resulting intersection points of both curves were seen as testifying to the presence of openings in the rock pores and release of the accumulated gas. The opening percentage of the pore space was associated with the coordinates of the curves' intersections. In order to confirm the argument put forward in this paper – i.e. that comminution of a rock to grains of a size comparable with the size of the rock's pores results in the release of gas contained in the pore space – the amount of gas released as a result of the comminution process was studied. The results of gas balancing demonstrated that the pore space of the investigated dolomites was filled with gas in amounts from 3.19 cm3/kg to 45.86 cm3/kg. The obtained results of the rock material comminution to grains comparable – in terms of size – to the size of the pores of investigated rocks, along with asserting the presence of gas in the pore space of the studied dolomites, were regarded as a proof that the method of balancing gas in rocks via rock comminution is correct.
This work shows the preliminary description of the origin of a sedimentary - exhalative outcrop of Jurassic Lower Pliensbachian. The location of this deposit was achieved by applying an examination based in the identification of sedimentary transgressions of heterochronies ages and the identification of a Rift – type mega –structure. According with the methodology, it was carried out a study of the discordant relationships between two types of sediments: continental and marine. According the characterization, it was noted the existence of light rare earths, in values that show positive anomalies in comparison with the distribution of elements in upper continental crust according to the Clarke , reflecting so a felsic affinity of the mineral deposit. Also, positive anomalies of platinum and Pd, were determined with marginal contents of Au and Ag; and finally the base metals Zn, Pb and Cu were detected in low contents, which could be due to the presence of altered shale. According to the sedimentary lithology found, which was of siliciclastic type; to the exhalative roots observed during the fieldwork; the presence of quartz minerals such as biotite and muscovite; the presence of minerals of hydrothermal remobilization like chalcopyrite with some base metals, altered shale, as well as sulfur deficiency; this mineral reservoir could be defined as a SEDEX – type.
The purpose of present work was to provide mineralogical insight in the rare earth element (REE) phases in bauxite residue to improve REE recovering technologies. Experimental work was performed by electron probe microanalysis with energy dispersive as well as wavelength dispersive spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. REEs are found as discrete mineral particles in bauxite residue. Their sizes range from < 1 μm to about 40 μm. In bauxite residue, the most abundant REE bearing phases are light REE (LREE) ferrotitanates, that form a solid solution between the phases with major compositions (REE,Ca,Na)(Ti,Fe)O3 and (Ca,Na)(Ti,Fe)O3. These are secondary phases formed during the Bayer process by an in-situ transformation of the precursor bauxite LREE phases. Comparing to natural systems, the indicated solid solution resembles loparite-perovskite series. LREE particles often have a calcium ferrotitanate shell surrounding them, that probably hinders their solubility. Minor amount of LREE carbonate and phosphate minerals as well as manganese-associated LREE phases are also present in bauxite residue. Heavy REEs occur in the same form as in bauxites, namely as yttrium phosphates. These results show that Bayer process has an impact on the initial REE mineralogy contained in bauxite. Bauxite residue as well as selected bauxites are potentially good sources of REEs.
Cold-water coral reefs are rich, yet fragile ecosystems found in colder oceanic waters. Knowledge of their spatial distribution on continental shelves, slopes, seamounts and ridge systems is vital for marine spatial planning and conservation. Cold-water corals frequently form conspicuous carbonate mounds of varying sizes, which are identifiable from multibeam echosounder bathymetry and derived geomorphometric attributes. However, the often large number of mounds makes manual interpretation and mapping a tedious process. We present a methodology that combines image segmentation and random forest spatial prediction with the aim to derive maps of carbonate mounds and an associated measure of confidence. We demonstrate our method based on multibeam echosounder data from Iverryggen on the mid-Norwegian shelf. We identified the image-object mean planar curvature as the most important predictor. The presence and absence of carbonate mounds is mapped with high accuracy (overall accuracy = 84.4%, sensitivity = 0.827 and specificity = 0.866). Spatially-explicit confidence in the predictions is derived from the predicted probability and whether the predictions are within or outside the modelled range of values and is generally high. We plan to apply the showcased method to other areas of the Norwegian continental shelf and slope where MBES data have been collected with the aim to provide crucial information for marine spatial planning.
The early-mid Paleocene Farewell Formation is stratigraphically distributed across the southern Taranaki Basin (STB) which is also encountered within the Maui Gas Field. Using available 3D seismic and well log data, a challenging task to delineate the spatial distribution and geobody patterns of the potential reservoir sands of the formation was performed. Object based modeling coupled with sequential indicator simulation were used to analyze the spatial distribution of facies configuration and a conceptual model was developed based on the outputs from the structurally- modeled grids. The facies modeling followed a hierarchical object-based mechanism which was set to perform with constraints like channel geometry and heterogeneity within the formation. The resultant 3D geobody model showed that the distributary channels, mainly braided geobodies flowed from northeast cutting through several regional normal-fault systems to the southwest. Overbank facies was adhered to the fringe of the channels whereas the floodplain facies was at the periphery of the model. Meandering channel-sand facies were mostly observed at the center of the model flowing in a more random manner, occupying major flow directions of northwest to southwest and southeast to northwest within the model.
Analysis of water resources of this area was carried out in order to assessing the water quality by determining the concentrations of Cations, Anions, Heavy metals, Trace elements, PH, Alkalinity, Total Dissolved Solids and microbial loads in water samples. Ten (10) water samples were collected from the study area - samples each of rain water, two pond waters - 1 and 2, stream water, four (4) hand-dug wells, hand pump water and a motorized borehole. The results obtained were compared with WHO standards and it showed that all the cations in water samples are within the limits. The water samples at locations B, E, F, G, H, I, and J have high alkalinity and HC0-3 content. The heavy metals (Pb, Ni and Cd) and trace elements (Fe and Cu) are dominantly high in the surface waters. Microbiological substances in the water samples from the study area revealed indicator organisms higher than the WHO standard for drinking water. Samples obtained from location G, I and J recorded an absence of E. coli and are fit for human consumptions but needed to be treated due to high MPN (Most Probable Number) index of viable microorganisms as against WHO standard. This research showed that the water resources of the study area are gradually polluted and in the near future may not be good for drinking.
Many studies, which try to analyze the meteorological threshold conditions for debris flows ignore the type of initiation. This paper focuses on the differences in hydrological triggering processes of debris flows in channel beds of the source areas. The different triggering processes were studied in the laboratory and by model simulation on the field scale. The laboratory experiments were carried out in a flume, 8 m long and a width of 0.3 m. An integrated hydro-mechanical model was developed, describing Hortonian and Saturation overland flow, through flow, maximum sediment transport and failure of bed material. The model was tested on the processes observed in the flume. The flume experiments show a sequence of hydrological processes triggering debris flows, namely erosion and transport by intensive overland flow and by infiltrating water causing failure of channel bed material. Model simulations carried out on a schematic hypothetical source area of a catchment show that the type and sequence of these triggering processes are determined by slope angle and the hydraulic conductivity of the bed material. It was also clearly demonstrated that the type of initiation process and the geometrical and hydro-mechanical parameters may have a great influence on rainfall intensity-duration threshold curves, indicating the start of debris flows.
Aravalli Mountain Range is an example of erosional mountains, trending NE-SW, shows numerous faults and lineaments. Udaipur area, situated south-east part of the mountain, is considered as tectonically active. So the main objective is to study relative tectonic activity of the Ahar watershed of Udaipur, Rajasthan, India. To assess relative tectonic activity of the area, geomorphic indices such as stream length gradient index (SL), asymmetry factor (Af), basin shape (Bs), valley floor width to valley height ratio (Vf), mountain front sinuosity (Smf), hypsometic integral (Hi), hypsometric curve and transverse topographic symmetry factor (T) is applied. DEM (SRTM), Google earth image and enhanced image of Landsat TM (2008) is used to extract linear features. Result of these geomorphic indices of each sub-watersheds are used to divide area from low to high relative tectonic activity classes, expressed as relative tectonic active index (Iat) and according to Iat value the sub watershed UDSW2, 3 and 4 is tectonically relatively more active than remaining part of the area. Field validation associated with evidences highlighted by using geomorphic indices as well as stream deflrction and lineament analysis reveals that the Ahar watershed of Aravalli Range, particularly the north-western flank, is most affected by tectonic activity.
The Volturno Plain is one of the largest alluvial plain of peninsular Italy. This area is characterized by both natural and human induced subsidence, and is and most susceptible to coastal hazards. The present study is based on post-processing, analysis and mapping of the available Persistent Scatterer interferometry datasets, derived from combination of both ascending and descending orbits of three different SAR satellite systems, during an observation period of almost two decades (June 1992 - September 2010). The main output of the research work is a map of the vertical deformation that provides new insights into the areal variability of ground deformation processes (subsidence/uplift) of Volturno plain over the last decades. Vertical displacement values derived by interferometric data post-processing show that the Volturno river plain is characterized by significant subsidence in the central axial sectors and in the river mouth area, whereas moderate uplift is detected in the eastern part of the plain. Other sectors of the study area are characterized by moderate subsidence and/or stability. We infer that the subsidence recorded in the Volturno plain is mainly a consequence of a natural process related to the compaction of the fluvial deposits that fill up the alluvial plain. Anthropic influence (e.g. water exploitation, urbanization) can be substantially regarded as an additional factor that only locally may enhance subsidence. The uplift imaged in the eastern sector of the plain can be related to tectonic activity. The study of subsidence in the Volturno plain is a valuable tool relevant for river flood analyses and coastal inundation hazard assessment addressed to risk mitigation.
Basaltic activity is the most common class of volcanism on Earth, characterized by magmas of sufficiently low viscosities such that bubbles can move independently of the melt. Following exsolution, spherical bubbles can then expand and/or coalesce to generate larger bubbles of spherical-cap or Taylor bubble (slug) morphologies. Puffing and strombolian explosive activity are driven by bursting of these larger bubbles at the surface. Here, we present the first combined model classification of spherical-cap and Taylor bubble driven puffing and strombolian activity modes on volcanoes. We furthermore incorporate the possibility that neighboring bubbles might coalesce, leading to elevated strombolian explosivity. The model categorizes behavior in terms of the temporal separation between the arrival of successive bubbles at the surface and bubble gas volume or length, with the output presented on visually intuitive two-dimensional plots. The categorized behavior is grouped into the following regimes: puffing from a) cap bubbles; and b) non-overpressurised Taylor bubbles; and c) Taylor bubble driven strombolian explosions; each of these regimes is further subdivided into scenarios whereby inter-bubble interaction does/doesn't occur. The model performance is corroborated using field data from Stromboli (Aeolian Islands, Italy), Etna (Sicily, Italy) and Yasur (Vanuatu), representing one of the very first studies, focused on combining high temporal resolution degassing data with fluid dynamics, as a means of deepening our understanding of the processes which drive basaltic volcanism.
Shale gas content is the key parameter for shale gas potential evaluation and favorable area prediction. Therefore, it is very important to determine shale gas content accurately. Generally, we use the USBM method for coal reservoirs to calculate gas content of shale reservoirs. However, shale reservoirs are different from coal reservoirs in depth, pressure, core collection, etc. This method would inevitably cause problems. In order to make the USBM method more suitable for shale reservoir, an improved USBM method is put forward on the basis of systematic analysis of core pressure history and temperature history during shale gas desorption. The improved USBM method modifies the calculation method of the lost time, and determines the temperature balance time of water heating. In addition, we give the calculation method of adsorption gas content and free gas content, especially the new method of calculating the oil dissolved gas content and water dissolved gas content which are easily neglected. We used the direct method (USBM and the improved USBM) and the indirect method (adsorption gas, free gas and dissolved gas) to calculate the shale gas content of 16 shale samples of the Triassic Yanchang Formation in the Southeastern Ordos Basin, China. The results of the improved USBM method show that the total shale gas content is high, with an average of 3.97 m3/t, and the lost shale gas content is the largest proportion with an average of 62%. The total shale gas content calculated by the improved USBM method is greater than that of the USBM method. The results of the indirect method show that the total shale gas content is large, with an average of 4.11 m3/t, and the adsorption shale gas content is the largest proportion with an average of 71%. The oil dissolved shale gas content which should be taken attention accounts for about 7.8%. The relative error between the improved USBM method and indirect method is much smaller than that between USBM method and indirect method, which verifies the accuracy of the improved USBM method.
Uranium isotopes actively investigated as mechanistic or time scale tracers of natural processes. This paper describes the occurrence and redistribution of U in the Vendian aquifer of the paleo valley at NW Russia. Forty-four rock samples were collected from boreholes, and twenty-five groundwater samples. The U, Fe concentration, and 234U/238U activity ratio were determined in the samples. We estimated the 14C and 234U-238U residence time of groundwater in an aquifer. It has been established that the processes of chemical weathering of Vendian deposits led to the formation of a strong oxidation zone, developed above -250 m.a.s.l. The inverse correlation between the concentrations of uranium and iron is a result of removal of U from paleo valley slopes in oxidizing conditions and accumulation of U at the bottom of the paleo valley in reducing conditions, and accumulation of Fe on the slopes and removal from bottom. Almost all U on the slopes replaced by a newly formed hydrogenic U with a higher 234U/238U activity ratio. After that dissolution and desorption of hydrogenic U was occurred from the slopes during periods without any glaciations and marine transgressions. Elevated concentrations of U preserved in not oxidized lenses at the paleo valley bottom.
Aeromagnetic data coupled with Landsat ETM+ data and SRTM DEM have been processed in order to map regional hydrogeological structures in the basement complex region of Paiko, north-central Nigeria. Lineaments were extracted from derivative maps from aeromagnetic, Landsat ETM+ and SRTM DEM datasets. Ground geophysical investigation utilizing Radial Vertical Electrical Sounding (RVES) was established in nine transects comprising of four sounding stations which are oriented in three azimuths. Source Parameter Imaging (SPI) was employed to map the average depths structures from aeromagnetic dataset. Selected thematic layers which included lineaments density, lithologic, slope, drainage density and geomorphologic maps were integrated and modelled using ArcGIS to generate groundwater potential map of the area. Groundwater zones were classified into four categories: very good, good, moderate and poor according to their potential to yield sustainable water to drilled wells. Results from RVES survey reveal a close correlation to lineaments delineated from surface structural mapping and remotely sensed datasets. Hydrogeological significance of these orientations suggest that aeromagnetic data can be used to map relatively deep-seated fractures which are likely to be open groundwater conduits while remotely sensed lineaments and orientations delineated from the RVES survey may indicate areas of recharge. Regions with high lineament density have relatively better groundwater potential. This is attributable to areas having deep weathering profiles associated with intrusive bodies that have resulted in intense fracturing in the area. Drill depths in this area should target a minimum of 80 m to ensure sufficient and sustainable supplies to drilled wells. The outcome of this study should act as information framework that would guide the siting of productive water wells and while providing needed information for relevant agencies in need of data for the development of groundwater resources.
It is well recognised that the mining industry in South Africa is highly rated for its substantial contribution to the country’s economic growth, including employment and infrastructural development. It is also known that mining and ore processing activities potentially pose a severe threat to public health and environmental well-being, in the way operations are carried out, mine wastes are disposed of (in dumps), local communities are relocated, mine management and the mining community in general, perceive established environmental standards and etiquette. This paper examines ethical practices and norms in the South African mining industry, with particular reference to the management of tailings dams. We analyse the modes of articulation of the country’s regulatory instruments for tailings management, and review the corporate social responsibility (CSR) approach of leading mining companies. Despite decades of research and resulting recommendations on tailings management, it is concluded that current legislations are largely ineffective, level of adherence by mine management and the mining community, low, and mechanisms for compliance monitoring, weak. New perspectives on legislative issues for unsolved problems in tailings handling are put forward, and directions for future research, indicated.
This study proposes a novel hybrid machine learning approach for modeling of rainfall-induced shallow landslides. The proposed approach is a combination of an instance-based learning algorithm (k-NN) and Rotation Forest (RF), state of the art machine techniques that have seldom explored for landslide modeling. The Lang Son city area (Vietnam) is selected as a case study. For this purpose, a spatial database for the study area was constructed, and then, was used to build and evaluate the hybrid model. Performance of the model was assessed using Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC), area under the ROC curve (AUC), success rate and prediction rate, and several statistical evaluation metrics. The results showed that the model has high performance with both the training data (AUC = 0.948) and the validation data (AUC = 0.848). The results were compared with those obtained from soft computing techniques i.e. Random Forest, J48 Decision Trees, and Multilayer Perceptron Neural Networks. Overall, the performance of the proposed model is better than those obtained from the above methods. Therefore, the proposed model is a promising tool for landslide modeling. The research result can be highly useful for land use planning and management in landslide prone areas.
The mineralogical indices, e.g., Quartz Index (QI), Carbonate Index (CI), Mafic Index (MI) for ASTER multispectral thermal infrared (TIR) data have been applied to various geological materials. The indices are proved to be robust in extracting geological information at the local scale. Considering the relatively narrow spatial coverage of each ASTER scene compared to LANDSAT, many scenes are needed when mosaicking the images to be mapped at regional scales. We develop a system to search ASTER data for a target area given the vast and expanding ASTER data archive. The data is then conditioned, prioritized, and the indices are calculated before finally mosaicking the imagery. The maps of the indices covering the very wide region of the central Tibetan Plateau are produced with this system. The characteristic features of the indices relating to their geology in the study area are analyzed and discussed. Many interesting lithological and structural information that are not currently well understood in the central Tibetan Plateau, the highest and most extensive plateau in the world, with an average elevation of over 4,500 meters above sea level, for example, distributions of the mafic-ultramafic rocks along the suture zones, the quarzitic and marine sedimentology accreted to the Eurasian continent and sulfate layers related to the Tethys and neo-Tethys geological setting can be retrieved from the processed ASTER images. | 2019-04-24T09:52:14Z | https://www.preprints.org/subject/browse/earth_sciences/geology |
On December 20th, the eve of the winter solstice, Erich Ludendorff, Feldherr des Weltkriegcs and foremost neo-pagan of Germany, died in a Catholic hospital at Munich, surrounded by attendant sisters of mercy. The irony of the event is symbolic of that tragic frustration of final achievement which followed Ludendorff throughout his life, for he was destined in all things to fall just short of victory. With the possible exception of the Austrian Field Marshal Conrad von Hotzendorf, whose brilliant conceptions were brought to nothing because in the Austro-Hungarian army he had not the proper instrument with which to transform his ideas into facts, Ludendorff was the ablest military strategist produced by the War, and certainly one of the greatest routine military organizers that the world has ever seen. Yet throughout the most important period of his life—and for the last two years of Wilhelm IPs reign Ludendorff dominated Germany as had none other since Bismarck—he was his own worst enemy, nullifying as a politician what he had achieved as a soldier, a political Hyde forever warring against a military Jekyll.
Born at Kruszewnia in Posen in 1865, Erich Ludendorff was the eldest son—his younger brother became the eminent astronomer of Potsdam—of a minor official in the Prussian state railways administration. He received his early education at the Cadet School at Ploen and the Lichterfelde Military Academy, and was gazetted a lieutenant in the Marine-Infantry in 1882, at the age of eighteen. Throughout his school years his more aristocratic contemporaries never allowed him to forget that he lacked the “von” of nobility before his name, and this snobbismus spurred Ludendorff, like the young Bonaparte at Brienne, to a fierce application to his studies in order to excel the efforts of his fellows and thereby command their deference.
This passion for work and attention to detail won the recognition of Ludendorff’s superiors. He rose rapidly through the regimental ranks, was promoted captain in 1893, and the same year received his first taste of work on the General Staff, later being attached to the Fourth Corps headquarters at Magdeburg. But he was still unknown, and his appointment as a major to a permanent post on the Great General Staff in 1906 came as a surprise to all in the military world, save to that inner circle of officers who continually sought outstanding talent.
When, in 1905, the younger Moltke, nephew of the great Field Marshal, was appointed to succeed Count von Schlief-fen as chief of the General Staff, he found that the two officers who must necessarily receive high appointments were two lieutenant-colonels, Erich Ludendorff and Wilhelm Groner. The latter, the son of a paymaster in the Wurt-temberg Army, had distinguished himself by his coolness of judgment and his genius for organization. Two years younger than Ludendorff, he had become an instructor at the Kriegsakadamie, and his courses were eagerly followed by the younger officers who came under his influence, amongst whom were numbered many who later achieved fame and notoriety, including Willisen, Schleicher, and Hammerstein. To them he seemed inspired, and undoubtedly much of the ability which they later displayed was attributable to their early training under Groner.
Between Ludendorff and Groner a sharp rivalry grew up. Neck and neck, they easily outdistanced all others in competing for the “plum” position on the General Staff, the head of the Operations Section. But after lengthy consideration Groner was passed over, for the sole reason that his father had been a warrant-officer, and he was not, therefore, of the military caste. Ludendorff was not an officer’s son either, but there had been officers in his family for generations, and this turned the scale in his favour. He became Chief of Operations, and to Groner fell the parallel post of Chief of Transport.
In this important position Ludendorff must share with Moltke the vital and fundamental changes in mobilization and operations which the latter authorized in the famous Schlieffen Plan in 1908-1909. Groner bitterly opposed these innovations—the sudden attack on Liege, the weakening of the right wing, the abandonment of the strategic retreat through Alsace-Lorraine, and the proposed attempt to break through between Toul and Epinal. Ludendorff sanctioned them, however, only on condition that the army itself was increased in numbers. He always maintained that had his advice been followed, three new corps would have been added in 1912, and that with this additional strength the revised scheme of operations could have been carried out according to plan. He attributed his transfer to regimental duties to his insistence on the increase of the army at this time.
Whatever the cause, the general mobilization of July, 1914, found Ludendorff Deputy-Chief of the Staff of the Second Army, which was carrying out the assault on Liege. By a sudden and daring decision to take command of a regiment that had been brought to a standstill, and by launching a surprise attack, he was able to achieve the spectacular capture of the citadel almost single handed, though the forts still held out for two days longer. For this gallant feat, the only occasion during the War in which he actually commanded troops, Ludendorff was decorated by the Kaiser with the coveted Pour le Merite cross.
Such was the mission with which Ludendorff was entrusted on his appointment as Chief-of-Staff of the Eighth Army, with Colonel-General Paul von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg as the “dear old Excellency” who should be his nominal commander, the foil for his brilliance and the shield for the flame of his genius. This “marriage of minds,” which was effected at the railway station of Hanover in the early hours of August 23, 1914, is without exact parallel in history. Personally unknown to one another, and utterly dissimilar in character, each provided the necessary complement of the other. Ludendorff was the dominant husband of the union, Hindenburg the placid wife; Ludendorff was the motive force in the partnership, Hindenburg the balancing factor. The calmer nature of the older man served as a corrective for the younger’s eager temperament, at once more brilliant and less stable. Ludendorff could stand the strain of responsibility when things went well but in moments of crisis he was liable to nervous distraction; Hindenburg preserved a stoic impassivity in the face of both triumph and disaster. Together they formed the most amazing military combination in history.
Their joint fame became world-wide a week later, after the great victory of Tannenberg, though no impartial student of that campaign can escape the conclusion that the strategic laurels for the Russian defeat belong to the senior staff officer, Colonel Hoffmann; while the point-blank refusal of that vigorous tactician, General von Francois, to carry out Ludendorff’s orders contributed largely to the cutting off of the enemy’s retreat. Popular opinion, however, is but little affected by historical accuracy, and the names of Hin-denburg and Ludendorff became inseparably linked with the destruction of Samsonov’s army at Tannenberg, and with the subsequent rout of Rennenkampf at the Battle of the Masurian Lakes. The winter campaign in Poland, which, after many vicissitudes, ended in the capture of the fortress of Lodz and the general retirement of the Russian armies, added greatly to their already glowing prestige and gave, both to themselves and to the general public at large, a disproportionate idea of their achievements. For the numerical superiority of the defeated Russian armies blinded many to their great weakness in guns and munitions and the poverty of their leadership.
Throughout the year 1915 and the first half of 1916, Hindenburg, Ludendorff, and Hoffmann, now welded into the single symbol HLH, were in bitter conflict with the new Chief of the General Staff, von Falkenhayn, who had succeeded Moltke after the disaster of the Marne. They had forced the Russians back as far as Vilna, but the enemy had always escaped from their enveloping movements. A Cannre victory had eluded HLH, and they demanded additional troops for a drive to the north against Minsk, which should sever the Russian rail communications. This was rejected by Falkenhayn, who judged rightly that the War must be fought to a finish in the West, believing that, even were Russia forced to make a separate peace, Great Britain and France would continue the struggle. He elected to make a gigantic effort to take Verdun, and his withdrawal of troops and guns from the East rendered it impossible for HLH to make any further advance. They were driven on to the defensive by the Russian attacks of March and April, 1916, and though they were able to hold their own, they were unable to prevent the Austrian defeats at the hands of the Russians between the Pripet and the Carpathians.
The opposition of Palkenhayn to the “Easterners” resulted in an extraordinary exhibition of military intrigue and barratry. Ludendorff and Hoffmann lost no opportunity in egging on Hindenburg to flout and thwart the orders of the Chief of the General Staff, while Falkenhayn, in his turn, responded with pinpricking pettiness and obstinacy. The conduct of both sides was mean and picayune and redounded to the credit of neither party, for neither appeared to recall that the duty of a soldier is to fight the enemy and not his comrades.
But the tide was running strongly against Falkenhayn, and when the failure of the Verdun offensive was followed by the entry of Rumania into the war on the side of the Allies a full two months before he had expected it, the Kaiser yielded to the voice of popular demand, and on August 29, 1916, summoned Hindenburg and Ludendorff to the Supreme Command of the German armies in the field.
A definite period closed for Ludendorff on August 29. Hitherto his undoubted genius had been exercised only in a limited sphere, for the High Command in the East, though semi-autonomous, was concerned merely with the problems of its own strategy. The consideration of national politics and the organization of the national resources had played no part in the world of HLH, whose political activities had been confined to their intrigues against Falkenhayn. They had been soldiers pure and simple; their great and deserved reputation had been built up on their military attainments alone. Now all this was changed. A stroll in the gardens of the Castle of Pless on an afternoon in high summer had altered the destinies not only of Hindenburg and Ludendorff, but of Germany and of Europe. Had he but known it, Wilhelm II in that brief conversation had sealed the fate of his country, his throne, and his house. For from the moment of his appointment Ludendorff conceived himself as the chief power in the Reich. It had been the original intention to appoint the Marshal and Ludendorff as Chief and Second Chief of the General Staff, but to this Ludendorff objected. For him the word “second” no longer existed with regard to rank, and he insisted on the title of First Quartermaster-General. But before he accepted the position at all, he made it clear to the Kaiser that he must have “joint responsibility in all decisions and measures that might be taken,” and the Kaiser had given him assurance on this point.
Here was the direct corollary of the “marriage of minds” between Hindenburg and Ludendorff. After two years of close co-operation the personality of the Marshal had become so dependent upon, and merged into, that of his lieutenant that he accepted almost unquestioned the views of Ludendorff. The combination from a military aspect proved vastly effective, but politically it was utterly unfortunate; for while in the direction of operations these two worked in complementary accord, in political affairs Hindenburg, knowing and caring nothing of state affairs, was glad to leave their conduct exclusively to Ludendorff—and Ludendorff had very definite ideas regarding the place of the Supreme Command in the government of the country. “Not only had I to probe deeply into the wider workings of the war-direction, and get a grasp of both the great and small matters that affected the home life of the people,” he wrote, “but I had to familiarize myself with great world questions which raised all sorts of problems.” The result of this inquiry and familiarization was the conclusion that, for the winning of the war, the entire resources and government of the country must be placed unreservedly and without stint at the disposal of the Supreme Command, who assumed responsibility for all actions taken but whose decisions must not be criticized or questioned. The military condominium of Hindenburg and Ludendorff, under the instigation of the latter, became an imperium in imperio, with the First Quartermaster-General negotiating independently with the Emperor, the Chancellor, the Foreign Office, the party leaders in the Reichstag, industrial magnates, and trade union officials, in fact with everyone who had to be subordinated to the will of G. H. Q.
In claiming these supreme powers Ludendorff was not actuated by personal ambition. Ruthless and arrogant he was, but not personally ambitious. His was the dynamic will of the fanatic, which drives straight to its goal without a thought for those who stand in its path. Himself steeped in the disciplinary obedience of the military tradition, he regarded Germany as a vast machine respondent to his will rather than as a highly sensitive and complex industrial organism, and he demanded from it that same willingness to achieve complete victory which he regarded as inherent in the German army. His handling of the “home-front” was characterized by a lack of understanding which led at last to failure and breakdown, and is in marked contrast with the successful degree of co-operation which the more sympathetic personality of Groner was able to establish between capital and labour.
In his consideration of the wider questions of national policy which affected other countries Ludendorffs limitations became still more definite. There was a marked inability to see the part in relation to the whole, a tendency to pursue a policy for its short-term advantages, regardless of what its ultimate repercussions might bring, and, above all, an assumption of omniscience which would brook no correction or opposition. It was this obstinate conviction which deprived Germany of the services of her two most enlightened war-time statesmen, Bethmann-Hollweg and Kuhlmann, both of whom were sacrificed by Wilhelm II at the command of Ludendorff.
The results of such a situation could not but be disastrous, for while the strategic genius of the Supreme Command was achieving military successes, their political ineptitude prevented these successes from being exploited diplomatically; and, since Germany was virtually in the state of a beleaguered fortress, the advantages gained were really only in the nature of sorties which, though they forced the enemy to retire, could not raise the siege. Thus, though the armies of the Central Powers crushed Rumania, held Russia, created the supposedly impregnable Siegfried Stellung, repulsed with bloody loss the Nivelle Offensive, and inflicted a heavy defeat on the Italians at Caporetto, their efforts and sacrifices were nullified by the political policies dictated by the Supreme Command.
The movement towards a separate peace with Tsarist Russia, fostered with such care on both sides, was brought to a sudden end in November, 1916, by the insistence of the Supreme Command on the proclamation of the Kingdom of Poland in the hope of raising a Polish Army to fight for Germany. In effect nothing of the sort occurred; the Poles regarded this recognition of their independence as but their natural due and showed a definite disinclination to shed their blood for Germany. Grasping at a shadow, Ludendorff had missed the substance, for the advantages of a separate peace with Russia, unattended by the dangers of Bolshevism, were obvious.
Four months later, in February, 1917, a further blunder of major importance attended the efforts of the Supreme Command to control policy. In face of the expressed objection of the Chancellor, Bethmann-Hollweg, and regardless of the vast potentialities involved, Ludendorff and Hindenburg forced the reluctant Kaiser to declare for unlimited U-boat warfare against neutrals and belligerents alike, in a desperate attempt to break the stranglehold of the Allied blockade. The effect of this action on non-belligerent powers had been considered, and it was agreed that there were sufficient troops available to repulse any attempt of Danish and Dutch divisions to invade Germany by way of retaliation. As for the United States, it was not even considered worthwhile to regard them from a military point of view, for even if American troops should succeed in crossing the Atlantic —on the impossibility of which the Chief of the Naval Staff staked his reputation—the value to the Allies of these raw untrained forces would be negligible. In any case it was hoped to bring England to her knees before any such eventuality could possibly take place. In both these expectations the Supreme Command were disappointed. England, though hard pressed, was not driven to surrender, and the United States declared war on April 7. Three months later the first American troops landed in France, and by November they were in the firing line. In addition, the Allied blockade, now strengthened by the co-operation of the American navy, became more complete than ever.
In the summer of 1917 a not unpromising offer of mediation on the part of the Pope was rejected by Michaelis, the puppet Chancellor whose appointment Ludendorff and Hindenburg had contrived as a successor to Bethmann-Holl-weg, simply because the Supreme Command refused to consider the restoration of Belgian independence.
But the most outstanding example of the defeat of the soldier by the politician was in the case of the peace of Brest-Litovsk. With the object of assisting the collapse of Russia, the Supreme Command facilitated the return of Lenin to Petrograd, little thinking the virus of Bolshevism which they were injecting into the body politic of an enemy state would infect the army and civilian population of Germany. So quickly did the poison spread that by December, 1917, Russia was suing for a separate peace. Germany’s Foreign Secretary, von Kiihlmann, realized what the soldiers would not admit, that a victory in the field was no longer possible for Germany, and sought therefore to prepare the way for a general peace of negotiation, but Ludendorff insisted on the imposition of peace terms so starkly brutal and annexationist in character that the world stood aghast at their rapacity.
In every sense the effect was disastrous. The Allied Governments were made aware of the kind of peace they might expect from a Germany dominated by the Supreme Command, and were confirmed in their belief that the war must be fought to the bitter end to accomplish the defeat of Germany. Moreover, the publication of the Brest peace terms decided President Wilson to devote all the vast resources of America, in men, money, and munitions, to the Allied cause. A degree of co-operation was established between America and the nations of the Entente which all previous negotiation between them had failed to achieve, and the artificer of this unity of purpose was Ludendorff.
Furthermore, the direct results to Germany of the treaty were entirely negative. The hope of securing large supplies of food from the Ukraine for the hungry population of the Central Powers was doomed to disappointment, and in addition it was discovered that a victor’s peace must be enforced. Germany had separated from Russia the provinces of Courland, Lithuania, Estonia, and Livonia with a view to incorporating them within the Empire, and a garrison had to be kept in these territories. She had recognized the independence of the Ukraine and of Georgia, and was therefore obliged to uphold with bayonets their shadow governments, which would otherwise be overthrown by the Bolsheviks. An army of occupation was maintained in Rumania, and German expeditions were sent to Finland, Baku, and the Donetz Basin. The original object of concluding a separate peace with Russia had been to enable the German army in the East to be transferred to the Western Front to take part in the final offensive against the Allies which Ludendorff planned for the Spring of 1918, and on which he was prepared to stake all in a final gamble for victory. Yet when the great attack was launched on March 21, a million men were still immobilized in the East, and half that number on the Western Front in the early stages of the Kaiserschlaeht might easily have turned the scale in favour of Germany. It was not until late summer, when the German losses had reached stupendous figures, that Ludendorff made his final withdrawals from East, but then they came a few at a time and too late.
Despite the failure of the offensive in the spring and summer, it was not until September 28 that Ludendorff would admit the necessity of an armistice, though he knew after August 8—”the black day of the German Army in the war” —that his “gambler’s throw” had failed and the initiative had passed into the hands of the Allies. And again his political sense failed him. Realizing that a democratization of the German political structure was a necessary preliminary for peace, he commanded a “Revolution from Above” and a proposal for an armistice on the basis of Mr. Wilson’s Fourteen Points, still ignorant of the fact that, since the Peace of Brest-Litovsk, this programme no longer represented “a full recitation of the conditions of peace.” In vain Prince Max of Baden pleaded for a preliminary period of negotiation, pointing out that so sudden a conversion to peace and democracy on the part of Germany indicated too openly a death-bed repentance. Ludendorff, in the last act of his supremacy, and haunted by the spectre of a complete breakdown of the army in the field, bore down all opposition and insisted upon the dispatch of the fatal telegram of October 4. Too late he became aware of the powers which he had conjured up against Germany. When the conditions of the pre-armistice agreement arrived from Washington, making it clear that in accepting them Germany would render herself unable to re-open hostilities, Ludendorff, aghast, repudiated his part in urging the opening of negotiations and declared for a war a outrance.
He fell, at last, a victim to the “Revolution from Above” which he himself had ordered. The responsibility for the conduct of the war had passed by the reforms of October, 1918, from the Supreme Command to the Cabinet, and on October 26, the Chancellor confronted the Kaiser with the choice which Ludendorff had so often put before him during the past two years. Either the Cabinet or the First Quartermaster-General must resign, and in this case Wilhelm II had no choice in making his decision. Ludendorff’s own weapon of an ultimatum had been turned against him. Two days later his request for permission to resign was granted, and he passed from active service, to be succeeded by his old rival, Groner. When the Revolution of November broke out in Germany he fled to Sweden wearing civilian clothes and disguised with blue glasses.
Ludendorff’s post-war career, after his return to Germany in February, 1919, did little to add to his reputation. He allied himself with the ultra-Nationalist elements of the Right, refusing to be reconciled in any way with the Weimar Republic, and he never missed an opportunity of adding a new weapon to his armoury of hate. One evening in the autumn of 1919, Ludendorff was dining with the head of the British Military Mission, Major-General Sir Neill Malcolm, and his officers, and was expatiating, with his usual vitriolic eloquence, on the way in which the Supreme Command had been betrayed by the revolution on the “home-front.” His style of speech was turgid and verbose, and in an effort to crystallize the meaning into a single sentence, General Malcolm asked him: “Do you mean, General, that you were stabbed in the back?” Ludendorff’s eyes lit up and he leapt upon the phrase like a dog on a bone. “Stabbed in the back?” he repeated. “Yes, that’s it, exactly, we were stabbed in the back.” And thus was born a legend which has never entirely perished.
Ludendorff was involved in the Kapp Putsch of 1920, and played a more courageous role than Adolf Hitler in the abortive rising at Munich in 1923, an event which brought him much personal popularity among the reactionaries. A year later he was elected to the Reichstag as the leader of “the National Socialist Party of Liberty,” and remained a deputy for four years. His popularity as a political leader, which at the start had been immense, soon waned, and when, at the close of 1924, Adolf Hitler was released from prison and began laboriously to build up his political machine, his followers turned with relief from the strict militarism of Ludendorff to the easier discipline of the Fiihrer.
The final political folly came in 1925 when Ludendorff was ignominiously defeated in the first presidential ballot on the death of Ebert, and though he remained in the Reichstag until the general election of 1928, he played but a minor role in national and party politics, emerging only to campaign vigorously against the Young Plan. He never forgave Hindenburg for accepting this reparation agreement and the bitter estrangement continued until the Marshal’s death.
Four years of unprecedented strain and responsibility during the War had left their mark on Ludendorff. Though he withdrew to his tents in Munich, he lived a life of tempestuous isolation. His public utterances grew wilder and less comprehensible, and his attacks upon his former colleagues, Hindenburg and Hitler, became more and more savage in invective. There were those who said that he had actually suffered a stroke at Spa on the night of September 28, 1918; others attributed his morbid brooding and fierce outbursts to the effect of an automobile accident shortly before his resignation, in which he had been rendered unconscious. His later eccentricities took the form of a vehement onslaught on Christianity and the belief that the downfall of European civilization was being encompassed by an unholy alliance of the Catholic Church, World Jewry, and the Grand Orient.
As a soldier Ludendorff will always be assured of a high reputation, for more than any other of the military commanders of the World War he left his mark upon modern warfare. Almost alone among his contemporaries he recognized that, even under the conditions of trench warfare, the element of surprise was still a possibility, and in his search for the achievement of surprise he developed a new offensive technique.
Had Ludendorff added to his undoubted gifts the power of devolution he would unquestionably have been a great commander. He had collected round him one of the most brilliant staffs assembled during the War at any headquarters. Men such as Bauer, Bruchmuller, Geyer, and Wetzell were acknowledged experts in their own fields, and yet, as Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria has shown in his memoirs, Ludendorff was perpetually interfering in details which could and should have been left to staff officers and army commanders. It was this inability to decentralize which imposed so crushing a burden of responsibility upon him throughout the War. The normal duties of a high commander are sufficiently onerous without adding to them those of subordinates, and when to these is added the assumption of responsibility for the conduct of internal policy and national affairs, the load becomes more than any human being can carry and preserve full sanity.
For it was this passion for supreme control which led Ludendorff into the uncharted seas of political vagary and intrigue, and he provides a striking example of the dangers of an expert, brilliant in his own calling, translated to an unaccustomed sphere. He demanded unquestioning support from the “home-front” without trying in return to understand its problems. He bullied where he should have cajoled and alienated where he should have found allies. His unbounded confidence in himself and in his judgment was matched only by his complete contempt for the abilities and morale of his opponents, whether military or political, and the wisdom of a great soldier was rendered sterile by the unwisdom of a poor politician. | 2019-04-24T06:49:33Z | https://www.vqronline.org/essay/ludendorff-soldier-and-politician |
The software industry is rapidly seeing the value of using containers as a way to ease development, deployment, and environment orchestration for app developers. That’s because containers effectively manage environmental differences, allow for improved scalability, and provide predictability that supports Continuous Delivery (CD) of features. In addition to the technical advantages, containers have been shown to dramatically reduce the cost model of complex environments.
Large-scale and highly-elastic applications that are built in containers definitely have their benefits, but managing the environment can be daunting. This is where an orchestration tool like Kubernetes really shines.
Kubernetes is a platform-agnostic container orchestration tool created by Google and heavily supported by the open source community as a project of the Cloud Native Computing Foundation. It allows you to spin up a number of container instances and manage them for scaling and fault tolerance. It also handles a wide range of management activities that would otherwise require separate solutions or custom code, including request routing, container discovery, health checking, and rolling updates.
Kenzan is a services company that specializes in building applications at scale. We’ve seen cloud technology evolve over the last decade, designing microservice-based applications around the Netflix OSS stack, and more recently implementing projects using the flexibility of container technology. While each implementation is unique, we’ve found the combination of microservices, Kubernetes, and Continuous Delivery pipelines to be very powerful.
This article is the first in a series of four blog posts. Our goal is to show how easy it is to set up a fully-containerized application stack in Kubernetes with a simple CI/CD pipeline to manage the deployments.
We’ll describe the setup and deployment of an application we created especially for this series. It’s called the Kr8sswordz Puzzle, and working with it will help you link together some key Kubernetes and CI/CD concepts. The application will start simple enough, then as we progress we will introduce components that demonstrate a full application stack, as well as a CI/CD pipeline to help manage that stack, all running as containers on Kubernetes. Check out the architecture diagram below to see what you’ll be building.
The completed application will show the power and ease with which Kubernetes manages both apps and infrastructure, creating a sandbox where you can build, deploy, and spin up many instances under load.
The first step in building our Kr8sswordz Puzzle application is to set up Kubernetes and get comfortable with running containers in a pod. We’ll install several tools explained along the way: Docker, Minikube, and Kubectl.
To complete these exercises, you’ll need a computer running an up-to-date version of Linux or macOS. Your computer should have 16 GB of RAM.
Docker is one of the most widely-used container technologies and works directly with Kubernetes. In this exercise we’ll install Docker and then try out a few commands.
Download Docker for Mac (stable) and follow the installation instructions. To launch Docker, double-click the Docker icon in the Applications folder. Once it’s running, you’ll see a whale icon in the menu bar.
docker run busybox echo "hello, you've run busybox"
Note that Images are specs that define all the files and resources needed for a container to run. Many OSS images are publicly available on DockerHub. For more on Docker, see Docker Getting Started. For a complete listing of commands, see The Docker Commands.
Minikube is a single-node Kubernetes cluster that makes it easy to run Kubernetes locally on your computer. We will use Minikube as the primary Kubernetes cluster to run our application on. Kubectl is a command line interface (CLI) for Kubernetes and the way we will interface with our cluster.
Download and install the latest version of VirtualBox for your operating system. VirtualBox lets Minikube run a Kubernetes node on a virtual machine (VM).
Head over to the Minikube releases page and install the latest version of Minikube using the recommended method for your operating system. This will set up our Kubernetes node.
The last piece of the puzzle is to install kubectl so we can talk to our Kubernetes node.
In the next exercises, we’re going to use Minikube to start a local Kubernetes cluster and deploy some pods. You can manually enter each of the commands in the exercises, but to make things a little easier we’ve created a tutorial script that will walk you through the steps (and save you some typing). Let’s get the interactive tutorial going.
On macOS, download the NodeJS installer, and then double-click the .pkg file to install NodeJS and npm.
Now it’s time to make your own copy of the Kubernetes CI/CD repository on Github.
1. Install Git on your computer if you don’t have it already.
On macOS, download and run the macOS installer for Git. To install, first double-click the .dmg file to open the disk image. Right-click the .pkg file and click Open, and then click Open again to start the installation.
2. Fork Kenzan’s Kubernetes CI/CD repository on Github. This has all the containers and other goodies for our Kr8sswordz Puzzle application, and you’ll want to fork it as you’ll later be modifying some of the code.
a. Sign up if you don’t yet have an account on Github.
b. On the Kubernetes CI/CD repository on Github, click the Fork button in the upper right and follow the instructions.
In this exercise we’ll test out Minikube by running a pod based on a public image on DockerHub.
You don’t have to actually type the commands below—just press Enter at each step and the script will enter the command for you!
1. Start up the Kubernetes cluster with Minikube, giving it some extra resources.
2. Enable the Minikube add-ons Heapster and Ingress.
3. Wait 20 seconds, and then view the Minikube Dashboard, a web UI for managing deployments. You may have to refresh the web browser if you don’t see the dashboard right away.
4. Deploy the public nginx image from DockerHub into a container in a pod. Nginx is an open source web server. The nginx image is automatically downloaded from Docker Hub if it’s not available locally.
5. Create a service for deployment. This will expose the nginx pod so you can access it with a web browser.
6. Launch a web browser to test the service. The nginx welcome page displays, which means the service is up and running. Nice work!
The interactive tutorial should still be running—just press Enter to run each step below.
7. Set up the cluster registry by applying a .yml manifest file.
8. Wait for the registry to finish deploying. Note that this may take several minutes.
9. View the registry user interface in a web browser. Right now it’s empty, but you’re about to change that.
10 . Let’s make a change to an HTML file in the cloned project. Running the command below will open the file /applications/hello-kenzan/index.html in the nano text editor.
Change some text inside one of the <p> tags. For example, change “Hello from Kenzan!” to “Hello from Me!”. When you’re done, press Ctrl+X to close the file. You’ll be prompted to save your changes — enter Y to save changes and Enter to write to the specified file.
11. Now let’s build an image, giving it a special name that points to our local cluster registry.
12. We’ve built the image, but before we can push it to the registry, we need to set up a temporary proxy. By default the Docker client can only push to HTTP (not HTTPS) via localhost. To work around this, we’ll set up a container that listens on 127.0.0.1:30400 and forwards to our cluster.
13. With our proxy container up and running, we can now push our image to the local repository.
Refresh the browser window with the registry, UI and you’ll see the image has appeared.
14. The proxy’s work is done, so you can go ahead and stop it.
15. With the image in our cluster registry, the last thing to do is apply the manifest to create and deploy the hello-kenzan service based on the image.
16. Launch a web browser and view the service.
Notice the change you made to the index.html file. That change was baked into the image when you built it and then was pushed to the registry. Pretty cool!
So far, we’ve installed Docker, Minikube, and Kubectl. To build out our Kr8sswordz Puzzle stack, we’ve run our image repository as a pod in Minikube, and we were able to test building and pushing to it with our Hello-Kenzan app.
Stay tuned for Part 2 of the series, where we will continue to build out our infrastructure by adding in a CI/CD component: Jenkins running in its own pod. Using a Jenkins 2.0 Pipeline script, we will build, push, and deploy our Hello-Kenzan app, giving us the infrastructure for continuous deployment that will later be used with our Kr8sswordz Puzzle app. Though it might seem mind-bending to deploy containers from a Jenkins container within Kubernetes, Part 2 will show how easy it is to manage deployments this way.
Kenzan is a software engineering and full service consulting firm that provides customized, end-to-end solutions that drive change through digital transformation. Combining leadership with technical expertise, Kenzan works with partners and clients to craft solutions that leverage cutting-edge technology, from ideation to development and delivery. Specializing in application and platform development, architecture consulting, and digital transformation, Kenzan empowers companies to put technology first.
Want to learn more about Kubernetes? Get unlimited access to the new Kubernetes Fundamentals training course for one year for $199. Sign up now!
The buzz around containers, particularly the Docker container platform, is hard to avoid. Containerization of applications promises speed and agility, capabilities that are essential in today’s fast-paced IT environment. But outside the world of DevOps, containers can still be an unfamiliar technology.
At Interop ITX, Stephen Foskett, organizer of Tech Field Day and proprietor of Gestalt IT, provided some clarity about application containerization. In a presentation entitled, “The Case For Containers,” he explained the basics about the technology and what enterprise IT shops can expect from it.
He explained that containers are similar to virtual machines “except for this whole idea of user space.” A container, which uses operating system-level virtualization, has strict boundaries around a limited set of libraries and is custom-designed to run a specific application. That focus on one application is a key differentiator from virtual machines and makes containers important for enterprise IT, he said.
Docker, which launched as an open source project in 2013, “got a lot of things right,” Foskett said. For example, Docker Hub makes it easy to locate images, which become containers when users instantiate them. Docker also uses layered storage, which conserves space. At the same time, though, that easy storage can create lead to performance issues, he added.
Since cloud technologies began altering the IT landscape, cattle vs. pets has become a common meme. “Many in DevOps will tell you they’re [containers] a cattle approach, but they’re not really cattle; they’re pets,” Foskett said.
While containers can be spun up and torn down quickly, the problem is that by default, Docker doesn’t actually destroy the container, which can lead to container sprawl. “When you exit a container, the container stays there with the data as you left it,” unless manually deleted with the rm command, Foskett said.
“This is the critical reason containers are going to be relevant in the enterprise data center,” he said.
Another container benefit is security, Foskett said. Security breaches often stem from escalation of privileges to utilities and application components, which affects an entire system. Containerized applications don’t contain unused utilities, so there’s less exposure to infection.
Foskett said containers also enable scalable application platforms using microservices. Instead of monolithic systems that are hard to scale, enterprises can have containerized applications for specific functions.
Foskett advised attendees to start experimenting with Docker and Windows containers. “One of the coolest things about Docker is that it’s really easy to try,” he said.
A Docker Enterprise Edition is in the works, which will include certified containers and plugins. When you download a container from Docker Hub, “you know it’s really going to be what it says it is,” he said.
Imagine taking Linux Mint, placing the Cinnamon desktop on it and then theming it to not only to serve as a perfect drop-in replacement for Windows 7 but to be one of the most beautiful Linux desktops you’ve seen in a long while. That’s what Feren OS has managed — and has done so with aplomb.
Feren OS first arrived in 2015 and recently unleashed their 2017 iteration of the platform…with stunning results. This is truly one of those instances that, upon installation, you’ll find yourself doing a double (or triple) take, asking, “Is this really Linux?” Not that the state of the Linux desktop is behind the competition, in fact, I consider many of the Linux desktops to be light years ahead of other desktops. But, Feren OS has achieved something special; they’ve created a Linux distribution that anyone could use, for nearly any purpose, with zero learning curve.
Let’s take a look at this new(ish) distro to see exactly what makes it special. We’ll also dig deep to see what kind of caveats lay under the polish (if any).
You cannot deny Feren OS has done their homework to create a desktop anyone would be instantly familiar with (Figure 1).
There’s so little to say about this desktop. Why? Because you already know it. At least, anyone that’s used a desktop interface in the past 10 years will know it. You have a “start” button, a bottom panel, quick launchers, a system tray, desktop icons, a clock…all the usual pieces are in perfect place to make things simple, efficient, and elegant.
Click on the “start” button to reveal a very standard menu (Figure 2) that includes all the regular (necessary) categories for Accessories, Games, Graphics, Internet, Office, and more.
The Feren OS desktop does something very interesting by breaking up the usual Settings options within its own submenu. In fact, what the designers/developers have done with the various configuration options (I believe) is quite smart. Click on the “start” button and then click Preferences. In this tab, you can scroll through all of the possible configuration categories available for the desktop (Figure 3).
All told, there are 49 different configuration sub-categories to be found, ranging from Applets, to Bluetooth, to Desktop Sharing, Fingerprint GUI, Firewall Configuration, Graphics Tablet, Hot Corner, and so much more.
On the desktop, you’ll find an icon for the Feren OS Themer. Click on that and you can switch the desktop theme from Feren OS, Windows, Apple, Linux, and Google themes (Figure 4). This might well be the single best desktop themer on the market.
Diving into the main menu, I did find an oddity on the Feren OS desktop. Click on the Office category and you’ll find both LibreOffice and WPS Office installed. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a fan of both LibreOffice and WPS Office, but I question the inclusion of both suites. Considering the installation of Feren OS is already quite large, why include both? Pick one or the other. After playing around with both on Feren OS, I find WPS Office the likelier candidate as it offers really solid MS Office compatibility and actually looks better with the overall theme of the desktop. Given how much time and effort has been put into look and feel of the Feren OS desktop, one would almost have to take that into account.
There is also an odd choice of default web browser to be found. Although I do like the Vivaldi browser, it is a curiosity as to why it was chosen as the default. It works and works well; but it is not nearly as familiar as, say, Chrome or Firefox. Do not despair, though; the developers have included a Web Browser Manager tool to make the installation of other browsers a snap. Open the “start” menu, click Internet, and then click on Web Browser Manager to see that you can install either Firefox or Chrome with the click of a button (Figure 5).
As you can see, the Web Browser Manager was borrowed from Zorin OS. This was a wise addition to the software stack (given the developer’s choice of making Vivaldi the default).
Click on over to Start > Games to find both PlayOnLinux and Steam installed. With these available, gamers aren’t left out of the mix. Feren OS can work and play with the best of them.
For the installation of new software, Feren OS includes the very popular (and incredibly user-friendly GNOME Software). Open up the tool to find thousands of software titles ready to install (Figure 6).
Of course, no desktop is perfect. The biggest (and really only) issue with Feren OS is its size. The download alone is 3.6GB. When you go to install the operating system it will inform you of its need for at least 18GB of space. That’s quite a lot of space for an operating system. That size also translates to some significant minimum requirements. Feren OS doesn’t actually list minimum requirements for the platform; instead, they offer up a list of hardware known to work well with the platform. From experience, I can say that 3GB of RAM is on the low side for the platform. If you want to get the most out of the OS, your best bet is a machine with 8GB of RAM. That’s a healthy amount of RAM, but this is an operating system that has a lot to offer. The conclusion? Old hardware need not apply. This might turn a lot of users off, but Feren OS is a modern take on the Linux desktop, one which offers a lot bells and whistles.
If you’re looking for a slick desktop that requires nearly zero in the way of learning curve, Feren OS might well fit the bill. With the right hardware, this new(ish) Linux desktop platform performs and impresses. Give it a spin and see it if isn’t exactly what you’ve been looking for.
When last we met, we learned the basics of creating new virtual machines in Creating Virtual Machines in KVM: Part 1. Now we’re going to learn how to control Internet access for our virtual machines, network VMs with each other, and create new virtual networks.
Some Linux distributions, such as CentOS 7 and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7, do not start networking by default, so you have to enable it. If you don’t have networking in a virtual machine, first check whether it is enabled.
The default network is NAT (network address transation) when you create a new virtual machine — assuming your particular Linux distribution has not mucked with this. This forwards network traffic through your host system; if the host is connected to the Internet, then your virtual machines have Internet access.
The virtual machine manager also creates an Ethernet bridge between the host and virtual network, so you can ping the IP addresses of your VMs from the host, and your VMs can ping the IP address of the host.
Confirm your virtual network type by opening the information tab on any running VM; this is the little white “i” in a blue circle on the top left of your virtual machine console (Figure 1).
Your virtual machines have their own virtual network, which is on a different subnet than the host. Your VMs should be able to ping each other by IP address and by hostname, because your virtual network has its own name server. When your ping tests succeed, then you can set up services such as web, email, SSH, and so on, just like on any Linux machine.
Go to Edit > Connection Details > Virtual Networks in your virtual machine manager to view the details of your virtual network (Figure 2).
This shows the network name, Ethernet bridge name, the DHCP address range, and status. As your collection of VMs grows you may wish to give them separate subnets. How to do this? With ease. Click the little green “Add network” button at the bottom left of the Virtual Networks tab.
In step 1, enter your new network name, which is anything you want.
In step 2, enter your new network address. The field background changes to green when you enter a non-colliding address (Figure 3). Enable DHCP with a click. How easy is that?
In step 3, enable IPv6. Or not.
In step 4, you have the option to either create an isolated network with no external access or one with external access via NAT or routing. NAT is the easiest (Figure 4).
Click Finish. This returns you to the Connection Details screen, where you can admire your networks list.
Open the information tab on a running VM and delete your existing network configuration. Look for the “NIC :[mac address]” entry in the left pane, where all of your hardware is listed, and right-click/Remove Hardware to remove it.
Next, click the Add Hardware button at the bottom. Select Network and choose your new network from the Network Source dropdown.
Distributions that use Network Manager should pick up the new assignment automatically. If you’re not using Network Manager, then renew your DHCP lease or reboot.
Domains and hostnames are not the same thing, although they can be the same if you desire. Virtual machine hostnames are the standard Linux hostnames, and you manage them just like any Linux.
The virsh list command returns a list of your virtual machine names, also called domains. These are the names that you configured at creation. Look on the information > Overview tab of a running VM to see its domain name. This has nothing to do with DNS domain names; they’re just arbitrary names for our VMs. | 2019-04-23T10:29:37Z | https://servers-linux.ro/2017/05/ |
Autumn Holiday Photo Diary – Elviria, Benahavís, Seville | Travel. Style. Food.
Well, this was a long time coming; our autumn holiday! And what a holiday it was. I did a couple of city breaks this year, and to balance out all that pavement pounding and sightseeing, a holiday full of sunshine and chilling out was required. This one was the whole enchilada – two weeks along the coast this past October. Lazing around at the pool, by the sea, eating, drinking and most importantly, recharging batteries.
I mentioned this was a long time coming because this post has been as all over the place, just as I’ve been recently. I started organising the pictures in Granada just before a trip to Dublin, then organised a handful travelling from Madrid back to Granada, then wrote a little in the air from Malaga to Madrid to catch a flight to Lisbon. Now I’m firmly putting the nail in the coffin travelling back to Granada again after an incredible week-long press trip in Portugal with Simplyb Tours.
Time has flown by, and while everyone says that, it’s true. This part of the year always, always does. By the time my parents left Granada at the end of October (which feels like it was about 3 weeks ago, not 6) I got back to normality, saw some friends, was back into the Granada groove; and before knew it, I was off again. I’m not complaining though, not one bit. 2017 has been full to the brim; fast-paced and fun, and it’s not over yet.
On a side note: I also used to curse myself regularly for taking so many photographs; whether on my camera or iPhone. But to be honest, I’ve learned to embrace it. It definitely means more work and getting my act together (and more scrolling for you) but hey, it’s who I am, I take way too many photos! So if I can’t beat me, I’ll join me.
So here we go, a recap of our time (‘our’ referring to six of us, Iñaki and I, my parents, more family – Helen and Victor) spent in Granada, Elviria, Benahavís, Seville and some places in between. A lot of these places (old haunts) have appeared here before, as have the restaurants. But it’s nice to share the collection along with some tips and a handful of new discoveries, and it means I have even more chapters in my digital scrapbook to look back on (even the dodgy quality of mobile photography circa 2013) So while I sometimes find these image heavy posts take some time, I always appreciate them afterwards and I’m glad I have them. Like this recent holiday, the blog holds some fantastic memories.
Sundowners with my parents at The Alhambra Palace Hotel, soon after they arrived. An absolute must if you’re visiting, the balcony truly has the best views of Granada’s famous sunsets. That evening I had my first White Lady cocktail (gin, lemon, triple sec) and it didn’t disappoint! We caught up on news of home and I loved having them stay. I really like bringing visitors here, especially for a pre-dinner drink as it never fails to impress. The prices are about 3 times more expensive than the bars down below, but it’s worth it for the views (For example, a caña is €3.50, all cocktails start at €10).
You can see one side of Granada from the hotel (The Alhambra is just up the hill behind the hotel, so it can’t be seen from the balcony) so we dined in Estrella de San Nicolas to enjoy the view from the opposite side; the golden lights of The Alhambra. That night we experienced more or less a 360-degree view of the city. The food at Estrella de San Nicolas is very good, and not too expensive. If you want a seat on the balcony, I recommend reserving a table via their online form here.
We then went to the Meliá hotel to the Garbo Bar (named after Greta Garbo, the signature cocktail of the same name I can also recommend) where I often go to sit in their big squishy armchairs and read. Escobar looked after us well (he always does, I often see him on my Sunday visits) and gave us deliciously delicate little cakes to try. The Garbo team often bring around treats…a really nice touch. I love going to the Melia, it’s a great place for a quiet drink or a cup of coffee if you *gasp!* want a break from tapas and a little quiet time.
This shot is from an afternoon spent chatting away with my Mam outside the cathedral. My Dad then joined us after he spent most of the morning and early afternoon working (no surprise there) and we all went to Baraka, my favourite place in Granada for brunch. Order the eggs benedict or eggs florentine and thank me later.
Cava and tapas at Puerta del Carmen, one of the best places in the city and a favourite amongst parents and friends who come to visit. Their tapas are always good; expect a mini burger, prawns like above, croquetas, juicy slivers of jamón or fried aubergines with honey; my sister’s favourite.
The day after this shot was taken Helen and Victor came to Granada and I showed them around (as much as I could, as a national holiday meant the city was super busy) and they really seemed to like it. I’m glad so many people in my life have experienced the beauty of Granada, and I’m looking forward to welcoming more people in 2018. Only fun people allowed though. You know how it is.
Iñaki arrived in Granada on Friday night and we set off for Elviria on Saturday morning. This was our first lunch together in Elviria as a group. We went to a local place called Volare, just across the bridge. Iñaki and I shared carpaccio and our usual, provolone cheese. It ain’t a real blog post if provolone doesn’t feature!
That night we went to Pinzimonio for dinner where I had my usual; mussels in Parisienne sauce followed by prawns wrapped in sole in champagne sauce. Heaven. Ugly to photograph though, so you’re not missing much there. Taste-wise, get on it. The whipped garlic butter is a mustie too. That stuff is pure danger.
Alanda Club Marbella; the view from our balcony. Our apartment has two balconies, so you get the best of both views. Mountains on one side, the sea on the other.
Flowers around the resort. You’ll spy many a little lizard too.
We spent Sunday afternoon at the resort pool and then headed down to the beach. I used to hate everything about the beach, but now I love it. I couldn’t wait to get my feet on the sand.
Life’s a beach! Mojitos by the sea. October sun is the best kind of sun. Not too hot, not too cold – just right.
Pre-dinner drinks (and affection) at the clubhouse before an amazing meal at Dragon del Mar Chinese. The food is so good, and there’s plenty of it, lots of flavours and variety. You get a pretty sizeable complimentary drink at the end too. Tip: order the duck Cantonese and the Singapore chow mein.
Early afternoon skies, and a typical lunch with everyone at the apartment. We ate like this a few days during the trip if we weren’t out exploring. My favourite kind of lunch; salads, meats, cheeses, eggs, pâté, crackers, olive oil and fresh bread. A bit of everything keeps the heart happy and the belly full. Pretty sure that’s an old proverb.
Another beach day but with a new discovery! We found Pepe El Lido Beach Bar and it became our favourite. A shack-like bar with surprisingly good music (which of course made the atmosphere great) a varied food menu (hot dogs, burgers, pasta, salads) with a terrace and sun loungers right outside the main entrance. We spent a few hours there, forgetting the time (as one does on holiday) and when we paid the bill, it was one of the cheapest. Win-win.
The last two are Iñaki’s shots. As if you couldn’t tell.
Ready for dinner in head to toe Zara. Even my clutch a couple of images down is a Zara find. Ignore ridiculous tan lines on feet.
Dinner was at Da Bruno in Cabopino. I love when we go there! The colours, fairy lights, everything is magical. The only bad thing? The menu has so many delicious things, I get order anxiety trying to choose. It’s definitely a thing.
I started with baked goats cheese with red wine jam, and my main was their incredible steak Rossini – steak with foie gras, red wine gravy, potato dauphinoise and fresh crunchy vegetables. There were more steaks and pizzas and salads and prawns pil-pil but I only photographed mine. Whoops! I blame the distracting food. Iñaki ordered their pasta (all made fresh) and it was incredible. His portion was definitely the smallest at the table though. Lots of diners ordered pasta tossed in a big fat wheel of pecorino which was fun to watch. Everyone loves a good dinner and show combo.
An overcast afternoon spent up in the town of Mijas Pueblo, also known as ‘The White Village’. We visited the Ermita, stopped for lunch and we (mostly Helen) spent some time browsing the wall to wall shops and little markets.
That night we dined at Restaurante Elviria, a serendipity find this time last year. The food was incredible in both presentation and flavour, and the service was really good. The wine had its very own little decanting table (I love when restaurants in Spain do that!) and it was served in enormous balloon glasses (I love when they use those!) Just look at all the amazing colours in every dish. My ceviche was a work of art and any sort of crème brûlée infused with tonka bean and coffee is glorious in my book.
The only thing they could do to finish off a well-savoured meal? Offer a digestif; most restaurants of this quality and style in Spain do so.
That freezing cold seawater ain’t no joke.
On Wednesday morning we woke up to heavy rain, wind and dull skies. No one seemed to mind though, we were all having a great time. We went to La Cañada where I had the beautiful cup of oil-slicked looking coffee above. Such a satisfying shot! We just walked around for an hour and I bought nothing, which is a new record for me on a La Cañada trip.
Despite the gross weather, Iñaki and I decided to brave the beach after lunch and see if Bar Lido was open, and sure enough, it was. In fact, it was the only bar open on the beach that day. Another reason to give those heroes some business! We sat inside because the wind was crazy and played Yahtzee. Ireland vs. Argentina, of course. My Mam introduced Iñaki to Yahtzee the first night, and he and the dice became fast friends. We still play it quite a bit, especially on planes.
That night we went to Albert’s in Cabopino where almost everyone ordered a cheeseburger (go team, cravings by telepathy) and Iñaki and I shared salt & chilli squid and prawns pil-pil with pesto bread to start. I like Albert’s, but it’s definitely one of the most expensive restaurants in the area by far. I enjoy the food but can’t put my finger on it – something is missing for me.
Thursday we took a trip down to Cala de Mijas. We went for a drive so Helen and my Mam could look in souvenir shops, but there weren’t really any decent finds. The only one we spotted had the token (and rather cheeky) male and female anatomy ceramics that most people wouldn’t put in their garages. Unsuccessful in our souvenir endeavours, we succeeded in our quest for coffee, and stopped for one in a nice little cafe along the coast where Victor took this candid shot. Candid shots are the best, don’t you think? Forced smiles make me look half tranquilised.
It cleared up that day and the sun shined, so we spent the afternoon at the pool and later on the beach. Again. I won’t bore you with more beach or water shots. I promise! It’s pretty much the only beach I see year to year, so one has to make the most of it.
Here’s another sunset though. You can never see too many of those.
Dragon del Mar was so darn enjoyable, we just had to go back. And that’s what we did that Thursday night. I had to share this picture of our table…look at all that alcohol! Oops.
We had a fantastic meal but didn’t stop there. We went to Harmon’s, the local Irish bar for drinks afterwards. Irish bars and drinks, always a recipe for trouble. We met another gang of Irish (predictable from a mile off) and sure enough, songs were sung. Many songs. Especially Irish ones. Go figure. At midnight we all sang Happy Birthday to Iñaki and I’ve never seen him happier. He loves when the Irish burst into song, and of course, adores his birthday. Who doesn’t?! He should have milked the whole month though. I better teach him my ways. Rookie.
Friday morning I brought the birthday boy to brunch at Volare (the cure) where we both ordered pancakes with maple syrup. He had a juice, I had a delicious concoction of what I think was coffee, banana, nut or coconut milk and maple syrup – I can’t find any menus online to confirm exactly. Either way, it is an elixir of life. We went back to Alanda and spent some time by the pool before we were beckoned from the balcony. Streamers, balloons, presents, cava and a cake were all there as a birthday surprise.
Truth be told I organised the cake during brunch, distracting Iñaki with some sort of white lie, and he bought it, the chump. It was three different types of chocolate mousse and it was DIVINE. The best I could get with no dulce de leche cakes to be found. His presents were all so generous and thoughtful and had a running theme – Ireland! What can I say, he’s our country’s biggest fan. Needless to say, he really enjoyed his birthday. Mission accomplished by all.
For our final night together in Elviria we went to The Playwright; another old favourite. It’s quite a special little spot and one of the places I most look forward to each year. It being Irish themed and perfect for a special occasion, we decided to go there for our last night and for Iñaki’s birthday meal.
We started with a drink at the bar before moving to our round table in the corner. Restaurants with a selection of round tables always make me happy. A table is for conversation, it needs to be round!
The menu never changes much, but it really doesn’t have to. I had the fried black pudding with goats cheese and apple puree, followed by the fillet of Angus beef with cheddar mash. Most went for steak, and starters varied between mussels cooked with coconut, chilli and lime, prawns pil-pil (I still maintain they make the best) and deep fried brie. The magret of duck pictured above was ordered by my dear Mother. The handsome looking duck you see before you is marinated in herbs and spices served with sauteed potatoes and a Cointreau and cumquat sauce.
The Playwright offers an early bird menu, Sunday lunch menu and host Christmas parties. Their sister restaurant, Becketts, is in the city of Marbella, just 30 minutes away.
Fun fact: I had my first espresso martini here in 2012. I’ve tried many since but to me, they will always be the original and best.
And then there were four. My parents, Iñaki and I left Elviria with Benahavís as our next stop, but we didn’t go directly. Where’s the fun in that? Instead, we went all around Ronda, scaling the mountains and taking in the views (me in the front as I always feel nauseous in the car…there are pros and cons to everything) spotting some adorable goats along the way! I wanted to tell them how much I love their cheese, but I didn’t want to scare them away. And I don’t speak goat.
We stopped in Ronda in time for lunch, after our pleasant drive through the mountains. We went to a little Italian spot in the square and everyone ordered pizza. I had my first Bianca – a pizza with onion, ham and mushroom and mozzarella, with a base of alfredo sauce instead of tomato. Delicious, but rich. Better shared, 100%.
After a short trip in the car from Ronda to Benahavís (only about 45 minutes, if you’re thinking of branching out and doing some driving away from the coast) we arrived at Gran Hotel Benahavís, a really lovely hotel with a lot of personality. It’s probably the best choice in town, as there tend to be more apartments up for rent than hotel offerings. There are about 7,000 people living in the town of Benahavís, also know as ‘The Dining Room,’ due to the popularity of the restaurants there. It’s a busy area for golfing, home to 9 of the Costa del Sol golf courses. The town itself is pretty as a picture, clean, full of flowers…very well manicured.
The view from our room. We checked in and went straight to the pool, of which they have two. There’s nothing like going for a swim with a bunch of mountains for company. So serene you guys.
Cool dude in the pool. He looks pensive – I figure he was thinking about the dulce de leche ice cream he just ate, wishing he had another.
Lobby accents. No two pieces of furniture or paintings are the same at this hotel. I love the courtyard too, with a babbling fountain in the centre. The perfect place for breakfast in the morning.
The reason we visit Benahavís every year is to dine at Los Abanicos, an amazing restaurant in the centre of town. Well, actually, two reasons – we go to La Bodeguita first, a tiny little bar next door. The bar is run by a husband and wife team and now their son is involved too. The walls are covered with photographs of their lives, football memorabilia and other kinds of knick-knacks.
The owner keeps tabs on orders and bills with a copybook (super old school) and his wife does the cooking. We tend to go here for giant pre-dinner gin and tonics. A must visit in Benahavís, loved by both locals and tourists.
At Los Abanicos we started with the bread, crackers and pâtés and all that good stuff (Los Abanicos have a tendency to overfeed) and we ordered fried morcilla and chorizo to start. Another tradition that will last forever. The morcilla of Benahavís is my absolute favourite in Spain, followed by Zaragoza (I love the spicy ones). I had my favourite fish of all time, and one of my favourite dishes on the planet; John Dory and prawns in a creamy tarragon sauce. It’s life-changing. Trust me.
The waiters also fill the table with plenty of sides – rice, chips and vegetables, so you won’t leave hungry. The men drank Emilio Moro and the ladies drank Gran Viña Sol. It was a wonderful night. My Dad made an interesting point though, Los Abanicos now have tables taking up the entire street, not to mention all the tables inside. He felt with all the extra tables they service wasn’t as good as always, and I get what he’s saying. The food is delicious, but monopolising the entire street is a little greedy. Forget some of the tables and focus on your customers, guys!
I forgive them though, since they gave us a digestif (apple liqueur) and I then asked for pacharán for everyone so things ended as they should. Restaurante Elviria, take note!
Morning light. My tan is sure coming along nicely. I call it milk bottle glam.
Breakfast in the courtyard of Gran Hotel. I had more than this to eat, but this was my favourite part. Croissants make me weak, so does Nocilla (as does Nutella).
The last picture I took of Benahavís before we continued on our road trip. This time we were headed for Seville. I lied in my recent Seville post when I mentioned it was the final frontier. I just couldn’t stay away. Olé!
Before Seville, we stopped in Jerez for an hour or so. As y’all know, the city is famous for sherry and brandy production. Sure there’s a picture of Uncle Pepe himself above, he’s pretty famous. I mean, his sign is in Puerta del Sol in Madrid. I really like those lights. Anyway, other than the beautiful light in Jerez de la Frontera Cathedral, I wasn’t that impressed with the city. Perhaps I just need someone to show me around?
The views from the rooftop bar at our hotel, Hotel Fernando III in the heart of Santa Cruz, Seville.
Colours on the third floor.
Italian delights and cañas at Bar Alfalfa. It was only a matter of time. I could never stay away!
We spent most of our first day strolling around, stopping from time to time in peaceful little squares. Mam and I looked around all the little shops and boutiques. We really took the time to slow down and not do much at all, really enjoying the final days of our trip.
The lounge at our hotel. So warmly lit and inviting.
We spent our last day in Seville exploring, meandering the narrow streets, stopping into a cathedral, shop, square, the usual. The clothing brand, ‘Emma’ which I took photos of for obvious reasons was in a classic Sevillian building, now serving as an arcade or little market, housing clothing and jewellery and pretty things from all kinds of designers. We walked along Avenida de Constitución and stopped for a coffee before visiting Parque de Maria Luisa and of course, Plaza de España.
We enjoyed a spectacular long leisurely late lunch (all the ‘l’s) at San Marco, which I’ll write about separately to this post. We passed it lots of times on our trip last July and honestly forgot about it, so booked it for this Seville trip, and I’m so glad we did.
Hours later we finished our night in Bar Alfalfa (nope, not joking) where the atmosphere was electric (as usual) and I introduced my parents to the deliciousness and dangers of melted scamorza. I just realised I’ve used so many brackets in this post. It must be all the coffee I’ve had today. Sorry about that.
Anyway, the next day we said our goodbyes to Iñaki at Sevilla Santa Justa train station. He decided to make the journey from Seville as there’s a train direct to Madrid that takes only 2 hours, and Granada currently doesn’t have an operating train station. Here’s hoping it’ll be accessible again by early 2018. We weren’t too sad saying goodbye as we knew we’d see Iñaki again a couple of weeks later for my sister’s birthday celebrations in Dublin.
Hotel Alhambra Palace from the outside.
And just like that, we were back in Granada. In true Granada fashion, the book fair was going on. Granada ALWAYS has something going on. It’s one of the things I adore about it, no other place in my life have I see so many celebrations, parades, live music, markets and such well-organised community get-togethers, concerts or car shows. As I type this, the place is hopping outside, and the Christmas market is in full swing.
We ended the holiday pretty much as we began – drinks on the balcony of the Alhambra palace. This time, as the sun went down, we toasted to a wonderful few weeks. | 2019-04-24T04:46:09Z | http://www.travelstylefood.com/2017/12/autumn-holiday-photo-diary-elviria-benahavis-seville/ |
We liked the distribution of minutes for the Gophers.
This coin-flip game had 9 ties and 10 lead changes. Minnesota went 5 minutes and 25 second FG drought starting with 5:53 to play spelled doom.
Relative to the RPI, a home loss is tougher on Minnesota than a road win would be helpful. Nonetheless, Michigan is a quality team that we expect to dance in March so no reason to get overly-down over a loss to the Wolverines. Plenty of time to get wins, although now things would get a bit uncomfortable should the Gophers fall to Purdue on Sunday.
Minnesota begins conference play on Thursday, January 2, 2014 when the Michigan Wolverines visit the Barn. Game time is 6pm CT. The folks at UMHoops.com provide great coverage of the Michigan program and their site is worth a pre-game visit.
Our thoughts on these two teams haven’t changed: Minnesota has a chance to be a tournament team and Michigan should be a tournament team. It’s the first conference game for both squads but quite important.
The Wolverines are 8-4 but are better than their record. Several miscellaneous thoughts and insights on Michigan and this game can be found below.
McGary’s plan to have back surgery is a big headline item, but the impact on the Wolverines is overdone by some. Jordan Morgan is expected to start against the Gophers. He’s a senior who has almost 100 career starts.
Along with the 6’8”, 250 pound fifth year man Morgan, 6’10” junior Jon Horford gives Michigan veteran guys who can do a good job of filling in for McGary’s minutes. They’re not as good as McGary, but they can rebound and play solid, efficient basketball.
A preview is now available at GopherHole via this link.
We think both teams are ranked a bit higher than they will be at season’s end and Illinois could very well be out of the Top 25 by then (they look more like a bubble team than #12 in the nation). Nonetheless, either team is capable of winning and these toss up games are important to win for a team like Minnesota who would love to contend for a conference title this year. In order to do so, these are the types of games that should be won.
John Groce gushed about the Gophers’ “depth” yesterday. We may stand alone in our view that Minnesota is not a particularly deep team, but it is interesting to hear others speak so often and so strongly about the perceived depth of Tubby’s team.
Things won’t get easier for the Gophers. They’ll travel to Indiana next, then come home to face Michigan. Two wins out of the three games would be solid and just one wouldn’t be the end of the world… but the Illinois game provides the best opportunity of the three to get a win.
A game preview for the Spartans at Gophers is now available at GopherHole.com.
This is a really tricky game for the Gophers. We’re not down on Michigan State like many others are and they could jump right back into the Big Ten championship conversion with a strong start in the Big Ten. After Minnesota, the Spartans will have a good chance to pick up 3 or 4 wins with the following games: PURDUE, at Iowa, NEBRASKA, at Penn State.
Also, MSU athletic director Mark Hollis indicated yesterday that the four-game festival at Cowboys stadium next year isn’t going to happen. TV rights and money were the things that stopped it, but more than anything I think sanity prevailed. Not fans of the idea at all.
The Gophers travel to Southern Cal for a Saturday night contest against the struggling Trojans, losers of four in a row. Coach Kevin O’Neill’s roster is filled with upperclassmen, but age has not translated to success for his team. Nearly 80% of USC’s minutes have been played by seniors and juniors (sophomore guard Byron Wesley averages 29.5 mpg), including a trio of 7-footers, however there has been little consistency in play on either side of the ball.
Minnesota beat USC 55-40 at Williams Arena last December. This year’s Trojans are better than the 2011-12 squad that finished 6-26, but to be blunt they’re not a good team.
The Gophers on the other hand are coming off another impressive showing, having beaten the Nate Wolter-less South Dakota State Jackrabbits Tuesday night in an 88-64 laugher. Minnesota shot a season-best 65.5% eFG% and limited their turnover rate to less than 20% for a third consecutive contest. Dre Hollins was in unconscious mode again, scoring 22 points on 8/9 shooting (including 6/7 3FG) and an eFG% of 122%.
North Dakota State visits Minneapolis this coming Tuesday and we think that’s a far tougher game for the Gophers than USC. The Trojans aren’t much of a threat from deep and while some of their players look the part, they haven’t been playing like it. Nonetheless, it’s a road game against a team that is feeling desperate for a victory so Minnesota should be met with a decent level of fight.
From an individual player perspective, UC-Irvine transfer #34 Eric Wise (10.9 ppg, 5.8 rpg) has been very good. He’s a strong 6’6”, 240 pound senior that had to take on a greater scoring role at his former school than he does at USC. With more help around him, Wise has improved his shot selection and continues to be a good defensive rebounder for his size.
Of the big men, #14 Dewayne Dedmon (6.8 ppg, 7.6 rpg) is the most intriguing. The 7’0”, 255 pound redshirt junior is a 23-year old who didn’t play basketball until he was a senior in high school due in large part to being a Jehovah’s Witness.
Last year Dedmon dealt with a few different injuries and against Minnesota he was hobbled but still saw 26 minutes of action (2 points on 1/5 shooting, 4 rebounds). His 2011-12 season ended in January with a torn MCL, but he’s averaged almost 23 minutes per game this year. Dedmon possesses a great wingspan and moves very well at his size. Every now and then he has a moment that keeps you believing that he might be able to realize much of his potential, but clearly he has a ways to go.
#20 J.T. Terrell (12.5 ppg, 2.8 rpg) is a 6’3” gunner who is willing to take some acrobatic shots, but comes into Saturday night with an eFG% of just 42.1% (18/50 3FG for 36.0%, but just 13/45 2FG for 28.9%). He’s the one player who can rack up a lot of points for USC if he finds his groove.
Terrell, #51 in the 2010 RSCI, attended Wake Forest as a freshman and put 32 on the Iowa Hawkeyes including a game-winning trey with 2.7 seconds left. Last season he played junior college ball at Peninsula JC (Wash.) and averaged 24.4 points per contest.
Saturday night’s game is being carried by the PAC-12 Network which is problematic for much of the Twin Cities crowd interesting in viewing the contest. A PAC-12 Network channel finder can be found HERE.
Elliot Eliason vs. the USC big men: Eliason has been solid for Minnesota this year, but he’s often looked weak when defending on the blocks. Opposing offensive bigs have had success pushing Eliason toward the hoop with their back to the basket.
Dedmon and others on the offensive boards: Throughout Tubby’s tenure, the Gophers haven’t been great at limiting the other team’s second chances. It’s been true again this season, but USC is a relatively weak offensive rebounding team.
Turnovers: The level of Gopher turnovers in the past three games hasn’t been very low compared to the average college basketball team, but they’ve been low for the Gophers. Can they continue this promising trend against the Trojans?
Bounce back time for Rodney: Against SDSU, senior forward Rodney Williams registered just 2 points and 2 rebounds in 29 minutes on 1/6 FG shooting. He took out some of his offensive frustrations on defense with 4 aggressive blocked shots and hopefully he’s able to let the past be the past and come out with only USC on his mind. Williams has been excellent this year and it would be nice to see a strong performance Saturday, but he should not force the issue on offense.
Welch is due: Senior guard Julian Welch shot just 2/7 (0/4 3FG) against SDSU, but a few of his misses were ever-so-slightly off. Many of his attempts this year have been line drive lasers instead of arched shots aimed for the bottom of the net. This shooting issue is partly mechanical in nature and will improve. We continue to view him as an important piece of this season’s team and believe he is still underutilized. Last year against the Trojans, Julian led the Gophers with 16 points and 6 assists.
There is no debating that senior guard Michael Snaer is the leader of Florida State’s basketball team. However, head coach Leonard Hamilton is still trying to determine how the other talented pieces of his roster best fit together.
After a disappointing season opening loss to South Alabama, the Seminoles have won four in a row and at times have shown the potential to be a dangerous team in March. With many new faces in uniform, Hamilton has made frequent substitutions but recognizes that doing so can disrupt the ability of the team to get into a good flow and rhythm.
Minnesota fans have expressed some concerns about Tubby Smith’s substitution patterns, but so far the game results have been good. The Gophers are 6-1 after beating Memphis and Stanford in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament. Minnesota’s only loss this year came against Duke in the Bahamas on Thanksgiving Day.
Win or lose Tuesday night, the Gophers are in good shape with regard to their record. They will likely be favorites in the remainder of their nonconference games and in a position where a conference record of 9-9 or better gets them into the NCAA tournament.
Below you’ll find a TEAM section and a PLAYERS section that each preview Florida State in more detail. In case you missed it, updated commentary on individual Minnesota players was included in last week’s Duke game preview. For additional information on the Gophers and Big Ten basketball, go to LateNightHoops.com.
For the past several years, the Seminoles have been known for their defense and that will be their primary area of strength again this year. The roster has a good mix of young and old and a tremendous amount of height and length.
Snaer has the ability to take over games, but overall the shooting of Florida State is not going to beat you. The team’s top two shooters (eFG%) last season were seniors (Bernard James at 60.6% and Deividas Dulkys at 54.9%) and we expect the team will be a weak in this area again in 2012-13.
The Gophers tend to struggle shooting against strong defenses and with the size up front for Florida State, points could be hard to come by unless Minnesota is picking up contract and getting to the line.
Both teams can be fairly mentioned when discussing the top shot blocking squads in the nation and neither roster is filled with 3-point shooters.
With field goal shooting being a question mark for both teams in this contest, the ability to get easy second chance points off the glass could be a deciding factor in this one.
Minnesota’s offensive rebounding has been very impressive. While Trevor Mbakwe has been elite (over 15% OR%), almost everyone up front has been at least good or great.
This battle will boil down to heart and should be won the Gophers, but keep an eye on how Florida State utilizes their players against Minnesota, who has not been a great defensive rebounding team. In addition to helping the Seminoles work the offensive glass, more time on the floor for some of the Seminole’s trees should help to mitigate some of the Gophers’ skill at getting their own misses.
Slop city. Both teams are known for giving up the ball, although Minnesota’s turnovers tend to be a bit more weighted to steals by the other team while the faster-paced Seminoles are being more creative with their giveaways.
Be prepared to see some high turnover numbers on Tuesday. Florida State has the slight edge here, but both defenses are good at creating steals and scoring in transition. Along with offensive rebounding, a big difference in points off turnovers in transition is a key area to watch.
We aren’t going to talk about free throw percentage because it’s not very important. Getting to the line? That’s a different story (although still not very important in most games).
The Gophers have been great at getting to the line and will want to secure a nice advantage over Florida State in free throw rate. The Seminoles, especially Michael Snaer, have been making frequent trips to the line so far this year, but the team in general isn’t as good at drawing fouls as their current year numbers indicate.
With the ball, Minnesota needs to test Florida State’s big men and consistently be aggressive and physical inside. On defense the Gophers cannot afford to bail out the Seminole’s by giving them attempts at the charity stripe – force them to make shots from the field.
#21 Michael Snaer (14.0 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 40.4% 3FG in 2011-12) is a 6’5” guard that impacts the game at both ends of the floor and could earn a guaranteed NBA contract next summer. He’s off to a strong start this year, averaging 16.0 points and 6.4 rebounds per game. He’s a dangerous spot shooter and an all-around smart player. Ranked #17 in the 2009 RSCI.
Junior forward #10 Okaro White (7.7 ppg, 4.4 rpg) is still slim at 6’8”, 204 pounds, but he’s a lot bigger than he was a few years ago and looks to be ready for a decent jump in offensive production this season. Defensively he’s similar to Rodney Williams for Minnesota in that his size, quickness and athleticism allow him to defend both on the perimeter and inside. White was ranked #43 in the final 2010 RSCI.
He’s got a new number and a repaired shoulder, but the often-injured #2 Terrance Shannon is ready to go. He averaged 8.3 points and 4.4 rebounds in 7 games last year before his season was cut short due to injury, but the 6’8”, 240 pound forward with broad shoulders has looked strong early this year. Shannon is a powerful man inside for the Noles who could overpower Eliason if the Gophers’ center is defending him.
#30 Ian Miller (10.3 ppg, 35.4% 3FG), a 6’3” combo guard, has a bruised bone in his right foot and was kept out of Florida State’s game last Wednesday. It’s believed he could play against Minnesota, but not certain he will. Miller provides offense for a team that can sometimes have trouble scoring, so his game time status will be important to monitor. Miller was #35 in the 2010 RSCI.
Freshman #5 Montay Brandon can cause problems for Minnesota’s defense as he’s a long 6’7” point guard. Granted, he’s not a typical lead guard at this point, but his size and athleticism is evident and the young man can score. Brandon was ranked #60 in the 2012 RSCI.
#31 Terry Whisnant (2.1 ppg, 1.0 rpg) is a 6’3” sophomore guard who didn’t play much as a freshman, but he’s a capable scorer who isn’t afraid to shoot. Has shot 7/15 3FG this season.
Originally from Alaska, freshman guard #1 Devon Bookert has been good off the bench and leads the team with 15 assists while averaging 4.8 ppg.
Former Brewster Academy guard #25 Aaron Thomas is another guard who, as a freshman, is unproven at this level but was a big time scorer as prep.
Florida State has three seven-foot-plus options. JUCO transfer #11 Kiel Turpin will likely get the start and we think he can be good for the Seminoles this year. He spent last season gaining size and weight and now carries 240 pounds on his 7’0”. Still not an especially strong guy, Turpin can score with a decent mid-range jumper.
Freshman #15 Boris Bojanovsky weighs 240 pounds, but is a bit thin at a legit 7’3”.
Finally, 7’1”, 290 pound freshman #50 Michael Ojo boasts a 7’8” wingspan. He’s very raw, but physically the most imposing of the Seminole seven-footers.
Sophomore Andre Hollins carried Minnesota to victory with a 41-point performance as the Gophers handled the Memphis Tigers 84-75. Hollins had been struggling from the field this year, but caught fire early and finished 12-of-16 overall including a perfect 5-of-5 from 3-point range. The point guard also made 12-of-13 free throw attempts.
Later Friday afternoon, Stanford’s own sophomore point guard Chasson Randle would try to break out of his shooting slump after beginning the year 3-for-22 from behind the arc. While he didn’t score as many as Andre Hollins, Randle also led his team to victory with a strong 21 point, 6 assist and 5 rebound performance. The Cardinal handled a pesky Northern Iowa team by a final score of 66-50.
Minnesota and Stanford now meet for fifth place in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament. The two programs last met in March when Stanford walloped the Gophers 75-51 in the NIT title game. In that game Randle scored 15 points and the other two double-figure scorers from that Cardinal team are on this year’s roster as well. However, those other two are injured.
Guard Aaron Bright tied Randle for a team-high 15 points last March and wing Anthony Brown added 12 points and 6 rebounds. While there’s a chance they could try to play through injury on Saturday, both Bright and Brown have been kept out of the lineup thus far in the Bahamas.
While much of the personnel on the floor for Stanford will look different than it did in the NIT game, the team’s profile is much the same.
The Cardinal will play tough defense that focuses on limiting easy buckets and will try to force Minnesota to make contested shots. Last spring the Gophers were playing inspired offense until they ran into Stanford, who forced 22 turnovers and limited the ‘U’ to just 37.3% shooting (40.2% eFG). From an offensive efficiency perspective, the NIT championship game was the second worst for the Gophers in five seasons under Tubby Smith.
Chasson Randle, once a recruiting target of the Gophers, is a legitimate scoring threat and 6’10” Canadian face up forward Dwight Powell can cause matchup problems, but overall Stanford’s offensive attack won’t scare Minnesota.
The Gophers should be favored to win as they were against Memphis. Their shooting won’t be as good as it was Friday (57.1% eFG) so a reduction in turnovers (17 against the Tigers) and better defensive rebounding will be important. The Tigers rebounded the ball off the offensive glass 19 times or 45.2% of the time, including 15 (50.0%) in the second half. An edge in second chance points for Memphis during the second half of 13-3 kept them in the game despite Tarik Black and Joe Jackson being on the floor for a combined 9 minutes.
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Austin Hollins went just 2/8 from the field (1/5 3FG), but did have 6 steals, 5 assists and 3 rebounds against Memphis.
Rodney Williams scored 13 points and added 6 rebounds, 3 assists and blocked 3 shots.
The Gophers made 28-of-33 free throw attempts (84.8%).
For additional information on the Gophers and Big Ten basketball, go to LateNightHoops.com.
Minnesota heads into a nonconference gauntlet with four challenging games over six days. It ends next Tuesday in Tallahassee against Florida State, but the first battle is in the Bahamas where the Gophers take on the Duke Blue Devils in the quarterfinals of the Battle 4 Atlantis on Thanksgiving Day.
In 2011-12, Coach K’s team defense was uncharacteristically bad (mediocre for most teams, but bad for them). The Blue Devils ranked #70 in adjusted defensive efficiency per KenPom.com (Minnesota was #48) and were mediocre in almost every area. Their “strength” was limiting the opposition to 31.7% 3-point shooting, which we believe was largely due to chance as opposed to skill.
With a strong offense, however, Duke carried a 27-6 record into the NCAA tournament where they earned a No. 2 seed and a date with Lehigh. C.J. McCollum would score 30 and lead the Mountain Hawks to a 75-70 victory, putting an end to Duke’s season.
Members of the 2011-12 Duke team, Austin Rivers moved on to the NBA and Andre Dawkins is taking a year off from college basketball. It wasn’t difficult to find defensive upgrades for those two and Duke’s defense will be better this year. How much better is yet to be seen.
In Thursday’s game, Duke has an advantage in the area of turnovers and Minnesota a small advantage in rebounding. However, the story of this one figures to be field goal shooting.
On offense Duke has a ton of options which we discuss in more detail in the PLAYERS TO WATCH – Blue Devils section below. Unless they have an off shooting night, Duke’s offensive arsenal may be too much for the Gophers to handle.
So far this season, Minnesota has limited their opponents to an effective field goal percentage (eFG%) of 31.5%. Two opponents shot an eFG% of less than 27.5% and the best performance was a paltry 36.4% eFG% by Richmond. The Gopher defenders have created steals, blocked shots and been excellent at forcing their foes to settle for 2-point jump shots. In addition, the opposition has gone 13/68 or 19.1% from 3-point range.
Duke’s eFG% this year is 56.3% and the last time they shot less than 40% eFG% in a single game was in the 2009-10 season. Surely something has to give and it’s most likely going to be Minnesota’s defense.
However, don’t count the Gophers out. This can be a fairly even matchup on paper between two teams with a nice mix of veterans and young talent. We say “can be” because Minnesota’s use of their bench could sway things in favor of the Blue Devils.
As we discussed in our preseason preview of Minnesota, we don’t subscribe to the popular belief that coach Tubby Smith’s team is particularly deep. You’ll probably hear the television broadcasts say that the Gophers are a very deep team and most of the media will continue say it for some time to come, but key to this game and this season is going to be how Smith uses his roster.
Below you’ll find a PLAYERS TO WATCH sections highlighting specific Blue Devils and Gophers. In addition, an OTHER NOTES section covers several miscellaneous areas. For additional information on the Gophers and Big Ten basketball, go to LateNightHoops.com.
Senior #5 Mason Plumlee (11.1 ppg, 9.2 rpg in 2011-12) is a 6’10”, 235 pound active big man who has progressed nicely throughout his years at Duke and moves well for his size. While Mason may be too strong for Elliot Eliason to handle by himself, he also may be too athletic for Maurice Walker to deal with. Plumlee is a very good rebounder on both sides of the court, but especially excels on the defensive end.
Plumlee will usually play within the team concept and take good shots as they come to him as opposed to forcing things. Nonetheless, he is prone to turnovers. In addition, despite having made 14 of 15 free throw attempts in the last two games, he’s a horrible free throw shooter.
He’s an important part of Duke’s team, but far from the only player of note. That said, his 21.7 ppg, 8.7 rpg, 77.4% FG shooting and frequent trips to the line so far this year are very impressive.
Another senior with size, 6’11” #34 Ryan Kelly (11.8 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 40.8% 3FG), was able to convert 40 3-point attempts last year and can cause matchup problems with his skill set. We’re not convinced he’ll be able to shoot over 40% from behind the arc again this season, but he is a perimeter shooting threat.
For his size, Kelly is not a great rebounder or particularly tough inside, but he is an efficient offensive player who shoots well and doesn’t turn the ball over much. In fact, he contributed more Offensive Value Add than any other Blue Devil in 2011-12 despite playing just over 800 minutes. He’s averaging 10.7 ppg and 5.0 rpg this year.
#30 Seth Curry (13.2 ppg, 38.3% 3FG) is a 6’2” senior guard that is always ready to put up a shot. About half of his attempts came from 3-point range last season and he heads into Thursday’s game with a career 40.7% average from behind the arc.
This season Curry is averaging 16.0 ppg and led the team with 23 points in their victory over Kentucky.
Freshman #14 Rasheed Sulaimon (11.7 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 3.7 apg, 44.4% 3FG in 3 games this year) is legit. Curry will get shots up and both Plumlee and Kelly are capable of scoring a lot of points, but a hot Sulaimon could put Minnesota’s hopes to rest.
The long 6’4” guard who played with the excellent Houston Hoops AAU program has struggled inside the arc (2/13 2-point shooting for 15.4%), but he can score at all levels. Sulaimon, a 2012 McDonald’s All-American, is an extremely impressive scorer that can convert buckets in bunches. His length helps him on defense and we’re big fans of his overall game as well as being high on how his future projects.
Second year point guard #2 Quinn Cook (11.7 mpg, 4.4 ppg, 3.5:1 a:to ratio) started for the first time this year against Florida Gulf Coast, but is averaging over 26 mpg in Duke’s three contests and should get the start against the Gophers. With plenty of offensive weapons, Cook needs to concentrate on running the offense, distributing the ball and playing strong defense. However, don’t let his 3-point shooting as a freshman (14/56 3FG for 25.0%) fool you – he can knock down shots as well.
Cook is a charismatic kid who entertained folks on the AAU circuit with his beautiful passing, but sometimes he can be a little bit “too innovative” with his dishes. Minnesota needs to be careful not to swarm when Cook gets penetration or he will kick the ball out to the wing where Sulaimon, Curry or Kelly will be waiting to launch. We believe things will really come together for Cook as the season progresses. He’s an exciting and talented player.
#3 Tyler Thorton can play with Cook or handle the point guard duties when Quinn is out. Although Duke needs both players to concentrate on taking care of the ball and distributing the rock, Thorton will tend to shoot far less than Cook. Still, the junior Thorton shot a respectable 35.1% from 3-point range last year.
Although they haven’t played much, Duke has talented size on the bench if needed. We’re big fans of #21 Amile Jefferson, a long 6’8” freshman from Philadelphia and 2012 McDonald’s All American.
Big #15 Josh Hairston, a junior who stands 6’7”, 240 pounds, and 6’8” redshirt freshman #12 Alex Murphy have also seen limited minutes this year.
Redshirt frosh #40 Marshall Plumlee has been out with a left foot injury, but could return any time. He’s 6’11”, 235 pounds and a Plumlee, but based on his recent injury and our expectations of him this season (based on a number of factors, including watching him quite a bit in high school), Gopher fans shouldn’t be alarmed if they hear Marshall has been cleared to play in Thursday’s game.
#33 Rodney Williams may not outwardly embrace the role, but he is the leader of this team right now. The 6’7” senior forward is averaging 14.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per game and his defense – which is very important to his NBA aspirations – has been excellent.
Rodney is by far his best around the basket, but the occasional dribble drives and jump shots have been working for him this year as well. Williams is electrifying in transition, on offensive put backs and when he receives a pass on a cut to the basket. His possession usage is just over 21% which is the highest of his career. Rodney still defers at times when he doesn’t need to and just a bit more consistency on his offensive aggressiveness could propel him even further. We can’t argue much with a 75.0% eFG%, though.
Sophomore point guard #1 Andre Hollins has struggled from the field, but should be feeling confident after contributing 7 much needed points and earning 2 steals in a span of less than 80 seconds against Richmond. Dre is now averaging 9.3 ppg and has 20 assists to 10 turnovers in 4 games. He is Minnesota’s best version of a go to scorer and will need to put points up against Duke.
Junior wing #20 Austin Hollins is tied with Williams’ average of 14.5 ppg and has been excellent both from deep (8/18 3FG for 44.4%) and on his 2-point attempts (12/18 for 66.7%). With sneaky athleticism and large wingspan, Hollins creates a lot of steals and is very good on defense. Like Williams, he isn’t always as aggressive on offense as he could be, but is Minnesota’s best sniper from outside and capable of doing a lot more with the ball than he sometimes demonstrates.
#32 Trevor Mbakwe has been coming off the bench, but did play 27 minutes against Richmond. In the first two games of this year, Mbakwe, who is coming off an ACL tear that happened last November, looked a bit tentative at times. For the past two, he’s looked great and mostly back to his old self. Trevor’s ability to rebound and defend, as well as his intensity and aggressiveness on a team who has some softer spoken guys, elevates the team to one that can be excellent.
However, he needs to play. Mbakwe is averaging 6.0 points and 6.0 rebounds in 16.3 minutes per game. If he’s in for 30-35 minutes a night, the Gophers can compete with anyone. That said, we expect Tubby Smith will have him coming off the bench against Duke.
#11 Joe Coleman is a strong 6’4” sophomore guard who can draw contact with the best of them. He can put on amazing displays by finishing at the rim and getting to the line against some defenses. However, when those options are limited by the opposition, Coleman can become a turnover machine or settle for jump shots which he converts at a very low rate. Joe is averaging 10.0 points per game and has made 11 of his 22 2-point attempts, but our unofficial stat tracking has him at just 2/13 on 2-point attempts not at the rim (and 9/9 at the rim).
Coleman is a great weapon and strong, athletic kid, but his offense must be more efficient.
We’ve made no secret of our belief that combo guard #00 Julian Welch is underrated, but the senior from California hasn’t helped make our case yet this year. In 13.5 mpg, Julian is averaging 2.8 ppg and is shooting 25.0% from the field (and 1/5 3FG for 20.0%). Welch isn’t as athletic as some of the other Gophers, but last season he and Austin Hollins were behind only Rodney Williams in terms of Value Add to the team.
The 6’3” guard averaged almost 25 minutes and 9.5 points per game in 2011-12 and shot 43.8% 3FG (46/105). So far this season he hasn’t gotten an opportunity to get into the flow of things, but we believe the senior reserve is a key to pushing the Gophers from good to great and should be given more playing time in the Bahamas. In addition to his ability to play the point and hit the mid-range jumper, Welch can provide Minnesota with a important third 3-point shooter on the court when used with Dre Hollins and Austin Hollins.
Redshirt sophomore big men #55 Elliot Eliason and #15 Maurice Walker provide two different looks at center. Eliason (17.0 mpg, 3.3 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 9 blks) uses his 6’11” height to set picks, defend, rebound and block shots. Big Mo Walker (8.3 mpg, 3.8 ppg, 3.8 rpg) is playing this year for the first time after a December 2010 PCL injury. He lacks much lift but uses his huge base and nearly 6’10” height to out-physical players inside and get to rebounds.
Walker is one of those unique large bodies who possess a delicate touch when shooting the ball. He can score if fed the ball within the regular offense and can also rack up points in conjunction with cleaning the offensive glass. Similar to Welch, we feel that more playing time for Mo Walker can be a significant positive for this team.
Add Duke to the list of schools interested in Minnesota target Gavin Schilling (2013). Since his decision to transfer to Findlay Prep, we’ve believed the likelihood of Schilling winding up with the Gophers wasn’t very high and continue to believe that.
Minnesota will play either Memphis or Virginia Commonwealth on Friday. Game time will be noon CT if the Gophers lose and 6pm CT if they win.
One of the best basketball players on either team’s roster won’t play Thursday. Duke’s Rodney Hood is sitting out this season after transferring in from Mississippi State. You’ll hear his name year from now.
Duke senior guard Andre Dawkins (8.4 ppg in 2011-12) is not practicing or traveling with the team, but is expected to return next year. Dawkins is redshirting this season while he deals with personal matters.
Minnesota has four seniors on its roster, but just one who has played four seasons for the Gophers – Rodney Williams. In 105 games with Williams on the floor, Minnesota is 62-43, a winning percentage of 59.0%.
With Duke senior Ryan Kelly on the floor, the Blue Devils are 93-13, an impressive winning percentage 87.7%.
The Gophers received the 26th most votes in this week’s AP poll.
LNH’s 2012-13 Minnesota Gophers preseason preview article can be found HERE.
LNH’s Gopher Preseason Player Previews can be found HERE.
We’ve found some amazing discounts (20% and more) for the Thanksgiving holiday week. Click on the Duke shorts below and explore – great pricing on Duke and Minnesota merchandise. | 2019-04-23T02:25:26Z | http://latenighthoops.com/tag/game-preview/ |
During TTIP negotiations, the European Commission was severely criticized by civil society organizations and public opinion for its secrecy regarding negotiation strategies and priorities. The Commission responded by making some negotiating texts publicly available. This article explores the implications of increasing transparency in trade negotiations. Drawing on negotiation, politicization, and informal governance literature, it examines how the Commission’s choice for a partial transparency approach had three paradoxical effects on negotiations. First, greater transparency did not help the public perception of TTIP. Second, greater transparency increased the EU’s bargaining leverage but led to a low degree of negotiating discretion for the Commission. Finally, greater transparency transformed the nature of the negotiating process by making it more informal, allowing bargaining parties to act outside the public scrutiny. This contribution solves these transparency puzzles by showing that partial transparency is a double-edged sword. Whilst greater transparency has become an important legitimation strategy in EU trade governance, adopting a partial transparency approach fuelled public protest instead of muting it and led to the failure of the negotiations.
The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiations between the European Union (EU) and the USA led to an unprecedented level of contestation by civil society organizations (CSOs), the media, and members of the European Parliament (EP). In November 2014, the European trade commissioner, Cecilia Malmström, responded by increasing transparency in three different ways. First, the European Commission (henceforth, the Commission) established a civil society forum in which it reported back to civil society groups after each trade round.1 Second, the Commission made a large majority of negotiating texts available on its website. Third, the Commission established a new unit entitled “Transparency, Communication, and Civil Society” to enhance societal dialogue, transparency, and accountability. However, these measures did not diminish protests against TTIP. On the contrary, increased transparency was accompanied by further mobilization by CSOs. In fall 2015, discontent culminated in an anti-TTIP demonstration in Berlin that assembled some 200,000 participants—in a country that would have been the major beneficiary of further trade liberalization between the two trade powers.
Against this background, this article explores the implications of greater transparency in trade negotiations. We argue that the Commission, by adopting a partial transparency approach, involving the public disclosure of some negotiating texts, provoked three marked—and paradoxical—consequences for TTIP negotiations. First, greater transparency unexpectedly enhanced contestation instead of quieting it down. This is puzzling, as the international relations literature shows that greater transparency in decision-making has become an important legitimation strategy of international organizations for decreasing politicization (Gronau and Schmidtke 2016; Tallberg et al. 2013). Second, increasing transparency has strengthened the EU’s bargaining leverage vis-à-vis the USA, but has reduced the negotiating discretion of the Commission. By discretion we mean the leeway conferred on the Commission to accomplish a negotiating mandate. From a negotiation analysis perspective, increasing transparency is also puzzling, as negotiating power usually requires secrecy and disclosing information can lead to either an increase or decrease in EU bargaining leverage (Raiffa et al. 2002; Stasavage 2004). Third, the decision to increase transparency had the paradoxical effect of shifting decision-making processes to informal networks and practices, giving both sides more flexibility to act outside public scrutiny, but engendering more contestation.
The key to these transparency conundrums is that transparency is a double-edged sword. In times of public contestation and protest, partially increasing transparency might initially seem an attractive legitimation strategy. It allows the Commission to stay in charge of what information is released and can be expected to pacify public protest. The result, however, might be different because partial information reveals to the public that certain information is still classified. This might unexpectedly lead to an increase in contestation because partial transparency augments the sense of secrecy instead of silencing it. Only a strategy of full transparency, understood as the public disclosure of all negotiating texts by the two negotiating parties, can mitigate contestation. At the same time, the partial publication of negotiating texts can have a twofold effect on the Commission’s bargaining leverage. First, it might decrease EU bargaining leverage should the other side insist on greater concessions. Second, partial transparency can have exactly the opposite effect. Rather than decreasing EU bargaining leverage, it might increase it. The paradox of internal weakness (Schelling 1960) can be a source of bargaining power, as the Commission can point to recalcitrant EU member states to extract more concessions from the other side. Finally, greater transparency can, paradoxically, lead to the informalization of trade negotiations. Discussions outside formal institutional channels might help to make negotiations less visible to the public and might help level the playing field among negotiation partners. Drawing on the informal governance literature, we show that informalizing EU trade governance might also exacerbate rather than mitigate public contestation.
The analysis draws on two sets of empirical data: first, primary sources, including documents and minutes—from the Council of Ministers (henceforth, the Council), the Commission, and the EP—on the negotiations between the EU and the USA from 2013 to 2016; and second, semi-structured interviews with officials from the Commission’s Directorate General (DG) for Trade, Council officials from DG Trade, and officials from the Trade Policy Committee (TPC).2 The highly complex and technical TTIP negotiations involved 150 officials in 24 negotiating groups spanning market access, regulatory issues and non-tariff barriers, trade-related rules, and investment protection (Council of the European Union 2014). Although negotiations came to a standstill in September 2016, when a series of member states consecutively pulled the plug (Euractiv 2 September, 2016), TTIP remains a case in point to examine how increasing transparency did not help public perception of a trade agreement between two trade powers but rather diminished public acceptance.
This article proceeds in four steps. Section two reviews the present literature on TTIP negotiations, transparency, and contestation, theorizes the effect of greater transparency on TTIP negotiations, and derives a set of propositions. The third section probes these propositions and presents three paradoxical findings. The conclusion summarizes results and outlines the consequences of these developments.
Despite increased theoretical and empirical attention to EU trade policy and TTIP, fewer studies have directly examined how transparency shapes EU trade governance. Studies analysing the politics of transatlantic trade negotiations focus on their theoretical and historical context; negotiations, actors, and agencies; knock-on effects and unintended consequences for third-parties; implications for multilateral institutions and regime complexes (see the contributions in Morin et al. 2015); transatlantic partnerships (Teló 2015); and whether or not TTIP is a game-changer (De Bièvre and Poletti 2016; De Ville and Siles-Brügge 2016; Eliasson and García-Duran 2016). Other scholars have examined the distinctiveness of TTIP negotiations (De Ville and Siles-Brügge 2016; Smith 2015; Young 2016), the role of the EU and USA as rule-makers and takers (Hamilton and Pelkmans 2015), competitive interdependence (Damro 2015), and the importance of legislative–executive relations (Jančić 2017).3 Young (2017), in turn, argues that efforts to deepen integration have been pivotal to the politicization of trade policy. A new wave of studies on transparency and contestation predominantly draws our attention to the role played by CSOs during TTIP negotiations. Whilst Bauer (2016) has argued that the use of social media has facilitated CSO influence, other scholars (De Ville and Siles-Brügge 2016; Young 2016) underline the unprecedented focus of their campaigns on non-tariff barriers. For example, Siles-Brügge (2017) stresses the importance of emotions in advocacy framing related to the issue of transatlantic investor protection, arguing that CSOs created a polysemic “injustice frame”. Others contend that the broader and deep the regulatory agenda of a trade agreement is, the more likely political mobilization by CSOs (Eliasson and García-Duran 2016) will be. Other studies focus on the Investor-State Dispute System, the export of US-produced GMOs to the EU, and the inclusion of public services in TTIP (Aggarwal and Evenett 2016) to explain the increased contestation of TTIP. Huet and Elliasson (2017) identify the rhetorical strategies of TTIP proponents, namely EU trade commissioners from 2013 to 2016, in response to contestation over TTIP. Other studies on transparency and contestation examine how the Commission moved from a reactive strategy of providing transparency based on access to documents to the proactive provision of information (Coremans 2017) or how a combination of CSO contestation campaigns against TTIP, allied with consensus decision-making in the Council, led to a low degree of negotiating autonomy for the Commission and increased EU bargaining power (De Bièvre 2018). Gheyle and De Ville (2017) show that several transparency measures undertaken by the Commission did not silence contestation, as CSOs asked for full transparency for and participation by CSOs. This contribution complements the literature in three ways. First, it examines how the Commission’s strategy of increasing transparency had different, paradoxical effects on TTIP negotiations. Second, it relies on extensive interviews with involved actors. Third, it brings together different strands of literature, negotiation analysis, politicization, and informal governance literature.
Contested multilateralism (Morse and Keohane 2014) is now a central feature of global governance. Protest and criticism of European and global governance has been linked to the lack of transparency and democratic control (Grigorescu 2015; Tallberg 2016). Studies on the politicization of European integration—defined as the public contestation of the authority of supranational institutions—consider that contestation has been characterized not only by “a patchwork of politicizing moments” (Hutter et al. 2016) but has also been embedded in national political conflict structures that vary between European regions (Kriesi 2016). Hooghe and Marks (2009) examine the turn “from permissive consensus to constraining dissensus” by focusing on the politicization of European integration in elections and referendums. As a result, the preferences of the general public and of national political parties have become decisive for outcomes in shaping contestation on Europe. The postfunctionalist perspective expects politicization to mobilize Euro-sceptic citizens around national identities, empower anti-European parties, and undermine support for the European integration project. International relations and EU studies focusing on the consequences of politicization (Kriesi 2016) demonstrate that international and supranational institutions react to criticism by increasing transparency, for example, by providing public information about their activities. Thus, greater transparency has become an important legitimation strategy in European and global governance (Gronau and Schmidtke 2016). To our best knowledge, however, the literature tells us little about the implications of increasing transparency for EU governance in terms of helping pacifying public protest, increasing or decreasing EU bargaining leverage, and in establishing new governance practices.
In this contribution, we use the term transparency to denote public access to information about the Commission’s activities and positions on trade negotiations (see also Tallberg 2016; Gheyle and De Ville 2017). We argue that low transparency,4 meaning that parties negotiate secretly and the public has access only to general information about negotiations, is problematic, as it is likely to increase contestation if the public salience of an issue is high. Releasing information to the public about negotiations is a rational strategy for both sides to minimize the contestation of TTIP and thus increase the acceptance of policy outcomes (see also Stasavage 2004; Meunier 2005). If there is contestation of trade governance in a situation of low degree of transparency, European institutions and other involved parties have the choice between: (a) not reacting at all and standing the storm; (b) providing partial transparency; (c) shifting to a strategy of full transparency. These three strategies correspond to what we label three degrees of transparency: low, partial and full.
A low degree of transparency means that parties negotiate secretly and the public has access only to general information about negotiations. This can occur in the form of press conferences in which both sides inform the public about the issues at stake without disclosing the negotiating texts. Bargaining requires a certain degree of insulation, and international negotiations are usually not particularly transparent (Stasavage 2004). A low degree of transparency has the advantage of permitting parties to negotiate without public pressure and to disclose details only at the ratification stage. However, it can increase contestation because the public is not informed on the state of negotiations. This might raise concerns about the secrecy and limited accountability of supranational institutions. Partial transparency can similarly fuel contestation instead of muting it.
Partial transparency means that the public is given partial access to information during the negotiation process and at the ratification stage. Access to information can take place in the form of press conferences, the disclosure of negotiating positions of both negotiating parties, and texts on websites, or by providing stakeholders and citizens with detailed information on the state of play (see also McCarthy and Fluck 2016; Coremans 2017). Opting for partial transparency can appear attractive to bargaining parties, giving them the power to decide the scope of the information released. This might, however, backfire, because partial information reveals that some information is still undisclosed and there are some secret texts both sides are hiding from the public. This can unintentionally step up rather than abate contestation (for a similar argument, see also Czesana and Meunier 2018). Both low and partial transparencies are more likely to lead to greater contestation than full transparency, as stakeholders can worry that some issues remain secret.
Finally, full transparency exists when all relevant negotiating texts are made public by the two negotiating partners. The choice of a full transparency approach by both sides is more likely to invalidate protester arguments about secrecy and lack of accountability. The degree of transparency in negotiations is a function of both sides’ strategies over access to documents. This means, in turn, that an EU decision to provide full access to all relevant documents does not suffice to generate full transparency. Only when both sides, the EU and the USA, disclose all relevant information does full transparency obtain. Gheyle and De Ville (2017) find that the contestation of TTIP negotiations could not be silenced because of the disparity between what CSOs demanded and what the Commission provided. Whilst CSO “transparency demands” included full transparency for and participation of CSOs, this was never really a priority of the Commission, which instead established a small Advisory Group of representatives giving voice to, for instance, CSOs and business and trade union representatives.
Low and partial transparency does not help public perception and might lead to more contestation because partial access to information reveals to the public that part of the negotiating texts is still classified.
Negotiation theorists postulate that, in order to obtain the best possible outcome of negotiations, actors should not reveal their true position at the beginning of negotiations (Lax and Sebenius 1986; Raiffa et al. 2002). Negotiations require secrecy, expertise, and flexibility. It is part of the negotiating game to start negotiations with extreme or maximalist demands and to withhold the true reservation line from one’s negotiation counterpart at the outset of the negotiations (Conceição-Heldt 2011). During the negotiating process, parties use the size-of-concession tactic by making small concessions at different stages. From this perspective, disclosing too much information weakens a negotiator’s bargaining power. This is because doing so limits what an actor has to offer in the final round of negotiations, making that actor vulnerable to exploitation by the counterpart. The EU’s unilateral decision to disclose its initial negotiating texts to the public through its new TTIP website made this information automatically available to the USA as well. In order to explain how the bargaining leverage of the Commission has been affected by the EU’s embrace of greater transparency, we briefly introduce the concepts of bargaining power and leverage.
Bargaining power is the ability of one party to influence its counterpart and thus obtain its preferred outcome in negotiations. Bargaining leverage comes from knowing one’s counterparts’ position or their true reservation line in a negotiating setting. This raises the question of whether opting for a partial transparency strategy gave the EU more or less bargaining leverage in TTIP negotiations. Since both negotiating partners have big markets to offer—with 500 million for the EU and 300 million consumers in the US case—negotiations took place in a symmetrical bargaining-power constellation. Negotiation theorists expect actors with a strong best alternative to a negotiated agreement to be less dependent on the opposing party in obtaining its preferred outcome than if it had a weak alternative or no alternative at all (Conceição-Heldt 2011, 2014; Odell 2000). Before starting with TTIP negotiations, both parties were individually negotiating free trade agreements (FTAs) at the regional and bilateral levels giving them similar bargaining power.
Partial transparency can weaken or strengthen the EU’s bargaining leverage depending on the other side’s approach to transparency and on the credibility of the tied-hands bargaining strategy.
Partial transparency can also transform the nature of the negotiation process by leading to the informalization of EU trade governance and paradoxically increasing contestation instead of muting it. With the recent turn in European and global governance towards more informal modes of decision-making (Christiansen and Neuhold 2014; Kleine 2013; Stone 2013; Vabulas and Snidal 2013), different conceptualizations of informal governance have arisen. Whereas Stone defines “informal power” as “the ability to obtain desirable outcomes within an organization (…) by going outside of normal channels” (Stone 2013: 125), for Christiansen and Neuhold informal governance includes, in addition to decisions taken place outside formal arrangements, the process or procedure by which policies are made and the outcome of any such informal process (Christiansen and Neuhold 2014: 4).
Following this distinction, the informalization of trade governance refers to a shift in the processes of decision-making from formal institutional structures towards informal and non-institutionalized settings. This raises the question of the conditions under which informal governance can be expected to develop. Informal institutions and practices give bargaining parties more flexibility to interact outside formal structures by establishing regular mini-meetings to discuss issues of common concern, to build consensus on controversial issues with the aim of finding a package deal acceptable to the constituencies of both sides (see also Vabulas and Snidal 2013).
Partial transparency can lead to more informal arrangements and increase contestation instead of silencing it, if the impression develops that the Commission is conceding too much.
The informalization of EU trade governance can also lead to divisions within the DG trade because some officials will be concerned rather with public contestation and others with EU bargaining. As a result, the first group are more likely to support greater transparency. For those involved directly in negotiations, by contrast, more transparency might produce new problems, such as information asymmetry and more public discussion. Informalizing trade governance offers a way out of this dilemma. Whilst this might improve the EU’s bargaining leverage, it decreases transparency and might thus lead to a new spiral of protest or to new demands to move towards a full transparency approach.
The EU’s decision to partially increase transparency had three crucial effects on TTIP negotiations. First, partial transparency paradoxically enhanced contestation instead of quieting it down. Second, partial transparency increased EU bargaining leverage but it led to low discretion for the Commission during negotiations. This is in line with findings of more recent studies on trade policy (De Bièvre 2018). Finally, partial transparency transformed the nature of the negotiating process by making it more informal, with decisions taking place outside formal institutional channels. This resulted in less transparency and less accountability, thus increasing contestation. I now turn to each one of these findings.
The first paradoxical consequence of greater transparency in TTIP negotiations was that it provoked more contestation. The launch of TTIP negotiations was followed by protests against their secrecy. For example, a coalition of 48 CSOs submitted a European citizens’ initiative to the Commission to stop TTIP in July 2014 (Agence Europe 2014a). Following this, the Council of Ministers decided to declassify the Commission’s negotiating directives in October 2014 (Council of the European Union 2014). A second step to increase transparency was taken when the EU trade commissioner Malmström decided in November 2014 to publish some of the negotiating texts. She announced the public disclosure of EU negotiating proposals to which member states and MEPs from the International Trade Committee (INTA) already had access, gave all MEPs access to a reading room, and classified fewer TTIP negotiating texts as “restricted”. These measures were designed to meet the demands of the new INTA chairman, Bernd Lange, who had requested more substantial access for MEPs (and the public) to the EU’s negotiating texts (Agence Europe 2014b).
Between November 2014 and January 2015, the Commission disclosed all texts on the EU’s negotiating position related to regulatory issues, such as public procurement and technical barriers to trade. Negotiating texts relating to market access issues, however, remained classified (Agence Europe 2015a). Opting for a partial transparency approach, in which negotiating texts on regulatory issues were made accessible but those on market access were not disclosed, triggered greater contestation from citizens and MEPs. The choice of a selective transparency approach with full transparency on market access but partial transparency on regulatory issues fuelled CSO contestation. A first reaction from 375 CSOs in March 2015 was to address an open letter to the EP demanding full transparency on all TTIP negotiating texts (Agence Europe 2015b). At the same time, CSOs asked for fuller inclusion in the negotiation process (Gheyle and De Ville 2017).
In past trade negotiations, the EU had usually opted for a low transparency strategy. Commission officials explain this Commission approach as “an efficient trade machine” in negotiating FTAs (Interview with Commission official #12). The Commission has traditionally taken care of negotiations, providing periodic updates to member states on the progress made. Although the Commission and member states sometimes disagreed on the extent of concessions, at the end of the day, member states were able to accept FTAs and “sell” them to their citizens as a package. If there were clear losers in certain economic sectors, the Commission would assume the role of scapegoat (Interview with Council official #12).
In the case of TTIP negotiations, the choice of a partial transparency approach backfired and increased contestation. However, this could only come about in conjunction with the high public salience of TTIP negotiations, in contrast to other EU trade agreement negotiations. On regulatory issues, the Commission chose to disclose its negotiating position, arguing there was less need for secrecy on these issues because there were no underlying trade-offs. On market access, the Commission did not disclose the EU position, as such issues are more sensitive and disclosure would make it more difficult to agree to concessions during negotiations. Some Commission officials considered partial transparency a “messy approach”, as they did not know how long the Commission would be able to stick to it. Depending on the extent of contestation, they expected the trade commissioner to shift from partial towards full transparency to silence contestation (Interview with Commission officials #12 and #14). To be sure, the adoption of a selective transparency approach went back to a Council decision. Even though the Commission proposed and demanded that the Council make the negotiating mandate public, a qualified minority of member states refused to publish the mandate, opposing increasing transparency (see also De Bièvre and Poletti 2016; European Commission 2016) on the grounds that full transparency would decrease Commission discretion during negotiations (Interview with Council official #12).
During negotiations, the Commission strengthened transparency at the national level to mitigate contestation. The College of Commissioners appointed three officials for Germany, France, and Austria tasked with answering questions citizens might have about TTIP in the hope of weakening contestation. These officials represented the Commission in national capitals, communicated the specifics of the EU negotiating position, and reinforced direct contact with citizens. However, Commission officials also acknowledged that this new strategy to reduce contestation had its limits. In general, journalists and the public preferred to interact directly with national high-ranked politicians, such as Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel, and not with “technocrats” from Brussels (Interview with Commission official #15).
The second paradoxical consequence of greater transparency was that it strengthened the EU’s bargaining power, but decreased the Commission’s range of discretion at the negotiating table. The official position of the Commission on transparency was to make the EU’s negotiating mandate public on regulatory issues but not on market access issues (Interview with Commission officials #14 and #15). The Commission reported on a weekly basis to EU member state governments in the Council, in the TPC and the EP in the INTA. It also informed CSOs on the progress of negotiations. Apart from the initial negotiating directives from the Commission, further negotiating positions on market issues remained classified (Interview with Commission official #12). Even though the Commission acknowledged that “a certain level of confidentiality is necessary to protect EU interests and to keep chances for a satisfactory outcome high” (European Commission 2015), the Commission disclosed 97% of negotiating texts (Interview with Commission official #11).
This could have weakened the EU’s bargaining power, as the USA had not made its positions public, opting instead for a full secrecy approach. The US ambassador to the EU Anthony Gardner argued that “We are in favour of transparency but other objectives also need to be taken into account. Total transparency can perhaps be an obstacle to a frank and honest dialogue” (Agence Europe 2014c). The new trade promotion authority (TPA) that the US Congress had adopted in June 2015 gave the US Trade representative (USTR) the power to negotiate FTAs that can only be accepted or rejected “as is” by Congress at the ratification stage. Although very extensive, the TPA bill only defines general objectives for FTAs and does not specify American reservation lines. This was very tricky for the EU, as the USA was also not as strongly engaged in the TTIP negotiations as the EU (Interview with Commission official #11 and Council official #12). Rather, the main priority of the USA was to conclude negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership, as these markets were considered more attractive for the US business sector.
Commission officials involved in TTIP negotiations underlined that increasing transparency strengthened EU bargaining power, as it allowed the EU to better influence the US negotiating position. If, for example, the USA was not reacting to EU demands—for example, to include sustainable development issues in TTIP—sharing the EU position with US stakeholders would induce the latter to put pressure on the US administration to change its position, thus strengthening the EU’s position. A second positive effect of partial transparency related to the EU negotiating position was that the USA knew the EU’s negotiating position was genuine and could identify where EU sensitivities lay. This signalled to the USA that the Commission was not bluffing, thereby enhancing the credibility of the EU negotiating position (Interview with Commission official #11). During TTIP negotiations, however, this strategy, did not lead to greater concessions from the USTR. One of the paradoxical effects of the domestic constraints strategy was that the low degree of discretion conferred on the Commission by member states led to strong involvement of different national actors during the negotiation process and to updating of the EU negotiating text due to opposition from some major member states and MEPs. For example, the Commission modified the text on the arbitration system, proposing a new Investment Court System, which included a Tribunal of First Instance and an Appeal Tribunal, both with publicly appointed judges (European Commission 2015), to obtain the support of German MEPs from the Alliance of Social Democrats.
Internally, greater transparency induced the Commission to set up a “reading room” in which member states and MEPs could consult classified negotiating texts without permission to speak in public about the content of these documents (Interview with Commission officials #15 and #16). This led members of the German parliament to ask for full disclosure of negotiating texts and fuelled contestation, as public opinion increasingly questioned the authority of the Commission. At the same time, paradoxically and probably due to the high level of technicity inherent in trade agreements texts, the interest in reading the texts was practically inexistent (Frankfurter Allegemeine Zeitung January 27, 2016). The Commission, however, did not shift from partial to full transparency. One reason might have been the opposition of some member states who argued that the Commission needed some room for manoeuvre on tariff rates when negotiating with the USA (Interview with Commission officials ##11 and #14 and Council official #12).
At the same time, Commission and Council officials emphasized that member states’ representatives and MEPs had different preferences on access to information to decrease contestation. Member states were used to the Commission going into a “back room” to negotiate and coming out with an agreement, taking the blame for unpopular policies or outcomes. This has the advantage for member states that the Commission comes up with a package deal that is also easier to “sell” at the domestic level than when an issue-by-issue negotiating approach is taken (Interview with Commission official #12).
Council officials also stated that member states needed time to adapt to this new context of partial transparency. Within the Council, member states were divided on the question of partial or full transparency. For example, a group of member states, including the Scandinavian countries, Germany, and France, opposed publication of the Commission’s negotiating mandate with the argument that this would diminish the Commission’s range of the discretion during negotiations. Member states agreed to decide on a case-by-case basis which negotiating directives could be disclosed (Interview with Council officials #11 and #12).
Within the Commission, officials were also divided on the effects of transparency on EU bargaining leverage. Some negotiators acknowledged that “transparency on all fronts” could backfire and have a negative effect on the EU’s bargaining leverage because the more information the USA had on the EU negotiating position, the easier it would be for them to know where the reservation line of the EU was. In practice, however, EU bargaining leverage was not prejudiced, as EU negotiators disclosed only the initial negotiating text. However, the range of Commission discretion was reduced as some member states—notably Germany in the person of the Minister of Economy, Sigmar Gabriel—interfered in the negotiations by publicly complaining about the concessions offered by the Commission and even questioning continuation of the negotiations due to a lack of concessions from the USA (Interview with Commission officials #11 and #12 and Council official #12). Even if this can be considered “posturing”, signalling to domestic audiences that a country is a commited negotiator defending the trade interests of the EU and, in this case, Germany, this kind of interference reduces Commission discretion during negotiations.
The third paradoxical effect of the partial transparency approach was that, instead of increasing transparency, negotiations moved to the informal technical level, with Commission officials negotiating bilaterally with officials from the USTR and US Department of Trade in inter-personal, non-written communication. The new transparency approach implied that, if there was a request by stakeholders (e.g., business groups or CSOs) for access to emails from Commission officials related to TTIP, they could be disclosed. Consequently, emails had to be archived and Commission officials were therefore cautious when writing them. The consequence of the “transparency on all fronts” politics was, with some exceptions related to market access, that non-written settings became more important at the international and European levels. Discussions on issues at stake took place outside formal structures and in informal settings such as personal meetings or phone conferences to avoid generating written documents that would subsequently have to be released to the public and MEPs (Interview with Commission official #12).
At the EU level, the monitoring of negotiations included not only centralized oversight mechanisms at the TPC and INTA but also at the new Monitoring Group of the EP (Interview with Commission official #11). On 25 September 2015, the INTA created a new Monitoring Group for the USA to follow the ongoing negotiations (Interview with EP official #11). This group, composed of the INTA chair and members as well as the chairs and members of eleven other EP committees, met with the EU chief negotiator, Ignacio Garcia Bercero, once a month to discuss the agenda for the next round of TTIP negotiations. However, there was no formal rule on when and how regularly MEPs should meet with EU negotiators (Interview with Commission officials #15 and #16). In addition, there were secret inter-ministerial meetings between the DG Trade and US trade officials of which no minutes were disclosed. The increase in partial transparency during the negotiations led EU and US trade officials to negotiate in informal settings, thus paradoxically diminishing transparency. This shift of negotiations to informality allowed negotiators to deliberate without public contestation and decide what information on informal meetings would be disclosed to the public. This resulted in more contestation and confirmed protesters’ arguments about secrecy and limited accountability. The EP and some CSOs protested virulently against this move towards negotiating outside formal channels and used it as a “casus belli” (Interview with Commission official # 12) against the Commission. In the absence of a pro free trade centre-right majority, MEPs from the leftist, extreme-right, and anti-EU parties allied with CSOs to mobilize publicly against TTIP. A toxic combination of anti-Americanism, anti-globalization, and free trade was exploited politically to increase contestation against TTIP (Interview with Commission officials #12, #15 and Council Official #14).
In this piece, we have argued that the partial increase in transparency has had three paradoxical effects on TTIP negotiations. First, greater transparency has enhanced contestation instead of quieting it down. Whilst partial transparency allowed the Commission to decide what information was released, it did not decrease public protest. The strategy backfired because the disclosure of partial information revealed to the public that part of the information was still classified and that there were specific negotiating texts the Commission was not willing to share with the public due to opposition from some member states. As a result, protest actually increased because the measures fed a sense of secrecy instead of muting it. Second, greater transparency increased the EU’s bargaining leverage, as the Commission could argue that disunity within the Council together with public opinion and pressure from CSOs hindered further concessions. However, it also reduced the Commission’s range of discretion due to interference from some member states during negotiations. Finally, the partial transparency approach informalized EU trade governance, allowing both sides to act outside public scrutiny, but unexpectedly increased public contestation by MEPs and CSOs.
One consequence of greater transparency is that TTIP has been labelled the most transparent trade negotiation in EU history (Coremans 2017). Following the highly contested TTIP negotiations, a second consequence was the decision by the European trade commissioner after the breakdown of negotiations to shift to full transparency by making all trade negotiating texts publicly available for future trade agreements in order to avoid new waves of contestation. However, there were also downsides to the politicization of TTIP negotiations. First of all, negotiations failed and it is less likely that a transatlantic trade agreement will be revived under the current US trade administration. Second, the contestation of TTIP negotiations politicized the role of the Commission and called its authority as EU trade negotiator into question.
As a result of increasing transparency in trade negotiations, the negotiation of trade agreements has now entered a new era in which conducting negotiations behind closed doors prompts great rumblings of discontent at all levels. The EU will have to learn to strike a balance between the transparency and efficiency of negotiations, as transparency increases perceptions of inclusion but undermines efficiency. Greater transparency not only shaped TTIP negotiations, it has also affected trade governance more generally, with Commission officials and the trade commissioner using social media, including Twitter, to communicate with the public. For the first time, TTIP also enormously politicized this policy area, increasing public awareness of trade agreements and of the Commission’s central role and power. Politicization, together with the inclusion of the Parliament formally at the ratification stage and informally during negotiations, has led to an increase in Commission responsiveness and accountability towards the EP and European citizens. This finding is in line with other studies in this field, which expect the responsiveness of international organizations to increase as a consequence of politicization (Zürn 2014) and investigate how the Commission reacts to politicization in consumer policy (Rauh 2016).
To be sure, civil society dialogues have always been part of the Commission’s communication strategy. Examples include the “Trade Dialogue with Civil Society” launched in 1998, the 2002 “Transatlantic Guidelines on Regulatory Cooperation and Transparency”, the 2005 “European Transparency Initiative”, the 2011 “Transparency Register”, and the 2012 “Transparency Portal”. For a discussion of how the Commission used transparency to increase its legitimacy, see Meunier (2003).
The interviews took place from 11 to 14 January 2016 in Brussels. I am particularly grateful to the following officials from the European Commission’s Directorate General Trade, Council officials from the General Direction Trade, Development, Horizontal Issues and Foreign Affairs and from TPC for their availability and willingness to share their knowledge with me: John Clarke, Luca De Carli, Ignacio Garcia-Bercero, Lutz Güllner, Bostja Krasovec, Alda Silveira Reis, and Ruta Zarnauskaite. None of the opinions expressed in the interviews are attributed to a particular person. All interviews are therefore cited in chronological number.
Recently, Dür (2017) has published a virtual special issue on trade in which he divides EU trade policy literature into an external side and internal side. These include the articles by Meunier and Nicolaidïs (2006) on the EU as a conflicted trade power, Conceição-Heldt (2014) on bargaining power (a)symmetry and EU external effectiveness as well as Young’s (2015) piece on the limits to regulatory co-ordination in the EU’s new generation of preferential trade agreements.
The International Relations literature uses three different transparency concepts: transparency-as-disclosure, transparency-as-dialogue, and transparency-as-information (McCarthy and Fluck 2016). Transparency-as-disclosure refers to the perceived legitimacy and accountability of governing institutions and carries a positive normative value. Transparency-as-dialogue is linked to an ethical orientation towards others. Closely linked to social constructivist approaches and Habermas’ (1995) theory of communicative action, transparency-as-dialogue focuses on “mutual openness about reasons and motivations in a continual process of rational communication” (McCarthy and Fluck 2016: 7). Finally, transparency-as-information is conceptualized as the disclosure of information between states. Tallberg (2016) distinguishes between transparency to refer to public access to information about the activities and policies of IOs and openness which is concerned with non-state actor access to IO policy-making. In this piece, the focus is merely on transparency-as-disclosure of information.
Earlier versions of this article have been presented to the Council for European Studies conference, 14–16 April 2016, Philadelphia and to the workshop “Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership”, 14–15 March 2016, University of Gothenburg. I am particularly grateful to the following officials from the European Commission’s Directorate General Trade and Council officials from the General Direction Trade, Development, Horizontal Issues and Foreign Affairs and from Trade Policy Committee (TPC) for their availability and willingness to share their knowledge with me: John Clarke, Luca De Carli, Ignacio Garcia-Bercero, Lutz Güllner, Bostja Krasovec, Alda Silveira Reis, and Ruta Zarnauskaite. For insightful comments on previous versions, I would like to thank the two anonymous reviewers, Andreas Dür, Patrick Mello, Guri Rosén, Henning Schmidtke, Mario Teló, Alasdair Young, and Jonathan Zeitlin. This project received generous funding from the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme for research, technological development and demonstration under ERC Grant Agreement No. 312368.
European Commission. 2016. ‘Who will decide whether to go ahead with a final deal?’, in ‘Questions and answers about TTIP—Basics, Benefits, Concerns. Available at http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/in-focus/ttip/about-ttip/questions-and-answers. Accessed Jan 2019. | 2019-04-26T02:37:52Z | https://rd.springer.com/article/10.1057%2Fs41295-019-00183-4 |
Voodoo or Vodou is a magical tradition that originated in Africa. It is closely intertwined with the African shamanism and magic traditions, but has strong influences from the Roman Catholic religion. This type of spell is done through communion with powerful spirits called the “Lwa” by Voodoo priests or priestesses or hougans or mambos respectively. These spirits are called upon for special favors on love, nature, and other aspects in life. Voodoo Love Spells are neither classified as “evil” or “good” especially in the Christian sense of these words.
How can Voodoo love spells assist one in finding a lover and/or soul mate, in reuniting lost lovers, in generating a loving heart?
First, Voodoo ascertains ONE almighty God, Bondye. It is this Being from which all originates and which imbues all with life and energy, regardless of its type. It therefore makes no distinction between man and animal, plant, or rock. I has no regard about whether a person ‘deserves’ something or not. As the saying goes: “The sun shines on good and evil alike” (an astute human observation and thought-provoking philosophical concept).
Then, there are numbers of spirits, called Lwa, which assist humans in creating certain life circumstances by enhancing the power necessary to create. They might be compared with ‘angels’ in Christian mythology.
These spirits can be invoked and asked for assistance, and they do lend their power in assisting humans to create their desired life circumstances. However, while the ONE almighty God exists in a self-perpetuating fashion, these spirits thrive on exchange of energy. They must therefore be offered a comparable amount of energy for the measure of energy they expend in assisting humans.
Petition to Papa Legba if you want to remove obstacles and blockages from your life and need help in achieving your goals. Papa Legba can help you with love problems and clear the path for success by unlocking your power and intuition.
Erzulie is the spirit of love and brings blessings of love, fertility, beauty, happiness, and luxury. She is able to breathe new life into your spirit and helps with self-empowerment, strength, and growth.
Damballah is a very powerful and compassionate elder who looks out for his children. He will help you to remove negative energy and bad energy from your life, this includes negative people that may negatively effect your love life.
Voodoo love spells are rituals that are performed to call upon Lwa to eliminate obstacles that are present in the path of love. In more complex rituals the mambo or the houngan is the one performing the rite and falls into a trance as the power of the Lwa starts to channels itself to the practitioner. For the spell to be effective, the ritual usually makes use of an item or items preferably those belonging to the subject of the love spell. After the spell is cast, the magic takes effect through an amulet or potion to be given to the subject, but not all Voodoo practitioners make use of amulets or potions. In Voodoo the physical representation of the spell is not always needed.
Dealing with magic has good and bad consequences. Once a person becomes a subject of a love spell, he or she becomes linked to you in a temporary or even in a permanent manner. So, do not cast spells if you are not ready for whatever effects they may have later on.
Some people resort to a Voodoo love spell to influence the feelings of another to have passionate feelings for them. This may seem like a desperate attempt but it is a fact that believers of love spells resort to magic to quickly turn admiration to amorous feelings.
Other purposes of Voodoo love spells are to influence an ex-lover to come back to you, no matter how long you have been apart, to gain the upper hand in any relationship, remove any love rival from the scene, break-up or bring couples together, make your love interest faithful to you, and even go as far as making someone say “I Do” to a wedding proposal.
You can do a voodoo love spell on your own or have a professional in voodoo do the spell for you. There are spell kits you can buy that contain all the things you need to do voodoo love spells, including any incantations you need to say or you can choose more professional help.
It is a good idea to cleanse yourself spiritually before doing any voodoo love spells. There is special voodoo cleansing soap or bath wash you can buy that cleanses your body and rids it of negativity you may be carrying. Being in a clean spiritual situation will make your voodoo love spells more effective and infinitely more powerful.
It doesn’t matter whether you are a die-hard romantic or simply wish to make someone fall in love with you; love spells can come to your rescue. Yes, if love seems to be slipping by, it is the time to try some magic. It is everyone’s dream to have loving and loyal partner to share life with, a privilege that we all deserve. If you have pulled out all the stops to make someone fall in love with you, voodoo love spells will help you as long as you have the right intent.
Important to the effectiveness of Voodoo spells and rituals are the power of the practitioner’s will and the focused visualizations that ultimately bring about desired results. So if you lack the physical tools that you normally associate with Voodoo magic, do not fear! You can still cast this Voodoo love spell without fear of failure.
Start the ritual by Cleansing and Consecrating the Candle. Once you have prepared the candle, mix the sugar with the ginseng powder and the cinnamon. Put it aside and cut a paper voodoo doll out of the construction paper or card board. Next, light your candle and do so consciously. Be aware that fire has an affinity with the spiritual realm. Write your wishes, desires and goals on the back of the doll. Be as specific as possible.
Write your lover’s name on the front of the Voodoo doll 13 times. Cross over each name with your own. Place the Voodoo doll on the platter or in the bowl and cover it with the sugar-herb mixture. Stick the candle in the center of the sugar-herb mixture.
Call upon Erzulie, the Voodoo spirit of love. Ask for all that you wish for. Be honest and forthright. Be clear and operate only in harmony with the universe. Take your time and build up as much energy as possible. This step is very important.
Let the candle burn for 13 minutes, then snuff it out.
Keep the dish with the sugar, Voodoo doll, and any wax drippings and repeat the last two steps for next 12 days, for a total of 13 days.
Take the voodoo doll and put it in a safe place and keep it until your wishes, goals and desires have materialized. Once you receive your results, be sure to thank both Divinity and Erzulie for your good fortune.
Return the voodoo doll to nature by either burning it, burying it in the ground, or throwing it into a river, lake or the ocean.
For this spell you must use a piece of parchment paper and write the name of the person that you wish to fall in love with you on the paper 13 times. You then place a Peacock feather and the piece of paper under your pillow at bedtime and call the name of the person 13 times.
You must do this for three consecutive nights. On the fourth night, you must light one red candle while taking a bath for 13 minutes and concentrating on the person you wish to fall in love with you.
You should then dream about the person that evening and through the dream you will have the power to control the outcome, determining the result of the future. Once you wake up, you must hide the paper somewhere in your bedroom and take the Peacock feather someplace that the subject will touch it, making sure they will be the first to touch it. This is a very powerful spell, so please do this spell with caution.
Like all spells, Voodoo love spells should comply with principles of magic. This means that the spell should not harm anyone, and cause negative long-term effects or tricks on the subject.
This powerful soulmate spell can help you to find your true love. Whether you wish to make use of any of the items mentioned here, or simply cast a candle spell infused with the power of your own intentions is entirely your own choice. So if you wish to perform this spell to find true love but do not have access to some of the tools that you normally associate with voodoo rituals, do not let this lack prevent you from making use of the power of this form of magic. You can use voodoo to harness powerful and benevolent universal energies in your search for true love.
Never joke about casting love spells. Evaluate your needs first. You must have good intentions too. Similarly believe in the power of the spell to grant your wish. If all goes well, you and your future spouse must not repel each other any longer. It does not matter how bad or good your past or present love history really is.
Love spells are truly majestic but for it to be successful, it has to be guided by one principle. The person who wishes to have the spells come in to their lives must want it enough to let all the energies flow into the stream of their wishes.
Start the ritual by Cleansing and Consecrating the Candle and then lighting it. As with all magical rituals do so consciously. Cut a Voodoo doll out of the construction paper or card board and write all the qualities that you want in a partner on one side of the doll. There are no rules, so write down anything that comes to your mind. While doing so visualize your wishes and build up energy.
Next, take the candle and drip wax onto the Voodoo doll until the side you wrote your wishes on is completely covered with wax. While doing it call upon Erzulie, the Voodoo spirit of love. Ask for all that you wish for. Be honest and forthright. Be clear and operate only in harmony with the universe. Take your time and build up as much energy as possible. This step is very important. Snuff out the candle.
Repeat this last step on the next two days (total of 3 times).
On the third and last day put the wax-covered Voodoo doll into the paper bag or wrap it in a sheet of paper. Tie it with the string, so that it is closed.
Hide the package under your bed until you have met your Soulmate.
Once you receive your results, be sure to thank both Divinity and Erzulie for your good fortune and return the package to nature by either burning it, burying it in the ground, or throwing it into a river, lake or the ocean.
If you can’t achieve success with your Voodoo spells, then this is where a Voodoo magic practitioner comes in. With experience and training, the practitioner is able to communicate and orchestrate this exchange of energy on your behalf. The practitioner is then compensated for their time and effort, and so are the spirits which play a vital role in manifesting your desired outcome.
How can a Voodoo practitioner be of assistance?
Few of us have cultivated the ability to travel in the spiritual realm. Therefore, since ancient times, people have hired magic practitioners the same way as they would hire someone to plow their field if they did not own a pair of oxen and a plough, or a baker to make their bread, or a butcher to cut their meat, or a vintner to press their grapes and make them into wine.
After all, how many times would you have need of a love spell? Hopefully only once! When a relationship begins, with careful nurturing from both parties, it can last forever. With neglect, it may shrivel and die like a plant thirsting for water.
Sadly, like so many other religions, Voodoo is subject to exploitation from greedy persons. Be careful into whose hands you entrust your energy (money) and your heart’s desire. At best, you may “only” waste your money. At worst, you may experience the negative flashback from an ill-prepared Voodoo practitioner or one whose own soul is not pure. Always be sure of your own intent, and know that ‘power’ is to be used for self enhancement and control, and NOT control over someone else. Human will and intent plays a vital role in the working of magic. Be sure of your own intent and the integrity of your Voodoo spell caster.
I want me and my wife (Cynthia M Gibbs) to get back together.
Voodoo Love spells certainly give you results if you believe in it completely. All our magic spells and chants are derived from nature. Thus, there is no instant result guaranteed but gradually you will get what you want.
It has been observed most of the time that you fall in love with a person who does not even care about you. Not everyone in this world is lucky enough to have their true love reciprocated.
If you are ready to fight your fate and make her fall deeply in love with you again then this love spell may come to your rescue.
I just found this website and I’d like to do this spell to get my ex-boyfriend back. We’ve been in small contact for a few weeks but I haven’t seen any progress, in fact he might even be more distant than when we were together and I am ready to try anything. My intuition tells me truly he and I are for each other but I am starting to feel like I need a little outside help from the Universe. HOWEVER, I still live at home while I’m in college and so there is no possible way I can do this spell for 13 days in a row unless I get up in the middle of the night. My parents would get in the way, trust me they don’t believe in anything supernatural, so I’d have to do it in the middle of the night.
Do you have any other spells that do the exact same thing as this but require less days or are more subtle?
Hi Cleo, yes, you could either cast one of the other spells to make someone fall in love, you can find them here: https://www.magic-love-spells.com/category/fall-in-love-spells/ or, in your case even the spells to return a lost lover would work, those can be found here: https://www.magic-love-spells.com/category/return-lost-lover-spells/ All these spells are suited for your situation. Best of luck!
I think my boyfriend’s son’s wife practices voodoo to make her father in law fall for her. I saw it in my dreams. He lusts after her. Is this what voodoo supposed to do? Evil and taboo things such as these? He certainly flirts with her and she with him. He gave her so much money too. Please help.
So your boyfriend is falling for his son’s wife?
How bad! There is no way you could be sure if it’s spiritually or just natural likeness, I believe some spiritualist could look into that too, they do lot of crazy things.
Are voodoo love spells evil? This is a question that goes into the minds of millions of people worldwide. Thanks to the various fiction stories and TV series, voodoo is associated only with needle pricking dolls and killing animals as sacrifice. There is more to it than is visible to the common eye. It is a well practiced religion and form of spiritualism, which has grown manifolds from the influences of the African countries and the Caribbean region. I am sorry to hear that you suspect your boyfriend to be the victim of a voodoo love spell that made him fall for his son’s wife. Even if this is the case, it only means that your boyfriend is the victim of a black magic spell, not necessarily Voodoo. The situation you are describing is against anything Voodoo stands for. Always keep in mind that most Voodooists cast spells for beneficial purposes, not to hurt people. This is obviously not the case in your boyfriend’s situation.
I just saw this on some website and got curious about this, so i have a lots of questions, but the most important thing i want to know is… Can i just ask who is Erzulie?
Does this need to be done same time everyday for 13 days?
Hi. I would like someone to cast a spell for me. I want a guy whom I met thru a transaction regarding his apartment to fall madly in love with me is there any powerful spellcastrts who can cast a spell for me for this guy to call me text me and beg me to be with him he must love me and want me so much that he must become obsessed and possessive over me he must want me to belong to him and only him and I must be the only woman in this world for him. I want a powerful spellcaster to cast a spell on him so that he contacts me very very soon. | 2019-04-22T00:26:54Z | https://www.magic-love-spells.com/voodoo-love-spells/ |
Socorro dive trip report for Channel Islands Dive Adventures. Trip was on the Nautilus Explorer on June 12-22, 2016 and what an awesome trip it was.
What is about Socorro that seems to interest everyone? I would have to say until you have been there you just will not fully know but now after being to Socorro I can tell you it is all about the big animals-mainly giant manta’s, sharks, dolphins and more. It is also about being at the right place at the right time but in Socorro you just seem to get more of these things lined up to create an experience of a lifetime.
In case you don’t know Socorro is actually just the largest island of the Revillagigedo archipelago that you visit and the one you are at the least amount of time but it seems to be the most well-known. The main three places you visit on a Socorro trip are San Benedicto and Socorro Islands along with Roca Partida which is only a large rock out in the middle of nowhere. For our 10 day trip which was June 12-22, 2016 we also visited the Sea of Cortez on our last day of diving.
For this trip naturally the Nautilus Explorer was my only choice having been on it many years back when it did trips to Port Hardy, BC out of Vancouver, BC and plus it is the only liveaboard dive boat in the world that has been built to SOLAS standards which are the same standards that all cruise ships are built too. The Nautilus Explorer moved down south a number of years ago to the Cabo area of Mexico where it now calls home to run trips to Socorro, the Sea of Cortez and Guadalupe Island for great white shark encounters. The Nautilus just added a second boat to their fleet in 2015 and now a third in 2016 bringing the total number of boats going to the same areas to seven.
For those that have never been on the Nautilus Explorer it is 116’ long x 27’ wide. She is steel and originally built for trips to Alaska so I think she can handle just about anything she will encounter. She can hold 25 divers in a combination of 6 regular staterooms, 2 single and 1 triple stateroom below the main deck and 4 large suites above the main deck very close to the hot tub and also where the wheel house/bridge is. I stayed in one of the single rooms due to a cancellation and loved it. There is a large sundeck at the top deck and everything else is on the main deck such as the large salon, bar, kitchen and galley area. The dive deck is also on the main deck as well as one of the 2 camera table areas. She has 2 inflatable skiffs and 3 kayaks and is run by a crew of 10. For this trip our Captain was Stefpen, 1st mate was Arthur, cook/chef was Kiki, engineer was Dale, 3 divemasters/helpers were Arturo, Darren & Garret, hostesses/stewards-Marina & Lurentina and Hernan was our boatsman. They all worked well together with all the many duties they had and looked like they had fun the entire trip.
Now for the details of our trip which I have to say turned out great. I originally set the trip up for my business Channel Islands Dive Adventures and was able to get Brett Bovard with PCH Scuba to share it which was nice because we already share a number of our SoCal local dive trips together and quite a few of the people from each group already knew each other.
We started our journey by taking a short 2.5 hour flight from LAX to Cabo and used Jorge at Enterprising Travel for our ground transportation to and from the airport to the Tesoro Resort in Cabo where the Nautilus company had a hospitality suite for us to leave our luggage at while taking the few hours we had extra to explore the city. Of course our first order of business was to eat and with a little help we found a nice restaurant Taqueria Las Guacamayas with good prices off the main boulevard. I had 2 pastor, 1 shrimp and 1 fish taco, chips and 2 cold beers for a total of 180 pesos which was about $12.00 US. Afterwards we walked the boardwalk at the harbor which was beautiful except for all the guys wanting to sell us timeshares, cigars and other things we didn’t want.
At 7:30 pm we went back to the resort where we met two of our divemasters-Darren and Arturo. They gave us a short briefing and then around 8:15 pm we were off on another 30 minute van ride to where the boat was docked. It used to be in the main Cabo harbor but for whatever reason they have now moved to San Jose Del Cabo. By 9:00 pm we started our 30 hour journey to our first stop which would be San Benedicto Island. Once on the boat we did the necessary paperwork, had our welcome drink and got situated in our rooms and off to bed it was.
On Monday, June 13th we had a dive briefing and marine ID presentation on what we might see, put our dive gear together, napped, ate too much food and became better aquatinted with everyone on the trip.
Tuesday the 14th we arrived at San Benedicto Island early and it was so nice to hear the engines stop for a while and only hear the sound of the generators running. Our first dive was at Las Cuevitas which was more of a “check out dive”. This dive site has lots of big rock boulders with some on top of each other creating a couple large caverns to swim through. We did see some rays and towards the end of the dive a giant manta gave us our first glimpse of more to come. Our second dive was at the same place but we went a different direction along a wall not seeing much more than our first dive. For the afternoon dives we moved to El Canon where we made our last two dives of the day. Here there was an underwater extension of the island with a steep wall and a chance to see some bigger sharks. I didn’t see anything different but a couple people did catch a glimpse of a tiger shark. After dinner we had the chance to do a silky shark snorkel which was lots of fun. The water was clear and most everyone did the snorkel seeing some silky sharks. Most of the sharks would be just beneath us but a few came up close and then you could hear a few screams. None of the sharks seemed to want to have us for dinner which was a good thing and some of us were able to get video of the fun.
During the night we moved to Socorro Island which was about 30 miles away and on Wednesday the 15th our first dive was at the “Old Man on the Rocks” which was nice and uneventful. We then moved to check in with the Mexican Military which is required. About 5 Mexican military personnel boarded the boat, with 4 going up to the bridge to see the captain while one stood on deck with his rifle always smiling when you looked at him. They got cold drinks and some refreshments and then we all were asked to go into the salon where they checked us and our passports and took some pictures of some of the group. They then boarded their skiff to go back to their base and we were now ready for the rest of our trip.
Our second and third dives of the day were at Cabo Pearce which was a wall with a lava extension that went out towards the sea. Here we encountered some very strong currents and our first dive here did not go as planned with most of us fighting the current to not get washed over the rocks on shore. Luckily everyone made it OK and the second dive went much better. For our second dive here we started further out making it quickly to the receiver which was a short rope about 10’-15’ long that was attached to the rocks. This is a good place to hang out looking for big things to swim by like mainly sharks. We hung out for about 5-10 minutes and then moved with the current to the other side of the lava finger where I had seen my first awesome dolphin and manta experience. At first we didn’t see much but it sure came together at the end of the dive.
Again, after dinner it was time to make another long move to Roca Partida which was about 72 miles away. Roca is where most all of the big stuff happens and to see how small the rock is and to imagine 3-4 dive boats there at once is just a little amazing to me. Luckily we were in for a treat as we were the only boat at Roca the two days we spent there. We made 4 dives each day with the blue, green and red team always switching it up on who went first as we did the entire trip. It really is a place that when it happens it happens and no matter if you are first or last seems to not make much of a difference. We saw up to 5 different giant manta’s as well as lots of smaller reef sharks, some larger Galapagos sharks and the occasionally sighting of hammerhead sharks off in the distance. The hammerheads were usually deep and kept their distance so getting any good pictures or videos was very hard to do. Roca is a very steep sided rock that just seems to drop into the depths of the abyss. It does have some ledges where you usually would find the smaller reef sharks on it and one hole looked like a nursery with all smaller young sharks in it. The crevices usually had green moray eels and smaller fish along with some hard corals growing in a few places. The upper area of the water column close to the rock had bigger schools of fish like jacks and so forth.
Weather our first day at Roca was nice, sunny and relatively calm for the area with the forecast being even better the second day but then forecasts aren’t always correct as would be in our case. It seemed the second day instead of better weather we had a cold front come through with some wind making the seas a bit choppy and it also brought a little rain along with it. It turned out good but did make loading and unloading the skiffs a little difficult.
The way most of the diving was done was by skiff and on a few dives we just jumped off the back of the boat with some divers swimming back and some getting a ride back on a skiff. The days we used the skiff we would get in when told, grab our fins and then our cameras would be handed to us. The 2 days diving at Roca this sometimes became difficult with the skiff dropping off the back of the boat up to 6 feet and then the next second it would be washing over the back deck. Luckily no one got hurt or anything was lost. See my video and you will see what I am taking about.
Our group was divided up into 3 groups of 8 making the red, blue & green dive groups. Each dive a group would move backwards letting everyone get the chance to be first out for a dive. Each group had a DM and each day the DM would move to another group so no one had the same DM all days. Some groups changed especially later in the trip as people sat out dives due mostly to fatigue or ear problems. Trips like this take their toll on everyone in some way, shape or form. As it turned out myself and 1 other person were the only 2 that made all 25 dives and both silky snorkels on the trip.
After Roca Partida it was back to San Benedicto another 85 miles of travel for our last 2 days in the area. The ride over was very nice and we did all 4 dives on Saturday the 18th at the Boiler which we skipped the first day due to a big swell in the area. I personally am not into sharks all that much which is probably the main attraction for everyone at Roca Partida but I am into dolphins and giant manta so I REALLY like The Boiler.
The Boiler is a large rock with a small footprint on top which is only about 15’ from the surface and gets wider and larger as you get deeper but it is still small enough to swim around during a dive. It also has a number of good sized ledges and large crevices with a little bit of everything and it reminded me about some of our pinnacles back home in the Southern California area. My second dive here was probably the best ever in all my diving and I have been diving for a long time now. Of course I haven’t traveled the world but still it was a dive I will always remember. My buddy Jeff and I decide to head around the Boiler to the side where another pinnacle was at that topped of at about 75’. The visibility was incredibly good with it at least 100’. As we rounded the corner we could see the other pinnacle about 50’-75’ away so we swam over to it going around it a couple times coming to the top were we hung out for a short time waiting for something big like more mantas. All of a sudden 2 mantas appeared between us and the main reef so we headed towards them trying not to act like we wanted to get close and scare them away and it worked. For what seemed like 15 minutes we had an encounter of a life time with most of it being at about 15’ to 40’ feet deep in the blue water. Around us where other divers enjoying the same thing and with the clear blue water it just made the experience magical and again this is what a trip like this is all about. The next two dives at the Boiler were nice but nothing like the second which was perfectly OK with me.
Earlier in the day I asked the captain about possibly getting a ride in the inflatables over close to shore after hearing some of the divers got one after getting picked up from their dives and the captain said yes between the third and fourth dives. When it was time we loaded up both skiffs and our tour started. Without special permits which we did not have we couldn’t go ashore but we could check out all the cool rock formations, large arch, small crevices and more. It was all good and fun and this ride also gave me the idea that there is much to see and dive in the area that is totally unexplored which I will have to work on.
After our last dive we moved to a more protected area for the night and for dinner. A few of us did try another silky snorkel but the water was very cloudy and it just didn’t turn out as good as the first night we did this.
On Sunday the 19th we did 2 more dives at El Canon and our last at the Boiler. The water was very cloudy at both sites dropping the visibility to around 40’. Even the Boiler wasn’t as good and two mantas did give us a flyby but for a very short time. After we were done it was time to get moving to the Sea of Cortez because the expected travel time would be about 35 hours to where the captain wanted to start. The ride out was incredibly smooth all night and during the day on Monday the 20th the water was as still as it could be, like a lake. In fact it was so smooth that around 11:00 am the boat slowed down and at home when that happens we all jump up to see what marine life there is to see the only problem was there was no marine life to see and that is when the captain said it was so calm and we were ahead of schedule to lets go swimming. What fun for about 30 minutes those that wanted to could go swimming while some of us had more fun jumping off the higher decks of the boat. Everyone had fun and it sure helped break up the ride for us. I dived down under the water and when I opened up my eyes I seen the bluest water ever with sun rays shining up through-now that was a sight to see.
The rest of the day was a kickback day with people watching movies, going over pictures, resting and around 5:00 pm Arturo showed us a presentation on sea lions for our dives tomorrow at Los Islotes but it was more like how to survive diving around sealions and live to tell about it and it seems the sealions of Los Islotes are much more playful and sneaky as the ones we dive with in California. Around sunset we passed Cabo not arriving at Los Islotes till about 6:30am the following morning.
Tuesday the 21st and it is our last full day of the trip, my how time flies by when having fun. We did 3 shallow dives at Los Islotes and got the chance to get a skiff ride around the island. The skiff ride was lots of fun and we also were able to see a number of baby sealions that appeared to have just been born. One still had the placenta attached to it and the seagulls were trying their best to make it their next meal.
The dives were OK with visibility running about 20’-25’ and water temperature in the mid 60’s. During the dives you could pass through areas that had a 5-10 degree temperature difference several times. There were big rocks underwater all around the island and most had little growing on them. There was also a cavern that went all the way through the smaller islet which was a great spot for macro photography with lots of small things to see. The shallow areas close to the island were usually the spots for sealion interaction but sometimes they just didn’t seem to care much about us divers.
At about 6:00pm the anchor was pulled and we were off for our 15 hour cruise back to Jose Del Cabo. It was also a perfect time to dry gear, get packed and organized for the trip home. In the evening the DM’s showed us a fun movie they put together with pictures and videos we all shared that from the trip-it was for sure the hit of the day! Our crew did an excellent job taking care of us and Kiki our only chef did the job of many in the kitchen. I couldn’t believe till told that he not only made all the meals but baked everything we had except for the cookies and afternoon treats that were made by Lurentina and Marina.
On Wednesday the 22nd we would leave the Nautilus Explorer, our home for the past 10 days around 8:30am where we would stay at the hotel across the street from where the boat is docked. Around 10:00 our ride would take us back to the airport for our journey back home. | 2019-04-18T21:04:37Z | https://channelislandsdiveadventures.com/socorro-trip-report/ |
Transgenic mice with low levels of global insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) throughout their life span, including pre- and postnatal development, have increased longevity. This study investigated whether specific deficiency of liver-derived, endocrine IGF-I is of importance for life span.
Serum IGF-I was reduced by approximately 80% in mice with adult, liver-specific IGF-I inactivation (LI-IGF-I-/- mice), and body weight decreased due to reduced body fat. The mean life span of LI-IGF-I-/- mice (n = 84) increased 10% vs. control mice (n = 137) (Cox's test, p<0.01), mainly due to increased life span (16%) of female mice [LI-IGF-I-/- mice (n = 31): 26.7±1.1 vs. control (n = 67): 23.0±0.7 months, p<0.001]. Male LI-IGF-I-/- mice showed only a tendency for increased longevity (p = 0.10). Energy expenditure, measured as oxygen consumption during and after submaximal exercise, was increased in the LI-IGF-I-/- mice. Moreover, microarray and RT-PCR analyses showed consistent regulation of three genes (heat shock protein 1A and 1B and connective tissue growth factor) in several body organs in the LI-IGF-I-/- mice.
Adult inactivation of liver-derived, endocrine IGF-I resulted in moderately increased mean life span. Body weight and body fat decreased in LI-IGF-I-/- mice, possibly due to increased energy expenditure during exercise. Genes earlier reported to modulate stress response and collagen aging showed consistent regulation, providing mechanisms that could underlie the increased mean life span in the LI-IGF-I-/- mice.
Copyright: © 2011 Svensson et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Funding: This work was supported by grants from the Swedish Research Council, the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research, the ALF/LUA research grant in Gothenburg, the Lundberg Foundation, the Torsten and Ragnar Söderberg's Foundation, the Novo Nordisk Foundation, Sahlgrenska Center for Cardiovascular and Metabolic Research (CMR, no. A305:188), which is supported by the Swedish Strategic Foundation, and from the European Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.
Competing interests: Olle Isaksson was co-founder of Tercica Inc. that produced IGF-I for use in children of short stature. Tercica Inc. was acquired by Ipsen June 2008. Olle Isaksson has no current ownership of stocks or options in Tercica or Ipsen. None of the other authors has any conflict of interest. This does not alter the authors' adherence to all the PLoS ONE policies on sharing data and materials.
Insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) is among the relatively few factors that regulate life span. Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans, a nematode) and Drosophila melanogaster (fruit fly) have common signaling pathways for IGF-I and insulin, and disruption of IGF-I/insulin signaling in these species increases longevity –. Mice have separate receptors for IGF-I and insulin, and longevity increases in several mouse strains with low global activity of the growth hormone (GH)/IGF-I axis. Spontaneous mutations in Prop-1 (Ames dwarf mice) and Pit-1 (Snell dwarf mice) result in impaired pituitary gland development, low GH secretion, and increased life expectancy , . Life expectancy increases in mice with deficient GH-releasing hormone receptor (Ghrhrlit/lit mice) , GH receptor null mice , and mice that are heterozygous in terms of inactivation of the IGF-I receptor in total body (Igf1r+/− mice) . Longevity also increases in mouse models with reduced IGF-I bioavailability due to knockout of the IGF binding protein (IGFBP) specific protease PAPP-A , and in mice with defective IGF-I signaling downstream of the IGF-I receptor such as mice lacking the IGF-I receptor substrate p66shc and mice that overexpress KLOTHO . A cross-sectional study of 31 strains of mice detected an inverse correlation between plasma IGF-I levels at 6 months and median lifespan . In terms of the brain, the role of IGF-I is complex and the effects of IGF-I on lifespan and neuronal function can be uncoupled to some extent . In mice, administration of IGF-I may provide protection from neurodegeneration while heterozygous brain-specific IGF-I receptor knockout enhances longevity .
The rate of aging is plastic and mutations in genes influencing endocrine signaling, fertility, stress responses, metabolism and telomeres can affect life span in model organisms , . Reduced body weight may participate importantly in the increased life span of long-lived, GH-deficient Ames dwarf mice, as could low fertility . However, several studies have demonstrated that reduced body size or fertility is not required for increased life span in mice with low GH/IGF-I activity , . Reduced activity of nutrient-sensing pathways, such as attenuated IGF-I signaling, may mediate some of the anti-aging effects of dietary restriction in mice . However, the prolonging effect on life span by low food intake is partly independent of IGF-I as caloric restriction prolongs life span even further in Ames dwarf mice . Furthermore, caloric restriction reduces the mitochondrial production of reactive oxidative species (ROS) and oxidative damage . In C. elegans and Drosophila melanogaster with low IGF-I/insulin activity , , , as well as in Igf1r+/− mice and mice lacking the IGF-I receptor substrate p66shc , increased resistance to oxidative stress might be a mechanism underlying the longer life span.
The major part of serum IGF-I is liver-derived –. In addition to regulation by GH , serum IGF-I levels are also affected by food intake, exercise and age . A mouse model with liver-specific, inducible inactivation of the IGF-I gene, using the Cre-LoxP conditional knockout system, has been developed (LI-IGF-I-/- mice) , –. The selective inactivation of the IGF-I gene in the liver results in a 75-80% reduction in serum IGF-I, whereas the expression of IGF-I is unaffected in other tissues . GH secretion is increased in LI-IGF-I-/- mice secondary to a decreased negative feedback by serum IGF-I , .
Although LI-IGF-I-/- mice have no major disturbance in postnatal longitudinal bone growth , cortical bone mass is clearly decreased , , . Increased peripheral resistance in LI-IGF-I-/- mice results in elevated blood pressure . Blood glucose is normal but circulating levels of insulin and cholesterol are increased . The present study assessed the role of adult expression of liver-derived IGF-I in life span, and also investigated the importance of deficiency of liver-derived IGF-I for parameters associated with life span including fertility, body composition, oxygen consumption, activity level, food intake, and expression of longevity-associated genes in several organs.
Liver-specific inactivation of the IGF-I gene was induced in mice at one month of age in most experiments. However, food intake, body composition, oxygen consumption at rest, and activity level were measured in mice that underwent inactivation of liver-derived IGF-I at 12 months of age. In the experiments determining life span, serum IGF-I was 321±5 ng/ml in the control mice (n = 137) and 62±3 ng/ml in the LI-IGF-I-/- mice (n = 84), an 81% reduction (p<0.001). In all other experiments, serum IGF-I concentration decreased approximately 80% in the various groups of LI-IGF-I-/- mice (p<0.001 in all experiments; data not shown).
Body weight was measured every third month between 3 and 30 months of age. Reduced body weight was observed in both female (Fig. 1A) and male (Fig. 1B) LI-IGF-I-/- mice.
Figure 1. Reduced body weight in LI-IGF-I-/- mice.
Body weight in A) female and B) male mice. Body weight was determined every third month during 3-30 months of age. Between 3 and 27 months of age, body weight was significantly lower in LI-IGF-I-/- compared with control mice in the total number of mice and also in the male and female subgroups (all analyses p<0.001). The vertical bars indicate the SE for the mean values shown.
Mean life span increased 10% [LI-IGF-I-/- mice (n = 84): 24.7±0.6 months vs. control (n = 137): 22.5±0.5 months, p<0.01 using unpaired t-test; Kaplan-Meier analysis: p = 0.001, Cox's test], mainly due to increased life span (16%) in female mice [LI-IGF-I-/- mice (n = 31): 26.7±1.1 vs. control (n = 67): 23.0±0.7 months, p<0.01 using unpaired t-test; Kaplan-Meyer analysis p<0.001, Cox's test; Fig. 2A]. Male mice showed only a tendency toward increased mean life span [6% increase; LI-IGF-I-/- mice (n = 53): 23.5±0.8 vs. control (n = 70): 22.1±0.7 months, p = 0.17 using unpaired t-test; Kaplan-Meyer analysis p = 0.10, Cox's test; Fig 2B].
Figure 2. Increased mean life span of female LI-IGF-I-/- mice.
A) Female LI-IGF-I-/- mice live 16% longer than female control mice (26.7 ± 1.1 vs. 23.0 ± 0.7 months, p<0.01 using unpaired t-test; Kaplan-Meyer analysis p<0.001, Cox's test). B) Although not statistically significant, male LI-IGF-I-/- mice live 6% longer than male control mice (23.5 ± 0.8 vs. 22.1 ± 0.7 months, p = 0.17 using unpaired t-test; Kaplan-Meyer analysis: p = 0.10, Cox's test).
Maximal life span of LI-IGF-I-/- mice was not significantly different compared to that of control mice (p = 0.11). In male LI-IGF-I-/- mice, maximal life span was similar as that in control mice (p = 0.92) whereas in female LI-IGF-I-/- mice, there was a non-significant tendency to increased maximum life span. When 90% of the joint distribution of female mice had died, 19% (6/31) of female LI-IGF-I-/- mice and 6% (4/67) of female control mice were still alive (p = 0.07).
When 5- and 8-month-old female control and LI-IGF-I-/- mice were mated with male controls of similar age, the proportion of pregnant females and the litter size were similar in both groups (Fig. 3A and B). Similarly, when 5- and 8-month-old male control and LI-IGF-I-/- mice were mated with female controls of similar age, the proportion of pregnant females and the litter size were similar in both groups (data not shown).
Figure 3. Normal fertility in female LI-IGF-I-/- mice.
A) The percentage of pregnant female mice in relation to the total number of female mice in each group. B) Litter size when female LI-IGF-I-/- mice were mated with age-matched male control mice at 5 and 8 months of age (n = 12-14 in each group). The experiments showed normal fertility in female LI-IGF-I-/- mice. In Figure 3B, the error bars indicate the standard error for the mean values shown.
We previously demonstrated reduced body weight due to reduced body fat in 13-month-old male and female LI-IGF-I-/- mice that underwent inactivation of liver-derived IGF-I at one month of age . The present study extends those findings by investigating the effect of inactivation of IGF-I in hepatocytes at 12 months of age. Six months later, at 18 months of age, measurements using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) showed reduced body fat also after correction for the reduced body weight in the LI-IGF-I-/- mice as compared with the control mice (Table 1). Absolute values of lean mass was unchanged whereas after correction for body weight, lean mass even increased in the LI-IGF-I-/- mice (Table 1). Dissections of fat pads showed lower weight of inguinal, retroperitoneal, and gonadal fat in the LI-IGF-I-/- mice as compared with the control mice (Table 1).
Table 1. Liver-derived IGF-I were inactivated at 12 months of age.
We observed no differences in food intake, feces output, oxygen consumption at rest, and spontaneous activity level while measuring 13-month-old female mice when body weight was still similar in both groups (Table 2). However, at 18 months, body weight was reduced in the female LI-IGF-I-/- mice compared with the female control mice (p<0.001; data not shown). Additional experiments to determine oxygen consumption during rest in 24-month-old female control (n = 8) and LI-IGF-I-/- (n = 5) mice that underwent inactivation of liver-derived IGF-I at one month of age showed no between-group difference (data not shown).
Table 2. Liver-derived IGF-I were inactivated at 12 months of age.
To further investigate mechanisms underlying reduced body fat in LI-IGF-I-/- mice, oxygen consumption during submaximal exercise and post exercise was determined in 18-month-old female control and LI-IGF-I-/- mice that underwent inactivation of liver-derived IGF-I at one month of age. The measurements showed that oxygen consumption was increased during submaximal exercise and post-exercise in LI-IGF-I-/- mice compared with controls (Fig. 4A). Respiratory exchange ratio (RER) was unchanged (Fig. 4B).
Figure 4. Increased oxygen consumption during submaximal exercise and post-exercise in LI-IGF-I-/- mice.
We performed DNA microarray analyses in female control and LI-IGF-I-/- mice to identify possible mechanisms underlying increased life span. We sought to determine whether there were alterations in the global gene expression pattern that occurred consistently in various tissues, including liver, skeletal muscle, heart, fat (retroperitoneal fat) and bone (vertebrae). Four genes were regulated according to the criteria described in Materials and Methods (Table 3). Heat shock protein 1A (Hspa1a), heat shock protein 1B (Hspa1b), and connective tissue growth factor (Ctgf) were decreased in all organs that expressed these genes (Table 3). CCAAT/enhancer protein delta (Cebpd) decreased in 4 of the 5 analyzed organs (Table 3). The expression of the IGF-I receptor was unchanged in all organs studied (data not shown).
Table 3. Genes regulated in liver, skeletal muscle, heart, fat (retroperitoneal fat), and bone (vertebrae) in 7-month-old female control (n = 6) and LI-IGF-I-/- (n = 7) mice as determined by DNA microarray analyses.
To confirm the microarray findings, we performed RT-PCR analyses on skeletal muscle (triceps) samples from individual mice. The RT-PCR analyses confirmed that mRNA levels of Hspa1a (Fig. 5A), Hspa1b (Fig. 5B), and Ctgf (Fig. 5C) decreased in LI-IGF-I-/- mice while mRNA levels of Cebpd were unchanged (data not shown). The mRNA level of the IGF-I receptor was similar in LI-IGF-I-/- and control mice (Fig. 5D).
Figure 5. Decreased mRNA levels of Hspa1a, Hspa1b, and Ctgf in LI-IGF-I-/- mice.
To confirm the microarray findings, RT-PCR analyses were performed on skeletal muscle (triceps) samples from individual mice. The RT-PCR analyses showed reduced mRNA levels of A) heat shock protein 1A (Hspa1a), B) heat shock protein 1B (Hspa1b), and C) connective tissue growth factor (Ctgf). D) IGF-I receptor mRNA level was unchanged. The mRNA levels in LI-IGF-I-/- mice (n = 7) are expressed as percent of that in control mice (n = 6). The vertical bars indicate the SE for the mean values shown.* p<0.05 ** p<0.01 vs. control mice.
This study shows that deficiency of liver-derived, endocrine IGF-I results in increased mean life span. Mean life span increased significantly in female LI-IGF-I-/- mice and both genders combined, while male LI-IGF-I-/- mice showed only a tendency for increased survival. Body weight decreased in LI-IGF-I-/- mice due to reduced fat mass. We observed no between-group differences in fertility, food intake, and activity level, whereas oxygen consumption during and after submaximal exercise was increased in LI-IGF-I-/- mice. Gene expression analyses of several tissues in LI-IGF-I-/- mice identified consistent regulation of three transcripts (Hspa1a, Hspa1b, and Ctgf) that might be involved in the aging process.
Low activity of IGF-I in nematodes , , fruit flies , , and mice –, results in increased life span. However, the role of IGF-I in adult life is difficult to evaluate in these animals due to the possible effect of absence of IGF-I activity during pre- and postnatal development. Furthermore, these previous studies did not evaluate the relative importance of liver-derived circulating IGF-I vs. that of IGF-I produced in peripheral tissues. In LI-IGF-I-/- mice of this study, the deficiency of endocrine, liver-derived IGF-I was induced at 1 or 12 months of age. Consequently, the mice likely developed normally but then underwent a maintained, selective inactivation of IGF-I in hepatocytes, but retained normal IGF-I expression in the peripheral tissues as shown in several previous studies , –, –. Therefore, the present study is the first to investigate life span in mice with normal IGF-I levels during development.
The extension of mean life span in LI-IGF-I mice with inactivation of liver-derived IGF-I was moderate (+10%), less than that observed in GH-deficient Ames and Snell dwarf mice , . However, in contrast to the long-lived dwarf mice, longitudinal growth is almost normal in LI-IGF-I mice and body weight decreases only moderately , . The results of some studies suggest that the availability of food and GH status during the first days or weeks of life can affect longevity in mice. Therefore, unaffected IGF-I levels during the first month of life before inactivation of liver-derived IGF-I could be of importance for the less marked extension of mean life span in LI-IGF-I-/- mice compared to Ames and Snell dwarf mice that have low GH and IGF-I levels also during early postnatal development , . Furthermore, the LI-IGF-I-/- mice display compensatory increased GH levels [geometric mean plasma GH concentration 3.1-fold higher than that in control mice , , ]. This increased GH secretion may exert a negative effect on life span in LI-IGF-I mice and the full importance of liver-derived circulating IGF-I for life span regulation is therefore difficult to evaluate. However, our study shows that a marked reduction of liver-derived circulating IGF-I, combined with a moderate increase in circulating GH levels, results in a small but significant increase in mean life span.
Mean life span increased significantly (16%) in female LI-IGF-I-/- mice, while male LI-IGF-I-/- mice showed only a non-significant trend toward increased longevity. Similarly, life span in Igf1r+/- mice increased significantly only in female mice . A human study showed decreased body height and reduced activity of the IGF-I receptor in female but not male offspring of long-lived centenarians . Furthermore, the consequences of low circulating GH/IGF-I values differ considerably between men and women with hypopituitary disease . Therefore, the importance of IGF-I for life span regulation appears to be partly gender-dependent across species.
Reduced body weight in LI-IGF-I-/- mice could be one mechanism for prolonged life span in these mice. Previous studies demonstrated gradually reduced body fat in LI-IGF-I-/- mice, at least partly mediated by the compensatory increase in GH secretion . In a previous study, body fat was unchanged after correction for the reduced body weight in mice with deficiency of liver-derived IGF-I . In the present study, late inactivation of liver-derived endocrine IGF-I (at 12 months of age) resulted in reduced body weight and decreased body fat also after correction for body weight. This late inactivation of IGF-I in hepatocytes may resemble the age-related decline in serum IGF-I observed in elderly humans more closely than early inactivation of liver-derived IGF-I in previous mouse models.
We detected no between-group differences in food intake, oxygen consumption at rest, or activity level, whereas oxygen consumption during submaximal exercise was increased in LI-IGF-I-/- mice. We previously observed an association between reduced energy expenditure during submaximal exercise and subsequent body fat accumulation in mice with global deficiency of interleukin-6 , . Furthermore, LI-IGF-I-/- mice bear some resemblance to fat-specific insulin receptor knockout (FIRKO) mice, which display leanness, increased energy expenditure, and enhanced longevity , .
Since fertility of both male and female mice was similar to the controls both in this study and a previous study of mice with deficiency of liver-derived IGF-I , changes in fertility did not cause increased mean life span in LI-IGF-I-/- mice. Furthermore, changes in cardiovascular risk factors likely do not explain increased longevity in the LI-IGF-I-/- mice, because these mice have increased blood pressure and increased circulating levels of insulin and cholesterol . Insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia are associated with increased ROS formation, a pro-inflammatory milieu, and a reduction of life span . Impaired phosphoinositide 3-kinase pathway, decreased NAD-dependent deacetylase sirtuin (Sirt) 1 activity, and telomere shortening may mediate the reduction of life span in conditions of hyperinsulinemia/insulin resistance . Furthermore, increased circulating levels of insulin may activate the IGF-I receptor . In the present study, the mRNA level of the IGF-I receptor was unchanged in LI-IGF-I-/- mice in all organs studied using microarray and in skeletal muscle as measured by RT-PCR. In another mouse model of deficiency of liver-derived IGF-I with approximately similar phenotype as that of LI-IGF-I-/- mice including insulin resistance , , IGF-I receptor mRNA levels were similar as those in control mice in multiple tissues . Tyrosine phosphorylation state of the IGF-I receptor in skeletal muscle was approximately similar in mice with deficiency of liver-derived IGF-I and control mice before and after IGF-I administration in one study , but otherwise little is known of the extent to which the IGF-I receptor is activated in mice with deficiency of liver-derived IGF-I. Therefore, the possibility cannot be excluded that increased insulin levels in LI-IGF-I-/- mice, by an activation of the IGF-I receptor or by other effects, could contribute to the less pronounced extension of life span in these mice compared to Ames and Snell dwarf mice or Igf1r+/− mice.
Microarray analyses performed to identify genes regulated by liver-derived IGF-I studied only female mice because mean life span increased significantly in female but not male LI-IGF-I-/- mice. Since we sought transcripts that were consistently regulated in several tissues, we analyzed tissue samples from liver, skeletal muscle, heart, fat (retroperitoneal fat) and bone (vertebrae). Three consistently regulated genes (Hspa1a, Hspa1b, and Ctgf) were identified and confirmed by RT-PCR analyses.
The Hspa1a and Hspa1b genes of LI-IGF-I-/- mice were downregulated in all tissues that expressed these genes. Hspa1a and Hspa1b encode members of the heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70) family. Hsp70 proteins are stressed-induced chaperones involved in cellular repair and maintenance mechanisms . In Drosophila melanogaster, experimentally induced overexpression of Hsp70 prolongs life span . However, expression of endogenous Hsp70 after heat stress exposure is reduced in long-lived Drosophila melanogaster resistant to heat shock . In humans, increased Hsp70 expression has been implicated in the development of atherosclerosis and may also participate in the progression of some cancers . Therefore, drugs that modulate the heat shock response are being developed . In long-lived dwarf mice, the regulation of heat shock proteins is complex and partly organ-specific, but in accord with the present results, some in vitro and in vivo data suggest reduced expression of heat shock proteins in dwarf mice with low GH/IGF-I activity , . Therefore, inhibition of genes encoding heat shock proteins may be of importance for the increased life span of mice with low IGF-I activity, which is in some accordance with the hypothesis that longevity correlates with lower basal levels of heat shock protein gene expression and more robust heat shock response . An effect of the GH/IGF-I axis on stress systems also somewhat concurs with previous findings that nematodes and fruit flies , , as well as mouse strains with low IGF-I activity , , including mice with deficiency of liver-derived IGF-I , display increased resistance to oxidative stress.
The mRNA levels of Ctgf were also affected in the LI-IGF-I-/- mice. Abnormal amplification of Ctgf-dependent signals results in failure to terminate tissue repair, leading to pathological scarring in conditions such as fibrosis and cancer . It is well known that GH treatment increases serum IGF-I level as well as collagen formation . Long-lived Snell dwarf mice with low GH/IGF-I activity have delayed collagen aging in terms of age-dependent collagen cross-linking . Thus, inhibition of Ctgf expression by deficiency of liver-derived endocrine IGF-I might delay aging, at least in terms of collagen aging.
Mean life span was 22.5 months in the control mice, which is approximately similar to the controls in Igf1r+/− mice studied by Holzenberger et al. , but lower than that in wildtype C57Bl/6J mice reported by the Jackson Laboratory (http://www.jax.org/). The shorter life span in our control mice compared to wildtype C57Bl/6J mice could be due to the genetic construction that the control mice were carrying (exon 4 of the IGF-I gene flanked by loxP sites) or due to differences in the environment or handling of the mice. In the present study, necropsies were not performed. However, in this as well as in our previous studies of LI-IGF-I-/- mice of various ages, we have not observed any signs of a specific stress or disease in these mice , –, –.
In the previous study by Holzenberger et al., low IGF-I activity in Igf1r+/− mice resulted in increased mean life span whereas the effect on maximal life span was moderate . In LI-IGF-I-/- mice, maximal lifespan was unaffected in the total group of mice and in male mice and only non-significantly tended to be increased in female mice. The possibility cannot be fully excluded that the effect on maximal life span was small because deficiency of liver-derived IGF-I only had a marginal effect on biological aging in late life, and that increased mean life span in LI-IGF-I-/- mice mainly was due to increased resistance to stresses in their environment during their entire life span.
In conclusion, adult inactivation of liver-derived, endocrine IGF-I results in a modest but significant increase in mean life span, an effect that is more predominant in female than male LI-IGF-I-/- mice. A contributing mechanism for the increased mean life span might be reduced body weight due to reduced body fat, which might partly result from increased energy expenditure during exercise. A consistent regulation of three genes in several tissues might directly or indirectly be of importance for the increased longevity in LI-IGF-I-/- mice by modulating stress response and collagen aging.
The LI-IGF-I-/- mice were generated as described previously (C57BL/6 background) , –. Mice homozygous for LoxP and heterozygous for Mx-Cre received three ip injections of polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid (PiPc; 6.25 µg/g body weight; Sigma-Aldrich Corp., Stockholm, Sweden) to induce expression of the Cre protein, thereby inactivating the IGF-I gene in the liver . This treatment was given at one month of age to study life span, fertility, oxygen consumption at submaximal exercise, and gene expression, or at 12 months of age to measure food intake, oxygen consumption at rest, activity level, and body composition. PiPc-treated littermates, homozygous for LoxP but lacking Mx-Cre, were used as controls. Seven days after the PiPc injections, serum was obtained and assayed for IGF-I by a double-antibody IGF-binding protein-blocked RIA (Mediagnost, Tübingen, Germany). The animals had free access to fresh water and food pellets (B&K Universal AB, Sollentuna, Sweden). The ethical committee at the University of Gothenburg approved this study. Ethical approval number: 92-2004.
Body weight and life span were determined in 137 (67 female and 70 male) control mice and 84 (31 female and 53 male) LI-IGF-I-/- mice. Fertility was determined in 5- and 8-month-old female and male control and LI-IGF-I-/- mice (n = 12–14 in each group). Energy expenditure was assessed in 24-month-old female control (n = 8) and LI-IGF-I-/- (n = 5) mice and during submaximal exercise in 18-month-old female control (n = 7) and LI-IGF-I-/- (n = 7) mice. Microarray analyses of gene expression in liver, skeletal muscle, heart, fat, and bone (vertebrae) were performed in female control (n = 6) and LI-IGF-I-/- (n = 7) mice.
In additional experiments, liver-derived IGF-I was inactivated at 12 months of age. This late inactivation of IGF-I in hepatocytes resemble the age-related decline in serum IGF-I observed in elderly humans more closely than inactivation of liver-derived IGF-I in early adult life. Food intake, indirect calorimetry at rest, and spontaneous activity level were assessed in 13-month-old female control (n = 8) and LI-IGF-I-/- (n = 8) mice one month following inactivation of liver-derived IGF-I and before there was any between-group difference in body weight. Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) determined body composition in male control (n = 8) and LI-IGF-I-/- (n = 6) mice at 18 months of age, 6 months following inactivation of liver-derived IGF-I at 12 months of age, and weights of fat pads were also determined.
Fertility was assessed by mating female or male LI-IGF-I mice with control mice of opposite gender and the proportion of pregnant female mice and the litter size were determined.
Body composition was assessed using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA; PIXImus, Lunar Corporation, Madison, Michigan, USA). Total body fat and total body lean mass were measured from the lower level of the head to the inferior level of the first tail vertebra (the maximal scan area of the DEXA). Food intake and feces output were measured every 24 hours while mice were kept individually in metabolic cages for 5 days with free access to chow and drinking water, and the 3 last days were used for analyses.
Mice were housed in separate chambers during these experiments. Spontaneous physical activity was measured using a photocell-based activity monitor (Opto-Max; Columbus Instruments, Columbus, OH). Interruption of four infrared photocells on the short side and eight photocells on the long side of the cage recorded the activity. Broken beams were recorded every 30 seconds for 2 hours, and the last hour was used for analysis.
The volume of O2 consumed (VO2) and CO2 produced (VCO2) were measured by an Oxymax system (Columbus Instruments) for 120 min at 30°C (thermoneutrality). A steady-state was reached after 90 min and the following 30 min between 90 and 120 min were used for analysis. VCO2 and VO2 were measured every sixth min as the mean of every second measurement. Respiratory exchange ratio (RER) was measured as the ratio of VCO2 to VO2.
Mice were exercised on a motorized treadmill (Columbus Instruments) with an adjustable belt speed (0–100 m/min) and inclination (−10° to 25°). The treadmill was connected to the Oxymax system (Columbus Instruments) for measurement of energy expenditure by indirect calorimetry. The mice were encouraged to run by gentle tapping on their back. Before the experiments, all mice were acclimatized to the treadmill during a 3-day period with 5 min of rest and 5 min of running at 10 m/min and 0° inclination each day. On the test day, the mice rested for 1–2 h in the treadmill at room temperature (23°C) and then ran at a fixed speed of 10 m/min with an inclination of 0° for 30 min, followed by a 20 min post-exercise rest period.
RNA from liver, skeletal muscle, heart, fat (retroperitoneal fat) and bone (vertebrae) was extracted from 6 control and 7 LI-IGF-I-/- mice by Tri Reagent (Sigma, St. Louis, MO, USA) and purified using spin columns from Rneasy Total RNA Isolation Kit (Qiagen, Chatsworth, CA, USA). For microarray analysis, the RNA samples were pooled three or two, resulting in three pools per group while for the confirmatory RT-PCR analyses individual mice (n = 6–7) were analyzed. The pooled RNA was reverse transcribed into cDNA, labeled, and analyzed by DNA microarray (MG-U74Av2 Array; Affymetrix, Santa Clara, CA, USA). The microarray data is MIAME compliant and can be accessed at EMBL-EBI ArrayExpress repository, ArrayExpress accession: E-MEXP-3026.
Scanned output files were analyzed using Affymetrix Micro Array Suite version 4.0.1 software (Affymetrix). To allow comparison of gene expression, the gene chips were globally scaled to an average intensity of 500. Each of the three LI-IGF-I-/- chips was compared with the three control chips, generating a total of nine comparison files. Only the genes that were regarded as “changed” according to the Affymetrix algorithm in four to nine of the comparisons were selected for further analysis. We then calculated an average-fold change for the nine comparisons of the selected genes. For a gene to be regarded as consistently regulated in the LI-IGF-I-/- mice, the average-fold increase or decrease of the nine comparisons was set as at least 1.5 fold in at least 4 of the 5 analyzed organs.
To confirm the microarray findings, we performed RT-PCR analyses on skeletal muscle (triceps) samples from individual mice (n = 6–7) (ABI Prism 7700 Sequence Detection System (PE Applied Biosystems, Stockholm, Sweden). We used FAM-labeled probes specific for heat shock protein 1A (Mm01159846_s1) and 1B (Mm03038954_s1), connective tissue growth factor (Mm01192931_g1), CCAAT/enhancer protein delta (Mm00514291_s1), and IGF-I receptor (Mm00802831_m1). The reporter fluorescent dye VIC, specific for 18S rRNA, was included as an internal standard. The cDNA was amplified at 1 cycle at 50 C for 2 min and 95 C for 10 min, followed by 40 cycles at 95 C for 15 sec and 60 C for 1 min. We calculated the mRNA amount of each gene using the standard curve method (multiplex reaction, User Bulletin no. 2, PE Applied Biosystems).
All descriptive statistical results are presented as the mean ± SEM. Between-group differences were calculated using unpaired t-tests. Differences between survival curves were determined using Cox's test. Maximum lifespan was calculated as the number of mice that were alive (and number dead) at the age at which 90% of the joint distribution (LI-IGF-I-/- plus control mice) had died , . A two-tailed p<0.05 was considered significant.
The authors are grateful to Maud Petersson and Anette Hansevi at the Department of Internal Medicine for excellent technical assistance.
Presented in part at the Fourth International Congress of the GRS and the IGF Society, Genoa, Italy, September 2008.
Conceived and designed the experiments: JS KS JF NA OI J-OJ CO. Performed the experiments: JS KS JF NA OI J-OJ CO. Analyzed the data: JS KS JF NA OI J-OJ CO. Contributed reagents/materials/analysis tools: JS KS JF NA OI J-OJ CO. Wrote the paper: JS KS JF NA OI J-OJ CO. All authors contributed to the design and performance of the experiments, analysis of data, and preparation of the manuscript.
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5.1.12 If you fail to use any part of your flight ticket, no refunds will be made in relation to the unused part of ticket.
5.2.1 It is unlikely that we will need to make any alteration to your travel arrangements but sometimes circumstances change and alterations have to be made. We reserve the right to change your booking at any time without liability.
5.2.2 We shall not be liable for any changes to or cancellation of a holiday due to events beyond our control. Examples of events beyond our control include, but are not limited to war or threat of war, riot or civil disturbance, political unrest, terrorist activity or threatened terrorist activity, industrial disputes or threatened industrial disputes, strikes, fire, floods and other natural disasters, nuclear disasters, adverse weather conditions, acts of God, acts of government, closure of airports or ports, alterations to cruise schedules/ itineraries, failure of a cruise liner or carrier, a hotelier or other person to operate services for any reason.
6.1 Our obligation is to take reasonable skill and care in the performance of our contractual obligations, subject to and in accordance with these Booking Conditions.
6.3 We do not accept liability for any injury, illness, death, loss, damage, expense, cost or other claim of any description whatsoever which results from (i) the act(s) and/or omission(s) of the person(s) affected or any member(s) of their party; or (ii) the act(s) and/or omission(s) of a third party not connected with the provision of your arrangements and which were unforeseeable or unavoidable by us or you; or (iii) events beyond our control (as defined in clause 5.2.2).
6.4 Except in the cases of death or injury, our liability is limited to a maximum of the booking price attributable to the person affected. This maximum applies where you prove that no benefit or enjoyment has been obtained. In all other circumstances, we agree to pay compensation that is reasonable and proportionate for the reduction in value of your booking and any loss of enjoyment you prove subject to the above maximum.
6.5 Where properties are not featured in our brochures or other literature or on our website, we will not be liable for any claims that such properties booked at your express request do not satisfy your expectations.6.6 Your booking may be serviced by carriers, providers of accommodation, cruise companies, car rental companies, catering and other parties who have their own booking conditions of carriage and business and over whom we may have no direct control. Their booking conditions may strictly limit the circumstances in which compensation is payable to you by them and you agree to be bound by their booking conditions. Such booking conditions are available from us upon request.
6.6 Air, sea, rail and road transport is subject to various International Conventions that limit the liability of the carriers. International Conventions which may apply include, without limitation: in respect of international air travel, the Warsaw Convention 1929 (as amended) or the Montreal Convention 1999; in respect of rail travel, the Berne Convention 1961; in respect of carriage by sea, the Athens Convention 1974; in respect of carriage by road, the Geneva Convention 1973; and in respect of hotels, the Paris Convention 1962. The carriage by air of passengers and their baggage is in addition subject to the Conditions of Carriage of the carrier concerned.
6.7 Save as set out above, and as is detailed elsewhere in these Booking Conditions, we shall have no legal liability whatsoever to you for any loss or damage.
6.8 Save as set out above, and as is detailed elsewhere in these Booking Conditions, we shall have no legal liability whatsoever to you for any loss or damage.
7.1 You must ensure that you and all members of your party have valid passports, visas, certificates of vaccination and any other documents required to enter any country you are visiting, including transit stops, prior to your departure. Some destinations require your passport to be valid for a certain length of time. We cannot accept responsibility for any failure to comply resulting in any costs or fines being incurred and we advise you to check with the appropriate passport office(s) or consulate(s) in question if you have any queries.
7.2 For your own protection, we strongly recommend that you and all members of your party have comprehensive travel and medical insurance for the full period of your holiday. It is your responsibility to ensure that the insurance cover you purchase is suitable and adequate for your particular needs.
7.3 If, in our reasonable opinion or the reasonable opinion of the provider of any part of the services to which your booking relates, your behaviour or the behaviour of any member of your party is disruptive, threatening or abusive, causes unnecessary inconvenience or is causing or likely to cause danger, damage, distress or upset, disturbance or annoyance to others or others' property, we may terminate your travel arrangements without any liability on our part. No refunds will be made and we will not pay any expenses or costs incurred as a result of the termination. Furthermore, you will be required to compensate us for any losses incurred by us, or any third party as a result of such actions.
7.4 It is your responsibility to ensure that you are fit to travel and participate in all parts of the services you have booked and undertaken.
7.5 Residents of the UAE must ensure that any ongoing financial disputes or lawsuits with local banks are settled prior to travel. Failure to do so could result in being held in UAE immigration. To meet the sailing schedules, the Ship will not wait for these passengers and will continue the voyage as per the cruise scheduled.
8.1 We are committed to offering our valued customers the highest standard of product and consistent service delivery. Should you have a complaint or any feedback about your holiday, kindly inform us, (in the case of complaints, no later than 30 days after your return from holiday), in writing at: [email protected] . Please provide as much information as possible, including your booking reference and holiday dates where applicable.
9.1 We reserve the right to amend our Booking Conditions at any time without advance notice. Changed terms will become effective once posted on the website, but will not have any retrospective effect on your existing contractual arrangements. Your continued use of this website after any change means you have accepted the changed terms and conditions.
9.2 If any of these terms and conditions shall be deemed invalid, void, or for any reason unenforceable, that condition shall be deemed severable and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining terms and conditions. Any failure by us to act in relation to a breach by you or any other user’s breach on any occasion of these terms and conditions does not constitute a waiver of our right to act in relation to future or similar breaches.
10.1 The website is intended for use only by users who access it from the United Arab Emirates. The information and prices on the website only apply to users who make a booking from the United Arab Emirates. No warranties and/or representations of any kind, express or implied, are given as to the compliance of the information shown on the website or the services we offer with any laws of any other country, and the laws of other countries will not apply to the website or to the services we offer. We reserve the right to deny access to the website at any time without notice.
10.2 Your access to and use of software and other materials on, or through, this website is solely at your own risk. We make no representation, warranty or covenant whatsoever about the reliability, stability or virus free nature of such software. We do not accept any liability in respect of your inability to access or use the website at any time or for any interruption in that access or use. All software and other materials are provided “as is" without representation, warranty or covenant of any kind, including all implied warranties.
10.3 No warranties, promises or representations of any kind, express or implied, are given as to the accuracy of any of the information on the website or as to the nature, standard, suitability or otherwise of any services offered by us or on our behalf.
10.4 We shall not be liable for any loss or damage of whatever nature (direct, indirect, consequential or other) that may arise as a result, directly or indirectly, from the use of any of the information or material contained on the website and/or the use of or access to any other information or material via web links from the website, or any inability to access the website.
10.5 These exclusions of liability apply only to the extent permitted by law and, except for information or material accessed via other sites or supplied by an identified third party, where consistent with the applicable booking conditions. If any of these exclusions, in whole or in part, are found to be unlawful, void or unenforceable for any other reasons, that exclusion or part of the exclusion shall be deemed severable and shall not affect the validity or enforceability of the other exclusion(s) or part(s) of the exclusion(s) in question.
10.6 As a condition of use of this website, you agree to indemnify us from and against any and all liabilities, expenses (including legal fees) and damages arising out of claims resulting from your use of this website, including without limitation any claims alleging facts that if true would constitute a breach by you of these terms and conditions.
10.7 This website may contain links and pointers to Internet sites maintained by third parties. We do not operate or control in any respect any information, products or services on such third-party sites. Third party links and pointers are included solely for your convenience, and do not constitute any endorsement by us. You assume sole responsibility for use of third party links and pointers.
10.8 You agree to use the website only for personal, non-commercial use.
10.9 You agree to not abuse the website. "Abuse" includes, without limitation, using the website to: • Defame, harass, stalk, threaten, abuse or otherwise violate others’ rights as defined by applicable law. • Harm or interfere with the operation of others’ computers and software in any respect, including, without limitation, by uploading, downloading or transmitting corrupt files or computer viruses. • Violate applicable intellectual property, publicity or privacy rights, including, without limitation, by uploading, downloading or transmitting materials or software. • Omit or misrepresent the origin of, or rights in, any file you download or upload, including, without limitation, by omitting proprietary language, author identifications, or notices of patent, copyright or trade-mark. • Transmit, post, or otherwise disclose trade secrets, or other confidential or protected proprietary material or information. • Interfere with or disrupt the website or servers or networks connected to the website, including attempting to interfere with the access of any other user, host or network, including without limitation, overloading, initiating, propagating, participating, directing or attempting any “denial of service” attacks, “spamming”, “crashing”, “flooding” or “mail-bombing” the website. • Direct bots, spiders, crawlers, avatars, intelligent agents or any other automated process at Imagine Cruising’s computer systems or otherwise, create unreasonable load upon any of Imagine Cruising’s computer hardware, network, storage, input/output or electronic control devices or infrastructure. • Transmit any information or software obtained through the website, or copy, create, display, distribute, license, perform, publish, recreate, reproduce, sell, or transfer works deriving from the website. • Falsely use a password or personal identification number during logging into the website, or misrepresent one’s identity or authority to act on behalf of another. • Violate this Agreement in any other manner.
10.10 We have taken reasonable steps to ensure the information provided by us on this website is accurate at the time you view it. However, we cannot and have not checked the accuracy of all information provided by outside sources for example by the providers of other information, or of other parties linked to or from the website.
10.12 We aim to ensure that availability of the website will be uninterrupted and that transmissions will be error-free. However, due to the nature of the Internet, this cannot be guaranteed and we reserve the right to withdraw or amend the service we provide on the website without notice. Also, your access to the website may occasionally be suspended or restricted to allow for repairs, maintenance, or the introduction of new facilities or services. We will attempt to limit the frequency and duration of any such suspension or restriction. We will not be liable if for any reason our website is unavailable at any time or period.
1-1 في شروط الحجز هذه ("شروط الحجز")، تشير كلمة "الشركة" أو ضمير المتكلم ("نحن" أو "نا") إلى شركة إماجين كروزينغ التابعة لمؤسسة دناتا للسفريات العالمية التي يوجد مقرها الرئيسي في مركز دناتا للسفريات، شارع الشيخ زايد، دبي، الإمارات العربية المتحدة.
1-2 تمثل شروط الحجز هذه كتيباتوالكتيبات (إن وجدت) والمعلومات الواردة على موقعنا الإلكتروني وأي قبول لحجز معين من قبل الشركة الأساس الوحيد للتعاقد بيننا وبينك. ويخضع عقدنا معك حصرياً لقوانين إمارة دبي والقوانين الإتحادية النافذة في دولة الإمارات العربية المتحدة، ويكون لمحاكم دبي الاختصاص القضائي الحصري في الفصل بأي خلاف أو مطالبة تنشأ من عقدنا أو في ما يتعلق به.
1-3 تنطبق شروط الحجز هذه بالتساوي عليك وعلى كافة الأشخاص المذكورة أسماؤهم في حجزك. وعند إجرائك للحجز، يكون هذا ضمان منك بأنك تتمتع بالصلاحية لقبول بنود وشروط التحكيم هذه وبأنك قد قبلتها بالفعل.
2-1 يمكن إجراء الحجز عن طريق مراكز اتصال العملاء لدينا، ويجب أن ترفق عند الاقتضاء بمبلغ تأمين أو بالدفعة الكاملة.
2-2 حالما يتم أداء الدفعة (إما كمبلغ تأمين أو الدفعة الكاملة بحسب الاتفاق)، نصدر لك تأكيداً للحجز. ثم تحصل على وثائق/قسائم المغادرة النهائية قبل موعد المغادرة بما بين أربعة وستة أسابيع.
2-3 من المهم أن تقوم بمراجعة تأكيد الحجز ووثائق/ قسائم المغادرة النهائية للتأكد من أن جميع البيانات والتفاصيل مدونة تماماً كما طلبتها ومتطابقة مع بيانات جواز سفرك. وفي حال وجود أي اختلاف، يرجى مراجعتنا على الفور لأنه قد يتعذر إجراء التغيير لاحقاً.
2-4 يتم إرسال الرسائل من قبلنا إلى عنوان البريد الإلكتروني الذي قدمته لنا عند الحجز.
2-5 يجب أن لا يقل عمر الشخص الذي يؤدي الدفعة أو مبلغ التأمين عن 21 سنة.
• وفي حال الحجز قبل موعد المغادرة بأقل من 15 أسبوعاً، يتعين عليك دفع كامل المبلغ عند الحجز.
3-2 إذا لم تتمكن من دفع باقي الدفعة النهائية في الموعد المحدد، فإننا نحتفظ بحقنا في اعتبار حجزك كأنه قد إلغي من قبلك، وفي هذه الحالة تطبق شروط الإلغاء الواردة في الفقرة 5-1 أدناه.
3-3 يمكن أداء الدفعات نقداً أو بواسطة الشيك أو بطاقات الائتمان أو السحب والإيداع. وقد تفرض رسوم إضافية على الدفعات المؤداة بواسطة بطاقات الائتمان أو السحب والإيداع.
3-4 يرجى التأكد من إعطائنا بيانات الفوترة الصحيحة الخاصة بالبطاقة الائتمانية. ففي حال عدم إعطاء عنوان الفوترة الصحيح للبطاقة الائتمانية أو بطاقة السحب والإيداع أو البيانات الصحيحة لحاملها، يمكن أن يتأخر إصدار تذاكر الرحلة كما قد تزيد التكلفة الإجمالية للمعاملة. وبالطبع نحتفظ بحقنا في إلغاء تذاكر الرحلة إذا تم رفض إصدار الدفعة أو إذا قدمت لنا بيانات غير صحيحة عن البطاقة الائتمانية. كما أننا نحتفظ بحقنا أيضاً في إجراء عمليات تدقيق عشوائية من أجل تقليل حالات الاحتيال بالبطاقات الائتمانية إلى أدنى حد ممكن. ومن هذه الإجراءات على سبيل المثال، يمكن أن نطلب منك قبل إصدار التذاكر أن ترسل لنا رسالة فاكس أو نسخة بريدية تثبت عنوانك، ونسخة من بطاقتك الائتمانية وكشف حساب حديثاً.
4-1 نحن نسعى قصارى جهدنا لضمان دقة المعلومات والأسعار الواردة في موقعنا الإلكتروني أو كتيباتكتيباتنا ، بيد أنه تحدث أحياناً بعض التغييرات والأخطاء، ونحتفظ في مثل هذه الحالات بحقنا بتصحيح تلك الأسعار والمعلومات الأخرى الواردة فيها. لذلك يتوجب عليك التحقق من السعر الحالي وكافة التفاصيل الأخرى المتعلقة بالترتيبات التي تود تضمينها في حجزك قبل تأكيد الحجز.
4-2 قبل إجراء الحجز، سوف نقدم لك تحديثاً لأسعار العطلة التي اخترتها يتضمن تكاليف أي ملحقات أو ترقيات أو تسهيلات إضافية طلبتها.
4-3 إن سعر أي عطلة رحلة بحرية تحجزها لا يتضمن إلا البنود المحددة في تأكيد الحجز. وما لم يذكر خلاف ذلك تحديداً، فإن هذا السعر لا يشمل البنود ذات الطبيعة الشخصية التي تتضمن، على سبيل المثال لا الحصر، التأمين على السفر ومواصلات المطارات والوجبات ورحلات الاستكشاف الاختيارية وجوازات السفر والتأشيرات، والأَسِرَّة والمأكولات الخاصة بالرضع، وغسيل الملابس وخدمة الغرف والخدمات الفندقية الإضافية (مثل رسوم القدوم أو المغادرة قبل أو بعد الموعد المحدد) ومواقف السيارات في الفندق (عند الاقتضاء) والإكراميات والضرائب (التي تشمل على سبيل المثال ضرائب المطارات).
5-1-1 إذا رغبت، بعد دخول عقدنا معك حيز التنفيذ، تغيير ترتيبات سفرك بأي شكل كان، سنعمل جاهدين على تلبية هذه التغييرات لكن ذلك قد لا يكون ممكناً دوماً. فالتعديلات كلها تخضع لمدى التوفر والإمكانية.
5-1-2 ويجب أن يتم أي طلب لإجراء التغييرات بصورة خطية من قبل الشخص الرئيسي في الحجز. فإذا كان بالإمكان تلبية هذا التغيير، سيتعين عليك دفع رسم إداري بواقع 145 درهماً عن كل شخص. كما سيتعين عليك دفع أي تكاليف تقع أو تفرض من قبل أي من موردينا وأي زيادة على تكلفة العطلة تنتج عن هذا التعديل.
5-1-3 في حال عدم تمكننا من تلبية التغيير في الحجز المؤكد، ولم ترغب أنت بالمضي وفقاً للحجز الأصلي، فسنتعامل مع ذلك باعتباره إلغاءاً للحجز الأصلي وتطبق عليه رسوم الإلغاء المبينة في الفقرة 5-1-9 أدناه.
5-1-4 بعض ترتيبات السفر لا يمكن تعديلها بعد تأكيد الحجز ويمكن أن يؤدي أي تغيير فيها لفرض رسم إلغاء تصل نسبته إلى 100% من قيمة ذلك الجزء من الترتيبات.
5-1-5 يمكن أن تقوم أنت أو أي فرد من مجموعتك بإلغاء ترتيبات سفركم في أي وقت. وللقيام بذلك يجب أن نستلم في مكتبنا إشعاراً خطياً بذلك من الشخص الرئيسي في الحجز. ويدخل الإلغاء حيز التنفيذ في اليوم الذي نستلم فيه هذا الإشعار الخطي.
5-1-6 في حال قيامكم بإلغاء حجز ما، لن يتم رد أي مبلغ تأمين تم دفعه. وباعتبار أننا نتكبد تكاليف إدارية لقاء إلغاء ترتيبات سفركم، سيتعين عليكم أيضاً دفع رسم الإلغاء المطبق بما يصل إلى الحد الأعلى المبين في الجدول الوارد في الفقرة 5-1-9 أدناه.
5-1-7 بعض ترتيبات السفر لا يمكن إلغاؤها بعد تأكيدها ويمكن أن يؤدي أي إلغاء لها لفرض رسم إلغاء تصل نسبته إلى 100% من قيمة ذلك الجزء من الترتيبات.
5-1-8 إذا كان سبب الإلغاء مغطى بموجب شروط وثيقة التأمين الخاصة بك، قد يمكنك مطالبة شركة التأمين الخاصة بك بهذه الرسوم.
تم تأكيد حجزك بسعر مخفض وعليه ستطبق شروط وأحكام مغايرة. لا يجوز تحويل حجزك بموجب هذا العرض وأي تغير على الحجز سيعامل على أنه إلغاء للحجز. لا يمكنك استرداد المبالغ المدفوعة لرحلات الليلة والليلتين.
5.1.10 الرحلات البحرية على متن Costa Medierranea لمدة خمس ليالٍ: جميع المبالغ المدفوعة كعربون غير قابلة للاسترداد.
5-1-11 تحتسب رسوم التعديلات أو الإلغاءات من تاريخ استلامنا للطلب أو الإشعار الخاص بذلك منكم.
5-1-12 إذ لم تقم باستخدام أي جزء من تذكرة سفرك، فلن يتم رد أي مبلغ لقاء الجزء غير المستخدم من التذكرة.
5-2-1 من المستبعد أن نلجأ لإجراء أي تغيير على ترتيبات سفركم لكن أحياناً قد تتغير الظروف ويتوجب علينا إجراء تغييرات ما. ونحن نحتفظ بحقنا في إجراء التغييرات على حجزكم في أي وقت دون أن يترتب علينا تبعة جراء ذلك.
5-2-2 لا نتحمل أي مسؤولية عن أي تغييرات أو إلغاء لعطلة ما بسبب أحداث خارجة عن نطاق سيطرتنا. ومن الأحداث الخارجة عن نطاق سيطرتنا على سبيل المثال لا الحصر: الحرب أو التهديد بشنها، أو أعمال الشغب أو الاضطرابات المدنية أو القلاقل السياسية أو الأنشطة الإرهابية أو التهديد بها، أو الخلافات الصناعية أو التهديد بها، أو الإضرابات أو الحرائق أو الفيضانات أو الكوارث الطبيعية الأخرى أو الكوارث النووية أو ظروف الطقس غير المواتية أو القضاء والقدر أو القرارات الحكومية أو إقفال المطارات أو الموانئ أو تغيير جداول مواعيد أو مسارات الرحلات البحرية، أو تخلف سفينة سياحية أو شركة نقل أو شركة فندقية أو جهة أخرى عن تشغيل خدماتها لأي سبب كان.
6-1 يتمثل واجبنا تجاهكم في أن نعمل بكل حرص ومهارة ضمن الحدود المعقولة على تنفيذ التزاماتنا التعاقدية بموجب شروط الحجز هذه ووفقاً لها.
6-2 الشركة لا تقدم بذاتها خدمات السكن أو الخدمات الأرضية أو الرحلات البحرية أو الجولات السياحية أو الأنشطة الأخرى وليس لها سيطرة على الجهات الأخرى التي تقدم هذه الخدمات المتعلقة بعطلتكم.
6-3 لا نقبل تحمل المسؤولية عن أي إصابة أو مرض أو وفاة أو خسارة أو ضرر أو نفقات أو تكاليف أو مطالبات أخرى من أي نوع كانت إذا كانت ناتجة عن (1) فعل أو عدم فعل من قبل الشخص أو الأشخاص المتأثرين بها أو أي فرد من مجموعتهم؛ أو (2) فعل أو عدم فعل من قبل طرف آخر لا علاقة له بتوفير ترتيبات رحلتكم، وكانت هذه الأشياء مما لا يمكن توقعه أو لا يمكن تجنبه من قبلنا أو قبلكم؛ أو (3) أحداث خارجة عن نطاق سيطرتنا (وفق التعريف الوارد لهذه الأحداث في الفقرة 5-2-2 أعلاه).
6-4 باستثناء حالتي الوفاة والإصابة، تنحصر مسؤوليتنا في نطاق الحد الأعلى لسعر الحجز الخاص بالشخص المتأثر. وينطبق هذا الحد الأعلى عندما تثبت عدم الحصول على أي منفعة أو استمتاع بالخدمة. وفي باقي الحالات جميعها، نوافق على دفع تعويض منطقي ومتناسب مع ما تثبتونه من انخفاض في قيمة الحجز أو فقدان استمتاعكم به في نطاق الحد الأعلى المذكور أعلاه.
6-5 إذا لم تكن المواصفات والخصائص محددة في كتيبات الشركة أو منشوراتها الأخرى أو في موقعنا الإلكتروني، فلن نكون مسؤولين عن أي مطالبات بشأن عدم تلبية هذه المواصفات التي حجزت بناء على طلبكم الصريح لتوقعاتكم.
6-6 قد يتولى خدمة حجوزاتكم شركات نقل وشركات تقديم سكن وشركات رحلات سياحية ومؤجري سيارات وشركات تموين وجهات أخرى توجد لديها شروطها الخاصة بشأن الحجز والعمل، وقد لا يكون لنا عليها أي نفوذ أو سيطرة. وقد تفرض شروط الحجز الخاصة بهم قيوداً شديدة على الحالات التي يتوجب عليهم فيها دفع تعويضات لكم، وأنتم موافقون على الالتزام بشروط التعاقد الخاصة بهم. ويمكننا توفير شروط الحجز هذه لكم عند الطلب.
6-7 تخضع المواصلات الجوية والبحرية والبرية والقطارات لاتفاقيات دولية مختلفة تحد من مسؤولية شركات النقل. ومن الاتفاقيات الدولية التي يمكن تطبيقها في هذا الشأن على سبيل المثال لا الحصر: بالنسبة للسفر الجوي دولياً، اتفاقية وارسو لعام 1929 (وتعديلاتها) أو اتفاقية مونتريال لعام 1999؛ وبالنسبة للسفر بالقطارات، اتفاقية بيرن لعام 1961؛ وبالنسبة للنقل البحري، اتفاقية أثينا لعام 1974؛ وبالنسبة للنقل البري، اتفاقية جنيف 1973؛ وبالنسبة للفنادق، اتفاقية باريس 1962. كما يخضع نقل الركاب وأمتعتهم جواً لشروط النقل الخاصة بشركة النقل المعنية.
6-8 باستثناء ما ذكر أعلاه، وما يبين في مواضع أخرى من شروط الحجز هذه، لن نتحمل أي مسؤولية قانونية مهما تكن تجاهكم عن أي خسارة أو ضرر.
7-1 يتوجب عليك التأكد قبل المغادرة من أنك أنت وجميع أفراد مجموعتك تمتلكون جوازات سفر وتأشيرات وشهادات تطعيم سارية المفعول وغيرها من الوثائق المطلوبة لدخول أي دولة ستزورونها، بما في ذلك حالات التوقف للعبور. كما أن بعض الوجهات تتطلب أن يكون جواز سفرك ساري المفعول لمدة معينة. ولا نستطيع تحمل المسؤولية عن أي حالة عدم امتثال ينتج عنا أي تكاليف أو غرامات، وننصحكم بمراجعة مكاتب الهجرة أو القنصليات المناسبة للاستفسار في حال كنتم غير متأكدين من أي موضوع في هذا الخصوص.
7-2 من أجل حمايتكم، ننصحكم بشدة بأن تكون أنت وجميع أفراد مجموعتك حاصلين على وثيقة تأمين سفر وصحة شاملة تغطي كامل مدة العطلة. وتقع المسؤولية على عاتقكم في التأكد من الحصول على تغطية تأمينية مناسبة وكافية بحسب حاجاتكم الخاصة.
7-3 إذا تبين، وفقاً لتقديرنا المنطقي أو التقدير المنطقي لإحدى الجهات المقدمة لأي جزء من الخدمات المتعلقة بحجزكم، أن سلوككم أو سلوك أي فرد من أفراد مجموعتكم يعتبر سلوكاً تخريبياً أو تهديدياً أو تعسفياً أو يسبب مشقة غير مبررة أو أنه يسبب أو يرجح أن يسبب خطراً أو ضرراً أو كرباً أو متاعب أو فوضى أو إزعاج للآخرين أو لممتلكات الآخرين، فيجوز لنا إنهاء ترتيبات سفركم دون أن نتحمل أي مسؤولية. ولن يتم رد أي مبلغ لكم كما أننا لن ندفع أية نفقات أو تكاليف تقع نتيجة هذا الإنهاء. كما أنه سيتوجب عليكم تعويضنا عن أي خسارة نتكبدها نحن أو أي طرف آخر نتيجة هذه التصرفات.
7-4 تقع على عاتقكم مسؤولية التأكد من أنكم لائقون صحياً للسفر والمشاركة في كافة أقسام الخدمات التي حجزتموها واخترتم القيام بها.
تلتزم شركتنا بأن تقدم لعملائها الأكارم أرقى المعايير في المنتجات والخدمات المتسقة والمتناغمة. وإذا كان لديكم اي شكوى أو ملاحظة أو اقتراح بشأن عطلتكم، نرجو إبلاغنا بها (بالنسبة للشكاوي في موعد أقصاه 30 يوماً من تاريخ عودتكم من العطلة)، خطياً على البريد الإلكتروني: [email protected]. ونرجو أن تتضمن رسالتك أكبر قدر ممكن من المعلومات، بما فيها الرقم المرجعي للحجز الخاص بكم وتواريخ العطلة عند الاقتضاء.
9-1 نحتفظ بحقنا في تعديل شروط الحجز في أي وقت نريد دون الحاجة لإشعار مسبق بذلك. وتدخل الشروط الجديدة حيز التنفيذ حال نشرها على الموقع الإلكتروني، لكن لن يكون لها أي أثر رجعي على ترتيباتكم التعاقدية القائمة مسبقاً. وتعتبر مواصلة استخدامكم لهذا الموقع الإلكتروني بعد إجراء أي تغيير قبولكم بالشروط والبنود الجديدة.
9-2 في حال اعتبار أي من هذه البنود والشروط غير صحيح أو باطل أو لا يمكن تطبيقه لأي سبب كان، فإن هذا الشرط يعتبر قابلاً للفصل دون أن يؤثر على سريان ونفاذ أي شروط أو بنود أخرى. وإن أي حالة لا نقوم فيها بالتصرف حيال أي خرق من قبلكم أو من قبل أي مستخدم آخر لأي بند أو شرط من هذه الشروط والبنود لا تمثل تخلياً من طرفنا عن حقنا في التصرف حيال أي خروقات مشابهة حالياً أو مستقبلاً.
10- هذا الموقع الإلكتروني معد للاستخدام فقط من قبل المستخدمين الذين يدخلون إليه من دولة الإمارات العربية المتحدة. ولا تنطبق المعلومات والأسعار الواردة في الموقع إلا على المستخدمين الذين يجرون الحجز من الإمارات العربية المتحدة. ولا نقدم أي ضمانات أو تعهدات من أي نوع كان، لا صريحة ولا ضمنية، بأن المعلومات الواردة في الموقع أو الخدمات التي نقدمها تتوافق مع قوانين أي بلد آخر، فلا تطبق قوانين بلدان أخرى على هذا الموقع الإلكتروني أو على الخدمات التي نقدمها. كما نحتفظ بحقنا في منع الدخول إلى الموقع الإلكتروني في أي وقت دون الحاجة لإعطاء إشعار بذلك.
10-2 تتحمل وحدك مسؤولية ومخاطر الدخول إلى البرمجيات والمواد الأخرى واستخدامها على الموقع الإلكتروني أو من خلاله. فنحن لا نقدم أي ضمان أو كفالة أو تعهد من أي نوع كان بشأن موثوقية أو استقرار هذه البرمجيات أو خلوها من الفيروسات. كما لا نتحمل أي مسؤولية بشأن عدم قدرتكم على الدخول إلى الموقع الإلكتروني أو استخدامه في أي وقت أو بشأن أي انقطاع في إمكانية الدخول أو الاستخدام. فجميع البرمجيات والمواد الأخرى تقدم "كما هي" دون أي ضمان أو كفالة أو تعهد من أي نوع كان، بما في ذلك الضمانات الضمنية.
10-3 لا نقدم أي وعد أو ضمان أو تعهد من أي نوع كان، لا صريح ولا ضمني، بشأن دقة أي معلومات ترد على الموقع الإلكتروني أو بشأن طبيعة أي خدمات مقدمة من قبلنا أو نيابة عنا أو معاييرها أو ملاءمتها أو أي من مواصفاتها الأخرى.
10-4 لا نتحمل المسؤولية عن أي خسارة أو ضرر مهما كانت طبيعته (مباشراً أو غير مباشر أو تبعياً أو خلاف ذلك) يمكن أن ينشأ كنتيجة مباشرة أو غير مبشرة لاستخدام أي من المعلومات أو المواد التي يتضمنها الموقع الإلكتروني و/أو استخدام أو الدخول إلى أي معلومات أو مواد أخرى عن طريق الروابط الإلكترونية الموجودة في الموقع، أو لعدم القدرة على الدخول إلى الموقع.
10-5 تطبق استثناءات المسؤولية هذه في الحدود التي يسمح بها القانون، فيما عدا المعلومات أو المواد التي يتم الدخول إليها عن طريق مواقع أخرى أو يتم تقديمها من قبل طرف آخر معروف، عند اتفاقها مع شروط الحجز المطبقة. وإذا تبين أن أي من استثناءات المسؤولية هذه، كلياً أو جزئياً، مخالف للقانون أو باطل أو لا يمكن تطبيقه لأي سبب كان، فإن هذا الاستثناء أو الجزء المعني منه يعتبر قابلاً للفصل دون أن يؤثر على سريان ونفاذ الاستثناءات الأخرى أو الأجزاء الأخرى من الاستثناء المعني.
10-6 تتضمن شروط استخدام هذا الموقع الإلكتروني موافقتكم على تعويضنا من وتجاه كافة المسؤوليات والنفقات (بما في ذلك أتعاب المحاماة) والأضرار التي تقع بفعل مطالبات ناتجة عن استخدامكم لهذا الموقع الإلكتروني، بما يشمل على سبيل المثال لا الحصر أي مطالبات تدعي حصول وقائع تعتبر في حال ثبوت صحتها أنكم خرقتم هذه الشروط والأحكام.
10-7 قد يتضمن هذا الموقع الإلكتروني روابط وإحالات على مواقع إلكترونية تديرها جهات أخرى. ونحن ليس لنا أي صلاحية تشغيل أو سيطرة على أي معلومات أو منتجات أو خدمات على هذه المواقع التابعة لجهات أخرى. وقد تم وضع هذه الروابط والإحالات لمواقع الأطراف الأخرى فقط من أجل راحتكم، ولا يمثل وضعها في الموقع أي مصادقة من قبلنا عليها. لذلك تقع مسؤولية استخدام روابط مواقع الأطراف الأخرى على عاتقكم وحدكم.
10-8 تتعهدون باستخدام هذا الموقع الإلكتروني للأغراض الشخصية غير التجارية حصراً.
• التدخل في أو التشويش على عمل الموقع الإلكتروني أو الخوادم أو الشبكات المرتبطة بالموقع، بما في ذلك محاولة التدخل في إمكانية دخول أي مستخدم آخر أو برنامج مضيف أو شبكة، وهذا يشمل على سبيل المثال لا الحصر التحميل الزائد أو إطلاق أي هجمات "حجب للخدمة" أو إرسال رسائل إلكترونية غير المرغوب بها (سبام) أو "التعطيل المفاجئ" أو "الإغراق" أو "تفجير البريد الإلكتروني (mail-bombing)" للموقع أو الترويج لهذه الأنشطة أو المشاركة فيها أو توجيهها أو محاولة القيام بها.
• توجيه أجهزة روبوت أو ما يعرف ببرمجيات العناكب أو الزواحف أو الأفتار أو عملاء الاستخبارات أو أي عمليات مؤتمتة أخرى على الأنظمة الحاسوبية لشركة إماجين كروزينغ أو غيرها، أو التسبب بضغط غير ضروري على أي تجهيزات حاسوبية أو شبكية أو تخزينية للشركة أو أجهزة الإدخال/الإخراج أو التحكم الإلكتروني أو البنية التحتية للشركة.
• مخالفة هذه الاتفاقية بأي شكل كان.
10-10 اتخذنا كافة الإجراءات المعقولة لضمان دقة المعلومات التي نقدمها في هذا الموقع الإلكتروني في وقت مشاهدتك لها. بيد أننا لا نستطيع ولم نقم بالتحقق من دقة كافة المعلومات المقدمة من مصادر خارجية مثل مقدمي المعلومات الأخرى أو الجهات الأخرى التي يوجد روابط من الموقع إليها أو العكس.
10-11 ليس الغرض من التعليقات والمواد الأخرى المنشورة على موقعنا الإلكتروني أن تكون نصائح ومشورات يمكنكم الاعتماد عليها. لذلك نخلي طرفنا من أي مسؤولية تنشأ بسبب التعويل على هذه المواد من أي زائر للموقع، أو أي شخص تصل إلى علمه هذه المواد أو يتصرف بموجبها.
10-12 نحن نعمل بكل حرص على توفر الموقع الإلكتروني دون أي انقطاع وأن تكون عمليات التراسل بلا أخطاء. لكن وبسبب طبيعة شبكة الإنترنت، فهذا أمر لا يمكن ضمانه، وإننا نحتفظ بحقنا في سحب أو تعديل الخدمة التي نقدمها على الموقع الإلكتروني دون الحاجة لإشعار بذلك. كما أن إمكانية دخولكم إلى الموقع قد يتم تعليقها أو تقييدها أحياناً لأغراض الصيانة أو الإصلاح أو إدخال تسهيلات أو خدمات جديدة إلى الموقع. وسنسعى جهدنا للحد من تكرار ومدة مثل هذه الانقطاعات أو التقييدات. ولن نتحمل المسؤولية في حال عدم توفر موقعنا الإلكتروني في اي وقت أو لأي مدة لأي سبب كان.
10-13 تعود ملكية حقوق نشر محتوى الموقع الإلكتروني لنا أو لأصحاب تراخيص هذا المحتوى. ونحتفظ بكافة حقوق النشر والملكية الخاصة بالموقع الإلكتروني وكافة محتوياته.
10-14 هذا الموقع معد لكي تستخدموه للأغراض الشخصية غير التجارية. وبناء عليه، فلا يجوز لكم تعديل أي معلومات أو برمجيات أو منتجات أو خدمات موجودة في هذا الموقع ولا نسخها أو توزيعها أو إرسالها أو عرضها أو تأديتها أو إعادة إنتاجها أو نشرها أو إعادة تصميمها أو ترخيصها أو تكوين أعمال مشتقة منها أو تحويلها أو بيعها. ويعتبر اسم إماجين كروزينغ وأي أسماء منتجات أو علامات أخرى تخص إماجين كروزينغ تذكر في الموقع الإلكتروني علامات تجارية أو علامات تجارية مسجلة خاصة بنا. وقد تكون أسماء المنتجات أو الشركات الأخرى الواردة في الموقع علامات تجارية لأصحابها.
10-15 عندما تزور الموقع الإلكتروني أو تراسلنا بالبريد الإلكتروني، فإنك تتواصل معنا إلكترونياً، وتوافق على تلقي المراسلات منا إلكترونياً. وسوف نتواصل معك إما بواسطة البريد الإلكتروني أو بنشر الإشعارات على الموقع. وأنت توافق على أن كافة الاتفاقيات والإشعارات والإفصاحات ومواد التراسل الأخرى التي نقدمها لك إلكترونياً تعتبر ملبية لأي اشتراط يستوجب بأن تكون هذه المراسلات خطية. | 2019-04-20T12:43:58Z | https://www.imaginecruising.ae/terms-and-conditions |
The paper explores and assesses the approaches used by statistical offices to ensure effective methodological input into their statistical practice. The tension between independence and relevance is a common theme: generally, methodologists have to work closely with the rest of the statistical organisation for their work to be relevant; but they also need to have a degree of independence to question the use of existing methods and to lead the introduction of new ones where needed. And, of course, there is a need for an effective research program which, on the one hand, has a degree of independence needed by any research program, but which, on the other hand, is sufficiently connected so that its work is both motivated by and feeds back into the daily work of the statistical office. The paper explores alternative modalities of organisation; leadership; planning and funding; the role of project teams; career development; external advisory committees; interaction with the academic community; and research.
This article develops computational tools, called indicators, for judging the effectiveness of the auxiliary information used to control nonresponse bias in survey estimates, obtained in this article by calibration. This work is motivated by the survey environment in a number of countries, notably in northern Europe, where many potential auxiliary variables are derived from reliable administrative registers for household and individuals. Many auxiliary vectors can be composed. There is a need to compare these vectors to assess their potential for reducing bias. The indicators in this article are designed to meet that need. They are used in surveys at Statistics Sweden. General survey conditions are considered: There is probability sampling from the finite population, by an arbitrary sampling design; nonresponse occurs. The probability of inclusion in the sample is known for each population unit; the probability of response is unknown, causing bias. The study variable (the y-variable) is observed for the set of respondents only. No matter what auxiliary vector is used in a calibration estimator (or in any other estimation method), a residual bias will always remain. The choice of a "best possible" auxiliary vector is guided by the indicators proposed in the article. Their background and computational features are described in the early sections of the article. Their theoretical background is explained. The concluding sections are devoted to empirical studies. One of these illustrates the selection of auxiliary variables in a survey at Statistics Sweden. A second empirical illustration is a simulation with a constructed finite population; a number of potential auxiliary vectors are ranked in order of preference with the aid of the indicators.
The number of people recruited by firms in Local Labour Market Areas provides an important indicator of the reorganisation of the local productive processes. In Italy, this parameter can be estimated using the information collected in the Excelsior survey, although it does not provide reliable estimates for the domains of interest. In this paper we propose a multivariate small area estimation approach for count data based on the Multivariate Poisson-Log Normal distribution. This approach will be used to estimate the number of firm recruits both replacing departing employees and filling new positions. In the small area estimation framework, it is customary to assume that sampling variances and covariances are known. However, both they and the direct point estimates suffer from instability. Due to the rare nature of the phenomenon we are analysing, counts in some domains are equal to zero, and this produces estimates of sampling error covariances equal to zero. To account for the extra variability due to the estimated sampling covariance matrix, and to deal with the problem of unreasonable estimated variances and covariances in some domains, we propose an "integrated" approach where we jointly model the parameters of interest and the sampling error covariance matrices. We suggest a solution based again on the Poisson-Log Normal distribution to smooth variances and covariances. The results we obtain are encouraging: the proposed small area estimation model shows a better fit when compared to the Multivariate Normal-Normal (MNN) small area model, and it allows for a non-negligible increase in efficiency.
Alternative forms of linearization variance estimators for generalized raking estimators are defined via different choices of the weights applied (a) to residuals and (b) to the estimated regression coefficients used in calculating the residuals. Some theory is presented for three forms of generalized raking estimator, the classical raking ratio estimator, the 'maximum likelihood' raking estimator and the generalized regression estimator, and for associated linearization variance estimators. A simulation study is undertaken, based upon a labour force survey and an income and expenditure survey. Properties of the estimators are assessed with respect to both sampling and nonresponse. The study displays little difference between the properties of the alternative raking estimators for a given sampling scheme and nonresponse model. Amongst the variance estimators, the approach which weights residuals by the design weight can be severely biased in the presence of nonresponse. The approach which weights residuals by the calibrated weight tends to display much less bias. Varying the choice of the weights used to construct the regression coefficients has little impact.
Taylor linearization methods are often used to obtain variance estimators for calibration estimators of totals and nonlinear finite population (or census) parameters, such as ratios, regression and correlation coefficients, which can be expressed as smooth functions of totals. Taylor linearization is generally applicable to any sampling design, but it can lead to multiple variance estimators that are asymptotically design unbiased under repeated sampling. The choice among the variance estimators requires other considerations such as (i) approximate unbiasedness for the model variance of the estimator under an assumed model, and (ii) validity under a conditional repeated sampling framework. Demnati and Rao (2004) proposed a unified approach to deriving Taylor linearization variance estimators that leads directly to a unique variance estimator that satisfies the above considerations for general designs. When analyzing survey data, finite populations are often assumed to be generated from super-population models, and analytical inferences on model parameters are of interest. If the sampling fractions are small, then the sampling variance captures almost the entire variation generated by the design and model random processes. However, when the sampling fractions are not negligible, the model variance should be taken into account in order to construct valid inferences on model parameters under the combined process of generating the finite population from the assumed super-population model and the selection of the sample according to the specified sampling design. In this paper, we obtain an estimator of the total variance, using the Demnati-Rao approach, when the characteristics of interest are assumed to be random variables generated from a super-population model. We illustrate the method using ratio estimators and estimators defined as solutions to calibration weighted estimating equations. Simulation results on the performance of the proposed variance estimator for model parameters are also presented.
The size of the cell-phone-only population in the USA has increased rapidly in recent years and, correspondingly, researchers have begun to experiment with sampling and interviewing of cell-phone subscribers. We discuss statistical issues involved in the sampling design and estimation phases of cell-phone studies. This work is presented primarily in the context of a nonoverlapping dual-frame survey in which one frame and sample are employed for the landline population and a second frame and sample are employed for the cell-phone-only population. Additional considerations necessary for overlapping dual-frame surveys (where the cell-phone frame and sample include some of the landline population) are also discussed. We illustrate the methods using the design of the National Immunization Survey (NIS), which monitors the vaccination rates of children age 19-35 months and teens age 13-17 years. The NIS is a nationwide telephone survey, followed by a provider record check, conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Data collection for poverty assessments in Africa is time consuming, expensive and can be subject to numerous constraints. In this paper we present a procedure to collect data from poor households involved in small-scale inland fisheries as well as agricultural activities. A sampling scheme has been developed that captures the heterogeneity in ecological conditions and the seasonality of livelihood options. Sampling includes a three point panel survey of 300 households. The respondents belong to four different ethnic groups randomly chosen from three strata, each representing a different ecological zone. In the first part of the paper some background information is given on the objectives of the research, the study site and survey design, which were guiding the data collection process. The second part of the paper discusses the typical constraints that are hampering empirical work in Sub-Saharan Africa, and shows how different challenges have been resolved. These lessons could guide researchers in designing appropriate socio-economic surveys in comparable settings.
The current economic downturn in the US could challenge costly strategies in survey operations. In the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), ending the monthly data collection at 31 days could be a less costly alternative. However, this could potentially exclude a portion of interviews completed after 31 days (late responders) whose respondent characteristics could be different in many respects from those who completed the survey within 31 days (early responders). We examined whether there are differences between the early and late responders in demographics, health-care coverage, general health status, health risk behaviors, and chronic disease conditions or illnesses. We used 2007 BRFSS data, where a representative sample of the noninstitutionalized adult U.S. population was selected using a random digit dialing method. Late responders were significantly more likely to be male; to report race/ethnicity as Hispanic; to have annual income higher than $50,000; to be younger than 45 years of age; to have less than high school education; to have health-care coverage; to be significantly more likely to report good health; and to be significantly less likely to report hypertension, diabetes, or being obese. The observed differences between early and late responders on survey estimates may hardly influence national and state-level estimates. As the proportion of late responders may increase in the future, its impact on surveillance estimates should be examined before excluding from the analysis. Analysis on late responders only should combine several years of data to produce reliable estimates.
Using the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada, this study sheds light on a specific aspect of newcomers' settlement-recognition of their foreign credentials and work experience in relation to their individual characteristics. These characteristics range from class of immigrant (skilled-worker principal applicants, family class, refugees, etc.), education and field of study to country where the highest credential was earned, and knowledge of English or French. The study also examines foreign credential and work experience recognition at three time points over a four-year period-six months, two years and four years after landing.
This study uses data from the Labour Force Survey to examine whether offshorable service-sector occupations and other comparable occupations have displayed similar wage growth since the late 1990s. The analysis allows results to vary across service-sector occupations and worker characteristics.
This analytical article "Freshwater Supply and Demand in Canada", provides information on Canada's freshwater supply as well as the demands placed on it. New research done within Statistics Canada is complimented by information from other sources, including other federal government departments, international bodies and scientific journals.
Section 1 of this article compares Canada's renewable water resources to those of other countries, introduces key highlights and presents a short water primer. Section 2 quantifies Canada's renewable water resources (annual water yield), shows how water yield has changed from 1971 to 2004, and presents graphs of water yield by month for four regions of the country. Section 3 quantifies economic and residential water use in Canada and concludes with an analysis of the relationship between supply and demand. A glossary of terms used in the publication is available in Section 4.
This is a health fact sheet about lead concentrations in the Canadian population. Results shown are based on data from the Canadian Health Measures Survey.
This is a health fact sheet about mercury concentrations in the Canadian population. Results shown are based on data from the Canadian Health Measures Survey.
This report includes scientific and technological (S&T) activities involving the generation, dissemination and application of new scientific and technological knowledge for the provincial governments of New Brunswick, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta. Scientific expenditures for British Columbia are based on last year's survey. The provincial overnment of Quebec conducts a survey of its R&D activities, the results of which it shares with Statistics Canada.
The main S&T activity is research and development (R&D). Related scientific activities (RSA) are also included.
This publication shows readers how to design and conduct a census or sample survey. It explains basic survey concepts and provides information on how to create efficient and high quality surveys. It is aimed at those involved in planning, conducting or managing a survey and at students of survey design courses.
-how to plan and manage a survey;-how to formulate the survey objectives and design a questionnaire; -things to consider when determining a sample design (choosing between a sample or a census, defining the survey population, choosing a survey frame, identifying possible sources of survey error); -choosing a method of collection (self-enumeration, personal interviews or telephone interviews; computer-assisted versus paper-based questionnaires); -organizing and conducting data collection operations;-determining the sample size, allocating the sample across strata and selecting the sample; -methods of point estimation and variance estimation, and data analysis; -the use of administrative data, particularly during the design and estimation phases-how to process the data (which consists of all data handling activities between collection and estimation) and use quality control and quality assurance measures to minimize and control errors during various survey steps; and-disclosure control and data dissemination.
This publication also includes a case study that illustrates the steps in developing a household survey, using the methods and principles presented in the book. This publication was previously only available in print format and originally published in 2003.
This series contains short analytical articles providing statistical insights on emerging issues in the economy such as productivity, innovation and technology use. These articles briefly describe the issues and the results examined by these research papers.
The articles describe issues on a wide range of topics, including - the amount of dynamic competition taking place as a result of the entry of new firms and the exit of closed firms; - the amount of merger activity taking place; - the difference between multinational and domestic firms; - the productivity growth in Canada; - the changes in the geographic location of industry; - the problems in small-firm financing; - the changing industrial structure of different regions; - how the economy interacts with the environment; - the changes in trade patterns; - Canada/United States price differences; - the innovation process in Canada; - the differences between small and large producers; - the changing patterns of advanced technology use and its effect on firm performance; - the type of strategies that differentiate more-successful from less-successful firms.
This series of profiles provides analysis on a variety of topics and issues concerning victimization, offending and public perceptions of crime and the justice system. The profiles primarily draw on results from the General Social Survey on victimization. Where applicable, they also incorporate information from other data sources, such as the Census of the Population and the Incident-based Uniform Crime Reporting Survey.
Examples of the topics explored through this series include: Victimization and offending in Canada's territories, Canadians use of crime prevention measures and victimization of older Canadians. This is a unique periodical, of great interest to those who have to plan, establish, administer and evaluate justice programs and projects, or anyone who has an interest in Canada's justice system.
The papers in this series are based on the Survey of Financial Security which is a study of what families own (assets) and what they owe (debts). Various topics are covered by this survey, such as the value of family assets (home; other property; vehicles; bank accounts; term deposits; life insurance; and investments in registered savings plans, bonds, mutual funds, stocks, etc.), the amount of family debts (amount owed on mortgages, car loans, credit cards, other charge accounts, student loans, etc.), major on-going expenses for housing and child care, and any employer pensions plans that members of the family belong to. Information is also available on the demographic, employment, income and educational characteristics of family members. This research paper series covers various topics relating to survey content, concepts and operations. | 2019-04-24T05:55:42Z | https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/type/analysis?pubyear=2010 |
In part A we have reviewed the observed features of the solar system and the general laws of physics that govern it. Relying upon these observations and laws, it was found possible to reconstruct with some confidence the state at the end of the hetegonic era.
In part B we shall try to determine what processes are responsible for producing the structure of the solar system that prevailed at that specific time. For reasons that have been outlined in chs. 1 and 7 and which will be discussed further in the following, the formation of the planets and satellites existing now and at the end of the hetegonic era must be due to accretion of smaller bodies, which in their turn ultimately must have accreted from single grains. This conclusion is in principle straightforward, mainly because the other types of processes proposed prove to be impossible. The concept of planetesimal accretion has been drawn upon as a qualitative basis many times in the past (Alfven, 1942, 1943a, 1946; Schmidt, 1945; Safronov, 1954). However, to be thoroughly convincing it must also be supported by quantitative explanation of how orbiting grains with high relative velocities can interact to form larger bodies. We find that jet streams form an important intermediate stage in this evolution. The conditions for their development places important constraints on the conditions under which the original grains could have formed. The analysis of this earliest phase will consequently be treated (in parts D and C) only after the accretional evolution has been investigated in detail in the present part (B); this is in keeping with the actualistic principle (ch. 1) designed to keep us in as close contact with reality as possible.
This chapter contains a general analysis of accretion, which considers what lines of approach are of interest to follow up and which ones can be ruled out immediately. This analysis also defines the boundary conditions for the grain-producing plasma processes.
With the theory of jet streams (ch. 6) and of accretional processes studied in this chapter as starting points, a general theory of the accretion of planets and satellites is given in ch. 12. Some results of this theory can be checked by future space experiments that are within the present state of the art.
In ch. 13 the accretional theory of spins is presented and compared with the observed spin isochronism (sec. 9.7). This leads to an explanation of the spin periods of the different planets.
Chapter 14 treats the comet-meteoroid complex and considers how celestial bodies are accreted today. From this study of accretion we obtain important knowledge of accretional processes in general. The possibility of observing accretional processes that occur today in our neighborhood reduces the speculative element in our study of accretional processes in the hetegonic era.
Although part B concerns accretional problems in general, the formation of the Saturnian rings and the asteroids is not included. They represent a stage that has evolved very little from that established at the end of the preceding era of grain formation by condensation. Hence, they will conveniently be treated separately in part C (ch. 18).
with = 2 X 10-16 (cm K)/g.
As pointed out (e.g., by Spitzer (1968)), there are serious difficulties in understanding the formation of stars by this model. In particular, a large rotational momentum and magnetic flux oppose the contraction. It is far from certain that the model is appropriate.
However, we shall not discuss the problem of star formation here (it will be reserved for ch. 25), but rather the formation of planets and satellites. Laplace made the suggestion, admittedly qualitative and speculative, that these bodies were formed from gas clouds that contracted gravitationally. This idea has been adopted by a number of subsequent workers, without realization of its inherent inadequacy.
with K = 10-17 cm/g. For the biggest planets with M 1030 g we find R < 1013 cm, indicating, from these considerations alone, that Jupiter and Saturn may have been formed by this mechanism. But even in the mass range of Uranus and Neptune (M 1029 g) we run into difficulties because gravitational effects do not become important unless the clouds by some other means have been caused to contract to 1012 cm, which is less than 1 percent of the distance between the bodies. Going to the satellite systems or a hypothetical body consisting of all of the matter in the asteroid belt, we see immediately that gravitational contraction is out of the question. For a typical satellite mass (say, 1023 g), we find R < 106 cm (which means that the dimension of the gas cloud should be comparable to that of the present body). Hence, we conclude that the gravitational contraction of gas clouds is inadequate as a general model for the formation of the bodies in the solar system.
As another example that shows how negligible the gravitational attraction is in forming a satellite system, let us consider the inner part of the Saturnian satellite system. This system of secondary bodies is certainly one of the most regular with respect to systematic spacing of bodies and small inclinations and eccentricities of orbits. The masses of Mimas and Enceladus are of the order 10-7 of the mass of Saturn. At an orbital distance intermediate between Mimas and Enceladus, the gravitational attraction due to these bodies is less than 10-5 of the gravitational attraction of Saturn.
a Data taken from tables 2.1.1-2.1.2.
c Calculated using eq. (11.2.4).
FIGURE 11.2.1.&emdash;The inner region of the Saturnian satellite system (below). The small, filled circles (almost points) show the regions within which the gravitational fields of Mimas and Enceladus predominate. The regions of gravitational dominance of the terrestrial planets are shown above. The figure illustrates that gravitational collapse is not a reasonable mechanism for the formation of these bodies because of the minimal extension of their gravitational fields. The same conclusion holds for all satellites and planets, with the possible exception of Jupiter.
...-trial planets. It is obvious that the geometrical extensions of the gravitational fields of these bodies are much too small to make formation by collapse a viable suggestion.
Kumar (1972) also shows that, because of the limited extension of the Lagrangian points of Jupiter, the influence of solar tides would prevent any gravitational collapse of the gas cloud from which Jupiter could be assumed to have formed. Since gravitational collapse can be excluded as a theory of Jovian origin, surely it must be excluded on similar grounds for all other secondary bodies in the solar system.
The Laplacian approach cannot be saved by assuming that the present satellites once were much larger ("protoplanets" and "protosatellites" as in Kuiper's theory (Kuiper, 1951)). As shown above, there are discrepancies of too many orders of magnitude to overcome in such a theory.
Hence we reach the conclusion that the self-gravitation of a cloud is, at least in many cases, much too small to produce a gravitational collapse. Much more important than the self-attraction is the "apparent attraction" which, according to sec. 6.4, is a result of a viscosity-perturbed Kepler motion and leads to a formation of jet streams as an intermediate stage in the accretion of celestial bodies.
11.2.1.2. Gravitational contraction and angular momentum. The formation of planets and satellites by gravitational contraction of a gas cloud also meets with the same angular momentum difficulty as does star formation. If a gas cloud with dimensions R is rotating with the period , its average angular momentum per unit mass is of the order of . If it contracts, this quantity is conserved. If the present mass of say, Jupiter once filled a volume with the linear dimensions times Jupiter's present radius, its rotational period must have been of the order . where is the present spin period of Jupiter. The maximum value of is defined by the orbital period, which for Jupiter is about 104 times the present spin period. Hence, we find <100, which means that the cloud which contracted to form Jupiter must be less than 1012 cm in radius. This is only 1 or 2 percent of half the distance between Jupiter and Saturn, which should be approximately the separation boundary between the gas forming Jupiter and the gas forming Saturn. (It is only 10 percent of the distance to the libration or Lagrangian point, which could also be of importance.) Hence, in order to account for the present spin period of Jupiter if formed by contraction of a gas cloud, one has to invent some braking mechanism. Such a mechanism, however, must have the property of producing the spin isochronism (sec. 9.7). No such mechanism is known.
We have shown that the formation of planets and satellites by collapse of a gas cloud is unacceptable. This directs our attention to the alternative; namely, a gradual accretion of solid bodies (embryos or planetesimals) from dispersed matter (grains and gas). This process is often called planetesimal accretion and is a qualitative concept that can be traced back to the 18th century; for complete references see Herczeg (1968). Planets and satellites are assumed to have grown from such bodies as a rain of embryos and grains hit their surface, continuing until the bodies had reached their present size.
A number of direct observations support this concept. The saturation of the surfaces of the Moon, Mars, the Martian satellites, and Mercury with craters testifies to the importance of accretion by impact, at least in the terminal stages of growth of these bodies. Although now largely obliterated by geological processes, impact craters may have also been a common feature of the Earth's primeval surface.
Second, the spin isochronism (sec. 9.7) can be understood at least qualitatively as a result of embryonic accretion. The observed isochronism of spin periods requires that the same process act over the entire observed mass range of planets and asteroids, covering 12 orders of magnitude. Consequently, all seriously considered theories of planetary spin (Marcus, 1967; Giuli, 1968a and b) are based on the embryonic (planetesimal) growth concept.
Finally, the directly observable record in grain aggregates from space (now in meteorites) demonstrates that many of the grains, now preserved as parts of meteorites, condensed as isolated particles in space. After such initial existence as single particles, clusters of loosely (presumably electrostatically) bonded grains can be shown, by means of irradiation doses, to have existed over substantial time periods. These aggregates in their turn show evidence of alternating disruption and accretion before arriving at the most recent precursor states of meteorites; i.e., bodies several meters in size or possibly even larger.
This observational evidence, which is discussed in more detail in ch. 22, lends support to the concept that aggregation of freely orbiting grains into larger embryos constituted an important part of the hetegonic accretion process.
As we have learned from sec. 7.3.1, the accretion process consists of two phases, nongravitational accretion and gravitational accretion.1 We shall first discuss the latter phase.
When a particle hits the embryo, it causes secondary effects at its impact site. If the impacting particle is a solid body, it produces a number of ejecta, most of which are emitted with velocities predominantly smaller than the impact velocity. If the particle is large enough, it may split the embryo into two or more fragments. If the embryo is large enough, the escape velocity is almost the same as the impact velocity (see sec. 7.3.1 ) and we can be sure that only a small fraction of the ejecta can leave the embryo.
If the impacting particle is an ion, atom, or molecule it may be absorbed by the embryo, increasing its mass. However, it may also be reemitted either immediately or after some time delay with a velocity equal to its thermal velocity at the temperature of the embryo. As in typical situations in space, the temperature of a grain (or embryo) is much smaller than that of the surrounding plasma; the emission velocity is normally considerably smaller than the impacting velocity. Hence, gas will also be accreted when the escape velocity of the embryo is greater than the thermal velocity of the gas.
Gravitational accretion becomes increasingly rapid as the gravitational cross section of the embryo increases; eventually this leads to a runaway accretion. To distinguish this from the gravitational collapse with which it is totally unrelated, we shall call it "accretional catastrophe." A quantitative discussion of gravitational accretion, including the runaway process, is given in ch. 12.
Gravitational accretion is rather straightforward, but nongravitational accretion is more difficult to understand. When an embryo is hit by a particle with a velocity much larger than the escape velocity, the ejecta at the collision may in principle have velocities in excess of the escape velocity and hence leave the embryo. At least at hypervelocity impacts the total mass of the ejecta may be much larger than the mass of the impinging particle. Hence, the impact may lead to a decrease in the mass of the embryo. Moreover, upon impact, the embryo may be fragmented.
For such reasons it is sometimes suggested that nongravitational accretion cannot take place. However, there seems to be no other process by which it is possible to generate bodies large enough to accrete further (by the help of gravitation). Hence, the existence of large (planet-sized) celestial bodies makes it necessary to postulate a nongravitational accretion.
To return to the example of the inner Saturnian satellites (fig. 11.2.1), the rings and the inner satellites must have been produced in closely related processes (see sec. 18.6). The ring has an outer limit because particles farther out have accreted to form the satellites instead of remaining in a dispersed state. Their incipient accretion must have been nongravitational. Also, as we shall see in sec. 18.8, conditions in the asteroid belt give further insight into the planetesimal accretion process.
The only small bodies we have been able to study more closely are Deimos and Phobos. They are completely saturated with craters that must have been produced by impacts which have not broken them up. As their escape velocities cannot have exceeded some 10 m/see, they must have accreted essentially without the help of gravitation.
In the past, the major obstacle to understanding the incipient accretion process was the difficulty in visualizing how collisions could result in net accretion rather than in fragmentation. These difficulties have largely been eliminated by the first-hand data on collision processes in space obtained from studies of the lunar surface, the record in meteorites, and the grain velocity distribution in jet streams.
As pointed out by many authors (e.g., Whipple, 1968), the relative velocities between particles considered typical (for example, colliding asteroids) are of the order 5 km/sec, and, hence, collisions would be expected to result largely in fragmentation of the colliding bodies. At such velocities a small body colliding with a larger body will eject fragments with a total mass of several thousand times the mass of the small body. The probability of accretion would, under these circumstances, appear to be much smaller than the probability of fragmentation.
where vorb is the orbital velocity. Since vorb is of the order 10 to 40 km/see, u necessarily often exceeds 1 km/sec so that the collisions fall in the hypervelocity range.
The solution to this problem lies in the change of orbits that occurs as a result of repeated collisions between grains. This process has been analyzed in detail in ch. 6. The net result is a focusing in velocity space of the orbits and equipartition of energy between participating grains leading to relative velocities continuously approaching zero at the same time the particle population contracts into a jet stream. The process can be considered as a result of the "apparent attraction" caused by the viscosity-perturbation of Kepler motion.
An observational example of how such a reduction of relative velocities takes place in a jet stream has been given by Danielsson. In his study of the "profile" of some asteroidal jet streams (see fig. 4.3.6), he found that in certain focal points the relative velocities are as low as 0.2 to 1 km/sec. At such velocities collisions need not necessarily lead to mass loss, especially not if the surface layers of the bodies are fluffy. Furthermore, the velocities refer to visual asteroids, but, as the subvisual asteroids have a stronger mutual interaction, their relative velocities may be much smaller.
Charging and persistent internal electric polarization are found to be characteristic of lunar dust (Arrhenius et al., 1970; Arrhenius and Asunmaa, 1973). As a result, lunar grains adhere to each other with forces up to a few hundred dynes and form persistent clusters. This is probably a phenomenon common to all solids exposed to radiation in space. Hence, electrostatic forces were probably of similar importance during accretion. The nongravitational accretion in the hetegonic era may have been largely caused by electrostatic attraction (sec. 12.3).
Meteorites provide evidence of the relative importance of various processes of disruption and accretion. The decisive importance of loosely coherent powder aggregates in absorbing impact energy is indicated by the high proportion of fine-grained material in chondrites, which form by far the largest group of meteorites. The low original packing density of this material is also suggested by evidence from meteors. Such fluffy aggregates probably represent the state of matter in jet streams at the stage when a substantial portion of the collision debris of the original grains has, through inelastic collisions, reached low relative velocities so that they can adhere electrostatically.
Hypervelocity impact of single grains on fluffy aggregates results in large excess mass loss (Vedder, 1972). In the subsonic range, however, it is possible and likely that an impinging particle will lose its energy gradually in penetrating the fluffy embryo so that few or no ejecta are thrown out. The impinging particle may partially evaporate in the interior of the embryo and hence preserve the fluffy structure.
The early stage of accretion can be considered to be at an end when an aggregate reaches a mass such that gravitational acceleration begins to control the terminal impact velocities. The catastrophic growth process the follows and leads to the accretion of planets and satellites has already been discussed in sec. 11.4 and will be discussed further in ch. 12.
(1) and (2) The two libration or Lagrangian points ahead of and behind Jupiter where the Trojans are moving.
(3) The Hilda asteroids (20 asteroids), which are in 2/3 resonance with Jupiter.
In each of these three groups, the bodies are confined to movement in certain regions of space (sees. 8.5.3 through 8.5.4). Each of these groups probably includes a large number of smaller bodies. Some energy is pumped into these groups of bodies because the gravitational field is perturbed, in part due to the noncircular orbital motion of Jupiter and in part due to perturbations from other planets. Furthermore, other asteroids (and comets and meteoroids) pass the region and may collide with the members of the group, thereby feeding energy into it.
However, these sources of energy input are probably comparatively unimportant; consequently, we neglect them in the following idealized model. Hence, the only significant change in the energy of the group of bodies is due to mutual collisions, if such occur. If these collisions take place at hypervelocities, they lead to fragmentation. The number of bodies increases, but as the collisions are at least partially inelastic the total internal kinetic energy of the assembly decreases. According to our assumptions, there are no effects increasing the internal energy significantly, so the result will be that the relative velocities decrease until collisions occur only in the range in which accretion predominates. The result will be a net accretion. We would expect that all the matter in each of the groups would eventually accrete to form one body.
Therefore, if we treat the case where initially a large number of small grains (e.g., resulting from primordial condensation) were injected into the velocity space of one of our idealized groups, we could expect to follow in detail the accretional process from grains to planets. In the Hilda group, most of the mass is found in one object (Hilda herself). From this we may conclude that the accretional process is already far advanced.
There are a number of other resonances where only one small body is found to be trapped in resonance by a large body (ch. 8). Such cases are Thule (3/4 resonance with Jupiter), Pluto (3/2 resonance with Neptune), and Hyperion (4/3 resonance with Titan). These cases may represent a still more advanced state than that in the Trojan groups and the Hilda group with all of the observable mass gathered into one body. (There may, however, be small, still unknown companions.) We may also consider Mimas to be trapped by Dione, and Enceladus, trapped by Tethys, as similar cases.
It should be remembered that the libration amplitudes in some of the cases cited are small, in some cases less than 1°. As we have found in sees. 8.1 and 9.6, this is difficult to reconcile with the tidal theory of resonance capture because very efficient damping of the librations is needed. Our model of planetesimal accretion, on the other hand, provides a mechanism for energy loss through mutual collisions between the accreting bodies, which may result in a small libration. In fact, in the accretional state we have a number of bodies librating with different phase and amplitude. Their mutual collisions will decrease the libration of the finally accreted body.
A detailed analysis of the proposed model is desirable to demonstrate its applicability to real cases.
We shall now discuss the more general case of accretion. We start from the assumption that plasma containing a large number of grains is distributed in different regions around a central body. We require that the accretion of these grains shall finally lead to the formation of the celestial bodies we observe. From this requirement we can draw certain conclusions about the properties of the grains and about their dynamic state. We shall in this section confine ourselves to a discussion of the latter question.
We find that the celestial mechanical data that should be explained by a theory of accretion are as follows.
The total angular momentum CM of a celestial body should be the sum of the orbital momenta of all the grains that have contributed to the formation of the body. The eccentricity e and the inclination i of the orbits of the accreting grains change during the accretion because of collisions. The values of e and i of the resulting body depend upon the details of the mechanism of accretion, but are generally less than those of the grains.
The spacing ratio qn = (rn+1)/rn between two consecutive planetary or satellite orbits is given in tables 2.1.1 and 2.1.2. In the different groups it usually varies between about 1.18 (Mimas-Enceladus) and 2.01 (Saturn-Uranus). A theory of accretion should explain the values of q.
Of special interest is the fact that, with the exception of the group of the very small bodies, Jupiter 6, 10, and 7, there are no q values smaller than 1.15. It is important to clarify why the matter accumulated in, for example, the region of the Uranian satellites has accreted to form large bodies instead of, say, 100 satellites with spacings q = 1.01 or 1.02. If such a state were established, it would be just as stable as the present state with four bodies.
Hence, the gathering of primordial matter into a small number of bodies is an important fact for which the accretional model should account.
The accretional mechanism should leave the bodies with the spins they had before tidal braking. Because all satellites and a few planets have been severely braked, the observational data we can use for checking a theory consist of the spin values of asteroids and the tidally unaffected planets. In particular, we have to explain the spin isochronism (sec. 9.7).
From sec. 11.7.2 we can derive an interesting property of the orbits of the grains that form the raw material for the accretional process.
Since in the solar system R1 and R2 are usually very small compared with the spacing of the orbits, R1+R2<< a, which means that we can have a large number of grains in consecutive circular orbits. At least in systems (e.g., the Uranian system) where the total mass of the satellites is very small compared to the mass of the central body, such a system would be perfectly stable from a celestial-mechanics point of view. Such a state would resemble the Saturnian rings and is conceivable even outside the Roche limit.
Hence, the fact that in each different group of bodies (see table 2.1.5) there are only a small number (3 to 6) of bodies shows that the grains out of which the bodies were formed cannot have orbited originally in circles in the equatorial plane.
Suppose next that we allow the original grains to orbit in circles with certain inclinations i. Then grains with the same angular momenta C but with different values of i will collide, but there will be no collisions between grains with different a values. In case the collisions are perfectly inelastic, they will result in grains with the C values unchanged but all with the same i values. Such a state is again dynamically stable but irreconcilable with the present state of the solar system.
An estimate of the minimum eccentricity is possible, but not without certain assumptions. Let us make the assumption (which later turns out to be unrealistic in certain respects) that a satellite or planet accretes by direct capture of grains.
Since in some cases (e.g., in the giant-planet group) q = 2.0, we find that at least for some groups e 1/3. For smaller q values such as q = 1.2 On the inner Saturnian satellite group), we obtain e > 0.09. These results are not necessarily correct for a more complicated model of the accretion. However, as we shall find in ch. 12, it is essentially valid also for the two-step accretional process considered there.
We have found that the planetesimal approach requires a state characterized by a number of bodies moving in eccentric Kepler orbits. This state has a striking resemblance to the present state in the asteroidal belt. In fact, as shown in fig. 4.3.1, the eccentricities of the asteroid orbits vary up to about 0.30 or 0.35. There are very few asteroids with higher eccentricities. Thus, from this point of view it is tempting to identify the present state in the asteroidal region with the intermediate stage in a planetesimal accretion.
(1) There is no doubt that collisions occur between asteroids. Arguments have been developed, particularly by Anders (1965), that the resulting fragmentation contributes to the observed size distribution of asteroids. However, Anders also points out that only the small-size part of the distribution is explained by fragmentation and that the large-size asteroids show another distribution which he attributes to "initial accretion" but which could equally well be explained as concurrent with the fragmentation.
(2) As discussed in sec. 11.5, it has been believed that collision of small objects could not lead to accretion; in this situation it appeared necessary first to postulate the formation of one or several large parent bodies by some undefined ad hoc process and then to decompose these to generate the wide size range of objects now observed. Obviously this approach does not solve the problem of accretion, which is only ignored or relegated to the realm of untenable hypotheses.
(3) It was long thought that meteorites could be produced from one or several parent "planets" of lunar size or larger that could have been located in the asteroid belt. The reasons for this assumption were mainly that several types of meteorites show evidence of heating of the accreted components. One way of interpreting this would be that they came from the interior of a planet, where heat would accumulate due to radioactive decay. The observed heating affects are, however, equally well, or better, explained by external sources (Wasson, 1972). The most obvious heating process is the dissipation of orbital energy by gas friction, as discussed in ch. 19. The monotonic decrease in power of the orbital thermal pulses would explain the diffusion profiles observed in the phase of nickel-iron meteorites (Wood 1964, 1967).
(4) The occurrence of microcrystalline diamond in meteorites, at one time suggested to be due to high static pressure inside a planet, has been shown to be associated with and most likely caused by shock effects (Anders and Lipschutz, 1966); diamond can also grow metastably at low pressure from the gas phases (Angus et al., 1968).
(5) Finally, it was long thought that planetary-sized bodies with a fractionated atmosphere were needed to generate oxidized and hydrated minerals and some of the organic components observed in carbonaceous meteorites. It is now known, however, that extensive fractionation can occur in the pre-accretionary stages. This is illustrated by the variation in composition of comets, which have much higher oxygen/hydrogen ratios than, for example, the solar photosphere (sec. 21.6). Hydroxysilicates (such as chlorite) and ferriferrous iron oxide (magnetite) can form by direct condensation, and the classes of organic compounds observed in meteorites are readily synthesized in plasmas of the type observed in space and likely to have prevailed in the hetegonic era.
Hence, there appears to be nothing in the structure and composition of meteorites that indicates that their precursor bodies were ever larger than a few meters. (Further discussion of their possible maximum size is given in sec. 22.4).
1 Gravitational accretion should not be confused with "Gravitational collapse," which is a completely different process. | 2019-04-18T23:30:30Z | https://history.nasa.gov/SP-345/ch11.htm |
A male has always really felt insecure in front of the natural catastrophes and ill happenings. The disastrous occasions have always left a male with sorrow and also a great deal of loss. The man has no control over such cases as well as the only point which male could do is to attempt decreasing the loss. Many floodings, earthquakes, wars, accidents and also devastating occasions made a multitude of people to deal with the seriousness of the events. A family left, after the fatality of the only bread earner would wind up living in one of the most unthinkable scenarios because of lack of economic support.|Home VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the best choice???
Such incidents never ever stopped happening. In the history, a great deal of such events can be connected. Nature, occasionally, with all its powers could be awful. There was a sheer should do something concerning these events. An in need of support family members, after such occurrences, mostly wound up in a terrible circumstance.
The unforgettable extraordinary fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September destroyed around 13,000 homesResidences London was economically really considerable and any loss in London would affect the entire area. In 1681, financial expert Nicholas Barbon came up with the first insurance company named “Insurance Office for Houses”.
The terrific fire of London provided birth to a proper insurance coverage system which was severely needed with the increasing distressing occasions. The firm that offers insurance is called as an insurance policy business, insurance coverage carrier or underwriter. Insurance coverage is a source of defense from the cash losses due to different occasions.
The dangers which just involve the possibility of loss and they could not finish up with any type of benefits. Just these risks are insurable.
. Risks can also be set apart on the basis of the economy.
Several individuals do not have traveling insurance coverage while some others do not have residential property insurance policy. A traveling fan will apply for the travel insurance coverage while the one who is unsafe concerning the home will be applying for the building or house insurance policy.
Several people who are extremely worried concerning their residences and also residential properties make an application for the home insurance coverage. Home insurance coverage also called as property owner’s insurance policy, is a sort of building insurance policy that covers a personal or individual house. This type of insurance makes sure that any type of loss created by fire, burglary or other all-natural event to the residential or commercial property is financially supported. Having an insured residential or commercial property is a complete satisfaction as any kind of natural loss to the property is insurable. It’s an excellent idea to insure the residential or commercial property.
It is entirely approximately the relevant person and also neither of the selections among high threat traveling insurance coverage and property insurance coverage can be considered finest. If an individual is a traveling lover and also often takes a trip, it is recommended for him to obtain the high threat traveling insurance policy. High risk travel insurance gives the person with the contentment during the whole trip. High risk travel insurance coverage can likewise be changed according to the requirement. On the other hand, the home insurance makes it certain that any building loss due to any type of dreadful happening is economically supported. So, it’s up to the worried individual.
A guy has constantly really felt insecure before the all-natural disasters as well as sick happenings. The disastrous events have actually constantly left a male with despair and a great deal of loss. The man has no control over such events and also the only point which guy can do is to try lessening the loss. Several floodings, quakes, battles, crashes and tragic events made a multitude of people to deal with the intensity of the cases. A family members left behind, after the death of the only bread income earner would end up staying in the most unthinkable circumstances because of absence of financial backing.|House VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the best choice???
Such cases never ever quit occurring. In the history, a great deal of such cases could be connected. Nature, often, with all its powers can be awful. There was a large should do something about these cases. An unsupported household, after such occurrences, mainly ended up in a dreadful scenario.
The extraordinary terrific fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September damaged around 13,000 homes. A great deal of things obtained ruined and London faced a monetary trembling. London, then, was expanding as a profession hub in Europe. London was monetarily very considerable and any kind of loss in London would certainly influence the entire location. In 1681, economist Nicholas Barbon generated the very first insurer named “Insurance Office for Houses”. At first, 5 thousand residences were guaranteed under this firm.
The excellent fire of London provided birth to an appropriate insurance coverage system which was severely required with the increasing distressing events. The company that gives insurance policy is called as an insurance coverage firm, insurance service provider or expert. Insurance policy is a source of security from the money losses due to various occasions.
The risks which just involve the possibility of loss as well as they could not finish up with any type of benefits. Only these threats are insurable.
. Threats can likewise be set apart on the basis of the economic climate.
These are the losses which are caused by natural occasions like quakes, floods etc. These dangers are insurable.
Some individuals have sufficient funds to request all type of insurances. Individuals who do not make as well a lot have to choose between some insurance coverage. As an example, lots of people do not have traveling insurance policy while some others do not have building insurance coverage. It’s completely depending on the lifestyle which a person follows. A travel enthusiast will request the travel insurance coverage while the one that is unsecured regarding the building will be requesting the residential property or residence insurance policy.
Lots of individuals who are extremely worried concerning their houses and also buildings apply for the home insurance policy. House insurance policy also called as homeowner’s insurance, is a type of property insurance that covers an exclusive or personal residence.
There are a few other functions which can likewise be included to the entire high risk travel insurance coverage. These are provided listed below.
It is totally completely to the related person and neither of the choices selections amongst risk threat traveling insurance policy as well as insurance insurance coverage be regarded as bestIdeal If an individual is a traveling fan and also commonly travels, it is advised for him to use for the high danger traveling insurance. High risk travel insurance policy offers the person with the contentment throughout the whole trip.
A man has always really felt insecure in front of the natural calamities and also unwell happenings. The tragic occasions have constantly left a guy with pain and also a great deal of loss. The guy has no control over such incidents and the only thing which guy can do is to try reducing the loss. Many floodings, quakes, battles, mishaps as well as tragic events made a a great deal of people to encounter the extent of the occurrences. A household left behind, after the death of the only bread income earner would end up living in the most unthinkable scenarios due to absence of financial backing.|Home VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the best option???
There was a sheer requirement to do something concerning these incidents. An in need of support family, after such incidents, primarily ended up in a dreadful situation.
The extraordinary wonderful fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September destroyed around 13,000 houses. A great deal of stuff obtained ruined and London faced a monetary shake. London, then, was expanding as a trade center in Europe. London was monetarily really considerable and any kind of loss in London would certainly influence the entire location. In 1681, economic expert Nicholas Barbon generated the very first insurance provider named “Insurance Office for Houses”. Initially, 5 thousand residences were guaranteed under this company.
The great fire of London gave birth to an appropriate insurance coverage system which was seriously required with the raising awful events. The company that supplies insurance is called as an insurance business, insurance coverage service provider or expert. Insurance coverage is a resource of protection from the money losses due to various occasions.
These are the threats which also consist of a reasonable possibility of advantage in addition to loss opportunities. In simple words, these are the situations in which the guaranteed person deliberately risks his finances in order to get some extra advantage.
Many individuals do not have traveling insurance coverage while some others don’t have property insurance. A traveling lover will use for the travel insurance policy while the one that is unprotected concerning the property will be using for the residential property or house insurance.
Lots of people who are extremely concerned concerning their houses and buildings apply for the property insurance policy. Residence insurance likewise called as house owner’s insurance policy, is a type of home insurance policy that covers a private or personal home.
It is totally up to the relevant individual and also neither of the choices among high risk traveling insurance and building insurance policy can be considered as finest. If an individual is a traveling lover and often takes a trip, it is suggested for him to request the high threat traveling insurance. High danger travel insurance coverage gives the individual with the complete satisfaction throughout the entire trip. High risk travel insurance coverage could likewise be amended inning accordance with the requirement. On the other hand, the building insurance policy makes it sure that any type of home loss as a result of any kind of disastrous happening is financially supported. It’s up to the worried individual.
A guy has always felt insecure in front of the natural catastrophes as well as sick happenings. The dreadful occasions have constantly left a male with despair as well as a great deal of loss. The guy has no control over such incidents and the only thing which male could do is to attempt lessening the loss. Many floodings, earthquakes, wars, accidents and disastrous events made a lot of people to deal with the extent of the occurrences. A family left, after the death of the only bread income earner would end up living in one of the most unthinkable scenarios because of lack of monetary support.|House VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the best alternative???
Such events never stopped occurring. In the history, a great deal of such occurrences can be connected. Nature, in some cases, with all its powers can be distressing. There was a sheer requirement to do something about these events. An in need of support family members, after such occurrences, mostly wound up in an awful circumstance.
The memorable terrific fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September ruined around 13,000 houses. A great deal of things obtained ruined and London encountered an economic tremor. London, after that, was growing as a profession center in Europe. London was monetarily really substantial and also any kind of loss in London would influence the entire location. In 1681, economic expert Nicholas Barbon came up with the first insurance firm named “Insurance Office for Houses”. 5 thousand residences were guaranteed under this company.
The terrific fire of London brought to life a proper insurance coverage system which was seriously required with the raising distressing events. In 1680, many carriers and seafarers made use of to check out the tea shop of David Lloyd. There, they discussed the losses at sea and the requirement of some option. This likewise helped to grow the concept of Insurance Policy. Today, each person has actually guaranteed his home, wellness, travel and so on. The company that supplies insurance coverage is called as an insurance provider, insurance coverage carrier or expert. On the other hand, a person that insures himself is called as Insured or policyholder. Insurance policy provides defense from the cash losses as a result of various occasions. It’s like a form of threat administration which makes sure that the celebration having unclear losses might be monetarily sustained in some means.
The risks which only involve the opportunity of loss and they can not end up with any benefits. Just these dangers are insurable.
These are the dangers which also include a reasonable possibility of advantage in enhancement to loss opportunities. In easy words, these are the situations in which the guaranteed person purposely risks his funds in order to obtain some added benefit.
These are the losses which are triggered by natural events like quakes, floods etc. These dangers are insurable.
Numerous people don’t have travel insurance while some others do not have residential property insurance coverage. A traveling fan will apply for the traveling insurance policy while the one who is unprotected concerning the home will be applying for the residential or commercial property or residence insurance policy.
Many individuals who are very worried regarding their homes and also residential or commercial properties look for the residential or commercial property insurance coverage. House insurance coverage additionally called as property owner’s insurance coverage, is a sort of residential or commercial property insurance coverage that covers a private or individual residence. This kind of insurance coverage guarantees that any kind of loss triggered by fire, burglary or other natural event to the home is economically supported. Having an insured residential or commercial property is a contentment as any kind of all-natural loss to the property is insurable. It’s a great suggestion to insure the property.
There are other attributes which could likewise be contributed to the entire high risk travel insurance coverage. These are given below.
It is totally completely to the related associated and neither of the choices options high risk danger insurance insurance policy as well as residential property insurance coverage could regarded concerned bestFinest If an individual is a travel lover and also frequently takes a trip, it is advised for him to apply for the high threat traveling insurance coverage. High risk travel insurance offers the individual with the satisfaction during the whole journey.
A male has constantly felt insecure in front of the natural disasters as well as sick happenings. The devastating occasions have always left a guy with pain as well as a lot of loss. The man has no control over such incidents and the only point which guy could do is to try lessening the loss. Several floodings, earthquakes, wars, accidents as well as devastating occasions made a a great deal of people to encounter the severity of the occurrences. A family left behind, after the death of the only bread earner would wind up staying in one of the most unimaginable situations as a result of lack of monetary assistance.|Home VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the best alternative???
Such incidents never ever stopped taking place. In the background, a great deal of such occurrences can be connected. Nature, occasionally, with all its powers could be awful. There was a large should do something about these incidents. An unsupported family members, after such occurrences, mostly finished up in a horrible circumstance.
The unforgettable remarkable wonderful of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September destroyed damaged 13,000 homesHouses London was monetarily really substantial as well as any loss in London would influence the entire location. In 1681, financial expert Nicholas Barbon came up with the very first insurance policy company named “Insurance Office for Houses”.
The great fire of London brought to life a correct insurance policy system which was badly needed with the increasing awful occasions. In 1680, lots of carriers and sailors utilized to visit the tea store of David Lloyd. There, they discussed the losses at sea and also the demand of some option. This also helped to expand the idea of Insurance Policy. Today, every various other person has actually insured his residential or commercial property, health and wellness, travel and so on. The firm that offers insurance coverage is called as an insurance provider, insurance service provider or expert. On the various other hand, a person who insures himself is called as Insured or insurance policy holder. Insurance coverage provides protection from the cash losses because of different occasions. It’s like a type of danger monitoring which ensures that the party having unsure losses could be economically sustained in some means.
The threats which just involve the opportunity of loss as well as they could not finish up with any kind of benefits. Just these threats are insurable.
These are the threats which also consist of a reasonable chance of benefit in enhancement to loss possibilities. In easy words, these are the situations in which the insured individual purposely risks his finances in order to obtain some additional benefit.
These are the losses which are caused by economic climate changing. These threats are not insurable.
Some people have sufficient funds to apply for all kind of insurance policies. However, people that don’t earn way too much need to choose between some insurance. For instance, many individuals do not have travel insurance policy while other don’t have residential or commercial property insurance coverage. It’s absolutely dependent on the lifestyle which a person follows. A traveling fan will look for the traveling insurance policy while the one that is unsafe about the home will be making an application for the home or home insurance policy.
Lots of people that are very worried regarding their homes and also buildings use for the residential property insurance coverage. Home insurance also called as homeowner’s insurance, is a type of building insurance that covers a personal or personal house.
There are other functions which could likewise be included in the whole high risk travel insurance coverage. These are given listed below.
It is totally completely to the related associated and and also of the choices options high risk danger traveling insurance coverage as well as home insurance coverage could regarded related to bestFinest If an individual is a traveling fan as well as commonly takes a trip, it is advised for him to apply for the high risk travel insurance coverage. High danger travel insurance coverage supplies the person with the contentment during the entire journey.
A man has actually constantly felt insecure before the all-natural catastrophes and also sick happenings. The devastating events have constantly left a guy with pain as well as a great deal of loss. The guy has no control over such occurrences and the only point which guy can do is to attempt lessening the loss. Many floodings, quakes, wars, mishaps and also tragic events made a huge number of individuals to face the seriousness of the events. A household left, after the death of the only bread earner would wind up residing in the most unimaginable situations due to absence of economic support.|Home VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the ideal choice???
Such cases never ever quit taking place. In the history, a great deal of such occurrences could be connected. Nature, sometimes, with all its powers can be terrible. There was a sheer should do something regarding these events. An in need of support household, after such occurrences, primarily wound up in a dreadful situation.
The memorable terrific fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September destroyed around 13,000 residences. A whole lot of things obtained ruined and London dealt with a monetary shake. London, then, was growing as a profession center in Europe. London was financially extremely significant and any type of loss in London would certainly influence the entire location. In 1681, financial expert Nicholas Barbon thought of the first insurer called “Insurance Office for Houses”. At first, 5 thousand residences were insured under this firm.
The excellent fire of London brought to life an appropriate insurance system which was drastically needed with the boosting terrible events. In 1680, numerous shippers and seafarers made use of to check out the tea store of David Lloyd. There, they discussed the losses mixed-up and also the demand of some solution. This likewise helped to expand the suggestion of Insurance Policy. Today, every various other individual has guaranteed his building, health, travel etc. The company that provides insurance is called as an insurer, insurance coverage carrier or underwriter. On the other hand, a person that guarantees himself is called as Insured or insurance policy holder. Insurance policy is a source of protection from the cash losses because of various occasions. It’s like a type of risk monitoring which makes certain that the celebration having unpredictable losses could be financially supported somehow.
The dangers which just entail the opportunity of loss as well as they can not finish up with any kind of benefits. Just these risks are insurable.
Lots of individuals do not have travel insurance policy while some others do not have home insurance policy. A traveling enthusiast will use for the traveling insurance coverage while the one who is unprotected regarding the property will be using for the home or house insurance coverage.
Several people that are extremely concerned concerning their residences and also buildings use for the home insurance. House insurance policy also called as home owner’s insurance, is a type of residential property insurance coverage that covers a personal or personal residence.
There are a few other features which can also be included in the whole high risk travel insurance coverage. These are given below.
It is entirely as much as the relevant person and also neither of the choices among high danger traveling insurance and home insurance could be related to as finest. If an individual is a travel fan and also commonly travels, it is suggested for him to request the high danger traveling insurance policy. High danger travel insurance policy provides the individual with the contentment throughout the entire trip. High risk travel insurance coverage could also be modified inning accordance with the requirement. On the other hand, the residential property insurance coverage makes it certain that any type of residential property loss due to any kind of devastating happening is financially sustained. It’s up to the concerned individual.
A guy has actually constantly really felt insecure before the all-natural catastrophes and also sick happenings. The dreadful events have always left a man with grief and a great deal of loss. The male has no control over such occurrences as well as the only thing which man can do is to try decreasing the loss. Several floods, quakes, wars, accidents and devastating events made a huge number of individuals to deal with the extent of the events. A household left behind, after the fatality of the only bread income earner would end up living in the most unimaginable situations because of lack of financial support.|Home VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the finest option???
Such cases never ever quit happening. In the history, a great deal of such cases could be related. Nature, in some cases, with all its powers can be dreadful. There was a large have to do something about these incidents. An in need of support household, after such events, primarily wound up in a dreadful scenario.
The remarkable great fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September destroyed around 13,000 residences. A lot of things got destroyed and London faced an economic tremor. London, then, was expanding as a profession hub in Europe. London was economically really significant and any kind of loss in London would certainly impact the whole area. In 1681, economist Nicholas Barbon developed the very first insurance provider named “Insurance Office for Houses”. 5 thousand houses were guaranteed under this firm.
The fantastic fire of London offered birth to an appropriate insurance system which was drastically required with the raising distressing occasions. In 1680, many shippers and seafarers made use of to check out the tea shop of David Lloyd. There, they spoke regarding the losses at sea as well as the need of some service. This additionally assisted to expand the concept of Insurance Policy. Today, every other individual has actually insured his property, wellness, travel and so on. The company that offers insurance policy is called as an insurer, insurance coverage service provider or underwriter. On the various other hand, a person that guarantees himself is called as Insured or policyholder. Insurance policy is a resource of protection from the loan losses as a result of different events. It’s like a kind of risk monitoring which ensures that the celebration having unclear losses might be financially supported somehow.
The threats which just include the possibility of loss and they could not finish up with any advantages. Just these dangers are insurable.
These are the threats which likewise include a reasonable possibility of benefit in addition to loss opportunities. In simple words, these are the situations in which the guaranteed individual deliberately risks his finances in order to obtain some added advantage.
Several people don’t have travel insurance while some others don’t have home insurance coverage. A travel lover will apply for the travel insurance policy while the one that is unsecured regarding the home will be using for the building or residence insurance policy.
Many individuals that are very worried about their houses and also buildings apply for the residential property insurance policy. House insurance coverage also called as property owner’s insurance, is a type of property insurance that covers a personal or personal home.
There are a few other features which could likewise be included to the whole high risk travel insurance coverage. These are offered below.
It is totally absolutely to the related person and and also of the choices options high risk travel traveling insurance policy property building insurance policy could regarded concerned bestIdeal If a person is a traveling fan and frequently travels, it is advised for him to apply for the high risk traveling insurance policy. High threat traveling insurance coverage provides the individual with the complete satisfaction during the entire journey.
A male has constantly felt insecure before the natural catastrophes as well as unwell happenings. The devastating events have constantly left a guy with grief and also a great deal of loss. The guy has no control over such occurrences as well as the only point which guy could do is to try reducing the loss. Many floodings, quakes, wars, accidents and disastrous occasions made a multitude of individuals to encounter the severity of the cases. A family members left behind, after the fatality of the only bread income earner would certainly wind up residing in one of the most unimaginable situations because of absence of financial backing.|House VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the finest option???
Such cases never ever quit happening. In the background, a lot of such incidents could be related. Nature, sometimes, with all its powers could be awful. There was a sheer have to do something about these cases. An unsupported family members, after such cases, mostly wound up in an awful scenario.
The unforgettable excellent fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September ruined around 13,000 residences. A great deal of stuff obtained ruined as well as London encountered a monetary tremor. London, after that, was expanding as a trade hub in Europe. London was monetarily extremely considerable as well as any kind of loss in London would certainly affect the entire location. In 1681, economic expert Nicholas Barbon developed the very first insurance coverage company named “Insurance Office for Houses”. 5 thousand houses were insured under this company.
The fantastic fire of London gave birth to an appropriate insurance system which was drastically required with the boosting awful occasions. In 1680, lots of carriers and sailors used to go to the tea shop of David Lloyd. There, they spoke about the losses at sea and also the requirement of some remedy. This also aided to grow the suggestion of Insurance Policy. Today, each individual has actually guaranteed his property, health, traveling and so on. The firm that provides insurance is called as an insurer, insurance coverage carrier or underwriter. On the various other hand, a person that insures himself is called as Insured or insurance policy holder. Insurance coverage gives security from the cash losses because of different occasions. It’s like a type of danger monitoring which makes certain that the celebration having unsure losses might be monetarily supported somehow.
The threats which just entail the opportunity of loss and they can not finish up with any kind of advantages. Only these dangers are insurable.
These are the dangers which additionally include a reasonable possibility of benefit in enhancement to loss possibilities. In basic words, these are the circumstances in which the insured person purposely risks his funds in order to obtain some added advantage.
Some individuals have enough finances to request all kind of insurances. Individuals who do not earn as well much have to choose in between some insurance coverage. Numerous people do not have travel insurance while some others don’t have home insurance coverage. It’s totally reliant on the way of living which a person complies with. A traveling enthusiast will make an application for the travel insurance policy while the one who is unprotected about the residential or commercial property will be using for the building or residence insurance policy.
Many individuals who are extremely concerned about their residences as well as residential or commercial properties obtain the home insurance policy. Home insurance policy also called as homeowner’s insurance coverage, is a kind of home insurance policy that covers a private or personal residence. This type of insurance coverage makes sure that any type of loss caused by fire, theft or any kind of various other all-natural event to the building is economically supported. Having an insured home is a fulfillment as any type of natural loss to the home is insurable. It’s an extremely great concept to insure the residential property.
There are some various other attributes which can also be contributed to the entire high risk travel insurance coverage. These are provided listed below.
It is totally up to the related person and and also of the choices selections amongst risk danger traveling and and also insurance insurance policy be regarded related to bestIdeal If an individual is a traveling fan and commonly travels, it is encouraged for him to use for the high threat traveling insurance coverage. High danger traveling insurance coverage offers the individual with the fulfillment throughout the whole journey.
A male has constantly felt insecure in front of the all-natural disasters and unwell happenings. The tragic events have always left a man with grief and a great deal of loss. The guy has no control over such incidents as well as the only thing which guy can do is to try decreasing the loss. Several floods, quakes, battles, crashes and also devastating occasions made a multitude of people to encounter the severity of the events. A household left, after the fatality of the only bread income earner would certainly wind up residing in one of the most unthinkable scenarios as a result of lack of financial backing.|Residence VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the best choice???
Such incidents never ever stopped happening. In the history, a great deal of such cases could be connected. Nature, sometimes, with all its powers can be distressing. There was a sheer should do something about these incidents. An in need of support family members, after such occurrences, mostly finished up in an awful circumstance.
The unforgettable memorable wonderful of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September destroyed damaged 13,000 homesResidences London was monetarily really substantial and also any type of loss in London would certainly affect the whole location. In 1681, financial expert Nicholas Barbon came up with the first insurance policy firm called “Insurance Office for Houses”.
The wonderful fire of London provided birth to a proper insurance policy system which was seriously needed with the boosting distressing events. The firm that provides insurance policy is called as an insurance policy company, insurance coverage service provider or expert. Insurance policy is a resource of protection from the money losses due to various occasions.
The threats which just involve the possibility of loss and they could not finish up with any kind of benefits. Just these threats are insurable.
Some individuals have sufficient finances to make an application for all type of insurances. People who do not gain as well a lot have to decide in between some insurance. For instance, lots of people do not have travel insurance policy while other do not have property insurance. It’s totally reliant on the lifestyle which a person follows. A travel enthusiast will make an application for the traveling insurance coverage while the one who is unsafe regarding the building will certainly be applying for the home or home insurance.
Lots of people who are extremely worried about their houses as well as properties look for the residential or commercial property insurance coverage. House insurance coverage additionally called as property owner’s insurance policy, is a type of property insurance policy that covers an exclusive or individual house. This kind of insurance coverage guarantees that any loss triggered by fire, burglary or other all-natural event to the property is economically sustained. Having an insured home is a fulfillment as any kind of all-natural loss to the residential or commercial property is insurable. It’s a great suggestion to insure the residential or commercial property.
There are some other attributes which could also be added to the whole high risk travel insurance coverage. These are provided below.
It is totally absolutely to the related person and neither of the choices selections amongst risk danger traveling insurance coverage as well as building insurance policy be regarded pertained to bestIdeal If an individual is a traveling enthusiast and also commonly travels, it is advised for him to apply for the high threat traveling insurance. High threat traveling insurance coverage supplies the individual with the satisfaction throughout the entire trip.
A male has constantly felt insecure before the natural calamities and unwell happenings. The disastrous occasions have actually constantly left a guy with pain and a great deal of loss. The male has no control over such cases and also the only thing which guy could do is to try reducing the loss. Several floods, earthquakes, wars, accidents and also tragic occasions made a a great deal of people to face the seriousness of the incidents. A family members left, after the death of the only bread income earner would certainly wind up residing in the most unimaginable situations due to absence of financial backing.|Residence VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the best option???
There was a sheer need to do something concerning these incidents. An unsupported family members, after such events, primarily finished up in a dreadful circumstance.
The unforgettable terrific fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September ruined around 13,000 homes. A great deal of things got ruined as well as London faced a monetary shake. London, then, was expanding as a profession center in Europe. London was economically really considerable as well as any loss in London would affect the entire area. In 1681, economist Nicholas Barbon thought of the very first insurance policy company called “Insurance Office for Houses”. 5 thousand houses were guaranteed under this company.
The great fire of London brought to life a correct insurance policy system which was severely required with the boosting distressing occasions. In 1680, several carriers as well as seafarers utilized to go to the tea store of David Lloyd. There, they spoke about the losses at sea as well as the demand of some service. This likewise assisted to grow the concept of Insurance Policy. Today, every various other person has insured his residential or commercial property, wellness, travel etc. The firm that provides insurance coverage is called as an insurer, insurance policy service provider or expert. On the various other hand, an individual who insures himself is called as Insured or policyholder. Insurance coverage gives security from the money losses due to different occasions. It’s like a type of danger monitoring which guarantees that the party having unpredictable losses might be economically sustained somehow.
The dangers which just involve the opportunity of loss as well as they can not end up with any type of advantages. Just these dangers are insurable.
These are the dangers which additionally include a fair possibility of advantage in addition to loss opportunities. In straightforward words, these are the circumstances in which the guaranteed person purposely risks his funds in order to obtain some extra advantage.
These are the losses which are caused by natural events like earthquakes, floodings and so on. These threats are insurable.
Many individuals do not have travel insurance policy while some others don’t have home insurance policy. A travel enthusiast will use for the traveling insurance coverage while the one who is unprotected regarding the building will be using for the building or house insurance coverage.
Lots of people that are extremely worried regarding their houses and properties obtain the building insurance coverage. House insurance policy also called as house owner’s insurance coverage, is a kind of property insurance policy that covers an exclusive or personal home. This sort of insurance policy ensures that any type of loss brought on by fire, theft or other natural occasion to the home is economically sustained. Having an insured building is a satisfaction as any all-natural loss to the property is insurable. It’s a great idea to guarantee the residential property.
There are other features which could additionally be contributed to the whole high risk travel insurance coverage. These are provided listed below.
It is totally absolutely to the related relevant individual as well as of the choices among high risk danger insurance insurance policy property insurance insurance policy be regarded related to best. If a person is a travel enthusiast as well as often takes a trip, it is suggested for him to apply for the high risk traveling insurance policy. High threat travel insurance policy provides the individual with the fulfillment throughout the whole journey.
A man has constantly really felt insecure in front of the all-natural disasters and also unwell happenings. The disastrous occasions have always left a man with sorrow and a great deal of loss. The male has no control over such occurrences as well as the only point which guy could do is to try lessening the loss. Many floods, quakes, battles, crashes as well as devastating events made a a great deal of people to face the seriousness of the occurrences. A family left behind, after the fatality of the only bread earner would end up living in the most unimaginable scenarios as a result of absence of financial backing.|Home VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the ideal alternative???
There was a large requirement to do something about these occurrences. An unsupported family members, after such incidents, primarily ended up in an awful scenario.
The unforgettable remarkable fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September destroyed damaged 13,000 homes. London was economically very considerable as well as any loss in London would influence the entire location. In 1681, economist Nicholas Barbon came up with the first insurance policy company named “Insurance Office for Houses”.
The wonderful fire of London gave birth to a correct insurance system which was badly needed with the raising distressing occasions. The company that gives insurance policy is called as an insurance coverage company, insurance policy service provider or underwriter. Insurance is a source of security from the loan losses due to various events.
The threats which just entail the possibility of loss and also they could not end up with any type of advantages. Only these risks are insurable.
These are the dangers which likewise include a fair possibility of advantage in enhancement to loss opportunities. In basic words, these are the circumstances in which the insured individual deliberately risks his financial resources in order to get some additional benefit.
These are the losses which are triggered by natural occasions like quakes, floods and so on. These dangers are insurable.
These are the losses which are caused by economic situation transforming. These risks are not insurable.
Lots of people don’t have traveling insurance coverage while some others do not have home insurance coverage. A travel enthusiast will apply for the travel insurance coverage while the one that is unsafe about the residential property will be applying for the home or house insurance coverage.
Lots of people who are very concerned regarding their homes as well as residential or commercial properties apply for the home insurance policy. House insurance also called as home owner’s insurance policy, is a type of residential property insurance policy that covers a personal or individual house.
There are other features which can also be included to the whole high risk travel insurance coverage. These are provided listed below.
It is totally absolutely to the related person and as well as of the choices among amongst risk travel insurance insurance coverage as well as home insurance policy be regarded concerned best. If an individual is a travel lover and also commonly travels, it is recommended for him to apply for the high danger traveling insurance coverage. High threat traveling insurance policy offers the individual with the satisfaction throughout the whole journey.
A male has actually always really felt insecure in front of the all-natural catastrophes as well as sick happenings. The tragic occasions have always left a man with grief and also a great deal of loss. The male has no control over such occurrences and also the only thing which male can do is to attempt lessening the loss. Lots of floodings, quakes, battles, crashes and tragic occasions made a multitude of people to deal with the severity of the cases. A family members left behind, after the fatality of the only bread income earner would certainly wind up residing in the most unthinkable scenarios because of absence of financial backing.|Residence VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the finest choice???
There was a sheer need to do something about these events. An unsupported family members, after such occurrences, primarily finished up in a terrible scenario.
The remarkable terrific fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September destroyed around 13,000 homes. A lot of stuff obtained destroyed and also London faced an economic tremor. London, then, was growing as a trade center in Europe. London was financially very substantial as well as any kind of loss in London would certainly affect the whole location. In 1681, financial expert Nicholas Barbon developed the first insurance provider named “Insurance Office for Houses”. Initially, 5 thousand homes were guaranteed under this firm.
The fantastic fire of London provided birth to a proper insurance policy system which was badly needed with the enhancing terrible events. The company that gives insurance coverage is called as an insurance coverage company, insurance policy carrier or expert. Insurance is a source of defense from the loan losses due to various occasions.
The risks which only involve the possibility of loss as well as they can not finish up with any type of benefits. Only these risks are insurable.
. Dangers could likewise be differentiated on the basis of the economy.
These are the losses which are created by natural occasions like earthquakes, floods and so on. These risks are insurable.
Numerous people don’t have travel insurance policy while some others do not have property insurance coverage. A travel lover will use for the travel insurance while the one who is unprotected about the residential or commercial property will be applying for the residential property or home insurance policy.
Numerous individuals that are really worried concerning their houses and also properties apply for the residential or commercial property insurance. Home insurance policy additionally called as house owner’s insurance policy, is a type of residential property insurance policy that covers a personal or personal residence.
There are other attributes which can also be contributed to the entire high risk travel insurance coverage. These are given below.
It is totally as much as the relevant person as well as neither of the selections amongst high threat traveling insurance coverage as well as home insurance policy could be considered as ideal. If a person is a travel lover and commonly travels, it is recommended for him to obtain the high threat travel insurance. High danger traveling insurance coverage supplies the person with the complete satisfaction throughout the whole journey. High risk travel insurance coverage could additionally be amended inning accordance with the requirement. On the other hand, the property insurance coverage makes it sure that any type of home loss because of any kind of dreadful occurring is economically supported. So, it’s up to the concerned individual.
A guy has always felt insecure in front of the all-natural disasters and unwell happenings. The tragic events have always left a male with grief as well as a lot of loss. The guy has no control over such events and also the only thing which guy can do is to attempt decreasing the loss. Many floods, quakes, battles, mishaps as well as disastrous events made a a great deal of people to face the intensity of the occurrences. A family left behind, after the death of the only bread income earner would finish up living in one of the most unthinkable scenarios because of absence of financial backing.|Home VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the finest alternative???
Such events never ever quit taking place. In the background, a great deal of such cases could be connected. Nature, often, with all its powers can be distressing. There was a large requirement to do something regarding these occurrences. An unsupported household, after such incidents, primarily finished up in a dreadful circumstance.
The memorable terrific fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September ruined around 13,000 homes. A lot of things got destroyed and also London faced a financial tremor. London, after that, was growing as a profession center in Europe. London was economically very considerable and also any kind of loss in London would certainly affect the entire area. In 1681, economist Nicholas Barbon came up with the first insurer called “Insurance Office for Houses”. Initially, 5 thousand homes were guaranteed under this company.
The great fire of London provided birth to a proper insurance policy system which was seriously needed with the increasing distressing events. In 1680, many shippers and seafarers used to see the tea shop of David Lloyd. There, they discussed the losses mixed-up and the requirement of some option. This also aided to grow the suggestion of Insurance Policy. Today, each person has guaranteed his property, wellness, travel and so on. The firm that supplies insurance policy is called as an insurance coverage firm, insurance coverage service provider or underwriter. On the other hand, a person who guarantees himself is called as Insured or policyholder. Insurance policy provides security from the cash losses due to various events. It’s like a kind of threat management which guarantees that the event having unpredictable losses may be monetarily supported somehow.
The dangers which only entail the opportunity of loss and also they could not finish up with any kind of advantages. Only these risks are insurable.
. Risks can additionally be differentiated on the basis of the economic climate.
Some individuals have enough financial resources to request all kind of insurance policies. People who don’t earn also a lot have to choose in between some insurance policy. Lots of people don’t have traveling insurance coverage while some others do not have building insurance coverage. It’s totally depending on the way of living which a person adheres to. A travel enthusiast will use for the traveling insurance while the one who is unprotected regarding the residential property will be requesting the residential property or residence insurance.
Several people that are extremely concerned concerning their homes and buildings obtain the property insurance policy. House insurance policy likewise called as property owner’s insurance policy, is a sort of building insurance that covers a private or personal home. This sort of insurance policy guarantees that any type of loss triggered by fire, burglary or any kind of other all-natural event to the property is financially sustained. Having an insured residential or commercial property is a satisfaction as any kind of all-natural loss to the property is insurable. It’s a really excellent idea to guarantee the residential property.
There are a few other functions which could additionally be included in the entire high risk travel insurance coverage. These are offered listed below.
It is entirely approximately the relevant person as well as neither of the selections amongst high risk traveling insurance as well as residential or commercial property insurance could be considered as ideal. If a person is a travel lover and frequently travels, it is encouraged for him to get the high danger travel insurance policy. High danger traveling insurance policy gives the person with the fulfillment throughout the entire trip. High risk travel insurance coverage could likewise be amended inning accordance with the demand. On the other hand, the building insurance policy makes it certain that any kind of residential or commercial property loss as a result of any kind of disastrous taking place is economically supported. So, it’s up to the worried person.
A male has constantly really felt insecure in front of the natural disasters as well as sick happenings. The dreadful occasions have always left a man with grief and a great deal of loss. The man has no control over such cases as well as the only thing which guy can do is to attempt decreasing the loss. Several floods, quakes, wars, mishaps and also devastating events made a multitude of people to face the seriousness of the events. A family members left behind, after the death of the only bread income earner would finish up staying in one of the most unthinkable circumstances because of lack of financial assistance.|House VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the finest option???
There was a large need to do something regarding these incidents. An unsupported family, after such events, primarily ended up in an awful scenario.
The unforgettable excellent fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September ruined around 13,000 homes. A lot of things got destroyed and London dealt with an economic shake. London, then, was expanding as a profession hub in Europe. London was economically extremely significant as well as any kind of loss in London would certainly impact the entire location. In 1681, financial expert Nicholas Barbon generated the initial insurance policy business named “Insurance Office for Houses”. Originally, 5 thousand homes were guaranteed under this firm.
The great fire of London gave birth to an appropriate insurance coverage system which was seriously needed with the increasing dreadful occasions. The firm that supplies insurance policy is called as an insurance policy firm, insurance coverage carrier or underwriter. Insurance coverage is a source of defense from the loan losses due to various occasions.
The risks which only involve the possibility of loss and also they could not end up with any kind of benefits. Just these risks are insurable.
. Risks could likewise be distinguished on the basis of the economy.
These are the losses which are brought on by all-natural occasions like quakes, floodings etc. These risks are insurable.
Several people don’t have travel insurance while some others don’t have property insurance policy. A travel lover will apply for the traveling insurance policy while the one that is unsafe concerning the home will be using for the building or house insurance policy.
Lots of people who are extremely worried concerning their residences and also residential properties use for the residential or commercial property insurance. Home insurance coverage additionally called as house owner’s insurance policy, is a kind of residential or commercial property insurance that covers a private or individual residence. This kind of insurance policy makes sure that any loss caused by fire, theft or other natural event to the home is monetarily supported. Having an insured home is a satisfaction as any kind of all-natural loss to the residential property is insurable. It’s an excellent suggestion to insure the residential property.
There are a few other features which could additionally be included in the entire high risk travel insurance coverage. These are provided below.
It is entirely approximately the associated person and also neither of the selections amongst high risk travel insurance and residential property insurance policy can be considered finest. If a person is a traveling fan and usually takes a trip, it is suggested for him to request the high risk traveling insurance policy. High threat traveling insurance coverage provides the individual with the contentment throughout the entire journey. High risk travel insurance coverage could also be amended inning accordance with the need. On the other hand, the building insurance makes it certain that any kind of home loss due to any kind of tragic taking place is monetarily supported. So, it’s up to the worried individual.
A guy has constantly really felt insecure before the all-natural calamities as well as sick happenings. The disastrous events have always left a guy with pain and a whole lot of loss. The guy has no control over such incidents as well as the only point which man could do is to attempt reducing the loss. Several floods, earthquakes, battles, accidents and devastating occasions made a a great deal of people to deal with the severity of the incidents. A household left behind, after the death of the only bread income earner would certainly end up staying in one of the most unimaginable circumstances because of absence of financial assistance.|Residence VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the ideal choice???
Such events never stopped taking place. In the background, a great deal of such incidents can be associated. Nature, sometimes, with all its powers can be awful. There was a large have to do something regarding these cases. An unsupported family, after such cases, mostly wound up in a horrible circumstance.
The extraordinary excellent fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September destroyed around 13,000 residences. A whole lot of things got destroyed and London encountered an economic shake. London, then, was growing as a profession center in Europe. London was financially extremely substantial and any kind of loss in London would certainly influence the whole area. In 1681, economist Nicholas Barbon thought of the first insurer called “Insurance Office for Houses”. 5 thousand residences were guaranteed under this firm.
The great fire of London brought to life an appropriate insurance policy system which was significantly needed with the raising dreadful events. In 1680, lots of carriers and also sailors utilized to visit the tea shop of David Lloyd. There, they talked concerning the losses mixed-up and the need of some solution. This additionally helped to grow the concept of Insurance Policy. Today, every other person has actually insured his residential or commercial property, health and wellness, travel and so on. The firm that offers insurance is called as an insurer, insurance policy service provider or expert. On the various other hand, a person who guarantees himself is called as Insured or insurance policy holder. Insurance policy provides protection from the money losses due to various occasions. It’s like a type of danger administration which guarantees that the event having unclear losses may be financially supported in some method.
The risks which just entail the opportunity of loss as well as they could not finish up with any type of advantages. Only these dangers are insurable.
These are the risks which likewise include a reasonable possibility of benefit in enhancement to loss opportunities. In easy words, these are the scenarios in which the insured person deliberately risks his finances in order to obtain some added advantage.
Numerous individuals do not have travel insurance policy while some others do not have property insurance coverage. A travel lover will apply for the traveling insurance policy while the one who is unprotected regarding the residential property will be using for the residential or commercial property or home insurance policy.
Several individuals who are very concerned concerning their residences as well as homes apply for the property insurance. Home insurance policy also called as home owner’s insurance coverage, is a kind of property insurance that covers an exclusive or personal house. This kind of insurance coverage makes certain that any kind of loss created by fire, theft or any other all-natural event to the home is economically supported. Having an insured home is a fulfillment as any type of all-natural loss to the residential property is insurable. It’s a great concept to insure the home.
There are other features which could additionally be added to the entire high risk travel insurance coverage. These are given listed below.
It is totally up to the related associated and as well as of the choices among high risk travel insurance insurance coverage and also insurance can be regarded concerned best. If a person is a travel fan as well as commonly takes a trip, it is suggested for him to apply for the high risk travel insurance policy. High danger traveling insurance supplies the person with the fulfillment throughout the entire journey.
A guy has actually always really felt insecure before the all-natural calamities and also ill happenings. The tragic occasions have actually constantly left a male with sorrow as well as a whole lot of loss. The male has no control over such cases as well as the only point which guy can do is to attempt minimizing the loss. Numerous floodings, quakes, battles, mishaps as well as dreadful occasions made a multitude of individuals to encounter the intensity of the occurrences. A family members left, after the death of the only bread income earner would wind up living in the most unthinkable scenarios due to lack of financial backing.|Residence VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the finest option???
Such occurrences never ever stopped occurring. In the background, a whole lot of such cases could be associated. Nature, occasionally, with all its powers could be terrible. There was a large should do something concerning these events. An unsupported family, after such occurrences, mainly wound up in an awful scenario.
The unforgettable memorable wonderful of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September destroyed damaged 13,000 homes. London was economically really substantial and any loss in London would certainly affect the whole location. In 1681, economist Nicholas Barbon came up with the first insurance policy firm named “Insurance Office for Houses”.
The fantastic fire of London brought to life a correct insurance system which was severely needed with the enhancing awful events. In 1680, many carriers as well as sailors made use of to check out the tea store of David Lloyd. There, they spoke about the losses at sea and also the need of some remedy. This likewise assisted to expand the idea of Insurance Policy. Today, each person has guaranteed his residential or commercial property, health, traveling and so on. The firm that gives insurance coverage is called as an insurance provider, insurance coverage service provider or underwriter. On the various other hand, an individual that guarantees himself is called as Insured or insurance policy holder. Insurance coverage provides defense from the loan losses as a result of various occasions. It’s like a kind of threat monitoring which makes certain that the celebration having unclear losses may be monetarily sustained in some means.
The risks which just include the possibility of loss and also they can not finish up with any benefits. Only these risks are insurable.
These are the risks which also include a reasonable possibility of advantage in enhancement to loss possibilities. In simple words, these are the scenarios in which the guaranteed individual intentionally risks his finances in order to get some added advantage.
Some people have sufficient funds to look for all kind of insurance coverages. Nonetheless, individuals who do not make way too much need to choose between some insurance coverage. As an example, many individuals do not have traveling insurance policy while some others do not have building insurance. It’s completely based on the way of living which an individual complies with. A traveling lover will obtain the travel insurance policy while the one who is unprotected about the building will be getting the residential property or residence insurance.
Many people that are very worried about their homes and also residential or commercial properties apply for the home insurance coverage. House insurance coverage likewise called as homeowner’s insurance, is a type of property insurance policy that covers an exclusive or individual home.
There are some other features which can additionally be included in the entire high risk travel insurance coverage. These are given listed below.
It is totally absolutely to the related relevant individual as well as of the choices among high risk threat insurance and property insurance insurance policy could regarded concerned best. If an individual is a travel enthusiast as well as commonly takes a trip, it is recommended for him to apply for the high danger traveling insurance. High risk traveling insurance coverage supplies the individual with the contentment throughout the whole trip.
A man has always really felt insecure in front of the natural disasters as well as ill happenings. The tragic occasions have always left a man with despair and also a lot of loss. The male has no control over such occurrences and also the only point which guy can do is to try lessening the loss. Several floods, earthquakes, battles, crashes and disastrous occasions made a multitude of people to encounter the seriousness of the events. A household left, after the death of the only bread income earner would end up living in one of the most unimaginable situations due to absence of financial backing.|House VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the finest choice???
Such events never quit happening. In the background, a whole lot of such incidents could be connected. Nature, occasionally, with all its powers can be distressing. There was a sheer should do something about these occurrences. An in need of support family members, after such events, primarily wound up in an awful circumstance.
The unforgettable extraordinary fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September destroyed damaged 13,000 homesResidences London was monetarily extremely considerable as well as any type of loss in London would impact the entire location. In 1681, economic expert Nicholas Barbon came up with the very first insurance business called “Insurance Office for Houses”.
The wonderful fire of London brought to life a correct insurance coverage system which was significantly required with the raising awful events. In 1680, many shippers and seafarers used to check out the tea shop of David Lloyd. There, they discussed the losses mixed-up and the demand of some service. This likewise assisted to grow the suggestion of Insurance Policy. Today, every other individual has insured his property, wellness, travel and so on. The company that supplies insurance is called as an insurer, insurance provider or expert. On the other hand, an individual that insures himself is called as Insured or insurance policy holder. Insurance policy gives security from the cash losses as a result of various events. It’s like a form of threat management which makes certain that the party having unclear losses may be economically supported somehow.
The risks which just involve the possibility of loss and they could not end up with any advantages. Just these threats are insurable.
These are the threats which additionally include a fair chance of advantage in addition to loss possibilities. In basic words, these are the circumstances in which the insured person intentionally risks his finances in order to obtain some additional advantage.
Some individuals have sufficient finances to make an application for all sort of insurance policies. However, individuals that do not earn excessive have to determine in between some insurance policy. Numerous individuals don’t have travel insurance coverage while some others don’t have building insurance coverage. It’s entirely dependent on the lifestyle which a person follows. A travel enthusiast will get the traveling insurance while the one who is unsecured regarding the property will be obtaining the home or residence insurance coverage.
Numerous people that are extremely concerned about their homes as well as residential or commercial properties use for the residential property insurance coverage. House insurance also called as home owner’s insurance policy, is a type of home insurance that covers a personal or personal home.
There are other functions which can likewise be included to the entire high risk travel insurance coverage. These are provided below.
It is completely up to the associated person and neither of the selections among high risk travel insurance policy as well as residential or commercial property insurance coverage can be considered best. If a person is a traveling enthusiast and commonly travels, it is advised for him to make an application for the high threat traveling insurance. High danger travel insurance provides the person with the complete satisfaction throughout the whole trip. High risk travel insurance coverage could likewise be modified according to the demand. On the various other hand, the building insurance policy makes it sure that any kind of residential property loss as a result of any devastating occurring is financially supported. So, it’s up to the concerned person.
A man has actually constantly felt insecure in front of the natural disasters and ill happenings. The tragic occasions have constantly left a guy with pain as well as a great deal of loss. The male has no control over such cases and the only point which man could do is to attempt reducing the loss. Lots of floodings, quakes, wars, crashes as well as tragic events made a multitude of individuals to face the severity of the cases. A family left, after the death of the only bread income earner would wind up living in one of the most unthinkable situations due to absence of monetary assistance.|Residence VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the finest option???
There was a large demand to do something regarding these occurrences. An in need of support family members, after such events, mostly finished up in a terrible situation.
The unforgettable great terrific of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September destroyed around 13,000 homesHouses London was monetarily very substantial and any loss in London would influence the whole location. In 1681, economist Nicholas Barbon came up with the first insurance coverage firm called “Insurance Office for Houses”.
The great fire of London provided birth to a proper insurance system which was badly required with the enhancing dreadful events. In 1680, numerous shippers and also sailors used to see the tea store of David Lloyd. There, they discussed the losses mixed-up and also the demand of some solution. This likewise helped to expand the suggestion of Insurance Policy. Today, every various other individual has guaranteed his home, health, traveling and so on. The firm that offers insurance policy is called as an insurance provider, insurance coverage provider or underwriter. On the various other hand, an individual that insures himself is called as Insured or insurance policy holder. Insurance policy is a resource of protection from the loan losses due to different events. It’s like a kind of danger administration which makes sure that the party having unclear losses could be monetarily sustained somehow.
The dangers which just involve the possibility of loss and they could not finish up with any advantages. Only these threats are insurable.
These are the dangers which likewise include a reasonable possibility of advantage in enhancement to loss opportunities. In simple words, these are the situations in which the guaranteed person purposely risks his funds in order to obtain some additional advantage.
These are the losses which are triggered by all-natural events like earthquakes, floods and so on. These threats are insurable.
Some people have sufficient funds to request all sort of insurance policies. People that do not earn too a lot have to choose between some insurance policy. Several individuals don’t have traveling insurance policy while some others do not have property insurance policy. It’s entirely based on the way of living which an individual complies with. A traveling enthusiast will get the traveling insurance coverage while the one who is unsecured regarding the property will certainly be obtaining the home or residence insurance coverage.
Several people who are very worried about their homes and properties apply for the building insurance policy. Residence insurance additionally called as home owner’s insurance coverage, is a kind of residential or commercial property insurance policy that covers an exclusive or individual residence.
There are a few other functions which can also be added to the whole high risk travel insurance coverage. These are offered listed below.
It is totally completely to the related relevant and and also of the choices among high risk danger traveling insurance policy property insurance insurance coverage be regarded as bestIdeal If an individual is a travel enthusiast and also commonly takes a trip, it is suggested for him to use for the high risk traveling insurance coverage. High risk traveling insurance supplies the person with the contentment throughout the whole journey.
A male has always really felt insecure before the all-natural calamities and sick happenings. The tragic occasions have actually always left a male with despair and also a great deal of loss. The man has no control over such occurrences as well as the only thing which man could do is to try reducing the loss. Numerous floodings, earthquakes, wars, mishaps and devastating events made a lot of people to encounter the severity of the cases. A family left, after the death of the only bread earner would certainly wind up living in one of the most unimaginable circumstances because of lack of economic assistance.|Home VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the best option???
Such events never ever stopped taking place. In the history, a lot of such events could be associated. Nature, often, with all its powers could be terrible. There was a large should do something regarding these cases. An in need of support family members, after such incidents, primarily wound up in a horrible scenario.
The unforgettable wonderful fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September damaged around 13,000 residences. A great deal of things got destroyed as well as London faced a monetary trembling. London, after that, was expanding as a trade center in Europe. London was economically extremely significant as well as any loss in London would certainly influence the entire area. In 1681, economic expert Nicholas Barbon developed the initial insurer named “Insurance Office for Houses”. Initially, 5 thousand residences were insured under this company.
The fantastic fire of London gave birth to a correct insurance coverage system which was seriously required with the boosting awful events. The firm that offers insurance coverage is called as an insurance business, insurance policy provider or expert. Insurance policy is a resource of protection from the money losses due to different events.
The risks which only include the opportunity of loss and also they could not end up with any benefits. Just these dangers are insurable.
These are the threats which also include a reasonable possibility of advantage in enhancement to loss possibilities. In simple words, these are the situations in which the insured individual purposely risks his finances in order to obtain some added advantage.
These are the losses which are triggered by all-natural events like quakes, floods etc. These threats are insurable.
Some individuals have enough financial resources to make an application for all kind of insurance policies. However, individuals who do not gain way too much need to make a decision in between some insurance. Many individuals do not have travel insurance policy while some others don’t have building insurance. It’s totally reliant on the way of life which an individual follows. A traveling enthusiast will look for the travel insurance coverage while the one who is unsafe regarding the residential or commercial property will certainly be looking for the residential property or residence insurance.
Numerous people who are very worried regarding their homes and also residential properties apply for the home insurance. Home insurance coverage also called as property owner’s insurance policy, is a type of building insurance policy that covers an exclusive or individual home.
There are other features which can also be contributed to the whole high risk travel insurance coverage. These are provided listed below.
It is entirely as much as the related person as well as neither of the selections among high danger travel insurance and also property insurance can be pertained to as best. If an individual is a travel enthusiast as well as typically takes a trip, it is advised for him to obtain the high threat travel insurance. High danger traveling insurance policy provides the person with the fulfillment during the whole trip. High risk travel insurance coverage can additionally be modified inning accordance with the demand. On the other hand, the property insurance coverage makes it sure that any type of building loss as a result of any tragic taking place is monetarily sustained. It’s up to the concerned person.
A male has actually always really felt insecure in front of the all-natural disasters and also unwell happenings. The devastating events have actually constantly left a male with grief and also a great deal of loss. The guy has no control over such cases and the only point which guy could do is to attempt minimizing the loss. Several floods, earthquakes, battles, crashes and also disastrous occasions made a lot of individuals to encounter the extent of the incidents. A household left behind, after the death of the only bread earner would certainly finish up residing in the most unthinkable situations because of absence of financial backing.|Home VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the finest option???
Such events never stopped occurring. In the background, a lot of such incidents can be related. Nature, often, with all its powers could be terrible. There was a sheer have to do something about these incidents. An in need of support family, after such occurrences, mainly wound up in a terrible scenario.
The extraordinary terrific fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September ruined around 13,000 residences. A great deal of things got damaged and London faced a monetary tremor. London, after that, was growing as a profession center in Europe. London was monetarily extremely significant as well as any kind of loss in London would impact the entire location. In 1681, economic expert Nicholas Barbon thought of the very first insurance provider called “Insurance Office for Houses”. 5 thousand homes were insured under this firm.
The great fire of London gave birth to a correct insurance system which was seriously needed with the raising distressing occasions. In 1680, lots of shippers and sailors utilized to check out the tea shop of David Lloyd. There, they discussed the losses mixed-up and also the need of some remedy. This also helped to grow the idea of Insurance Policy. Today, each individual has actually insured his property, wellness, traveling and so on. The company that provides insurance policy is called as an insurance provider, insurance provider or expert. On the other hand, a person that guarantees himself is called as Insured or policyholder. Insurance policy is a source of defense from the money losses as a result of different events. It’s like a form of threat monitoring which makes certain that the event having uncertain losses could be financially supported in some means.
The dangers which just involve the opportunity of loss and they could not finish up with any type of benefits. Just these risks are insurable.
These are the threats which additionally include a fair possibility of benefit in enhancement to loss opportunities. In simple words, these are the circumstances in which the insured person intentionally risks his finances in order to get some added benefit.
Some individuals have enough funds to look for all sort of insurance policies. People that don’t make as well a lot have to choose between some insurance policy. Numerous individuals don’t have traveling insurance coverage while some others don’t have home insurance. It’s totally depending on the lifestyle which a person adheres to. A travel fan will obtain the travel insurance while the one who is unsecured about the residential or commercial property will be requesting the building or house insurance coverage.
Lots of people who are extremely worried concerning their residences as well as homes get the home insurance coverage. House insurance policy likewise called as home owner’s insurance, is a kind of residential or commercial property insurance policy that covers a private or personal house. This sort of insurance coverage makes sure that any kind of loss brought on by fire, theft or other natural occasion to the residential or commercial property is economically supported. Having an insured residential or commercial property is a satisfaction as any all-natural loss to the property is insurable. It’s an excellent idea to guarantee the residential property.
There are a few other attributes which could likewise be included in the entire high risk travel insurance coverage. These are provided below.
It is totally up to the relevant individual as well as neither of the selections among high risk travel insurance policy and residential property insurance could be considered ideal. If an individual is a travel lover as well as frequently takes a trip, it is advised for him to make an application for the high risk traveling insurance policy. High risk traveling insurance coverage provides the person with the fulfillment during the entire trip. High risk travel insurance coverage could also be amended according to the demand. On the various other hand, the property insurance policy makes it certain that any residential or commercial property loss because of any tragic taking place is monetarily supported. It’s up to the worried individual.
A man has always felt insecure in front of the all-natural disasters as well as unwell happenings. The tragic events have actually constantly left a man with sorrow as well as a lot of loss. The guy has no control over such cases and also the only point which man can do is to attempt lessening the loss. Numerous floods, quakes, battles, crashes and also disastrous events made a large number of people to face the seriousness of the occurrences. A family left behind, after the death of the only bread income earner would certainly wind up residing in the most unimaginable circumstances due to lack of economic support.|House VS High Risk Travel Insurance: Which is the finest option???
Such cases never ever stopped occurring. In the history, a great deal of such cases can be connected. Nature, often, with all its powers can be dreadful. There was a sheer requirement to do something about these occurrences. An unsupported family members, after such occurrences, mainly wound up in a horrible circumstance.
The remarkable wonderful fire of London in 1666 A.D. on 2nd September damaged around 13,000 residences. A lot of stuff obtained ruined and London dealt with a monetary trembling. London, then, was growing as a profession center in Europe. London was monetarily very significant and any kind of loss in London would impact the whole location. In 1681, economic expert Nicholas Barbon created the initial insurance provider called “Insurance Office for Houses”. 5 thousand residences were guaranteed under this company.
The great fire of London provided birth to a proper insurance coverage system which was seriously required with the enhancing dreadful occasions. The firm that supplies insurance policy is called as an insurance coverage business, insurance policy provider or expert. Insurance policy is a source of defense from the money losses due to various occasions.
The dangers which only include the opportunity of loss and also they could not end up with any type of advantages. Just these dangers are insurable.
. Threats can also be separated on the basis of the economic climate.
Numerous people don’t have travel insurance coverage while some others don’t have building insurance. A traveling fan will apply for the travel insurance policy while the one that is unsafe regarding the residential property will certainly be using for the property or residence insurance.
Lots of people who are extremely worried concerning their residences and properties make an application for the building insurance policy. Residence insurance coverage also called as home owner’s insurance, is a type of home insurance that covers a personal or personal house. This sort of insurance guarantees that any type of loss created by fire, theft or other natural event to the home is financially supported. Having an insured residential or commercial property is a contentment as any natural loss to the property is insurable. It’s a really excellent idea to guarantee the building.
There are some various other attributes which can likewise be included to the entire high risk travel insurance coverage. These are offered below.
It is completely as much as the associated individual as well as neither of the choices among high danger travel insurance policy and also property insurance coverage could be considered as finest. If an individual is a traveling lover and frequently travels, it is suggested for him to use for the high threat traveling insurance policy. High risk travel insurance supplies the person with the contentment throughout the entire journey. High risk travel insurance coverage can likewise be changed inning accordance with the demand. On the other hand, the building insurance policy makes it certain that any kind of property loss due to any kind of tragic happening is financially sustained. It’s up to the concerned individual. | 2019-04-21T22:03:48Z | https://marshsounddesign.com/home-vs-high-risk-travel-insurance-which-is-the-very-best-alternative/ |
If Hercules eats Mollusks, would he win? Wait, I guess we're talking about Moloch here.
So, are we waiting till after the update to attempt another AW?
I am wondering if it was worth the effort to post my orrery haha, hopefully they don't wipe everything again.
I have the same question. I'm also worried about potentially creating a duplicate MOC if/when the MOCs lost over the weekend are ever restored.
If they were restored, wouldnt it wipe what we are doing on this server?
Not necessarily, if they could manage some kind of database merge.
I doubt that�s likely, unfortunately.
I would applaud anything that technically complex.
And it would all be Kenny�s fault!!
Yeah. I don�t think whoever is working on this is capable of anything so great.
S2pid Question: Since I have not seen an official communication on the status of the AW, do we actually have one today?
I also do not have discord.
That wouldn't surprise me a bit at this point.
That's a fantastic question. I know we have been dodging a solid answer. As your friendly currently-online member of DAS, I will tentatively say... maybe. I have messaged Keith and if he agrees before too long, I will run an AW either at 1pm PDT or one hour delayed. Stay tuned.
That seems like a highly sensible question to me, I haven�t seen an anouncement either.
I really think it would be wise (and more fair) to wait to run the AW after the update.
Anything that happens now is subject to deletion.
Also, MOCpages went down last night and only just now came back online at 12, so I�ve had no time to post.
Did it go down for anyone else?
It was down when I last checked 5 hours ago.
Here is the thing: if we run the AW today, we will not calculate battle stats today. We will instead calculate them after all has been straightened out, otherwise we could have great, unfair, and unsettled points disparities. Rest assured that we aim to provide the most fair solution, but until we see what the outcome of tomorrow's update is, it is impossible for DAS to render judgement or make guesses as to what that solution will be.
If we run an AW today, we will count order, and nothing else. A DAS member will be actively saving all progress in the AW, likely in the form of screenshots.
The alternative option is waiting until the upcoming weekend, but the stability of the site could still be in question then. The reason we are even considering running the AW today is it might be our only opportunity for a while.
One another note, how's everyone going life wise? Hopefully everybody's doing alright.
Couldn't complain. Found a piece I needed for my Drone, so I can actually progress on the build. At least until I need to find another piece I didn't know I needed.
Gettin' ready for Brickworld. Destroying my body, hands especially, at work remodeling cabins for summer camp. Fryin' my brain designing artwork for three games for a new business we'll display and playthrough at Brickworld. The Tuesday variety of realities. All is... well, there. I guess.
How's it feel without an appendix?
Aw, you know, she ain't so bad. Luckily it didn't burst, hey?
Can't wait to get more details out and see how they play out at BW.
Dang! That sounds awesome! Especially Clunkers; I can definitely see that as something that my mates and I could get into. And it's always great to see people come together to make things like this happen.
Do you guys have a Kickstarter or something similar? I would love to help fund something like this!
Once we get the site going, we'll be able to let everyone know timelines, upcoming games, and events. We're hoping for great feedback at BW on the mechanics of the games, especially Clunkers. But I'll post stuff like that after BW.
Expect some support headed your way after Brickworld! And yeah, end of financial year tends to have that effect on things.
Remember, the Questions thread is for players to ask the DAS questions. Maybe bring the debate to this thread?
That was in the questions thread? Whoopsie thought it was here.
I see why they want to have the AW as soon as possible though. Isn't that what we all want?
I guess maintenance is over?
Aaaaand we're back! Just in time to go offline again!
We were expecting to be deluged with moc re-submissions about now.... hope you've all got your ducks in a row.
Wait, my defeat is an achievement? I would like to submit that Kiba beat everyone to unlocking that decades ago.
Of course. It transferred the target on your back to mine. LOL!
Yeah that's weird, I wonder if we have a boycott on our hands, or if people didn't get the message that the AW is today.
I wish I knew. I doubt it's a boycott, but hey, maybe somehow someone thinks that's strategic.
Mmmmm.. everyone's fingers are as slow as mine. Today's AW was broadcast on all channels.
I wonder how many active players we have in total now.
I was tapping refresh as the AW opened, but decided to see the order of attacks before declaring mine.
So yeah, strategic waiting here.
I was there... kind of... but then had an internet problem. But yes, people do seem to be missing? Hopefully everyone'll catch up in the next 24hr.
Yep, somebody is definitely unhappy with DA3.
So, you see it then, good, glad my tablet is not infected.
I think in the rules it said that the victor of DA3 would win an undisclosed prize. Perhaps that is it?
Pico, the younguns are gonna nave no idea what you're talking about.
You pass, np, I'll have her.
Wow....that was surprising. I hope whoever did it doesn't have the ability to delete the group.
The fact that it happen right at the opening of the attack window is highly suspicuous to me. I wonder if it was a distraction to steer everyone's attention from something else that might be changed. Perhaps the ORBATs or something have been tampered with?
A random sampling of ORBAT links seem to indicate that all is well.
Sweetness. Not trying to cause a panic, mind you. I'm just aware of distractions as a form of strategy.
Hey if it's somebody in the group, please give it a rest. Naked warrior chicks...burn victim soldiers...come on, that's enough. Just because you CAN be a d%ck doesn't mean you have to.
Better make an orbat back-up just in case.
Someone who has time/means to try and sabotage a war game with Legos is a sad human being with no friends and no purpose to their life.
So before this reply, there were 59 members. I click on the members link and look who could be the culprit just for kicks. LOL! I could only speculate... I clicked on the group members that were non-participants in the game.
However, after this reply posted, 2 members removed themselves: Wolfie 01 and Fives The Invincible. Had to comb through the browser history to figure out who left.
Dunno if they are the culprit. Just odd they disappear all of a sudden.
That was me, I booted both of them.
Ah! You control the action! Attack!
I'm both very upset that I didn't witness these glorious sounding warriors and also that someone is messing with our group!
Tss why so passive agressive?
With many generals distracted by infighting, DA3 might turn in a race between the sea-turtle and the wolf. Can't remember the outcome of that fable.
Just a heads up, unless whoever hacked earlier really knows how to hack, he/she shouldn�t have been able to change anything but the group rules, description, name and icon. All of that is a simple HTML exploit.
So hopefully nothing else is broken.
Thanks Daniel. I know how it works so I have been able to communicate that to rest of DAS. Someone can still do some damage, but it's mostly aesthetic. We will just have to weather it.
There is an HTML hack to make yourself an Admin, however. That could do some damage. I know not of what it is, though.
Hackers. Joy. Any Ideas of who did it anyone?
I just figured you had something else up your sleeve.
I would not advise a witch hunt.
What are you going on about? I�m lost because you only have your self to blame for where you planted your latest flag. You issued a clear invitation to the dance and Shifu took you up on it.
Right you are sir. No one to blame but myself, sir. Kind of did what I intend which was to bother Shifu, sir. Once Matt was out, my vendetta gone, and MOCpages crazed, and the Aircraft Carrier category rather out of convenient reach, I wasn't super interested, although you know I still tried, but unluckily the AW was delayed each time I was to be around, and instead picked today when I had to attack with the help of someone who forgot, that's all. Not surprised you jumped, sir. Hope things go well, wish I could have beat Shifu, not surprised the way things worked out.
You need to work on you diplomacy skills for DA4, might not have generals, proxy or otherwise, misread their wristwatches in that go.
Uhmph. I obviously need a lot of work to be ready to prosper in DA4. You doing personal training by any chance? Scratch that, I guess it'd be a bad way to start... getting advice from the enemy, you know.
... I wasn't super interested, although you know I still tried, but unluckily the AW was delayed each time I was to be around, and instead picked today when I had to attack with the help of someone who forgot, that's all. Not surprised you jumped, sir. Hope things go well, wish I could have beat Shifu, not surprised the way things worked out.
1. There was enough delay that I thought you will build everything before the AW and beat the thingamajig out of me. From the time I was tracking you MILPO, it rose from 96 to 142 and there was still 2 hours left for it to build up.
2. The only way you would have beaten me was you and somebody attack both before me. Somebody attacking at 1 and you attacking at 3 would have not worked regardless.
I put a bung in the hole just in case a DP was coming.
And I would not discount learning from the enemy.
Uhmph. I need a lot of work to be ready to prosper in DA4. You doing personal training by any chance? Scratch that, I guess it'd be a bad way to start... getting advice from the enemy, you know.
2. The only way you would have beaten me was you and somebody attack both before me. Somebody attacking at 1 and you attacking at 3 would have not work regardless.
I should have done that. But suppose the attacks had been exactly the same as they are, only mine was before yours, wouldn't that have been enough for me to beat you? The proxy affair is just my dude who was supposed to post my attack at 1:00. I was never intended to attack at 3:00, you understand, and the only person I could remotely blame for my death is the person I commissioned to attack for me at 1:00 (because they didn't do it. Not check watch enough, like Matt says).
Capital advice! Feel like I've won DA4 already!
I should have done that. But suppose the attacks had been exactly the same as they are, only mine was before yours, wouldn't that have been enough for me to beat you?
I believe Yes. Coz you would have essentially blocked me from attacking you. Then if somebody attacked next, you would have already set the precedence of the DP attack. Therefore cut my MILPO in half.
The proxy affair is just my dude who was supposed to post my attack at 1:00. I was never intended to attack at 3:00, you understand, and the only person I could remotely blame for my death is the person I commissioned to attack for me at 1:00 (because they didn't do it. Not check watch enough, like Matt says).
Ah! Now that's crazy. Can't trust anyone even proxies. LOL!
Update: Oh wait, you were not in cahoots with somebody? No. Lone attack will not work either.
Well, you've been attacked in any case by KVB. So your right, double attack would have done it. Although, your would have still attacked me, and taken F9 through water from F10. Only I would have run off to F8 and escaped elimination.
... Although, your would have still attacked me, and taken F9 through water from F10. Only I would have run off to F8 and escaped elimination.
That was the scenario running in my head when General Rowntree planted his flag next to my territory in turn 0. I thought it was gonna be a cat and mouse chase from that point on.
Power scaling like Dragon Ball Z up in here.
Went from MILPO being likes divided by two, to that restriction being removed, and now a category that DOUBLES your MILPO.
We have at least two players who've passed 1,000 MILPO due to CAT 15.
but I hope to see you back and more dangerous than ever for DA4....on Flickr....well, anywhere but this h%ll-hole.
What?!? You're going to abandon the new "faster, more reliable, and better than ever" (honest, guv) upgraded MOCpages?
Oh my god, Mocpages is working! Alleluia!!!
Now the proxy comment makes a heck of a lot more sense, that one was truly baffling to me. I guess selfishly I wish you'd set down in the D territories where there was still a little room left between H. and Gunn. I think with your firepower you would have added an interesting (if brief) dynamic to the struggle for that continent. Attacking Shifu seemed pointless to me, especially with Airstrip One having wandered away after he was punched in the nose.
Regardless of the outcome of this turn, it was great to have you in the game (twice), your MOCs were consistently good and I still say your first flag was one of the best. Sorry to see you go, but I hope to see you back and more dangerous than ever for DA4....on Flickr....well, anywhere but this h%ll-hole.
Mm, I seriously considered that, and even reached out to the people on D, but then I only came back really to join the guys on F, so that was my back up plan if Shifu should have attacked F9. Maybe I could have made more of a slice and dice there... but in fact I almost did here, from a technical point of view. See you there, sir! Or somewhere... Definitely following the rest of the game too! May I ask why everyone seems to expect those with the most territory to be most likely to win? Others have more MILPO, so it seems to me that, even if the map ends up with two people and one has far more territory, if the other has far more MILPO... wouldn't the one with less territory maybe win? I guess they can make less attacks, which is a big factor. Hmm, I will watch and see. Certainly I learn from my foes, or try to, and also from my allies, I just made that quip about advice from my opponent because it doesn't make sense to ask someone, how can I best destroy you? Right?
The army (MILPO) is the means. The territory is the goal.
Very good to know this. I will watch and see who can pull it off then! Poor Nick tho, haha!
And may I ask how you won starting one turn after the others? Was there any turning point, or just a steady win? I wish the old group was still around. Is there a map update saved somewhere, or was like everything destroyed? Just curious, anyways.
Please tell me that that build at the bottom of the page isnt the prize like it says right above it.
Lets hope its not someone in DA. If its someone in DA there would probably be less chance of them stopping.
If it is someone in DA why would they? Because there wasnt any free likes handed out or somthing?
Just delete and ignore.. Don't give this donkey a podium.
Some nice and noticable sockpuppet action going! Is there an achievement for that as well? Suspiciously leaning towards a few generals though..
Come on, give me some love too! Pretty please?
How this reminds me of the good old times when souls were being sold to lucifer in DA2. I love this game!
Hehe, thanks for the speech, even just the ring in it shows why you won DA2. I'll try my best for DA4 I hope, and will try to hold these thoughts in memory: plus a few lessons learned the hard way here... or hopefully learned, at least :D .
Who, may I ask, would you be referring to?
Aiiii!!! Papa T. is BACK, baby!
What�s this �Brick World� I�ve heard people talking about?
You could submit your capitol?
Can't wait to see your Aircraft Carrier, how's it coming along? You start it yet, or are you working on a different category?
Become my ally and you'll find out.
Not as interested in your other entries as your carrier, even though you don't currently have the coastals to use it offensively.
I do know you're going to knock it out of the park as usual, though.
Hey Zach, your Capital building's been deleted. Possibly during the update.
Thanks for the heads up, but it doesn't matter. It was destroyed last attack window anyways.
May I ask, was it deleted in the crash/reset, or was it your choice to delete it?
That's so kind of you to be so genuinely concerned about my lost DIPLO. You've brought a tear to my eye with your kindness. Bless you for your care and concern, dear sir; you are a scholar and a saint.
Seriously though, I was wondering if the reset affected any older creations.
I just got a kick out of seeing the little "2nd" next to Navarre's name in the memorial at the bottom of the home page.
Not sure why, his perseverance is near inspirational! He deserves the come back kid award if anyone does!!!
How quickly and efficiently he restored the army is impressive. I wish I could see his new work.
Zombies in Antarctica, how familiar.
And we're back! But for how long??
Wow, so we are! I knew MOCpages would turn up sometime ;) .
For those of you who don't have a presence on Flickr: You should probably be aware that Keith announced yesterday that the game is officially cancelled. Given the sequence of events that led up to his announcement, I don't think there is any chance of him "unringing the bell" now that MP is back up.
Alas, we had a good run boys. It was fun. I�m very glad I decided to join.
Thank you, once again, to the DAS for putting so much effort into this game. It�s a shame it had to be cut short, but I completely understand.
"Due to the recent crashes, DA is only alive thanks to the DAS holding on by the skin of their Keith"
"General W defeated twice, I Navarre saw that coming!"
"Oliver wanted to play DA, but he had Becker things to do."
Gunn wanted to crack some jokes, but it backfired.
Cheers to everyone involved with DA3. It was a great run that greatly benefited the community. It is a disappointment. The issues we've had with Kenney has chased away a lot of us. I'm taking a few days to decide whether or not to delete my account and move on.
We need a new leader and someone to spearhead a new site. I'd do it but I'm not in any way knowledgeable about site creation and administration. It's not my strength but I hope someone is and willing to build a new site and would have my backing.
Well, me and my brother are intern website designers, but we have no where near enough knowledge to make a worthwhile site.
Huh? I assume your going off of "backfired"?
You have deduced rightly. The quality of my joke is admittedly a subject of some debate amongst experts.
He is really whit'ty with his jokes.
I've really been lycan his stuff, but he becker get over here fast or I'll Navarre speak to him again.
I hope to be able to get Flickr sometime.
The Gunn went off. But did it hit is target?
Keith will eventually nuke this group from orbit...only way to make sure...but slide over to the DA Fan Zone and fill out you profile for DA 3, it will be an in memoriam group for DA on the 'pages.
Maybe we should create a group "DA3 afterword"? Many remained MOCs made during the fall of the site.
Woahza Tom had soem nasty options. Meteor shower was extra nasty. But Kevin! Where is Kevin the Kaiju?!?!
Ditto, it's a shame we didn't get the chance to take this to the end.
"Roses Are Red, Violets Are Blue, who is in here? Not you." Was an alliance to see if you would help in TWC.
[the group] will be deleted in about a week.
That is the one thing that's always peeved me since even DA 1. Can I at least get a reason why?
Well, it wasn�t my intention to peeve you Sam. I will leave it in the capable hands of Caleb and Nick when I depart.
It is a good question though.
Why can�t we keep it around for old time�s sake?
Oh, you mean you�ll leave the group in the hands of Caleb and Nick? Sorry, I thought you were being sarcastic and saying that you would leave �peeving Sam� to the hands of Caleb and Nick haha.
Well, it seems the apocalypse will be caused not by nukes but by bad internet stuff.
DA 3 was a bright fire that got snuffed due to the site it was hosted on.
I don't know if I'll do well in DA 4 on flickr, but I'll be there.
You're a fantastic builder, with the ability to produce decent quality builds quickly if needed.
Terrible strategist, though. Definitely need to improve on that. Find allies *before* the game starts, preferably more than one ally.
The more allies you have, the less you'll be impacted by a betrayal.
Even in the DA 3 Ready Room, I saw you were going to be a top contender. The only thing I underestimated (at the start) was your build speed.
Once again, props to getting as far as you did by playing it straight. I was rooting for you even as I conspired against you.
I do wonder why you were basically in an alliance of two, and planted your flag on a less-populated section of the map.
Wanted to give the new players some time to shine, or?
Ooh, does anyone have a favorite MOC by Category?
I liked P. Andrei's (second) gun best of all the Service Pistols, thought it was a hard choice amongst a variety of awesome attempts!
Easily all of Zach's work. His brutalist aesthetic is delicious to pore over repeatedly, and the continuous style was recognizable and instilled a hefty bit of fear when a new one showed up in the pool. Navarre's first flag was easily my favorite.
And you are correct, Gunn�s capital is the single greatest Lego creation I have ever laid eyes on.
My favorite flag was certainly Navarres also. My favorite GAA was your F-42. Favorite service pistol was Andrei�s 1911. Lots of cool Mocs overall. It was a fun time for Mocpages.
I still can't decide if I like your second pistol or Andrei's second pistol better.
D'awww shucks. Sorry about the burnt eyes.
Thats tough. Some of my favorites are Matt's jet (that thing is beautiful) Nick's APC, Seamans landing craft, Navvare/Andrei's second pistols, and Zachs PT boat.
And then everything Oliver did ties for first.
Interesting, since I liked my first pistol better than my second one ;) . But to each his own, glad you liked the blue one!
It is very difficult to choose the best ones, so in some categories I will point out several works, although there would be even more of them, but I do not want to overload the topic.
Is it a nation of placeholders?
A firetruck army wouldn't amuse Goldman. It's probably best for your personal safety that you don't join DA4 with a fire truck armada.
My idea actually was dogs. But dogs in firetrucks works!
Some of y'all didn't see it since it was on Discord, but I suggested a fire truck Mobile Missile Launcher, with the missile where the ladder would be.
Here we have it. What would've been my aircraft carrier.
Basically everything done by Zach, Pico, and Seaman instantly got my attention. The building styles and techniques were excellent.
Welp. I just posted my last anything on MOCpages, unless something drastic occurs to sway me. Enjoy the thread! See most of you on Flickr!
I woulda put it in the MOC submissions thread, but it's locked. Also this group is kinda too dead to bother with a little rule breaking.
LOL. No one can argue with you there. General, you are approved! | 2019-04-23T06:40:09Z | http://www.moc-pages.com/group_conversation.php?id=26364&topicid=107746 |
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The confusion begins when applying for benefits. If you get denied, which happens to many veterans the first try, the confusion continues throughout the appeals process, which can easily stretch to a year or longer. When you finally get approved, your compensation level is unpredictable, and it is rarely secure — the VA can reevaluate your case at any time. And you might have to travel for miles to enjoy certain benefits, such as healthcare.
A VA disability lawyer can help you simplify your benefits and make sense of them. Call 865-566-0800 for a free case evaluation with the Disability Advantage Group.
The confusion that is VA disability starts long before you receive your first benefit check. The application process is full of uncertainty. If the VA denies your claim, a common occurrence for first-time applicants, the appeals process is even more complex. While the VA offers approval guidelines for various health conditions, many of which seem simple, it is known for being erratic and arbitrary when approving and denying claims.
So, how can you cut through the confusion and enjoy the best chance of approval? A good general rule to follow is the more evidence you have, and the more clear it is, the better off you are. It is better to overwhelm the VA with proof of your eligibility than to omit anything that could help your case. A disability lawyer can help you build a thorough and compelling claim.
You can submit it to the same review queue that evaluated (and denied) your initial appeal, but with new evidence and supporting documents, ideally bolstering your claim.
You can submit it to a higher-level review queue (but cannot include new information or evidence).
You can appeal directly to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (BVA).
Based on the specifics of your claim and the reason for your denial, a VA disability lawyer can offer advice on where to submit your appeal. Some good news is that, so far, the overhaul is achieving its stated aims. Regardless of which lane they choose, veterans are reporting much shorter wait times between submitting an appeal and hearing a decision.
When you finally emerge from the other side of the byzantine application and appeal process, your approval in hand, the confusion goes away, right?
Veterans’ disability is as complicated for current recipients as it is for applicants. It starts with the lack of predictability or stability in your benefit level. Depending on a number of factors, your monthly compensation could be anywhere from under $200 to more than $3,000 per month. The benefit level you receive may not be what you expected to receive or what you believe you deserve. Moreover, even if you are approved for a high benefit amount, it is subject to change at any moment.
If your approval of VA disability benefits was for a lower compensation level than you believe you should have gotten, or if the VA has notified you it is reevaluating your benefits, no doubt to determine if it can lower your monthly award, a VA disability lawyer can help you fight for the compensation you deserve.
Veterans’ benefits include not only monthly compensation but also perks such as free healthcare. If you are a veteran with a service-connected disability, and you are approved for veterans’ benefits, you can receive treatment for your condition for free at a VA facility.
But it is not always as simple as making a short drive to your nearest hospital.
Many veterans have complained that their assigned VA hospital — where they must go to receive free healthcare guaranteed by their benefits — is hours from their home address. For veterans with mobility issues, often the result of their service-connected injury or illness, an inconveniently located medical facility can effectively take away the ability to receive free healthcare to which they are entitled.
If you are having difficulty taking advantages of your VA disability benefits because of logistical challenges, a lawyer can help.
Something as arbitrary as the state you live in can have substantial implications on how well taken care of you are as a disabled veteran.
According to an NPR analysis from 2013, states vary wildly in how much they spend on veterans. For instance, while West Virginia spends almost $7,700 per veteran per year, Delaware spends less than $4,600, even though in both states veterans make up 10% of the population.
The VA disability lawyers at the Disability Advantage Group can help you navigate the complicated system of veterans’ benefits. No matter the issue you are facing, we want to help you make the most of your VA disability. For a free consultation and case evaluation, call us at 865-566-0800.
To receive Social Security Disability Insurance or Supplemental Security Income, you have to fill out a lot of forms. You can do this online, over the phone, or in person at your local Social Security office. If you do it over the phone or in person, a Social Security representative can help you. However, knowing how to answer questions on disability forms is not always straightforward.
You can work with a disability lawyer to fill out your application and gather supporting documentation. Given the low approval rate for first-time disability applicants, it can be a bog help to have an attorney go over the forms with you and help you put together the most compelling claim possible, backed by strong evidence.
Regardless of how you choose to apply, it is essential to fill out the disability forms correctly and not omit any critical information. Here are some of the major items you can expect to encounter when applying.
The main Social Security disability form, called the Adult Disability Report, will ask a lot of questions about your disability itself. You should be as clear and thorough as possible when answering these questions. The more accurate information you give, the better your chances of approval.
You need to know the date you became disabled. This is important for accuracy’s sake and because it may determine the date your benefits officially begin. That is, once you get approved for disability, you may be eligible for back pay starting from the date you became disabled. You want this date to be accurate, so you get all the benefits you deserve.
The form includes a lengthy section to describe your medical records, including your diagnosis, medical tests you have undergone, and doctors’ observations. It is important to fill this out thoroughly and to attach supporting documentation to back up any claims you make. Your lawyer can help you collect the medical evidence you need to supplement this section.
You will also need to answer a number of questions about your employment history. Social Security disability is granted only to people the SSA believes are incapable of working due to their disability. That is why it wants to know about your employment history: so it can decide if you are capable of returning to any job you have done before.
The Adult Disability Report asks not only about your most recent job, but about the last five positions you held over the past 15 years. If you have not been in the workforce for 15 years, you will need to list every job you have ever had.
Make sure to compile this list carefully and include every job (up to 5), even those you held for only a short time. If you do not list it and the SSA happens to discover it, that can reflect poorly on you.
In addition to your work history, the SSA also wants to know about the education and job training you have received. With this information, the SSA can match your skills to available jobs it believes you can do even with your disability.
What If You Get Confused or Do Not Know How to Answer?
If you get stuck on a question when filling out a disability form, you are better off consulting with a lawyer than trying to guess how you should answer. One erroneous or insufficient answer may be all it takes to sink an otherwise solid application.
The disability attorneys at the Disability Advantage Group can help you apply and get approved for Social Security disability. We will go through the application process with you, make sure your claim is thorough and compelling, and help you gather and submit all the evidence you need.
For a free case evaluation with a member of our team, call us at 865-566-0800.
If you are planning an upcoming wedding, you may wonder how marriage affects Social Security benefits. There are certain situations where both spouses can draw benefits.
The following sections provide a basic overview. For a more personalized review of your unique situation, you should speak to the qualified disability attorneys at the Disability Advantage Group. We can look at the details of your situation and offer our advice. Call 865-566-0800 today to schedule a free evaluation with one of our lawyers.
How will marriage affect my benefits?
Not all Social Security benefits provide the same assistance. Some give retirement income to workers over a certain age. Others provide income replacement for workers who become disabled before retirement. There are also benefits for the poor and disabled.
The three main types of Social Security benefits are as follows.
This disability program is for people who have worked and paid into the Social Security system through their payroll taxes. You need proof of a qualifying medical condition in addition to a sufficient work history for this program.
This program is need-based. To receive SSI benefits, you must have a qualifying disability as well as a household income below a certain amount. There are also limits on how much your household can have in assets.
This is regular retirement income for which every worker is eligible beginning at age 62. However, the longer you wait to take it—up to age 70—the larger monthly benefit amount you receive.
How will my marriage affect my SSDI benefits?
Because payroll taxes fund the SSDI program, eligibility depends on having a sufficient work history. In some situations, however, that work history does not have to be your own. If you have a qualifying disability, you might be able to receive benefits based on the work history of a parent or spouse.
Getting married may or may not affect your SSDI benefits. It all depends on whose work record is providing your benefits.
If you qualify for SSDI benefits based on your own record, getting married does not affect your benefits in any way. This is true regardless of your spouse’s income or disability status.
If your parents’ work record provides your eligibility for SSDI, you will lose your benefits upon getting married.
There is one exception. If you are an adult disabled child who marries another adult disabled child receiving SSDI benefits from their parents, both of you might be able to keep your respective benefits. Talk to one of our attorneys about your specific case.
If you receive SSDI benefits from your ex-spouse’s work record, you will stop receiving benefits upon marrying a new spouse.
If you receive benefits from a deceased ex-spouse, you will lose those benefits if you get remarried before the age of 50—or the age of 60 if you are not disabled yourself.
Does marriage affect SSI benefits?
As SSI is an income-based program, the effect of marriage on benefits is more complex. If your spouse receives no income, your benefits should not change. However, if your spouse contributes income to the household—even if that income comes from SSI or another government program—you both risk a reduction in your benefits, as your combined income could easily put you above the threshold.
If you receive SSI benefits, you should speak to one of our disability attorneys before your marriage. We can advise you on how to move forward in a way that maximizes your benefits and those of your future spouse.
Your spouse can terminate their benefits and receive spousal benefits under you.
The best option to choose is the one that results in the biggest overall benefit amount. We can help you figure out which option will earn you the largest monthly payment.
Call 865-566-0800 to talk to a qualified disability attorney.
Have questions? Our attorneys are here to advise you. Call the Disability Advantage Group, today at 865-566-0800 to set up a consultation—for free.
If your spouse receives government benefits, you may be wondering what happens to their Social Security when they die. These survivors benefits can go to dependent family members, but the amount each family member receives—and which family members receive them—depends on a few factors.
If you have questions about what happens to your spouse’s benefits after death, the disability attorneys at the Disability Advantage Group, can help. Contact us at 865-566-0800 to speak to an attorney.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) runs three different benefit programs, each with a different purpose. The first type is standard retirement. This is the benefit for which anyone with a sufficient work history is eligible upon reaching retirement age.
The SSA’s two other programs deal directly with medical disabilities. Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) is a program for workers who become disabled. Like the SSA’s retirement program, it requires a sufficient work history to be eligible. Last, there is Supplemental Security Income (SSI). SSI is a welfare program for low-income, low-asset households with disabled members.
If your spouse receives retirement benefits or SSDI, then you are eligible to receive their benefits after they die.
Which surviving dependents receive benefits?
So, how does the SSA decide which surviving dependents receive benefits, and how much will they receive?
First, the SSA sets a limit on the total amount all dependents may receive. It is generally 150 to 180 percent of the deceased’s benefit. Thus, if your spouse was receiving $1,000 per month, then you and any other dependents may receive a max of $1,500 to $1,800.
The following sections explain how the SSA divvies up that money between you and other family members.
If you have reached full retirement age, you would receive the full benefit amount.
Certain situations can affect the survivor benefit amount. If you divorced before your ex-spouse’s death or have remarried, you may not be eligible for your deceased spouse’s payments. Similarly, if you work or if you draw disability benefits of your own, you may not qualify. If you fall under one of these categories, contact our office today. We can help you understand if you qualify.
The child becomes disabledbefore age 22.
Have received at least 50 percent of their financial support from your spouse.
For grandchildren under 12 months old, they must have lived with the grandparent for most of their lives and received at least half their support from them.
If your grandchildren meet these conditions, they can receive benefits until the month before their 18th birthday.
The parents do not receive their own benefits at a higher amount.
A single surviving parent is eligible for 82.5 percent of the benefit amount, while two surviving parents are each eligible for 75 percent.
What if several family members are all eligible for a large benefit amount?
For instance, what if your spouse left behind two dependent children, two dependent parents, and you? That totals to five people, all eligible for 75 percent of the monthly benefit amount. The problem is the maximum family amount is no higher than 150 to 180 percent.
In this scenario, the SSA will reduce everyone’s benefit so that the total is under the limit. Each of the five eligible dependents would receive something along the lines of 30 to 36 percent.
A qualified attorney can help sort out a deceased spouse’s disability benefits. Call the experts at the Disability Advantage Group, today at 865-566-0800.
If you are divorced and your ex-husband receives Social Security benefits, you might be eligible for benefits of your own, based on his monthly payment. Moreover, there is a chance you can collect your own, separate benefits in addition to the compensation from your ex-husband.
The qualification process has a lot of rules and stipulations, though. The Social Security attorneys at the Disability Advantage Group, can evaluate your situation and advise you on how to maximize your benefits. Call 865-566-0800 for more information on collecting Social Security from your ex-husband and yourself.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) runs three programs that distribute benefits. The first is the traditional retirement benefit program, which you are eligible for once you reach retirement age.
The SSA also runs two programs to help disabled individuals who are not yet eligible for retirement benefits. These are Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
Of the three programs, the only one that does not allow you to receive your ex-spouse’s benefits is SSI. If your ex-husband receives SSDI or retirement benefits, you can potentially get a monthly payment based on his record with the SSA, even if you qualify for your own benefits, as well.
The SSA awards benefits to spouses—and ex-spouses—based on the record of person who is eligible for benefits. That means if your ex-husband’s work history qualified him for SSDI payments, but yours does not, you can still receive a monthly payment based on his Social Security records.
Under the SSA’s guidelines for divorced spouses, your benefit amount can equal up to 50 percent of the amount your ex-husband receives each month.
What if I was receiving spousal benefits before my husband and I divorced?
You are not eligible to receive a larger benefit amount yourself.
If you become eligible for a larger amount, you will not continue to receive your ex-husband’s benefits on top of your own benefits. This can happen if you become disabled and qualify for a higher SSDI payment than the spousal benefits you were receiving. In this case, the SSA would pay you this amount instead of any benefits from your ex-husband.
If, however, you qualify for your own benefits, but the monthly amount is lower than your spousal benefits, the SSA would make up the difference between the two numbers. This way, your total monthly amount will equal what you were making before.
What if my divorced occurred before my ex-husband started receiving his benefits?
You are not eligible to receive a larger benefit amount for yourself.
What if I have dependent children with my ex-husband?
If you have children with your ex-husband and they are under age 16 or disabled—and you are the primary caregiver—you are eligible for an additional benefit. This benefit lasts until your children become adults or no longer qualify as disabled. You will not lose this additional benefit if you get remarried.
What happens if I get remarried?
If you remarry, you lose all benefits from your ex-husband other than the auxiliary benefit for dependent children. If your subsequent marriage ends, either due to divorce, annulment, or death, you can begin receiving ex-spousal benefits again.
What if my ex-husband dies?
As you can see from the above, the protocol that governs ex-spouses receiving benefits is not always cut and dry. There are a lot of stipulations and it is important to know exactly what you qualify for before seeking benefits.
A skilled lawyer can help you get the most in compensation. At the Disability Advantage Group, our specialty is Social Security benefits. Our attorneys can analyze your situation—as well as that of your ex-husband—and determine how to maximize your benefits. We are available to answer any questions you have about the process and to offer legal advice. Call our office today at 865-566-0800 to set up a time to meet with our attorneys.
Whether a husband and wife can both collect Social Security depends on a few factors. The circumstances at play include what type of benefits one or both partners receive, their ages, and their total income.
There are also situations where each partner is eligible to collect their own benefits, but it may make more sense for one partner to receive spousal benefits from the other. Sorting it all out can be exceedingly complicated. To ensure you maximize the benefits available to you and your spouse, it is best to meet with one of the qualified Social Security attorneys at the Disability Advantage Group. Call 865-566-0800 today to schedule a free consultation.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) offers three main types of benefits. Two of them are for people who become disabled before they reach retirement age. The third is the standard retirement benefit that everyone with enough work history may receive.
Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) is a disability program for workers who become disabled. It receives its funding from the payroll taxes. Thus, only people who have earned enough work credits and paid taxes into the system are eligible to receive benefits under this program.
Supplemental Security Insurance (SSI) is also for disabled people, but rather than being an insurance program like SSDI, it is a welfare program for the needy. You do not need a work history to be eligible. However, the program has strict income requirements. If you earn too much money or have too many assets, you cannot receive SSI.
Retirement is available regardless of disability status. This program only has two requirements. You must be at least 62 years old, though you can earn a bigger monthly check the longer you wait to start receiving benefits —up to age 70. The second requirement is that the recipient has a work history. The more you have earned in your lifetime and the more you have paid in payroll taxes, the higher your benefit amount.
Can a husband and wife both receive SSDI at the same time?
SSDI is the easiest program under which both spouses may receive benefits. That is because the program is not based on need. Instead, you only need to fall below the SSA’s monthly income limit—$1,170 for 2017—and meet the program’s medical requirements to qualify. In other words, no matter how much money your spouse makes, you can receive SSDI benefits as long as you have a disabling medical condition and a sufficient work history.
The same is true if your spouse receives SSDI income. If you qualify for SSDI, then it does not matter that your spouse receives benefits for his or her own disability. The SSA would approve or deny both of your applications on their own merits.
What are the spousal rules for the SSI program?
SSI, because it is need-based and has income limits, has different rules when it comes to two spouses who are both disabled. It is technically possible for both spouses to receive SSI. However, the income guidelines make it difficult for both to qualify.
Each applicant is subject to an income limit and part of the money their spouse earns counts toward that limit. This is true even if the spouse’s only source of income is SSI.
The math can be a little bit complex. Confounding the issue further is the fact that the program allows for certain income exclusions and expense deductions when calculating your total monthly income. Our lawyers can evaluate your household finances and advise you on how to maximize benefits between you and your spouse.
Married couples have a few choices when it comes to their retirement benefits. They can both elect to receive their own benefits or one partner can take their own benefits, and the other can choose to receive spousal benefits based on their husband or wife’s work history. It comes down to which choice results in a higher benefit amount.
The rules for spouses receiving traditional retirement benefits are complex. If you have questions about maximizing your retirement benefits for you and your spouse, contact our attorneys today.
Call the Disability Advantage Group, for help with Social Security benefits.
For many seniors and the vast majority of disabled people, Social Security comprises the bulk of the income used to pay bills and keep food on the table. When you apply for benefits, it is vital to do it in a way that maximizes how much you receive.
A qualified Social Security attorney can answer all your questions and advise you on how to get the most from each program. Call the experts at the Disability Advantage Group, at 865-566-0800. We can put our experience and resources to work for you.
An eating disorder is more than an extreme diet. It is a mental illness that can require years of costly treatment and therapy to overcome. If your child or teenager suffers from anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, or another eating disorder, you might qualify for Social Security Disability (SSD) benefits on the child’s behalf.
Getting disability for a child with an eating disorder is not an easy or cut-and-dry process. The child’s condition must meet the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) strict guidelines. Also, your family has to meet specific income requirements, which can vary based on the number of children and number of adults in your household.
A qualified disability attorney from the Disability Advantage Group, can examine your situation and determine if you have a chance to receive benefits for your child’s eating disorder. We handle the process from beginning to end and keep you in the loop the entire time. Call our office today at 865-566-0800 to learn how to get disability benefits for children with anorexia or other eating disorders.
Which disability program should I apply for?
If you have researched disability benefits, you might have come across two terms—Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI). It is important to understand the difference in these two programs and which you qualify for based on your situation.
SSDI is a government-run disability insurance program that draws its funding from payroll taxes. In other words, when you work and get paid, part of your payroll taxes go to this program. If you then become disabled and cannot work, you can file a claim and receive SSDI benefits. The program is only available to those who have a sufficient work history and have paid into the system and is, therefore, not available to children.
SSI, by contrast, is a government welfare program for low-income individuals and families dealing with disability. A parent seeking benefits on behalf of a disabled child might qualify for SSI.
Does my child’s eating disorder qualify for SSI benefits?
What if my child does not meet these requirements?
The SSA offers another route to receive benefits if your child does not meet these requirements specifically. We can apply for SSI disability on the basis of your child’s impairment being functionally equivalent to one or more of the above criteria.
The SSA cares more about the functional limitations caused by your child’s condition than the condition itself. This means that to build a strong case, we have to show proof that your child’s eating disorder prevents him or her from functioning at the same level as peers. We will gather the following evidence to do this.
We can use existing reports and diagnoses from psychiatrists to establish that your child has an eating disorder. If needed, we will work with you to schedule psychiatric exams to establish the extent of the condition and its effect on your child’s life.
We examine standardized test results and identify if there has been a marked decline in performance since the onset of the eating disorder.
We can use the results of lab testing to determine if your child’s eating disorder is causing any additional physical ailments.
We will use your child’s medical records to show all symptoms and signs of illness that doctors have recorded.
We can interview teachers, school administrators, parents of your child’s peers, and other individuals who spend time around your child for testimony about any behavioral changes or functional impairments related to his or her disorder.
Because SSI is a program for the needy, only families meeting certain income requirements are eligible. The most you can make varies based on how many adults and ineligible children—meaning children with no qualifying disabilities—are in your household. For instance, as of 2017, a family with one ineligible child and two adults in the household cannot earn above $4,169 per month.
However, you do not have to count all the money you make toward the SSA’s qualifying limit. You can exclude certain forms of income and also make deductions from your total income for various expenses.
We can analyze your household income and expenses to determine if you have a chance to qualify for SSI. We can help you structure your income and expenses to make the most of the available exemptions and deductions, increasing your chances of approval.
Do I need an attorney to apply for SSI benefits for a child with an eating disorder?
Though you can apply on your own, working with a disability attorney from the Disability Advantage Group, can help you build a stronger case for your child’s disability. We can help you navigate the SSA’s confusing and seemingly arbitrary rules and guidelines.
We have helped many clients receive SSI benefits for disabled children. We can put our experience, knowledge, and vast resources to work for you, too. The consultation is always free, so call our office today at 865-566-0800 to set up case review.
Getting disability for a child with dyscalculia is difficult, but not impossible. Your best chance comes when the child has another condition on top of his or her dyscalculia, such as low IQ, ADHD, or a learning disability. Regardless of the severity of your child’s condition, if your family’s income is above a certain level, your child cannot receive benefits.
A qualified attorney at the Disability Advantage Group can examine your situation and determine if you can get disability for dyscalculia on behalf of your child. If so, we can gather the evidence we need to build the strongest case on your behalf. Call 865-566-0800 today for a free consultation.
What type of disability benefits does my child qualify for?
There are two types of disability benefits, but children with disabilities are eligible for only one of them.
Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) pays benefits when a person becomes disabled and can no longer work. Because it is a government insurance program funded by payroll taxes, only people who have worked and paid into the system can receive it. Since children have no work history, they are not eligible for SSDI.
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is a government benefit for the needy. Anyone deemed low-income with a qualifying disability—or a child with a qualifying disability—can potentially receive SSI. The Social Security Administration (SSA) has a list of impairments it uses to qualify SSI applicants. To receive benefits, you or your child’s impairment must match a qualifying medical condition on the list.
Does the SSA list dyscalculia as a qualifying disability?
The SSA does not specifically list dyscalculia as a qualifying disability. However, there are categories on the list under which the disorder might qualify.
Listing 112.02 of the SSA’s impairment list describes the criteria to receive benefits for neurocognitive disorders. If dyscalculia is your child’s only condition—meaning he or she has an IQ within the normal range and no diagnosis of ADHD or any other learning disability—your best chance to receive SSI comes under this listing.
Simply having a disability in one of these areas is not enough. For your child to qualify for SSI, their disability must also be serious and persistent. This means we need to provide evidence that your child has undergone two years of medical treatment or mental health therapy for their condition.
Alternatively, your child must display an extreme or marked limitation in the ability to learn and apply information, interact with others, keep up with peers, or manage him or herself.
These standards are difficult to meet. We would need to provide extensive medical evidence attesting to the extent of your child’s condition and the treatment he or she receives for it.
Listing 112.05 provides the standards for receiving SSI on the basis of an intellectual disability. It is nearly impossible to qualify under this standard based on dyscalculia alone.
The SSA states that the applicant must have below average general intellectual functioning to qualify. Since dyscalculia deals only with numbers and not overall intelligence, it may not qualify under this listing.
For your child to receive SSI for an intellectual disorder, we would need to show evidence of significantly subaverage intellectual function. The best evidence of this is a below-average performance on a school-issued intelligence test, combined with a medical diagnosis of an additional learning impairment beyond dyscalculia.
If your child’s only condition is dyscalculia, we have a better chance of qualifying for SSI under the neurocognitive disorder criteria.
Are there any other qualifications for the SSI program?
Since SSI is a welfare program, income and asset restrictions apply. As of 2017, a single person cannot earn more than $735 in monthly income and cannot own more than $2,000 in assets. A married person cannot make more than $1,103 per month or have more than $3,000 in assets.
You do not have to count all the money you make toward the SSI limits. Many deductions and exemptions apply. As your disability attorneys, we can examine your finances and determine if they fall within the qualifying limits for SSI benefits for your child.
We can help get disability benefits for dyscalculia for your child.
The attorneys at the Disability Advantage Group can examine your case and determine the best way to move forward. We gather all available evidence and present it to the SSA in the most compelling manner to give your child the highest chance of a favorable outcome. We offer free consultations, so call us today at 865-566-0800 to set up an appointment to go over your case. | 2019-04-21T04:46:29Z | https://www.socialsecuritylawcenter.info/blog/ |
Experience shows that young people respond well to staff members who have had – and still maintain – success in their professional fields. They can actually do what they are teaching you to do! That’s why the MGA motto has always been ‘Training for the profession, from the profession’.
World-class tutors drawn from across the UK, Europe and the US with exceptional careers and incredible teaching skills work alongside our experienced managerial and administrative staff to deliver our courses, preparing the next generation of professional performer.
We also have an enviable list of consultants and guest lecturers who are on hand to offer advice and support for projects and performances, maintaining strong links to the professional world of performing arts.
Click on the staff member listed under the faculties below to find out more about them.
Director, having trained at The Royal Academy of Music, London, The Birmingham School of Acting and the College of Visual and Performing Arts in the USA. He has maintained a career in Performing Arts for over the last 14 years since graduating in 2003.
In 2005 he co-founded The MGA Academy of Performing Arts including MGA Management and MGA Casting with Murray Grant and remains MGA’s Managing Director.
As Managing Director and Producer for Beyond Broadway Productions Ltd, Andrew has, over the last 12 months, had the pleasure to work with Kerry Ellis, Adam Garcia, Christina Bianco, Ruthie Henshall, Natalie Weiss, Louise Dearman, Shoshana Bean, Scott Alan, Scott Morgan and Jonathan Reid Gealt and Jon Lee.
Finally, Drew is also a serving member of Her Majesty’s Armed Forces as a fully-qualified Royal Air Force Reservist.
Graduating in 2001 from Bird College, London Murray Grant immediately won a contract to tour the USA. Murray has performed as a dancer all over the world, most notably Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Auckland, Chicago, Sydney and Vienna. Murray has performed in Musical theatre shows such as The Merry Widow, Elisabeth, Grease, Jesus Christ Superstar, Saturday Night Fever and many more.
In addition to a lengthy performance career, Murray’s directorial and choreographic credits include: touring China and Europe with Musical Starlights, European tour of Best of Musicals, Twelve International Tenors tours of Europe and China, Moulin Rouge (German TV Production), The Phantom of the Opera and Carnaby Street Capers for P&O World Cruises, Macphersons Rant (World Premiere, Scotland), Union Square Opening Ceremony (Scotland).
Murray is one of the co-founders of The MGA Academy of Performing Arts in Edinburgh offering 3 year full-time vocational degree courses in Dance, Acting and Musical.
Marcella trained at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama on the BA Music course and at the Royal Academy of Music, London on the post-graduate musical theatre course where she received the Ian Fleming Musical Theatre Award and the Musicians Benevolent Fund Award.
Theatre Works: A Little Night Music (Jack Lyons Theatre), Evita (Zouk Amphitheatre, Beirut), Richard Rogers Centenary Celebrations (with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Glasgow Royal Concert Hall), Les Dialogues Des Carmelites (Edinburgh Festival Theatre), Manon (New Athenaeum). Marcella has also worked as a backing singer for Elton John, performing at Birmingham NEC, The Royal Albert Hall, The Royal Opera House and Wembley, and appearing on BBC 1. Other works include session singing and New Music Theatre Writers workshop.
Marcella’s teaching experience includes; Musical Supervisor for Montage Theatre Arts, London. Vocal Coaching for Forth Children’s Theatre and Musical Director for Edinburgh council’s Musical Theatre Summer School.
Laura began her dance training at the Rebecca Walker Dance School in Edinburgh. At the age of 15 she gained a scholarship with the British Ballet Organisation (BBO) in London, training with teachers from the BBO, The Royal Ballet and Art’s Educational schools. She began her full time training in 1994 at the Theatre School of Dance and Drama in Edinburgh, where she graduated with teaching certificates from the Royal Academy of Dance (RTS) and the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (AISTD).
Through her training, Laura has gone on to achieve a first class BA(Hons) Degree in Dance, and is a fully qualified Teacher in Further Education (TQFE). She has been involved in promoting the development of dance in education in Scotland through her work as a Dance specialist and qualification assessor for the Scottish Qualifications Association (SQA).
In 1997 Laura took up a full time position at Edinburgh’s Telford College as a Course Team Leader for HND Professional Stage Dance, and later progressed to the position of Programme Team Leader for Dance, overseeing the NC, HND and degree dance programmes.
She has choreographed for venues such as the Edinburgh Kings and Festival Theatres, and Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Festival. She has worked as a visiting choreographer for The Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts, The University of Arizona, and Disney Performing Arts.
For over a decade Rebecca Wallace performed internationally with various musical theatre shows such as ‘Guys and Dolls’, ‘Broadway!’, Qdos Pantomimes and on Costa and Cunard Cruise Lines. She was Dance Captain and Company Manager for several international dance tours including ‘Spirit of the Dance’ and ‘Dancing Queen’. And although her performance career predominantly kept her in theatre she also had the opportunity to perform in music videos and television programmes.
She continues to choreograph internationally having created the dance element of musical theatre and cabaret shows in Dubai, UAE and across Europe.
After retiring from performing full time Rebecca now delivers classes in 9 styles of dance to an extensive range of abilities in both mainstream and private sectors including inclusive classes for adults to holistically support their physical, emotional and intellectual wellbeing.
Having completed her MSc Dance Science and Education with an additional teaching diploma at Edinburgh University her experience includes educational leadership, curriculum design, research, pedagogy and initial teacher training.
Louise has a Diploma in Professional Stage Dance and the ISTD Diploma in Dance Education. Studying in Edinburgh and furthering her training in London she was fortunate enough to gain a vast amount of performing experience before joining Costa Cruise Lines. Here Louise travelled the globe dancing in a number of Musical Theatre Shows in the position of Production Manager and Dance Captain.
Other credits include: ‘A Mid Summers Night Dream’ – American Ballet Company, Nutcracker – Ballet West, UK Tour Bags Of Rock, UK Tour Smirnoff Vodka Promotion, Model/Dancer Hatwalk, Louise was recently invited to dance at Stirling’s Fashion Designer of the Year and has performed in an immense amount of Cabaret Shows, Events and Flashmobs throughout the UK.
James graduated from Mountview Academy Of Theatre Arts with an honours degree in Musical Theatre.
As a performer, James has performed in Musicals such as ‘Footloose’, ‘Steel Pier’, ‘Children Of Eden’, ‘The Life’ and ‘Sunday In The Park With George’. James was also a featured Vocalist on board Cunard’s Queen Mary 2.
For the past eight years, James has been performing with Fiona Kennedy in a new Scottish Musical ‘The Kist’, where the show has taken him on tour around the UK and over to New York and also allowed him to share the stage and work with Alan Cummings.
As a Musical Director, James worked on shows such as ‘Godspell’, ‘Boogie Nights’, ‘Footloose’, ‘Grease’, ‘Bare’, ‘Sunshine On Leith’ and ‘Elegies for Angels Punks and Raging Queens.
As a Choreographer, James has worked on the Scottish premieres of ‘Bonnie & Clyde’ and ‘Soho Cinders’, as well as ‘Children Of Eden’, ‘American Idiot’, ‘Rock Of Ages’ and ‘Aida’.
James is very excited to have joined the team at The MGA Academy Of Performing Arts as Course Coordinator for Foundation Courses.
Sup Dhanasunthorn is from San Francisco and trained at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York City. He moved to London after appearing in Miss Saigon, Thoroughly Modern Millie and Saturday Night Live. After touring Canada, the US and China with The Spirit of Christmas, Sup returned to London to launch his contemporary dance company, Embody.
Other credits include Universal’s 47 Ronin, Olly Murs, Aida at the Royal Albert Hall, Strictly Come Dancing and the UK and European tour of Disney’s The Lion King.
Choreography credits include: the opening of the Aquatics Centre for the 2012 London Olympics, Trophy Wife, Oxford College Ball, Phish Leong, and the UK and European tour of The Lion King.
Sup is the founder of the Hustle, the largest community of performing artists and creators in the UK. Currently a member of the new Equity Dance Committee, and a recent recipient of the Dance London’s Change Maker Award, Sup feels privileged to be part of the dance faculty at The MGA Academy of Performing Arts, fulfilling his dream to enrich the future talents of dance.
Trained at Edinburgh’s Telford college (now PASS), where she completed an HND in Professional Stage Dance, as well as by hip hop and house dance pioneers in New York, Paris and Holland, Ashley has nearly a decade of experience in both performing and teaching.
Ashley is a popular teacher in the community, teaching many classes each week to adults and children under her brand, House of Jack, as well as in studios, dance colleges and schools around Edinburgh.
She also organises regular workshops by international and local dancers. She has a love of hip hop culture, imparting its history and foundations to her students. Ashley has a passion for outreach and is very active in projects working with youth and community groups, and is keen to engage and involve young people.
Ashley has a strong interest in hip hop theatre, founding company Jackin’ the Box in 2010 and youth company the MiniJackers in 2014. In her theatre works, she often explores the dark or difficult elements of the human psyche, including sociopathy, social anxiety, OCD, insomnia, and effects of modern technology on young people, producing thought-provoking and gripping pieces. She also produces upbeat pieces for events, showcases and club nights. She was recently shortlisted for the 2017 Creative Edinburgh Independent Award, for her creative choreography and valuable work with young people.
Ashley was the only female to be picked as one of five choreographers to take part in Breakin’ Convention’s inaugural ‘Back to the Lab’ project in 2012, travelling to London to be mentored by Jasmin Vardimon and Jonzi D to choreograph a piece shown at renowned venue Sadler’s Wells.
Her youth companies also regularly perform at prominent events, including Breakin’ Convention (2017), Breakin’ Rules (2018, 2017, 2015), the Audacious Women Festival (2017), the Scottish Mental Health Arts and Film Festival (2016), and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival (2018, 2015).
Graduating from Bush Davies in 1987, Jill Rennie’s performing career spans over nearly two decades and has taken her all over the world.
TV Credits Include: BBC – The Darling Buds of May; STV – I Lovett, Hogmanay Show, Take the high road, Taggart; YTV – Mr Majeka; SYT TV – Carmen.
Before joining the MGA team, Jill lived in Norway teaching at a Music, Dance, Drama performing arts school for ten years.
Before joining the MGA team, Jill lived in Norway teaching at a Music, Dance, Drama performing arts school for 10 years.
Adam is a Glasgow based dancer who specialises in hip hop as well as having knowledge and experience within many other styles. His journey began when he was featured on the live semi finals of Sky 1’s Got To Dance back in 2011, originally as a soloist but soon pairing with another competitor. This experience motivated and propelled him into learning as much about dance as he could.
Studying in Glasgow at Reid Kerr for three years and achieving HND in dance and stage, he also trained with the pioneers of Hip Hop Dance, Elite Force Crew, both in Glasgow and New York, spending three months attending classes at Broadway Dance Centre. He then moved to London to continue further his studies and enrolled at London Studio Centre.
Due to a road traffic accident Adam was then left with no choice but to return home and recover. Upon his recovery, he auditioned for Work at Ferrari World Abu Dhabi and successfully left home to work away for another year in Dubai.
During his studies Adam has performed professionally in theatre, commercial, and corporate events. Some of which include, Commonwealth Ceremonies (2012 to 2014), BBC & Blue Peter (2012), Sky 1 Broadband (2012), Miss Scotland Awards Ceremony Soloist (2011), Pavilion Theatre Glasgow (2011/2012 – 2012/2013), Ferrari World Abu Dhabi (2015/2016), Dubai Arts Festival (2015), Burtons Men’s Summer Fashion Release (2015).
As well as performing on a variety of platforms he has taught all over the uk and aims to add to his list by teaching worldwide. Some places include, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Inverness, Dundee, Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, London, Budapest, Abu Dhabi, Dubai.
On top of performing and teaching Adam is also a member of Goblynz who are Scottish hip hop and street dance champions. He also participates in battles and events up and down the country and continues to explore the methods, techniques, and understandings of dancing as a form of self-expression.
Very keen to be onboard with The MGA Academy of Performing Arts, he seeks to inspire and motivate all students to discover their inner artist and creative.
Alex trained in all styles of dance from a young age at Julie-Sianne Theatre Arts and the RAD, before moving on to train professionally at Laine Theatre Arts, graduating with a national diploma in Dance (TRINITY, London).
Since graduating in 2010 Alex has danced all over the world and in theatres across the UK. Professional credits include: Dance captain, Musical Starnights (Best of Musicals, European Tour); Palladium Magic (London Palladium); Snow White (Regent Theatre, Stoke-on-Trent); An Evening of Laughter with Ken Dodd and Friends (London Palladium); Dance captain on MV Ventura, Arcadia, Aurora and Oceana for Headliners Theatre Company, P&O Cruises; Variety Club Ball (Dorchester Hotel, London); Cinderella and Aladdin (New Victoria Theatre, Woking); Choreographer for Sleeping Beauty (Princess Theatre, Torquay); Various performances for Pineapple Dance Studios and New Generation Ballet Company, London.
After having worked professionally in the industry for the last seven years, Alex is delighted to join the team at The MGA Academy of Performing Arts.
John has worked all over the world including UK, Europe, China and Los Angeles. He has also spent many years at sea working for Crystal Cruises, Belinda King, QDOS Entertainment and Cunard Line as a Company Manager and Dance Captain. Most recently John has been working as assistant to choreographer Alan Harding for QDOS Entertainment.
All or Nothing are Scotland’s leading aerial dance company. Based in Edinburgh they have been blending breathtaking aerial acrobatics with dance, theatre and contemporary circus since 2006.
The company’s creative work has seen them take on everything from large-scale outdoor spectacle to small scale theatre. They have hung from boats, abseiled down buildings and flown through trees at the Enchanted Forest. In 2015 they will be touring their new work for theatre, Three’s A Crowd.
All or Nothing create greater opportunities to experience aerial dance and theatre, running classes, workshops and training programmes, spanning both the professional and community sectors across Scotland.
The training at MGA is delivered by an experienced team of aerialists and performers including Andrew Green, Jennifer Paterson, Sharisse Tindell and Marie Williamson.
Mark was born and raised in the North East of Scotland, where his passion for performing and dance began. Started his training at the Edinburgh’s Telford College, Mark then continued on to London Studio Centre to finish his dance training.
He has performed all over the world from Paris, Tokyo, Florida, Australia, Europe and the UK. He recently was seen on HMT stage as part of QDOS Pantomines as one of the dancers and cover Captain Hook and has been part of the Qdos family for over 4 years now. He was able to play the role of Prince Charming a few years ago in Cinderella . He is currently working on projects for NTS, Make a wish, PAH8 LTD, Befriend A child and many other corporate and professional events. At this moment in time Mark is teaching jazz, Musical theatre, singing, contemporary for both youths and adults at The MGA Academy stage Acadamies, Creative Stage the Aberdeen academy of dance, Scottish youth theatre and a few theatre groups around Scotland. He also runs his own classes for youths all over Scotland and has a vast experience in teaching both adult and kids.
Curry in Paris, William Forsyth in Australia and was Dance Captain on the “Best of the Musicals” Germany Tour.
TV and film work include Braveheart, Vodafone, Corona, Bacardi, D2 Clothing, Asda, Barclays Bank and a few music videos. Mark teaches various styles of dance from musical theatre, jazz, contemporary, hip hop, ballroom and many more at various locations in and around Scotland and the rest of the UK.
Molly trained at The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (formerly RSAMD) and has been an actor for over twenty years. During this time she has received a commendation at the Ian Charleson/National Theatre Awards (for Electra), was nominated for a Stage Award for Acting Excellence (for her role in Moving Objects) and was nominated for a Best Actress CATS award (One day all this will come to nothing). Her theatre work includes stints at The National Theatre of Scotland, The Traverse, The Royal Lyceum, Dundee Rep, Perth Rep, The Citizen’s and the Royal Court as well as many touring companies.
Film and television credits include: Rebus, Taggart, Holby City, A Mug’s Game, Psychos, Takin’ over the Asylum, Rab C. Nesbitt, Lovesick, River City, The Bill, Ratcatcher, Strathblair, The Ferguson Theory, Stella Does Tricks, Afterlife and Karmic Mothers. She has also performed in numerous radio plays for BBC Radio 4.
Molly was one of the Traverse Fifty writers. She received a New Playwright award from The Playwright’s Studio, Scotland in 2014. She has had rehearsed readings of her short plays Legacy and Roads of Grace. Her translation into Scots of Michel Tremblay’s Thérèse and Pierrette and the Wee Hanging Angel was presented by Stellar Quines as part of their Rehearsal Room. Her play Mother Ease was performed at the Traverse during the Edinburgh Festival.
Molly was Associate Director on 13 Sunken Years, a co-production between Stellar Quines and Lung Ha Theatre Companies. She directed the first rehearsed reading of her translation of Thérèse and Pierrette and the Wee Hanging Angel at the Traverse and has directed Five Kinds of Silence for Beyond Broadway Productions.
Molly is also a fully qualified secondary school teacher.
Martyn Dempsey is an Actor, Writer, Theatre Maker and Lecturer based in Edinburgh.
As an actor Martyn has worked with companies across the UK including Les Enfants Terribles, Hull Truck, Derby Theatre, Gala Theatre, Chipping Norton Theatre, Greyscale, Gameshow, Supporting Wall, SCAMP Theatre, Mischief La Bas, Hopscotch Theatre, Tall Stories, Nabokov, Mansfield Palace Theatre, Magpie Puppet Company, Infinite Jest, Old Saw, Finborough Theatre, Scottish Opera, Young Vic and many more. Over the years Martyn has been involved in devising a range of productions which have toured both nationally and internationally to critical acclaim. Martyn has regularly specialised in actor-musician work, new writing, devised performance, clowning, and children’s theatre.
As a writer Martyn’s work has been performed at venues including Theatre 503, Greenwich Theatre, Tron Theatre, Cambridge Junction and his play The Girl with the Imagination was shortlisted for the Verity Bargate Award. Recent writing work includes InElsWhEre, commissioned as part of Tamfest at The Gaiety Theatre in October 2016 with support from Toonspeak, The Tom McGrath Trust and The Gaiety Theatre, and Epistle Tae Rab, which was written and developed with 3rd Year Acting Students at The MGA Academy and staged at The Ghille Dhu in January 2018. Over the next year he has been selected for a year long development opportunity with Mercury Musical Development and Musical Theatre Network hosted at the National Theatre of Scotland.
As a lecturer, outreach practitioner, and facilitator Martyn has worked regularly delivering workshops and specialist courses for a wide range of organisations including MGA Academy, Royal Conservatoire Scotland, Old Vic New Voices, Almeida Theatre, Impact Arts, National Youth Theatre, Shakespeare Schools Festival, Scottish Youth Theatre, and East 15 Acting School. Martyn is also currently in his 2nd year of study for the MEd in Learning and Teaching in the Performing Arts at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.
Having an MA in Voice from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, Olivia’s work aims to enable voice users to have a safe, reliable and free instrument.
Olivia is currently training to be a Designated Linklater Tutor, which is her main influence when teaching Voice, this covers the fundamentals of voice work, such as; breath through to text as well as accent coaching. When teaching Singing, the primary language used is from the Estill model.
She currently teaches Voice at MGA (Edinburgh) as well as freelance, with previous work at IAB (Barcelona), Arden School of Theatre and The Actors Foundation (Manchester).
My teaching has a holistic style and approach. I am committed to the needs of each student/client/actor working sensitively and specifically with each person.
John P. Arnold is a professional actor, singer and voiceover artist who hails from the United States of America.
Since graduating from the University of Georgia with a Bachelors of Arts, he has continued his professional training at The Royal National Theatre, London; Advanced Scene Study – Peter Kelly Studios, Boston; Acting and Stage Combat – Cultural Arts Studio, City Lights Theatre Company, Savannah, GA; Advanced on Camera Acting – Tighe Doyle Casting Agency, Boston; Voice Training – Paul Fisher Studios & Jeannie Deva Studios; Audition and Monologue Skills, Michael Shurtleff Technique – Speakeasy Stage Company, Boston.
John has extensive theatre, film, television, commercial and voiceover credits in both the US and UK. Some of his UK credits include: The Citizens Theatre, Glasgow; The Traverse Theatre Company, Edinburgh; Bard in the Botanics, Glasgow; Taggart; River City; The Angel’s Share; CBBC’s Dani’s House and A Long, Long Crime Ago; BBC Four Radio Dramas, London and Scotland; and The Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
He also has performed and written for ACTING UP of Edinburgh, which brings theatrical arts to the corporate world. John presently serves as guest artistic director for Indelible Arts and The Drama Mill theatre companies, where he writes, teaches, and directs. He is a recurring tutor at Screen Academy Scotland, Napier University and also teaches private students at Prora Studios in East Lothian.
Tom is the owner of photography and video production company Twin City Pictures, working as a director and cinematographer across Scotland producing media for theatre shows and marketing. Twin City Pictures is also one of the leading providers of actor services: headshots, showreels, selftapes and private coaching.
Tom trained at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Acting. Since graduating he has worked consistently for over a decade in theatre, film, television and commercials.
Theatre credits include: Romeo and Juliet, Twelfth Night, Macbeth, Hamlet, Much Ado about Nothing, Comedy of Errors, Winter’s Tale, Mid Summer Night’s Dream, Henry IV, The Tempest, Merchant of Venice, Taming of the Shrew, As You Like It, This Fearful Country, Queen Margaret (for Bard in the Botanics); Coma (Arches); Romeo and Juliet (Erasmus Theatre Company); Jack and the Beanstalk, Snow White, Cinderella (The Byre Theatre); Jack and the Beanstalk, Beauty and the Beast (MA Productions); Aladdin (PACE); Mother Goose (MacRobert); Last of the Dragons (Manhattan Children’s Theatre).
Film and Television credits include: Sunset Song (Terence Davies); Scrotal Recall (Elliot Hegarty); Meet Me on the Southbank (Adam Rolston); Joyeux Noel (Christian Carion); The Celebrity (Simon Whyte). Commercial work for Sony, Real Radio and Channel 4.
Lynn has worked as an actor and acting teacher, writer and director, since she moved to Scotland from the USA over forty years ago. And as Scotland’s foremost American accent coach she has worked regularly at Piltochry Festival Theatre, The Royal Lyceum Edinburgh, Dundee Rep Theatre and Perth Theatre, and other companies around Scotland.
She was a founder of Stellar Quines Theatre Company and directed its first production, Night Sky. For many years, Lynn was an assessor for the National Council for Drama Training and has been an adjudicator for the Scottish Community Drama Association.
Lynn has taught acting to the likes of Ewan McGregor, Shirley Henderson, Dougray Scott, Kevin McKidd and Sharon Small and many others.
After ten years as Head of Acting at Kirkcaldy College (now Fife College) and 15 years as Head of Acting at Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, Lynn retired from full-time teaching to pursue her freelance career. Since then, she has directed and taught acting at Ohio Northern University and has been much in demand for acting and American accent workshops in Scotland, England and Wales with community and amateur companies, youth theatres, schools and professional theatres including The Citizens Theatre, The Royal Lyceum and PFT.
Lynn has been accent coach for every American play at Pitlochry Festival Theatre since 1989, most recently Carousel in 2016 and High Society in 2017. In addition, she has worked regularly at The Royal Lyceum, most recently The Crucible and the series of Arthur Miller productions; Dundee Rep, Steel Magnolias; and Perth Theatre, most recently Death of a Salesman, Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me, Moonlight and Magnolias and The Female Version of The Odd Couple.
Derek gained his BA in Acting, with distinction, at Queen Margaret University, in Edinburgh and then his Masters in Musical Theatre at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Glasgow.
For the past 18 years Derek has worked as an actor in theatre, tv and radio. He has had a varied career with theatre roles ranging from Sick Boy in Trainspotting at York Theatre Royal; to The Tin Man in the Wizard of Oz at the Citizen’s theatre; to a summer season in Rep at Pitlochry Festival theatre.
Companies Derek has worked for include the Tron Theatre Company, the Citizen’s, Borderline, Magnetic North, Eden Court, Imagine, The Brunton Theatre, Scottish Opera For All, Qdos, the Byre Theatre, Perth Rep and York Theatre Royal.
Television credits include: Still Game, Velvet Soup and Being Victor.
As well as a performer, Derek is also a drama facilitator and tutor. He has taught across the spectrum from preschool children to adults in further education. He has worked in Further Education establishments and theatre schools throughout the country and is looking forward to bringing his knowledge and enthusiasm for theatre to the students at MGA.
Neil Metcalfe read music at Edinburgh University (where he was Organ Scholar at the University Parish Church – Greyfriars Kirk), before training as a Répétiteur, Vocal Coach and Conductor in the Opera School of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. Subsequently, after some time as Répétiteur/Music Staff at Scottish Opera, he pursued a freelance career in Australia, Germany, the United States and Northern Ireland.
Neil currently works across a wide number of genres as a vocal coach, solo pianist, accompanist, continuo player and conductor, and is equally happy in Musical Theatre, Opera, Baroque music and as a solo/chamber and session musician. He has recorded for the BBC and on the Linn Records label (with Dunedin Consort – Scotland’s international award-winning Baroque ensemble with whom he was Concerts Director), has appeared as a Guest Artist on the Fred Olsen cruise line, and has performed with many diverse groups across a number of genres, including the Scottish Chamber Orchestra Chorus, Ludus Baroque, Consort of Voices, and the National Youth Choirs of Scotland. He regularly appears as an accompanist at Masterclasses and in cabaret, and as a Choral Animateur at Come & Sing events across the country. He has also appeared at both the Edinburgh International Festival and at the Edinburgh Fringe (in over 200 performances).
As a conductor, recent engagements have included Verdi’s Macbeth and Bizet’s Carmen (Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh), and the British premiere of Ricci’s La Prigione di Edimburgo (Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh). As a pianist/Musical Director, recent engagements include the Scottish premiere of Adam Gwon’s Ordinary Days, Scottish tours of Jason Robert Brown’s The Last Five Years and Songs For A New World, and as MD/co-arranger of the world premiere of Steve Potters’ Farewell My Son. Neil also has a keen interest in music education, and as such has held posts as Director of Music in a number of independent schools (latterly at Strathallan School), in the FE sector (as Lecturer in Performance at Edinburgh College) and is Chairman of the Scottish Schools Orchestra.
He currently holds the post of Head of Music at The MGA Academy of Performing Arts, and is Musical Director of The Maltings Theatre (Berwick-upon-Tweed), Greenroom Musical Theatre, Edinburgh Music Theatre Company and Edinburgh University Chorus.
Gerard taught at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts and also worked as Vocal Consultant for Paul Spyker Management. Over the years he has employed his services as a Vocal Coach for several Leading West End Artists including, Kerry Ellis, Louise Dearman, Matthew Rawle, Rufus Hound, Samantha Bond and Dean Collinson.
He has effectively instructed and mentored through the rehabilitation of voice problems.
Simon obtained a degree in music from the University of London where he specialised in orchestration and technical composition.
He has composed and arranged music for a wide variety of productions which have toured the UK and worked as Musical Director with a number of companies throughout the country. As Head Of Music with MGA, he is involved with the teaching of Ensemble Singing, Integration (Acting Through Song) and performance project work. He has also worked extensively with large Youth Theatre groups in Scotland and England, including Live Nation and Scottish Youth Theatre.
As half of the partnership JS Music Solutions, he also provides backing tracks and arrangements to MGA for use in their productions.
Gillian is a graduate of Glasgow University where she attained an MA with Honours in Music and Drama. She has taught extensively in the Further Education Sector and spent 21 years as Curriculum Leader for Performing Arts at NCL (formerly Motherwell College), which has the accolade of being the first European Educational Affiliate with Estill International. Gillian was responsible for the writing and development of two unique BA Honours Degrees in Musical Theatre and Acting in collaboration with Northumbria University, with graduates now working successfully on both a national and international level.
As a Certified Master Teacher and Scotland’s only Certified Course Instructor with Estill Voice International, Gillian set up her own company McLaren Scott Vocals in 2016. She is a successful private singing teacher, running regular courses and workshops and was a Vocal Coach on the Audition Tour for The Voice / Voice Kids 2017 with ITV.
Gillian is also an accomplished Theatre Director and Musical Director with credits including Company at the Tron Theatre, Glasgow; We Will Rock You at the Motherwell Concert Hall; and the Scottish Student premieres of Children of Eden, Rent, Bare, The Boys in the Photograph, Bonnie & Clyde and Soho Cinders.
After graduating from MGA Academy of Performing Arts in 2015, Tom moved to Barcelona to perform in Spring Awakening with IAB, before working with Peel Talent as a Swing Principal Singer aboard several of their ships. Upon deciding to change career path to the Creative side of the Industry, he directed Sweeney Todd and Les Miserables with Captivate Theatre in the Edinburgh Fringe 2017. He will be working with Captivate again this year, directing Rent with Gilded Balloon. He is thrilled to be returning to MGA, this time as Resident Creative.
Tabitha trained as a Musical Theatre performer with a view always to move into Artist Management. Following a two year career as a professional performer, she returned to Edinburgh to work as an Agent’s Assistant with MGA’s Directors, Andrew Gowland and Murray Grant and fork as an intern for SEA Personal Management, in London. Tabitha was promoted to become a full-time Agent in 2013 and in 2017, Tabitha was then promoted to Agency Director standing alongside both Murray and Andrew.
Tabitha is qualified in Business Administration, Digital Marketing and is currently working towards her Business Degree. She also lectures in Professional Development for Performers at The MGA Academy of Performing Arts where she also manages the growth of our Clients In Training.
Tabitha is based between the MGA Management Edinburgh and London offices managing all clients alongside Acting Agent Juliet Cooke and Agency Assistant Stuart Gray.
Seb was born in Germany but raised in South Wales. After reading music at London university he changed direction to study at RADA, winning the Robert Donat prize for classical acting on graduation. After 15 year of performing with major UK companies (including RSC and National Theatre), he became a director and teacher.
Terry has a long background in community and educational theatre. She trained at the Workshop Theatre, University of Leeds under Professor Martin Banham and returned there for her M.A. in Theatre Arts.
She has worked as actor and stage manager for many projects and her particular love of the out doors and Shakespeare led to a lengthy relationship with Abbey Shakespeare Players in West Wales. Among other roles she played Lady Macbeth, Katerina in Taming of the Shrew and Ariel in The Tempest.
Alongside her acting and directing Terry was Head of Peforming Arts at a large comprehensive school in Leeds where she was fortunate in being able to work alongside many young people who developed a love and appreciation of theatre and who are going on to make a substantial mark in the profession.
She has directed regularly with Musical Theatre and Acting students at MGA on stand-alone acting projects at the Church Hill, Pleasance and Roxy Theatres.
Want to see everyone? Click here to view all our teaching staff in an alphabetical list! | 2019-04-19T22:51:35Z | https://www.2ww.themgaacademy.com/about/staff/ |
Good day, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the Vericel Corporation Fourth Quarter 2018 Earnings Conference Call. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this call will be recorded. I would now like to introduce your host for today's conference, Gerard Michel. Please go ahead, sir.
Thank you, operator, and good morning, everyone. Welcome to Vericel's Fourth Quarter 2018 Conference Call to discuss our financial results. Before we begin, let me remind you that on today's call, we will be making forward-looking statements covered under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and all of our projections and forward-looking statements represent our judgment as of today. These statements may involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from expectations and are described more fully in our filing with the SEC, which are also available on our website. In addition, any forward-looking statements represent our views only as of today and should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any subsequent date. With us on today's call are Nick Colangelo, Vericel's President and Chief Executive Officer; and Dan Orlando, our Chief Operating Officer. I will now turn the call over to Nick.
Thank you, Gerard, and good morning, everyone. Our fourth quarter results reflect a very strong finish to a great year for the company in 2018. Net product revenues increased 41% compared to the fourth quarter of 2017, marking the seventh consecutive quarter with record revenues for the reported quarter, and we delivered 45% net product revenue growth for the full year. Our growth was driven largely by the continued strong uptake from MACI, which had revenue growth of 56% for the quarter and 54% for the full year. This strong revenue growth generated significant improvements in profitability and operating cash flow for both the quarter and the year. Gross margins in the fourth quarter increased to 72% of net revenues, and we delivered net income of $5.2 million or $0.11 per share on a fully diluted basis. We also generated positive full year adjusted EBITDA for the first time in the company's history. In light of the significant expansion of the target addressable market, or TAM, our continued commercial investments and lack of any near-term competitive product entrance, we expect strong growth for MACI to continue in 2019. We also believe that this revenue growth will lead to strong profit growth given our low-marginal product cost and the significant operating margin leverage in our business model. As announced earlier today, we expect total net product revenues for 2019 to be in the range of $108 million to $112 million, that approximately 80% of marginal revenues over 2018 will contribute to incremental gross profit, and that approximately 50% of marginal revenues over 2018 will contribute to adjusted EBITDA.
Gerard will provide further details regarding our financial guidance for 2019.
We're obviously very pleased with our commercial and financial performance for the fourth quarter and the full year. The underlying drivers of near- and midterm revenue growth for MACI that we've seen to date are consistent with the larger TAM that we discussed last quarter.
And I'll now turn the call over to Dan to provide more detail regarding our commercial performance and activities.
Thank you, Nick. I'll start by welcoming the new sales representatives, who recently joined Vericel and are now in training. On April 1, they'll move into their new territories increasing our MACI sales force by 20% to 48 representatives. The sales force expansion is a direct reflection of our confidence in the market research that substantiated the increased MACI TAM and confirmed the continued strong adoption of MACI by both previous advocates and new adaptors.
As we look back at the previous MACI sales force expansion, which were implemented at the same time of the year in 2017 and 2018, we find that the biopsy rate increased significantly in the expansion territories in the first year and that the expansion territories led the nation in percentage increase in implants the following year. We expect this dynamic to be repeated with this expansion as well. And we will continue to closely assess our sales force sizing, as we balance the vital sales representative and surgeon relationships with the desire to best serve the potential 60,000 annual patients who could benefit from MACI. Given that 2018 is its first full year on the market, MACI is still early in its life cycle, so we maintain focus on continued growth and expanding the targeted and trained surgeon population, which is now over 900 surgeons. And we are continuously improving our paramedical policies to best reflect the full indications for MACI, which in turn reduces case approval finance. In addition to these HCP and payer effort, we are also focused on several patient-focused marketing initiatives to increase the biopsy to implant ratio and drive MACI demand. We are launching a MACI ambassador program that will highlight compelling patient success stories and integrating this program into our celebrity spokesperson campaign, which together, will form the cornerstone of our social media brand engagement efforts. We also will be launching a number of physical therapists-focused initiatives to enhance MACI rehabilitation resources and build our network of advocates and opinion leaders within this important patient-focused community.
I'll now shift gears to Epicel which had a good year in its own right. Although it's hard to measure on a quarterly basis due to the variable incidents and burn injuries, Epicel remains strong when looking at the performance over the full year. And although a new entrant has entered the lower TBSA burn market, Epicel remains the only FDA-approved permanent skin replacement for the treatment of adult and pediatric patients with large total body surface area burns. Epicel's clinical utility in the severe burden population was further reinforced by the recent landmark publication in the Journal of Burn Care & Research, which reported outcomes data of 954 burn patients treated with Epicel compared to a standard of care treatment in over 177,000 patients in the national burn registry over the same period of time. The data demonstrated that patients treated with Epicel, 1/3 of whom were children, had an 85% survival rate, which was significantly greater than the comparative population. This demonstrated improvement in survival rates for severely burn patients treated with Epicel, certainly, will help as an important tool as we target new burn centers that have not yet utilized Epicel.
Wrapping up, I'd like to thank our commercial and operations teams for their outstanding performance in 2018. I'll now turn the call over to Gerard to review our fourth quarter 2018 financial results and the updated financial guidance.
Thanks, Dan. We reported total net product revenues of $31.3 million for the fourth quarter of 2018, an increase of 41% over the quarter of 2017. Total net revenues for the quarter included $25.1 million of MACI and $6.2 million of Epicel net revenue compared to $16.1 million of MACI and $6.1 million of Epicel net revenue, respectively in the fourth quarter of 2017. This represents revenue growth of 56% and 2% for MACI and Epicel, respectively.
Our full year 2018 net product revenues were $90.9 million or approximately $900,000 above the top end of our updated revenue quarters, which represented full year revenue growth of 54% and 23% for MACI and Epicel, respectively versus 2017.
Please note that 2017 product revenues and comparisons exclude $1.2 million in revenue related to the company's licensing agreement with ICT. Gross margins for the fourth quarter of 2018 improved to 72% versus 64% in the fourth quarter of 2017, and for the full year, increased to 64% versus 53% in 2017. Total operating expenses for fourth quarter of 2018 were $16.7 million compared to $13.8 million for the same period in 2017. The increase was primarily due to $1.4 million in service fees paid to MACI pharmacy distributors, an incremental $1.2 million in employee-related expenses associated with the expanded MACI sales force and an incremental $500,000 in stock-based compensation expense. Non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA was $7.7 million for the fourth quarter compared to $2.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2017. For details reconciling non-GAAP measures, see the table in this morning's press release.
Vericel's net income for the quarter ended December 31, 2018, was $5.2 million or $0.11 per share on a fully diluted basis compared to approximately $300,000 or $0.01 per share for the fourth quarter of 2017. As of December 31, 2018, the company had $82.9 million in cash in short-term investments compared to $26.9 million in cash at December 31, 2017. We ended the year with a very clean balance sheet, having retired all outstanding debt in the fourth quarter and with all but approximately 27,000 warrants having either converted or expired. We announced earlier this morning that we expect the total net product revenues for the full year 2019 to be in the range of $108 million to $112 million. We expect the majority of revenue growth for the year to be generated by MACI, with Epicel growth in the single digits. We expect revenue growth to continue to drive increased margins. In 2019 we expect the marginal cost of goods for MACI and Epicel to be approximately 20%, resulting in up 80% of marginal revenue over 2018 revenues to contribute to gross profit. Likewise, given our premium products and concentrated call points, we expect approximately 50% of marginal revenue over 2018 revenues to contribute to adjusted EBITDA. Quarterly seasonality, which impacts both revenues and margins, is expected to follow the same pattern as 2018. That completes my financial review. Now, I'll turn the call over to Nick.
Thanks, Gerard. Our business continues to perform very well. And the company's in a strong position to execute on both our operating and strategic business plans. We look forward to sharing our progress with you throughout 2019. That concludes our prepared remarks. And now I'd like the operator to open the call to your questions.
(Operator Instructions) And our first question comes from Chad Messer with Needham.
My question's actually on your, sort of, cost to goods and margins at an annual level, the sort of guidance you've given about your marginal revenue makes sense and is tracked very well, but it's a lot harder to figure out what's going on a quarterly basis, so revenues, the breakdown of revenue across the quarters, that seasonality looks very different on the cost line. Just wondering, if there's something about your fixed versus variable cost structure that explains that, so I can try to understand it a little better for the future?
Sure. Good to hear you, Chad. The -- it tracks actually fairly well. If you just, kind of, follow the following framework, and I'll give an example for, let's say, Q2 of 2019. If you took the midpoint of our guidance, which would yield $23 million of net revenue, we did $19 million in Q2 of 2018. So the midpoint of that, the incremental revenue is about $4 million, all right? So that I'm assuming, you can follow the same seasonality. It's about 21%, as I said, take the midpoint of our guidance, that would yield $23 million in revenue for this year. Incremental $23 million over '19 is $4 million, okay? We would expect 80% of that $4 million to hit the incremental gross margin line, so you'd have $3.2 million above what we did last year, which is about $11.3 million in gross margins. So it's just 80% of the margin, the marginal revenue over the same quarter, prior year. And it works the same way for adjusted EBITDA. You'd use 50% instead of 80% of the revenue. So it should track pretty closely, and it did track pretty closely this past year of 2018 according to that framework.
I could give you some counter examples. I won't do it on this call. Maybe, that's something we can take offline.
And our next question comes from Ryan Zimmerman with BTIG.
So I want to talk about your guidance for (inaudible) in here. And just -- you're growing in line with the Street's expectations, but maybe if you could just speak to how you view the drivers of your growth of '19 and what some of the levels are that give you confidence in not just meeting those expectations but then potentially beating them? Then I have a follow-up.
Sure. Ryan, as you know, we -- giving guidance is as much of an art as a science. In terms of the growth drivers, what gives us confidence is Dan's team is seeing good, healthy biopsy growth still coming in, in line with what we'd expect with our models to convert. So conversion rates stay steady, as they have. They tick up and down half a percentage point here and there, maybe it was slightly up. But if conversion rates stay steady, we should see -- and the new doctors continue to send in biopsies, as new doctors did last year, we've got about maybe 60% or 70% of our model, the revenue for 2019 kind of in the bag, right? In the bag means people behave the way they used to. But then there's a certain number of new docs we need to get onboard and behave like new docs did last year. So our model is, again, we look at biopsy trends, we look at conversion trends, we look at new doc start trends, and we project to what extent do we think that will continue? I mean it's prudent to have new docs tail off a little bit on a percentage basis. You can't continue to grow at the same percentage year-on-year out. So obviously, you see our percentage growth is tempered a bit versus what we actually did in '18. Similarly, we make the same assumption for '20, and we're not giving guidance there, but we wouldn't expect exactly the same percentage growth over '18 and '19 that we'll see '20 over '19, so we're probably knock back out a couple of percentage points. So I gave you a bit to chew on there. Does that answer your question?
Yes. No, it's very helpful color, and I appreciate the thought process behind it. And then I have 2 questions. One, just can you speak qualitatively -- I know you're not speaking to biopsy trends quantitatively, but can you speak qualitatively to the biopsy trends in the early part of the year? And then my last question is, you did mention competitive entrants in the burn market. Maybe help us understand how that's either buddying up against Epicel or how you see it interacting with Epicel?
Sure. On the biopsy front, I think what I'll say is, it is trending per our expectations, and it's trending in a matter that gives us comfort to issue the guidance we just gave this morning, which is probably a great nonanswer for you, Ryan, but the best I can give you right now. And in terms of Epicel new entrants, Dan, can you comment on that?
So the RECELL is the new entrants, and is indicated for partial thickness and full thickness along with an autologous support up to 50% TBSA. Now Epicel, as you know, is normally used in a patient that's burned well beyond 50%. Only maybe about 10% or so of this utility is used in patient's burned under 50% TBSA. So there's really not a lot of crosstalk or crossover when we're discussing in which position to use RECELL and Epicel. There could be some patients where other extensively burned in some areas of their body, where they're been treated with Epicel and maybe on some peripheral surfaces, they're treated with RECELL, but that's yet to be determined. It's still fairly early, we haven't seen a lot of that.
And our next question comes from Jeffrey Cohen Ladenburg Thalmann.
Gerard, Nick and Dan, Can you hear me okay.
So Q4, I guess, top line, a bit of blowout. Can you talk a little bit about the seasonality and the pull through as far as procedures. Was it onetime in nature where these were newer biopsies that were being converted or not and, what kind of pull through should we expect in seasonality for '19?
Well, I'll start, Jeff, and then turn it over to Gerard. As I think you know, our fourth quarter is always the strongest quarter for MACI and a strong quarter for Epicel, generally as well. So as -- on total revenue basis, fourth quarter is always our strongest quarter. And that's probably been increasing a bit over the past couple of years where we continue to see even more strength in the fourth quarter. So that's just sort of the normal dynamic for the company. And Gerard, if you want to give more details on seasonality percentages.
Sure. Yes so -- and this year combining MACI and Epicel, the seasonality was, and I'll just give the number's, 20%, 21%, 25% and 34%. People can do the math on their own, but hopefully, I did that correctly. The one reason that the fourth quarter in the last couple of years is getting larger is, in any growing -- whenever you have growth, if you're breaking things down by a seasonal bucket, you're going to see the later quarters look larger than they would in a flat revenue scenario. So that's another factor pushing things into the fourth quarter. As I said before, I think, for those of you modeling '19, I would recommend using those seasonality percentages, that's our best estimate of what's going to happen this year as well.
I think it's the same drill that Dan and his team have been doing for the last few years.
Yes, as far as the timing of biopsy in recent times, there's no shift in dynamics there.
Okay, got it. And secondly, can you talk a little bit about any data which you expect as far as the studies, podium presentations around, any other significant conferences upcoming in the coming quarter or 2?
Sure. So we do not have any specific company-sponsored data that will be released anytime soon. We do have an ongoing pediatric trial that is well underway. Our sites are up and running and patients are being recruited. So that's probably the next big significant investment for MACI on the clinical front. There are a number of investigator-initiated observations that will be presented this year and in the coming years, as their own personal data on, say, patients and populations with patella, things like that are published. So you will see data, but it'll mostly come from independent investigator-initiated results.
Okay. Got it. And then lastly for me, could you discuss a little bit about the commercial expansion and how that may relate to your M&A appetite going forward? Do you feel like currently with the more recent understanding of the TAM out there that you've got plenty on your plate to address with only arguably 1% market share. Or is it that you're booking for other products, which may fit well into the space?
Yes, I think our position on that, Jeff, has not changed. we don't view sort of business development activities and sort of in line activities as mutually exclusive. So Dan and his team will continue, I am confident, to execute on the commercial front with our current products. The same time Gerard and his team will continue to look for opportunities, as we've discussed before, to support our 2 commercial franchises either in sports medicine or burn care or potentially looking at other self therapy verticals, so our position on that is -- has been relatively constant and again, from our perspective, we do have a pretty high hurdle, right? We certainly understand the value drivers for the company. We have 2 great products that are the only FDA-approved products in their class. And so anything else we would bring in needs to have a similar profile. And there's other types of opportunities we could spend time looking at.
And our next question comes from Kevin DeGeeter with Oppenheimer.
A few things. With regard to your surgeon trend, I think you called out over 900 in the quarter. Can you just provide us a little bit of context to how to think about the assumptions within 2,000 in guidance with regard to your newly trained surgeons versus going deeper in terms of penetration with surgeons who are already trained on MACI?
So, Kevin. We trained 500, the first in 2016. So that was about -- for 2017, excuse me. As we launched with MACI, we trained 400 last year, so that's where we stood at over 900. Now today, we expect to continue to invest there as much we have previously. We've got large meetings as -- that we've already attended this year with considerable training opportunities. And we've got a few here in the coming weeks. So we'll continue that investment. With the sales force expansion, we get more time in front of physicians who are now aware of MACI, so we expect that to help drive our surgeon training as well. But I think you'll see a continued decline in the rate of new physicians being trained, but we will continue to make that investment. I think what's most important is that we offer the plethora because we found that some physicians want to train online. They want to do it in their convenience, so their own home or office, others who want to attend a cadaver lab and touch and feel the product first. So it just depends on the physicians' appetite, and we make sure that we create those appropriate opportunities.
And then a separate question, kind of, going back to one of today's themes, that's financial guidance. The guidance seems to imply, MACI growth 27%, 30% somewhere in that general range, if my math is correct. And that's, as a percentage of growth, a significant step-down from what we saw both in the fourth quarter and 2018. How do we think about through the course of 2019, the relative pacing of growth, recognizing you're not giving Q1 guidance, but it's pretty meaningful percentage-wise, deceleration to think about. Is it -- do we think about it as somewhat linear through the year or being more kind of second half of the year for that step-down?
Kevin, I think the best way to think about it is in your models, come up with a full year number for '19, whatever you think it should be based on our guidance in your own analysis and then in terms of -- see the seasonality for that total number, the midpoint of the guidance I think would be roughly $110 million. In terms of seasonality, I would use the same seasonality that we saw this year for both products 20%, 21%, 25% and then 34%. And then we gave you our sense of Epicel, we think single-digit growth there, so you can back into MACI from that I think.
Fair enough. And then just lastly one for me. With regards to insurance coverage, which has always been healthy for MACI but, specifically, in terms of any evolving language with some of the covered policies for covering patella or other, sort of, subpopulations for MACI, do you see or expect any change through '19 in terms of your specific language with regard to coverage for MACI, policy decisions? And how does that factor into potential puts-and-takes on that guidance for '19?
So, Kevin, I think we've mentioned before, as you suggest that MACI has strong coverage and access across the board, right, all the top plans cover MACI. Dan and his team did a great job in getting that access probably within 6 to 8 months after launch when -- as we announced a year ago in the third quarter when we guided -- updated its medical policy to include MACI. So all the plans cover MACI. There were some plans that didn't cover patella right out of the gate just because, as you know, MACI's label is much more expansive than for Carticel, so an easy way to update plans was just to say MACI is not investigational but it really reflected the Carticel policies. So throughout the year, Dan and his team have been working on updating those few plans that still had not formally added patella. We announced last quarter that Cigna had updated their policy to include patella. So there's really only a couple left that we want to try not to knock out. But even so, with those plans the patella cases are still approved. They just end up being approved on a case-by-case basis. We just want to make things as smooth as possible and have all policies reflect the breadth of the MACI label.
And our last question comes from Danielle Antalffy with SVB Leerink.
I have 2. First, I was wondering if you could talk about how high-volume centers are growing versus low-volume centers. I guess what I'm trying to get at, is where you're seeing the most growth, is it on newer centers coming onboard? Or is it actually existing centers that are already using it, but are using it a lot more? And then I have 1 follow-up.
Danielle, so we've assessed that, and certainly, that's one of the factors we consider in the sales force expansion, sizing, territorial alignment and things like that. And in our models, it's been about 50-50 growth coming from, I don't want to call it necessarily, small centers, but it's centers that have not traditionally used Carticel or MACI and 50% from centers that are expanding their use, and you know the names of both the larger centers, those have been a big growth driver for us early on here as well.
Okay, and then just a follow-up question, Gerard, just something I think you -- I think it was you that referenced it, not really yet seeing a meaningful change in the biopsy conversion rate, tell me if I got that wrong, but just curious I mean I know with this direct-to-patient initiative, I feel like that's something that could move over time, a few questions there. Why hasn't it moved the needle yet, if in fact it hasn't and -- number one. And number two, when can we see that start to move the needle. Do you have the right initiatives in place to do so? Will we see you guys have to take a broader approach or different approach to really move that?
Yes, and I'd just say that, Danielle, we've spoken to this before, we have a strong program now to capture patient consent, and that's really the start of biopsy -- improving the biopsy-to-conversion ratio. But with that consent, we can then start to communicate with the patient. We've invested last year in making sure that as an easy opportunity for the patient. We've increased the volume of that, and it's a steady increase just like we're seeing a steady increase in biopsies. We're seeing an increase in the percentage of patients where we capture consent. Second piece of that is just how do we speak to the patient? So we have our launch materials for rehab and et cetera, we have -- this year, we are reassessing all of our patient materials, and how we speak to it. An example is something like weight-bearing, what does that mean when you translate that to a patient. How quickly can I walk? What kind of work can I do over a week, a month? And what kind of activities can I engage in, such as driving and things that are important to a patient as they get back to activity. So we're changing the way we speak to patients and the timing of when we speak to them. So we've got -- as to see when we engage with the patient first one, they have follow-up with their physician. The piece that I spoke to during the call here, we now have a strong group of patients who have had success with MACI because of the experience over the last couple of years. But we're capturing some of that in our new Patient Ambassador Program, and we're marrying that with the Dara Torres campaign, so that when patients go on to maci.com, they'll see the aspirational Olympic athlete, and they'll see a patient that looks maybe a little bit more like them, and they can connect there and see highlights on rehab. The next piece of that we are initiating is working with physical therapists who have now, successfully, treated patients and moved them through rehab quicker than they had prior with Carticel. And that's an important rate limiter for biopsy to implant in a patient's mind, when they are considering -- excuse me, MACI. It's like I ran through my 3 children right there. So Danielle, we're really confident that we're on the right track. We have seen early signs of improvement in conversion ratio, and we're confident that these further investments will reap results as well.
In terms of modeling, Danielle, we view increasing the conversion rate, a multiyear effort. We view that as a second leg of growth after we have probably been far more penetration into the surgeon base, got more business for those individuals surgeons. So this is kind of a multiyear effort. I don't expect this to change dramatically over quarters. This can change over years. So I think our predominant growth has been coming in the near- to medium-term from more docs, more biopsies and then longer-term higher conversion rate.
Thank you, and that does conclude today's question-and-answer session. I would now like to turn the call back to Mr. Nick Colangelo for any further remarks.
Okay. Well, thank you, and thanks for your questions and continued interest in Vericel. We're obviously excited about the opportunities ahead and look forward to reporting on our progress on our next call. Have a great day. | 2019-04-23T02:33:22Z | https://finance.yahoo.com/news/edited-transcript-vcel-earnings-conference-191053808.html?.tsrc=rss |
If Facebook were a country, it would have been the most populous one on this planet. Here is how to leverage its audience for your business goals. Use these 39 of the best tips to promote your business and learn how to get more likes on Facebook.
On it’s 2014 financial summary Facebook said, it had 1.39 billion active users. Ironically China, where Facebook is largely blocked, has a population of 1.36 billion people.
If this was not enough, Facebook is thinking to get 4 billion internet deprived people online says Sheryl Sandberg, the COO of Facebook.
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If you are a business, an online entrepreneur, an artist or anyone who makes a living online, Facebook is a must-have in your marketing strategies for business. You should start building an effective Facebook strategy no matter what.
39 Kickass #Facebook Marketing Tips for Socially Awkward Folks http://t.co/Uq79zhdywg via @DigitalGYD #SMMW15 | Like! ?
Here are 39 Facebook marketing tips that will help you promote your business on Facebook and expand your reach on the platform. These Facebook post ideas and tactics will help you generate more leads through Facebook in addition getting more likes and shares and click through rates.
You can surely try out the best Facebook paid ad campaigns to get a wider paid reach, but make sure to optimize it at the free level first so that you can get better ROI from paid campaigns if you use them at all.
Get your real name on your profile: “Princesses” and “Kings” don’t appeal on Facebook anymore. So drop them from your first name.
Fill your bio correctly: Tell them who you are and what you do. Your BIO is the first thing a prospect will look for on your profile. So share your values and company ethics.
Have your language simple: Too geeky words might scare your audience away.
Also, make use of SEO: Include the terms you want to appear for when searched online.
When you are on Facebook, you cannot just sit hands crossed and hope for people looking for you. Not at least if you aren’t Mari Smith or Kim Garst.
So instead take the move from your end. Send friend requests to the influencers you want to connect. As Facebook profiles are more of a personal, a brief introduction is useful. May be a message showing how you first knew each other or an interaction on their blog.
This will help you to get influencers promote your business on Facebook. Needless to say, the conversion rates will sky-rocket.
3) Like pages as your page.
If you want your Facebook page to be seen by a large audience the best thing is to like other pages as your page. And then comment on them and interact on their posts.
This will bring your business into their notice and thus you can create new relationships on the network.
Moreover, using this trick you can steal your competitors’ fans by actively providing value to their posts.
4) Be active and act on notifications.
When you like a new page just click the dropdown on the like button and it shows various options including one that tells you to get notifications for its update.
Same can be done with profiles. Just visit existing friend’s profile and hit the “friends” button to enable or disable notifications from him.
Recently, facebook has introduced a green responsive badge for pages, this is for brands that respond to 90% of the customer messages to their facebook page and that too within 5 minutes of receiving messages. The coveted responsive badge ads to your business credibility and is a good way to promote your business values on Facebook.
People come to social networks to freshen up and to lighten up. Share positivity with them. Quotes and inspirational images get maximum likes and shares on Facebook. Use this to create an audience base that can relate to you.
Here is a mammoth list of Inspirational Robin Williams Movie Quotes to help you get started. Just pick one and post it now.
Post by Boom Social with Kim Garst.
Humor on Facebook sells like hot cakes. Post images of LOL cats or memes depicting the scenario of your industry. This will help to show the lighter side of your business to your audience.
7) Share your office and business pictures.
Want to show transparency in working procedures? Use Facebook as a showcase of your office pictures. A clean and professional layout of your desk might do much to incline a customer towards your brand than just plain statuses.
Share the latest news and first off information on your industry as well as the world in common. This will shape you as an informative individual or brand and people will enable notifications for you. This will help you when you want to get heard.
9) Post a personal picture.
No one likes to interact with robots, show ’em that you are a human behind that company logo. Sharing something different (like this) than your normal routine can help you get more likes and comments. Personal pictures will not help in getting enough shares, though.
Share super short text status updates (<120 characters) to super long statuses (63K maximum). People interact more with short or uber long posts. Short quotes or facts as status gets great shares on facebook.
Use keyword research to see what is popular on Facebook and what you need to do to get more user interaction on Facebook. With proper keyword research, you can write better posts that will increase your organic reach on Facebook.
Your blog is the best place to for someone to get an idea about what you do. If your target audience is on Facebook and is already following you, why not leverage them to increase your blog readers. Share your blog posts as soon as they are cooked. I personally have seen posts titled “New Blog Post” as headlines have great interaction and help in getting maximum shares on Facebook.
Bonus tip: You can track your individual clicks on your links by using a URL shortener like Goo.gl or Bit.ly. I know analytics shows you Facebook clicks but this can be handy.
Don’t write an excerpt about the post. Let your URL speak volumes.
Sometimes an excerpt might be a good change. Write a short brief of your post just above the link you share. You can also use this trick to create a buzz around your “not yet published” posts.
Hashtags do a lot to increase the reach and life span of your Facebook post. Use appropriate hashtags to gain more user interactions. Limit hashtags to two or three at most. You can even have your own branded hashtag to give your business a brand makeover on facebook.
Using trendy hashtags can be a good Facebook marketing idea for businesses too. But beware to add relevant hashtags. You wouldn’t want to sky-rocket your blog’s bounce rates by having someone land on your health related post from a click on a post with #Iphone6 hashtag.
Facebook recently updated their spam policy and now punishes for asking users to click on links that appear spammy. It detects the time spent by the users on your links. The more time they spend the valuable the post. And if they return back to Facebook as soon as they click your link it shows your post was a click bait.
According to Dan Zarrella, words like “Facebook”, “most”, “why”, “health” etc. get maximum shares. Leverage these high shares resulting words to maximize reach of your content on Facebook.
Your headlines have great significance on CTR. Avoid words like “vs”, “apps”, “reviews”, “twitter” etc. to prevent fewer shares. Here is a more detailed list of least shared words on Facebook.
Facebook isn’t about dumping links. If you do so your account will be no better than a barren desert. Instead interact with people. Try to add value to others by showing activity on their profiles and pages.
“The psychology of sharing” a study conducted by New York Times Scientists reveals that 945 people share a post only because they think it will be helpful for others. Hence, share updates that will be helpful to your fans and followers. People won’t hesitate to share.
For more ideas on what to share on Facebook this post read on Mari Smith’s blog.
Conducting a research for your upcoming product? Are you writing on a topic that needs a vote or poll? What else can be a better platform than Facebook, world’s most used social network?
Use Facebook polls to collect audience insights or simply for fun.
1) Who do you think will win today’s football match?
2) Which is your most favorite of the three products we offer?
3) What are the features you expect from our ___ product, in our next update?
You can use this link to conduct a poll on Facebook.
23) Declare the results of the poll.
You can then declare these results on Facebook or use it as a lead magnet. If you got a large number of people responding to your survey, put the results on the top of your business page by pinning it.
PRO TIP: You can also announce special discount coupons you have for your audience. Like I recently did with my Grammarly student discount coupons.
24) Run contents on Facebook.
Facebook is fun. It’s lively. Use Facebook’s amazing and energy filled audiences to run a contest. Contests can be a good idea to uplift the activity on your account.
Use shortstack, Heyo like tools to run contests on Facebook. You can also run mini giveaways by simply asking friends and followers to comment on a post with a number (in a given range say, 1-100) and then selecting the winner through random.org which will select a random number and the first commenter with that number wins the contest.
You can use your cover picture to display a ton of information about you. Apart from being an attractive image, a cover photo can do a LOT more.
Use it to display information about your other profiles and the work you do. You can also use it to show off your accomplishments. As the cover photo is a prominent section of both your profile and your page it is sure to grab eyeballs.
Wasn’t that a fab idea to advertise your business on facebook for free!
Create a custom cover image for your special blog posts.
Add the shortened URL in your image.
Use a CTA button for clicking on the link (optional).
While uploading the image edit its description to include post excerpt along with link.
User clicks on the image and the lightbox appears with the picture along with the description.
It’s a very unique idea for generating leads.
27) Announce product launches on cover images.
See How I used my Facebook cover photo to feature my blogiversary post!
Facebook now allows you to add featured videos on your business pages which appear just above your about description. It’s a bigger than normal video thumbnails on the left sidebar. Sky is the limit for being creative with a video.
This video can be used as your ad copy. Tell them more about your brand. Give them an idea of something behind the scenes. Show your awards and stats. Entice them.
30)Use Facebook native videos to tell them why they should like your page.
31) Tell them about your personal self.
32) Describe your work ethics.
33) Announce a product launch and advertise it with videos.
Facebook recently announced introduction of CTA buttons to help page admins increase their customer acquisition efforts. Now you can use Facebook’s call to action buttons to generate leads, sell products directly and also for making users play games etc.
You can create a secret Facebook group for colleagues to interact and collaborate on projects. Facebook groups support file uploads in multiple formats for easier sharing. This could be a great way to business marketing with facebook.
You can create a Facebook group of already members of your products to discuss their reviews, help them and serve as customer support. It would help you to create a close-knit community of raving fans on Facebook.
If you have a loyal community around your blog, ask them to join your group. Here you can interact with other members (and members amongst themselves) to share special tips related to the industry.
Events are SO important around a product launch or celebration time for businesses. You can create an event in your group (you can do it through your profile too) and invite all members to take part in it. This can be used to notify members of any upcoming giveaway at your blog too.
The social media report is one I had written earlier this year. It has secret social media strategies of 5 global social media experts and includes their favorite social media tools for 2016 in order to accomplish their social media goals. Download the report now (FREE!) to get access to expert tips and make your wheel rolling.
The key to success in any social media is to be the original you. You cannot fake things till long. Being consistent and helping can take your brand from zero to hero. Get acting now. Apply these Facebook marketing tips for achieving your business goals and see the change for yourself.
I have to confess, I don’t do much on Facebook anymore – after the organic reach of Facebook has gone down. But I still like to connect with influencers and reach out to new connections on facebook.
Thank you for the action-able tips, I agree with most of them. This is 2015 and anyone who isn’t willing to put their face on the avatar or their real names in the UserId are surely missing out. This is true for all networks and Facebook is no different – people don’t really want to follow someone with a logo in their profile ids.
Facebook is really one of the best social media sites out there with a very huge audience and any business on the internet that is not yet making use of it is really making a hell of mistake.
I agree with all the tips you shared here. One of the worst mistake i usually see people making is being Faceless on their Facebook business page, this single act alone can cost you a lot of things.
People always like to know who they are interacting with and being faceless will do you no good.
Great tips man, thanks for sharing.
First of all, awesome article! Thanks for sharing. I’ve never focused on spreading my readership through facebook. May be because, I never got more than 5-6 clicks from facebook. So I gave up with fb months ago. But I never thought it could be exploited like this. Thanks to your 39 tips, now I know exactly where I was missing it.
Hope you’re loving Mumbai. Have a good day!
Facebook is one of the most famous and top website in the world. after Google this is top most using website by public so we should need to target Facebook for advertising and marketing it wiil be very helpful and useful.
I was neglected Facebook for couple of months, because I really don’t know how to maximize the benefit from Facebook, still I don’t have much likes on my Facebook page and I don’t have huge friends on my Facebook personal page as well.
Recently I started participating on the Facebook groups and I am seeing the results, I think all these 39 tips will help me to get maximum benefit to me.
Thanks for sharing..! This is the most awesome tips about Facebook marketing.
You know..? I am not an active social media user, but I love Facebook because it is the most referral sources of traffic to my blog. Sure, I agree what you said. If Facebook were a country, it will be the most population country in world.
Actually, when we talk about social media marketing, I think that it is almost the crazy thing to learnt about it. I remembers, and learnt about from last 2 years because 2 of my post.
The first post is that I have shared a brilliant post call “how 2 Women Made Over $1350 with single blog post”. You know..? I just get some few shared and liked the post.
You know..? I got lot of people like and comment on that status.
It make so complicated about social media game plan, but what I learnt is that to build a natural relationship with your connectors.
The first tip is the preamble of all the tips you mentioned to do Facebook marketing effectively.
I personally observed success lies in balancing. So it does in FB as well.
So the gist of your post which I could have gotten is to be original, balanced, focused, objective and both professional and personal according to the circumstances.
Thanks a lot for sharing such an informative and useful post.
Excellent article! You nailed it. For me, social media is all about engagement. When people engage with you on social media, try to reply to them. That’s the least you can do!
You nailed it big time! Thanks for sharing!
Its crystal clear that you’ve done your best in this post, great appreciation from my side.
I know that you’re a good writer, but this post says that you’ve immense knowledge in Facebook marketing too. All tips are awesome and executable.
I’m following only few ways as you know that am hell lot of busy with other stuff. But will have these marketing tips in my mind to get good exposure.
Social networks become popular these days and every business get visibility and grab the audience through social media.
That’s a great list of tips – thanks. It’s funny – in some ways (timeline covers) Facebook has become more liberal – and more awkward in others, as you describe. Tough to keep up with all the changes! No wonder people need “proper” social media consultants to do their marketing for them.
Indeed, it is a loss if we do not use Facebook in our online journey. Since I also get a lot of benefits from Facebook as well.
I could not agree more about being you. We have to be ourselves in any social networking site. It is a must, I guess.
You really did a great job. Keep up the good work!
yes it is not easy now to have interaction on your page now. It used to be so easy, now it is kind a hard to get your posts in front of people. Not just because you are not sharing good content. It is just out of your hands… I did a test for a client and payed Facebook to show a few of her posts. With a lot of likes and comments as a results. For me that means fans do like what she posts, they just don’t get to see it. So we are now figuring out a way to change that….
So thanks for these great tips! I will surely try some of them out! But what you say about having a personal bond with people is for sure a great point. I have page in Dutch on a topic that is just close to my heart. A lot of those people I know from real life. That’s a huge difference! So yes, trying to build personal relationship is key.
As we all know that Facebook is turning to Promotional book so to maintain your organic post reach on Facbook we need to be alert on there. As you described in your post, we should keep a balance in your post and links. Because if we share too many links then it cause to decrease our post reach so balance is most important.
Other thing as you say Short Status, Short and relevant status get 60% engagement rather than others. So we should post very relevant and informative post. And other thing we should use graphics as well .
The point about Polls, much impressive. I am sure it will help to engage more people on your page and profile.
At last want to say, Excellent post.!!
Nice collection of tips to get more views for your blog.
Facebook is a great source of social engagement so help you to increase your blog audience.
Excellent article and a power packed one! I follow most of the above said strategies but I doubt doing some of mentioned i.e., sharing memes and naked links. will they work on niche-kind of pages?. Because I never posted anything out of niche on my page yet. I was afraid that I may lose the subscibers for showing them irrelevant content. Just a confusion bro..will that work actually?
Sharing memes can be a great idea to show the fun side of your brand/niche. Don’t worry your readers will take it well. You can use meme to show sad things too like political resentment (depends on niche). The secret here is give them variety. If they don’t like something share similar one again after a few days. If they don’t like it again then leave the trick.
Swadhin you’ve definitely done an amazing job this time. 39 awesome tips for Facebook marketing and that too in a single post means that you have done lot of hard work.
I love to try out new things. It is one of the reasons that nowadays I sometimes I try to share unique images, motivational quotes and much more on my Facebook profile. I’m thinking to do the same for my Facebook page too, but I’m not able to get enough time for it.
I know many bloggers who are running some Facebook groups successfully. These groups not only help them in promoting their blog posts, but at the same time they’re able to generate affiliate income become of the groups that they’re running.
Swadhin I hope that you’ll keep working hard in the same time. It is really good to see that you’re making the best of your time. Keep writing long posts like this one as many newbies may definitely get to grab lot of knowledge about SEO, marketing and other related things.
Being you is the best way, no matter whether it’s on Facebook or anywhere else. I think people best relate to you when you are YOU and no one else.
Being active is the key on any social media platform, and so it is with Facebook too. I think the more engaging your updates, the more the interactions, the more the connections you build, isn’t it?
While I agree with most things, I wonder whether sharing personal pictures on social profiles is good – a topic for debate! Some say yes, some no, as you make your pictures public this ways, and they can be misused by anyone, so if you do share, then be sure to share them with a group of close friends or particular audience only.
I agree about the hashtag too, though the ones on Facebook haven’t come up as good as the ones on Twitter or G+, though still some are really good and trendy ones.
Never tried polls or running any content or contest as yet on Facebook, nor any advt or marketing etc – just no time for spending more time than I already do there…lol…with the 100+ notifications to deal with each time I sign in, which is once or twice a day ONLY.
Oh yes…cover photo can say a lot – good reminder to change mine – all the pipeline! You know, creating groups is easy, but managing them and keeping them clean is a full time job – reminds me of the ABC! Have my hands full, and am hardly visiting any groups myself nowadays. | 2019-04-26T10:22:43Z | https://www.digitalgyd.com/39-kickass-facebook-marketing-tips-for-socially-awkward-folks/ |
Following the great successes of previous symposia in this series in Bari, Italy in 2017 http://bari2017.moniqa.org/ and Vienna, Austria in 2018 http://vienna2018.moniqa.org/, the MoniQA Association and USP (the United States Pharmacopeia) would like to invite you to the 3rd International MoniQA Symposium on Food Fraud Prevention and Effective Food Allergen Management scheduled on 30 October – 1 November 2019 in Rockville, MD, USA.
An exciting program with practical litigation cases, with strategies and methods for detecting and combating food fraud, are presented by renowned speakers from around the world. Join us in Rockville and meet the "Food Detectives" and get to know modern technologies that are looking for the "unknown" and learn about legal regulations and get practical advice for protecting your branded products, for correct food labeling, and ultimately to maintain consumer trust. The symposium program is currently being compiled, it will include speakers from Science and Innovation, from industry, public authorities, international organizations, law firms and food research institutions.
In addition to the traditional main topics related to food fraud prevention and effective food allergen management, the 3rd edition of this International Symposium will also focus on the Food Law, its implications for industry and food businesses in international trade, export and import liabilities, critical issues of food integrity and food safety related issues governed by national and international regulations and standards, impacts of international trade agreements. This symposium will address food authenticity, food fraud and the need for simple labeling as major drivers for both the food industry and companies involved in rapidly developing new analytical technologies, and putting available analytical tools in perspective of private standard requirements. While the food industry must adapt its programs addressing food safety and quality to meet the ever-changing regulatory and legal landscape, law firms specializing in food issues must also ensure their knowledge of these changes is up-to-date when defending the rights of consumers and/or food producers.
This workshop will bring together food industry experts, legal experts, regulators, academics and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to discuss the latest information on the implications of regulations and other burning issues in the food space. Additionally, recent technological developments in food analysis, digital certification and brand protection will be presented.
We warmly invite you to attend this meeting in Rockville, which brings together international experts in the fields of food authenticity and food allergens, as well as various food industries, SMEs, research institutions, associations and regulatory bodies, all having a different stake in food safety. This special mix of scientific and practical input to the symposium will be a valuable opportunity to grow your knowledge base, learn from practical experiences, and exchange ideas with peers.
Technical session on food integrity, food authenticity, food fraud, food fraud databases, food profiling, food analysis and latest analytical innovations, reference materials.
Requirements of public standards for allergen management and food fraud prevention.
Technical session on food safety and the law, litigations, trade agreements, liability, brand protection, consumer protection, export and different national laws, digital certification and blockchain.
Technical session on food allergens and labelling, food allergen management, gluten free, economic and food safety implications, analytical methods/challenges, reference materials.
Different regulations, introducing different risk assessment tools for food producers, food vendors, authorities, and clinicians.
Food allergen management in practice.
Challenges with hand held devices for risk management by consumers, liability implications, recalls.
We hope to see you in Rockville in October/November 2019!
A Happy New Year to the members and supporters of MoniQA!
The past year has been an interesting and exciting one! The topics MoniQA covers have never been more current: food allergens, food fraud and reference materials. No matter which jurisdiction you turn to, all of them have food fraud and food allergens high on their agenda. This also became apparent during the successful MoniQA conference held in Austria, and attended not only by the food industry, patient groups, laboratories, assay providers and equipment manufacturers but also by high-level FAO representatives. And as a not-for-profit organisation, MoniQA is well-placed to address challenging aspects of these topics in an independent manner.
Richard Cantrill, the outgoing president, has clearly shown his leadership, guidance and commitment over the past year and I would like to thank him on behalf of the advisory board and the MoniQA member companies and organisations.
In the coming year, MoniQA will continue on the path, helping stakeholders to address food safety challenges. The MoniQA team is already working on a number of new initiatives.
If you like to learn more, I cordially invite you to join the organisation and help pave the road to safer foods! Wishing all members and supporters a happy and prosperous 2019!
I am certain as I hand over the Presidency of the MoniQA Association to Bert Poepping that the future for the organization is very bright indeed. With the help of the Supervisory Board and Secretary General Roland Poms, we have been able to broaden our horizons in the areas of food fraud and allergen management. I was involved with MoniQA from its start as a Network of Excellence and now as a member-driven organization and am proud to have served as President. Now as immediate Past President, I have taken on the role of Editor-in-Chief of QAS (Quality Assurance and Safety of Crops and Food) and encourage you all to support this flagship MoniQA publication by submitting papers and also providing peer-reviews for our many submissions.
Thank you for your commitment to the Association and I wish you a successful and prosperous 2019.
The first 2019 issue of QAS – Quality Assurance and Safety of Crops & Foods, the official international journal of MoniQA Association published by Wageningen Publishing – is now available online https://www.wageningenacademic.com/toc/qas/11/1. The editorial by Richard Cantrill, Past President of MoniQA Association and the new Editor in Chief of QAS is offered as open access paper and the full version can be downloaded at https://www.wageningenacademic.com/doi/pdf/10.3920/QAS2019.x001.
“Following my review, the editorial board and MoniQA supervisory board have agreed to small but significant changes to the scope of QAS. The revised scope and submission requirements can be found online (https://www.wageningenacademic.com/journals/qas/general-information). As a result of this review, we will maintain our current core subjects related to crops, crop improvement and conversion of crops to food, but will also place a greater emphasis on food composition, food safety and quality and the interaction between food quality and the regulation of global trade. To illustrate this broader coverage of food safety and quality, QAS is publishing a special issue in 2019 consisting of papers from the Global Harmonization Initiative which advocates for ‘science-based food safety law and trade’.
To read the full article please go to https://www.wageningenacademic.com/doi/pdf/10.3920/QAS2019.x001.
Roland Poms, Secretary General of the MoniQA Association will give his yearly lectures on "Reference Materials and Method Validation in Food Safety Assurance" at BOKU - University of Life Sciences and Natural Resources, Vienna, Austria, http://www.boku.ac.at/en/, in the week from 25 February to 1 March 2019, 12:30-16:30 each day. The lectures will be given in English and they are specifically designed for international students to meet their curricula requirements for their Master Studies “Safety in the Food Chain” and for PhD students in the areas of food safety, food analysis, reference materials and measurements, and quality control. Participation in the course and passing a final written or oral exam will be awarded with 3 ECTS. This course offers theoretical and practical content and is perfectly fit to complement your CPD (continued professional training) for QC personnel in food industry and auditors. In addition to enrolled MSc and PhD students at BOKU – the University for Natural Resources and Life Sciences Vienna, students of the European Master Studies “Safety in the Food Chain” and international exchange students, there are a maximum of 10 places reserved for MoniQA members (discounted fee for the one week course is € 120,-) .
The aim of the course/workshop on "Reference materials and method validation in food safety assurance" is to describe the issues and challenges involved in the international comparability and validity of analytical results in the assurance of food safety and quality. On the basis of practical examples the focus was on current hot topics, such as mycotoxins, food allergens, authenticity testing, pathogenic micro-organisms, GMOs, etc., the analytical possibilities (including rapid methods), and the corresponding EU regulations. Additionally, an overview of international standardization bodies and examples of international validation studies was to be given.
The course was offered in the framework of the international Master programme “Safety in the Food Chain (SIFC)”, http://www.safetyinthefoodchain.com/, which includes 5 participating universities across Europe. This international Master programme was developed to provide a profound academic MSc programme concerning all areas of food safety. It offers a high level study course by combining all the existing expertise of European universities. The content of the curriculum is focused on the whole spectrum of the food chain (regarding supply and production).
The course is offered in English and was originally compiled in the EU funded MoniQA Network of Excellence FOOD-CT-2006-036337 and further developed by Dr. Roland Poms at BOKU and MoniQA.
About 650 participants from some 130 countries were witnessing a strong determination to scale up food safety in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development at the First FAO/WHO/AU International Food Safety Conference, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 12-13 February 2019, which was organized by the United Nations to discuss the future of food safety and how to best transform knowledge into action for people, economies and environment http://www.who.int/food-safety/international-food-safety-conference. Priorities were discussed so that food safety strategies and approaches can be aligned across sectors and borders, reinforcing efforts to reach the Sustainable Development Goals and supporting the UN Decade of Action on Nutrition.
Strong and viable food systems require transparency, collaboration and communication. Consumers must be engaged.
There is no food security without food safety.
In a world of accelerating changes, the need for food to be safe remains a constant imperative.
And, in an increasingly complex food system, there must be greater attention to transparency, information sharing and collaboration.
Stakeholders from across the food chain share the responsibility for assuring that food is safe. Everyone has a role to play in food safety.
With widespread collaboration and the contributions of all actors in the food supply chain we can seek to improve food safety.
This is a pivotal moment in which international attention, key actions and strategies can make a difference in the lives of many.
A continued participation and dedication to improve food safety will pay off – improving human health and livelihoods, strengthening economies and protecting the planet.
In a second meeting at the FAO/WHO/WTO International Forum on Food Safety and Trade, Geneva, Switzerland, 23-24 April 2019, the trade-related aspects and challenges of food safety will be addressed. The two meetings will result in a high-level statement advocating for increased and better coordinated collaboration and support to improve food safety globally.
Watch a recording of the LIVE stream of the Opening Session here!
In the social media you might want to look out for the following hashtags: #FoodSafety #SécuritéAlimentaire #سلامة_الأغذية#InocuidadAlimentaria and #SafeFood.
The 2nd International MoniQA Symposium on Food Fraud Prevention and Effective Food Allergen Management in Vösendorf-Vienna, Austria, 7-8 June 2018, attracted 77 delegates representing all aspects of the agrifood sector. The event was organised by Roland Poms, Secretary General, MoniQA Association, Austria, and his team along with Richard Cantrill, President, MoniQA Association, Canada. The book of abstracts is published as volume 10, supplement 1, in the journal QAS - ‘Quality Assurance and Safety of crops and foods’, and can be accessed free of charge at www.wageningenacademic.com/foodfraud2018. The 3rd MoniQA International Symposium of this series is planned in latter half of 2019.
Down below a detailed summary of the meeting is given, thanks to Michael Walker, LGC, United Kingdom, who provided his personal report.
The organisers thank all speakers and poster presenters for their excellent contributions. Furthermore, we thank the sponsors of this event and all participants for their active participation!
Roland Poms and Richard Cantrill welcomed the delegates and introduced the conference which was an exciting programme of talks mixing cutting edge science with examples of litigation and enforcement. Strategies and methods for detecting and combating food fraud were presented as well as discussion of food allergy and coeliac condition, including precautionary allergen labelling, ‘free from…’, thresholds, laboratory accuracy and class action litigation.
It is with great pleasure that the Global Harmonization Initiative (GHI) invites you to attend the 1st GHI World Congress on Food Safety and Security, 24 - 28 March 2019, in Leiden, The Netherlands.
It brings together leading scientists, researchers and research scholars from academia and industry, decision makers from international organisations, and the public from across the globe to advance the conversation about the vital role of modern science in food legislation and regulation.
We thank Marina Carcea, CREA, Italy, and Paul Finglas, QUADRAM, United Kingdom, for their support and service in the MoniQA Supervisory Board in the past years.
In its latest session of the AOAC International Stakeholder Panel on Alternative Methods (ISPAM) MoniQA’s first allergen reference material validated for use in milk allergen detection methods was included in AOAC’s SMPR (Standard Method Performance Requirements) for the “Quantitation of Milk by ELISA-based Methods”.
On 4 - 6 October 2017, OLEUM partners met in Greece for a project meeting to mark the end of the first year of the project and discuss progress and future plans. The meeting was hosted by the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Roland Poms is member of the Advisory Panel and attended the meeting on behalf of MoniQA Association. The Multi-stakeholder Advisory Board (MS-AB) of OLEUM met for the first time. The MS-AB will meet annually to act as discussion platform to consult in different aspects of the project.
The MoniQA Food Allergen Reference Materials Task Force met on 27 September 2017, 14:00-17:00 at the 131st AOAC Annual Meeting, Atlanta, Georgia, USA. The task force was attended by some 30 participants and discussed the progress and the next steps in the design and production of validated food allergen reference materials. After the first set of milk reference materials became available at the beginning of 2017 (see also http://shop.moniqa.org/), further materials are in preparation.
The first validated Reference Materials for Food Allergen Analysis are now available and can be ordered from MoniQA Association by using the online order form and return the completed, signed/stamped form to moniqa [at] moniqa [dot] org. | 2019-04-22T19:57:25Z | https://www.moniqa.org/ |
There is a new Zogby poll on public attitudes in the US towards global warming and the potential connection between severe weather events and climate change.
Unsurprisingly to us (but maybe not to others), most of the US public feel that global warming is happening (around 70%), and roughly the same amount of people report being more or much more convinced of this over the last two years.
More interestingly, the pollsters asked whether people believed that global warming was having an effect on intense hurricanes, droughts, heat waves and the like. Again, roughly 70% of people thought that global warming was having either some effect or a major effect on these weather extremes (note that the question was not phrased to ask whether any specific event was thought likely to have been caused by global warming (which was probably a good choice)).
This begs the question whether people’s experience of severe weather has convinced them that climate change is occuring. Televangelist Pat Robertson, for instance, said very recently that it was the latest heat wave that finally convinced him. I think this is likely to be true for most of the public who are not following the issue very carefully (which is most of them of course!). The most significant single event in this context was probably Katrina, regardless of how much climate change can or can’t be associated with Katrina the Hurricane (let alone Katrina the Disaster!).
I would guess that this is likely to be a very common way for public opinion to be formed across a whole number of issues. That is, when a dominant theme is very prevalent across a wide spectra of media, everyday occurrences or new information are often processed with that in mind, and given our extraordinary ability to see patterns in noisy data, we often end up associating the theme with our own experiences. Other examples surely abound in medical or political contexts.
Given that pattern, it is probably overly optimistic to expect scientists, who continually stress that single weather events can’t in general be attributed to climate change but that changes in statistics might be, to have much success in conveying these finer points to the public directly. Instead, their skills are probably best used in clarifying these points to those (e.g. journalists, policy-makers) that set the dominant themes in the first place.
This poll is very good news. My brother is a journalist, and he and I had a long conversation recently about how climate science is reported. His basic view is that the media, as a business, essentially has to base their reporting on the public’s understanding of an issue. As long as the public continued to view climate change as a “controversy”, taking a side was viewed as biased. I pointed out that the media has continued to report the “controversy” long after the climate community reached consensus, and did so be reporting the opinions non-climate scientists as a counterpoint to true climate scientists. To which his reply was to remind me that I was a “skeptic” in 1999-2001, and because I was not convinced that climate change was definitively anthropogenic (I basically stand by that, as at the time we still hadn’t established things like whether the ocean is a net source or sink of carbon) I was against conclusively ruling out natural variability. I have since become convinced that natural variability is not responsible, as more and more work has been done.
The upshot is that it takes time to change the popular narrative, even with an engaged press. If the public has come around to seeing that global warming is real and anthropogenic, we can hold out some hope of political progress. But it’s still going to be awfully slow going to convince people of the pressing nature of the risks.
I posted this under the previous topic. In contrast with the Zogby poll, the Pew Center poll conducted last June found that 41% viewed global warming as “very serious” and 33% said “somewhat serious”. Only 41% agreed global warming is due to human activity. So most Americans appear to believe global warming is a problem, but a majority does not believe it is due to human activity. So convincing the American public that GHG emissions need to be reduced remains to be accomplished, according to this poll. You can see the poll results at http://people-press.org/reports/display.php3?ReportID=280. It would be interesting to have the Pew Center poll run again since the June poll preceded the heat wave and the Inconvenient Truth movie.
There’s a lot of research in the psychology litereature about how folks detect trends. The one I always point to is a phenomena called “depressive realism”. Subjects were given randomly blinking lights and a control panel that did nothing to the pattern of blinks. They were told to learn how to control the lights by experimenting with the switches. “Normals” said that they were learning to control the lights, and clinically depressed folks said that the switches didn’t do anything. Why the actual phenomena wasn’t called adaptive optimism or something like that puzzles me. But it does reflect on how the public may put off endorsing strong moves against climate change assuming that they have more control available than is the case.
The “vast right-wing conspirators” ;-) know this all too well, and that’s why FauxNews works so well. The same “noise” is re-re-repeated so often that for some people it becomes their reality. Anyway, that’s how I explain the ’04 election. It’s nice to know that the mainstream media include just enough good noise about climate change to have a positive effect on publicly held reality.
I’m not convinced that, as Eric phrased it, we can “rule out” natural variablity. A lot has been accomplished in disseminating the evidence that natural variablity plays a small role in the current unfolding changes of climate, and that’s all to the good. But the idea of excluding any of the forcings from public scruting seems risky because the varied forcings can gang up on us, in cumulative effect.
When I talk about natural variablity to people who are curious about these questions, I tell them that one of the spookiest scenarios is that where natural variablity turns against us at a time when greenhouse forcing is already creating plenty of risk. Double whammy? There may not be a lot of evidence for that right now, but remember, greenhouse forcing has committed to some risk for one to three or more centuries, which offers plenty of opportunity for risks that don’t seem imminent today.
As I understand it, there are at least four kinds of climate change: natural variation, greenhouse forcing, land-use forcing, and particle forcing (associated with cloud formations that lead to cooling). In the latter case, we’d see a potentially risky situation if efforts to introduce particles happens to be followed by a major volcanic eruption that pushes the cooling in the direction of the Little Dryas.
University students seem to quickly grasp that the varieties of climatic change can combine, interact, producing a cumulative effect. Maybe the general public can benefit from inclusive discussion of such scenarios.
This is also an effect of the pernicious effect of “he said, she said” faux balance journalism. Reputable journalists are creating an impression of a “split decision” from the experts, while at the same time disreputable journalists and political leaders are aggressively pushing the denialist message. The net impression (depending on one’s mix of news sources and one’s gullibility) is that the denialists have the edge.
Ok 70% believe, but the more telling part in the poll is the attitude that major industries should reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to improve the environment without harming the economy. Translation, the global warming stuff is horrible, but don’t ask/require me to do anything.
Lance your concerns are well founded. The network of forcings is complex. There is both constructive and destructive interference between them all. “Rogue waves” are not only possible but in the long run probable. I’d hate to contribute to a “rogue wave” by trying to “fix” the climate.
In an older topic earlier today, I cited how PR firms are packing weblogs with their spam.
A poll wouldn’t be susceptible to astroturf — which suggests the weblogs that are so full of denial don’t represent the public, and that people polled have started to understand there’s a problem.
Of course a single weather event like Katrina can be “attributed” to climate change.
If someone smokes two packs a day of cigarettes for decades and then dies of lung cancer, it is entirely appropriate to “attribute” his death from lung cancer to his tobacco smoking, even though some individuals may smoke just as much tobacco for just as long and never get lung cancer, and other individuals who have never smoked tobacco at all get lung cancer and die.
We know from epidemiology that there is a correlation between smoking tobacco and death from lung cancer, we know the biophysical mechanisms by which the carcinogenic constituents of tobacco smoke cause cancer, and so when we know that a person who died from lung cancer was a lifelong smoker, it is entirely reasonable to attribute his death to smoking.
Similarly, we know that there is a correlation between observed anthropogenic global warming of the ocean surface waters and the observed increase in the size, power and duration of hurricanes, and we know the physical mechanism by which anthropogenic global warming causes bigger and more powerful hurricanes (and indeed in the specific case of Katrina, it was clearly the abnormally warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico that caused it to explode into a monster after it passed over Florida), so, similarly, it is entirely reasonable to attribute Katrina to anthropogenic global warming.
I really think that scientists should stop saying that individual extreme weather events cannot be “linked to” or “attributed to” anthropogenic climate change. Of course they can.
[Response: This soon becomes a debate about the meaning of words like “attribute”. Clearly, it would not be scientifically correct to say about an individual that “he died of cancer because he smoked”, because you can’t be sure about this. You could say “he probably died because he smoked”, which reflects that we know he greatly increased his risk of getting lung cancer by smoking, but there is also a random component to it.
Polls like this one (and an earlier poll looking at similar attitudes in other countries) show a growing acceptance that climate change is a real phenomenon. But like in all political polls, you all need to know the intensity of the opinion/feeling and how it ranks in terms of action people think the government should take. It is hear that I still think we have some way to go.
It seems to me you have it exactly backwards, but I don’t know how to explain it as the analogy you used is a very good one to support the opposite point. You can not prove what caused the individual’s lung cancer, though a strong statistical correlation in a population makes that a less than interesting fact when deciding to light up or not.
WRT Katrina and the summer heat wave convincing people that GW is here and now and a problem, I guess this is just people holding the correct opinion for the wrong reasons and let’s accept it with gratitude.
It is a dangerous thing to purposely use such things in a misleading way, though, as the next cold snap makes you look like a liar!
The population is full of misconceptions, I for one do not rank the misconception that Katrina was caused by CO2 as a high priority to correct. I would not say it, and will correct people who say it to me, but I don’t feel any urge to go out of my way to stamp it out.
As more public opinion polls stack up–expressing meaningful collective awareness that humans are a factor in altering climate–the issue will be significant fodder for political election discourse.
However, what solutions will be ultimately proposed, and the actual effectiveness, holds my keen interest.
In the course of implementing a near zero carbon lifestyle and economy (that seems to be possible with current technology), it will be interesting how the huge financial stakeholders (coal, oil, nuclear) leverage their media and influence. For example, Paul Scott, of PlugInAmerica, has told me he drives all year, and powers his home using solar (PV) generated electrons. This kind of decentralized power generation, while empowering individuals, changes the order of things with some winners and some losers.
In agreement, Iâ��d submit the public awareness shift is result of recent Broadcast TV, cable, magazine, Gore movie, and other alternative media climate themed showings–more than any widespread deep cognitive understanding of the issues. Still heartening news, nonetheless.
Climate is constantly changing. If you asked these same people if they would rather have the same weather as 250 years ago, they would all say yes. Hell, that was the last part of a mini Ice Age. We have been living in what has probably been the optimum time for our species.
We shloud not expect it to continue indefinitely.
I think there is an issue with journalists being sufficiently informed to challenge the politicians that try to shirk their responsibilities with regard to global warming.
Too often I see articles in which journalists simply accept politicians comments unequivocally. There was a rare case in Australia recently in which a journalist actually challenged a politician on his carbon pricing policy. In this case the politician ended up looking pretty silly, if only more could do the same.
The situation in Australia is not great in this regard. Our prime minister has decided not to support emissions trading, and even though our states have banded together to create a scheme, there doesn’t seem to be much hope that it is going to get off the ground.
#6, Natural variability is fine, it happens as often as a change of winds, you must take a look, say with a view from the International Space station instead of a look from your living room window.
Global average temperatures do not deny natural variability, but they show a constant trend, upwards, not like a roller coaster, natural variations occur with ever changing weather systems constantly. A look at the world from afar offers a different conclusion, the back yard view is much more variable, should not be applied convincingly for AGW arguments, not in times of climatic transitions..
RE: #15 – Let me share how I run my factory. I look at yield and fall out weekly, QTD, rolling 13 week and on even longer time scales. For the shorter time scales, if I “alarm” on a positive spike, I need to make sure that I alarm at a higher alarm limit than I would for an alarm based on one of the longer time series. Do you understand why I do things this way? Do you understand why the level of innate variation in climate is so important to characterize on many different time scales? Do you understand why “constant trend upwards” statements regarding what is, in terms of Earth history, a short time frame, get challenged?
I think the best way to explain all this to uninformed people is the analogy of loaded dice. Admit that many factors affect whether or not any particular event occurs, but one of them is the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. So increasing that concentration loads the dice in some direction. Climate scientists think they know a reasonable amount about the sort of changes that might occur and an increase of extreme weather events should be one of them. But even if the climate scientists are wrpng about specific predictions, the edfault position should be that something will happen and it is foolhardy to assume it will be benign. The onus should be on those who argue we should continue to increase our emissions of greenhouse gases to show that there will not be significant effects.
I wonder if it might be better to put this another way (when refering to a particular hurricane for example): Similar events are possible without global warming, so individually are not proof, but higher temperatures do increase the average strength of tropical storms and also the average sea level, both of which increase the danger from storm surges.
For perspective let’s not forget that in previous polls 75% of Americans were convinced that Saddam Hussein was behind 9/11!
When they say this I simply respond “Remember it’s global averages that are important”.
Did you read Dr. Curry’s paper? Given the info in table #1 and the fact that we are still 10 years from the peak I’m not sure you are correct when you say this is a “misconception”. Yes, we can’t know for sure with regard to any specific storm but the stats are shocking.
Concern about unpredictable random events shouldn’t be used to determine action. They can either amplify or counteract actions, for good or bad. Global climate change, by itself, is net bad, at least in that people have to move to follow the desired climate, and probably change their technologies. Counteracting it is, in that sense, net good. On the other hand, change is how evolution happens.
If we or nature went too far in cooling the earth, yes, people would have to move. But ice piled high on land at the poles would drop the sea level and make much more land available at shore lines in temperate and tropical areas, plus, on the average, probably improve weather in those areas.
Hank, that’s a good link.
I started the Dano character after watching the spam on TCS, after the then-CA Governor announced a ‘Kyoto-lite’ for the state and that day a number of commenters from Michigan gave instructions on how to start a recall and further detailed actions.
The issue is how certain public dialogue is gamed. I believe that polls can reflect astroturf activity, and that websites can mobilize a demographic to action – galvanization is the key to public action and spam can serve to galvanize. That the poll numbers mentioned in the post are steady, however, may indicate across a broad spectrum spam is ineffective (but I don’t think that’s the point – concentrated action is).
I forgot to include a couple of thoughts on #22. Do what you think is best based on predictable senarios, and be prepared for all most likely outcomes.
Some people don’t think of heat waves as being severe weather events even though heat waves contribute much to many weather related problems: heavy power use, less work, worsening drought, fires and heat fatalities. In the US, July is usually the warmest month of the year.
The first week of August was also very warm in the Midwest and Northeast (4-8 degrees F above ‘normal’ for July 30 – Aug 5, 2006, according to the DOC/DOA Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin.
How much of the six week (July 1- Aug 6, 2006) heat in the US could be viewed as just due to variability in weather and how much could be viewed as due to global warming?
I wish someone would evaluate the heat released from the munitions in escalating world conflict. This could be a contributing factor also. Climate depends on millions of factors. Since man began to smelt metals the C02 has been on the rise.
I think it is dangerous to be happy that the public believes GW for the wrong reasons. This is suscptible to backfiring on the next reversal.
Scientists could do a lot better in communicating complex ideas – but unfortunately there are few gifted like Carl Sagan to do so. Nevertheless, ensuring that the public understands the basic science would be of immense benefit in counteracting the disinformation promulgated by GW deniers.
I just ran across this weatherman’s view.
This continues to be alarming but not in the way trained professionals like this claim. You have to blame individual political leanings on this. Just Count the fallacies.
re #11 by by SecularAnimist: Sounds much like impeccable and erudite analysis leading to preposterous conclusions. So, some smoke and never get cancer, others don’t smoke and get cancer, and yet others smoke and get cancer. The latter is an AHA! moment???!!! Other than matching some pre-conceived notion, it’s on the surface silly.
I don’t understand the concern over polling. Are we waiting for the right percentage to prove our notion, as in science through democracy? Or is it just the excitment of converting sheep to follow the herd of independent minds? In either case, I’m afraid science is not a democratic process; though advocacy is.
Sorry, I’m just an old lay scientist iconoclast trying to keep everyone’s feet on the ground.
While global warming poses the danger of heavier losses for insurers, the industry has started to mine the business opportunities by offering products aimed at mitigating the environmental problem – along with claims, a new report says.
Some insurers are using new premium credits and risk management programs that will encourage more energy-efficient construction and driving and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, said a study issued Tuesday by the Ceres coalition of investors and environmental groups.
But more companies need to adopt innovative approaches to tackle the problem over the long term, the report said.
Global warming, fueled by the emission of such gases as carbon dioxide, is believed to be changing climate and leading to more intense hurricanes, droughts, floods and wildfires. The study comes nearly a year after Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast, causing an estimated $45 billion of insured damage, a record for a hurricane.
Many insurers have raised rates, imposed new or higher wind deductibles, and shrunk their business in hurricane-exposed areas, and the report says they’re forgoing about $3 billion a year in premiums as a result. In Florida and Louisiana alone, more than 600,000 homeowners’ policies were dropped or not renewed in the past year, the report said.
The increased risk, however, “creates vast opportunities for new products and services” to help consumers and businesses reduce their losses while reducing pollution and its climate effects, Lubber said.
The report identifies 190 such products and services that are either available or under development at dozens of insurance companies, brokers and other insurance organizations in 16 countries.
Fireman’s Fund, for example, is introducing premium credits for certified “green,” or energy-efficient, commercial buildings. The company also plans new green products, including a provision to replace conventional damaged property with improved energy-efficient property.
The St. Paul Travelers Cos. is rolling out premium discounts for hybrid electric-gasoline vehicles, saying data shows drivers of hybrids are less likely to have accidents than people who drive gasoline-powered vehicles.
Insurers can also provide coverage for carbon-reduction capital projects and consulting services in designing and managing such projects, Ceres said.
In addition, some insurers are stepping in to cover risks involved in “carbon trading.” Many countries are capping their greenhouse gas emissions, and businesses that can’t meet their emissions targets can buy credits from those who are below targets.
American International Group and broker Marsh & McLennan Cos. have launched carbon emissions credit guarantees, and the carbon-trading market in the European Union, alone, is expected to hit $30 billion by the end of this year, the Ceres report said.
I suppose an optimist might say this is a conservative business decision to protect the industry’s bottom line that also provides much-needed incentives for people to make environmentally sound decisions. On the other hand, a pessimist might argue that the insurance industry is merely exploiting AGW to ,and drop risky policies; insurance underwriters will likely benefit whether global warming is real, or not (or less severe than predicted).
A fully developed hurricane can release heat energy at a rate of 5 to 20×10^13 watts and converts less than 10% of the heat into the mechanical energy of the wind. The heat release is equivalent to a 10-megaton nuclear bomb exploding every 20 minutes. According to the 1993 World Almanac, the entire human race used energy at a rate of 10^13 watts in 1990, a rate less than 20% of the power of a hurricane.
Summary: Smaller climate changes than the one we have made so far have caused the fall of many civilizations. Brian Fagan lists more civilizations that fell because of minor climate changes than I ever knew existed.
So what are you going to do when Iowa becomes a desert and the price of bread reaches $10 per slice? Regardless of the cause of the climate change, we have to control the climate or die. We have to keep the climate stable and optimal for the agricultural technology that we already have. New technology can’t be deployed instantly no matter how fast it is invented. And the next famine will be global. We could loose 6 Billion people, including those rich business people and Professor Ball.
Placing responsibility for individual weather events with global warming is a fool’s game. Yet, increased forest fires, more severe and widespread heat waves and draughts, larger and more powerful storms, are all predictable consequences of global warming.
Most predicable, a warming earth will soon start to emit considerably more greenhouse gases than humans. Carbon sinks will become carbon emitters-like forests, permafrost, and the oceans. Particularly alarming is melting methane hydrate, which likely has caused severe bouts of global warming in the past.
⢠There is an estimated 400 billion tons of methane trapped in permafrost ice.
⢠An estimated 50% of surface permafrost will melt by 2050, and 90% by 2100.
⢠Methane is more than 20 times as strong a greenhouse gas as CO2-the sudden release of just 35 billion tons of methane would be like doubling the CO2 in the air.
⢠Ocean bottom ice will start to melt-releasing some of the estimated 10,000 billion tons of methane trapped in it.
John Bolduc, post 2, the Pew poll is interesting but what should be worrying is that people put a very low priority on doing anything about the problem. There is a difference between Democrats and Republicans but even Democrats put global warming barely higher than immigration as an issue to be dealt with. I would be curious to see how high the issue climbs in people’s priorities when mass migration starts to happen.
It is interesting to see that Spain and France are two countries which are particularly worried about the issue. One can guess why and it probably has something to do with water shortages in both territories. France has already predicted a fall in agricultural yields for this year. Spain of course is in the front line for people fleeing Africa.
The Economist about two issues ago published a good special on The Horn of Africa detailing drought, famine and over-population as plaguing that particular part of the earth’s surface – leaving aside the unremitting violence in that region.
I hope that The Horn of Africa is not a model that we will all follow shortly.
What will the public believe after a few cold winters or even years? Human memory is very short and our climate observations short and disputed.
Relying on public feelings and evangelists for ‘evidence’ is surely no way to run public policy. A sign of desperation by teh ‘global warming ‘alarmists’? Or is it a sign of the failure of populism?
version of the politics of fear, note it is always the future that will be worse, diverting attention from present problems.
Not so long ago it was the next ice age, then the death of the oceans, then the population bomb, limits to growth and the death of the forests from acid rain. People like to be scared, and when there is money to be made out of the scares as well (not always!) they get taken up by insurance companies, research and then regulators – get ‘institutionalised’. Supportive scientists get the limelight, for a while.
So what? Volcanoes exploding is how Pacific islands are built. Does that make volcanoes a good thing? The fact that evolution takes place doesn’t mean we have to help it along. Natural selection works by time and death — whose children do you want to die so that evolution can be helped along?
This is an ad hominem argument. If you have evidence that anthropogenic global warming isn’t happening, present your evidence. Insulting those who disagree with you gets you nowhere.
re: 39. Quite true. Furthermore, the very idea that a layman thinks they know more then the consensus of literally thousands of climate scientists throughout the world and essentially every major scientific society across the world is probably the ultimate height of sheer arrogance. Sadly such insults without facts or data within the realm of science are part of the skeptics/denialists repertoire when the science does not support them. This was also recently seen following the release of “An Incovenient Truth” with many attacks on former VP Gore that had nothing or very little to do with the scientific issue.
Coby #33, the 10 trillion watts of energy (1990) you mention is dwarfed by the couple watts per sq meter for anthropogenic GH gasses over 500 trillion square meters of earth. Also the hurricane energy is being absorbed elsewhere, not additional, so it can’t be compared to the anthropogenic energy inputs.
I keep getting mailings from Senator John McCain about doing something about global warming. There is a reasonable chance that, whichever party prevails, we may have an administration committed to controlling greenhouse gas emissions in 2009. Changing Congress may take longer, but it seems likely the US will change direction significantly in the next 5-10 years. If the US starts providing leadership, it may have a significant global influence, and China and India may be brought on board. Unfortunately, even when the commitment is made, it can take some time for changes to actually be made, so we may not have that long to wait.
Re #37: You read too much Crichton. Forget Crichton.
I have no disagreement with what you say. The figures were only intended to illustrate the vastly different scales of heat energy between global climate systems (if a single hurricane involves that much energy, imagine how much is in the system) and human activity, specifically heat released from weaponry (if it takes a ten Mt bomb/20 min to match one hurricane, clearly the current use of weaponry will not have a significant global impact).
Re changing US political rhetoric: this is clearly a hopeful thing, but the challenges are far from met by simply having some campaign promises. Even if a passionate advocate such as Al Gore ran and won the presidency, the entrenched corporate powers will not roll over easily. The democrates are always appealing when the Republicans are in power, but so far the kinds of fundamental changes needed never seem to occur.
#29 Mark, Amazing, a name calling meteorologist claiming that AGW has no facts backing it up, without explaining the current warming trend, aside from its “natural”, with oozing assurances that the great urban sprawl of humanity, I suppose also found in the Arctic (with huge temperature increases of late), explains the flaws in GT records. May be during the Miocene, the time when CO2 concentrations was about the same as now, there was a lot of Polar ice? Or this alligator skull found on Ellesmere Island was moved in flight by argentavis seeking to have lunch in a cold place?
Now, seriously, what is needed is a meteorologist or anyone with a contary view, specifically finding the flaw not found by those 2000 IPCC scientists. Such a claim must be scientifically compelling, not like name calling. I’ve read many such poorly researched articles, they have the same easy to read slant, totally designed for mass consumption, designed to steer away the public from a proper course of reasoning.
How about something more scientific, such as the areal distribution of humanity. A density function of course.
A transform, related to the level of development, could be applied, leading to reasonable estimates of anthropogenic energy dissipation / power / work. Classic stuff, work applied at an interface. Hey, guess what, it’s one o’ dem boundary condition thingies!
I’ve wondered, not about heat released, but about how much biologically (eventually) available iron and nitrogen got flushed into the ocean during and after WWII. I suspect it’s trivial (at the rate sunken ships and aircraft would rust, anyhow) compared to annual windblown iron-containing dust. And for explosives, I’d imagine the value of those as fertilizer are trivial compared to nitrogen oxides in rainfall from internal combustion engines.
The man cannot fathom the source of increased CO2 concentration except to surmize it must be attributed to bad breath.
I am writing to respond to Jim Woodmencey’s article “Global warming or global whining?” from the August 2-8 2006 edition of Planet Jackson Hole. It is evident from Mr. Woodmencey’s article that he was galvanized by Al Gore’s movie “An Inconvenient Truth” albeit not in a manner intended by the filmmakers. On this, at least, we agree. I found the movie in question to contain as much hyperbole as sound scientific reasoning. But countering one set of ill-formed conclusions with another serves no one. The asymmetry here is that Mr. Gore has little substantive background in atmospheric science whereas Mr. Woodmencey has a degree in meteorology and ought to know better.
Among atmospheric scientists, physicists, oceanographers and others who study Earth’s energy balance there is virtually no debate on either the existence or the causes of global warming. The mechanisms for global warming are among the most well understood in climate research and are really not all that difficult to grasp. Although it is true that climate on Earth has vacillated (in some cases wildly) in past epochs there is no evidence in the anecdotal, historical or paleoclimatological records of a strong simultaneous upswing in both carbon dioxide concentration and temperature in such a compact temporal signature.
To claim that scientists do not understand how to subtract background readings from temperature data is laughable. To further downplay the significance of a global increase of 0.5 degrees C in temperature in 100 years reflects an astounding ignorance of how sensitive the ocean-atmospheric system is to perturbation. If Mr. Woodmencey really believes that humans contribute substantially to global warming due to respiratory processes then he is welcome to hold his breath for as long as he wishes but scientists are able to largely identify CO2 in the atmosphere by source. The significant increase in atmospheric C02 levels is not due to breathing, it is due to changes in land use and use of the atmosphere as an industrial CO2 dump for the past 150 years.
Mr. Woodmencey’s article reaches its height of inadvertent humor when he complains about Mr. Gore’s “connect the dots” graphics while simultaneously claiming that a 20 percent increase in atmospheric CO2 in less than 50 years isn’t really significant because it represents only an increase from 0.0315 to 0.0380 percent. I’m guessing that neither chemistry nor statistics are Mr. Woodmencey’s strong suits as that statistically very significant increase is largely responsible for a rapid and increasingly dramatic change in climate that we are currently experiencing.
Is global warming real? Yes. Do we know the causes? Almost certainly. Can increases in tropical storm frequency and ferocity be linked to global warming? Yes, though due to the complex nature of boundary conditions in the atmosphere the link is statistical. Do we know where climate change is going? That’s a little more speculative but most of the computer models have been good at predicting what we’ve seen to date (except that they consistently err on the conservative side) and future trends do appear to indicate an exponential increase in global warming, at least in the short term. Is that good or bad? I don’t know. But change is coming. | 2019-04-24T05:55:10Z | http://www.realclimate.org/index.php/archives/2006/08/new-public-opinion-poll-on-global-warming/ |
This is a guest post from Momma who blogs at Tales from the road less traveled. Momma and her family are on the road from debt to financial independence and she writes about the journey on her blog. If you what you read, make sure you subscribe to her blog via her RSS feed or via email.
Donna Freedman at MSN Moneyblog wrote a piece highlighting Frugal Dad‘s post Language of the Perpetually Poor. This post really resonates with me, but not because I myself have spent carelessly and lived outside my means, but because I’ve been an enabler of that mentality in those I care about.
I come from an extremely close knit extended family. I’m the eldest of four children and have always done my best to take care of them. My middle brother, Jimmy, has had a pretty rough life. He got in with a tough crowd in high school, didn’t do well in school and dropped out, was in and out of juvenile detention centers, did drugs, drank, and a whole other laundry list of things.
Over the years, he’s gotten his act together. He has worked steadily, kept out of trouble, and met a wonderful woman that I am proud to call my sister. Along with her teenage daughter and their little boy, they’ve built a family.
In the beginning, they both had jobs and shared living space with her sister. After they had the baby, she quit work and things were tight. Then, Jimmy got a better job and they got a nifty new car (payment). Several months later, Jimmy was doing such a great job, they gave him a raise. They moved out onto their own and got a nifty new (half his take home pay) rent payment. Jimmy got another raise six months later, so they got another car (payment).
Over the last several years, they have steadily upgraded their standard of living with every pay increase, even though they weren’t able to afford the current standard of living they had. The marital problems from the stress over money caused a lot of sleepless nights for both of them… and for my husband and I.
For more than two years, Jimmy or his wife would call me and lament that a utility was getting ready to be turned off or they needed groceries for the week. Although I brought up the suggestion that Jimmy’s wife get a job, there were so many excuses. “Daycare costs more than I would make.” “If I put him in daycare, he’ll just be sick all the time and I’ll have to leave work to take care of him anyway.” “I’m not skilled and can’t do anything.” I wrote the checks anyway.
I’ve written checks for utilities, groceries, gas for the cars, auto insurance, and a dozen other excuses. I’ve hired Jimmy’s wife to do jobs I am perfectly capable of doing, just to make sure that my nephew had food and diapers. But then, an amazing thing happened.
They called in December and said that both cars were going to be repossessed in 3 days if they didn’t come up with $800 and fast. My husband and I sat down and had a long talk, and then we called and told Jimmy and his wife to come over. We sat them down at the kitchen table with a blank sheet of paper and I wrote down all of their expenses. Then I wrote down his income. They had NO idea that his income was $1000 less every month than what they were sending out the door. $600 of that was for car payments on vehicles that weren’t worth it. That was a real shake-up for them and their faces showed it.
We were very frank with Jimmy and his wife. We said we’d write one LAST check to pay off one vehicle completely if they let the other one be repossessed, but with two requirements. First, Jimmy’s wife had to get a job and contribute to the family’s finances, as there was no real way for him to increase his earnings or decrease their spending. Second, they had to provide us with a plan for keeping this from happening again in the future.
It’s been five months and they’re doing ok now. They’re managing on one car, though it hasn’t been easy and they will be purchasing another one soon, without payments! They’re both working and are, as they put it, getting into a place where they’re comfortable. Their stress levels are considerably lower and the marital problems seem to be easing.
Are you discouraged by your finances?
It can be hard to say no to family. It’s something I’m struggling with many times.
Thanks for including me in your article. I’ve taken some heat over that post because many felt I was putting down poor people. In fact, I was trying to highlight a “poor mentality” that is so rampant in this country. My hope is that if people recognized their language was reflective of their attitudes then both would improve.
I would never put down those who have legitimate struggles, because I have been there myself. In fact, many of us have at one point in our lives or another have wondered how the next bill would get paid, or how the next meal would be purchased.
I’m done lending / giving money to family. Once all loans are paid back, I’m done. I’m tired of being the bank. I’m tired of being the enabler. By making sure I’m the bank, I simply give other family members no reason to ever improve their financial situation.
Good call on cutting these leeches off…. I bet you wish you’d done it much sooner. They would have learned a good lesson long ago, and you’d be quite a bit richer.
Thanks for sharing my post with all of your readers, Gibble! I’m glad you thought it was good enough to post.
@ Llama Money, I understand where you’re coming from, but I sure don’t think of them as leeches. I just think they had no real concept of what was really going on with their finances. They’ve made an amazing turn around since being made aware of the real numbers.
@ Frugal Dad – I loved that post. I’ve been there. Most of my family has never left there. I offered to help my mother create a budget and track their spending. She said “there ain’t nothing to budget because there ain’t nothing coming in.” My stepdad works full time and so does she. You’re right about the “poor mentality” and there will never be help for it. So now, I just say no and move on. No use in banging my head on the wall.
@Momma, I think it’s great that you were willing/able to help them out with the financial planning AND with the car payment. I’m sure it made it much easier for them to get started, especially having the car.
I have to admit that I have BEEN one of those people in the past. And this year when it all hit the fan, my family would have baled me out but I said no. This time I was going to work through it myself, sink or swim because I needed to change my ways. It has been years since I have borrowed money from family or needed to but I apparently didn’t learn as I didn’t have an emergency fund when the emergencies started hitting last year. Now, I am building one at all costs and above all else.
I certainly can relate this story with my own experiences, both side of the families, mine and hubby : ‘welfare’ mentality family members.
The language of the perpetually poor isn’t the result of a financial situation. It’s the result of a mindset. The mindset often leads to the financial situation, so people regularly confuse the two.
Beautiful post. I loved the post by Frugal Dad and Momma, this is just as good. Thanks for sharing your story!
If I could change one thing about this post I think I’d substitute “broke” for “poor” in the title. I kind of cringed as I followed a link over here because I thought I was going to see welfare-recipient-bashing or something. To me, “broke” connotes “I am making a living, but spending my money unwisely,” and isn’t remotely the same as being poor. Your mileage may vary.
Thanks for the great post. I think there are a lot of us who have been in a similar situation. I had a family member several years ago who got into financial trouble through a series of bad decisions. The family pitched in to help out, especially because a baby was involved. It’s a lot harder to say no when you know there’s a child in the picture. Fortunately, my family member was able to get back on track, but it was tough going for awhile … on all of us.
Momma: I guess you wouldn’t think of them as leeches – it’s certainly very hard to do when you’re talking about your own family. From an outside perspective though, that’s exactly what is happening. Instead of sucking blood, they’re sucking up your money. Or rather, they were. Hopefully they stay “clean” ( and off your endless supply of cash ).
I’m still trying to get my parents to do this with my younger sister. They’re nearing retirement and won’t be able to because she, at 27, is still depending on them for nearly everything. She’s gotten better, I’ll give her that, but she knows exactly what she’s doing, which is why she doesn’t call Sissy for the bailout anymore. Because she knows I won’t do it. Which makes me feel doubly guilty because she’ll just goto our parents and they will do it, even though they can’t afford to.
Wow. What an incredible story! You and your hubby definitely did the right thing and I’m so impressed. I can’t stand the “poor” mentality. People don’t need to live outside their means…they just think they do.
Although I agree that you shouldn’t continually bail out those who choose not to live within their means, I take exception with your automatic insistence that your SIL go get a job.
Did you carefully run the numbers for that? in many cases a person who has been a SAHM will NOT come out ahead of the costs of that peson actually working, but you have to run the numbers using the actual costs of working. Your family might be doing even better if she did reamain at home and they stayed within the bounds of a single income.
You ruin a heartfelt and honest article with your slam on stay at home parenting. Don’t blindly accept that both parents working is necessarily the better choice. I cringe when people say things like “she should be contributing” Please! Raising a child IS contributing, and their problem was living above their means, not the fact that one of them was actualy raising their own child.
A lot of people get confused about daycare. Having someone care for your child while you work does not necessarily mean breaking the bank. She could get a part-time job at night while her husband watches the children. She can ask a neighbor or a friend to watch them for far less than an official daycare would cost. She can go to her church, and ask if there is anyone in the congregation who can help. And lest you assume that I don’t understand how hard it is to be a stay-at-home mother, I am one. I raise two children while my husband supports us on a military salary. And I have helped more than one military mother get her family on its feet by watching her children at a fraction of the going rate for childcare. Which, by the way, is another way to bring in an income without paying for childcare. I guarantee you she knows someone who would love to pay half price for childcare.
I have a sister who is on social security for her permanent disability, so I understand she can’t work because she can’t stand, can’t lift and cannot walk long distances. This sister just lost her food stamps as they are cutting down on all “expenses” in this state. Fine. She has two dogs, three cats and a partridge in a pear tree. Just kidding about the bird. Just the first two sets of animals. She can’t afford to feed herself due to the animals’ food and vet budget eating up the rest of her leftover money after bills. She insists on having phone service with long distance as well as internet. She needs neither. I did get her a pay as you go cell phone for her birthday and she hasn’t bothered putting any minutes on it with her birthday money. She will not give up the animals and she is not going to be able to make her payment for the phone/internet this month. I told her to get dial-up, as she doesn’t need cable internet. She said she couldn’t, it was a “package” deal. I said you just get local phone service and use that for internet. Couldn’t do that either. I said if you want to have extra money every month, sounds to me like you need to unload those animals you can’t take care of. She says I can’t, I have to have my pets. Ok, I told her, since you won’t economize and you won’t sacrifice some things, I guess you’re going to starve and have no phone or internet. I told her I give up trying to help you, as you won’t take my advice and there’s always an excuse. I told her the only way she was going to be hearing from me is by mail until she can get her finances straight and figure out that I’m not wasting my time with her mentality anymore.
I can totally relate to this story! My husband is the eldest of 5 children, and has taken care of his Mom and the rest of the family since he was 15. Siblings are in a constant state of crisis … with a new story each time something happens.
When I came into my husband’s life, we knew things had to change, as there was no way we could start a family if he continually was rescuing his siblings based on their own poor choices. The process was totally painful — as we weaned them off of our money, they became totally resentful. That was the first clue that things were really off balance — instead of saying “thanks for the tens of thousands of dollars throughout the years,” they stopped talking to us. But with time, we reconnected, and things are healthier now.
I will say that in any situation like this, there are two enablers — the person giving has as much blame as the one asking. It can be intoxicating to be the one who rescues and holds the purse strings.
But in the long run, it never helps to bail someone out more than once. To use a tired metaphor, teach em to fish.
The poor think differently about money. Their poverty mentality is often passed down generationally. Often, there’s the thought that because my parents were poor, I’ll remain poor also. Poor folks often live from crisis to crisis, and usually have not been taught or simply don’t make the connection between concepts of budgeting (there’s so little money it seems like a useless endeavor), or delaying their gratification by saving (they may not know when they’ll have the cash in hand again, so it seems reasonable to splurge when doing without is the norm). Not only does an education process have to take place so they can understand the relevance of concepts that other income earners take for granted, but there also must be a retraining in the self talk they feed themselves about money. One to one relationships with caring, patient, higher income people mentoring them will change their thinking and behavior about money. Studying what God’s Word says about prosperity and what is available to them through Christ will help them immensely. I know this because I’ve been raising my children as a single parent, living under poverty guidelines. Little by little, making thought and lifestyle changes have made it possible for the Lord to prosper me. Glory to God, the Word works!
I think the amazing thing in this story is how you and your husband sat down with them and helped them to see what was coming in and what was going out and helped them come up with a budget that worked for them.
Sometimes that is really what people need — someone who is willing to take the time to explain something. I know there are issues in my life that would really benefit from this (decluttering and cleaning is where I need help).
I do agree with the poster who questioned your opinions on being a stay-at-home parent. Putting a child in daycare and getting a traditional job is not always the best solution, financially or for the child, and there are a variety of possibilities one could consider instead (getting a job from home, parents working at different times, taking in children, etc.).
I guess I should address the two comments regarding the requirement that my sister in law get a job and contribute to the family’s finances in order for us to help them out. I, in no way, implied that being a stay at home mom wasn’t contributing. In their circumstance, AFTER doing their expenses and budget, it was necessary for her to get a job in order for them to get back on their feet financially. Period. It had nothing to do with her contribution or lack thereof to the family unit.. only the bank balance.
Yes, we ran the numbers both ways. Yes, it made more sense for her to get a job. At the risk of making the post too long, I cut out the bit where I reminded my sister in law and brother that they have me, my mother and stepfather, my husband, my teenaged daughters, my sister in law’s sister and father, all here and ready and willing to help pick up the slack if she needed help with childcare.
I’m sorry that it came across as though I made a demand on their life and condemned her for being a stay at home mom. That’s not quite how it went.
That was a great story and you did the perfect thing to help them. One thing she could do is work from home, like doing childcare herself. By saving commuting and her own childcare she would/could make enough money to really help make up the difference. My daughter-in-law did that for several years and paid most of their bills this way.
Meggan, you are not understanding how disability is however. Your sister has her pets as her “companions” her family and when you are home all the time your tv and internet is the only entertainment you get and the only way you can stay in touch with the outside world. I am on social security disability too and the money is verrrry meager. With only 650 a month and help with food stamps, food pantrys, federal housing assistance, I barely survive. She may be able to get a discount phone as I have here. In Kc,mo they call it lifeline. It is a discount rate for people on social security and they go by your income. She can also qualify for state or county assistance with house cleaning and personal care.
You have to understand, when you become disabled you lose EVERYTHING! You watch as you are waiting (sometimes years) to qualify for disabilty, and you sell or lose all your assets, all your lifes dreams and aspirations, all your hobbys even. You either can’t do them or can’t afford them. People don’t call and visit much when you are disabled. They kind of forget about you. She needs the internet so she can keep in touch with people. Spend a couple of hours researching and putting yourself in her shoes and you will understand better. | 2019-04-21T18:34:49Z | http://www.gatherlittlebylittle.com/2008/04/perpetually-poor/ |
Cinema as an art form is grounded in reality unlike any other, as it captures images and sound of an actual fragment of real life, which is caught in the field of view of the camera lens. While some additional elements can be added with the help of props, makeup, costumes and special effects, the viewer sees mostly real objects. Perhaps this inevitable connection with reality encourages filmmakers to draw inspiration from real-life stories from the past to current times. While using history as an inspiration for the film provides endless possibilities, it creates as many challenges. History-based films require research and recreation of a time period, but the most difficult aspect of such filmmaking is drawing the line between the reality and fiction. Some filmmakers try to recreate the history in details, others just use real facts as a frame to create a piece of entertainment or to push further their personal agenda, and there are some, who deconstruct the genre tradition to make the audience reconsider what they think about history. This research will focus on all the major approaches.
This research is aimed to study a number of examples of history-based fiction, to understand different approaches to recreating history in a film scenario and to define major tendencies behind them. Companies under analysis are relatively young; thus, they can illustrate current trends in filmmaking: using history as a basis of fictional entertainment (Braveheart), recreating historic events in the film (Saving Private Ryan), and postmodern approach to historic narrative in cinema (Inglourious Basterds). The research also contains an attempt to understand why Hollywood continues to use “real life stories” to market their films.
This part of the analysis is devoted to movies based on historical events which happened before the invention of modern documentation technologies. These films draw information from books, paintings and other forms of art, thus the information they are based on has already passed through perception and imagination of at least one, but likely numerous authors. As these sources cannot be considered reliable enough, filmmakers tend to romanticize or dramatize these events and historic personalities they involve. Thus, it is not surprising that such films tend to be very loose with their history and mostly serve as entertainment.
Researcher Andrew B. R. Elliot points out that there is an inherent conflict between filmmakers who depict certain historical periods and researchers who study history, as the latter, see the film depictions of history as “bastardization” of real science. He mentions that “historic” fiction horror reflects not the time their stories take place in, but mood prevalent in the society during the time of the film’s creation. However, the historical accuracy of the film is never seen as a performance of its quality, critical reception and popularity. Mel Gibson’s film Braveheart (1995) illustrates this notion. The film, written by Randall Wallace tells the story of the Scottish rebellion against the King of Britain led by William Wallace, who happens to bit – happened somewhere between 13-th and 14-th century. While the event did happen, most of the information about it is utilized from an epic poem by Henry the Minstrel, written 172 years after the event. The poem was filled with patriotic bias and showed the events only from one angle. There is no doubt that such source can not be considered reliable, however, the historical inaccuracies in the film are even more substantial, as it deviates even from this questionable material. The core of the story is mostly accurate: the rebellion of William Wallace (Mel Gibson) against King Edward I (Patrick McGoohan), his victories in a number of battles, as his caption and consequent execution all took place. The differences start from Wallace’s motivation: it was not the murder of his wife, which drew him to start the rebellion, but a more trivial dispute with British soldiers, which resulted in a bloodshed. Such a creative decision is understandable, as the audience needed a clear and relatable motivation for the main hero of the story. The same approach was used in the portrayal of Wallace’s antagonist – King Edward I, who was turned into a bloodthirsty villain. Also, a mandatory romantic subplot between Wallace and Princess Isabelle (Sophie Marceau) was added to the story. In addition to major changes of historic facts, there were minor “cosmetic” mistakes in the way Scottish warriors were dressed (for example kilts and colored war paint were anachronisms). The protagonist of the film, a portrait by the director himself has absolutely no physical resemblance with real William Wallace (Illus. 1, Illus. 2). Braveheart is an example of a deviation of historic facts in favor of dramatic cinematic effects. The film is subjected to the logic of a three act dramatic structure, which rarely matches the actual course of events. The film, especially the kind which appeals to the mass audience, requires a straightforward narrative, clearly defined villains, a relatable hero and a climactic, meaningful ending. Death of William Wallace, as it is presented in the film, is an example of another common trope of heroic historic films – romanticizing the self sacrifice of the hero. Death of Wallace for the sake of a common cause makes him a pseudo messiah. Such death is mandatory to prove the point, that a life of one person (even as significant as a leader of the rebellion) is less important than the ideas he/she fights for. While most of significant historic personalities depicted in the films such as Braveheart, Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (1999, directed by Luc Besson), Spartacus (1960, directed by Stanley Kubrik), meet tragic death, the circumstances of their deaths are often distorted to make them more meaningful and cinematically effective. All above mentioned tropes are present in Gibson’s film, thus, it is not surprising that it gained popularity among the audience and enjoyed positive critical reception. As Tom May mentions, the film works not as a historical fiction, but as a summer action blockbuster, a “Rambo of the middle ages”, thus, it can afford such loose connection actual history. However, there is a conception that the film’s appeal is not only in its cinematic qualities, but with an ideology it bears. As mentioned by Elliot, historic fiction is made to appeal to modern public moods. Thus, some critics of Braveheart, like filmmaker Steve James (as quoted in Niemi), point out that the film was warmly received not only by Scottish patriots, but also by American conservatives. It reflected their ideological position of unity of people (mostly white) in an aggressive struggle against an outside enemy. In this context, neither the historical accuracy, nor the country or the time period the events took place bare any importance, they only serve the agenda and are transformed and even corrupted if the message requires.
Since the invention of photography and cinema, there is a possibility to capture historic events as they were, without the human intermediate. This provided filmmakers with a possibility to recreate true stories in films with attention to detail and at the same time brought forward some creative limitations. Thus, any serious deviations from the truth can be noticed by historians and obsessive viewers, not that these limitations prevented such changes from happening.
Saving Private Ryan (1998), directed by Stephen Spielberg takes place during the World War II, and is considered to be one of the most realistic depictions of the historic events. The scenes of WWII were very well documented, with photographs, film chronicles, printed media of the time period, and numerous surviving witnesses. Thus, recreating these events in a fiction film is a much easier task, than filming the middle ages, however these possibilities create responsibility.
When LIFE published the photographs, a caption disingenously explained that the ‘immense excitement of moment made photographer Capa move his camera and blur picture’. Thus it was with this irony that man must bear the movie Saving Private Ryan, where the director Steven Spielberg went to great lengths to reproduce the look of Capa blur in his D-Day landing sequence, even stripping the coating from his camera lenses to echo Capa’s notorious shots.
As the tradition of historic film was becoming more stale and predictable, there was no doubt that at some point it was destined to be deconstructed by an auteur film director. An example of such deconstruction is Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds (2009) (the title is intentionally misspelled). Tarantino is a director known for his innovative approach to genre cinema and academic knowledge of film history. Both of these features are present in his take on a pseudo-historic WWII film. Much like Saving Private Ryan, Inglourious Basterds tells a fictional story taking place during the WWII. However, unlike Spielberg’s film, it deviated from both historical truth and genre tradition. Inglourious Bastards is not a straight war movie; it is a combination of spaghetti meal, a heist movie, a war drama and a dark satirical comedy. While some of the events in the film are based on real historic facts, the costumes and props are carefully recreated, at the same time plot and characters, with the exception of real historic figures, are fiction. The plot of the footage centers around a group of Jewish guerrillas, led by Lt. Aldo Rain (Brad Pitt) who conspire to assassinate the top of Nazi command during the premiere of the fictional war epic “Pride of the Nation” (which is in itself an interesting piece of satirical fiction). Surprisingly, the intentionally awkward and inept assassins manage to succeed in their attempt to kill Hitler, thus the historical inaccuracy of the film becomes obvious. In his article “Locating Mr. Tarantino or, who is afraid of metactinema” Robert von Dassanowsky argues that the film’s main aim is not just to present an alternative history for the sake of a shocking twist, but to show how the Hollywood filmmaking itself is creating a mythical version of reality. In this pseudo-reality violence can “bring forth the range of existential possibilities.” Srikanth Srinivasan mentions, that the film’s attempt at creating alternative history is not the director’s initial goal. There is no speculation whether the history would change if a successful assassination of Hitler was carried out. The goal of the film is to raise a debate, whether some historic themes, like WWII and Holocaust can even become a subject of fiction.
The critical reception of the film was mixed in the USA, and surprisingly warm in Germany, as Tarantino’s anti-fascist fantasy was welcomed there as a new and fresh approach of the country’s dark history. The controversy around the film was mostly focused on the mixture of history and fiction, deemed sacrilegious by some. Another criticism of the film was aimed at its antagonist, Hanz Landa (Christophe Waltz), who was the most charismatic and likable character in the film, while remaining a Nazi with a nickname “Jew-hunter”. In the context of a typical representation of Nazis as demonized evil caricatures, humanization of such character surely caused cause more controversy, which was definitely the intention behind this character. Ironically, the Jewish guerillas act like terrorists, the violence they perform is depicted creatively gruesome and they are rather unsympathetic. At the same time, Hitler (Martin Wuttke) is depicted as an over-the-top caricature, which further enchases the distortion of history in the film (Illus. 5). According to Srinivasan these characters represent a sort of “revenge fantasy”. Srinivasan mentions that in the film’s universe there is no mention of the Holocaust, as if Jewish guerrillas have their revenge in the fictional realm for the atrocities committed in the actual life. This conception unties their hands to perform a theatrical and very cinematic revenge.
The layered narrative of the film includes multiple storylines, and a film inside the film: Stolz der Nation (Pride of the Nation) directed by Tarantino’s protégé Eli Roth (who also plays one of the major characters Donny “The Bear Jew” Donowitz). Pride of the Nation deserves its own analysis part dedicated to it, as it is both the center of the film’s plot, and a smart meta-parody of the war propaganda genre. The supposable masterpiece of the propaganda depicts a fictional true story of a heroic German sniper, and ironically the premiere of this film becomes the bloody massacre where the “basterds” kill all of the major figures of the Reich. The scene of fighting in the theater is symbolic; as the audience can witness how burning celluloid of the war propaganda destroys real historic figures, as if art itself erases the border between fiction and reality. Researcher Srikanth Srinivasan calls Inglorious Basterds “the most important film of the decade”, while this is a daring statement, the importance of the film should not be overlooked. After decades of romanticizing war history in cinematograph, it was the time for someone to deconstruct the genre. Tarantino intentionally goes against the tropes and expectations to point out how Hollywood treated history as the material for both simplistic entertainment and a mean of promoting politically biased ideas.
The most fundamental point to make is whenever television programme makers, film-makers, or screen/tele/stage playwrights tell True Stories, they try to persuade us to consume their product with a very particular promise – the Promise of Fact… …With such assurances the “buy” our attention, believing that audiences will suspend disbelieve more easily in the acted performance which follows.
The “true story” tagline is meant to convey narrative authority, human interest, and a hint of respectability: The film isn’t some made-up stuff, it’s history. It’s real life. It’s meaningful, providing insight into the human condition that goes beyond what fantasy could provide.
The problem with facts is that even when they are illustrated by surveillance videos and captured on video and photo, they can remain dry and impersonalized. This forces the creators of film products to dramatically “improve” these facts, add fictionalized characters to take the audience through the story. The label “based on a true story” means that the audience should accept the obviously dramatized narrative as more grounded in their reality, and thus, more authentic. Recently, a new promotional trend was created, according to which some obviously fictional stories were marketed as true. Horror films like Conjuring (2013, directed by James Wan) and more notably Hostel (2000, directed by Eli Roth) were supposedly based on a true story, which is absurd, when considering the content. While Conjuring is a story about real people, it is a film about ghosts, thus its basis in reality is unlikely. The poster of the film blatantly uses a tagline “based on true case files” (Illus. 6). The situation with Hostel is even more absurd, as its creators admitted that the whole thing was inspired by a post on the Internet. Despite the fact that these films had little to no reason to be called “true stories”, it did not influence the effectiveness of promoting them as such. Not that changing some parts of the story is actually a bad thing. Sometimes it is necessary to “smoothen” some parts of real life stories, to make the protagonist more sympathetic, to make accents on some facts and hide other for the sake of the sheer entertainment or conveying the message behind the film. These examples prove that the audience embraces the media selling the fiction as reality, because in the world where all information can be instantaneously fact-checked, the audience still refuses to differentiate factual information from fiction. This explains the popularity of “mockumentary” and “found footage” films, which emulate the documentary or real footage visually, while telling absurd stories about ghosts (Paranormal Activity (2007, directed by Oren Peli), zombies (Rec (2007, directed by Jaume Balagueró, Paco Plaza) Diary of the dead (2007, directed by George A. Romero) or giant monsters (Cloverfield (2008, directed by Matt Reeves). These films do not claim to be true, but attempt to look as realistic as possible. Hence, it is obvious that modern audience embraces “true story” films, as long as they entertain them enough.
Historical films require many resources to be employed. The more authentic the movie is supposed to be, the more money should be invested in the investigation and recreation of the time period. Thus, making big-budget historical films will remain a prerogative of large film studios, who are more interested in profit than in creative or document integrity. As a result, in the foreseeable future most motion pictures based on historic events will be made under control of Hollywood producers. These films will be subordinated to the genre traditions of entertainment cinema, because the main aim behind such films is to entertain the audience and bring incomes, and not to please the history experts. Only directors with enough authority in Hollywood circles can gain enough creative freedom to pursue their own visions, be it a documenting history in the form of film, or addressing the complex issues of storytelling. While the situation described above can seem troubling for some, it must be looked at as a creative status quo, which has both faults and benefits. An effective historic fiction, while factually inaccurate can motivate the viewer to perform his personal study to broaden the information gained from the film or to fact-check it. The casual viewer can get superficial knowledge of history from a good history film. However, there is also a danger of substitution of knowledge with mythology. The further the events depicted in the film are from the events they are based on, the more difficult it is to make the distinction between fiction and a fact. While more recent history is imprinted in documents and chronicles, the further the events on the timeline of human history, the more difficult it is to depict them. Quentin Tarantino effectively showed in his film how art can easily distort history. Thus, creators of historic fiction must bear responsibility, so future generations would not mix truth and lies and draw right conclusions from the experiences of past generations. | 2019-04-22T00:24:43Z | https://writingscentre.com/historic-cinema-between-fact-and-fiction/ |
Identification of driver mutations among numerous genomic alternations remains a critical challenge to the elucidation of the underlying mechanisms of cancer. Because driver mutations by definition are associated with a greater number of cancer phenotypes compared to other mutations, we hypothesized that driver mutations could more easily be identified once the genotype-phenotype correlations are detected across tumor samples.
In this study, we describe a novel network analysis to identify the driver mutation through integrating both cancer genomes and transcriptomes. Our method successfully identified a significant genotype-phenotype change correlation in all six solid tumor types and revealed core modules that contain both significantly enriched somatic mutations and aberrant expression changes specific to tumor development. Moreover, we found that the majority of these core modules contained well known cancer driver mutations, and that their mutated genes tended to occur at hub genes with central regulatory roles. In these mutated genes, the majority were cancer-type specific and exhibited a closer relationship within the same cancer type rather than across cancer types. The remaining mutated genes that exist in multiple cancer types led to two cancer type clusters, one cluster consisted of three neural derived or related cancer types, and the other cluster consisted of two adenoma cancer types.
Our approach can successfully identify the candidate drivers from the core modules. Comprehensive network analysis on the core modules potentially provides critical insights into convergent cancer development in different organs.
Cancer occurs when cells grow out of control due to genetic mutations . It is not a single disease, but exhibits a wide spectrum of phenotypic variations involving numerous critical genes and pathways, e.g. TGF-β, NK-κB, TNF-α that may play multiple and even opposite roles [2, 3]. Accordingly, a wide range of genetic mutations is involved, and the same mutations may exhibit a different impact. Further elucidation of the functional link between the genetic mutations and phenotypic changes in cancer development is of central importance, but remains a challenge . Moreover, these genetic mutations disrupt the DNA repair pathways, resulting in many associated non-functional mutations .
Thus, this poses a big challenge to the central goal in cancer research to identify functional and critical mutations. Historically, identification has been approached starting with frequent single genes to pathways, followed by the identification of multiple gene modules. A previous study of 11 breast cancer samples and 11 colon cancer samples focused on individual frequent mutated genes, and identified 189 candidate cancer genes (CAN genes), but failed to identify critical infrequent mutated genes. Cancer heterogeneity or insufficient tumor sample size contributed to this and complicated the efforts to distinguish the additional core mutations from the most infrequent background mutations. At the same time, both the functional “driver” mutations and the associated “passenger” mutations occur rarely; therefore, it is nearly impossible to distinguish them solely based on the frequency of individual genes [7, 8]. Recent reports have focused on mining the over-represented mutations in co-expressed gene sets or modules . In one recent report, the authors hypothesized that mutations cause cancer by disrupting certain functional modules , i.e., sets of genes involved in the same biological functions, via different combinations of infrequently mutated genes in the same module, as functionally linked genes tend to share similar mutational phenotypes [11–15].
In this study, our principle hypothesis is that cellular networks are comprised of many functionally related modules, and that critical genomic alterations may not necessarily change expression themselves, but may affect downstream functional modules expression levels and perturb normal functionality, leading to significant phenotypic changes.
Theoretically, from the network perspective, critical cancer gene disruption will cause a significant change in expression within its neighborhood and significant phenotypic changes. Driver mutations are defined as having been positively selected and contributing to cancer development; but conversely passenger mutations do not confer cancer development advantage . One crucial form of phenotypic change during cancer development that has been extensively studied is change in gene expression . And it has been demonstrated that the pathways or modules enriched for CAN genes are accompanied by significant expression changes . Furthermore, some reports have identified candidate disease genes by searching through the significantly disrupted modules, which consist of their neighborhoods, using only gene expression information [18, 19]. As a result, these top ranked significantly differentially expressed genes or modules represent the cancer phenotype changes, whereas upstream genomic alterations aid in locating the changing source.
Thus, based on this hypothesis, in order to discover the drivers we proposed a novel network-based approach to identify the core modules exhibiting both mutation enrichment and significant expression changes. The feasibility of this hypothesis was further assessed and genotype-phenotype correlations were detected at the network modular level. We applied this approach on six cancer types (ten datasets) to identify the core modules and demonstrate the utility of the method to correctly identify the known drivers. Furthermore, comprehensive network analyses were performed to further mine the identified driver network properties: mutations in the core modules tended to mutate the hub genes that exhibited central regulatory roles. Many of them were cancer type specific and relatively functionally isolated from those found in other cancer types. Only a few, reflecting the phylogenies of the six cancer types, played a general role in multiple cancer types.
The identification of the significant expression changed functional modules was conducted by integrating mRNA expression, protein-protein interaction and Gene Ontology (GO) function annotation (Figure 1). The identification process is described briefly as follows. Further details are provided in the Materials and Methods section.
Scheme of TRMs and core modules identification. The first step is to construct the co-expression GO network. PPIs are assigned to each GO gene set to build the GO network. Expression profiles are used to calculate the co-expression level for two genes as weight of the edge for GO network. Once the co-expression GO network was built, we divided the network into several functional modules by the weighted GN algorithm and the whole modules by p-SAGE based on expression differential level to obtain the TRMs. Next, we screened the TRM to search the MM (Fisher’s exact test, P ≤ 0.05) and defined them as core modules.
Based on the GO annotation, the whole genes on the expression profile were classified into several smaller GO clusters, omitting the genes not present in GO. The total number of GO clusters in each cancer type was 802 – 1004, involving 2644 – 4428 genes in total, with an average size of 25 – 36 genes per cluster. For each GO cluster, we built a GO network that consisted of nodes representing the member genes, and the edges representing the protein interactions between the corresponding two linked genes and weighted with their co-expressed level which measured by PCC. The below analysis on the network weighted by Spearman correlation is also presented and similar results can be seen in the supplementary files (Additional file 1: Table S1; Additional file 2: Figure S2, S3).
For each GO network, the weighted Girvan and Newman (GN) algorithm was applied and partitioned it into the discrete functional modules. There were totally 4177 – 6863 functional modules identified for all GO networks for each individual dataset derived from a different cancer type, with an average size of 4.6 - 5.0 genes per module, which represents approximately 12.8% - 18.6% of the GO clusters.
To search the modules that reflect an alteration between two different pathological conditions, we used the modified p-SAGE algorithm to evaluate the multi-gene differential expression levels for all modules. The modules were ranked in ascending order based on their significant differential expression levels (P value); thus, the top ranked modules (TRMs) exhibited greater expression differences compared to the rest of the modules. For all 10 datasets, the top 100 TRMs (TRMs_100) were typical with the original p-SAGE P values < 0.0635, and TRMs_1000 with P values < 0.090.
The intra-dataset reproducibility of the resultant TRMs was first tested using the Lin07 dataset of colon cancer samples (dataset details in Table 1). We randomly split the dataset into two halves, and estimated the robustness as the average overlapping percentage of genes in the TRMs (i.e. TRM genes) that identified from both halves across 1000 random splits. As shown in Figure 2A, the overlapping percentages for these TRMs_100-1000 (16.9% - 51.8%) were approximately four times higher than those for equal amount of individual genes that identified using t-test (named TRGs_100-1000, 4.3% - 12.4%). On one hand, we found that significant overlaps for 97.4% split tests of TRMs_100 and for 100% split tests of TRMs_200 – 1000, whereas approximately 10–30% split tests of TRGs_100-1000 did not exhibit a significant overlap (significance was evaluated by the Fisher’s exact test, P < =0.05). On the other hand, after permutating the sample labels ten times, i.e., a total of 10,000 split tests, we found that the overlapping percentages of TRMs with permutation (named TRM_Ps; 6.8% - 34.6%) were significantly lower compared to TRMs (Figure 2A; Wilcoxon test, P < 1E-5), and approximately 1.5-3 times higher compared to those of the TRGs (4.3% - 12.4%). Both results confirmed that the identified TRMs captured non-random changes that are specific to cancer development and distinguishable from randomness. Similar results were found in another colon cancer dataset (Barrier06) as well (Additional file 2: Figure S1).
TRM reproducibility of intra- and inter- datasets. The percentage of overlapping genes is calculated as the ratio for the number of intersection and union of the genes. We compared the percentage of overlapping genes on TRM, TRG with the equal number of genes in TRM, and their corresponding permutation test controls (TRM_P and TRG_P). We performed the above comparison on (A) two randomly split halves of Lin07, (B) two datasets for the different microarray platform, van02 and wang05. We compared our overlapping percentage of inter-datasets (orange) with others methods (blue) (C).
Next, we tested inter-dataset reproducibility using two datasets of breast cancer samples with identical pathological settings but different microarray platforms (Wang05 and Van02). We found significant overlaps of TRMs_100- 1000 from these two datasets (Fisher’s exact test, P < 5.26E-61). As shown in Figure 2B, the overlapping percentages (23.3 - 52.3%) of TRMs were significantly higher compared to those for TRGs (2.4 - 7.6%) and TRM_Ps (1.3 - 45.1%). Moreover, the overlapping percentages of TRMs were approximately two times the mean of overlapping percentages for TRM_Ps, and were significantly higher than the extreme values from the permutation tests (Figure 2B; Grubbs outlier test, p-values < 0.05), but were not found using TRGs. These results suggested a greater stability across datasets at TRMs but not the single gene level and confirmed that the TRMs were highly reproducible and specific to cancer development across two independent datasets.
Lastly, we compared the inter-dataset reproducibility with other methods. The calculations that we utilized for whole overlapping percentages from different methods were unified as the ratio between the intersection and union of the genes in the modules. As seen in Figure 2C, the overlapping percentage of TRMs (TRMs_100: 23.3%, TRMs_200: 26.6%) was much higher compared to those from other methods (Chuang07 : 12.7%; Hwang08 : 12.7%) with the exact same datasets and a similar number of modules, and even higher than the method (Dao11 : 16.5%) for two splits of GSE20194 (more details are provided in Additional file 1: Table S2).
In the following, we focused on the TRMs_100 and investigated the potential link to mutations.
We first assessed if the TRMs_100 tended to contain a greater number of mutated genes compared to lower-ranked functional modules by calculating the ratio of their percentages of mutated genes. For all ten datasets, the ratios of TRMs_100 were slightly above one, significantly higher compared to those of TRGs (paired t-test; P = 1.3E-4), but not significantly different from those of TRM_Ps (paired t-test; P = 0.46) (Figure 3). We hypothesized that it was potentially caused by hub-genes that were preferred targets of mutations and appeared more often in the identified modules; however, they were not associated with cancer development.
Mutation enriched in TRM at module level. The mutation enrichment level for TRM (Module_level_TRM) is calculated as the ratio of the number of MM in TRMs_100 and remaining modules. As a control we also performed the same analysis on the mutated genes in TRMs_100 (Gene_level_TRM), top rank t-test genes with the same number of genes in TRMs_100 (Gene_level_TRG), and their respective permutation test controls.
Alternatively, we repeated the same analyses listed above, but tested for the percentage of mutated modules (MMs) rather than mutated genes in the TRMs_100. Interestingly, we found that the mean ratio of the percentage of MMs in TRMs_100 vs. non-TRMs_100 (the ratios are referred to as MM enrichment scores hereafter) was 2.71 ± 0.53 and was significantly greater than one (P values < 7.3E-09). In contrast, the mean ratio for TRM_Ps was over two times lower (Figure 3; Module_level_TRM_Ps) and remained similar to those for mutated gene percentages in non-permutated or permutated cases (Figure 3; Gene_level_TRM and Gene_level_TRM_Ps). These findings were consistent for all of the cancer types that we examined in this study, suggesting that mutations were non-randomly linked to cancer development via TRMs, and were not necessarily dependent on the number of genes mutated in each TRM.
We evaluated the sensitivity of MM enrichment score to the changes of the pathological setting within the same cancer type. We found the much smaller difference of MM enrichment scores in colon cancer (0.34) and breast cancer (0.46), both of which had same pathological settings, although different microarray platform were utilized in breast cancer. However, approximately two fold greater differences were found in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) datasets (1.17) and clear-cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) datasets (1.21). In each of these two cancer types, the datasets utilized different pathological settings (details in Table 1) as well as different microarray platforms. Taken together, these findings suggested that the MM enrichment scores in TRMs_100 are reproducible and more sensitive to changes in the tumor developmental stages compared to microarray profiling methods.
As we hypothesized, core modules, i.e. the modules with significant genomic and transcriptomic changes, may be more prone to containing driver mutations. To test this idea, we first analyzed the percentage and distribution of the known cancer drivers in these core modules. We used three cohorts of CAN-genes identified using a frequency-based approach and viewed as the most likely candidate cancer drivers in colon cancer , breast cancer , and gliomas . We mapped these CAN-genes onto these cores modules identified from five datasets of these three types of cancers.
Overall, all of these three cancer types had over 50% core modules that contained at least one CAN-gene (Barrier06: 88.9%; Lin07: 50%; van02: 81.8%; and Freije04:52.4%). In contrast, the percentages were significantly lower for non-“core modules” in the TRMs_100 (Fisher’s exact test, P < 0.05): Barrier06:26%; Lin07:16%; van02: 12%; and Frejie04: 9%. Moreover, due to few number of significant mutation enrichment in the TRM_Ps_100, there were even lower percentage of core modules that contained at least one CAN-gene in the permutation test (Wilcoxon test, p < 2.2e-16): Barrier06:9.6%; Lin07:10.5%; van02:8.7%; Freije04:8.4%.
Most CAN-genes in core modules are well-known cancer drivers (the complete CAN-genes list in core modules is provided in Additional file 1: Table S4); for example, APC, SMAD4 and TP53 for colorectal cancer and BRCA1 for breast cancer. Moreover, it is well documented that almost all CAN-genes in core modules from gliomas exhibit critical alterations in the three important pathway, TP53 pathway (TP53), RB1 pathway (RB1 and CDKN2A), and PI3K/PTEN pathway (PIK3R1, PTEN) . These results suggest that these core modules are informative of the existence of cancer drivers. Gene ontology analysis also indicates that many of these core modules are associated with cell survival and proliferation, cell cycle, metabolism, cell death or apoptosis, or response to DNA damage (details provided in Additional file 1: Table S5), events that are critically relevant to the progression of cancer .
Given the above findings that the core modules were non-randomly associated with tumor development at both the expression and mutation levels, and were more critical cancer drivers and biological processes, we performed network analysis on the core modules to explore the properties of their mutated genes across six different cancer types.
There were a total of 236 mutated genes in the core modules identified from all ten datasets. As somatic mutations are not biased toward more genes in a TRM, one alternative possibility is that they selectively alter certain genes with pivotal roles to the module. To investigate this further, we built a network of the mutated genes in core modules with the known protein interactions (Figure 4A). We found that genes mutated for a greater number of cancer types tended to reside in more central part of the network, whereas those mutated for less cancer types were often found in the peripheral regions. Alternatively, we also found a positive linear correlation between the closeness score (definition are provided in the Materials and Methods section) of a mutated gene and the number of cancer types (Figure 4B; R 2 : 0.5979, P = 0.0145). This result suggests that mutations tend to occur at hub genes with central regulatory roles.
The network properties of mutated genes in core modules. (A) The network of the mutated genes in TRMs_100 is visualized using Cytoscape. Pie charts of each node marked their corresponding different cancer types and the size indicated the number of cancer types. (B) The scatter plot for the closeness vs. the number score of cancer type (diamond dot). The linear regression line was built using the medium of the closeness for each number score (x dot). The top 30 hub genes of the network (A) was mapped on gliomas (C), ccRCC (D), and colon cancer (E), respectively.
For each cancer type, we analyzed the smaller networks formed by the mutated genes in the core modules. Interestingly, for all cancer types, the networks exhibited comparable heterogeneity, clustering coefficients, and connectivity to the original network, but approximately 2–7 times greater centralization and higher density scores (Additional file 1: Table S6). These results indicated a greater influence from the specific hub genes for each cancer type. We listed the top hub genes mutated for ccRCC, gliomas and colon cancer in Figure 4C-E, respectively. Of ccRCC, one hub gene, MAPK8, serves as a critical component of the JNK signaling pathway, which is known to be important for ccRCC. One highly conserved modulator of this pathway, SPOP, is highly expressed in 99% of ccRCC samples . No comparable strong correlation was found for colon cancer or gliomas. In contrast, two hub genes of colon cancer, SMAD2 and SMAD3, are from the TGFβ/SMAD signaling pathway whose role is more established for the development of colon cancer compared to the other two cancer types. We suggested that these type-specific hub genes may reveal the specific roles of their pathways for each cancer type, as opposed to general roles in cancer development.
On the other hand, the higher density of cancer type-specific networks may imply a closer functional relationship among mutated genes in core modules from the same cancer type compared to those in different cancer types. To test this hypothesis, we generated the networks of mutated genes in core modules that identified from each of the ten cancer datasets. As expected, we found there were generally higher network relatedness scores (R, definition are provided in the Materials and Methods section) between the dataset networks from the same cancer type compared to different cancer types. These differences were significant for the shortest path cutoff = 0 (denoted as sp0 hereafter), i.e., no direct interactions, compared to cutoff = 1 or 2, presumably due to the known small world effect within biological networks. These results demonstrate that networks from the same cancer type would be functionally more closely related compared to those from different cancer types.
Since different network properties were identified between the mutations in core modules with higher and lower number of cancer type (N), we classified these mutations into two categories: mutated genes with N > 1 and N < =1, and further investigated them separately. Note that for cancer type with two different datasets, if a mutated gene in core modules only belonged to one of them, its number of cancer type N was defined as 1/2.
We initially investigated whether the relatedness scores could be attributed to the mutated genes (with N < =1) in core modules specific to a certain cancer type. After the removal of genes with N > 1, the remaining networks of melanoma or gliomas showed no relatedness to those of other cancer types. In contrast, lung cancer showed considerable relatedness scores (0.02-0.073) to other cancer types (except gliomas and melanoma) comparable to their within-type relatedness (0.0508). The only other cross-type non-zero relatedness was between one breast cancer dataset and one colon cancer dataset (0.053). Interestingly, the two datasets from breast cancer (0.087), colon cancer (0.12), and ccRCC (0.14) exhibited relatively higher non-zero within-type relatedness, respectively. These findings indicated that type-specific mutated genes in core modules are less functionally linked to those of other cancer types except for lung cancer.
We next performed a systematic evaluation of the roles of the two kinds of mutated genes in core modules for different cancer types and the three Neighbor-Joining phylogenies of the six cancer types based on their network relatedness scores were derived from (further details are provided in the Materials and Methods section): the mutated genes in core modules with N > 1 (comTree), the mutated genes in core modules with N ≤ 1 (rareTree), and all 263 mutated genes in core modules (totTree) as control (Figure 5A-C). Interestingly, we found that the totTree and rareTree were almost identical to a star-like topology in which each cancer type is about equally distant from one another. In contrast, the comTree clearly showed two more closely paired cancer types. One pair contained breast cancer and colon cancer, which is consistent in that both cancers are adenocarcinoma. The other pair contained lung cancer and melanoma. Melanoma originates from neural crest cells and 10%–30% of the NSCLC cells express prominent neuroendocrine features . Therefore, the comTree may reveal the shared neural features between the two cancer types. In support of this hypothesis, we also found the nearest cancer type to be gliomas, a cancer that develops in the nervous system. Taken together, these results suggest that most mutated genes in the core modules specific for each cancer type are highly functionally independent, whereas those present in multiple cancer types potentially reflect a relatedness of these cancer types, e.g., similar cells of origin.
The phylogenic relationship tree of the six cancer types. Using the tree viewer software Dendroscope, we display the three phylogeny trees: (A) totTree; (B) comTree; (C) rareTree.
Lastly, to obtain the two stable sets of mutated genes, type-specific and general mutated genes, we tested whether the number of cancer types for each mutated gene in the core modules was not random by permutated labels of tumors 100 times. Note that in each of permutation tests, once any of these mutated genes did fall into the core modules, its number of cancer types was defined as zero. The results indicated that almost all (about 97.9%) mutated genes in core modules passed the significance test except for five genes (Wilcoxon test; p < 0.01). Of the genes that passed the permutation test, we narrowed the genes down to 11 outlier genes with N > 1, termed general mutated genes, and 19 outlier genes with N ≤ 1, termed type-specific mutated genes (one-tail p < 0.05 from Grubbs test) (Table 2).
Of the 11 general mutated genes, there were six tumor suppressor genes and four oncogenes, including the TP53 and CDKN2A found in core modules mutated in all cancer types. Most of these genes are related to the well-known pathways involved in cancer development. The exceptions are three genes (NTRK2, EPHB3, and EPB41L2), which are known to play a role in neural systems, and only appear in some of the core modules from the two cancer types of neural origin, gliomas and melanoma, and NSCLC that expresses prominent features of neuroendocrine cells. This finding again confirmed a closer relationship of these three cancer types in the comTree phylogeny.
Of the 19 type-specific mutated genes, CDK8 has been established as a colorectal cancer oncogene that regulates beta-catenin activity and CDK5RAP1 located on the melanoma-susceptibility region . The gliomas and melanoma contained at least twice as many as the other types. Particularly, the melanoma type specific mutated gene KRT17 encodes the keratin 17 which belongs to a group of fibrous proteins forming the structural framework of certain cells, particularly for the skin. The gliomas type-specific mutated gene AR encodes the androgen receptor, whose role in the development of neural systems has been well established. We found that genes in this category were studied relatively less for their roles in cancer development; however, our findings here indicate a potential functional role for them in which additional studies are warranted.
In our study, we introduced a novel network-based approach to discover the driver mutations during cancer development. Compared with current approaches, there are some notable features to this approach. Firstly, it has successfully allowed for the detection of critical mutations despite the frequency and for identification of the responsive core modules from the perturbed pathways or gene sets, which improves the efficiency and avoids the use of irrelevant members. Secondly, this method is based upon carefully constructed, high-quality molecular networks derived from HPRD, literature curated, and manually screened networks. In this novel network, false positive interactions are theoretically further reduced by cutting the inter-GO connections and weighting the interactions using co-expression values, as opposed to other networks which are inferred by using only the co-expression levels or solely literature curated networks obtained from different contexts . Additionally, our approach is based on an explicit hypothesis that phenotypic changes represented by significant transcriptomic changes respond to cancer driver mutations. Unlike other methods that integrate gene expression information only to infer the modular network structures , we also used the differentially expressed levels of the modules as a tool to screen the modules most likely influenced by drivers, to characterize those core modules, and to identify mutations enriched in the modules.
Our findings demonstrated a correlation between genetic mutations and phenotypic alterations at the module level, not at the single gene level. These genotype-phenotype correlations have been conceived for a long time but were only partially probed previously in certain genes, e.g., EGFR, TP53, BRCA1, BRCA2, K-ras, and their pathways. This may indicate that while the impaired DNA repair pathways seems to result in mutations widely distributed over all genes, it also causes more damage or the most responsiveness in the core modules. The presence of core modules in all six cancer types suggests the potential for a general mechanism, which supports the hypothesis that cells are modularly organized and module disruption potentially causes cancer.
Furthermore, the robustness of these findings has also been demonstrated. On one hand, we compared different strategy’s impact on the results. In details, when weighting GO network, we used two different co-expression level definitions, PCC and SCC. We compared the results using these two different strategy and found these two strategy’s results are same or similar, including network/module properties (Additional file 1: Table S1), module robustness (PCC: Figure 2; SCC: Additional file 2: Figure S1), and mutation enrichment level (PCC: Figure 3; SCC: Additional file 2: Figure S3). All results together suggested the findings are stable even though using different network weight strategy. On the other hand, we also demonstrated our findings robust by analysis ten different datasets from six cancer types, which has shown consistence.
Regarding the reason behind our findings about genotype-phenotype correlated changes, it may be attributed to co-evolution at network/module level. Proteins perform its function by interacting with other partners in the modular mode, where modularity is deemed to affect the co-evolution on the proteins . First, interaction proteins have been found to be co-evolved to meet the structural constraints on the binding site . Second, the member genes in the module would co-evolve to be co-opted for a new common function . Thus, protein-protein interaction information, especially the modularity, contributes to build the relationship between genotype and phenotype.
Core modules provide biological insight into cancer development. Firstly, core modules are useful to identify the cancer drivers, which have been demonstrated in all three cancer types in which driver mutation data are available. Secondly, mutated genes in core modules tend to be hub-genes and functionally similar. Closer links among mutated genes were found in core modules from the same cancer type. Also, higher network relatedness was found between two different datasets from colon cancer (0.242) and ccRCC (0.256) compared to breast cancer (0.086) and NSCLC (0.096). This may imply a more complex development of breast cancer and NSCLC compared to colon cancer and ccRCC, or alternatively, it may be due to the heterogeneous histopathological features within their corresponding datasets. For breast cancer, samples in wang05 were lymph node-negative whereas the combination of lymph node-negative and positive were found in van02 . For NSCLC, Sanchez10 contained primary adenocarcinomas and squamous-cell carcinomas whereas only primary adenocarcinomas were found in Beer02 . Thirdly, for the mutated genes in the core modules from multiple cancer types, some may play a central role in cancer pathways such as TP53. Also, these genes’ network relativeness based cancer phylogenic relationship reflects the similar cellular origins across the different cancer types, which may be due to epigenetic factors, e.g. (1) common mutational mechanism pre-disposed at the early stage of differentiation for certain cell types, or (2) similar challenges from tumor microenvironment. This finding is also consistent with the prior findings that tissue lineages can influence mutational frequencies of certain oncogenes [40, 41].
However, there is not sufficient evidence to make conclusions regarding the causal relationship of mutations and expression changes, and many mutated genes within the core modules may only be associative. In addition, due to the public data limitation, the tumor sample sources exhibit differences between the expression profile and genomic mutation data. Besides, the pathological conditions are different between different datasets even though the results have demonstrated that networks from same cancer types, whether or not with same or different pathological status, have higher network relatedness than those from different cancer types, suggesting the differences from cancer types dominated the comparison between different cancers. Along with the rapidly increasing amount of data available, some aspects of our approach can be augmented by incorporating data from other dimensions, e.g., copy number variations or epigenetics, which could potentially help reduce the false positive rate and identify more explicit pathways. Meanwhile, more full datasets for each patient under each pathological condition will become available in the future. The core modules revealed in this study are potentially valuable resources for the elucidation of how mutations arise, with general or specific roles in different cancer types, and provide insight into convergent cancer development in different organs, and may be informative for clinical usage as well.
In summary, the correlations between genetic and phenotypic changes were successfully detected on the core modules for all ten datasets from six cancer types. Meanwhile, an effective network-based approach was proposed to identify driver mutations from core modules with convergent genotype-phenotype changes, and its utility was demonstrated. Furthermore, through comprehensive network analysis on the mutated genes in core modules from these six cancer types, we found different properties between cancer type specific and general mutated genes: the majority were cancer type specific and relatively functionally isolated from those found in other cancer types; the rest were general mutated genes and tended to be the hub genes, and can reflect the phylogenetic relationship between the corresponding cancers, providing critical insights into convergent cancer development in different organs.
The protein-protein interaction network data were obtained and combined from HPRD database release 8 and BioGRID database . All redundant edges were collapsed into single edges. The final network covered 6511 nodes and 29684 interactions.
Gene expression datasets utilized were the public pre-processed datasets that included six cancer types and 10 datasets in total: colorectal cancer (Lin07 , Barrier06 ), breast cancer (Wang05 , Van02 ), clear-cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC, Jones05 , Wuttig09 ), non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC, Sanchez10 , Beer02 ), melanoma (Riker08 ), gliomas(Freije04 ) (details were provided in Table 1). Missing values for each probe were filled by applied R package ‘impute’ . For genes with multiple probes, final expression values were the mean of the expression levels for multiple probes.
Gene annotations were obtained from C5 Gene Ontology (GO) sets of the Molecular Signatures Database (MSigDB) v2.5 . The C5 GO gene sets are based on GO terms but removed those with too large (e.g. biological processes), too small (<10 genes), or redundant gene sets.
The mutated genes for each cancer type were downloaded from the COSMIC website (http://www.sanger.ac.uk/cosmic/) . This database stored cancer mutation information which included manually curated data from the published scientific literature, and the output from the Cancer Genome Project (CGP) at the Sanger Institute for in situ tumors or cultured cancer cell lines. For more details, see Additional file 1: Table S3.
For each dataset, core modules were identified as follows (Figure 2).
We build the networks for each GO cluster. It has been previously demonstrated that integrating the prior functional information (e.g. GO) can contribute to the identification of functional modules [50, 52–54]. In this way, the multi-functional genes are not restricted as one functional module, and can eliminate the inter-GO connections while retaining interactions within GO. The retained interactions are potentially functional in vivo and reduce false positive interactions. To build the network of GO clusters, we first created the non-connected GO network with the nodes represented by whole overlapped genes of GO sets and expression profiles. Next, for each node in the network, we retrieved the protein-protein interaction network for all neighbors within the GO cluster and placed the interactions into the GO network.
We applied the widely used weighted Girvan and Newman (GN) algorithm , a graph theory method based on edge betweenness algorithm. The weighted GN algorithm is an edge-oriented and globally optimal-search method in large number of identification methods [22, 58–62]. The idea is that the few edges lying between the modules pose ‘traffic bottlenecks’ when travelling from one module to another; thus, if these edges can be identified and removed, the networks will be naturally separated into isolated parts. In detail, the betweenness of all edges in the weighted GO network is calculated based on the sum of the all shortest paths through them and divided by the their corresponding weights. The edge with highest betweenness is removed. The betweenness of all remaining edges was recalculated and the edge with the highest betweenness was removed repeatedly until no edges remained. Considering that the original GN algorithm cut point with the highest Q value led to a huge disequilibrium of module sizes and relatively lower biological coherence in modules exhibiting a relatively larger size , we performed a minor adjustment by setting a size limit of less than 20 for each module and by ignoring the modules with only one isolated gene.
We computed the differential expression levels of the identified multi-gene modules in the two pathological conditions of the dataset using the P-SAGE algorithm , which we previously developed. The p-SAGE method used the quadratic sum of the t score to evaluate the differentially expressed levels and obtain the significance level (P value) for each gene set, because the quadratic sum SDS follows the chi square distribution (~ χ 2 ( n ) , where n is the size of the module) . In contrast, most methods currently used [22, 50, 59, 64] focus on averaging the expression levels or differential statistics according to the size of the module, which simply expands the statistical test of a single gene to multiple genes.
where T i is the t score for ith gene in the module S. The significance levels (P values) of differentially expressed levels for module S were calculated using the chi-square test. Modules were then ranked based on the resultant P value in ascending order.
For each module, we counted the number of mutated genes and determined whether there were significantly more mutations in the module using the Fisher’s exact test (P < =0.05). Modules exhibiting a significantly greater number of mutations were defined as mutated modules (MM). We defined the overlapped MMs with TRMs_100 as the core modules for further exploration.
The mutated network analysis was performed using NetworkAnalyzer and CentiScape , the plugins of the software Cytoscape .
where k n is the number of neighbors or degree of the node n, e n is the number of connections among all neighbors of the node n. The value listed in Additional file 1: Table S6 is the average of the clustering coefficient of all nodes.
Density is the normalized average number of neighbors, which indicates how dense the network is. The network with no edge has the density of 0 and the fully connected network has the density of 1.
For example, the star network has a centralization of 1, whereas a more decentralized network has a centralization closer to 0.
Network heterogeneity is a measure of the variance of the connectivity distribution.
in which the denominator is the sum of the shortest path between the node v and all other nodes in the graph. A node with high closeness is usually central to the network. From a biological perspective, the closeness can be interpreted as the functional relevance of one gene upon others, and genes with higher closeness scores are more central to the regulation of other proteins.
Where N0ij is the count of the shortest path whose length was not beyond a cutoff (0, 1, or 2) between nodes from ith and jth dataset networks, and N 1ij is this count in their combined network.
The distance matrix was used to build the phylogeny tress for different cancer types using the PHYLIP 3.67, which is an implementation of the neighbor-joining method.
Top ranked module after permutation.
This work was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) fund (No.31171274).
WL conceived and designed the study, implemented the method, collected the results, drafted and revised the manuscript. RW participated in the design of the study and the display of the results. LB designed the illustration figures and assisted to revise the manuscript. ZY participated in revising the manuscript. ZS discussed on design of study and revised the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. | 2019-04-24T06:33:10Z | https://bmcsystbiol.biomedcentral.com.live.oscarjournals.springer.com/articles/10.1186/1752-0509-6-64 |
Unbelievers condemn themselves to the second death – eternity in hell (John 3:18; Revelation 2:11). They die physically, and then their spirit and soul go to the lake of fire where they suffer never-ending torment for eternity (Revelation 21:8).
Death is not the end for authentic Believers either; yet, for us, it is a new beginning. We leave the limits of this earthly realm and enter into the glorious riches of the Kingdom of God.
We are not disembodied spirits wandering the earth until we finish the business we failed to accomplish in our lifetime. Neither do we need to contact some human being to help us to leave a message for our loved ones, or to straighten out some misunderstanding we left behind.
Paul was confident that the very moment a Believer’s spirit and soul leave our body, we are immediately present with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8). We graduate from the school of life. Through Christ we passed all the tests, and we earned our diploma.
Even in our lifetime on earth, God fills the Believer’s spirit, body, and soul – our thoughts, choices and emotions – with His joy, as we experience exquisite pleasures in His eternal presence here and now (Psalm 16:9-11).
God rejoices in the death of His Saints (Psalm 116:15), because we are no longer separated from Him, but we dwell with Him for eternity. The angels carry us into the presence of God in heaven (Luke 16:22), where we will never die.
Father God, we thank You for drawing us to Your heart during times of strain and sorrow, which accompany the death of our loved ones. I ask that You help us to always find our refuge under the shadow of Your wings, our strength in Your joy, and our comfort and clarity of thinking in Your wisdom, as You lead us beside the still waters and restore our soul (Psalm 23).
I thank You that Your peace, which exceeds all human understanding, will flow over us like a waterfall. As Believers, we experience You as our refuge in death (Proverbs 14:32). You make us like angels in this respect, because we are Your children. You already raised us with Jesus from the dead into a new life with Your Son (Luke 20:36). Thank You that You fill our heart with Your love so fully that we will feel no other emotion.
God looks forward to the death of His Saints, because our last breath on earth is immediately followed by our first breath in Heaven; our mortal body stays in the grave; and at Jesus’ coming, God provides us with our immortal body for eternity.
Communication is a very difficult talent to perfect. What I say, what I mean by what I say, and what you hear me say, often have very different perspectives. At times, we expect others to know how we feel without us even saying a word.
We can take offense, if we assume that we understand what another person says to us, unless we take the time and effort to clarify what we think we heard, especially when we feel a negative emotion arise in our soul, due to our assumptions.
We may also doubt our self, and believe that people could not possibly love us as we really are – with all of our foibles and imperfections. People can sense our guarded attitude and interpret it as mean-spirited, cold-hearted or a fear of commitment.
Therefore, they may reject us before we can reject them. Fear of vulnerability causes us to throw our self into our vocation, hobbies, other people’s families, and charitable causes for our fulfillment. We convince our self that we do not need anyone to feel whole and complete.
Of course, clarifying what we think we heard takes courage and vulnerability. The alternative is to live a guarded life, controlled by the fear of hurt, rejection or disappointment. This stilted lifestyle robs us of the joy, spontaneity and love that is possible with an open heart.
We can change this toxic cycle by realizing our need for God, which will fill that longing in our soul. We learn to love as He loves, to lay down our life for others as Jesus laid down His life for us, and to serve and help others with a compassionate and joyful heart as His Spirit leads us.
Father God, remind us that we can only love others as we love our self (Mark 12:31). Attempting to hide our authentic self from others in order to prevent hurt and possible rejection, reduces our ability to serve You with our life; so give us the courage to risk vulnerability, and to allow You to use us to bless other people. We love functioning through our gifts in a local congregation of Believers, which helps us to flourish in body, soul and spirit.
Help us to analyze our negative emotions throughout the day and to care for our needs, or to leave them in Your capable hands. Teach us how to heal from the toxic comments made to us, and about us, by significant people in our past. Remind us that Your Word is a two edged sword (Hebrews 4:12), which can help us to heal from our insecurities and to grow in our faith in Your faithfulness.
When God created Adam, He decided that Adam needed companionship; we also need close friends, family and an intimate relationship with our Father God in order to find fulfillment during our lifetime on this earth, and to enter eternity as part of the family of God.
Where does the label “Christian” come from? The Bible tells us that King Agrippa copied the use of this term from those in Antioch (Acts 11:26) to define the Followers of Christ apart from the rest of society (Acts 26:28).
The apostle Peter accepted the term, and the rest is history (1 Peter 4:16). God revealed Himself to mankind through Jesus. Now, as followers of Christ, we exhibit a godly sorrow for our sins, and embrace a spiritual conviction that Christ is our whole life (Colossians 3:3-4).
Jesus was fully human; yet through His divine nature from the Holy Spirit’s formation of Him in Mary’s womb, He is also fully God. With His presence within us, we enjoy a similar measure of union in our earthly existence – fully human; yet, filled with Christ within us.
By faith, we unleash the power of God in our life through entering into the Kingdom of God by His adoption of us into His family. Then, we submit to the sanctifying work of God’s Spirit in our life, and allow Christ to reign supreme in our thoughts, words and actions.
Jesus is the Son of God (John 11:27), and also our mediator (1 Timothy 2:5), High Priest (Hebrews 3:1, 8:1), and our Risen Lord (Matthew 28:6). Father God revealed Himself to us through His Son, Jesus, by His Spirit; and His power now manifests itself to and through authentic Believers (John 1:17; Luke 10:22).
The rest of humanity, whether they call themselves Christians or not, give Jesus the status of a celebrity, and commemorate His life; but they are disengaged from the reality of who Christ really is, and they do not follow His Biblical teaching or submit to Him as King and Lord.
Yet, authentic Christians have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16), possess the indwelling Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9), and exhibit the fruit of God’s Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). Our obedience leads to our ultimate freedom through our union with Him in this life (James 1:25).
Father God, You did not choose us, so that our life in You will be reduced to a list of do’s and don’ts. You give us Your laws and write them on our heart to keep us safe and filled with Your righteousness, peace and joy (Hebrews 10:16; Romans 14:17). Thank You for our new birth and spiritual regeneration and resurrection (John 3:1-6; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 4:24; Colossians 3:10).
Secondly, we are forever grateful to You for giving us Your Holy Spirit in our new birth (Romans 8:4-11; John 4:24; John 1:13), and for giving us eternal life with You, through Jesus, the Christ (1 John 5:11; John 10:10, 11:25, 14:6). Since Jesus rose from the dead, we can now live each moment of our life in Your presence, because He gives us the desire and power to work out our salvation during our lifetime (Philippians 2:12-13).
Jesus came to earth and died in our place in order to secure for us His righteousness in exchange for our sins, as well as the Godly character of His holiness that is exhibited by Him through our life on this earth; through this process, He is facilitating our union with His Trinity.
Salvation through Jesus Christ is a free gift; we do not earn it by our beliefs or our behavior (Romans 6:23). The gift of God’s presence, however, entails our obedience and love for Him. Walking in God’s Spirit allows us to maintain this constant communion with the lover of our soul (Galatians 5:16-25).
Consulting God in all things also helps to prevent the good activities, which we are invited to participate in, from becoming the enemy of God’s best for us (Ephesians 2:10; Proverbs 3:5-6). Constant busyness keeps us in continual stress and turmoil.
Our hectic lifestyle prevents us from entering into the rest of God’s presence (Hebrews 4:1-16). Some people work two or three jobs to supply their family with the lifestyle they believe they need. When does the workaholic have time to spend alone with God, family and friends?
As we love the Lord with our entire heart, having no idols in His place and ordering our steps to seek Him throughout the day, He will provide us with His love and guidance (Proverbs 3:5-6). We always walk in fulfillment, and we find joy in the simplest encounter with His goodness.
Alone (All-one) time with God allows us to enter that place of abiding, which connects and fills us with His Holy Spirit. Continually abiding in Him provides us with an opportunity to enter God’s rest, to soak up His presence, and to operate from a sense of His peace.
God’s joy gives us needed vitality to meet the trials of the day (Psalm 46:1-3). His wisdom and goodness help us to succeed. His presence in us matures our faith, gives us hope in what we cannot see, comforts us in all of our afflictions, and helps us to rejoice in the Lord always.
Father God, remind us that when we admit that we are powerless and cannot control the events in our life, we found the key to a successful, fulfilled existence. We willingly relinquish all control to You and Your perfect will for our life. We rest in Your faithfulness, because we know that You plant a seed for a miracle in every trial.
We trust You with our whole heart, and we thank You for providing everything we need each moment of the day. Help us to make time every day to stop all activity, and to cuddle in Your lap, like the little children that we are (Matthew 19:14). We want to continually rest in You, so that You can immerse us in Your love, while we love You with our whole heart, soul, mind and strength (Mark 12:30).
As we take time to be still, and to focus on the fact that God is God and there is no other like Him; this releases His power in our life, as well as allows Him to bless us, keep us and give us every good and perfect gift, which He has already prepared for us; then, we can praise Him for shining His face on us, and for showering us with His grace and mercy, which are new every single morning.
Life is full of questions, but God has all the answers. So often we try so hard to find a solution to a problem, but cannot enjoy success in any of our efforts. When this happens, I find that I am trying too hard, rather than trusting in God.
The answer comes much more successfully when I stop trying, and start trusting God first. I focus on living in His will, led by His Spirit each moment of the day. At times there seems only two ways to go, but God often shows us a third option if we wait on Him.
At the right time and place, God brings us the solution and gives us the coveted answer that we formerly diligently searched for without success. It is better to consult the Lord in all things, rather than to trust in our human understanding (Proverbs 3:5-6).
Developing a heavenly mindset (Colossians 3:1) seems like an insurmountable task until we realize that we already have the mind of Christ through His free gift of salvation (1 Corinthians 2:16). We leave the anchor of this finite world and enter the infinite world of the spiritual realm.
Our life is now blessed with atonement for our carnal ways; holiness in our thoughts, words and actions; and redemption and Christ’s resurrection power in all of our decisions and deeds. Our only struggle is to develop the discipline of seeking God first and always (Romans 12:2).
We rid our self of all anxiety, the desires of the flesh, and the temptation of the devil through God’s Word, His Spirit, His anointing, and His direction – until we find His will in every decision.
Father God, thank You that we do not live this life by fighting with weapons of this world. We have Your divine power to decide what we will think and feel. Remind us to demolish strongholds from sin and Satan through the inspiration of Your Word and the power of Your Spirit (2 Corinthians 10:4-5).
We lasso our thoughts and emotions, and bring them into submission to You, rather than allowing our flesh, the world and the devil to influence them. Help us to set our mind on spiritual thoughts, not on the philosophy and expectations of this world. We want to live in joyful and peaceful hope, as we pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:16-17).
Some people consider the Bible as an archaic collection of opinions, poems and interesting stories or fairytales. Yet, for authentic Believers, each verse gives us wisdom for living, sustains our spirit and soul, and increases our faith (Romans 10:17).
God’s Word is a light for our path and a lamp for our feet, so that we do not stumble on our way through this world (Psalm 119:104-105). It acts as a compass to keep us moving in the right direction. We count on Biblical wisdom to help us to make good choices.
The Bible’s parables, instruction, correction and exhortation, (2 Timothy 3:16) provide us with a successful and encouraged life. Eventually, no storm we encounter will concern us, because we have strong faith, built within us by the Word of God (Romans 10:17).
As our carnal, fleshly character gives way to the nature of Christ in us (Galatians 5:17-24; 2 Peter 1:3-4), we struggle less and triumph more over temptation, fear and trials. When we hide His Word in our heart (Psalm 119:11), we are comforted and encouraged.
We also have instant recall for reassurance through every trauma we face. As we hunger and thirst after righteousness (Matthew 5:6), God plants His desires in our heart (Psalm 37:4), and His ways become our way of life.
Our goal on this earth is to use our gifts and talents to further His Kingdom through our relationships, vocation, hobbies, ministries, and as neighbors. As we digest God’s Word, it becomes a part of every fiber of our being, (Proverbs 6:23).
The commandments of the Lord are good and totally righteous, helpful and protective of us. We prosper when we pay attention to God’s counsel in His Word, and when we walk in His precepts as part of our daily routine.
The fulfillment of the words of the prophets recorded in the Bible throughout history, confirm our faith beyond any doubt. We walk in peace as each new day dawns, and as the morning star rises in our heart (2 Peter 1:19).
Father God, we pray for Your will to be done in us as it is in heaven, and for Your Kingdom to come both in us and on the earth. We can never thank You enough for providing for us not only physically, but also mentally, emotionally and spiritually as well (Psalm 23:1-4).
You gave us Your Spirit and Your Word to inform us of Your goals, methods and intentions through the ages and dispensations of time. We thank You for our daily bread, and for forgiving us of our sins, as we forgive those who negatively infringe physical, emotional and mental trauma on our body and soul (Matthew 6:9-13). We give You all of the praise and glory.
God allows certain circumstances in our life in order to lead us into a deeper walk with, and trust in Him; therefore, when we circumvent His work in someone else’s life by trying to help them without God’s direction, we actually block God’s plans for them.
As authentic Believers, not only does Christ live in us (Galatians 2:20), but we also thrive in Him (Galatians 3:26-28; 1 Peter 5:14; Philippians 1:1; Romans 8:1). We are God’s children through faith. He walks with us, and abides within us, surrounding us with His four dimensional love (Ephesians 3:18; Romans 8:35-39).
We accepted Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins (2 Corinthians 5:17), died with Him, and our life is now hidden with Christ in God. Christ is our whole life (Colossians 3:3-4). We leave our old, carnal sin nature behind in the baptismal grave, and we are now filled with God’s Holy Spirit (Luke 9:23, Mark 8:34; 1 Corinthians 12:13).
When God looks at us, He sees the righteousness of Christ (Ephesians 2:13; Hebrews 8:12; John 3:16-18, 20:31). Regardless of our lot in life, we are free to enjoy God’s continual blessings (Ephesians 1:3), as we serve as slaves to Christ (Romans 6, 8:1; 1 Corinthians 7:4).
We enjoy freedom in Christ (John 8:32, 36). We are a new creation, children of God, partakers of Jesus’ divine nature and alive with Him, as well as co-heirs with Christ of His entire Kingdom (Galatians 3:26, 4:1-7; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 2:5; 2 Peter, 1:4; Romans 6:4).
We choose to walk away from sin’s temptations by the power of Christ within us (Philippians 4:13; Romans 8:37). God chose us in Christ before He even created the world (Ephesians 1:4). Filled with His grace (2 Timothy 1:9), we receive all of the riches of God’s grace in Christ (Ephesians 1:7, 2:7; 2 Corinthians 9:8).
Father God, thank You for accepting us and adopting us into Your family, and making us co-heirs with Jesus for eternity. Thank you that since we are incapable of earning our own salvation (Ephesians 2:8-9), our position in Christ has nothing to do with our merits or works, but everything to do with the saving work that Jesus gave us through His crucifixion, death and resurrection. We can leave all of our cares with You, because You truly love us (1 Peter 5:7).
Thank You that we are eternally in Christ with the same intensity as Christ is in us. Your presence is our most precious possession in this life, and we look forward to serving You each day as well as throughout eternity. Remind us that You ordained that what Christ is, what He has, and what He will receive in the future, also belongs to us, because we are in Christ.
Forgiven – Colossians 1:14, 2:13, 3:13, Ephesians 1:7, 4:32. | 2019-04-22T17:59:28Z | https://kathleenbrdly.wordpress.com/2019/03/ |
On Wednesday morning, a friend sent me an article from Gourmet magazine. It was called “Who Invited This Guy?” and it was a Passover meditation of sorts, by Bruce Feiler, the author of “Walking the Bible,” who’d once retraced the Five Books of Moses through the desert and learned that the ancient Israelites didn’t cross the Red Sea, didn’t build the pyramids and didn’t normally sit “erect,” rather than reclining, while eating.
My friend had been planning to read the article out loud at her family’s first-night seder, but when I invited her to my house, for the second night, she’d decided to ditch her own seder and instead bring her charoset, gefilte fish, flourless chocolate cake with raspberry sauce, children, husband, mother and chosen text to me.
“It’s not really my holiday,” she said.
Both her parents had been born Jewish, but she’d been raised with no religion and her mother self-identified as Episcopalian.
“So long as it’s O.K. with you,” she said.
Sure, it was O.K. with me.
My heart sings to the organ chords of the Doxology.
It is an instinctual, not altogether reasonable, sort of a thing.
I know there are a lot of people who view people like my friend and me as “confused.” And yet, I can tell you that she and I – and my somewhat striking number of other friends whose faiths are other than what they “ought” to be by virtue of their upbringing – don’t feel confused at all. Some of us just can’t find a home for ourselves in the categories of identity that make sense for other people. Some of us are defined by little bits and pieces of experience and belief that together form a mosaic that for us, at least, is coherent and whole.
Having a very abstract sense of faith – or religion, or God, or whatever you want to call it – works perfectly for me. According to Newsweek this week, having such a “post-modern” form of faith is becoming increasingly common among many other Americans as well.
But how do you pass that on to children? Can children apprehend religion or spirituality or even uplift in such a nontraditional way?
That world is gone – dead or dispersed.
My mother, like my father before her, when he was alive, performs our seders very quickly, skipping pages peremptorily, reciting the prayers almost ironically. I think it started as a rebellion against the interminable-seeming seders of her – and his – youth. (My Gourmet-reading friend’s mother says hers, in Hebrew, were incomprehensible.) Now it’s a habit. Instinctual, almost.
“The great end in religious instruction is not to stamp our minds irresistibly upon the young, but to stir up their own … Not to form an outward regularity, but to touch inward springs,” William Ellery Channing, the Unitarian theologian, once said.
What identity will my children have to rebel against, in the course of growing up? Is there a way to make their experience be a moving-toward, instead of away?
About six months ago, I asked Julia and Emilie if they’d consider trying out a Unitarian service one day with me.
“No way,” Emilie, then eight, declared, before I could even finish the sentence.
Writing this – while my mother shops and cooks, polishes silver, sets the table, decants the wine – I am thrilled at the prospect of later celebrating Passover with our motley Jewish-Catholic-Episcopalian crew, commemorating events we don’t believe in, confirming an identity that doesn’t quite fit, united in the love of one another.
And on Sunday, I am going to Easter services, in a church where people define rebirth and renewal in all sorts of personal ways. My mom, I know, will be happy to come with me.
I just got back from the Maundy Thursday service at my Episcopal church, with the washing of feet and the stripping of the altar. I will spend three hours in church tomorrow, will be ringing handbells at the Great Vigil on Saturday, and know I will cry shamelessly, as I always do, as I sing “Jesus Christ is Risen Today” on Easter Day. My priest knows I am an agnostic and accepts me as I am. He also knows I work hard for my church because despite all the harm that has been done in the name of religion, I truly value the music, the art, the tradition and, most importantly, the “conjunction of questions,” as James P. Carse calls them in “The Religious Case Against Belief,” that make up religion.
It’s getting difficult for me to defend religion because of how judgmental and close-minded some religious people can be, but I feel I need to, and have passed religion on to my son. I am so glad I did. It so enriches our lives.
Too often customs and traditions are confused with religion or worse yet conflated to be one.
Judith, while I agree with you that a celebration of traditions is surely an essential feature of our lives, I agree more with your daughters, religion has done more harm than good.
Too often people start practicing it because it is being practiced by people around them and they convince themselves that they know exactly where the dividing line between tradition/sense of family and religion is. However, the folly of humans is misplaced confidence — before they know the subconscious affects of their environment takes over and they are more religious than they thought.
In and of itself there is nothing wrong with it but along with being religious, too often, comes a need to differentiate between followers and non-followers and thus the schisms get created.
A primary reason I have decided to raise my daughter in the mainstream Roman Catholic faith that my husband and I were brought up with–even though neither of us is very religious–is so that she will be less inclined when she’s older to adopt a more “radical” faith. I’ve known too many people who were raised by resolutely secular, even atheist, parents yet later became Mormons, fundamentalist Christians, and, in one case, a Muslim (though she did later leave Islam). Others joined non-religious but cult-like groups like SAGE, EST, etc. I firmly believe that many people who are raised with no spiritual traditions or beliefs will eventually seek one and, unfortunately, may fall victim (as I see it) to unhealthy or extreme religions.
I forgot to give my children any religious training at all because I had put aside my rigorous Christian Lutheran religion at the age of 18. It just made no sense to me any more.
My kids now don’t have the same rich religious background now to push back from OR go towards and I wish that I had at least made a stab at orienting them to one religion. I am comfortable as a Unitarian and they have a great religious education and philosophy program. Oh, well, if frogs had wings………. I did let my kids down and there is no going back. I benefited greatly from the beauty of the holiday rituals and singing in the choir. They have found their own way as spiritual and great ethical humans but don’t darken the door of any church.
Thank you for this. At this time of year, I’m always reminded of my interfaith upbringing, raised both Catholic and Jewish in a small Southern bible belt town. When Passover overlapped with Lent, we were sent to school on Fridays with peanut butter sandwiches on matzah for lunch–imagine the reactions from all those children who never knew anything other than unforgiving evengelicalism! So how do you pass this on to children, you ask? You do it like you would anything else–with the best of intentions, a strong education and the knowledge that you support their path to self-discovery. That is how I, as an adult in New York, am able to smile meaningfully when a man offers me palm fronds on a church stoop just before being given matzah by a Hassidic woman around the corner.
You are a perfect Unitarian! \Look on the website at //www.uua.org for a Unitarian congregation near you!
Our congregation had a seder for 32, and is going to have an Easter service this Sunday– it’s all good.
I’m with your daughters. Organized religion has been at the basis of too many wars. I see very little good in it. I’m raising my children without any talk of God, as I don’t think it’s fair to push God down their throats when they’re too young to think logically. To make it an “instinct” as you so rightly say.
If they want to embrace a faith when they’re adults, I’ll support them (just as I’ll support them in whatever job choices they make). But for now, we’re doing without.
And then there are those of us (including a 3rd/4th generation southern Chinese American Classicist at a small, very urban, very diverse, Jesuit college in Jersey City; I am a Berkeley girl at heart) who think of rebirth and the first thing that comes to mind is the ancient Greek myth of Demeter and Persephone. No, I’m not a pagan, whatever the appearances; just that American eclecticism.
Superstitious hoodoo, not so much.
The theology of progressive Jews who admire the teachings of Jesus is not very different from the progressive Christianity of the readers of John Dominic Crossan. In the US progressive Christianity and Judaism are philosophically beginning to merge, with ministers reading Jewish scholarship and rabbis reading Marcus Borg. Meanwhile Orthodox Israeli blogs conjecture that Reformed Judaism is a separate religion.
I say Bravo! to Judith for speaking honestly, and with much feeling, about what religion seems to mean to her – and not mean to her. I also say Bravo! to her daughters for speaking their minds – and their hearts. For me, religion is a means, an avenue, a journey of loving and caring – and learning how to find, and be open to, the Divine Presence in a world that is sometimes very crazy. Religion is also a means to connect with others, friends and family, whether they practice the same religion, and ritual practice, that I do, or not. The point of the whole matter is to foster a love and connection between people, friends, family – and ultimately the global community. One religion is not better than another, as long as the ones we’re talking about teach the golden rules: Loving God, and demonstrating that in the practice/doing/living of our lives – loving our neighbor as ourselves. The confusion festers when folks try to make it all too complicated. The basics are what’s important. I have hope that Judith’s daughters will grow to be open-minded adults, full of respect and understanding of the human condition – and what we all strive for in life – love and connection – and the success of a life well-lived according to ethical principles.
Thanks for this. I was raised as a Christian and the way I look at it, it is my “karma” to be that. It is as good as any other religion; no better, no worse. It’s just the one I got. And my job, as a mom, is to MODEL a spiritual practice for my children, so that they may know what that feels and looks like. When they are adults, they can choose to practice or not. They can choose to be Buddhist (as is my step-son) or a Hindu or Jewish or a Christian or whatever else they like. Or nothing at all, but I doubt that will happen. I do believe that our being born into a faith is no small matter. Even the Dalai Lama suggests you think carefully about changing your faith.
I am so grateful for the ritual of my Episcopal service. It transports me to a world between Heaven and Earth (I use Heaven metaphorically.) Life is so very hard and so very beautiful at the same time; I do not know where that is more perfectly expressed than at my church service where beauty, death, forgiveness and rebirth are celebrated weekly.
My wife and I–both the children of black southern baptist preachers–attended our first seder thursday and came away from the experienced deeply enriched, wondering why had we not experienced such a rich tradition earlier in our lives? we have resolved to see to it that our three protestant southern baptist reared kids will find a way to someone’s seder next year. rather than diminishing my faith, i found the e seder reassuring, reaffirming, enriching and spiritually uplifting. We can see God in so many many ways of we look.
There is nothing wrong with children about rituals their parents no longer believe in. Among other things, our children will be better able to read the literature of their own culture, from Milton to Dickinson. What I do not like is my children learning more in school about the African corn god than about the Hebraic-Christian myths of their own culture.
For Christian, Jew, or agnostic, a feel-good Christian “spirituality” (especially around Eastertime) feels…good, but there’s one problem: Christ himself. He was either who he claimed to be, or else the greatest liar who ever lived; if his story is a hope-filled myth, then Easter is a bigger fraud than Bernie Madoff. But if the story, the traditions, and the “spirituality” of Passover and Easter draw your heart and fill it with love, then consider looking deeper within them to see what, or who, is truly calling you. You are already “united in the love of one another”; in this place, you are in close, delightful peril of discovering that love’s source and summit.
I think, Judith, more than ever, religion and faith have become two separate things.
On holidays like these, the one truly unifying force seems to be the love of family and friend, and the peace we can find with each other.
Maybe that’s what significant holidays with those we care about really should mean, no matter what you celebrate.
Because of a beautiful young Jewish woman I knew in college, and great next-door neighbors when I grew up, Jewish holidays have a special meaning to me, a kid who grew up Lutheran in the Midwest.
When I think of Eid, I think of a few Muslim friends I’ve had with fondness, and smile.
For myself and my wife, a supposedly secular holiday like the Fourth of July has grown to have a very deep meaning for me, as we’ve hosted parties at our house on that date every year, for more than a decade now. They’ve been small affairs, only our closest friends, in good times & bad – and they’ve brought us as close to our faith as any religious service at a holiday ever has.
As someone who feels the same way as you do Judith – supposedly mixed-up about religion, but very firm and knowing in my own beliefs – may I wish you and your family a blessed Passover. And a happy Easter too.
And I hope your Vernal Equinox was calm and regenerating as mine this year.
Thanks, Judith, for what you do.
Thank you for your eloquent thoughts, once again. I agree with you, in that many of my friends (if they’re to a point of personal religious exploration), would define their faith as a collage of beliefs selected from various traditions, spliced together based on what makes sense, rather than what has been ingrained since childhood. Most of us define ourselves as spiritual, rather than religious.
Although there is something profoundly important in the religious ritual, that kids in my generation, at least, often overlook. Maybe it’s because I live in a ski town, in a youth hostel-type environment, and a lot of our day is consumed by snowboarding, weed and jam bands, but for those of us that are paying attention to the development of our spiritual beliefs, not too many are truly dedicated to daily ceremony in the way other cultures and former generations have been. I personally was raised sans religion, but had the freedom to explore whatever I wanted. These days, I will read excerpts from the Bible, the Upanishads, the Tao te Ching, just because I’m interested in the study of different philosophies. But I feel like true spiritual growth emerges only from one’s regular commitment to the ritual and daily meditations associated with that faith, which I really don’t participate in too often.
But to be honest, I like the way I’m doing it. To agree with your statement, I’m pretty comfortable with my pastiche of faiths. It seems coherent to me. At this point, I’m taking an academic approach until I feel compelled to surrender to the ceremony of worship. When that happens (or if it happens) it will mean more and provide more of the stuff religion is intended to provide, than if I’d been forced to practice traditions that seemed meaningless to me as a child. It’s cool that you want to take your girls to a Unitarian church. I’ve not spent too much time there, but I think a universalist approach is always a good one.
Thanks again for your thoughts. Always stimulating.
In my home for two years we have hosted Raft Ups, so-named by me using a sailing metaphor because folks of different beliefs (including atheism, a belief) sail toward and tie up with others from different courses of belief. The purpose is for self-awareness of belief rather than for education or consensus. After two hours or so, we sail off on our separate courses of belief. Raft Ups are a personal experience in a shared setting that supports the experience in a non-threatening, non-judgmental way.
Your article sounds as if you turn these holidays into a kind of Raft Up. Good for you. After the holidays, you might want to ponder what is comforting or helpful in your various religious experiences and how religious they really are. And then how it feels to sail along without your own cohort (or congregation). And what would happen if you chose to form one with your “mixed believers”, which then runs risks inherent to religious or ideological organizations but gives benefits of social organizations.
Raft Ups are not an amalgam of religions but a realistic recognition of the role that the paradigms of religion have in the lives of many around us, regardless of what we personally believe. Your article gives very good examples. Thanks.
RaftUps.com will be on the web at the end of April. We haven’t organized a group or congregation but can help others sailing through life in this way.
A theologian friend of mine provided a very self-explanatory, succinct moniker for this state. Ethical Monotheist. My sense of belief, while more nebulous than some, guides my actions in the world. Who am I to say which god is the “real” god? I think it is all the same god.
Hear Hear! Now how long will it be until the youth of America lose that sense of “obligatory” religious celebrations with their parents and family, and decide to replace them with their own secular traditions?
I hope you share your experience in attending Easter service at the Unitarian Universalist church. Especially, whether you felt that this religion feels broad enough to be a home for your spiritual beliefs.
I’m sure that wasn’t “stamped” on your daughter’s mind. I’m sure she discovered that on her own by excavating Incan ruins and rummaging through government documents in London.
Next week I will be going through the cultural rituals of Greek Orthodox Easter. It united my family and they enjoy the traditions that gave them great joy as children: dying real eggs myriad colors, denying themselves certain foods until after midnight on the Saturday night, attending church services held outdoors with hundreds of lit candles (an excuse to gather, gossip and people watch as well) etc. On the Sunday people will gather for Greek Easter lunch including roast lamb, traditional cheese and spinach pies I will have made, the ceremonial cracking of the colored eggs and so on.
I’m not Greek Orthodox, even tho for most of my life I’ve gone thru the rituals. I’m Muslim (a recent convert) and a fairly relaxed one at that.
I’m happy to keep up the rituals that bring family together, but I steer clear of bible-banging discussions. They give me heartburn! I like my secular life.
Don’t Sweat the Stress Tests! | 2019-04-22T00:36:47Z | https://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/04/09/this-i-believe/?scp=1&sq=judith%20warner%20this%20i%20believe&st=cse |
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We're making an all new game which offers a stunning fantasy setting, ripe for exploration, alongside a skillful and intuitive new combat system. We invite you to hit play below and listen to the original soundtrack while you learn more about Cradle.
Cradle tells the story of an exiled traveler caught at the center of a monumental struggle between humanity, nature, and the gods. In addition to an immersive narrative experience set in a breathtaking world to explore, Cradle offers an exciting new type of strategic first-person melee-combat experience. The game features five distinct environments, 5 playable character classes, a system for weapon and armor augments, and much more.
Above all else, Cradle's environments are designed to tell a story. We believe that the most immersive and compelling games arise from a well-designed gameplay system, smoothly integrated with rich environments and compelling lore. In designing and implementing Cradle, player immersion has been a top priority. Allowing the player to move intuitively throughout the world and narrative to create an emotional experience are among our most fundamental goals. This is why at Mojo Games Studios every aspect of traditional RPG gameplay mechanics is re-explored for creative improvement, from augments and medica, to heads up display and story. With diverse ecosystems, dynamic weather, and a rich soundtrack, we've created a living, breathing world we hope the player will enjoy experiencing as much as we've enjoyed creating. In addition, Mojo’s innovative RealFight Combat system and redesigned movement systems will change the way players view first person melee combat.
Cradle’s environments are designed to tell a story. Its four open worlds exist to push the envelope of the fantasy genre and appeal to the wanderlust of adventurers. We are carefully crafting every detail to create a rich, compelling universe. From ecosystems to dynamic weather, we’re building our environments using inspiration from the raw intricacy of the natural world.
Below is a fly-through of Titanwood, the first experienced and smallest of the five environments. Titanwood is a densely forested area, intense care was given to every single piece of imagery shown, we intend to give this same detail to attention to the entire game. Although only a fraction of what we are going to do, this video showcases the sense of the work we've already put in. We have included several shots with wireframes to reveal some of the underlying work that went into Titanwood.
Cradle’s combat system is built on making sure that player agency is at the heart of gameplay. Your actions should determine what happens in the game, and we want to capture your intent and translate it as seamlessly as possible into the world of the game.
Cradle provides an engaging new type of fast-paced melee-combat that will force you to rely on your wits. The combat system is driven by your intent and purpose, making your skill, not chance, what determines the outcome of battles.
We intend to give the combat a feeling reminiscent of the fluid firefights of the best first-person shooters with a hint of the first-person melee combat from classic first person-fighting games. Cradle offers a dynamic and responsive game where you forge your own path.
Cradle’s Realfight Combat System is a new way to fight, developed by Mojo Game Studios to bring you an unprecedented level of dynamic control. It is still too early in development to give a full demonstration of the combat in action, so we have tried to give players an idea of what’s to come. Here is an overview of the concepts that make Realfight special.
Deterministic Combat Animations: Where you aim to attack on your opponent determines what attack your character does. In real sword or melee combat, certain attacks make sense for certain places on an opponents body, while others don't. If you aim at the head of an opponent with a sword in Cradle, you are given only the attack options that would make sense for striking at someones head with a sword. The same goes for arms, legs, the left and right torso, or any area other area you care to aim. Because these choices vary by weapon, but are the same from enemy to enemy, this system is easy to learn and intuitive to use. Simply by aiming and clicking the left or right mouse button, you are able to choose in real time where and how you will strike.
Order Determinism: Where you last struck has an effect on how your next attack will play out. In real sword and melee combat, some strikes flow from one to the next, rather than returning to guard between attacks. We wanted to capture this flow from one blow to the next in our Realfight Combat. In Cradle, if you have a sword and want to do a slash right at the torso of an opponent, followed directly by a slash left, simply aim at the right torso and click the right mouse button, then aim at the left torso and click the left mouse button. The result is a continuous slash to the right and back from the left. This system adds fluidity and responsiveness to our combat.
Weapons and Weapon Weight: Weapons in Cradle are designed with specific strengths and weaknesses in combat, and each unique to their specific character class. Not all weapons are created equal, and not all attacks can be blocked. A heavy mace couldn't be blocked by a small dagger, and a hit from a short sword would hardly be noticed when blocked by a heavy or large shield. The weight and type of weapon being blocked, as well as weight of the weapon or shield doing the blocking determines how much or little the player blocking or being blocked will be affected. When should I block, and when should I dodge? In Cradle this is a real decision.
Proximity Determinism: When within a certain distance of an opponent, swinging with your weapon becomes unfeasible, not to mention it becomes impossible to accurately aim. This is where proximity determinism comes in. When too close to an opponent to swing their weapon, instead of their normal attack, the player will push off of their opponent and create space so as to become effective again with their weapons. These maneuvers vary in type and effect depending on where the player is aiming and what weapon they have equipped.
In addition, we are implementing dozens of smaller tweaks and concepts that make our combat the intuitive, reactive and satisfying experience you have always wanted out of a game. From UI design to partial sticky targeting, we are doing everything we can to give you an amazing, one of a kind combat experience. Call it our secret sauce.
Weapon augments are an integral part of customizing combat style in Cradle. Each weapon may be augmented 5 times with any of 5 different types of augment- life, light, fire, fluid and stone. By using the same augment on a weapon multiple times, up to three tiers of effects can be had as you tap into the nature of the forces, with every tier’s effects increasing in power and capability. Be careful though, and choose wisely how you wish to upgrade your weapons!
Deep beneath the Icelands, the Druid approaches a lava floe as he readies a cloth to absorb the essence of Aderyn's power. This piece of ancient Aderian tapestry is covered in runes that shift and glow as he lowers it in. After the tapestry is applied, radiant energy courses through the staff as it synergizes with its latest augment.
Mana is required to imbue these weapons with their powerful augments, but more tiers means higher mana consumption with each use. This means that strategy and planning are required to make the most devastating weapons, allowing each player to customize weapons uniquely suited to their fighting style.
This depicts a sample of the Druid's staff with fire augmentation for three levels, both depleted and with full mana.
The story of an outcast who stumbles into the center of an ages-old struggle between humanity, nature, and the gods. Cradle presents you with a striking narrative set in a breathtaking world.
A thousand years ago, the Five Gods of Anora defeated one of their number in a war known as the Soulfire Crisis. Aderyn, the god of free will and creation, was defeated by forces united for the first time in centuries. His followers were routed and his works destroyed. Eventually, Aderyn and his realm, the Cradle, were erased almost entirely from Anora.
You are an exiled traveler in flight from the wrath of Ostia. Pursued and cursed by the god of hunger for defying its will, you seek refuge in the last of Aderyn’s shrines.
There, you take up arms for Aderyn, and begin a journey to return his Cradle to Anora. This land, once the center of technology and culture for the world, stands empty. Its inhabitants have either perished or become twisted versions of who they once were. Only a few managed to retain some of their sanity.Your victory depends on the advice of these last few survivors and their tenuous grip on reality.
Fight your way through these ravaged lands, journeying to diverse environments and defeating a wide array of enemies. By uncovering the mysteries of the Cradle you will ensure not only your own survival, but help Aderyn return to the world with his promise to the human race: free will.
Each of the 5 character classes will have a distinctive style, and each weapon will have its own signature feel. With deterministic animations we will provide immersive attack animations that always make sense for the part of your opponent you’re aiming at.
Concepts for three of our five character classes, more coming soon!
Each character class can use up to six unique weapons, all exclusive to each class. Weapons are explicitly designed to shine in different types of combat situations and fighting styles. In Cradle, new weapons are rare and powerful items, often heavily guarded and hidden. Finding one is a big deal.
More than just unique weapons, armor and styles of combat, each character class has unique ways of moving throughout and exploring the world. As the Ranger you use your quick reflexes and agility to nimbly traverse otherwise impassible obstacles. These same obstacles could be overcome with the Paladins formidable strength, or the Arcanist's ability to control the world around them. Cradle will feature both male and female payable characters. No matter who you choose to be, you will have to forge your own path as you explore the world of Cradle.
In Cradle your skills will determine which areas you can access, but exploration will help you even the odds. In addition to new weapons, the Cradle is also home to Augments, which are ancient Aderian tapestries and garments containing a small amount of Aderyn’s power. By taking the hidden Augment and imbuing it with the essence of one of the five forces of the world you can give your favorite weapon a series of powerful upgrades.
Questing in Cradle is not about crossing off items on a to do list, but embarking on a journey to discover lost secrets or overcome momentous odds. Rather than having a “quest log”, in Cradle you have a journal of information that keeps track of your progress on your various adventures.
Your main quest, to save yourself from the Wrath of Ostia and restore Aderyn’s lost lands, is only part of your adventure in Cradle. Additional quests are given by the guides or survivors of the Soulfire Crisis, acting as calls to action, not tasks on a to do list. Furthermore, for many “quests” in Cradle, the quest giver will be the world itself or items discovered rather than an NPC. From treasure maps and diagrams of catacombs long forgotten, to lost scrolls detailing battles from a time past, Cradle gives the player vital clues about the world, and leaves it up to them to explore and solve mysteries. In Cradle, you’ll never have to collect 15 boar skins or kill 25 beetles. This is an adventure for you to discover and explore, not a list of chores.
Maintaining your health and stamina in Cradle will require exploration. You will need to forage for plants and herbs to make life saving salves. Discovering combinations of ingredients and finding the right recipes is the key to survival. Regenerate your health in the heat of battle, or create poultices to permanently enhance your resilience. Learning your environment will save your life.
In Cradle, mana is not just a bar that refills over time or when you chug a potion. It’s a direct connection between you and the environment. As the physical manifestation of the damage done to Aderyn’s realm through its removal from Anora, mana is a powerful resource. Harnessing this energy enhances your defensive and offensive capabilities, but only if you can tap into the magical corruption of the world around you.
Four open worlds, each with their own rich ecosystems, appeal to the wanderlust of the adventurer in each of us.
Non-linear story with a compelling message that allows you to build your own gameplay experience.
No leveling. Progress your character instead through exploration and the unlocking of Anora's powerful secrets.
Puzzles encourage exploration of Cradle's world and back-story. Environmental puzzles test and hone the player's mastery of combat and movement, while lore puzzles test the player's ability to piece together Anora's history.
Quests beckon the player towards lost treasures or powerful secrets in the lore of the world, as it's passed on to you from books and non-playable characters. Rather than having a “Quest log”, in Cradle, you have a journal of information that keeps track of your progress in various adventures. You will face a range of obstacles, from hidden foes to momentous forces of nature.
Medica link combat and exploration, allowing for regeneration of health and stamina in the midst of battle.
Five playable classes are each a fresh take on traditional RPG character types. Each class enjoys a unique set of tactics for interacting with environments.
Weapon augments let the player customize the way damage is dealt in combat. The system balances the power of attacks with the mana required to enact them.
Armor augments let you customize the fighting style of your character.
Fluid movement system lets the player enjoy precise and intuitive movement without the use of a joystick.
Groundbreaking Realfight combat system players can choose how and where to land attacks depending on the anatomy of their targets and other real-time variables.
Mojo Games Studios was founded by gamers at Carnegie Mellon University, with the goal of taking video games to the next level. Starting with a few programmers, artists, and a vision, the team has built a company infrastructure and expanded to include talent from around the globe. With each milestone achieved, more talent joins the team to live the dream.
Special thanks to our friend Josh Eiten for his incredible work as Lead Concept Artist. He's responsible for the imaginative paintings and design ideas that define the vibrant universe behind Cradle!
For those interested in a deeper look into Cradle and the thought process behind what makes it different, check out this interview with our project lead.
Cradle is an ambitious project. Mojo Game Studios is a team of talented, passionate, driven people, but we are faced with some challenges to overcome in realizing our dream. A lot of what gives us a fresh perspective on crafting games comes from the fact we are an interdisciplinary team of artists, engineers, designers, and programmers from around the world who are bringing together their strengths to make the most enthralling adventure possible.
To create the game we want, in the time we want, we need the resources to acquire cutting-edge tools and grow our talented team. Achieving this dream requires licensing Tech/Middleware, building the computer resources to efficiently render assets, hire specialists, and provide physical and cyber spaces for work.
We want to make Cradle a reality, and have already covered a portion of these costs on our own. We are giving our all to release this game, but your support is vital to make Cradle everything it can be.
Thank you so much for supporting the dream of Cradle. We at Mojo Game Studios couldn't do it without you.
We owe you. Mojo Game Studios will send you an official backer certificate for your contributions to our dream. Thank you so much.
High resolution wallpapers + all you see above!
Check this out. Backer certificate and a big nice thank you on our website's backer's page on our website. Oh... and you can feast your eyes on our preliminary digital Artbook of Titanwood!
How about this. You donate 20 dollars or more and we give you a web thanks, a backer certificate, and access to Cradle's beta!
Look at you. So quick. So early. You're the kind of person to grab the first 3 cookies out of the bag to ensure your sweet tooth is fed. You get Mojo Game Studio's first game: Cradle. + everything above!
Don't be greedy let your friend play too. Not one but two beta keys to Mojo Game Studio's Cradle. Enjoy this plus everything above!
Donate 35 dollars and you will be the first to uncover the lost history of Aderyn's Cradle with early Alpha access! Enjoy all the above rewards as well!
So I heard you like listening to things while you look at your art. So Marcus is going to let you jam to our official OST complete with the digital copy of Cradle, exclusive updates, the alpha, two betas, and the Titanwood Artbook!
We are friends. At least that's what I'm going to tell my 3-D printer as it sassily lays down layer after layer of ABS plastic into a beautiful 3 inch figure of our flagship character, the Druid. Oh yeah and you get Physcial Cradle, the Poster, digital OST, Artbook, Alpha, 2 Betas, Wallpapers, and Certificate.
Physical Pack! Carefully crafted packaged art book, physical OST, and physical copy of Cradle. Plus all the digital content above!
A leather- bound copy of our final art book including personalized sketches by our artists directly in the pages of the book! Digital Quarry Book + Leather Map + Ranger Mask + Name/Organization in Ending Credits + all digital content!
An exact, full-scale replica of the druid's staff, lathed, carved, painted, woven, and sew by our craftsman. + Digital Quarry Book + Leather Map + Ranger Mask + Name/Organization in Ending Credits + all digital content!
Get your name (or that of your company/organization) in the starting credits of our game! + Digital Quarry Book + Leather Map + Ranger Mask + Name/Organization in Ending Credits + all digital content! | 2019-04-24T14:26:19Z | https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1324765189/cradle?ref=discovery |
In an era when many colleges and universities struggle to meet their enrollment targets, a few institutions have leapfrogged over that calculus by adding large online programs that quickly enroll hundreds—or sometimes thousands—of new students. That kind of success warrants a closer look.
Toggle a few variables on a website at the Georgia Institute of Technology and you can produce a chart that shows enrollment growth in Georgia Tech’s online master’s program in computer science. Just a glance at the acute angle that the data create would likely make many enrollment managers more than a little envious. Picture a line that shoots dramatically upward from 1,255 enrollees in 2014-15 to 3,952 in 2016-17 and then to 7,674 in 2018-19. Between 2017-18 and 2018-19, total enrollment in the program was up a little over 31 percent—and that was the lowest annual percent growth the program has experienced since 2014-15.
In an era when enrollment managers—and their supervisors—can be thrilled to reap single-digit improvements, Georgia Tech’s success in launching an at-scale online program has made higher education sit up and take notice. Georgia Tech now has the largest master’s degree program in computer science in the United States—and perhaps the largest anywhere. Sure, it’s just one example, but their experience shows that yes, it is possible to create and scale academic programs relatively quickly. And having now launched new at-scale online master’s programs in analytics and cybersecurity, Georgia Tech is in the process of replicating its initial success with its computer science master’s.
That kind of success has people asking a fundamental question: How, exactly, do you do that?
Back in July 2012, Georgia Tech started offering massive open online courses (MOOCs) through the online learning provider Coursera. Nelson Baker, Georgia Tech’s dean of professional education, remembers that one question that quickly arose was whether MOOCs could count toward degree programs. “The answer, of course, just like everybody, was ‘no’,” Baker says. At that time, higher education was predisposed not to allow MOOC courses to count toward degrees.
That fall, though, Georgia Tech received grant support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to further develop online courses, especially for learners who hadn’t yet started a degree. While developing those courses, the same question came up: could they count toward a degree? This time, Baker recalls, “We started to scratch our head a little bit, and said ‘Well, gee—same faculty, same course, same outcomes. Why not?’” A group of faculty began to explore what it would take to be able to offer the same college credit for the new courses as Georgia Tech did for its traditional courses. Diving more deeply into this emerging world, faculty also began to discuss how they could better serve needs for education in high-demand fields where employers were having trouble finding enough skilled labor to fill existing jobs.
Ludicrous, perhaps, but that kind of thinking sparked the degree of innovation that eventually led Georgia Tech to create its at-scale online master’s program in computer science.
“It allowed us to step back and challenge every assumption that a university has about its tuition structure,” Baker says. Looking at the costs of courses that used only virtual assets versus physical assets, for example, Georgia Tech saw how the cost of enrollment could diminish greatly, particularly in courses offered at scale. “Adding the next person isn’t using any more resources than what you may have in the cloud anyway,” Baker says, “particularly if you have ways to scale support and grading and some of those more human-challenged activities.” While acknowledging the costs associated with necessary human engagement in online courses, Baker says that creative thinking about traditional ways of doing things “allowed us to break the model” and see that if online courses reached certain enrollment levels, Georgia Tech could offer those courses at dramatically lower tuition.
Building off those core findings, a pair of teams focused respectively on pedagogy and business considerations began to design a new business model, with radically new cost structures based on new thinking about enrollment projections and program costs overall. That work led Georgia Tech to create an online master’s program in computer science, launched in the spring of 2014 in partnership with MOOC provider Udacity. The program costs learners $6,600 if they complete their degree within five semesters, versus the roughly $42,000 that learners pay for virtually the same program on campus. To break even, the program had to enroll at least 2,500 students. Enrollment today is pushing 8,000 students. Two $1 million gifts from AT&T provided the cash flow needed to launch and then scale the program.
The last 12 months have seen a flurry of new online, relatively inexpensive master’s programs that have the potential to scale very quickly.
In July 2018, the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Engineering and Applied Science announced another Coursera partnership, a Master of Computer and Information Technology, Penn’s first completely online master’s degree. Tuition was pegged at $26,300, roughly a third of the cost of the equivalent on-campus degree.
In August, Coursera announced a Global MBA program at Australia’s Macquarie Graduate School of Management. That program will cost students AUD$33,000 (about $24,000 in U.S. dollars).
To date, only a few other schools have adopted models resembling Georgia Tech’s. One somewhat similar example is the online MBA, the “iMBA,” that the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) started in 2016 in partnership with Coursera.
Adam Fein, vice president for digital strategy and innovation at the University of North Texas, was on staff at Illinois when the iMBA was started. Fein says Illinois’s history as a pioneer in online education created an environment that was open to further innovation. In 1960, Illinois had an Intranet where students could access course material. That led to development of PLATO (Programmed Logic for Automatic Teaching Operations), the first system for computer-assisted instruction. In 1996, Illinois launched an online master’s program in library and information science. When he started at Illinois in 2001, Fein helped oversee Illinois’ second online master’s, in human resource development, then the first of its kind in that discipline.
In 2001, Fein says, campus discussions about online education focused on whether there were enough potential students who believed they could get a quality education online. “We got that question a lot: Is it the same degree? Is it going to look different on my resume?” Fein recalls. “The question then was whether we could recruit enough students who were willing to take a leap with us at that time.” Another potential stumbling block was purely practical: In the age of dial-up connections, could students get the bandwidth they needed to take an online course?
MOOCs prompted the next wave of innovations at Illinois. “The idea that Andrew Ng and Daphne Koller and others had 150,000 to 200,000 people interested in their course was kind of appealing,” Fein says. Illinois became the first land-grant university to partner with Coursera in the second wave of MOOC partnerships that the company announced. Among other lessons, experience with MOOCs helped Illinois see the value of stacking credentials and giving students options to customize their education and consume education in small bites that meet a learner’s immediate needs.
That kind of thinking was reflected in the design of the iMBA, another partnership with Coursera, which launched in January 2016. The iMBA curriculum is arranged in modules, called “specializations,” on leadership, strategy, economics, accounting, and finance. To earn their MBA degree, students complete six specializations and three capstone projects, and participate in weekly live global classrooms. Jeffrey Brown, dean of the Gies College of Business at Illinois, told the business school website Poets & Quants that the iMBA was designed as the “reimagining of the online MBA,” with the intent that the program would “deliver quality affordable education at scale.” Starting the program was supported under a $150 million naming gift to the school from Chicago businessman Larry Gies and his wife Beth.
Students in the iMBA program, who learn from the same instructors who teach in the MBA program on campus, pay less than $22,000—versus the more than $100,000 that students in the Illinois residential two-year MBA program pay. According to published reports, more than 1,100 students have signed up for the iMBA, which graduated its first cohort in May 2018.
Schroeder, the founding director of UPCEA’s National Council for Online Education, further argued that while at-scale degrees do not fill the elusive promise of free higher education, “they are less than half the cost of on-campus versions.” And while they do not enroll the hundreds of thousands of students that some say will be one ultimate test of online learning’s efficiency, he wrote, they nonetheless count their learners in the thousands—no small feat in an era when much smaller enrollments are the norm.
Who are those learners? In the case of Georgia Tech’s computer science master’s, Baker says “about one in four of our applicants already have a master’s degree and one in 25 have a doctorate degree.” Broadly speaking, he says, students are returning for more education because they are finding that the formal schooling they have under their belts no longer suffices for the work they are being asked to do, and they need additional training. Baker says that is indicative of how fast many jobs, particularly those in STEM-related fields, are changing. “People need to retool themselves to stay employed or to get ahead,” he says.
Apart from their impact on institutions and on students, Fein suggests that at-scale programs like the iMBA are also pioneering ways to scale faculty expertise. He sees large-scale programs as creating a way for the evolution of a “master-teacher model,” in which a tenure-track faculty member designs the course and “makes a guest appearance, if you will, throughout the offering,” but with the ongoing support of clinical teaching faculty, TAs, and others who support the master teacher and conduct much of the ongoing teaching day-to-day.
Baker says all three of its at-scale master’s programs parallel residential programs at Georgia Tech. “The curricula are the same. The learning and degree outcomes are all the same. The admission requirements are all the same. The faculty teaching it are all the same.” What’s different, Baker says, is “the access method.” Executing that access method and building at-scale online programs takes a contingent of experts beyond faculty members, including TAs, instructional designers, videographers, copy editors, and the people who manage the technological infrastructure needed to deliver online learning.
The courses include frequent assessments. Some are auto- or peer-graded. “The ones that truly count for grades” are graded by human beings, Baker says. “That’s where the coterie of graders and TAs comes in.” TAs also help faculty members manage online discussion forums and troubleshoot various student problems.
Schroeder believes that TAs are key for addressing what he calls one of the biggest challenges in offering at-scale degrees: interacting and engaging with individual students. “How do you individualize, how do you personalize, how do you respond to students when you have so many?” he asked in an interview. “That’s something that traditional universities do in classes of 30 or 50 students.” When you multiply the total student population in a program by a factor of five or ten, he says, maintaining the kind of individual level of engagement with a student that is possible in a small course becomes very difficult. TAs are one answer to that dilemma, Schroeder says. Another potential solution, he says, may be the broader use of virtual TAs made possible through artificial intelligence. At Georgia Tech, for example, interactive computing professor Ashok Goel has pioneered use of a virtual teaching assistant in an online course about AI. By answering routine student questions, Schroeder says the virtual TA can free faculty time for higher-order discussion.
There are good reasons why hundreds of universities have not followed Georgia Tech’s lead in building at-scale online programs. Many schools simply don’t have the requisite technological infrastructure and support. Then there’s also the issue of funding the courses, including resourcing them with the expertise they require beyond that of the faculty member. When Georgia Tech first started down this road, Baker says, it cost close to $300,000 to create a semester-based course. He says they have since halved that number. Corporate grant support provided the cash flow that Georgia Tech needed to start all three of its at-scale programs.
Baker recognizes that not all universities will have access to the same resources his school has, but he says institutions that aspire to build similar programs may have more resources than they think. In terms of bench strength to help faculty bring an at-scale online program to fruition, Baker says “almost everybody has some center for teaching and learning.” He notes, too, that many institutions might also have course-building expertise in their continuing education units that can be leveraged across the whole of the university. Moreover, he says, institutions can start slowly and build their capacity. While “you do need to make some upfront investments,” he notes, “you don’t need to build out the size of staffing that you will need five years from now from the beginning.” Third-party partners can, of course, also bring relevant expertise to the table.
Going forward, it seems likely that we will see more at-scale online degree programs. In 2018, for example, Coursera announced partnerships in eight new online degree programs at six universities. Last year, too, edX announced the launch of nine affordable large-scale online master’s programs at seven prominent universities. One of those programs, the new master’s of science in analytics at Georgia Tech, will cost students $9,900 versus as much as $49,000 if they matriculated in the on-campus version of the course as an out-of-state student. Both Coursera and edX have now created pathways through which students can stack credentials they earn online and apply them toward master’s programs. To that end, for example, Georgia Tech and edX are piloting a “MicroMasters” program that includes three foundation courses from the university’s new full-fledged at-scale analytics master’s program; students can earn a standalone certificate for taking those courses, and credits earned can apply toward a master’s degree if the student elects to pursue that credential. In addition to more activity at the graduate level, the newly announced programs include new online undergraduate degrees at the University of London and the University of Pennsylvania.
Suppositions that online learning is somehow inferior to classroom learning are fast dissipating. A recent report by the Arizona State University Foundation and the Boston Consulting Group, for example, made the case that digital learning can improve student outcomes. The report also said that online learning is more affordable and more accessible than person-to-person education and that it can reduce operating expenses for universities. Advocates of online learning also tout its overall flexibility, of course, especially for adult students.
Online credentials are also gaining credibility in the workplace: A recent study from Northeastern University found that “online credentials are now mainstream, with a solid majority (61 percent) of HR leaders believing that credentials earned online are of generally equal quality to those completed in-person.” That’s up from lower percentages in previous years, the report said. Further evidence that online education is becoming mainstream is reflected in edX and Coursera’s moves to fill the huge market for continuing education in medicine and healthcare with online courses. In part to help boost flagging enrollments in law schools, the American Bar Association recently said that students could earn up to a third of credit hours required for the Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree through online study.
Another relevant question is whether such programs cannibalize students who might otherwise pay higher rates to attend residential programs. A recent study of the Georgia Tech online master’s in computer science led by a professor of public policy at Harvard University found “no overlap” between types of students who apply for in-person and online versions of that program. Writing in EducationNext, the researchers said, for example, that “unlike the in-person master’s, the online program attracts older employed students.” While the study did not compare quality in the online course to that in an equivalent in-person version, the authors did measure whether online students finished their courses with as much knowledge as in-person students; they found that online students slightly outperformed the in-person students. “The Georgia Tech program confirms that, when done well, online coursework can substantially increase overall educational attainment and expand access to students who would not otherwise enroll,” the researchers concluded.
Schools can develop at-scale online programs without online program managers, but OPMs like Coursera, edX and Udacity can bring a lot to the table in such partnerships. For example, OPMs can provide operational and technological expertise as well as support staff that can augment human resources that a university might be able to deploy. In addition, OPMs often have deeper expertise in marketing than universities do, particularly in reaching adult students. Similarly, they may have a more robust capacity to conduct relevant market research.
Stephen G. Pelletier ([email protected]) is an independent writer and editor who writes frequently about higher education. Prior to starting his full-time freelance practice in 2006, he served for many years as vice president for communications at the Council of Independent Colleges, directed the publications program at NASFA: Association of International Educators, and edited the magazine at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. | 2019-04-19T08:33:14Z | https://unbound.upcea.edu/leadership-strategy/credentialing/success-at-scale-the-growth-of-large-scale-online-programs/ |
According to the result of the recent survey conducted by an internationally renowned organization, “Japan ranked last among the six non-Western countries in the categories of ‘Investment in existing firms’ and ‘Investment in venture firms’.” Furthermore, “The U.S. which boasted the number one ranking as the most internationally competitive country over the years handed over its seat to Singapore this year (which ranked third last year) and Japan which was ranked 17th in this category last year fell to 27th place.” As these factors indicate, Japan’s status, especially the country’s economy, has been on a steady decline. To add fuel to this trend, a swarm of critics and scholars reiterate their pessimistic views on the future of Japan in one voice from their field of specialty.
For a person who has experienced the tumultuous period of Japan during the last days of World War II and the aftermath of the defeat, it is my assessment that this is “social paranoia” which is peculiar to our country. This being the case, I referred to the phenomenon during a speech I gave last week. “Currently, there are talks that the future outlook of Japan is gloomy. Indeed, it may be gloomy but think of it this way. We are fortunate that there is still, at least, a future out there.” Instantly, I felt an uneasiness spreading among the audience so I raised my voice and continued.
The rise and fall of a nation happens all the time in world history. The downfall of Japan may be a critical issue to politicians and bureaucrats but if this is unavoidable, the citizens should not let the incompetent nation undermine the life they are entitled to and it is time that they consider all realistically possible options that are available (be it profession, asset management, life planning, etc.). In doing so, the best role models and encouragements come from those Japanese who, under the ongoing “globalization” trend, had the foresight to recognize opportunities in overseas countries and are achieving success and fame in a myriad of professions in the country they chose to make their dreams come true.
As I turn 83 years old today, I welcome my birthday with a special feeling. This is because when a master fortune-teller of the Four Pillars of Destiny (a school of Chinese astrology which forecasts the individual’s life based on the day, month, year and time of one’s birth) took the trouble to read my life more than 40 years ago, he concluded that the peak of my life will come at the age of 84 years old. His reading was reputed as being extremely reliable that even the former Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakazone, at times, solicited this master’s advice. Having personally believed in his prediction, it means that there is only one more year to go until the long-awaited prime of my life to come.
This master is Mr. Nobuyuki Nakahara, a junior of mine at the University of Tokyo. While he was the President of Tonen General Sekiyu K.K., he was already widely acknowledged as a distinguished economist and during the Koizumi administration, his speeches and remarks as a member of the Policy Board of the Bank of Japan drew a lot of attention and his book “Who Owns the Bank of Japan” (‘日銀はだれのものか’- published by Chuokoron, 2006) became a best seller as a business publication when it went into print. Among us who are familiar with him, he draws special respect and is regarded highly as a person who has mastered the fortune telling of the Four Pillars of Destiny on the one hand while mastering Karate to the point of serving as the Chairman of the Japan Karate Association.
Frankly speaking, when I listened to Mr. Nakahara’s fortune telling long, long time ago, I took it half as a joke since the elderly age of 84 years old seemed like a far distant future and lacked reality. However, around the time I became over 60 years old, I started to find extreme encouragement in his revelation and by the time I was over 70 years old, it became a firm conviction that I even started enjoying the aging process itself.
About the time when one passes 60 years old, one starts to feel anxiety about growing old and after one passes 70 years old, the fear of death arises. However, according to my own experience, when one passes 80 years old, the outlook on life suddenly opens up vastly. Why? That is because one is already an elderly person by then so there is no reason to feel anxiety of aging anymore. Furthermore, together with a sense of relief that one has outlived the average life expectancy age and has had one’s own share of life, the number of friends who have departed to the other sphere and eagerly awaiting for one to join them there would have drastically increased which brings about a certain sense of welcoming “death.” In light of this, after I fully relish the prime of my life next year, I intend to spend my days in a peaceful state of mind while looking forward to the day I gallantly move on from the present to the afterlife.
Seven years has passed since Mr. Morihiko Hiramatsu retired from the Governor of Oita Prefecture post. As portrayed in the novel of Saburo Shiroyama, “The Summer of the Bureaucrats,” he was well known across the board as a prominent bureaucrat with high aspirations and remarkable capabilities since he was a young man. However, looking back on his career, he spent only 25 years as a bureaucrat at the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (including his years at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry). After serving as the Minister’s Secretariat at the National Land Agency for a year, he became the Vice Governor of Oita Prefecture, his birthplace, in 1975 upon the solicitation of the then Governor. Since 1979, he served as the Governor of Oita Prefecture for 24 years and the outstanding achievements he accomplished during his tenure is widely acknowledged.
As he was close to 80 years old when he stepped down from the Governor’s post, it may have been more than natural for him to lead the remaining years of his life in a leisurely manner with his past glories as a backdrop. On the contrary, as soon as he retired from the Governor’s post, he established a NPO organization, “Oita One Village One Product (OVOP) International Exchange Promotion Committee,” and has been playing a leading role as the President of the committee. While Mr. Hiramatsu was Governor, he advocated and launched a successful regional development program called the “One Village, One Product” movement to revitalize the prefecture. The Oita OVOP International Exchange Promotion Committee extends this effort one big step forward onto a global stage to help other nations to prosper by adopting the OVOP approach and Mr. Hiramatsu’s relentless and extensive activities in foreign countries to implement this movement have been highly acclaimed and various countries have expressed their appreciation in their own varied ways for his huge contributions.
For example, as China celebrates her 60th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic this year, the government chose 10 individuals as “The Most Influential Overseas Experts.” As eight of the ten selected individuals are already deceased, Mr. Hiramatsu received the honorable award as one of the valuable person who is still alive. Yesterday afternoon, a gathering to commemorate Mr. Hiramatsu’s recent accomplishment was held at the “Matsumotoro” restaurant located within the Hibiya Park. Being one of the members who proposed to hold this event, I made my personal remarks. Excerpt as follows.
I spent three consecutive days in Sendai end of last week. My schedule there was hectic, filled with various engagements such as lectures, conferences, golf, my fan club gathering, etc. but the event which got me really excited was when I gave a speech addressing my fundamental perspective on regional revitalization in conjunction with the proposed construction of the “Anpanman” museum in Sendai and had the opportunity to exchange views with a group of Sendai citizens who were in attendance. To be honest, I have to confess that I was totally unaware until very recently that “Anpanman” is one of the most popular anime characters among infants and young children in Japan as well as the fact that several amusement facilities oriented towards children with the “Anpanman” name and theme have been built in a number of locations within the country.
This being the case, I was rather perplexed when President Ito of “Sendai Keizaikai” magazine visited my office during his business trip to Tokyo in mid March and requested me to act as an intermediary between the “Anpanman” museum and a group of Sendai citizens. According to him, a group of local residents were indicating anxieties and voicing their concerns towards the city’s plan to build the “Anpanman” museum at a location near the East exit of the JR Sendai Station. Since I was still in the dark about “Anpanman,” I had no idea what he was referring to and could only vaguely respond that I would decide what I can do to assist when I visit Sendai next time and have the opportunity of meeting with the entities involved in the dispute.
I, thus, decided to visit the “Anpanman Children’s Museum and Mall” near Yokohama Station prior to my upcoming visit to Sendai to learn what “Anpanman” is all about. Although my wife warned me that, “You will feel totally out of place,” I was fortunate that a friend of mine in Yokohama arranged to have the top executives of the museum take me on a thoroughly guided tour of the whole facility and furthermore set up a meeting with President Watanabe of the museum. What struck me most during the tour was seeing so many young children who were enthusiastically absorbed in playing with various “Anpanman” themed fun equipments and immensely enjoying themselves.
This week, I have returned to my profession as a professor and have given lectures to freshmen students at Tama University this past Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from 4:20 pm to 5:50 pm respectively and will do so tomorrow (Friday) as well. I was asked to give lectures not in four serial parts but to give the same lecture to freshmen divided into four groups. Not to mention that this is somewhat less demanding than my expectation, I, moreover, felt hesitant at having to repeat myself four times so I am exerting all my efforts to convey the content of the same lecture differently every time I stand in front of the students.
This request for me to give lectures to freshmen students came about when I was engaged in an informal conversation with the Tama University professors last fall. One of them mentioned that, “Even at our university, it has become a common occurrence where students are talking among themselves during class or even dozing off to sleep. This state of affairs is problematic.” To this, I responded decisively that, “This must owe greatly to the fact that all of you lack leadership as professors.” In return the professors urged, “Professor Noda, if you think that is the case, please do come and give your gut talk to the students as a wake up call.” This, as a result, led me to accept the special lecture program.
When I entered class last Monday at the lecture commencement time, the students already present were still in a state of hurly-burly while others continued to laxly walk into class although they should have all been seated by then. Furthermore, the students were avoiding the front row seats and filling the classroom from the back. Enraged at these unruly behaviors, I ran up on the lecturer’s podium and as soon as I go hold of the microphone, I shouted, “Be quiet!” The classroom instantly froze to a chilly silence. I immediately followed up by yelling, “Close the door!” Don’t let the tardy students come in!” to the assistant professor who was standing next to me. After the commotion had subsided, I gave a brief introduction of myself as well as the purpose of the special lecture and went on to speak passionately to touch the heart of the students.
“Don’t you realize that your parents are paying one million yen a year as tuition fee for your education?” “As a customer, demand more from your professors!” “Those of you who do not want to attend class in earnest, quit school!” “Those who choose to sit in the classroom’s corner end up being shoved to sit in life’s corner as well. Such losers do not deserve a university education.” The effect of my pointed comments brought about unexpected results. “Ever since I entered the university, this is the first time I experienced such intensity in the classroom.” “I want to alleviate my parents’ financial burden as much as possible by doing part-time work.” The students’ reactions, to my surprise, were overwhelmingly positive.
Having said this, I am currently enjoying the role of a professor who is in charge of teaching basic discipline to freshmen to my heart’s content.
I have received numerous telephone calls and e-mail messages indicating that upon seeing a very eye-catchy advertisement of “GOETHE” magazine’s April issue in the Nihon Keizai Newspaper, they bought a copy to read the article which featured myself. Now that I come to think of it, when I wrote in my last Rapport that the dialogue between Mr. Son and I is scheduled to be published in the magazine’s May issue, I should have mentioned that the April issue will be doing a comprehensive coverage of my profile.
GOETHE magazine which targets businessmen around 40 years old and I had nothing to do with each other until the editorial department came up with a question of what would be of insight to the readers when they ponder about their future. They, thus, solicited advices from prominent individuals in various fields regarding whom they will recommend as an exceptionally energetic person over 80 years old to which an overwhelming majority cited my name. This being the case, I am honored that the magazine decided to do a feature story on myself.
Around the time one is turning 60 years old, it is quite natural to feel anxiety about aging and the nearing shadow of death. However, at the age of over 80 years old, there is no need to fear about growing old since I am already undeniably an “old person.” Furthermore, with a sense of superiority that I have outlived the average life expectancy, I, in a certain context, even look forward to welcome death when I consider that many of my close friends who have passed away before me and my parents are eagerly awaiting for my arrival to join them in the afterlife.
Above is nothing but my honest feeling as I near 83 years old. Although my current schedule is jam packed and hectic like it has always been, I am spending my days in a most peaceful and fulfilled state of mind which I have never experienced in the past. In light of this, the assessment that I am an exceptionally vigorous person seems like a pleasant bias of the young generation towards elderly people in my age bracket.
In our daily lives, there are people whom we meet on a frequent basis but do not attach any feeling of intimacy whereas there are those whom we have not met for a long while but instantly feel at one with each other once we meet. Although I cannot accurately explain why this is so, I think it all depends on whether we resonate simultaneously on the same wavelength. In light of this, for those who share this special relationship, the Japanese proverb stating that “out of sight is out of mind” does not hold true.
Upon the request of Gentosha’s (publisher) monthly business magazine “GOETHE,” I met with Mr. Masayoshi Son (CEO of SoftBank) last Friday afternoon for a dialogue to be published in the magazine. At the onset of our conversation, I started out by saying that, “Many people think that you and I see each other frequently but you will agree that this is totally not the case. Although we’ve known each other for more than 30 years, I think we don’t get to meet even once a year for much of the time.” At this, both of us broke into a hearty laughter.
Believe me, this is true. When Mr. Son first visited my office in Akasaka way back when, we resonated on the same wavelength after barely speaking for 30 minutes despite the fact that we are different in virtually all aspects including age and profession. Since then, I cherish every opportunity to meet him. This being the case, we took advantage of the occasion and spoke animatedly during last week’s dialogue from the very beginning that when it ended, we realized that we had exceeded the designated conversation time by far.
This dialogue is scheduled to be published in the May issue of “GOETHE” magazine so for those of you who are interested, please pick up a copy at your convenience to read through it. This all started out at the end of last year when I received a request from Gentosha that they would like to do a thorough coverage of myself in the aforementioned magazine’s April to June issues. According to the publisher, as Japan’s recent state of affairs is extremely pathetic, they were looking for an exceptionally energetic elderly person who stands counter to the current tide. In their search, they solicited advices from eminent individuals representing various fields and an overwhelming number of those asked cited my name. This is how the offer crossed my path to which I consented.
On a related subject, upon the request of a bi-weekly economic magazine “Keizaikai,” I am currently writing a memoir of my life in their “一期一会” section starting with their first 2010 issue. Besides the fact that the article is 4 pages long and due twice a month, I am encountering backbreaking difficulties of remembering the details of what took place in my past 82 years plus finding appropriate photographs to accompany my text. With this said, I, at times, regret that I took up on this offer.
Let’s face it. None of us chose the country (meaning nation state) to which we are born in. With some exceptions, by the time one is around 10 years old (being shown the world map and the like), we, in an abstract way, realize ones national identity and acquire “nationalism” by recognition of language, taste, human relationship, cultural practice, etc. (and in the case of Japanese) difference in the color of the skin and hair. This “nationalism” leads the individuals to fanatical excitement when their own country’s athletes win and feel deep disappointment when they loose.
By the way, what is a country to an individual? Being a member of the last generation which experienced World War II, I can attest that although the livelihood of many Japanese back then were ruined by the country, the people sacrificed virtually everything and, at times, even their own lives for the country. On the other hand, those who tried to evade the irrational duties justified by the country were considered as “traitors” and were forced to undergo hardship. In light of this, “globalization” triggered as a result of the “cold war” is a much awaited blessing for those who are capable to retain an objective and unbiased relationship with ones country.
In the age where many countries are actively seeking and accepting foreigners who are deemed beneficial to the national interest, the number of talented Japanese in a variety of professional fields who have opted to live in overseas countries overcoming the language and custom barriers are increasingly on the rise for the past 10 years or so. On the contrary, Japan still remains to be an extremely exclusive country. Even if the country changed course and became an open society whereby accepting foreigners, I do not think that current Japan is equipped with the attractiveness to motivate talented foreigners to move to Japan and encourage them to take leading roles in their expertise.
Is Japan, symbolized by the Ozawa syndrome, a decent and wholesome country? I, who am turning 83 years old this year, have a strong resolution to part with this country anytime if goes beyond the limit of my tolerance and I am constantly making preparations to do so in case such a time comes.
Not many Japanese can give an answer when asked which university in the country is currently attracting a lot of attention. I feel that this reflects the lack of presence of universities within the Japanese society. However, for those who work at universities and related institutions as well as with those who are interested in the university arena, many would most likely cite “Akita International University (AIU).” This institution was established as a public university corporation in 2004 with the initial enrollment of only 150 students. Furthermore, it is devoted wholly to humanities (liberal arts) which is considered as the biggest obstacle to attract applicants from senior high schools.
Among the 750 or so universities in Japan, AIU ranked as the number one university in terms of post-graduation job placement rate, second place (after International Christian University) as “a small but highly esteemed institution,” and 14th place (after Sophia University) in providing “high educational achievement.” This is according to the most recent university rating survey conducted by the “Sunday Mainichi” magazine. According to the 2010 edition of the Japanese University Ranking published by Asahi Newspapers, AIU ranked 7th (after Doshisha University) in the category of “evaluation by university presidents,” first in the category of “senior high schools’ evaluation of newly established universities” and again first place in the “number of study abroad students among newly established universities (degree seeking)” with 147 students outdoing Nagasaki University of Foreign Studies (31 students) and Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University (30 students) by far.
I became the member of the founding committee of AIU upon the request of Governor Terada of Akita Prefecture for several years during and after my term as President of Miyagi University and together with committee Chairman Mineo Nakajima (currently the President of AIU), we aspired to establish a university which may be small in scale but profoundly unique. With this said, I am extremely pleased and honored that AIU has achieved such remarkable academic acknowledgements mentioned above only a few years after the first class of students graduated. Last Tuesday afternoon, I attended the President’s Advisory Board meeting of AIU held in snowy Akita and chaired the gathering on behalf of Chairman Yasushi Akashi who was unable to attend. The current status of AIU is that of a public university corporation which relies heavily on educational subsidy provided by Akita Prefecture. During the meeting, I had the opportunity to engage in active and productive discussions with each committee member regarding the future organizational management of AIU so that it can further take huge strides towards wholesome growth as a more independent entity.
Do keep an eye on AIU which achieved impressive accomplishments as a result of pursuing uniqueness!
Four days later, amid the intense attention of the whole nation, Secretary General (of the Democratic Party of Japan) Ozawa’s inquiry by the prosecutor was held and as soon as the questioning which lasted for 4 hours was over, Mr. Ozawa proceeded to hold a press conference and defiantly denied his involvement in the alleged fund raising scandal. I have met Mr. Ozawa in person quite some time ago and my first impression of him, contrary to Mr. Watanabe, was that he is an arrogant yet chicken-hearted man. Mr. Ozawa has aged with the passage of time but when I see him on television or in photographs, his face looks increasingly like that of a “tyrant” and I am appalled by the lawmakers of the Democratic Party of Japan who subserviently follow their boss like a herd of sheep. In conjunction with this, was there ever a time when the whole media spoke in one voice of “Ozawa bashing?” The members of the DPJ who are irritated by such criticism have started to claim the necessity to regulate the freedom of speech but such absurd doings by the DPJ will inevitably be a suicidal act of this immature party.
On the other hand, who wants the comeback of the Liberal Democratic Party that has become the “emblem of corrupt political power?” Under such circumstances, I look on with keen interest as to how the Japanese democracy will steer itself to find its final destination.
Correction: My friend, Mr. Hiroshi Urakami, called me regarding the last Rapport and informed me that “Mr. Ozawa is a graduate of Keio University (not Waseda).” Oops! With due respect, please take note of this correction.
“Hey, Ishikawa, time to show your guts. We are going to war with the public prosecutor. Can’t loose this one.” “Sure boss. As a secretary, my service is at your disposal in time of need.” This conversation sounds exactly like an exchange between yakuza (Japanese gangster) members. However, in this case, “boss” refers to the Secretary General of the Democratic Party of Japan which won a sweeping victory in last year’s general election and became the majority party while Ishikawa is his former secretary and currently a lawmaker. Furthermore, when the boss and his subordinate are both graduates of Waseda University, one of the most prestigious universities in Japan, Japanese with a sense of decency cannot help but frown.
So far, what is different from prewar Japan is that the political authority cannot suppress the “freedom of speech” but how credible is this? When I was the President of Miyagi University, I was invited to give speeches at various locations in the Tohoku region (a strong hold of Ozawa) and I had the opportunity to dine with notable individuals afterwards. On such occasions, when the conversation touched upon Ozawa, the voice of the person whom I was speaking to suddenly, as if not to be overheard, toned down. Furthermore, Mr. Ozawa, as if to boast his power, led a 600 member delegation to China the other day, a modern version of the Japanese envoy to the Tang Dynasty. Of the 600 members, 160 are current DPJ legislators who, at heart, may not agree with what Ozawa says and does but are powerless to speak against him.
According to the media, a new year is about to dawn while politics and economics are still in a state of stagnation. As for myself who have lived in accordance to my own principle and belief, “This year will be another great one for me regardless of the state of the country!” is my positive stance as usual.
I eagerly look forward to living another year with utmost vigor. Being a member of the generation which has lived before, during and after World War II, I will take special and constant note to be humble with gratefulness to the blessed state of affairs that prevail currently which was unimaginable back in the old days.
I extend my new year’s greeting to all of you with genuine hope that this year will be a “great one regardless of the state of the country” for everyone of you. | 2019-04-24T12:49:43Z | http://nodakazuo.com/rapport/1001_e.html |
The year ahead has potential to deliver an upside for providers of services to shipping. After all, so significant a change as the IMO emissions rules will require strong advice, and shipmanagers and other service providers are aiming to provide it.
But the sulphur cap also presents difficulties. The new rules present uncertainty over enforcement and further regulation, higher costs and the need to find finance, as executives explain in TradeWinds annual survey of industry experts on their outlook of the year ahead.
We are managing a number of vessels installed with scrubbers and we do see some challenges when it comes to day-to-day operations. From a scrubber point of view, training and competence of crew may well be a challenge that the industry will face.
For owners choosing compliance fuel, having a good fuel management plan and changes in maintenance and procurement plans can be a challenge. As a whole, I really don’t see any large ‘black holes’ as these are manageable challenges with proper planning and experience.
Preparing for the upcoming rules will be a challenge — both in regards to vessels with scrubbers and those using compliant fuel. One challenge that we have been discussing is if there will be enough critical spare parts available from the main engine suppliers. We anticipate a higher than normal number of main engine breakdowns due to various blends of fuel and, as such, this might become a bottleneck. Formulating a plan to manage these risks is a challenge due to the uncertainty in the entire supply chain now.
We are very optimistic when looking into next year. There are definitely a lot more requests and tenders for management out there, which is reflecting the positive sentiment in a number of segments.
The IMO 2020 deadline creates an opportunity for those in the ship-support sector to provide clear and independent advice for owners looking for guidance and feedback on the choices available.
The increased pressures in the environmental, regulatory and efficiency fields means that specialist advice from outside the owner’s organisation is likely to be better informed and focused on the specific issues. This leaves the owner’s organisation better equipped to make the necessary commercial decisions.
One of the biggest challenges will lie in the ability to support those owners who choose to install scrubbers and getting them installed in time. Unfortunately, with the increased pressures on where scrubbers can be used, the opaqueness of the costs of running scrubbers and the availability of alternative fuels, both owners and technical support consultants are left scrambling to find the truth in a mire of fake data.
The shipmanagement and technical support services business should perform well in the coming year. The scale of technological change, environmental pressures and regulatory drivers create a perfect storm of uncertainty for owners. The third-party perspective and support from outside the owners is more likely to provide a specialist independent focus across all the issues.
On the subject of emissions, scrubbers need people to operate them, so training is a challenge and will be an extra complexity for shipmanagers.
We have been operating scrubbers on tankers in the North Sea for a couple of years. They are not a long-term solution but have potential upside for a period. It is a bet on the spread between heavy fuel oil and compliant fuel, and whether it justifies the investment.
Scrubbers have potential maintenance cycle consequences for managers but only a relatively low number are expected to be in operation by 2020 — between 1,500 and 2,000.
A lot of ports will have compliant fuel, whereas heavy fuel oil may not be available given the inferior income for producers.
There will be issues relating to fuel distribution and logistics in ports. Also, lube oil is a potential concern because you don’t use the same for all types of fuel. But the industry has a habit of resolving such issues.
Looking to 2019 and the years ahead, the greater complexity of shipping, including digitalisation and the need for transparency — with owners getting access to read type data — will drive smaller owners to outsource to third-party managers.The traditional model of shipmanagement companies providing access to people and shared services will change, and be more about competence.
The group has been monitoring the debate and discussions within the IMO relating to the 2020 sulphur cap and the implementation of the European Union sulphur directive (2016) 0.5% sulphur cap, which will also enter into force on 1 January 2020 in European member state territorial seas and EEZs [exclusive economic zones].
The issues arising in relation to these regulations are principally technical and operational, and have been well argued and addressed by national and international shipowner associations amongst other stakeholders.
The group has been following developments and shares the concerns within the shipping industry regarding the risk of machinery failure and vessel immobilisation arising from fuel-related problems, which could potentially result in protection and indemnity liabilities, and welcomes the initiative announced by the IMO Maritime Safety Committee at its meeting in December 2018 to pursue the development of 'further measures' to address the risks and enhance safety of ships related to the use of fuel oil in the run-up to the implementation of the sulphur cap in 2020.
Words used to describe IMO 2020 include ‘chaos’, ‘confusion’, ‘shock’ and ‘disastrous’. In our view, the main impact and challenges are cost and uncertainty. Based on our studies of ship operating costs, IMO 2020 will result in higher costs for shipping, regardless of whether compliance is achieved by installing scrubbers, switching to low-sulphur fuel, scrapping ships or doing nothing, thereby risking penalties.
IMO 2020 has created much uncertainty. First, regulatory uncertainty. Singapore’s arguably unexpected decision to ban open-loop scrubbers is a case in point. Also, while the IMO has repeatedly emphasised ‘no delay’ to IMO 2020, US President Donald Trump’s reported push to delay it suggests this is far from impossible. Additionally, future emissions regulations can change the cost-benefit picture on each compliance option. Second, there is uncertainty over the ability to comply. It is already clear that there is insufficient shipyard capacity to fit scrubbers on the entire commercial fleet. In addition, the availability of low-sulphur fuel in 2020 is also a question.
Shipping, in general, will continue to recover, although some sectors will perform better. The tanker industry will continue to struggle, but the IMO 2020 deadline may improve tanker demand through increased refinery utilisation to meet the low-sulphur fuel demand. Oversupply remains the watchword impacting shipping.
IMO 2020 regulations will increase the cost to the shipping industry, but the costs will eventually be passed onto the end user. Meanwhile, because of the high price of fuel oil (low-sulphur oil), shipping companies will slow down ships' speed to reduce fuel consumption. That will help to reduce the supply of shipping capacity, which will be good news for the whole shipping market.
During 2019, IMO 2020 regulations will bring great challenges not to us but to our clients. It will be difficult to make the decision whether the scrubber should be installed. Besides the questions of technical feasibility an economical efficiency, a lot of money is needed, especially for a big fleet, and also the dock capacity for installing scrubbers will be very tight, which means the cost will be higher than expected.
We are generally cautious and optimistic about the trends of the shipping market. In particular, we should closely follow the trend of China's economy, which has been an important engine for the development of the shipping market in the past two decades.
I think in 2019 we will continue to see a lot of uncertainty about IMO 2020 compliance solutions. But, for ship finance, it should be a good year, because many shipping companies may consider restructuring to reduce their leverage, increase equity and improve performance in order to be able to fund the expense of [IMO 2020] compliance.
It will be the year of decisions — scrubbers, low-sulphur fuel, LNG — and, based on the cost difference, in the short term, the solution for most ships will definitely have to be scrubbers. Especially for panamaxes and bigger ships. But owners will be watching for the cost difference to narrow and for oil majors to provide more global LNG-bunkering solutions. And, in the long run, not even LNG will be a good enough solution for the IMO goals for 2050.
On the newbuilding side, the impact of the 2020 emissions deadline came in 2018. In 2018, owners felt it was not time to place newbuilding orders because of uncertainty about technological solutions, while on the financial side, European banks had withdrawn from the market and owners were looking for alternative finance. At the same time, new orders placed by Chinese leasing houses have surprised the market. But I don’t think it should be such a big surprise given the cost of capital in China and the relatively low newbuilding prices.
We expect generally improving markets in 2019 in many sectors and, on the newbuilding side, it will be a good year for ordering products tankers. For dry bulk, it will be a relatively good year. Demand will be generally stable for Chinese imports and, in general, supply and demand will be balanced. Dry bulk fleet growth has happened mostly in VLOCs, with orders placed in 2017 or earlier based on long-term charters — and that has replaced the speculative capesizes and newcastlemaxes that would normally have been ordered to carry the same cargoes. In 2018, I have not seen so many of those orders, partly because it is hard for such owners to get support from financiers.
As one of the largest shipping nations in the world, Danish vessels operate to more than 600 different ports. Consequently, it is important in achieving 2020 compliance that efficient enforcement is secured all around the world, based on a global and uniform framework.
Our members are already preparing for the 0.5% sulphur cap deadline by conducting tests and training crew.
We firmly believe shipping companies will meet the deadline well prepared, but we depend on a level playing field being provided by the authorities via proper enforcement.
In the year ahead, Danish Shipping will make every effort to ensure that we remain one of the leading shipping nations. We are currently awaiting European Union approval of an expanded tax exemption scheme for seafarers working on specialist offshore vessels under the Danish International Register of Shipping.
We expect this will make sailing under the Danish flag attractive for offshore companies, and thus strengthen Danish maritime services employment relating to the oil and gas, and offshore wind industries.
Denmark is also increasing its focus on maritime research, education and innovation, positioning it as a global centre of maritime knowledge, as we believe such capabilities will be an increasingly competitive factor in future shipping.
IMO 2020 will bring both commercial and operational opportunities and risk. Regarding tanker employment and charter rates across ship types, we see likely upsides as vessels are taken out of service for modifications to tank arrangements or scrubber installations. Commercially, there will need to be significant discussions between charterers and tonnage providers.
Compliant fuel will be there. It is just a matter of what you have to pay for it. Straight distillate, blended fuel or a derivative bleed-off from the refining complex will all come at a variable price.
A closely integrated fuel procurement process will also be needed to ensure what is purchased is used correctly onboard given the increased variability of compliant fuel compatibility.
If using scrubbers, fuel buyers should ensure they have long-term contracts in place to secure HSFO [high-sulphur fuel oil] supply. We also recommend a focus on crew training and bunker purchasing department awareness.
Lloyd’s own testing of new fuels, via FOBAS [fuel oil bunker analysis and advisory service] specialists, show reasons to be optimistic and we remain busy today supporting shipowners and managers in the development of their new fuel management plans.
While the challenges posed by the 2020 fuel change are not to be underestimated, the industry can tackle these with a sense of confidence if sufficient planning, preparation, stakeholder engagement and proactive fuel change management is implemented.
The offshore sector is dominated by vessels that already burn low-sulphur fuel, mainly gasoil.
The only challenge we in the offshore space will see will be price impact as nobody yet understands the pricing implications based on the increased demand of low-sulphur fuel in 2020 and how the supply chain will be effected.
However, in the majority of offshore contracts [OSV and rigs], the ‘fuel’ is also invariably supplied by the charterer.
The offshore sector — especially the OSV sector — is plagued by too much equipment in the market coupled with a huge debt burden. It will take years for this to clear out. A relatively stable oil price — despite recent November and December volatility — has brought about positive sentiment, which helps a little.
Charter rates will remain low, equipment utilisation will continue to improve but most, apart from those fortunate to have been restructured like Tidewater, will have income and balance-sheet constraints that will not allow them to be profitable any time soon. Opex+ has become the mantra of the industry and debt service remains a problem going forward.
We are always seeking to ensure that our vessels are at the lowest emissions levels possible. The new vessels that we have recently added to our fleet — the PSVs Topaz Endurance and Topaz Energy, the AHTS vessels Topaz Master and Topaz Mariner, the subsea vessels Topaz Tiamat and Topaz Tangaroa, along with all 20 new vessels for the Tengizchevroil contract — are diesel-electric, which leads to a significant emissions benefit.
Our vessels are generally running on fuel supplied by our clients, and we have high standards for what we accept onboard our vessels. Our sulphur limits are already well within the new IMO standards coming into place in 2020 and, as a result, we expect a limited direct impact from the IMO deadline.
Because we are already operating on fuel that is well within the new standards, we will not be directly impacted as the industry prepares for IMO 2020. However, the new regulation will cause the cost of marine gasoil to go up as demand increases, which in turn will heighten the demand for more efficient vessels. Having clean and efficient vessels, we are in a good position to compete in this scenario, and we continue to optimise our fuel consumption in order to keep fuel costs as low as possible for our customers.
If you believe that there will be a demand for oil and gas going forward, as I do, there will be opportunities for the OSV sector. We foresee a rise in exploration and development, accompanied by a increase in maintenance requirements, which all leads to more activity in our sector. We are already seeing markets improve slowly as capex and opex spend by the oil majors is showing positive signs, and we expect this momentum to continue picking up into 2019 and 2020, which could be quite transformational years for the sector.
On the supply side, we believe many observers are mis-stating the OSV supply. With about one-third of the global OSV fleet remaining in layup, and with about half of these vessels being more than 30 years old, it’s our expectation that most of the stacked vessels will never return to active service, which will balance supply and demand much more than it looks on the surface.
The cruise industry works to ensure that we remain in full compliance with environmental standards put in place by multiple regulatory bodies, including the IMO, everywhere we visit. This is why we are investing in innovative solutions to meet the IMO 2020 deadline and sailing with MGO [marine gasoil] where required.
Carnival Corp has a deep commitment to operating responsibly, as our very existence is tied to protecting the oceans, seas and communities that our ships visit. We have been developing and implementing a number of industry-leading solutions across our fleet to meet, and in some cases exceed, the new standards, and we are well on track to meet the upcoming deadline.
We have led the industry in the development of new clean cruising technologies, including our advanced air quality systems [or scrubbers], and pioneered the use of LNG and shore power for cruiseships.
Most cruise operators like ourselves have already been investing in a number of proven innovations over the past several years to support positive environmental initiatives. But there continues to be misinformation around the benefits and impacts of technologies such as scrubbers, so the cruise industry will continue to educate the public and set the record straight against inaccurate information.
According to several studies, scrubbers on ships using HSFO [high-sulphur fuel oil] remove more than 98% of sulphur oxides from exhausts, resulting in cleaner emissions than those of MGO, and our water emissions have no negative environmental impacts. In fact, our water emissions studies are classification-society endorsed and meet international standards including the IMO standard for wash water.
The cruise industry is expecting to see growth next year with new ships and new destinations as more people discover the exceptional experience and value of cruising. CLIA [Cruise Lines International Association] is seeing record global cruise passengers for 2018, and all indications are that the industry will continue to grow next year and beyond. The cruise industry is under-penetrated in every market, so we will continue to see significant opportunities.
As a result, we remain optimistic about the future of cruising. On top of three straight years of strong financial performance, we have made great strides in the guest experience and our environmental initiatives. | 2019-04-23T11:53:07Z | https://static.tradewindsnews.com/casualties/1665673/ship-services-sectors-find-opportunity-and-challenges-in-imo-2020 |
Mark Steven Szekely (54, Ponte Vedra) to nine years in federal prison for wire fraud. The Court also entered a money judgment in the amount of $454,972.65, the traceable proceeds of the offense, and ordered him to pay restitution to his victims in the same amount. Szekely pleaded guilty on October 14, 2014.
According to court documents and testimony presented during the sentencing hearing, Szekely conducted a scheme to defraud others in which he swindled at least 17 individuals out of $454,972.65. Among the victims were his friends, members of his church, his children’s teachers, and a 17-year-old high school student who had saved money from babysitting. As part of his scheme, Szekely represented that he was an accomplished author with connections to entertainment lawyers in New York City that could assist the victims with copyrighting, publishing, and/or producing their works into Broadway plays or films. In reality, Szekely had no such connections, and instead, fraudulently created a list of fictitious lawyers and other professionals. In addition, several of the victims were defrauded into investing in “annuities” tied to a book Szekely had written and was allegedly being produced into a movie. Court testimony established that Szekely had not worked for approximately 12 years and had supported himself and his family with the proceeds of his fraud.
An Individual was sentenced for his role in illegal mortgage fraud kick-back scheme, which resulted in his and his co-conspirators fraudulently obtaining $3,000,000 in 12 fraudulent mortgage loans at Marina Oaks Condominiums.
Jaime Sanchez, 43, was sentenced to 168 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release. On October 29, 2014, Sanchez pled guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud affecting a financial institution. Sanchez had been previously charged in connection with fraudulently obtaining mortgages for the purchase of 12 condominium units at Marina Oaks Condominiums in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
According to the indictment from January 2007 through September 2008, in the Southern District of Florida and elsewhere, Sanchez and others conspired to recruit individuals who would be willing to purchase condominium units at Marina Oaks Condominiums. These buyers were promised a “buyer’s incentive” which in actuality was an indirect payment or “kick-back” to the buyers not disclosed to the lenders or reflected on any of the closing documents. Sanchez and others would then prepare materially false and fraudulent mortgage applications for the buyers on the Uniform Loan Application Form 1003 which contained false and fraudulent information as to material facts about the borrower’s credit worthiness in order to obtain mortgage money from lenders to fund the purchase of the Marina Oaks Condominiums. The conspirators would create false and fraudulent documents to support the mortgage applications. Once the loans closed, the conspirators would fraudulently and unlawfully divert portions of the mortgage proceeds for their own personal use and benefit.
Lawrence B. Iken, DPM, and his company each pled guilty to charges involving the submission of false documents and reimbursement claims related to podiatric services purportedly provided by Dr. Iken, from 2006 through July 2014. As part of his plea, Dr. Iken has agreed to a money judgment of $999,170, which represents the amount of reimbursement that he and his company received for the health care claims.
According to court documents, Dr. Iken and his company, Lawrence B. Iken, DPM, LLC., have offices in Manchester and Creve Coeur, MO. Dr. Iken is a sole practitioner who provided podiatry services to patients at his Manchester and at his Creve Coeur offices and at various nursing homes in the St. Louis area. In addition to his office practice, Dr. Iken is an independent contractor for Preferred Podiatry Group, Inc. (PPG). According to its website, PPG provides podiatric care to residents in nursing homes and other long term care facilities in Missouri and five other states. As a PPG contractor, Dr. Iken provided services to nursing home residents on Wednesdays and Thursdays. With his plea, Dr. Iken admitted that on thousands of occasions, he billed Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance companies for the incision and drainage of abscesses and hematomas when he actually only clipped the toenails of the patients.
Iken, 65, of Chesterfield, and his company each pled guilty to one felony count of healthcare fraud before United States District Judge Ronald L. White. Sentencing has been set for April 17, 2015.
The two physician owners of a Houston-area mental health clinic were sentenced to 148 months and 120 months respectively for their roles in a $97 million Medicare fraud scheme. A group home owner who sent residents to the clinic in exchange for kickbacks was also sentenced to 54 months in prison for her role.
Physicians Mansour Sanjar, 81, and Cyrus Sajadi, 67, the owners of Spectrum Care P.A., a community mental health clinic, were each convicted following a jury trial on March 12, 2014, of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and conspiracy to pay and receive kickbacks, as well as related counts of health care fraud and paying illegal kickbacks. Chandra Nunn, 36, a group home owner, was convicted of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and conspiracy to pay and receive kickbacks, as well as related counts of receiving illegal kickbacks. In addition to the prison sentences, U.S. District Judge Vanessa D. Gilmore of the Southern District of Texas ordered Sanjar and Sajadi to pay $8,058,612.39 in restitution, and Nunn to pay $1,885,667.41 in restitution. Co-defendants Adam Main, Shokoufeh Hakimi, Sharonda Holmes and Shawn Manney were also convicted and are scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 20, 2015.
According to evidence presented at trial, Sanjar and Sajadi orchestrated and executed a scheme to defraud Medicare beginning in 2006 and continuing until their arrest in December 2011. Sanjar and Sajadi owned Spectrum, which purportedly provided partial hospitalization program (PHP) services. A PHP is a form of intensive outpatient treatment for severe mental illness. The Medicare beneficiaries for whom Spectrum billed Medicare for PHP services did not qualify for or need PHP services.
Evidence presented at trial showed that Sanjar and Sajadi signed admission documents and progress notes certifying that patients qualified for PHP services, when in fact, the patients did not qualify for or need PHP services. Sanjar and Sajadi also billed Medicare for PHP services when the beneficiaries were actually watching movies, coloring and playing games, which are not activities covered by Medicare.
Evidence presented at trial also showed that Sanjar and Sajadi paid kickbacks to group care home operators and patient recruiters, including Nunn, Holmes and Manney, in exchange for delivering ineligible Medicare beneficiaries to Spectrum. In some cases, the patients received a portion of those kickbacks. According to evidence presented at trial, Spectrum billed Medicare for approximately $97 million in services that were not medically necessary and, in some cases, not provided.
Illusions collapse! The collapse under their own weight governed by the law of gravity. If you pile too much bullsh*t on less than a solid foundation you will find yourself one day in a stinky pile of dung. That, today, is where Lance Armstrong finds himself. And the reality is – once you’re in it, it’s hard to dig your way out and ever get rid of the stench!
Heralded as a true American hero, Lance Armstrong was revered as an icon – a man who beat cancer, was at the top of his athletic career and a pay-it-forward guy with his non-profit foundation Livestrong. Today Armstrong’s past successes are dwarfed by his admission that he was a liar and bully. But is Armstrong’s story any different that those of lesser know folks who find themselves in a Collapse of Ethics? The patterns are the same only the names and circumstances change.
Appearing tense, Armstrong told Winfrey it was a happy day for him to be there with her.
He described his years of denial as “one big lie that I repeated a lot of times.” He had races to win and a fairy tale image to keep up.
Armstrong reminisced on his storied past of being a hero who overcame cancer, winning the Tour repeatedly, having a happy marriage, children. “It’s just this mythic, perfect story, and it isn’t true,” he said.
It was impossible to live up to it, he said, and it fell apart.
What Lance stated is common – not easy – but common for those of us who build a house of cards only to watch it collapse under the weight of unethical choices that were compounded by lies and more lies. The question is – what are the patterns that can creep into our lives that allow someone who knows better to make unethical choices?
There is a pattern – a clear pattern of behavior – that is not specific to a person, but rather specific to unethical behavior and it starts with NEED. And, while the word – NEED – is wide open to interpretation, the emotion connected with it is rather simple. Defined as a physiological or psychological requirement for the well-being of an organism, NEED is that elusive thing driven by an internal desire connected with an emotion that drives behavior. To be clear…I’m no psychologist, but there is no doubt that there was an internal emotional desire that went unfulfilled that contributed to the choices that Lance Armstrong took.
Oprah Winfrey: Did you ever take banned substances to enhance your cycling performance?
OW: Was one of those banned substances EPO?
OW: Did you ever blood dope or use blood transfusions to enhance your cycling performance?
OW: Did you ever use any other banned substances such as testosterone, cortisone or Human Growth Hormone?
OW: In all seven of your Tour de France victories, did you ever take banned substances or blood dope?
OW: Was it humanly possible to win the Tour de France without doping, seven times?
Notice…while admitting guilt a key factor emerges…Lance believed that he could not win without acting unethically in his sport of choice. In fact, he acknowledged that while he “didn’t invest the culture” he “didn’t try to stop the culture.” In other words, Armstrong, like many others who act out unethically, took the approach that it was alright to take illegal or unethical actions (or both) as long as it was the norm!
But back to NEED. For Armstrong to win he believed that he NEEDED to use performance enhancing drugs! Winning was important and winning the old fashioned way didn’t seem to be an option.
OW: You said to me earlier you don’t think it was possible to win without doping?
OW: Usada issued a 164-page report. CEO Travis Tygart said you and US Postal team pulled off the most sophisticated, professional and successful doping programme sport has ever seen. Was it?
OW: What was the culture? Can you explain the culture to us?
OW: Was everybody doing it? That’s what we’ve heard. Was everybody doing it?
What was Lance’s NEED? Well he says it best in one of his comment to Oprah!
Meanwhile – YOUR COMMENTS ARE WELCOME!
Below is a transcript of the first part of the interview with Oprah Winfrey by Lance Armstrong.
OW: For 13 years you didn’t just deny it, you brazenly and defiantly denied everything you just admitted just now. So why now admit it?
OW: You were defiant, you called other people liars.
OW: Was it hard to live up to that picture that was created?
OW: But didn’t you help paint that picture?
OW: How were you able to do it? Walk me through it. Pill deliveries, blood in secret refrigerators… how did it work?
LA: “I viewed it as very simple. There were things that were oxygen-supplying drugs that were beneficial for cycling. My cocktail was EPO, but not a lot, transfusions and testosterone.
LA: “No. Testing has evolved. Back then they didn’t come to your house and there was no testing out of competition and for most of my career there wasn’t that much out-of-competition testing so you’re not going to get caught because you clean up for the races.
“It’s a question of scheduling. That sounds weird. I’m no fan of the UCI but the introduction of the biological passport [in 2008] worked.
“I’m paying the price and I deserve this. That’s okay. I deserve it.
OW: When you placed third in 2009, you did not dope?
OW: Does that include blood transfusions? No doping or blood transfusions in 2009… 2010?
OW: Were you the one in charge?
OW: If someone was not doing something to your satisfaction could you get them fired?
OW: One former team-mate, Christian Vande Velde, told Usada you threatened to kick him off the team if he didn’t shape up and conform to the doping programme?
LA: “That’s not true. There was a level of expectation. We expected guys to be fit to be able to compete. I’m not the most believable guy in the world right now. If I do it I’m leading by example so that’s a problem.
OW: Were you a bully?
OW: Is that your nature – when someone says something you don’t like, you go on attack? Have you been like that your entire life – 10-years-old, 12-years-old and 14-years-old?
OW: How important was winning to you and would you do anything to win at all costs?
OW: To keep on winning it meant you had to keep taking banned substances to do it? Are you saying that’s how common it was?
OW: When you look at that do you feel embarrassed, shame, humble, tell me what you feel?
OW: Was there happiness in winning when you knew you were taking these banned substances?
OW: Was it a big deal to you, did it feel wrong?
OW: It did not even feel wrong?
OW: Did you feel bad about it?
OW: Did you feel in any way that you were cheating? You did not feel you were cheating taking banned drugs?
OW: But you knew that you were held to a higher standard. You’re Lance Armstrong.
OW: What do you mean by you ‘didn’t know’? I don’t think people will understand what you’re saying. When you and I met a week ago you didn’t think it was that big? How could you not?
OW: You never offered it [performance-enhancing drugs] to them [team-mates], suggested they see Dr Michele Ferrari?
OW: Was he the leader and mastermind behind the team’s doping programme? How would you characterise his influence on the team?
OW: David Walsh of the Sunday Times in London said your relationship with Ferrari immediately dialled suspicion on you. Can you see that relationship was reckless?
OW: What about the story [masseuse] Emma O’Reilly tells about cortisone and you having cortisone backdated – is that true?
OW: What do you want to say about Emma O’Reilly? You sued her?
OW: When people were saying things – Walsh, O’Reilly, Betsy Andreu [wife of former team-mate Frankie Andreu] and many others – you would then go on the attack for them, suing and know they were telling the truth. What is that?
OW: Have you called Betsy Andreu? Did she take your call? Was she telling the truth about the Indiana hospital, overhearing you in 1996? Was Betsy lying?
OW: Is it well with two of you? Have you made peace?
OW: [With] Emma you implied the ‘whore’ word. How do you feel about that today? Were you trying to put her down? Shut her up?
OW: This is the clip I just cannot reconcile [winning speech after seventh Tour de France win]… What were you trying to accomplish there?
LA: “I’ve made some mistakes in my life and that was a mistake (standing on podium after winning 2005 Tour de France and saying “believe in miracles”).
OW: Were you particularly trying to rub it in the faces of those who came out against you and say they were lying – were you addressing them? What were you saying that for?
OW: You said dozens of times in interviews you never failed a test. Do you have a different answer today?
OW: What about the Tour de Suisse [in 2001]?
LA: “That story isn’t true. There was no positive test. No paying off of the lab. The UCI did not make that go away. I’m no fan of the UCI.
OW: You made a donation to the UCI and said that donation was about helping anti-doping efforts. Obviously it was not. Why did you make that donation?
OW: Many people feel the real tipping point was [former team-mate] Floyd Landis’s decision to come forward and confess?
OW: Do you remember where you were when you heard Floyd, a former team-mate and protege, was going to talk?
OW: Did you rebuff him, would you say you rebuffed Floyd? Did you rebuff him after he was stripped of his Tour win, did you just blow him off?
OW: So that was the tipping point. And your comeback was also a tipping point. Do you regret coming back?
OW: You would have gotten away with it?
OW: Did you not always think this day was coming? Did you not think you would be found out at some point, especially as so many people knew?
OW: When the Department of Justice dropped the case, did you think ‘now finally it’s over, done, victory’? You thought you were out of the woods; the wolves had left the door?
OW: What was the reaction when you learned Usada was going to pick up the case and pursue the case against you?
LA: “My reaction was to fight back. I’d do anything to go back to that day. I wouldn’t fight. I wouldn’t sue them. I’d listen. I’d say guys, granted I was treated differently to other guys. Treated differently in that I wasn’t approached at the same time as other riders.
OW: Will you co-operate with Usada to help clear up the sport of cycling?
OW: When you heard that [former team-mate] George Hincapie had been called to testify by Usada, did you feel that was the last card in this deck, the last straw?
Chuck Gallagher, international Business Ethics expert was the featured keynote speaker at the Medtronic – Culture of Ethics and Integrity Meeting in Geneva, Switzerland on December 11th and 12th, 2012.
Focusing attention on the “Human Side of Ethics” Rob ten Hoedt selected Chuck because of his unique background and ability to deliver a compelling ethics message – one that will be remembered long after the meeting is over. Rob ten Hoedt is the Senior Vice-President & President, EMEA & Canada, a role he has been in since 2009 and in which he is responsible for all sales and distribution of Medtronic products and therapies across these regions. He is a member of the Company’s Executive Committee (ExCom).
Speaking and consulting with companies worldwide, you may have seen Chuck on television, or heard him on CNN, CBS or NPR radio programs. His business insights are sought after for his strong position on ethics and sales leadership. Chuck Gallagher’s focus is business – but his passion is empowering others. His unique presentations, from Expert Sales Training to Effective Business Ethics clearly demonstrate he brings something to the platform that isn’t often found in typical business speakers. Chuck’s personal experience in building businesses and sales teams while leading companies provides a practical and powerful framework for success.
Currently COO of a National Company and former Sr. VP of Sales and Marketing for a Public Company, Chuck may have found a sales niche early on in life selling potholders door to door, or convincing folks to fund a record album of his musical performance at age 16 (and yes those were the days when an album was made of vinyl), but it was the school of hard knocks that provided a fertile training ground for Chuck’s lessons in Success. Described as Creative, Insightful, Captivating, and a person that “Connects the Dots” between behavior, choices and success, Chuck Gallagher gives his clients what they need to turn concepts into actions and actions into results.
It has been said that with Chuck you have an industry professional sharing practical tested and time proven methods that can enhance personal and professional performance with a clear focus on Ethics. What Chuck shares in his presentations – whether training, keynotes or consulting – are understandings of not only “How To”, but also “what motivates behavior” – behavior of individuals which create personal and professional success.
Chuck Gallagher is the founder of the Ethics Resource Group and for information about Chuck’s Ethics presentations, he can be contacted via http://chuckgallagher.com, email at [email protected] or phone 828.244.1400.
Chuck Gallagher is represented by Eclectic Media Productions a national PR firm.
White Collar Crime - So You Think You Invested Your Money? Mark Wayne Jaster Sentenced to Prison for Massive Fraud Scheme!
Jennifer Fox of Rapid City, SD - Guilty and sentenced to 8 Years in prison! Come on - what were you thinking? | 2019-04-19T12:38:19Z | https://chuckgallagher.wordpress.com/tag/ethics/ |
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Your shipping service can assist you but it is better not to leave everything up. Worldwide transport businesses feature paper work for customs, like the industrial invoice. You have to detect clients. Many clients want to know the real location location in their goods. More specifically, you require customers. | 2019-04-19T21:21:19Z | https://bluepigpdx.com/kaufvertrag-auto-privat-gekauft-wie-gesehen-muster-kostenlos/ |
Got my attention and I must say I agree with your observations! I think the church recognized that several years ago when they changed their logo to better emphasize JESUS CHRIST by making it larger than the other print and putting 'another testiment of Christ' in the BofM title page. It's so important to teach that Christ is the center of our religion and help our youth to feel the spirit. I must admit that when asked as a 19 year old while attending my future husband's church in Hanford, CA, if I believed (as a Mormon) that Christ was my savior, I was taken-aback and embarrased and didn't know how to respond. I knew I didn't believe that I had to be 'saved' because I had grown up in the church and was therefore, of course, already 'saved'!!! But I wasn't strong enough then to explain what Mormons believed. I've come along way since then!!
I used to say I had a testimony. I'm not sure whether I said it was of the Church or the Gospel... what I do know is that I never felt at home in the church, not with M.I.A., Scouts, Sunday School, Seminary or other meetings, not with the people or even the Mormon Girls. What I did have was a profound Knowledge of what was in the church's texts and a fascination over it.
I find that my testimony is no longer in the church or in the full gospel, but in many principals that match up well with what I find in those texts.
I have not been to church in a long time, but I enjoy in depth conversations on religion with my active LDS friends. There are aspects of the church and aspects of the gospel I will not likely ever have a testimony in, but I would never try to spoil the testimony that one might have over the gospel. I do however feel a terrible loss for those that hold their testimony on the wrong ideas or in the wrong way... this is something I have seen very much of.
I find that most LDS members I know are much to immersed in LDS Culture than the gospel and that people often believe the gospel to be a behemoth of complication that they feel they need to just put their faith in and not try to understand.
Though I don't personally have a testomony of the gospel I do know that the Gospel is simple at its core and that it doesn't take very much to understand. I honor those that understand the simplicity of the gospel and take it to heart. I do not believe that any member can really be happy without that understanding and that many put on a good show of it. I believe that the greatest injustice done in the church is this show put on by those that arent truly at home with the gospel. Those that wake up from their 'testimony of the church' rather than the gospel ought to know that they are often attacking something they never truly understood in the first place.
There is some really strong truth to what you're observing here. I will tell you straight out that a lot of nonmembers are put off by the behavior of local church leadership that has nothing at all to do with doctrine. When I hear some stories, I want to ask them what they were thinking, on what grounds do they act that way, you know?
I made some choices in life that have lead me to become inactive, but I don't blame those choices on the church, it's not their fault and I'd never say that it is. In fact, I can't think of a negative decision I've ever made that was in line with doctrine.
Still, I don't refer to myself as LDS because I feel that my current lifestyle choices don't cast a good light towards the church. It bothers me when someone tells me that they are Mormon, and used to go to church and are up to things I know aren't appropriate. If you don't represent the religion, why mention it at all.
Anyways, good blog, I'll be watching it. I normally post on Livejournal but maybe I can find some peers here as well.
Welcome, Nephew! Haven't heard anything about your whereabouts in years.
I don't really mind the presence of LDS whose life behaviors may not be up to church standards. A person shouldn't have to be living in such a way as to represent the church at all times. In fact, I think it would be better if we tolerated people who found it necessary to go outside for a cigarette break between meetings rather than have them not attend at all.
I further feel we should get away from our attitude that a person should be living fully up to "Mormon Standards" before we find them worthy to baptize. Baptism should be the first step on a path to an individual's self-correction, with continual improvement following after.
that "all men sin, and all men fall short".
We Mormons tend to fall a little short ourselves when it comes to loving others unconditionally and without judgment.
Yet another great post on something that has been bugging me for a long time, especially with the numerous recent Conference talks on what a testimony is vs. what one isn't.
One thing that I find absolutely blinds people is all of the little kids who go up to the pulpit during Fast and Testimony meetings and all say the same thing, "I like bear my testimony. I know the church is true. I love my family. InthenameofJesusChristamen."
Sure it's cute, but on a spiritual level doesn't contribute to the meeting because most of them are just repeating what they were told to say and likely don't have a full understanding of what they're saying. It's also because of this that I was told to NEVER take investigators to church on Fast Sunday while on my mission because they'd see all the little kids going up and saying the same things as brainwashing.
During a stake conference at BYU, the presiding authority who liked to talk about President Hinckley's achievements joked that, "If President Hinckley was in this meeting today he'd be poking me with his cane right now and telling me to stop talking about him and start testifying of Christ." Isn't that what we're supposed to be doing anyway?
Yes, the church doesn't have a perfect history and certainly hasn't been run by perfect people- I personally believe that Heber J. Grant wasn't acting in his capacity as Apostle and later Prophet over the enacting/repealing of Prohibition- but that didn't stop the Lord from restoring the Gospel and hasn't stopped the message of Christ from spreading all over the world today, simply because the truth is setting people free.
I wanted to quote another line I once heard in relation to, "If the church wasn't true, the missionaries would have destroyed it a long time ago," but I could never find a source for that one. Thus I highly recommend a blog post regarding outside statements falsely attributed to church authorities that are immediately accepted as doctrine, even though nobody can identify the original source.
I can do better than that, Dave. Rattling around in my head are thoughts of a future essay on some of those true statements attributed to General Authorities and accepted as doctrine although they were decidedly NOT the result of revelation from God.
Is the church hemorrhaging members, or is what we are seeing a demonstration of the internet's ability to make the opinions of individuals and small groups heard, who would otherwise go unnoticed?
We do a horrible job of retaining the youth raised in the church. I was surprised by the recent study which put the rate at 70%. My own observation is that half of the people I have known who were raised in Mormon households no longer consider themselves Mormons as adults. But for those who go on missions, and marry in the temple, the vast majority are Mormons for life. Periods of inactivity come and go, but once committed intellectually to the Mormon world view, people stay, reinterpreting when necessary when a theological dilemma is discovered, but remaining faithful and believing...unless something dramatic happens to make the person no longer wish to be a Mormon. Then they rush out to the nearest Christian Bookstore.
Maybe some are telling the truth when they claim that they were happy, actively practicing Mormons, until they learned of some terrible fact that they just could not reconcile, but that's not what I have observed. When it comes to those I know, and have known, those who want to believe find reasons to believe, and those who want to disbelieve find reasons to disbelieve.
Sometimes I've considered the reasons some have to no longer want to be Mormons to be petty. Other times I feel that there are some priesthood leaders, acting according to zeal rather them wisdom, who have legitimately hurt people.
[I had started on a few examples, but decided that I couldn't give the consideration they deserved without taking up way too much space].
Some claim that abuse is inherent to Mormonism. I certainly find authoritarian rhetoric in the meetings I attend, and I don't always think that it is necessary, but as long as I'm free to leave any time I want, I'm not going to obsess over it. The General Handbook of Instructions offers some guidelines that are very well prepared, I'd go as far as to say inspired, unfortunately, sometimes leaders feel that it is appropriate to go outside of the scope of this manual and act according to their own good intentions.
Mormonism is hardly a unique case. Anytime people group themselves together, you will always have a certain number who are ill-mannered, who want to control, and even some who have their own ulterior motives. And there are others who are simply misguided, though it is often not blatantly obvious when you first meet them. Such toxic people almost always a minority, but they are much more likely than the rest to want positions of leadership. Unfortunately, they're not always discerned, even in an organization led by inspiration.
I realize that what I have expressed is anecdotal, but I've been in the church, associating with the people of the church, for a long time now, therefore feel that I have written this morning is accurate and worthwhile.
As the parent of a gay child, my heart goes out to you- Strangite. The church is on average losing 100,000+ members per year, WasatchIntercept.
I have to ask "Why"? I know MANY good Latter Day Saints who have left the church. Their reasons are varied- but there is a lot of commonality in their hurting and pain filled hearts and souls.
own, I am sorry to say.
incredible, unconditional love and peace. My spouse learned to feel the same. This is when a major shift occurred in our entire family.
Life is meant to be filled with joy and peace...along with all of the pain, sorrow and "enduring"!
When I was able to love purely, everything changed. Not only in my family's lives and relationships- indeed my relationship with everyone I knew; including myself, became filled with peace, hope and the freedom to be joyful-as if it weren't some kind of a sin!
We are put here on this earth to learn. By using our free agency- we can choose to grow or stay stuck. I am decidedly not the same person I was, when I grew up in Utah. It was like growing up in a fishbowl, and I am not a fish!
they ARE wrong, (And they have been)than we have the "I was only doing what I was told and being obedient" excuse. Where is OUR accountability?!
Where is the growth? You just can't do that in a fishbowl.
Since I broke up with my fiance last summer I've been attending a single's ward (which I swear is only a Utah thing) and was recently called as co-chair for our Family Home Evening committee, since a lot of those members also live alone. At our last planning meeting, we realized that FHE was turning into a competition with the weekly Thursday activity and decided to steer our focus back on the spirit and the lesson prior to our activity. This way the incentive was to help people feel the spirit and have that comfort be the attracting force rather than the activity- especially after what amounted to a fiasco after last Monday when the planned activity fell through and only one person came to the back-up one.
It's not true. I, er, apostatized about three days ago. I wanted to believe that the Church was true, in spite of the imperfect people. But I found out not only about questionable things that Church leadership was doing, but also read a ton of accounts that cast serious doubt on the idea of its ever having been true to begin with.
I guess that that doesn't count for much here, but I'd be honored if you had some suggestion for what I should do, or if there's anything I should reconsider. Because I'm scared and unsure of myself right now. I would've contacted you directly, but you don't have any contact information listed. So I decided to post here instead.
No trouble at all, Feathertail.
You are correct in your assessment that the reasons people leave the church are not so simple. I have found among my acquaintances that have decided to sever their membership, none have done so for the reasons I used to believe, i.e., "They have sinned", "they want to sin", "they can't live the word of wisdom", or the most common belief of all: "Someone in the ward said something to offend them".
No, in almost every case, it was because they learned things that were true about the church that the corporate Church has been trying for years to insist weren't true. They can't reconcile what they see as betrayal of their trust.
John Dehlin has posted a very important video on YouTube called "Why People Leave The LDS Church". When I say it's important, I mean it's an important video for active, believing members to watch so that they can better understand and accept with love those whose beliefs no longer dovetail with our own.
We have to stop treating these people like pariahs. Freedom of conscience must be respected. God himself respects their choices; we can do no less.
We in the church don't do ourselves any favors by attributing false motives to a phenomenon we don't try to understand.
I would welcome a personal email from you, Feathertail. I can direct you to those among whom you are sure to find acceptance.
Well, if people could just confine themselves to a testimony of the church ... and that it is the restored gospel ... that would actually be an improvement, but they won't.
I can't tell you how many testimonies I've heard on wonderful spouses, wonderful friends, wonderful family ... wonderful kids! One divorced mother got up and gave a testimony of her son and how much she loved him and how perfect he was. Not a word about the Son of God. Besides all this, her kid is an obnoxious brat and bully who has no respect for adult authority. So her testimony was wrong on that count also.
Nope. You're not going to hear much about Jesus Christ being our Eternal God and our gracious Savior. Forget it.
And if someone isn't substituting their "wonderful" family in for Christ, they'll substitute Heavenly Father.
This week in Primary I can't tell you how many times Heavenly Father was mentioned ... in place of the Lord. Instead of the Lord catching up the city of Enoch to be with him, it was Heavenly Father. The only person to even mention the Lord was a recent convert. Everybody else left the Lord out of it entirely.
Nope, Jesus. Your name is on the outside of the church, but don't come inside. Stay out there so we can ignore you.
What is it with these people? Don't they realize that the reason we come together on Sunday is to rejoice in the liberty we have in Christ, to thank our God and Redeemer for our salvation? That's the whole point of Sacrament Meeting.
I may be the only Primary teacher in our ward who teaches that Jesus Christ is our God. Sure, I mention Heavenly Father and the Holy Spirit, but I want the kids to know who Jesus is. I have yet to hear any of the Primary leaders teaching that Jesus is our Lord and God. No, not a word of it.
The last time we had fast and testimony meeting, no one was getting up. So I got up and testified that the Lord God Almighty humbled himself to come to earth as our Savior, that the scriptures called Jesus our Most High God, and that he hears and answers prayers.
You should have seen the surprise. I'll bet a few of the members thought I was way out of line for talking about Jesus as both our Lord and our Savior, but somebody's got to do it.
If you haven't read a reprint of the original 1830 Book of Mormon, I suggest that you do so because, in it, Nephi's vision couldn't be more plain that Jesus Christ is Heavenly Father! The changes made to it (and to the original record of Joseph Smith's First Vision) that introduced the concept of multiple gods is but one of the reasons why the church is under condemnation and why the Lord never authorized any additional editions of the Book of Mormon.
Jesus Christ is the Father of Israel and therefore most references in scripture to the Father pertain to him. That's a fact.
However, if you point this out to most Mormons, they will freak out and say you don't understand the Godhead. But just because there are members of the Godhead supporting the Lord does not change the fact that Jesus Christ is, in fact, Lord. Otherwise, the church would not be teaching that he is Jehovah.
P.S. When I was younger, my parents taught me that Jesus is our Elder Brother. That meant that he is the Lord (note how the title of Elder Brother is capitalized) and that he is even as a brother to us. But now I've seen church materials teaching that Jesus Christ is our older brother and a spirit child of Heavenly Father. That's ridiculous. The Lord can't be one of his own angels. Neither does he have a beginning or an end.
Yep. I'd say many members cough up the pablum about Jesus Christ being a "spirit child" without even bothering to think about how that would make the atonement null and void.
I find myself in a position that is opposite the one you describe.
I am a member of the Church, but I find not "gospel" worth the name in the Church (or out of it, for that matter).
The so-called "gospel" claimed by the LDS is such a mess of contradiction, absurdity, and arrogant self-promotion as to leave many rational people disillusioned by it.
The people and the Church? Friendly, fun, and well-organized as one of the best run corporations I know.
It is the gospel, not the Church that I believe is "not true".
Perhaps members might "improve" their testimony and focus more on Jesus Christ if only the leaders in SLC would stop promoting Joseph Smith 24/7/365. That he, Smith, declared himself to be second only to Christ in importance does not help in changing the paradigm.
Let's not forget that, prior to his death, Joseph openly taught that he was the physical body of the holy ghost.
We had a regional leadership meeting with diminutive elder Quentin l cook in my stake building in australia, about 18 months back. He quoted the same pearl box story, and gave pretty much the same instruction ad what you gave. It suggested radical change, and emphasized Behaviour more doctrinally aligned, and leas traditionally - or should I say autoresponse - motivate. It was glorious. But I have watched my ward and stake leadership attempt and fail to implement his apostolic directives, and revert back to their box worhsipping. Very sad. It seems as if people prefer to be told they need to go to the temple more or do their hometeaching rather than be given soul saving instruction. I hope elder cook doesn't get jaded by this and fall into lock-step with some of his mates. The other astounding intellect at that meeting was a young seventy by the name if Brent h Nielsen. His name sounds like it's out of central casting but he laid down some stunning truths in his talk. And back it up a few months later as the visiting authority to our stake conference with one if the most sprit filled discourses I have heard in ever. Keep an eye out for him. If visiting a conference near you go and check him out.
Before I even knew about this article, I had felt for some time that the testimonies in church were more like Rameumptom prayers proclaiming "we believe that thou hast separated us from our brethren" when talking about being part of the one and only true church than actual testimonies of Christ and his Gospel.
I decided to tally during a fast and testimony meeting and 13 people testified of church, 7 of the prophet and only 4 about Christ and/or his atonement. I'm lucky to be in a great ward and don't wish to judge any of them individually but it is apparent that our current mormon culture values church membership and church leadership more than it does Christ and his atonement.
Thank you for this post! I'm actually returning to church after leaving a short while ago because of these very things. As a convert with no previous religious instruction, I loved being taught the gospel, but after a while I started to get really disillusioned about the greater emphasis being placed on the church and its workings rather than Christ, and instead of working harder to open the box I merely put the box on the shelf and walked away.
Having come back and started reading this blog, and having spent some time at other churches and reading non-Mormon literature, I've realised that it's not actually the worst thing in the world to be a Mormon, and what's important is keeping and living the faith for Christ. because really He is the most important part of the gospel.
At this moment in time, my thoughts on the Restoration and Joseph Smith ate mixed, but having read a few of your early posts on this blog I'm certainly finding a new respect for Smith and the early Mormons that I wouldn't have had even a month ago.
What I really want for me and my family is to have our lives centred on Christ, and what you're writing about makes so much sense to me. I've learnt very quickly from attending church again, talking to my wife and reading this blog, that I don't have to get hung up on the finer points if they're not relevant to my salvation, and if at the end of the day I'm making Christ a fuller part of my life.
Welcome back, Shaun. Your decision to have a Christ-centered life and gather up all that is good and true is what Joseph Smith said would make us all "true Mormons." I've found that many of the things that have thrown me off kilter about the Church are often cultural things I accepted only because they were part of what I learned growing up. Not everything we've heard is the gospel truth.
I think what we deserve to do is pray for conformation about those things that don't seem to fit, rather than accepting the whole mish-mash as somehow "all true." "Prove all things," as Paul said, and "hold fast to that which is true." We can then let go of those things that don't work for us or don't ring true, and that's what will make us all true Mormons.
Gotta say wow, I read this and suddenly all the problems I'd recently been reading about washed away. This viewpoint certainly clarifies things and hopefully will help someone who's inactive return to the gospel.
Though I attend a non-LDS Church with my wife (I go mostly alone due my wife chronic pain that makes it impossible to attend regularly) we also go to a Sunday School class for 55+ years old that start an hour before the regular worship. Some know that I am Mormon but don’t really give me any grief over it, thankfully.
Late last year, I remember bearing my testimony to some of few them after class. Man, you should have seen the shock and horror on their faces after I was done. It all started when this woman, Paula, was expressing concern to a few of us, about Ginger’s sister who lives in AZ who was going to serve a short mission for the LDS Church that calls for more seniors to serve. Paula worried about this Ginger sister if she was “save” or not because she is a Mormon. I asked Paula why would you think that? Paula said that Mormon don’t believe in Christ. Well, that got me going and I said yes they do which her response was no they don’t ( After reading this post and comments, you would think Paula is right). That kind of went back and forth a couple more times.
I finally said well if they didn’t, why would the name the church “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints” if they didn’t believe in Christ. I just got a blank stare and resulted her saying about some story of a Mormon who did something bad, nothing about the Church doctrines. Our main teacher Eldon and his wife Shirley was part of the discussion. At which point I finally said that I know the Book of Mormon is the Word of God and that Joseph was Prophet that I even compare his calling is same as one of the old Testament Prophets. There was the shock and horror on their faces that prompted Eldon to relate a story how his son moved to city in Utah north of Provo to open an auto shop that he had to close down because no Mormon would give him the business because he wasn’t Mormon.
Anyway, the discussion didn’t get too heated and Shirley wanted form a prayer circle around me which they did to say a prayer to help me find the truth or something like that. I humor them by letting them do that and after wards we broke to go to the main services. There wasn’t much of fallout and I am always welcome with the group and their activities.
Well, what does this have to do of what is being discussed here on this post? I am not sure, though I do understand that when I have gone to my ward’s fast and testimony meeting, I mostly hear that the “church is true” and the current President is the prophet, more than hearing about the Savior and His Atonement, Joseph Smith, the Book of Mormon or the Restored Gospel. And sometimes some members ramble on about a story that may or may not have anything to do with their testimony. I think that when I hear a member express their testimony of the divinity of the Savior and the Restored Gospel, I feel the Spirit more than someone saying that this church is true that sounds mechanical.
Reading many articles and comments on this blogspot called Pure Mormonism has caused me to pause a moment in my to reflect and how I approach things. Which if this helps me to become more “Christlike” the better and not become too judgmental to my fellow beings. Thanks for you all in sharing your thoughts and feelings.
On my mission to NJ back in 2002-2004, my Mission President said that the Apostles wanted us to give two minute testimonies centered around the Savior whenever we bore testimony. The Apostles had all of the Mission Presidents share their testimonies, but cut the meeting short because they took too long. Our Mission President had us all do the same exercise. I wish more members heard of that council.
John Taylor said Joseph smith was second to Christ not Joseph smith himself.
I realize this is an old post but wanted to pose an observation/question here.
I don't think we can separate "the Church" from "the gospel" so cleanly.
Where, in this breakdown, do we put men in authority to grant/deny necessary ordinances for exaltation? When a black person approached the prophet pre-1978 and was denied entrance to the temple, and the requisite ordinances therein, was that the fault or the church or the gospel? Doesn't the gospel include the divine authority and direction granted to the First Presidency and Twelve? When Elder McConkie says that those who question the eternally changing doctrine should repent and believe in a living prophet, does that mean that the prophets of old are part of "the church" but the prophet of today is "the gospel"?
I know the box is true. It is crazy how humans want to make there lives so overly complicated. The church seems to build box on top of a box. It's like a Matryoshka doll now.
"It's not the church, it's the gospel." Exactly. What this tells me is that one should thus jettison the church! The gospel may be sought without any organization, with a nice 10% salary bonus as well.
It's really funny to see to these "half-way out" Mormons preach about how "the Church is corrupt but the Gospel is true" and such.
I've got some news for you: the Church and the "Gospel" may be technically separate, but they sure as hell aren't separable. Anyone who tries to justify "original/true teachings" from the "new bureaucratic ones" is just deluding themselves because Joseph Smith was as much a con man as the corporation that has followed in his place(not saying they'd be on the same side today).
So while I admire someone "going deeper" and exposing the 'hidden corporation', please realize that you're making yourself look silly by only debunking the stuff you want to debunk while still maintaining your irrational belief in something else.
The problem will still always lead back to the fact that there is no validating evidence for the Judeo-Christian God (or any other, for that matter), there is no evidence for the iconic story of Moses or Noah's flood, all Abrahamic theology gets debunked by science eventually(ahem, Genesis), Christian morality is contradictory, Jesus' story is contradictory and shaky in a historical context (especially if you compare it to other "Messiahs" of that age, or heck, look at ancient Buddha or Zoraster or anybody else), Joseph Smith was an industrious misogynistic charlatan con man (very common in the 20th century), there is no validating evidence for the Book of Mormon or any other doctrinal text, every Church leader following has blurred and changed the original doctrine anyway, etc etc etc etc.
Please stop being a blind apologist and think a little bit. You're already smart enough to question the organization, so just go the whole way!!
Just wanted to say that my testimony has always been (ever since I have understood what my testimony was about) was of the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. Your description was of a culture, not of the church.
My life has taken me to many places where there was no "church" per se, on board a ship in the middle of an ocean and in foreign countries where the "church" presence is minimal or not even allowed publicly.
So, yes "the church is true" is an accurate statement when it means the gospel of Jesus Christ and that the Church is the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. I do have a testimony that Joseph Smith was and is the prophet chosen by Jesus Christ to be the instrument of that restoration.
Did I just say essentially the same thing that you did?
Though I agree with your general mindset, that "the Church" is only a vehicle to get us to Christ by allowing "the Gospel" to change us, I think your approach is a bit too aggressive and even completely flawed on just one point. That point happens to be that "the Church" actually is totally and completely true, but, as you mention, the reason it even matters if it is true is because it is a means Christ has established to perfect God's children. Other than that, great article!
You need to do some research on those weak responses of yours Siegen. Stop spouting made up facts as "truth". EG: "at least Mohammed wrote stuff down himself" Not true. He had scribes. You simply use your own untrue "buncha bunk" statements such as that one to makes yourself feel better about not believing.
In the end, my problem was most certainly not with "the church" but the doctrine. I love the people so much and their love for eachother and the support they show to eachother is amazing. I honestly started a research because a friend of mine who had been converted left the church after a google search and I felt that ethically, I wanted to be able to support my friends who I introduced to the church through finding these stories (which is often inevitable in this day of information). I have no problem with flawed people (like Joseph Smith or Brigham etc...) running a church. What it was is very obvious central doctrines and statements which were changed- like the first vision which set up for us the nature of God the Father- that he has a body of flesh and bone, but that wasn't what Joseph believed. In the lectures on faith his belief is stated that God does not have a body of tabernacle, but a body of spirit. Then there ended up being huge changes in every piece of Canon. It does not make sense to me that Joseph saw God the Father and Jesus Christ in the woods, then wrote the Book of Mormon with Oliver- stating that God the very eternal Father was the son of Mary (1830 version Book of Mormon), then went through and edited so that it supported a different nature of God (that he a separate being from Christ), and Sidney Rigdon helps write the official first vision statement which is quite different from the earlier statements- especially Joseph's own journal entry which he leaves out again and again that God the Father was there, a separate being. This is only the tip of the iceberg of canon which he altered in a way that discredited him and showed something was amiss in Joseph's prophetic honesty. Would God give us a dishonest and ingenuine prophet? I don't believe He would. But beyond that intellectual exercize, there was this moment of profound peace that washed over me when I recognized the genuine flaw- a full and bright feeling that assured me, "I love you. You are acceptable as you are- you are flawed like every other person, but grace and my love covers you and you will be ok. I am with you." It was like an ecclipse in my heart and I cannot even find in me the desire for LDS doctrines which had been once woven in my soul. I now attend 2 churches, LDS with the family and my Evening church on my own. Soon my ward will know that I am not "one of them". I fear they will shudder when they see my hand raise. I fear they will try to cover me up- though I have done nothing these past 8 months but offer supportive comments and a testimony of Christ while I attend. I know they have Christ and I know they have the Spirit, I only consider the LDS doctrines as fitting in three possible categories- the Book of Mormon is a support to their belief in Christ and his love, some other things aren't "damaging" as long as their faith in those things endures- but they are perhaps distracting, and the third category is rather small and doesn't exist for every member- that is those things which are damaging. So I have no need in me to cause a rucus, but in order that they can be aware of my family's situation and support us and so that I can be genuinely accepted or rejected, they will soon receive an email. Anyways, it's an antecdote about why this girl left. I was a true Blue Mormon. I think as far as I was concerned the people and the growth in a testimony of Christ was the pearl, but the unique doctrines were the pretty box. | 2019-04-20T22:16:51Z | http://puremormonism.blogspot.com/2009/07/worst-testimony-you-can-possibly-have.html |
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Eight years since its initial release, Jetpack has grown to 45 modules. Most users are not familiar with everything the plugin offers. In fact, many users may not have even installed Jetpack themselves, as it often comes pre-installed with hosting. The suggestions may prevent users from adding alternate third-party plugins, as Jetpack’s module placement in the results subtly implies that these are inferior options to its existing modules.
One of the reasons the feature has many developers rattled is because the UI fails to make it clear that this is an artificial result and not something generated by the plugin directory’s algorithm. Although it is intended to function more as a notice, for the regular user, it is virtually indistinguishable from an advertisement in its current implementation. It hasn’t been live for very long, but over time it may even make it more difficult for plugin developers to offer plugins that compete with Jetpack features.
The feature suggestions in plugin search results became a hot topic on Post Status‘ Slack where Automattic’s Gary Pendergast dropped in to reiterate the Jetpack team’s intentions.
Pendergast also said he thinks WordPress core should offer an API for any plugin to be able to do something similar.
Although it’s easy to conjure up different ways to abuse this avenue for advertising a plugin’s existing features, WordPress.org’s plugin team is ready to deal with a potential influx of various implementations on a case-by-case basis.
Wood said the team discussed it but concluded that any implementation of something similar in other plugins will need to be reviewed to see if it’s doing anything misleading.
Wood did not place a hard requirement on having the artificial result be dismissible but said anytime a developer inserts something into a screen where would not normally be, having dismiss functionality is good UX. He doesn’t think it’s likely that many other plugin authors will implement something similar since most are not collections of dozens of plugins and add-ons. However, this type of suggestion seems like it would also be applicable to block collection plugins that include dozens of Gutenberg blocks.
If more plugin authors begin adding suggestions, users could see several rows of artificial results before seeing any real ones, depending on which plugins they have installed. Plugin developers are already brainstorming ways to strip the feature suggestions out. It likely will not be long before plugins like Hide Jetpack Promotions removes the artificial search results to maintain results as delivered by WordPress.org.
Wood said the plugin team does not intend to write any new guidelines for plugin authors creating their own implementations of feature suggestions on the search screen.
Jetpack is also tracking search terms longer than three characters, and Wood confirmed that this is also within the guidelines, as long as it is disclosed to the user.
Wood said he found the search term tracking to be unnecessary since WordPress.org already collects this information through its new search system that runs on ElasticSearch.
Jetpack’s artificial search results, although dismissible, take up the top spot, bypassing the algorithm altogether. It gives the appearance that Jetpack’s built-in feature is either a promoted listing or superior to all other options available in the directory.
Although a suggested module may work more harmoniously with other Jetpack features than a third-party plugin, the modules are built to be fairly general in terms of features. They address the basic needs for the largest number of users but rarely provide more options than a standalone plugin dedicated to performing something similar. Users may very well be searching for a replacement for what Jetpack provides. The ability to easily turn off suggestions in search results with a toggle could go a long way for diplomacy.
I would say you meant WTF but since I know we’ve both said WTF so many times about things like this I guess all we can do now is LOL.
I would say you meant WTF but since I know we've both said WTF so many times about things like this I guess all we can do now is LOL.
For a decade, nothing that VIPs like Jetpack or Yoast can do has ever “broken WordPress.org guidelines” despite literally breaking the guidelines, time and time and time again.
Anyone in the WordPress space for more than a couple years knows this already. The sheer hypocrisy is not as offensive as the purposeful and repeated violations of their own site policies, esp when Samuel Wood spontaneously bans random users for lesser cases.
How is it not a conflict of interest for an employee of Audrey Capital to be involved in deciding (or at least communicating about) whether Automattic has violated the guidelines?
N.B. I’m not making an attack on Samuel Wood’s character – I don’t know the guy and have no basis for doing that. Rather, I’m questioning a process that wouldn’t involve someone in a position to potentially have a conflict of interest recusing themselves.
I agree this seems like a slippery slope. If this is still allowed in a few months, I don’t see why we wouldn’t promote our premium plugins in the same way. And I imagine others will get into the mix as well. In the end, I doubt this would be a net benefit for the user.
Promoting other plugins or premium upgrades in the same space would likely not be allowed, because it would be misleading or an incorrect place to put “advertising”. Guidelines already say not to do that.
This JP thing isn’t actually advertising anything, which makes it unusual and somewhat unique. If you think that it’s advertising for a plugin that you already have installed and running, well, that’s kind of a unique view of “advertising” you have there.
I can understand why there is some backlash against it, and I can kind of agree that it would be easy to interpret other things being there as overreach, but in this specific instance, telling a user searching for a term that they already have a plugin installed which does that thing they’re searching for.. that’s kinda unique enough to give it a shot.
We’re capable of recognizing the difference between trying to help people vs. advertising. So, you know, don’t be going off the deep end there. The existence of a box in the search results isn’t a free pass to go nuts.
How is what Jetpack doing NOT advertising?
What Jetpack is doing is absolutely for advertising and marketing purposes and my example above tells me you either aren’t actually capable of realizing the difference or are choosing to give Jetpack a pass either willingly or at the direction of your employer.
This is absolutely injecting advertising into the plugin search results and you are nuts to say otherwise.
ok surfacing a feature of an installed plugin is fine… but, but, searching backup, surfaces JetPack Backup. That is a premium paid service.
Respectfully, you are flat out just wrong, This is an ad with prominent placement before competitors.
Carl: It’s telling you about a built-in feature of a plugin that you already have installed and running. If you’re looking for a backup solution and you didn’t know about the one built into the plugin you already have, then that’s helpful information.
How is it not advertising?!?!
Jetpack is manipulating search results to show their offerings above other plugins that offer similar features. This is essentially google “AdWords” on search results for free.
And it’s certainly not clear to the USER the they’re getting manipulated results from their search query.
This will erode user faith in search results being egalitarian even more so than “Featured Plugins” does already on .org.
Jetpack is manipulating search results to show their offerings above other plugins that offer similar features. This is essentially google "AdWords" on search results for free.
And it's certainly not clear to the USER the they're getting manipulated results from their search query.
This will erode user faith in search results being egalitarian even more so than "Featured Plugins" does already on .org.
Otto: It’s promoting a premium upgrade in the search results.
Can we quit trying to deny it’s an advertisement? Because it’s an advertisement.
Otto: It's promoting a premium upgrade in the search results.
Can we quit trying to deny it's an advertisement? Because it's an advertisement.
Otto: Backups are a paid service, they are not included in the plugin. So what you are saying is blatantly false.
If you think that it’s advertising for a plugin that you already have installed and running, well, that’s kind of a unique view of “advertising” you have there.
Considering the sites that come with Jetpack preinstalled, it isn’t much of a stretch to consider what JP doing as advertising, even to people who already have the plugin installed.
Considering the sites that come with Jetpack preinstalled, it isn't much of a stretch to consider what JP doing as advertising, even to people who already have the plugin installed.
JP modifies results to place an add for its premium Elasticsearch upgrade above free alternatives in the repo, like Relevanssi.
Allowing JP to alter the search page to promote premium products (VaultPress, Elasticsearch, VideoPress) over free alternatives from the repo sets a terrible precedent.
Now the precedent has been set, would Jetpack also be allowed to hijack search results to promote its premium SEO Tools upgrade above results for free alternatives in the repo like Yoast SEO or All In One SEO?
2. On the plugins page, search for the word "search"
JP modifies results to place an add for its <strong>premium</strong> Elasticsearch upgrade above free alternatives in the repo, like Relevanssi.
Now the precedent has been set, would Jetpack also be allowed to hijack search results to promote its <a href="https://jetpack.com/support/seo-tools/" rel="nofollow">premium SEO Tools</a> upgrade above results for free alternatives in the repo like Yoast SEO or All In One SEO?
In that case, why not make it a standard so other plugins can leverage this? I imagine a lot of us have free/premium extensions that we wouldn’t mind advertising this way.
Developers who are following the Guidelines to the dot deserve at very least equal opportunity.
So, if you maintain 20 plugins, and decide to roll the source of the other 19 into every one of those 20 plugins in your next update, you can now “advertise” the other 19 plugins all over the WP dashboard, but it’s now no longer counted “advertising”…. it’s just helpfully informing the users of what they already had installed.
That’s an absurd outcome. Whether intentional or not, the end result is that JetPack abuses its position as an “all-in-one” plugin to give itself an unfair advantage. The justification being given is playing semantics.
Well I’ll be. Who would have thought hacking the WP plugins search by injecting premium plugin ‘suggestions’ was an ok thing to do.
Thanks JP folks for showing us all how to do it – ‘here we go’ – if it’s ok for the JP folks to be making these ‘helpful suggestions ‘ to their subscribers then it has to be ok for developers who have plugin or block collections to do exactly the same.
Agree with Gohil. There might be many blocks for Yoast SEO, Jetpack, WP Super Cache, Autoptimize, WP Smush when users search for a generic term such as “optimize”. And that makes the search results polluted.
Although, Otto said that the plugin review team will review all the plugins that trying to do the same, but with the huge number of plugins, it’s a very hard (and kind of impossible) work.
Agree with Gohil. There might be many blocks for Yoast SEO, Jetpack, WP Super Cache, Autoptimize, WP Smush when users search for a generic term such as "optimize". And that makes the search results polluted.
Although, Otto said that the plugin review team will review all the plugins that trying to do the same, but with the huge number of plugins, it's a very hard (and kind of impossible) work.
We reserve the right to be the only ones (ab)using this feature.
That’s exactly how I read that paragraph.
Holy crap… if this isn’t across the line, what is?
Can we start hiding results from competing plugins? Like can WordPress SEO hide or demote or hide AIO and SEO Framework?
Can iThemes Security demote Jetpack because brute protect is duplicate functionality?
Can a theme in the .org repo promote paid plugins above all other results?
This isn’t a slippery slope, this is a freaking cliff.
“I’ve been talking to some folks on Jetpack about what’s going on,” Pendergast said. “I think the team’s end goal is pretty good, and it solves a real problem WordPress has. Too often, site owners install masses of plugins that they don’t need, which ultimately creates all sorts of security, performance, and stability issues.
LOL… a lot of the time those performance and stability issues are from Jetpack and the problem “WordPress has” is Jetpack breaking all the rules and conventions with impunity.
Clearly we need new guidelines… and maybe new governance.
Holy crap… if this isn't across the line, what is?
This isn't a slippery slope, this is a freaking cliff.
LOL… a lot of the time those performance and stability issues are from Jetpack and the problem "WordPress has" is Jetpack breaking all the rules and conventions with impunity.
The answer to all your questions would be “no” because all of those would be misleading or unethical for a plugin to do. We already have guidelines covering that.
Yeah, except a large portion of non-automatticians clearly think that THIS is “misleading or unethical for a plugin to do”.
YES we need new guidelines… and YES we need new governance.
Yeah, except a large portion of non-automatticians clearly think that THIS is "misleading or unethical for a plugin to do".
Needs to be revised because the plugin review team is far to lenient in interpreting it.
`Plugins shall not hijack or manipulate search results returned from WordPress.org without explicit user consent to do so`.
Jetpack (or any plugin) could then add an opt-in setting to say “Alert me on the add plugins screen when I search for plugin functionality which a deactivated JetPack module provides”.
Automatticians built our newest plugin search engine, after all. It seems kind of a waste to track them using Jetpack when they literally receive all the searches to run through the search engine.
That seems to imply that Automattic has access to that data whether users have opted-in or not.
If people in the decision making capacity are being funded by Automattic, then they should recuse themselves from decisions that might be seen to benefit that company.
The site is a volunteer effort, and yeah, sometimes we have data like search terms that we use to do things like, oh, make a better search engine. If you search on google, then google knows what you searched for. If you search on WordPress.org, well, we get those then don’t we?
People from many places collaborate and use said data. This doesn’t seem like a very controversial thing to me. Or is your view just because you equate Automattic as the enemy in some way?
The search data(well all data) should be available to everyone not just Automattic.
No, I don’t equate Automattic as the enemy. The quote in the article didn’t make clear if Automattic has temporary access, just because a programmer happens to be doing some coding at the moment, or if they have ongoing access as in the ability to research what people are searching for to make their product better. See the difference?
People who are paid by third parties to work on dot org are not volunteers. Everyone appreciates that those third parties donate employee time to keep things running. However, if those third parties get privileged access to information that has economic value then they are in essence paying for access. Obviously I’m not talking about someone randomly seeing something while coding.
Psychologically, because “it is number one”, it suggests that it is the best / right choice. If it is already installed and it shows up in the first slot then it tells the person that the best match is already installed.
The first position in search results is worth a lot of money. Google makes bank on that. If you have any doubt then ask companies how much they would pay to have their plugin show up in the first slot on a matching tag, even if their plugin was already installed.
I’m not trying to give you a hard time. I’m just suggesting that it is not an innocent “oops, you already have that installed” helper.
Are you saying that you, and at least somebody at Jetpack, have an account with user permissions that allows you to see the search terms that come in on wp.org, and even run queries on that data? And if so, is it feasible that actions could be taken on that special knowledge by people at Jetpack? That’s how it seems to come across. If that’s not the case, I’d love to give you the chance to clarify.
<blockquote>Wood said he found the search term tracking to be unnecessary since WordPress.org already collects this information through its new search system that runs on ElasticSearch.
Are you saying that you, and at least somebody at Jetpack, have an account with user permissions that allows you to see the search terms that come in on wp.org, and even run queries on that data? And if so, is it feasible that actions could be taken on that special knowledge by people at Jetpack? That's how it seems to come across. If that's not the case, I'd love to give you the chance to clarify.
1. The Elasticsearch index for the plugin directory is hosted similarly to the many VIP ES indices Automattic hosts. We run the same logging on it that we do for other VIPs.
2. All plugin search results (whether from wp.org or in wp-admin) get cached on wp.org, so the search is only passed on to the wp.com search endpoint if it hasn’t been seen recently on wp.org. This means that the total number of searches for any particular search phrase would actually be very unreliable for us to use for any frequency analysis.
3. We keep about two months of logs for the wp.com API endpoint in Logstash. Those logs are really just for debugging problems and failures.
4. We only keep the full ES query for requests that failed so we can use them to debug the failures.
5. We are not extracting the actual search phrase from the request at all, nor are we logging it. Again, I don’t think that data would be reliable or useful.
6. Because the searches go to wp.org first, we have no information on the wp.com API request about the site or the user that is performing the query.
6. I’m sure there are some request logs on our wp.com servers mixed in with all the other requests, but the above ones are really the only ones that are at all accessible.
7. Certainly wp.org has more details about the requests, but as Otto mentioned it really only gets tracked when we need it for an analysis. As far as I know the last time was in 2016. Within Automattic, I think myself and two folks on our internal Dot Org Team were the only ones who looked at that 2016 data.
Happy to answer more questions.
2. All plugin search results (whether from wp.org or in wp-admin) get cached on wp.org, so the search is only passed on to the wp.com search endpoint if it hasn't been seen recently on wp.org. This means that the total number of searches for any particular search phrase would actually be very unreliable for us to use for any frequency analysis.
5. We are not extracting the actual search phrase from the request at all, nor are we logging it. Again, I don't think that data would be reliable or useful.
7. We do a little bit of analysis on the query to look at what features of Elasticsearch are being used so we can tag the log entries. This is intended to help with ensuring backwards compatibility when we make upgrades to ES. All the plugin searches just end up with the following tags because the search queries all have the same structure: "query#filtered, query#function_score, query#bool, query#multi_match, query#range, query#and, query#term, function#exp, function#field_value_factor, function_field#plugin_modified, function_field#tested, function_field#active_installs, function_field#support_threads_resolved, function_field#rating"
6. I'm sure there are some request logs on our wp.com servers mixed in with all the other requests, but the above ones are really the only ones that are at all accessible.
Do you realize that all this has to be public and some even needs user consent due to GDPR all over Europe?
What exactly is included in those “about two months of logs”?
Other than what I mentioned above already, we also have things like reasons for the errors, the date and time, how long the request took, the data center it was processed in. The tags I mentioned above are really the only thing I think is at all “interesting” in them.
– Volume of failures: Of about 7m requests over the past 7 days there were a few hundred queries that failed. Mostly they all look like a few bursts of bad requests that are too small for anyone to have bothered to look into.
– What features of the Elasticsearch API are being used and how often.
– Examining the JSON of a failing search query so I can run it manually and understand why it is failing.
In general it is that aggregate information that is of most use to me and the reason why we keep the logs. When we find something is going wrong it is also useful to look for patterns in the timing of when they occurred. In the past we were only tracking the errors, but for handling ES system upgrades it is helpful to understand what query features are being used, and exactly when errors started occurring.
What is triggering deletion after “about two months”?
@Greg Brown, thanks for explaination.
Providing GDPR compliance is the most important feature for all EU users.
Actually current WordPress itself is not GDPR compliant due to use of Google Webfonts in Gutenberg for which there is a) no consent of user and b) it can not be switched off and c) is not necessary for a working editor.
Took part in a few core privacy chats already over a year ago, but nobody cared about my warnings, so I am out, sorry. Note that it is only a matter of time, until WordPress will be reported to EU authorities because of lack of legal compliance.
OK, thanks. My understanding is that the WP Foundation lawyers disagree with that analysis, but I will pass this along as is in case anything has changed in their thinking. Thanks for outlining your concerns again.
Automattic’s abuse of WordPress community for it’s own commercial interests is nothing new. Yes, they do good work and contribute to the core and plugins. But why? Because WordPress powers their business. So every contribution they make has to benefit their commercial interests.
WordPress core was always lean, and features were not added because “they belong in a plugin.” Until Automattic decided to compete with Wix, SquareSpace, etc. and page builder plugins to recover market share lost by WordPress.com. So they pushed Gutenberg, as crappy as it was and completely unnecessary. It should’ve been left in a plugin. But that wouldn’t work well for WordPress.com, so they pushed it into core. Why make capital investment to add a feature when you can abuse open source community and get what you need for pennies on the dollar. Now we’re stuck with Gutenberg. There’s a reason why Classic Editor plugin is so highly rated and been downloaded millions of times.
Automattic’s data gathering practices are worse than Facebook, but people don’t realize that when they install Jetpack. And it’s only getting worse with WooCommerce data gathering.
Everything Automattic does, everything, will be biased towards their bottomline – not WordPress. Their shareholders care about money, not WordPress.
Yes, they are promoting existing features in plugin search results to be helpful to users. Is that so?
It’s not about being helpful. It’s about increasing usage of Jetpack, sending more data to Automattic, making users more reliable on Jetpack, so they will upgrade. That’s the real reason. That’s pretty much freemium business model 101. Offer basic version for free, make users depend on it, upgrade them.
And those who don’t like what Automattic is doing to WordPress have an alternative now, ClassicPress.
That’s trying to be helpful to the user, not trying to shut out competition. It doesn’t remove search results. It doesn’t reorder them or filter them.
Pushing search results a position down is quite literally reordering them.
No…. same order. With a non-search result at the top. It’s styled differently, it makes it pretty clear that it’s from the plugin, and that it isn’t the same as a “search result” there. Even has a dismiss link, which makes it go away and not show up anymore.
It has exactly same layout, fonts, and colors as a search result. The main differences are that desired action is made more prominent, while dismiss link is tucked in a corner that has no control elements in a real search result.
It also absolutely does NOT make it clear that it was inserted by a plugin. It is neither spelled out or implied that it is anything other than normal search result.
That promoted result is _IDENTICAL_ styling with no indication that it’s not being returned by the search organically.
What might be a happy compromise is allowing JetPack to change how it’s own result is displayed, but _not_ change the order.
So here for “backup” it’d still show up in 3rd position (right now it doesn’t show because it’s installed), it if could show up and it could show it’s own content like “Jetpack is already installed and has a module burried deep on some debug page you could enable to do this if you also paid us”?.
Research shows that the search results overwhemingly likely to be clicked are the top few ones. Look at the screenshot in the article; JetPack pushes #1 down to #2, #2 down to #3, #3 down to #4 – and #4 is no longer visible in the viewport at all. To say that #4 hasn’t been filtered because the user can still scroll if he wants to, is semantics. JetPack is functionally filtering the search results.
> "It doesn’t reorder them or filter them."
Research shows that the search results overwhemingly likely to be clicked are the top few ones. Look at the screenshot in the article; JetPack pushes #1 down to #2, #2 down to #3, #3 down to #4 – and #4 is no longer visible in the viewport at all. To say that #4 hasn't been filtered because the user can still scroll if he wants to, is semantics. JetPack is functionally filtering the search results.
See everyone, it’s not an ad… it’s a promotion.
Pure partiality. Not fair to others.
Simple solution: if the Jetpack team wants to show they’ve got a rock solid product that can stand on its own and be treated like everyone else, Automattic could spin Jetpack off into an independent company (truly independent, not just another pseudo-indie organization with Matt at the helm) and let the market see how that plays out.
Also, they might as well take it off the Featured Plugins section, which is another biased way of showing their free-as-in-facebook plugin.
If its already installed like it usually is it should be in the plug-in it self as a extension etc etc the work on the product being number one should be the ethic im waiting for jetpack to not be so heavy and handle cdn better than the rest minifying etc etc no icrashing etc etc i find plugins from reviews, write ups, performance self use not search suggestions period.
If it’s not hosted on w.org, then they can do what they like. We don’t monitor plugins we do not host. On your own head be it.
And out of interest, if plugins in the wordpress.org directory add “- Suppresses JetPack promotions” as one of their advertised plugin features, and add `add_filter(‘jetpack_show_promotions’, ‘__return_false’);` into their code, how is that?
Seems to me that if it’s valid for JetPack to decide that users want these by default, then it’s valid for other plugin authors to take the mirror opinion that they don’t. And as long as it’s clearly mentioned in the plugin description, no problem, yes?
To me, this is obviously an ad. You have to pay for the service. It isn’t free.
Those both extend the functionality of a plugin that the user already has installed. The only difference is that those aren’t SaaS offerings; they’re code that gets installed alongside Ninja Forms core.
If that isn’t ok, is it because one advertises a service and the other an installable solution? That seems like a pretty arbitrary way to define what constitutes an advertisement and what constitutes helping the user.
Is JetPack still a thing? None of this is an issue to me and many others who have moved on years ago. It eludes me what useful thing we’re missing out on.
I wholeheartly agree with the concerns shared by other plugin developers about these unethical practices.
To me it feels like a big hypocrisy.
Jetpack is NOT more equal than others. This permanent featuring has to stop. For years it is also placed on the best location on .org plugin directory and also in the plugin installer of every WordPress installation.
Anyone can clearly see that these are ads. And the purpose is to bring users to the features of Jetpack — or just to upsell their services, like the backup services.
What would it be otherwise?
It doesn’t matter what Otto or someone else from Automattic/ Audrey Capital is calling it. We can see and think for ourselves.
Again: Jetpack is NOT more equal than others.
There’s no reason ever for that.
It likely will not be long before plugins like Hide Jetpack Promotions removes the artificial search results to maintain results as delivered by WordPress.org.
I would like to clarify that Hide Jetpack Promotions already removes any Jetpack results from the plugin search results.
This is possible with a standard filter that Jetpack provides to easily to do this.
So showing a link to an extension plugin for, say Woo Commerce, EDD or Contact Form 7 would be “advertising”, but if one bundled that as a “module” in their main plugin, it suddenly is “helping”? Wouldn’t that be an incentive for plugin authors to cram even more things into the already big plugins in order to be able to “help” people?
So showing a link to an extension plugin for, say Woo Commerce, EDD or Contact Form 7 would be "advertising", but if one bundled that as a "module" in their main plugin, it suddenly is "helping"? Wouldn't that be an incentive for plugin authors to cram even more things into the already big plugins in order to be able to "help" people?
I love how they spin this “feature” into something positive. Positive for Automattic, of course. LOL.
3) Did I mention overkill?
We’re only going to see Automattic’s influence over .org continue to increase as their investors start to wonder when and how they’re going to get their money back. Decisions like this that privilege Automattic products will be essential to that effort.
I don’t blame Otto too much. Matt has put him in an impossible position by making him choose between the best interests of the .org repo and the best interests of his employer.
I will say I’m grateful that the authors of this website continue to report on and allow criticism of Automattic despite also being employees of Audrey Capital.
As far as i know Google has just recently been fined by Eu for doing the same with their search results.
I say that was not a wise move.
Yeah, I didn’t want to bring this up, and IANAL… but as it currently stands I’m wondering if this isn’t a violation of the US FTC rules for display ads because it deceptively misleads users into thinking it’s the top search result without clearly declaring it’s an advertisement.
In fact heck, we should require that ALL advertisements distributed in plugins and themes through .org include “This is an advertisement” language on the ad/notice/banner.
Agreed, this seems like the bare minimum that should come out of this. Even advertisements for features already installed should be clearly marked IMO.
@otto Many people keep explaining that since the backup is a PAID upgrade feature, and is NOT an already available feature of the plugin, it is advertising. Yet, you keep quiet on that point, and keep answering other points. Please specifically address how you came to the conclusion that promoting a paid upgrade to a feature that users don’t get with the plugin already is not an advertisement, in your mind.
Right now, we are actively working on a new release of Jetpack to remove those upgrade prompts and to make it more clear that these suggestions are from Jetpack and not the directory. I should expect the release to be out today or tomorrow.
I see why Jetpack did this and while it is not to my taste I can see how it can be of benefit to the user.
However Jetpack need to make it much clearer that they are adverts/promotions. That’s the law – otherwise you fall into the same trap as google who promoted their own products before others without any indicator that they were not natural search results. This resulted in huge fines from the EU.
My only issue would be that plugin authors are allowed 3 tags, which are heavily weighted in terms of what is returned in searches. This feels more or less a way to bypass that limitation by allowing this plugin to inject and modify the search results for other keywords. I’ve been using this same method for the past 2 years outside of .org for recommended and required plugins. It works great, has proven to show an increase in installations, and keeps the interface consistent with what is already provided for our users by WP core. The ONLY result we do modify though is OUR brand name, so our plugins are displayed at the top of results when a user enters our actual brand. We do supply the data to merge our results in based off the keywords found in readme.txt for our external sources.
Since the algorithm and weighting isn’t really documented or floating around to easily find – we insert into those few keywords (3 from the tags in readme + 1 for brand name + 1 plugin name) based on the number of active install counts. As our original goal was to include this functionality in our .org plugins for recommended plugins/extensions we provide, we took the route of adding an additional tab to the filter bar, so users could just click that to find OUR recommended plugins easily.
I was weary to ever attempt including this functionality in our .org plugins because I was told in the past when asking about this functionality specifically was not allowed . It was also mentioned directly that plugins and themes should never modify the search results (just to be clear – this was specifically mentioned that it only applied for wp.org hosted repo themes and plugins). I wasn’t asking about any external sources, just simply using the plugins API more effectively for recommended plugins/plugin extensions that we would want to encourage our users to use as they provide a better experience. Some aren’t even ours, but other third-parties we’ve taken time to integrate with that are also hosted in wp.org.
1. WP core does not provide a clear and consistent way for authors of plugins and themes to recommend plugins.
I think the “Recommended” tab in the “Plugins > Add New” section should be actual recommendations from the active plugins and active theme installed. If I have WP Forms installed, I shouldn’t be “recommended” an alternative forms plugin like Ninja Forms to use. Vice versa. This goes for theme functionality heavily as well. If a theme integrates certain features to provide compatibility for other plugins – those should be recommended. When themes/plugins have a need, they usually do recommend, either with TGMPA lib or another alternative method. It’s inconsistent, and makes for a poor user experience because there is not any consistency. Core provides APIs already right in the area where users “normally” would go to add new things. This should be the REQUIRED way plugins and themes recommend and require their suggestions. Make the “recommended” section useful in Plugins > Add New, and allow them to have some indication WHO is recommending it, so it’s not just something up in the air in terms of actual compatibility or where the suggestion comes from.
2. The search algorithm was pretty terrible at one point in time.
It wasn’t very long ago where I constantly would go to plugins > add new, type in “Yoast” and “WordPress SEO” wasn’t a top result. Other brands were the same way, and it was always frustrating that these searches could be that inaccurate. I don’t know specifics of when or how the search algorithm was changed/improved, but it works much better today, and provides more relevant results based on the query. Even with this improved accuracy, it was expressed that there’s a desire to “help users,” which means there’s still a gap between what is being returned as results, and what this plugin’s authors think should be returned. If many of the same people worked on the search algorithm, along with worked on this plugin – it sounds like the actual need for the author is to target their keywords better by limiting the scope of what functionality their plugin provides, and do better marketing to increase their positions in the search results. Anything outside of this – as is mentioned in almost all comments here – feels like preferential treatment, an unfair advantage, and misleading to end users. That’s not to discount the fact that there’s a perceived issue by this plugin’s author in what should show up in the results, how they are displayed, and even in the underlying algorithm providing the order.
Truthfully – I’m on the opposite end of the spectrum. I think they made a good decision, and I agree that this plugin took a good approach in terms of being helpful to a user, but it also clearly shows how easily abused something like this can be, and what to do/what not to do. Ad placements, and preferential displaying of cross-marketed brands/products would become more common. Having been told this sort of functionality isn’t allowed in the past does seem to go with the “preferential treatment concerns” people have mentioned in nearly every comment. Every situation is different though, and there could’ve easily been misunderstandings about what the needs were at the time. This was a long time ago, and reviewers/volunteers (whether paid or not) don’t really have that kind of time to invest in digging deeply into every scenario, so it’s understandable and I don’t hold that against anyone. I look forward to seeing what comes from this, and hopefully the underlying concern truly is based on the user experience rather than ulterior motives as have been suggested by others. Only time will tell I guess!
I hope this discussion results in some limitations on how far plugin authors can go to promote. I would also hope that we look at some of the heavy handed efforts to silence the critics. Deeply concerned that FOSS will lose the “F” and “O”.
Most of the comments were deleted.
I hope this discussion results in some limitations on how far plugin authors can go to promote.
I would also hope that we look at some of the heavy handed efforts to silence the critics.
The review you mention is, I believe this one. I’m going to defend this robustly because not only is Jan an extremely hard-working admin in the forums but doesn’t work for Automattic, so has no position here. What he does do is spend a lot of HIM time volunteering to help administer the forums (which includes reviews).
What you’re seeing here is what will happen for ANY review if you attend to stop using it as a review but more as a general rant, which falls very much into the territory of using it like a blog. In this case, Jan has clearly explained this and then closed it for further comment.
Based on this, you believe that dissenting voices are being silenced? Quite unbelievable.
Though Jetpack has a collection of modules, I don’t find the need for all the modules it has. For example, it has Photon to deal with images, but I want a specific Lazy load plugin with more functionalities for my images. So, Jetpack must first understand, what their existing audience is looking for before going with this kind of artificial search results.
Guys, did I miss something? Please tell me this is a late 1st April Joke and Sarah just set up a wrong schedule for that post.
Can someone enlighten and tell me if I get the JP ads* when I am looking for a particular plugin or feature which I’ve already disabled intentionally in JP settings?
For instance, I am looking for a particular backup plugin because I do not want to use the JP thingy. Do I still see the ad*?
Or do I get that ad* only when I’ve already installed and activated the JP backup module?
These ads* are even not declared as sponsored results or something similar. Why not?
I’ve learned not to hijack any WordPress natives UI elements with notices of my own plugins except on my own plugin UI so this attempt by JP does not feel right.
*Yes, this is an advertisement. No matter what the advertisers “intention” is.
Looks like they aren’t giving up this idea anytime soon. Now that they have started to recommend Extensions in WooCommerce also, they may soon come up with the idea of advertising, i.e. making developers spend money to put their extension in the recommendation. | 2019-04-24T08:26:48Z | https://wptavern.com/jetpack-7-1-adds-feature-suggestions-to-plugin-search-results |
The Heinz Keystone Logo has reinforced the company’s connection to Pennsylvania for generations.
The word "success" is an understatement when describing Henry J. Heinz and his namesake company. From humble beginnings as a local horseradish producer in 1869, Henry Heinz combined an entrepreneurial spirit with innovative advertising to create the H.J. Heinz Company, a $10 billion Fortune 500 corporation today. With its global headquarters located at its origins of Pittsburgh's North Side, the Heinz Co. packages joy within every jar of pickles, every bottle of vinegar, and every bottle of ketchup that it sells each year.
Born on October 11, 1844, Henry John Heinz grew up in Sharpsburg, a borough of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Here, at the age of eight, the young Heinz started selling extra vegetables grown in his family garden to neighbors. By the age of twelve, Heinz farmed three and a half acres of land, on which he specialized growing horseradish root. He started selling his homemade horseradish door-to-door to the residents of Sharpsburg. This early success in food processing would take a brief, but important, detour. At 21, Heinz bought a half interest in his father's brick business. Three years later, he partnered with L. C. Noble to manufacture and sell bricks—his first business venture outside the family. The following year, in 1869, Heinz and Noble abandoned bricks and returned to food processing, starting a company named Anchor Pickle & Vinegar Works. Since the homemade horseradish was such a success, Heinz began producing other goods, including celery sauce, pickled cucumbers, and vinegar.
This small business soon evolved into Heinz, Noble & Company, taking on E. J. Noble as a third partner. Although the company was an instant success, the financial Panic of 1873 led the company into bankruptcy in 1875. At a Heinz family meeting on New Year's Day, 1876, Henry Heinz explained his debt-ridden situation but proposed a solution: if certain family members were to form a new company, he would work on salary and run the business. With support from his brother John, cousin Frederick, and wife Sarah, Heinz returned to the condiment business at the newly founded F. & J. Heinz Company. That year, Heinz introduced a new product—tomato ketchup—the company's most successful product yet today.
For the next few years, Heinz continued to expand the company's product line by adding apple butter, pepper sauce, and minced meat recipes. Because of his successful management, Henry J. Heinz was recognized publicly as the face of the company when its name changed to the H.J. Heinz Company. Elevated to the top position in the company, one of his first priorities was consolidating the Pittsburgh area Heinz offices and factories. Heinz decided to build his industrial complex on Pittsburgh's North Side (formerly Allegheny City), across the Allegheny River from Pittsburgh's old business section. In the midst of building the Heinz Co. headquarters from 1890—98, Henry Heinz launched one of the most remarkable, yet mysterious, events in food marketing: the Heinz "57 Varieties" campaign, begun in 1892.
The idea gripped me at once and I jumped off the train at the 28th Street station and began the work of laying out my advertising plans. Within a week the sign of the green pickle with the '57 Varieties' was appearing in newspapers, on billboards, signboards, and everywhere else I could find a place to stick it.
Since the slogan's debut, the Heinz Co. and the number 57 continue to be associated with each other.
In addition to the Heinz 57 Varieties campaign, the company is famous for its marketing strategies involving a green pickle. At the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, the H.J. Heinz Co. exhibit was on the second floor of the Agricultural Building, a flight of stairs above foreign and imported food products. Many visitors would enter the building, but seldom would they climb the staircase. Heinz solved this dilemma by getting young boys to hand out white promise cards that could be exchanged for free souvenirs at the company exhibit. As Robert C. Alberts describes in The Good Provider, the souvenir was a "green gutta-percha pickle one and one quarter inches long, bearing the name Heinz and equipped with a hook to serve as a charm on a watch chain." The technique was an instant success, as the company handed out over a million pickle watch charms.
The Heinz Pickle Pin gained worldwide notoriety at the 1892 World’s Fair.
Later that year, a New York Times article, "Narrow Escape at World's Fair," reported that the massive crowds caused structural damage to the building, noting that "the gallery floor of the Agricultural Building has sagged where the pickle display of H.J. Heinz Company stood." Since its introduction, the pickle became synonymous with the H.J. Heinz Company and its founder, who was known throughout the country as the "Pickle King." The pickle souvenir tradition continues today; over 100 million Heinz pickles have been passed out at various trade shows and factory tours in the company's history.
The success of the Heinz pickle was the first of several advertising campaigns that enabled "Heinz" to become a household brand name. As mentioned in business historian Richard Tedlow's New and Improved, "most manufacturers [contemporaneous with the H.J. Heinz Co.] were unknown to the people who bought their products." Companies were not well known by their brand labels. By heavily advertising a standard label across various products, Henry Heinz used brand recognition to gain a competitive advantage over other companies. Exploiting the cross-referencing tendencies of consumers—and their admiration of memorable "57 Varieties" advertisements—enabled the H.J. Heinz Co. to succeed better than its competitors.
Henry J. Heinz openly invited the public to visit and tour the company's main facilities in Pittsburgh, an unheard of practice in the food industry. At the turn of the twentieth century, over 20,000 visitors inspected the factory annually. The company earned similar publicity for its two hundred jet black Heinz draft horses that delivered Heinz products throughout the country. Parades in Pittsburgh and southwestern Pennsylvania were not complete without a Heinz horse pulling a white wagon with green trimmings.
Eager to market Heinz during both the day and the night, the company constructed large electric outdoor signs—wildly expensive advertising novelties—to promote the Heinz Co. to passersby. A six-story sign on the corner of Fifth Avenue and 23rd Street in New York City illuminated a forty foot green pickle bearing the name Heinz and the words "57 Varieties Exhibited at Heinz Pier, Atlantic City." Originally leased in 1898 and later purchased and remodeled, the Heinz Pier adjoined the boardwalk with a classical façade. The inside, which extended 900 feet into the Atlantic Ocean, served as host to Heinz lectures, free taste tests of Heinz products, and even famous painting exhibits. The pier was open year round and immensely popular; an estimated 50 million people visited—and each guest was offered a Heinz pickle pin. However, after a destructive hurricane in September, 1944, Heinz management abandoned the Heinz Pier property.
The Heinz Company's recipe for national success coupled brand recognition with a commitment to product quality. Until the muckraking work of writers like Sinclair Lewis (The Jungle, 1906) and the resulting Federal Food and Drug Act of 1906, food processing was unregulated in the United States. As a result, many individuals contracted illnesses from eating contaminated products that could contain unlisted fillers, both intentionally and unintentionally. The Heinz Co. calmed these fears by consciously packaging its products in clear bottles, enabling consumers to view the actual products that they purchased.
The company also emphasized cleanliness in its production lines, particularly the process of bottling pickles. Young women, mostly immigrants from across Europe, sanitized the bottles that other women would pack with pickles in a distinct design—all carefully overseen by older forewomen. In 1900, Henry Heinz travelled to the Exposition Universelle Internationale in Paris, France, to receive two gold medals, one for product quality and the other for factory conditions. At home, he openly called for federal regulations over the production, labeling, and sale of goods by the food processing industry. Through its dedication to food quality, the Heinz Co. created a responsible, and enviable, model for consumer safety.
After its domestic success in the nineteenth century, the H.J. Heinz Company began to transition from a domestic, private firm to an international, public company in the twentieth century. In 1900, H.J. Heinz incorporated the company; six family members owned shares in the company. At this time, the H.J. Heinz Co. was first in the production of ketchup, pickles, mustard, and vinegar in the United States. Five years later, in 1905, Heinz expanded overseas when the company opened its first international factory in England. Unfortunately, at the age of 75, Heinz Company founder H.J. Heinz died in 1919. The management of the business remained in the family, however, as Howard Heinz succeeded his father as company president. Howard Heinz successfully rescued the company at the height of the Great Depression in 1931 by introducing two new product lines: ready-to-eat soups and baby food.
In Britain, Heinz Beanz on toast for breakfast has become a staple of the diet.
In 1928, the British Heinz subsidiary stopped importing Heinz beans from the United States and Canada and began to produce its own, permitting cheaper, yet more popular, bean production. The Heinz Company would later strike marketing gold in 1967 with the U.K. advertising slogan "Beanz Meanz Heinz;" its success and hundreds of variations compares only to the "57 Varieties" campaign of a half-century earlier.
Following the death of Howard Heinz in 1941, his son, H.J. "Jack" Heinz II took control of the company. He followed his grandfather's example of company growth by expanding the H.J. Heinz Co. domestically through acquisitions and internationally by launching Heinz subsidiaries. Jack Heinz already had previous expansion experience, as he had directed the company's development in Australia during the 1930s. Although Heinz products had been available in Australia for 50 years, the company cemented its position there when it built a production plant in Richmond, Victoria, in 1934. The subsidiary, Heinz-Australia, would become the nation's largest food processing plant. When the company had its first public offering in 1946, sales figures revealed that the H.J. Heinz Company earned over $4 million in net profits. Strong sales internationally—particularly of Heinz canned beans in England and Australia—enabled such positive financial news.
Success in the English and Australian markets encouraged the Heinz Co. to launch new subsidiaries in the Netherlands, Venezuela, Japan, Italy, and Portugal. Jack Heinz also began a new company practice of brand acquisition. The Heinz Co. purchased StarKist Foods, a tuna producer that was home to the cartoon mascot Charlie the Tuna, and Ore-Idea Foods, Inc., a top frozen potato company, in 1963 and 1965, respectively. After twenty five years as president and chief executive, Jack Heinz stepped down amidst a changing food industry of supermarket chains and new distribution systems.
At the end of an interim president and CEO period, the Heinz Co. named Anthony (Tony) J.F. O'Reilly the president of the corporation in 1973 and CEO in 1979. Due to his success managing the British Heinz subsidiary, O'Reilly was promoted to the chairperson position after the death of Jack Heinz in 1987. He was the first person outside the Heinz family promoted to the position of president. April Dougal Gasbarre in International Directory of Company Histories refers to the decades under O'Reilly's management as "The O'Reilly Revolution." O'Reilly set out to make the Heinz Co. more profitable while retaining its majority share in various markets. In his "nickel-and-dime" strategy, he cut costs by switching to thinner glass bottles for ketchup, decreasing the size of StarKist tuna cans, and reusing heat and water in Heinz factories.
However, O'Reilly continued in the Heinz tradition of brand acquisition, albeit more conservatively. These acquisitions were timely in light of supply and demand and the public health consciousness. In 1975, Heinz obtained Hubinger Company, a major manufacturer of high-fructose corn syrup; this new supply enabled Heinz to earn high profits when the price of sugar soared. Three years later, in 1978, O'Reilly acquired Weight Watchers International. When the obsession with fitness and calorie-conscious diets swept the country, the Heinz Co. cashed in with profits.
In addition to these domestic acquisitions, O'Reilly expanded Heinz into the untapped markets of Asia and Africa. Heavy investments in Zimbabwe's Olivine Industries, Inc., earned Heinz a 51% controlling interest in the food manufacturer as of 1982 (resold to the Cotton Company of Zimbabwe in 2007). O'Reilly also initiated more expansion into the South Pacific, purchasing a majority share in Win-Chance Food of Thailand in 1987; Heinz quickly added tomato ketchup to the subsidiary's line of baby food and dairy products. Effective acquisitions facilitated a decade of high profits in the 1980s.
The growth of private labels products in supermarkets coupled by a small economic recession influenced O'Reilly to pursue a thorough reorganization of the global H.J. Heinz Company. In the United States, reorganization equaled the closing or sale of over a dozen plants and reductions in workforce and management employees. To reverse losing competition with private labels, Heinz cut back on advertising, shifting these resources to discounting popular products. Internationally, Heinz solidified its position in the Asia/Pacific sphere by purchasing New Zealand's Wattie's Limited in 1992 for $300 million. O'Reilly compared Wattie's to a "mini-Heinz;" the new subsidiary gave the Heinz Company a commanding control of the Australian market.
During the restructuring of the 1990s, Heinz exchanged new acquisitions with divestments of certain brands. In 1994, Heinz purchased the All American Gourmet Company, the producers of the Budget Gourmet line of frozen entrees (resold to rival Luigino's in 2001). Pet food operations also expanded with the acquisition of the Kibble'n Bits (later sold to Del Monte in 2002), Gravy Train, and Ken-L Ration brands from the Quaker Oats Company in 1995. The major divestments included the sale of Hubinger Company in 1993, the foodservice operations of Ore-Ida in 1997 (Heinz retained the Ore-Ida retail rights), and the diet food unit of Weight Watchers in 1999 (although Heinz continues to produce products under the Weight Watchers brand). With his restructuring plans a vast success, O'Reilly stepped down to nonexecutive chairman, allowing William R. Johnson, a Heinz employee since the mid-1980s, to become president and CEO of the Heinz Company. Johnson continued the cautious acquisition and divestment practices of his predecessor, ensuring sustained success for Heinz brands into the twenty-first century.
Continuing in the successful advertising campaigns of "57 Varieties" and "Beanz Meanz Heinz," the Heinz Co. has had several other hit commercials in America. In the late 1970s, Heinz created a commercial to promote its rich, thick ketchup. The key scene features a close-up shot of ketchup slowly oozing out of a glass bottle, with the Carly Simon song "Anticipation" playing in the background. It ends with the slogan, "The taste that's worth the wait." (Click here to see the commercial at YouTube) Although getting ketchup out of a small-neck bottle can be a difficult and tedious task, Heinz claims this obstacle is only a minor setback. Over two decades later, Heinz would revisit to this iconic image of anticipation in a parody commercial that introduced its upside-down squeeze bottle of ketchup. The camera focuses on a woman waiting for her ketchup to pour out of a glass bottle, with Simon's "Anticipation" again in the background. However, the sound of squeezing ketchup from a bottle interrupts the song, and the camera shifts attention to the woman's chuckling spouse. Packaged in squeezable plastic, this new ketchup is considerably easier to use than its predecessor. The commercial's ending slogan highlights this change, reading: "No Wait. No Mess. No Anticipation." See the commercial here.
From founder H.J. Heinz to current CEO William R. Johnson, the Heinz Company has succeeded because of its commitment to quality—from food processing to end products—throughout the world. Part of this prosperity stems from loyalty to what biographer Robert C. Alberts refers to as H.J. Heinz's "8 Important Ideas:"
1. Housewives are willing to pay someone else to take over a share of their more tedious kitchen work.
2. A pure article of superior quality will find a ready market through its own intrinsic merit—if it is properly packaged and promoted.
3. To improve the finished product that comes out of the bottle, can, or crock, you must improve it in the ground, where and when it is grown.
4. Our market is the world.
5. Humanize the business system of today and you will have the remedy for the present discontent that characterizes the commercial world and fosters a spirit of enmity between capital and labor.
6. Let the public assist you in advertising your products and promoting your name.
7. Earn the trust of the public for purity.
8. If people could work together in the Sunday School movement and use it to teach children to believe in the golden Rule, there might be lasting peace in the world.
The "family wisdom" of the first seven ideas, accrued during four decades of managing his business, enabled H.J. Heinz to construct a celebrated brand now recognizable across the globe. As Gasbarre describes, the Heinz Company adheres to a "continuous revolution and renewal:" brand acquisitions like Ore-Ida and StarKist; necessary divestments like Hubinger and Weight Watchers; global expansion into Africa and the South Pacific; and memorable marketing campaigns "57 Varieties" and "Beanz Meanz Heinz."
According to the Heinz Company's website, the firm earned over $10 billion in global revenue during Fiscal 2008. Eighty percent of Heinz revenue comes from six main categories: convenience meals, frozen foods, infant foods, pet food, tuna—and ketchup. In fact, sales figures suggest that Heinz sells over 600 million bottles of ketchup, its flagship condiment, every year. However, Heinz ketchup is packaged in more just in bottles as the company provides the single-serving packets of ketchup to fast food giant McDonald's. On top of these domestic sales, the Heinz Co. earns a large portion its profits abroad—over 1.5 million cans of Heinz beans are sold in the United Kingdom every day.
The Heinz Micronutrient Campaign is just one of the philanthropic endeavors of the Heinz Corporation and the Heinz family.
While much of the money the Heinz Company has earned over the years has been reinvested in research, marketing, and acquisitions, a significant amount of the "ketchup money" has been donated to philanthropic endeavors. Many of these contributions stem from H.J. Heinz's 8th Important Idea and the desire to build good character and good citizenship. In its hometown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the Heinz Company remains an active face of the community. Heinz family members operate the Heinz Endowments, a 2007 merger of the Howard Heinz Endowment and the Vira I. Heinz Endowment. Although not directly associated with the company, the privately-run Endowment contributes over $60 million in grants to nonprofit organizations annually.
The Heinz Company has its own philanthropic institution, the H.J. Heinz Company Foundation, which supports numerous community projects in Greater Pittsburgh. These ventures include the Union Project, a social enterprise organization, and Big Brothers & Big Sisters, a mentoring program. This generosity is not limited to the United States, however. The Foundation's signature program, the Heinz Micronutrient Campaign (HMC), operates to combat "the global health menace of iron-deficiency anemia and vitamin and mineral malnutrition in the developing world," according to its campaign website. Since its launch in 2001, the HMC researches, develops, and distributes micronutrient packets, which contain a multivitamin and mineral powder, to children suffering from malnutrition in developing countries like China, India, and Indonesia. The campaign has already assisted over 2.5 million children, with a goal of 10 million children by 2010. This global community pledge provides the H.J. Heinz Company a clear outlook on its future: the altruistic improvement of world health from company earnings.
The present H.J. Heinz Company has redefined its founder's adage on business success in terms of society: "To do an uncommon thing commonly well brings success."
Alberts, Robert C. The Good Provider: H.J. Heinz and His 57 Varieties. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1973.
"Company News; Heinz Sells Budget Gourmet Frozen Lines to Luigino's." New York Times 10 Feb. 2001: C3.
Dienstag, Eleanor Foa. In Good Company: 125 years at the Heinz Table, 1869—1994. New York: Warner, 1994.
Gasbarre, April Dougal and David E. Salamie. "H.J. Heinz Company." International Directory of Company Histories. Ed. Jay P. Pederson. Detroit: St. James P. 36 (2001): 253—57.
"History History." Heinz. 2008. 7 Jul. 2009. <http://www.heinz.com/our-company/about-heinz/history.aspx>.
"Heinz Micronutrient Campaign." Building a Better World: Report to the Community (2007). Pittsburgh, PA: Heinz Company Foundation, 2007: 3—6. <http://www.heinz.com/data/pdf/foundation07.pdf>.
Murray, Barbara. "H.J. Heinz Company." Hoovers, Inc. 2009. 7 Jul. 2009. <http://premium.hoovers.com/subscribe/co/factsheet.xhtml?ID=rfjsyffcyrxxcj>.
"Narrow Escape at World's Fair." New York Times 15 Nov. 1893: 5.
Ndlela, Dumisani. "Olivine's Road Ahead Could Still be Rutted." BizCommunity.com. 16 Jan 2008. 13 July 2009. <http://africa.bizcommunity.com/Article/411/82/21037.html>.
Tedlow, Richard S. New and Improved: The Story of Mass Marketing in America. New York: Basic Books, 1990.
"Welcome to Heinz Endowments." The Heinz Endowments. 2009. 13 Jul. 2009. <http://www.heinz.org/default.aspx>. | 2019-04-24T06:11:34Z | https://pabook.libraries.psu.edu/literary-cultural-heritage-map-pa/feature-articles/success-every-bottle-hj-heinz-company |
Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast: E25: Heather Lawson - "Life skills and Training Concepts"
E25: Heather Lawson - "Life skills and Training Concepts"
Heather Lawson is a Certified Professional Dog Trainer, a Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partner (KPA-CTP), a CGN Evaluator and a Free-style judge. She has been training dogs and their humans for more than 20 years after deciding that the corporate world just wasn't cutting it anymore.
She is the owner of dogWISE Training & Behaviour Center Inc., where she teaches group classes for companion pets, competitive obedience, and rally in addition to providing behaviour consults and private lessons.
To be released 9/1/2017, featuring Nancy Tucker talking about the roles of emotions in training, and how to modify behaviors when they are tied to strong emotions in our dogs.
Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau, and you’re listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports podcast brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy an online school dedicated to providing high quality instruction for competitive dog sports using only the most current and progressive training methods. Today we’ll be talking to Heather Lawson.
Heather is a certified professional dog trainer, and Karen Pryor Academy certified training partner, a CGN evaluator and a free style judge. She’s been training dogs and their humans for more than 20 years after deciding that the corporate world just wasn’t cutting it anymore. She’s the owner of dogWISE Training & Behavior Center where she teaches group classes for companion pets, competitive obedience, and rally in addition to providing behavior consults and private lessons. At FCSA she teaches several classes focused on life skills, including the upcoming Loose Leash Walkers Anonymous and Hounds About Town. She’ll also be teaching a new class on Match to Sample.
Hi, Heather, welcome to the podcast.
Heather Lawson: Hi, Melissa, glad to be here.
Melissa Breau: Looking forward to chatting. SO to start us out, I know we talked about this a little bit before turning on the recording, but do you want to just tell me a little bit about your own dogs, who they are and what you’re working on with them?
Heather Lawson: Okay. Well, my breed of choice, who happens to be currently rumbling in their crate at the moment, is German Shepard. I have two, one a male by the name of Tag, who is 11 years old and he’s retired from active working. He’s just a family companion and does everything else that Piper does but on a lower schedule, and then I have Piper who is a 2-year-old female, and she’s my current work in progress, and I hope to be taking her into the competitive obedience ring, rally, and anything else that I can wrap my head around with her.
Melissa Breau: How did you get your start in the dog sports world?
Heather Lawson: Well, as you mentioned in my bio I was in the corporate world, in human resources, retail management, and after about three downsizings consecutively in a row, it was just that time of the ‘90s and so forth, I just decided that I didn’t want to go back to work and I’d rather stay home and do things with my dogs, and believe it or not I ended up working at a school, an obedience school back east in Ontario and got competing with my own dogs, and then from there just went all over the place wanting to develop my education and just become a better trainer, and I’ve had so much fun doing this that I’ve never looked back on the corporate world since. It’s just been so enjoyable because I get to meet so many new dogs and so many lovely people.
Melissa Breau: I wanted to ask you a little bit about your training philosophy. How do you approach training?
Heather Lawson: For me personally I like to approach it as a teamwork situation. I want to look at the dog that’s in front of me and work with what they are giving me, and work at the level that they’re capable of at that particular moment I guess you could say. My philosophy, you get the old, ‘Well, I want to do positive,’ and everything like that. It just never occurs to me to do anything but positive and I want to make sure that I’m consistent, that I’m fair. I give my animals the better side of me at all times. Above all else my animals are family companions so not only do I have to worry about what I’m doing in training, but I have to worry about what we’re doing when we’re not training, and so everything has to mesh and come together, and it’s just basically a family unit.
Melissa Breau: I wanted to talk a little bit about the classes that you’re going to be offering coming up in October, so let’s start with the Loose Leash Walkers Anonymous class, and I am sure at least once, if not more than that, I will somehow manage to jumble those words because Loose Leash Walkers Anonymous is almost a tongue twister, but why are life skills like that, like leash walking, such an important skill for sports dogs and why is it such an incredibly difficult thing to teach?
Heather Lawson: Well, like most people who do dog sports we travel, so we go to competitions, we do things with our dogs, we have to stay in hotels, we have to be out in the public, and having a dog with good manners, including loose leash walking skills I think is very important because your dog is only working and doing those activities for a very short period of time. The rest of it, if they’re like most people…my dogs, as I said, are part of my family so when I’m not doing those skills or competitions, or anything like that I’m taking my dogs out into the community.
I don’t want to be dragged all over the place. I want to be able to take them on the sea bus that goes from one side of the inlet to the other, I want to be able to take them up and down elevators or into stores and do all of those types of things with them without people turning around and saying, ‘Look at that. The dogs out of control,’ and I think it’s important too even when you’re competing that you have your dogs under control, that they’re not going in every different direction, they’re not dragging you to and from whatever it is that you’re doing, whether it’s conformation, or obedience, or even agility, or nose work. I mean, sure the dogs get excited but at the same time, it’s still nice to have a little bit of management and manners in place, and that’s my own personal view, and I think it’s important.
The other side of it, why is it so hard to teach, simply because we aren’t consistent enough, I think, and we don’t think of it as a priority, and by priority I mean I picked up on something a long, long time ago from Sue Ailsby, who’s also teaching at Fenzi, and that was when the leash goes on that is your only priority of teaching loose leash walking, so getting from A to B is your only priority on a loose leash, and that has never, ever steered me wrong. If we put the leash on at one point and then we go and we let the dog pull us to their favorite friend, or we let them pull us to go and sniff to something, or pull us to go to the dog park. If we’re inconsistent in our requirements then we never get that loose leash walking as part of regular manners skill, and you know what…and it’s true.
If I don’t have the time to work on that, if I haven’t given myself enough time, if my dogs are going to be excited, and the dogs get excited, and with a little bit of a reset okay. Yeah, okay mom, we remember. If I don’t have that time I just will take them and use a muzzle magnet, which is basically a fistful of food, let them nibble on it as I go from point a to b so that I don’t get that loose leash pulling, but I get the loose leash, so I try to be consistent with everything that I’m doing, and I think that’s why the dogs don’t get as far ahead in their loose leash walking because we’re also very concerned about teaching them all of these other behaviors that one of the most important things is the loose leash walking because if they don’t have that loose leash walking they don’t get out into the community, they don’t get out to socialize, they’re not much a pleasure to be around because they’re hard on your shoulder, they’re hard on your elbow, hard on your back and so they end up only doing certain things and they don’t have a well-rounded life, and especially with pet dogs they end up getting stuck in the backyard so they don’t get the exercise.
They don’t get the exercise then they have problem behaviors, they have the problem behaviors then they get surrendered, so loose leash walking, whether it’s for your competitive dogs or for your family companions is one of the most important skills, at least in my view anyways.
Melissa Breau: And I think you hit on that, like that consistency point. It’s so common to see somebody go into a class, trach loose leash walking, and then the moment they leave the room suddenly they forget everything that they have learned.
Heather Lawson: Oh yeah. Yeah, and if I catch my students, my in person students coming up the walkway and the dog is dragging them up they know, they look at me and they immediately turn right around and go down to the back, and they do their leash walking all the way up, so now it’s actually a running joke in class, is that oh, she caught us. Uh-oh we’ve got to go back, and now they’ve almost…almost every single person who’s been there by about week three they all know that they’ve got to practice their skills coming and going because that’s the whole point of it, right. You’ve got to practice it 24/7 in order for it to stick, and if you don’t then it’s not going to happen and you’re giving the dog an inconsistent message, and dogs don’t work in grey they work a little bit better in black and white.
Melissa Breau: And I think that kind of leads really well into the next thing I wanted to talk about, which is this idea of the dogs being able to go out and about with you and do things. So I know you also teach the Hounds About Town class, which I’m assuming kind of touches on that a little bit. What are the actual skills that you teach in that class, and how do you approach it?
Heather Lawson: Okay. With the Hound About Town, again, we teach loose leash walking, not as in depth as in the Loose Leash Walking Walkers Anonymous, but we teach some loose leash walking. We teach leave it, okay. We don’t need hoovers because there’s so much garbage, and things like that, and bad things that the dogs could pick up, as well as we don’t need them going after that little child in the stroller that’s coming towards them with that ice cream cone that’s right at their level, so a good leave it comes in handy.
Many of the dogs live in condominiums now, so we teach elevator etiquette, which also transfers nicely into riding on transit for those people who are lucky enough to travel on transit. We work on chill and settle on the mat, a little bit of recalls, grooming and touch for the veterinary care, door manners, and some of the other things that we do is we consider etiquette for when you are traveling and staying in hotels, or staying in other locations, and how to manage your dog in busy situations, just the basics, what would you do in your everyday life when you’re out and how to make it easier to take your dog with you more places.
The other thing that we do is we also encourage people to take their dogs more places, don’t just leave them at home all the time, of course weather permitting, because it’s good social interaction for our dogs. They don’t necessarily have to be always just going to the dog park. They need to be with you and be out and about, and part of the community, and the better behaved animals we have in the community the more access we’re going to have for them, and that’s the key thing. People say that there isn’t that much access for animals, but that’s because there’s been perhaps maybe some inconvenient encounters that haven’t gone so well because the dogs haven’t been well-trained. Also too, all of the things that we cover in here can be applied to the…I think in your end of the woods it says CGC, which is the Canine Good Citizen. In our area it’s Canine Good Neighbor and then you also have…then there are other levels. The urban K9 title as well.
If you were to go through the Hound About Town you would be able to go and take your test and get your certificate, so it’s just another way to promote responsible dog ownership, right. Getting them out, getting them trained, and getting them part of the family.
Melissa Breau: Now, you didn’t touch on two of the things that stood out to me when I was looking at the syllabus, which were the Do Nothing training, and Coffee Anyone, so what are those and obviously how do you address them in class?
Heather Lawson: Yeah. I always get kind of weird sideways looks when I talk about do nothing training, because it’s kind of like…people say, ‘What do you mean do nothing training,’ and I say well, how often do you just work on having your dog do nothing, and everybody looks at me, well, you don’t work on having the dog do nothing, and I say oh yeah, you do. That’s what we call settle on the mat, chill, learn how to not bug me every time I sit down at the computer to do some work, not bark at me every time I stop to chat with the neighbor, stop pulling me in all different ways, so it’s kind of like just do nothing, because if you think about it the first maybe six months of your dog’s life it’s all about the dog and the puppy.
Then when they get to look a little bit more adult all of a sudden they’re no longer the center of attention, but because they’ve been the center of attention for that first eight weeks to six months, and there’s been all this excitement whenever they’re out and people stop, and you chat or you do anything it’s very hard for the dog all of a sudden now to have this cut off and just not be acknowledged, and this is where you then get the demand barking, or the jumping on the owner, or the jumping on other people to get that attention, whereas if you teach that right in the very beginning, okay, and teach your puppies how to settle, whether it be in an x pen, or in a crate, or even on a mat beside you while you’re watching your favorite TV show. If you teach them to settle, and how to turn it off then you’re going to not have that much of a problem going forward as they get older.
The other thing too is that by teaching the dogs all of these different things that we want to teach them that’s great, and that’s fabulous, and we should be doing that, but most dogs aren’t active 100 percent of the time, they’re active maybe 10 percent of the time. The other 90 percent they’re chilling out, they’re sleeping, they’re…while their owners are away working if they’re not luck enough to be taken out for a daily hike then they’ve got to learn how to turn it off, and if we can teach them that in the early stages you don’t end up with severe behavior problems going forward and I’ve done that with all of my puppies, and my favorite place to train the do nothing training is actually in the bathroom.
What I do with that is my puppies, they get out first thing in the morning, they go their potty, they come back in, we get a chewy or a bully stick, or a Kong filled with food, and puppy goes into the bathroom with me and there’s a mat, they get to lay down on the mat and that’s when I get to take my shower, and all of my dogs, even to this day, even my 11-year-old, if I’m showering and the door’s open they come in and they go right to their mat and they go to sleep, and they wait for me, and that’s that do nothing training right, and that actually even follows into loose leash walking. If you take that do nothing training how often are you out in your loose leash walking and you stop and chat to the neighbor or you stop and you are window shopping or anything else that you when you’re out and about. If your dog won’t even connect with you at the end of the line then just…they won’t even pay attention to you while you’re standing there, or they create a fuss then the chances of you getting successful loose leash walking going forward is going to be fairly slim, okay.
The other thing that you mentioned was the coffee shop training, and that is nowadays people go and they meet at the coffee shop or they go for lunch and more and more people are able to take their dogs to lunch, providing they sit out on a patio, and on the occasion where the dog is allowed to stay close to you we teach the dogs to either go under the table and chill or go and lay beside the chair and chill, and teach them how to lay there, switch off, watch the world go by. Even if the waiter comes up you just chill out and just relax and that allows the dog, again because they’ve got good manners, to be welcomed even more places.
Melissa Breau: Right. It makes it so that you feel comfortable taking them with you to lunch or out.
Heather Lawson: Yeah, exactly. Exactly. There’s lots of places that dogs can go providing, and they’re welcome, providing they do have those good manners, and if we can keep those good manners going then regardless of whether or not your dog sports or not it just opens up the avenues for so much more of us to do…more things to do with our dogs.
Melissa Breau: I know the Match to Sample class is new, so I wanted to make sure we talk about that too. For those not familiar with the concept I have to admit I wasn’t initially and then you kind of explained it, I think, on one of the Facebook lists, so for those who don’t know what it is can you kind of explain what that means, Match to Sample?
Heather Lawson: The Match to Sample is a type of concept training, so concept think of it as the concept of mathematics. For us we know that if you add one and one you get two. We’re thinking you can conceptually see that if somebody asks me for this I can also get that, or we have the idea of big versus small. There’s whole different types of varieties of concepts, but match to sample in this particular case is a visual match to sample, so this is where the dog learns to look at an item that the trainer is holding and then find the object on a table that matches the one that the trainer is holding.
It sounds a little complicated but it’s not really, because of the different things that we…the stages that we go through in order to get them there, so for instance I might hold up a Kong and I might have a Kong, and I might have maybe a treat bag, and I might have a cone, and I might have a ball all in a row in front of me, so I hold up my Kong and I say, ‘Match it,’ and the dog looks at that Kong and then has to pick the right item out of that line of items on that table. I’m not saying get the Kong or get the toy, I’m just saying match it.
Once they’ve learned on things they know then we start introducing things that they maybe have never seen before, or they don’t normally interact with, and so we teach them that whatever I’m holding look at it and then figure out which one best matches that item and pick it out for me, either by a retrieve, or a nose touch, or targeting it, and it’s…actually if you think about it, it’s kind of the same thing that they use with nose work, that’s a match to sample. Here’s this sample, this smell. Now go find it for me. It’s sort of what they use with search and rescue. Here’s the smell of the person, I need you to find this person. Now go out into the world and match that smell to what I just gave you, and the concept training is neat because it uses most of what we teach our dogs, like shaping. It uses targeting. It uses problem solving and creativity on the dogs’ part and it also utilizes behavior change, so it’s kind of a fun different thing to do with the dogs and it allows you to really expand and take your thinking past what the dog…you ever thought, maybe, the dog could learn.
Even with you’re doing a match to sample with a nose in cancer. I’m sure you’ve heard of them matching cancer cells to see whether or not an individual has cancer cells. It’s all match to sample, it’s that concept training, right. There are other types of other concepts, which are things such as adduction, where we take one behavior, add it to another behavior and you end up with a third behaviors. That’s called adduction, so it’s one plus one equals three. It doesn’t make sense but it’s what it is, so it’s one behavior, another behavior, and you make a third behavior, that’s where the one plus one equals three comes from. There’s actually counting that the dogs are…has been out there now. I think Ken Ramirez is doing counting with dogs. Also learning about mimicry, which is Julie Flannery’s class at FDFA, can the dogs copy what you actually do. It’s really kind of mind bending and that’s what is really interesting me right now, and that’s what I’m doing with my youngest dog Piper.
I’m teaching her the match to sample as well as we’re going to work on…to see whether or not she actually can read, if you will, and I’ve got flashcards, and so I’m teaching her what this word means and teaching her to see whether or not she can put the two together. You can teach the concepts of big and small, up or down, go back, go forward. It’s just really cool stuff.
Melissa Breau: That sounds really neat. It sounds like it’s a very different, I guess, way of teaching your dog to look at the world, and I’d imagine at least the Match to Sample class would be a really…it would be a good skill to use a dogs’ brain, especially if they’re on medical for something, they could still do some of that stuff. Stuff like that. It would be just a great training tool to have in your kit.
Heather Lawson: Yes, you absolutely hit it on the mark. It’s a really good tool because it doesn’t require a whole lot of activity, but you do have to have the basics in place. It’s not something that you would normally do with a dog that is maybe…doesn’t have any idea on shaping, or targeting or playing creative games. It does require a little bit of basics, but it’s definitely a great tool for the dog that maybe is not just on medical rest but maybe can’t interact with a lot of other dogs, right. Maybe they for some reason…they just need a brain teaser that’s going to keep them from going stir crazy, because the more the brain is worked, it’s a balance right. Everybody thinks the dogs need exercise, but at the same time they need to have that little brain tingled a little bit, and if you don’t balance that off then you get a dog that kind of goes stir crazy, and again, it harkens back to not being able to shut off when needed, right, so it definitely is because it’s…you train all different kinds of new behaviors and it’s just another thing to draw on that trainers toolbox, if you will, to sort of expand and see just what your dog can do.
We often forget and we start to label our dogs as they can only do this, right. I think they can do way more than we give them credit for, and that’s what kind of tweaks my interest a little bit, aside from the competitive obedience stuff that I do with them as well.
Melissa Breau: I do want to talk for just a second more about that, about the idea of how maybe somebody could use those skills to teak some of the other things that they might want to teach. We talked a little bit about how you could teach it as a brain teaser, and as concepts. You mentioned nose work a little bit in there and kind of this idea of teaching a bigger picture. Are there other ways that that skill can be used and other behaviors that you can use those skills in, is it about communication?
Heather Lawson: It’s about communication, so say for instance if we harken back to, say, search and rescue. The dog has to make sometimes independent because they’re out searching and they’ve been sent out, and they’re searching, and they’re going back and they’re searching and what are they supposed to do. I’ve found the person, do I stick with the person, do I come back, so that training aspect of it is that they come back, they tell you that they’re there and then they go back to that person that’s lost.
I guess you could sort of put it down to it teaches your dogs to be creative. Now I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not. I’ve had a situation with my own dog when I was competing a number of years ago where I threw the dumbbell and it went outside the ring but there was access for her to go around a gate and get it and then come back, and rather than stick her head through and get caught at it, she looked at it, she looked down either side of it and then she backed up and went around got the dumbbell and came back and completed her exercise, so had I just taught it in basic format, go out, get it, come back, whatever, and I hadn’t taught her how to be creative we might’ve failed that whole class, but she did it.
She started to think on her own, and that’s what I appreciate in the dogs is that they can figure it out, they can problem solve and I don’t think that we really truly understand just how much problem solving ability that our dogs really do have, and I’m constantly amazed at how they develop that problem solving, and we sometimes forget because we’re teaching them all of these specific behaviors that we want them to do and we don’t let them sometimes expand on those, and I think that is the role it plays for me in my larger training toolbox, is it allows me to just sit back and say okay, so what if we did this? Can you do that, and the dog goes, yeah, sure I can do that and then you’re off on a different tangent, so it does definitely take your training in different ways, but it also really expands your training and your appreciation for the dog and their capabilities.
Melissa Breau: So it sounds like there are kind of two pieces there, right, to kind of distill that down a little bit. There’s the idea of helping your dog be the best they can be, in terms of as smart they can be, as capable as they can be, and then there’s this piece about teaching them how to be creative problem solvers, which I’d assume also makes things like proofing and fluency much easier.
Heather Lawson: Yeah, exactly because they grasp the concepts much quicker, and I know for…this isn’t really on the match to sample side of it, but if you consider, say, the…I taught her the chin rest, okay, and it’s one of the nest things I ever taught this dog because the chin rest taught her how to be just still, and that stillness transferred into my dumbbell, it transferred into her being examined by a judge in the confirmation ring, and it transferred into her stays, so just that simple thing of a chin rest with duration, or even a duration of the nose touch transferred in and taught her the concept of holding still and waiting until she was released, and it was such an easy transfer of that one single skill of holding skill went to so many different other behaviors, and I’d never taught it that way before, but I’m so glad I did with Piper because it just sort of went oh, that transfers into all kinds of things, and it really made me go you really get this, and so there’s a concept there but in a different way than the match to sample, so it’s what are we teaching them?
It’s not just a sit there and hold that position until I tell you otherwise it’s just the concept of can you transfer this, oh you understand it, so that’s why I like the concept training, such as the adduction, the mimicry, the copy behaviors, the match to sample. All of those things are really kind of mind benders.
Melissa Breau: I wanted to wrap things up by asking you the three questions that I usually ask at the end of the podcast.
Melissa Breau: The first one is what is the dog related accomplishment that you are proudest of?
Heather Lawson: The biggest and best accomplishment was with my dog Micha, who’s long gone, but she was a dog, German Shepherd, that had a few demons inside, just that she was very sensitive and very aware of sound, and so she was a little concerned when things…even the crack of a bat at a baseball game, or tennis, or things like that, loud speakers God help us, was an issue, and she was also sometimes concerned about people as well. She was a friendly dog, there’s nothing in that issue, but everybody told me you’ll never get this dog in the ring. You’ll never be able to compete with her, and I sat down one day and I was really kind of in tears and I said okay, this isn’t working. What are we going to do? How can I help you through this, and the moment I switched that in myself we just were away to the races. It wasn’t about getting her to do it, it was how can I help her through it, and I ended up taking her Top 10 Obedience Dogs in Canada twice, two years straight, and she ended up being the top obedience driven Shepard in Canada five years straight.
It was nice to be able to do that but at the same time it was, I guess, just sort of really in my heart that wow, when you don’t give up and you don’t listen to everybody and you just listen to the dog amazing things can happen, and I think that’s my proudest accomplishment, I guess, is working with Micha. She taught me so very much and I really appreciate her allowing me the gift of making all my mistakes with her, but we ended up on a high and I’ll never forget that dog ever, but that’s my proudest accomplishment so far.
Melissa Breau: I think that’s a pretty good one.
Melissa Breau: All right, so my next question is what is the best piece of training advice that you’ve ever heard?
Heather Lawson: Oh geez, there’s been so many different pieces. I guess the best is work with your dog, be a team, and don’t label your dog because you’ll limit their abilities. So you know how people will sometimes oh, it’s the breed. They just do that because they do that? I never try to label or limit what my dogs can do. I always assume that they’re going to rise to the occasion, that they’re going to do the best that they can, and I think that’s probably been the best advice because it’s taken me into different types of sports that I might not have ventured into with my dogs. One of my dogs I did nose work with, that was her thing, so if I had labeled her and said no, you’re going to do this, you’re not going to do that it might not have been the best thing for her but because I let her lead me where she wanted to go and I took what she had to give me we had loads of fun doing nose work and I learned new sport, so I always think of that as work with your dog and be a team, and then don’t label your dog because you’ll limit them and yourself.
Melissa Breau: My last question. You’re in a great position because I know you mentioned Sue earlier and you’ve been good friends with the Fenzi crew for a while now, I know you’re pretty involved, so who is someone else in the dog world that you look up to?
Heather Lawson: Somebody else in the dog world. Well, I’m not going to name names because I think…but what I find is that there’s no one specific individual. What I have done is I’ve been able to meet many different people, many fabulous trainers that I just go wow. Now that’s interesting, and that’s…what I do is I pick up all the little tidbits from all of these different trainers and I think that’s what’s the most important thing, because I don’t want to get caught up in a recipe because there is no recipe.
I could name different kinds of people but I think it’s better to say that I just pick up all the little tidbits along the way that pertain to me and my dogs at that particular time, and that way…and what works for me, because not one single dog trainer will have everything that I’m going to need, and so if I keep my mind open I’m going to get those little tidbits that’s going to make me and my dog better.
Melissa Breau: All right. Well, thank you, so much, for coming on the podcast, Heather.
Heather Lawson: You’re more than welcome. This was fun, a little bit nervous, but fun, exciting. I could talk dogs for hours.
Melissa Breau: Hey, me too.
Heather Lawson: I’ve had fun doing this. This was very enjoyable. Thanks for asking me on.
Melissa Breau: Thanks so much for coming on the podcast Heather -- and thanks to our listeners for tuning in. We’ll be back next week with Nancy Tucker to discuss greetings, separation anxiety, and behavior modification techniques that work for both parts of the human-canine team. If you haven’t already, subscribe to our podcast in iTunes or the podcast app of your choice to have our next episode automatically downloaded to your phone as soon as it becomes available. | 2019-04-23T09:56:19Z | http://fenzidogsports.libsyn.com/e25-heather-lawson-life-skills-and-training-concepts |
If I hadn’t been there to witness it, I probably wouldn’t believe this story was true.
In my limited common sense, I’d decided to take Goon with me to Borough market in the hope he would like the cool stuff there and perhaps even buy something other than ostrich for a change. I was also hoping to teach him where all the stalls were so I could send him shopping one Friday lunchtime.
But Goon wasn’t as impressed as I hoped he would be. He followed me around but didn’t pay much attention. He had some fun prodding some headless rabbits by the Furness game stall but lost interest after a few minutes.
I didn’t complain too much at his apathy. It was useful to have him there. It turns out that being accompanied by a 6ft 5 tall Goon, who is dressed like a hit man, makes the crowds get out of your way VERY quickly, which is a rather useful thing in Borough on a Saturday afternoon.
I didn’t get the response I expected.
“Huh? Cheese? Where’s the cheese?” I pointed towards the other side of the market.Two seconds later, Goon was gone.
I tried to follow, but without Goon’s ’dangerous’ look, I was stuck, moving at a snails pace with the rest of the crowd.
Fifteen minutes later I found him standing behind the counter of an Italian cheese stall. I wondered why the farmers had taken him back there. I was not happy when I found out. One of the farmers was gesticulating enthusiastically around a large cheese, looking very, very smug.
“…and then you cut it in half again…. and wrap this bit up very tightly….” he paused as I joined them behind the table. ”You a friend of his? I hope you like Gorgonzola.” My heart sank.
I couldn’t believe it. Goon had been out of my sight for fifteen minutes and he already managed to buy twelve kilos of one what was possibly the stinkiest blue cheese in the world. My stomach turned as I thought of the tube ride home.
The farmer heaved the cheese onto the weighing scales, which clearly were not designed for something of that size. “Well, that comes to… £98.43.” My jaw hit the floor. “Tell you what, give me £100 to make it easy and I’ll give you this goats cheese and throw in two of these too. He handed me a bag of what what appeared to be a buffalo milk cheese.
On the way home, Goon was being very protective of his cheese.
I don’t know why. Who in the world would try to steal 12kg of gorgonzola from a leather-clad giant?
The cheese was so stinky that, even though both Goon and I live in Hammersmith, I got the sudden urge to leave the train at Green Park, a good four miles away from my destination.
When I eventually got back to Goon’s and he opened the door, I was actually overwhelmed by the stench of cheese. Without a garage or a cellar, Goon had decided to store the gorgonzola in his living room.
As I’m sure you can guess, the other residents weren’t best pleased. Fortunately it turned out that the cheese wasn’t going to be there for much longer as Goon was going to give it to his dad as a birthday present.
So Goon’s poor father is probably at this moment carrying a twelve kilo cheese on the train from London to Leeds. I suppose the upside is he’ll get a carriage to himself!
I think that, when I make a journey to Borough Market, I should avoid asking Goon what he’d like. This is because he always says the same thing: bloody ostrich fillet.
Yes, I do like ostrich fillet. It is gorgeous stuff but, since it is so expensive (about £10 to feed the two of us) I feel the need to do something really exciting with it whenever we have it. To begin with this wasn’t a problem, but now we’ve had ostrich lots of times and I’m running low on inspiration.
I think this is a shame. It is a waste of the great flavour of ostrich. After all, we don’t generally use beef as a lamb substitute or vice versa, so why is ostrich used as a beef substitute? Since lamb and beef have fundamentally different flavours, I would neither sub beef into a classic lamb dish, ike roast lamb wiht mint sauce, nor top lamb with a port and stilton sauce. The same goes for ostrich.
For some reason, not many people feel the same way, which is a shame because ostrich has a beautiful distinctive flavour. True, it bears a passing resemblance to beef (especially when overcooked) but the flavour is lighter with a sort of gamey ‘kick’ to it. I think it is rather like a cross between duck and beef but a little sweeter than either.
It was the beef and duck flavours I had in mind when I made this dish. I knew that duck is frequently served with wild mushrooms (an idea which quite appeals to me) and I’ve had beef fillet in brandy-cream sauce many times already. A combination of the two sounded like just what I needed for the ostrich.
Now I know I’ve mentioned that ostrich is a very dark meat. I think it’s about time I qualified that statement.
See? Very, very dark! And not all that appealing in that state.
To turn it from that slug-like object into something very tasty, only two minutes of pan-frying per side (on the highest hob setting) are needed followed by about 5 minutes of resting in a warm place wrapped in kitchen foil. This really is a meat which is best eaten rare.
I made the sauce for the ostrich by gently frying half a finely diced onion with a minced garlic clove until soft then stirring in about 40g dried wild mushrooms that had been soaked in boiling water for about 10 minutes. Then I added about 100ml double cream, a little soaking liquid from the mushrooms and about 50 mls beef stock.
I let this reduce until we had a nice thick sauce then added a big slug of brandy which I had flambéed in the pan I used to cook the ostrich. I served the steak topped with the mushroom sauce alongside some wild rice and sauteed green beans.
This dish suprised me so much! I thought I’d seen the best of ostrich, but I was wrong. The flavours here were great. They complemented the ostrich’s beefy flavour without overwhelming the sweet gaminess. I was very happy indeed and can thoroughly recommend this combination.
One thing to note is that is important to use a reasonable brandy for this - nothing too expensive but definitely not ‘cooking brandy.’ It is the only way I’ve been able to get brandy sauce to work, cheap brandies seem to make the sauce lose its flavour pretty quickly.
Scene: Goon is making himself a snack of grilled calamari and is getting out some baking foil to put it on.
BLONDE FLATMATE: Can you put kitchen foil in the microwave?
GOON: This says aluminium kitchen foil. Putting metal in the microwave is bad.
BLONDE FLATMATE: Is aluminium foil made of metal?
Goon likes his blonde flatmate. She makes him look very clever.
Oh no! I’ve become stuck in a duck with fruit rut! The one exception to this was the spontaneous curried duck but I was very drunk when I made that, so I’m not sure if it counts.
In desperation to get out of this dangerous habit, I went looking around the internet for ideas. It seems that most of the world was ALSO stuck in a duck with fruit rut. There are a few recipes for duck with port but even they seems to involve cassis. There were some red wine reductions suggested too but, meh, boring!
beautiful bright pink rhubarb. It had been ages since I’d cooked with it. The last time had been in a rhubarb crumble I made about three years ago. I imagined the tanginess going really well with my duck and to make it even better, rhubarb isn’t a fruit, it’s a vegetable, so i would be out of the fruit rut!
The only problem I could see was that Goon didn’t like rhubarb and, let’s face it, it isn’t as easy to disguise as figs are.
Later on at home, Goon was looking very suspiciously at the rhubarb. ”Rhubarb’s sour!” he said. Apparently there’d been bad childhood experiences with rhubarb crumble. So I did what I thought best, and ignored him.
Looking through my cupboards, I found a few chunks of stem ginger to add to my rhubarb compote, which turned out to be remarkably simple to make. I simmered the rhubarb, ginger and a sprig of rosemary together in some cider with loads of sugar until the rhubarb was soft.
Then I poured off the excess water and removed the rosemary. Finally I pan fried the duck breasts to rare (well, verging on medium this time perhaps) and served them with the compote and sides of some asparagus sauteed with garlic and gratin dauphinoise.
Yay, pink! \o/ The crazy pink colour of the compote was enough to get Goon to try some. The gingery flavour alonside the tanginess was enough to keep him eating it. Who needs artifical colours and flavours when you’ve got stem ginger and rhubarb? It was lovely with the duck and the creamy dauphinoise was a really good accompaniment. We washed it all down with an equally pink and slightly sweet Californian rosé.
I’ve decided to put this up for weeked herb blogging, which this week is being hosted by Ed at Tomato . So, to make it educational, here are some interesting facts about rhubarb.
Apparently rhubarb wasn’t eaten before the 17th Century, when sugar became readily available to most people. I guess that makes sense: it’s pretty damn sour by itself. It contains a fair bit of oxalic acid, which in high doses is a neurotoxin, although you’d have to eat about 5kg of rhubarb leaves (or even more of the shoots) to have any harmful effects. There’s still enough in rhubarb stems to strip your teeth a little though!
The rhubarb bought at this time of year is ‘forced’ to grow out of season by increasing the temperature around the plant. This is done by covering the plant with an upturned bucket. Forced rhubab is more tender and more brightly coloured than that grown in season. Traditionally, this first rhubarb of the year is grown in the ‘Rhubarb Triangle’ of Leeds, Wakefield and Morely.
And, quite annoyingly, even though rhubarb was always considered a vegetable in the past, this changed in the 1940s. When the plant was exported to the States, the confused officials didn’t know how to classify it. They decided it should be classified on how it was eaten. So I guess, technically, if I’d eaten my compote in America, I would have been eating a fruit and I’d still feel stuck in a rut.
For once, I’m glad I’m in England!
…..when this happens to you.
I was cooking a chinese meal at Goon’s the other night and was busily stir-frying some vegetables, when one of Goon’s flat mates walked in. This girl is a ‘Value’ addict - and I mean ADDICT. Pretty much everything she buys is of the blue stripey label variety or similar smaller store versions.
“REALLY?” Poor girl was obviously confused.
A fairly long silence followed.
And she shuffled off, apparently a little embarrased. I could read this in two ways.
I’m a genious cook who can make salted rice taste amazing.
Eating Value products on a daily basis is so utterly hideous that plain and simple things like rice boiled in salt water taste fantastic in comparison.
As much as I’d love to believe point 1, I have to accept that it probably is the value effect.
So the lesson for today is: If you’re bored of what you’re eating, here’s a simple solution. Go Value for a week and then you’ll find everything you cook after that tastes amazing.
What? You don’t know rampeh leaf? I guess that’s OK. I didn’t know what it was until a few years ago, which is quite embarrassing given my Sri Lankan heritage.
Rampeh, otherwise known as pandanus amaryllifolius ,or screwpine, is a tree that grows in South East Asia. They can look pretty damn bizarre as they’ve got roots that stick out into the air, like a mangrove tree. The leaves have a very distinctive smell, which is caramel-like and nutty, and for this reason they’re cultivated and used to flavour food.
I mostly come across rampeh in Sri Lankan cookery, although I’ve seen it mentioned in Thai and Indonesian recipes as well. Usually, a few inches of the leaf are tied into a little knot and fried up with spices in the early stages of making curries.
Before this week, I’d never cooked with rampeh before, mostly because it’s a bit of a nuisance to find in Britain. You need to go to a specialist shop and even they seem to run out of it reasonably quickly. But, oddly enough, Dad had come across a shop which stocked loads of the stuff, in Paris of all places! So he brought home a load and I took a few leaves for myself, in time to use them for Weekend Herb Blogging.
Since everyone in the world apart from me already knew what weekend herb blogging was before Scott at Real Epicurean decided to host it, I don’t there’s any point in me saying much about it. If you don’t know about it yet, then get with it already! Start by reading this post at Kalyn’s Kitchen and Scott’s post here.
Anyway, since I conveniently had my rampeh, I thought I’d take the opportunity to make a authentic (hopefully) Sri-Lankan chicken curry. I did this a few months back, long before I got the hang of this photography business. I didn’t have rampeh then, so it seemed a good dish to try to find out what difference rampeh really made.
My parents make a load of Sri-Lankan curry powder in one go to save time. I don’t make Sri Lankan curries often enough to do this so I tend to do enough for the one curry I’m making that day. The spices above (cumin, mustard, cinnamon, cloves and cardamom seeds) are dry roasted in a pan seperately until golden brown to enhance their flavour and then ground together into a fine powder. In that picture there should also be fennel and coriander seed but Goon was still rooting around in the cupboards for those when I took the picture.
The powder you get is much darker than normal curry powder from the local store. The roasting gives it this deeper colour and also enhances the flavour and aroma.
So now to make the curry. I used skinned chicken thighs and drumsticks for this because, wherever you go in Sri-Lanka, that is what the chicken curry is made from. I have NO IDEA what the hell they do with the breast and wings, but I’ve certainly never seen them in a genuine Sri-Lankan curry!
The recipe for the Sri Lankan Chicken Curry (Kukul Mas) has been here for ages. I tweaked it just now to include the rampeh. Serve it with kiribath (or string hoppers if you’re lucky enough to have them) and curried lentils or vegetables.
The verdict on Rampeh: There was a definite difference in flavour between the curry without rampeh and this one, but it’s very hard to describe. Nuttier maybe? I don’t know - the flavour is so unique. Anyway, it was a GOOD flavour.
So, my rampeh leaves have now gone in the freezer until the next time I want them, along with some nice looking curry leaves that I’d used to make the lentil side dish for this meal. I’m actually scared by how much that curry looks like the chicken I’d find in Sri-Lanka. Particulary the dodgy ones you can buy from the little roadside “hotels,” which are damn tasty but tend to leave you bathroom-bound for a few days after.
Fortunately there was none of that with this meal… just tasty, spicy chicken and lentils with creamy, garlicky kiribath, washed down with a nice medium Riesling from Jacob’s Creek.
Up until now, Goon has always insisted his steaks are cooked for longer than mine. I think that’s probably fair considering I tend to take the ’show it the pan’ approach to cooking certain meats. But with tuna, this is no longer the case. Goon now likes his tuna seared and it’s all to do with this fab Ramsey recipe.
It’s a classic really, seared tuna in a mustard, honey and soy coating with crushed black peppercorns pressed into the fish, served with braised and caramelised chicory. If you happen to have the book ‘Secrets,’ do try this recipe. It is really delicious and doesn’t look too bad either!
One thing you may have picked up from reading this blog is that, in spite of the fact I like to design things in pink, I am NOT what you’d describe as a girly-girl.
As you know, I’ll eat pretty much anything. Liver, kidneys, hearts and cute fluffy animals all appear on my table on a fairly regular basis. Sometimes said animals haven’t been properly jointed or gutted, and I’ll happily reach in and pull out whatever needs removing. This has caused a small problem when I’ve been cooking for Goon at his flat.
Goon tries a bit harder to keep her happy. A recent scenario went as follows. The girl walks in as Goon had finished jointing a rabbit and was putting it in the freezer.
GIRL You’re lying aren’t you?
GIRL Oh my days! EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
I’m afraid that, when this young lady is around, I have to fight very hard to keep the opinionated sod inside of me quiet. I mean, come on. Animals have blood! She eats animals! I don’t really appreciate someone who eats intensively reared pork and poultry on an almost daily basis telling me that it’s disgusting to eat game (I don’t have a problem with people eating intensively reared meat - just this girl’s inconsistency). Then again, she’s the kind of person who probably thinks the breadcrumbed chicken breaststeaks she eats were grown in a petri dish somewhere free of any skin, bones or bodily fluids.
I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to go off on one. The whole point of that little rant was so that I could tell you how the special name for this lovely stew came into being.
I was looking for something to make for the new blogging event, ‘Waiter, waiter, there’s something in my……. . This was dreamt up by Jeane at Cook Sister!, Johanna at The Passionate Cook and Andrew at Spitoon and Spitton Extra. The first event is all about stew and Andrew is hosting it.
I decided I wanted to make a venison, or similar rich game stew since its nearly the end of the season and I had a couple of ‘affordable’ bottles of port lying around after Christmas. I found a pack of mixed game from Manor Farm Game, which seemed to be mostly venison with some rabbit and pigeon. I thought it would be great stewed up with a rich port sauce and lots of wintery spice.
So, my stew was simmering away in Goon’s kitchen when Miss Squeamish arrived back. She commented on the smell in kitchen (it did smell fantastic ) and asked me what I was making. I wasn’t particularly in the mood to deal with a squealing idiot so I half mumble something about game stew, hoping to God she’d bugger off. She didn’t quite hear me and enquired again.
By now, a vague memory had crept into my mind of something James and Kirsten’s dad said to wind up his daughter many years ago. I knew I shouldn’t say it. But I couldn’t help myself.
I had just enough time to exit the kitchen before she procesed what I’d just said and a 150 decibel scream EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! filled the entire building.
So that’s how my dinner for that night was christened Bambi and Thumper stew. Waiter, waiter there’s something in my stew! It appears to be a couple of cute and loveable Disney characters.
Now for the important bit: the recipe for Bambi and Thumper Stew. It’s a dish I have made a few times but the recipe is always part improvised. Here’s how I did it this time. This feeds one Goon and one of me, or three people with normal appetites.
The day before you want to eat the stew, take 450g of diced Bambi, Thumper and/or other assorted game and marinate it in a mixture of ruby port, red wine, half a small, finely diced onion and 1 sprig of rosemary. I used about a 50-50 mixure of port and wine.
About two and a half hours before you want to eat, slice the other half of the onion into thin half-rings and sautee it gently in butter with 3 tsp allspice, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, seven or eight crushed juniper berries, the leaves of one sprig of rosemary and a couple of sprigs of thyme leaves. When the onion is nearly soft add a couple fo handfuls of sliced chestnut mushrooms. When the veg is cooked, turn up the heat and brown the meat in the pan, then strain in the liquid from the marinade. Stir in a tablespoon of redcurrant jelly, a few squares of 80% cocoa chocolate, add a stick of cinnamon and a couple of bay leaves and top up with beef or lamb stock.
Bring this to a very gentle simmer (as gentle as you can get it) , cover it and let it stew for about one and a half hours, until the meat is juicy and tender.
Take off the lid, add a tablespoon of cornflour paste and let the stew reduce and thicken for 20 minutes or so.
See, easy! And very very tasty in a port-soaked kind of way! The meat was beautifully tender with extra richness from the port and warmth from the cinnamon and allspice.I served it with lots of creamy mashed potato and a full bodied fruity red wine.
The girly-girl better watch out this week. I’ve been to Borough and I have a whole octopus!
Why oh why did I start cooking for a Goon?
Last night I was making a nice stew (more on that later ) and I was running a bit short on rosemary, cinnamon and garlic, so I called Goon and asked him to pick some up. Goon arrived with the cinnamon and garlic. There hadn’t been any rosemary in the shop. That was ok, I was expecting the little Tesco Metro to not be too well stocked.
What I wasn’t expecting was to have all this dumped in front of me.
I have more herbs than I could possibly use before they all go off. We don’t even have any freezer space.
Goon still hasn’t learnt that rosemary tastes substantially different to things like tarragon and coriander. It seems I need to give him more kitchen training.
I guess I didn’t get through the last time he did something like this.
The parsley would be useable if I didn’t already have another massive pack in the fridge. I see a fair number of pestos and herb crusts being made in the near future. Anyone know what to do with a huge pack of dill when you don’t have any fish?
When I’m supposed to be marking, I faff around making things like this instead.
This is a really delighful dish of venison, named after the region it originally came from: Baden-Baden in Germany. The recipe was very kindly translated for me by ‘BlackForestJules’ on the BBC food boards who happens to live in that area of the world.
I had bought a venison haunch steak that I was looking to find a new recipe for. As usual the internet was yielding very little and I was feeling a bit uninspired but I remembered that dish had been mentioned on the message boards so I went looking for it and then Jules translated a version for me.
Skin the saddle of venison. Rub the meat with salt, pepper and the juniper berries. Cover with the smoked ham. Preheat the oven to 180 C° (top and bottom heat). Put the venison into a casserole and put into the oven for 30 mins. Add the sour cream and put back into the oven for 15-20 mins. In the meantime, peel, half and core the pears. Rub the cut side with lemon juice and cinnamon. Stew the halved pears until they are soft, but take care so they don't fall apart. Take the venison out of the oven and put it on a serving platter. Check if the sauce needs seasoning and pour it over the meat. Arrange the pears around it, cut side up, and fill a dollop of redcurrant jelly into the hollows.
Serve with Spätzle (broad, fresh egg pasta is nice with it, too, though), Brussels sprouts or other seasonal veg.
I altered this slightly to suit my haunch steak. Instead of roasting the meat, I griddled it until rare. I fried up some bacon to put in with the cabbage that I used to accompany the dish and added the pan juices from both these meats to some sour cream for the sauce. I ended up using some beef stock in the sauce too. The pears were done in the same way as the recipe suggests but, as you can see I messed around with the presentation a little.
I wanted to try making spaetzle but it was a Sunday evening and the small stores that were open didn’t have any eggs, so that was out of the question. It had to be fresh tagliatelle tossed with lots of butter and parsley instead.
Like I said, I spent lots of time faffing with the presentation, which was a bit annoying because as soon as Goon got his plate, he just dumpled a load of tagliatelle over it and started munching. His looked prettier than mine too!
Anyway, this is a great way to serve venison - I really recommend it. Tenderloin or saddle would be even better to use if I could afford it, but for now I’ll just have to stick to whatever I can buy! | 2019-04-25T12:46:12Z | http://www.roshani.co.uk/livingtoeat/index.php/2007/01/ |
Rapidly rising undergraduate fees and textbook costs are serious factors impeding access to higher education for many students. In particular, high textbook costs are a serious barrier for under-served, at-risk students. The amount students are asked to pay for textbooks overburdens governmental and familial financial resources. A 2005 US Government Accountability Office study estimated that the average annual cost of textbooks for a student in 2003-04 was $898 at four-year colleges with an average 3.8-year lifespan per textbook. Textbook costs continue to rise at a rate twice of inflation; according to the College Board, the average budget for textbooks and supplies during the 2012-2013 was $1,200. The high cost leads many students to sell their textbooks onto the secondary market to raise money for the next semester’s book budget.
While open-access textbook resources are clearly beneficial in reducing educational costs, additional pedagogical benefits make their development and use additionally appealing to both faculty and students. Ideally, open-access textbook resources could be used to guide students toward a centralized and integrated "enhanced learning environment" capable of not only providing vetted textbook materials, but also capable of self-consistently tracking student-specific activity and performance to identify weaknesses in study habits. The proposed LibreTexts project is one such resource that upon sufficient development can provide exceptional flexibility in addressing current and future education needs. Moreover, the LibreTexts provides a powerful platform for digital evaluation of cross-disciplinary learning and can be leveraged as a powerful mechanism for the dissemination of content and evaluation of emerging education technologies and pedagogies.
Authorship and development are done by both students and faculty. The content of these libraries is both horizontally (across multiple fields) and vertically (across multiple levels of complexity) integrated within a massively interconnected network that provides, not just single textbooks, but an infinitely large library through which interconnected textbooks can be built. Grounded in social constructivism, the Libretexts project allow learners to cooperatively construct and organize knowledge. Because of their flexible and modular-based approach to instruction, the LibreTexts provides an important alternative to the “one-size-fits-all” approach to instruction where content is presented in a static prepackaged manner. LibreTexts is a next-generation learning system that promotes personalized, flexible, and interactive learning experiences.
Figure 1: (Left) The Libretexts project encompasses 12 pseudo-independently operating “Libraries” dedicated toward enhancing post-secondary education in all fields of study. (Right) The LibreTexts project has confirmed over half a millennium of students reading and has served 180 million pages since 2008.
The LibreText project consists of 12 pseudo-independently operating and interconnected libraries that host over 42,000 (web) pages of content in specific fields with a current emphasis on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. Given that the greater Libretexts has evolved from the ChemWiki project, with an emphasis on chemistry textbooks, it is not surprising that the chemistry library is currently most developed library. The chemistry library hosts approximately 80% of the project’s content and is responsible for 90% of current web traffic with an accumulated 200 million pageviews (approximately 4.5 million per month) and over a millennium of confirmed reading since 2008. Libraries containing content from other STEM disciplines have also been developing rapidly over the short time that the project has been expanded to the multidisciplinary LibreText platform.
Each library is developed around the same general organization centered around three principal components: (1) the Core, (2) the Libretexts and (3) the Textbook maps. However, other key components include Exercises, Worksheets, Exemplars/Case Studies, Visualizations, and Demonstrations/Labs. There is also an extensive set of reference tables along with the Periodic Table of Elements accessed at the top bar of any page in the library.
The LibreTexts core content is separated into the primary disciplinary sections and is meant as supplementary material to augment the LibreTexts (that are custom designed and developed "textbooks" for individual instructors, classes or schools) or Textbook Maps (content organized to "recreate" existing textbooks).
LibreTexts are custom developed for individual instructors/classes and schools. Faculty do not need to recreate the wheel to generate a LibreText for their class and can peruse the existing LibreTexts; then these can be adapted to the instructor’s specific desires.
Textbook Maps are an attempt to recreate the content structure of existing textbooks to facilitate adoption.
We separate the Textmaps in terms six broad categories discussed below with associated testimonials.
We classify GOB (general-organic-biology) and introductory chemistry courses as free-standing courses that focus on a less rigorous presentation of content. We have two GOB texts in the system: the Ball et al. text and the CK-12 text. The non-GOB texts include another CK-12 text and another Ball’s text along with Young’s “Introductory Chemistry Online” text. Several textmaps that re-envision existing commercial textbooks are under development in this category with Tro’s “Introductory Chemistry” text as the most developed (organized in part by Marisa Agnew at Sacramento City College). Below are three testimonials regarding the application of the LibreTexts into GOB or Introductory Chemistry courses.
University of Kentucky (Allison Soult): My classroom is an active learning (flipped) classroom so having access to resources such as the content of my LibreText are essential for my students both in and out of the classroom. Whether it is for assigned readings, using reference data, or looking up terms, the students can easily access the appropriate section of the book with one click from our learning management system. The flexibility of this strategy allows me to custom design my course materials in the way I wish to teach. The ability to edit it in real time allows me the opportunity to update content and provide additional information (or remove unnecessary information) for students as needed throughout the semester.
Sacramento City College (Dianne Bennett): I began working in the summer of 2014 to develop a LibreText for my Chemistry 309 course at Sacramento City College (SCC). Chem 309 is a content heavy course for allied health students, which surveys general, organic, and biochemistry in a single semester to prepare students for anatomy, physiology, and microbiology. In addition, Chem 309 is part of an Allied Health Learning Community (AHLC) as a pathway from high school to allied health career programs.
The Chem 309 LibreText has supported innovations in teaching in my class. Student success for a very high-risk student demographic increased by 250% using a flipped format that was supported by a LibreText. LibreTexts also provide additional insights into student learning habits that help us continue to develop and innovate how we teach. This type of information cannot be found through traditional texts. It is also important to know that 67% of the students at SCC live at or below the poverty level. Students are saving approximately $17,000 each semester in my Chem 309 courses. Since the fall of 2014, students have saved over $100,000 from the Chem 309 LibreText. While students greatly appreciate this financial savings, student surveys also show that students recognize the additional benefits of their LibreText.
Diablo Valley College (Ron Rusay): For my “Chemistry for Non-Science Majors” course (Chem-106), we use the Libretext as a platform for student engagement. The general vocabulary assignment is to define and build a comprehensive list of the Key Vocabulary Terms from lectures & Libretext or library resources, which are pertinent to and used in Chem 106. Other projects are posted and edited via personal accounts on a “private” in-course page as graded assignments. Student then used the vocabularies as exam questions after being reviewed and vetted for accuracy; they are then made public.
Significant effort has been placed on developing and optimizing the general chemistry content on the LibreTexts. Since General Chemistry courses cover content across a wide range of chemistry sub-fields, no specific “General Chemistry” section exists in the Core although the content has been organized in corresponding sub-fields. The General Chemistry Textmaps include the integration of OpenStax textbooks (both Atom’s first and “traditional” organized), Stephen Lower’s “Chem1” virtual text, John Moore’s “ChemPrime”, Melanie Cooper and Mike Klymkowsky’s “CLUE” text, and Averill and Eldridge’s “Chemistry” text among many other contributions. Working Textmaps have been constructed for Brown and LeMay’s “Chemistry” Text, Tro’s “A Molecular Approach” text, Oxtoby’s Text and Petrucci’s “General Chemistry” text. Students have used these resources in many general chemistry courses across the world and have avoided many millions of dollars to date in textbooks expenses. Below are four testimonials regarding the application of the LibreTexts in General Chemistry courses.
Mount Royal University (Brett McCollum): Many of our students at Mount Royal University struggle to afford postsecondary tuition, and even more avoid purchasing textbooks due to financial barriers. This widespread student behavior has a profound effect on instructional pedagogy. After learning of the LibreTexts project, I was able to curate and create content appropriate for my class. Within four months, my LibreTexts was used by 50,000 learners in over 30 countries. My students appreciated that the text was free, that it was accessible anywhere with an internet connection, that it was tailored to our course, and that the quality was comparable to a commercial textbook. The next semester, LibreTexts was adopted by four more faculty in my department, and even more the following semester. Since hearing testimonials from MRU students, other disciplines on campus are now investigating the process for transitioning to LibreTexts. We estimate that LibreTexts has saved our students over one quarter of a million dollars.
Valley City State University (Samuel Keasler): I’ve been using a Libretext for general chemistry for the last two years, involving about 25 students total, and have adopted a LibreText for use in my non-majors introductory chemistry class this past fall, involving another 20 students. The experience has been overwhelmingly positive and I’ll be continuing to use and update them in the future.
The fact that students do not have to pay for a commercial textbook is an obvious benefit of a format like this. Less obvious, but just as important, is the pedagogical advantages of a customizable, webbased resource. If the cost savings were the only advantage, there are other open textbooks available. The reason I’ve gone to the effort of assembling a LibreText is that I’m excited about the opportunity to create the resource best suited to the classes and students that I’m teaching. I think that a major reason the LibreText project has been so successful and has grown so much is the work that Dr. Larsen is doing to assist faculty like me in getting our texts up and running.
One of my teaching goals for the next few years is to directly integrate some of the video content I’ve developed into the text alongside other more interactive supplements. This has the potential to make students more active while reading and improve comprehension, which is essential for the successful implementation of a flipped classroom. There is no other platform that offers this level of flexibility, and it’s that flexibility and the open licensing of all the content that makes the site such a valuable tool for innovative chemistry teaching. Faculty can build resources that meet the needs of their students and adapt these resources, as their teaching requires. With relatively little effort, faculty can add, remove, and rearrange topics, change how content is presented, and add new supplements. This adaptability is crucial for faculty who want to try new things.
Not only can faculty use Libretexts as a valuable tool to improve their own teaching, but the open content makes the site a hub for sharing ideas and looking at what other faculty are doing. In a matter of minutes, I can look at ten different ways of presenting a concept and if one of them is particularly appealing, I can integrate it directly into my own course.
Howard University (Joshua B. Halpern): With my collaborators at Prince George's Community College, Scott Sinex and Scott Johnson, we built a LibreText General Chemistry book for a one-semester course for engineers. It is the first of a new, coordinated engineering curriculum, integrating Introduction to Engineering, Chemistry, Physics and Calculus taken by engineering students. Particularly in the case of chemistry, the normal courses assume that students do not know many things that engineering students do such as the SI system, emphasize many things that are superfluous to most engineers such as biochemistry, repeat things that they will encounter in other courses such as General Physics and, because most engineers only take the first semester, leave out important topics such as chemical kinetics and equilibrium. Our Atoms First text starts by discussing atomic structure, the periodic table and molecules. After this, chapters describe states of matter and simple chemical reactions, followed by discussion of chemical kinetics, equilibrium, thermodynamics, electrochemistry, and nuclear chemistry using materials science examples and applications relevant to engineering. Tailoring of the text to engineering students enables teaching at a higher level including the calculus and encompassing almost the entire intellectual content of the normal two-semester General Chemistry course.
Integrate YouTube videos including self-made problem solving videos showing various techniques and other videos that I found on the web.
Mixing Q&A format in with normal textbook format. I think digital native students who have so much information readily available and find this format is easier to navigate for certain topics. LibreText allowed me to integrate the Fourth Paradigm of Science into my course textbook. This complements the more traditional format.
Integrate Lab Material into my text. Create calibration and technique videos for lab equipment and link to videos through QR codes that can be placed into the lab manual or taped to the laboratory equipment. This will allow better integration of lecture with lab activity. The Libretexts also hosted ChemCollective Virtual Lab Activity. Note, students are assigned unknown numbers, and this is a prelab activity.
We are in the process of integrate hypothes.is, a social annotation technology, into the system that will create a class group in hypothes.is and will require students to annotate readings before class and use these annotations to help “flip” class. Integration of hypothes.is has been successful into Drupal homepage to aggregate annotations (see next paper of this Newsletter). This new infrastructure will create homepage for each chapter that aggregates annotations on any page in LibreText, or open access resource on the web. It will also filter annotations in aggregator by tag that allows me to navigate LibreText and other material in class based on student annotations.
Significant effort has been placed on developing the organic chemistry content. The Organic Chemistry Core has been recently restructured. The Textmaps included the recently completed Basic Principles of Organic Chemistry by Roberts and Caserio, Tim Soderberg’s Organic Chemistry with a Biological Emphasis and William Reusch’s Virtual Textbook of OChem among others. Recently effort has been placed on developing the Textmap for McMurry’s Organic Chemistry for use on several campuses. Development of the organic content on the LibreText has been slower than the Introductory and General chemistry content, but we are making steady progress. Below are four testimonials regarding the application of the LibreTexts in Organic Chemistry courses.
University of Minnesota, Morris (Tim Soderberg): Organic Chemistry With a Biological Emphasis has undergone a complete revision over the past several years, as I have rewritten many sections and added a substantial number of in-chapter exercises and end-of-chapter problems, and written introductory passages to each chapter in which I attempt to 'bring to life' the material of that chapter in the context of an interesting real-life story. Most recently, I have completed revisions on solutions to all in-chapter exercises and selected end-of-chapter problems. The next step is to finish loading the new content onto the LibreText platform.
University of Illinois at Springfield (Layne A. Morsch): In summer of 2015, I adopted the LibreTexts as the textbook for my Organic Chemistry 1 course. Through use of the LibreText, my students have continued to grow in their understanding of organic chemistry as well as learning valuable skills in digital literacy. As I witnessed the students’ exam scores unchanged from previous courses where I used a traditional textbook, I decided to expand use of the LibreText to two additional courses. In addition to the technological training and data access from the LibreText, the economic value cannot be overlooked. Compared to buying new textbooks, my students have saved over $90,000 from our use of the LibreTexts. This is of particular value on our campus as the #1 reason students are not retained from one term to the next is financial. Shifting to high quality Open Educational Resources (OER), like the LibreText, is reducing the financial burden on our students. It is also highly valuable that the access to information does not end when the semester ends and many students report that they refer back to the freely available materials when they study for MCAT and GRE exams. Having the LibreText has also allowed me to monitor when my students are studying by examining pageview data. I could not get this sort of data when we used a traditional textbook.
Purdue University (Mark Lipton & Paul Wenthold): We noted that our students’ first source of information for our classes was no longer the assigned textbook but rather it was a Google search, which led almost inexorably to Wikipedia. The second was that I had just radically redesigned my organic chemistry class and no existing textbook adequately reflected the organization of my class. The class I teach is a two-semester organic chemistry sequence for Chemistry majors here at Purdue University. Typically, this class has 70-90 of our Chemistry majors in it. I have now used the LibreText I created for my class for three years. In that time, student test scores have increased and student evaluations indicate strongly positive support for the LibreText and its value. Anecdotally, many students have told me that they turn to the LibreText rather than Wikipedia and its Google ranking reflects that (it’s often the #1 hit in a Google search for a given topic in organic chemistry). In sheer numbers, my LibreText pages are getting 432 page views per day in the first semester and 787 page views per day in the second semester. That works out to about 5-6 and 10 page views per student per day, respectively. As a user, I found the LibreText easy to establish and the content already present on the site sufficient to create a “textbook” that mirrors the eclectic organization of my class. At this point, I have absolutely no desire to return to a printed text and am firmly committed to the use of the LibreText site.
Athabasca University (Dietmar Kennepohl): I teach organic chemistry for about 250 students per year who are now using a LibreTexts that is custom designed for them. The LibreTexts is much more than just a new technology for teaching and learning. Its approach of continuously building educational materials through collaborations and contributions from both teachers and students is an academic ideal. It moves the textbook away from merely a commercial product to be consumed to a vehicle of participation and engagement that also happens to have a strong social mandate of accessibility.
The Analytical Chemistry core is currently being expanded to with content from the Analytical Sciences Digital Library and the outstanding Chromedia website. We have multiple smaller projects that have been or are in the process of being integrated in the Core. The LibreText project has not been used as the exclusive textbook for any analytical chemistry course (to our knowledge), although David Harvey’s “Analytical Chemistry 2.0” Textbook has been in the library for several years and has recently been upgraded. This summer a development team will be focusing on constructing the Textmap for Skoog’s Principle of Instrumental Analysis” text, which has recently been referred to as the most expensive chemistry textbook at over $400 on many campuses. The LibreText system has been used for much of the past decade to host the lab manual for UCD’s Instrumental Analysis (Chem 115) class and has recently been expanded to include the lab manual for the introductory Analytical chemistry course (Chem 105). Below is a testimonial regarding the application of the Libretexts in an Analytical Chemistry course.
University of California, Davis (Kristie Kosti): For my instrumental analysis course (Chem 115), I used the Libretext laboratory manual that was specifically written for UC Davis without any additional editing to the site. The nice part about the LibreTexts is that it is in html code and easy to fix for the next time the course is taught. As a benefit to the students and to this lab manual in the future, I gave extra credit asking the students to keep track of things they would change in the manual to make it clearer to the next generation of student users. The students enjoyed being able to interact with the lab manual in this way. The neatest part was seeing students generate images and photos to help update the manual. It really is not easy to do that with any other manual.
The Physical Chemistry Core has been under developed since the beginning on the project, in part since a poorly crafted and expensive at the time physical chemistry for biologists textbook was the impetus for initiating the project. The available Physical Chemistry Textmaps range from DeVoe’s “Thermodynamics” text, Simon al al.’s Advanced Theoretical Chemistry and Quantum Mechanic texts, Zielinksi’s Quantum Text, and Valance’s Symmetry notes. Under construction are two Textmaps that have garnered some interest recently: McQuarrie and Simon’s Physical Chemistry Textmap and Atkin’s Physical Chemistry textmap. Both of which are incomplete, although the McQuarrie textmap has been used for four Introductory Quantum (Chem 110A) courses and one second quarter Quantum course at UCD. Below are two testimonials regarding the application of the Libretexts in Physical Chemistry courses.
(i) Individual Course Website and Lecture Host - A “Libretext” site can be set-up for an individual class where an instructor can generate their own text/textbook while integrating many of the figures, videos, and problems at other parts on the LibreTexts. Each course can then be directly edited and adapted to the student body that it serves. The adaptation is generally that LibreTexts is a textbook substitute and lecture note repository. The instructor intimately controls the direction of the students learning. It allows videos and messaging (which you can’t get from a normal textbook even with the fancy DVD and online resources that cost the students extra).
(iii) Resource repository - LibreTexts is an enormous repository of problems, figures, text, videos, and online resources. These single resources can be directly integrated into a Powerpoint lecture, problem set, or other. Students can be referred to more reading. Equations are saved as a mathtex. For someone who uses LaTex a lot, it means equation code can be copied and pasted (eliminating errors in PPT files or other lecture media). This is my own personal favorite way to use the LibreTexts.
In using the LibreTexts in all of these different iterations, I have found that it is a very flexible tool with an almost infinite multitude of usability. The amount of data, homeworks, lecture notes, videos, and other materials uploaded by other faculty at other institutions is substantial. I believe the Libretexts is a larger-than-life learning resource that has the potential to really alter the way that teaching and learning is performed.
Development of the Inorganic content in the LibreTexts has been slow, but steady. The Inorganic Core is full of content and recently, we have integrated Bertini et al.’s Bioinorganic Chemistry textbook into the system and the Wikibook’s Inorganic Chemistry built in Pennsylvania State University. A goal this summer is to complete the Textmap for Housecroft’s “Inorganic Chemistry” textbook.
Saint Mary’s College (Kathryn Haas): My students and I initially found LibreText’s Chemistry library useful in supplementing the traditional text in my Advanced Inorganic Chemistry course, beginning in 2013. More recently I had the opportunity to develop a new interdisciplinary Bioinorganic and Materials Chemistry (BMC) course, for which an ideal traditional text does not exist. The first iteration of the BMC course heavily relied on LibreText and other web-based materials in addition to a rather expensive traditional textbook. Students in this first rendition of the course were disappointed with the cost and content of the traditional textbook and commented that they preferred the content (and no cost) from the web-based tools like LibreText and Wikipedia. After attending one of Dr. Larson’s workshops and learning how to customize LibreText to my liking, I built and used a custom LibreText for the latest rendition of BMC in Fall 2016, and used this LibreText as the only required resource for BMC. Although the LibreText for this course is still in a fledgling state, students thanked me regularly for using this free resource which was customized to their needs. Further, the LibreText has transformed my teaching and has been essential to my ability to evolve an interdisciplinary course to the students’ and my needs and interests without the constraining “walls” of a traditional text. I was able to easily pull from and customize material already in the interdisciplinary LibreText libraries and was able to write new content, with student help, when desired topics did not yet exist.
In addition to being the primary course text in my BMCcourse, LibreText is also now a platform for sharing student work. The creation of new open-access content for LibreTexts serves as an excellent opportunity for student projects. In the Fall of 2016, my students each picked a topic in bioinorganic chemistry on which they would write a new LibreText page including original figures and a new educational YouTube video about their topic. My course of eight students has developed four new pages in LibreText which are linked to their YouTube videos about the topic. This new content is based on the latest research literature on Fe-siderophores, Pt-chemotherapies, Cu-chaperones, and Mn-superoxide dismutase, much of which is not available in even the most recent versions of any traditional textbooks. Development of these projects took a significant amount of my time, and student work, however creating and editing these articles was unusually rewarding for both my students and I. Student feedback indicates that they value LibreText as a resource in their learning and appreciate both the experience of creating work for an authentic audience and the opportunity to contribute free open-access resources for other students.
The experience of building my own LibreText has been facilitated by the quick and thorough technical support provided by Dr. Larson and his team. I plan to use LibreText for future iterations of my BMC and Advanced Inorganic Chemistry courses and to continue to develop new open-access inorganic chemistry content for LibreText.
We encourage faculty with existing materials created for use in one or multiple classes to contribute vetted content to the LibreText libraries. We especially appreciate quality content such as homework questions, answers, solution manuals, supplements, and any other textbook materials that are intrinsically copyrighted by the faculty member that developed the material. All content would be transcribed from the original format directly into the libraries via primarily student effort and no additional effort is necessary. Author bylines and hyperlinking to contributed Modules are added.
Faculty desiring a more active involvement in the project can contribute in by: (1) mentoring student efforts in building content, (2) directly editing or creating new modules, (3) providing feedback or consulting on existing Modules, or (4) evaluating new pedagogical approaches and application of the Libretexts. Particularly active faulty contributors may also consider participating as co-PIs on future grants. Libretexts development effort can also be used to address education components (e.g., “Broader Impacts”) in research grants and promotions. Contact Delmar Larsen or any of other Libretext developer for more information about taking the next step in education.
Thanks for your leadership in creating ChemWiki and teaching numerous instructors how to develop textbooks for their courses. The amount of information encompassed by the LibreText continues to impress me.
I'm wondering if you can explain the relationships between core content for different subdisciplines and the textbook maps. Do the various general chemistry textbooks all include the same core material? Or are there distinct treatments of a particular topic from the different textbooks that have been contributed to the library? Is the overlap/approach used in general chemistry the same for the more advanced courses that have fewer textbooks that have been contributed? How much does the McMurry textbook map have in common with the core material? Does it overlap at all with the material in Soderberg's text? Reusch's text? I don't have a clear vision of how the various textbook maps are developed and how the different contributed textbooks relate to the core.
The original plan when we constructed the Libretext system (then ChemWiki) was all content would be stored in the core and that the Modules in Libretexts (then Wikitexts) and Textmaps copied (or transcluded) that content within the context and organization of the other Modules in their respective groupings. We have deviated from that greatly and most of the content in the Core is not found in the Textmaps and Libretexts. That is why we consider the modules in the Core to be more supplementary and of stand-alone nature to the other two sections.
This approach is fairly consistent across the sub-fields; it is even encouraged to favor a diversity of presentations. Sort of a fostering of free evolution without a natural selection to favor a specific outcome(s).
The McMurry TextMap is being developed independently of the Core by Dietmar Kennephol (Athabasca University) and others. When Steven Farmer (Sonoma State Universe) originally built the Textmap infrastructure, he used a lot of the Core content and a lot of Soderberg’s content (which is more focused on biological O-chem rather than a traditional synthetic approach) and Reusch’s content. However, this has gradually grown (and is still growing) to be expanded or substituted with other content including some of Roberts and Casserio’s textbook material. We hope to get the JSMol finally integrated this summer so students will work with 3D molecules in the Libretext for their course.
A clear vision? We know where we want to go, but much of our efforts favor taking advantage of our current Development Team’s strengths, immediate needs and obviously proposal goals. This is truly an organic (pun intended) approach, since we are trying to build a community to push the project forward. | 2019-04-18T18:42:02Z | http://ccce.divched.org/2017SpringCCCENLP5 |
1) The young women would be connected to more adult women. Kids tend to do better by most measures of achievement and mental health the more caring adults they have involved in their lives. It can’t hurt to have one more friendly face to say hello to at church.
2) These connections would ease the transition from YW to RS, which has been a major concern for many years.
3) Young women would get to see real-life versions of their possible future, instead of relying on crappy movies, sappy songs, and Hallmark ads (or, heaven forfend, Ensign articles about the joys of motherhood, travails of singlehood, and the neverending misadventures of Name Withheld).
5) Young women would have a chance to prepare visiting teaching messages, and might even learn the names of some of the auxiliary presidents quoted therein (because until the missionaries get in *much* better shape, it seems unlikely that names of RS presidents will ever be learned as rhythmic accompaniment to pushups in the hallowed gym of the MTC…). Teaching in an intimate setting like visiting teaching requires a particular skill set, not easily acquired in the rest of the YW program or any other forum I can think of, and these skills are really important for missionaries. It’s also a chance for young women to find their voices, their own way of expressing spiritual impressions and thoughts in a slightly less scary and/or potentially emotionally coercive atmosphere than, say, testimony meeting at Youth Conference or Girls’ Camp.
6) Having a visiting teaching partner could either give a daughter a chance to see her mother in a new role (if she’s paired with her mother), or a chance to hear and discuss gospel principles which she would be shy or unwilling to discuss with her mother (if she works with another woman in the ward).
I can think of a few potential pitfalls, as well, mostly logistical–YW Presidents tend to be massively busy and stressed anyway, as do RS presidents, and adding another layer of coordination to their schedules might be nightmarish. Young women could have bad experiences if their partners or teachees weren’t carefully chosen. It could be just one more obligation for “good” girls to feel burdened by, and one more opportunity for “bad” girls to rebel (and/or secretly feel guilty and inadequate about).
On the whole, though, I think it would be a net gain for the church and for the young women involved. What do you think?
I think it’s a pretty good idea as well. Is it ok to suggest that it may also make the feel on a par with young men in their duties as HT’s? Have you suggested this in real life to ward leadership? If so, with what response?
I’ve only talked about it as sort of a pie-in-the-sky idea with friends who were bishops–despite what you might think, I would actually be pretty shy about seriously trying to get a bishop/RS President to try it. Doesn’t feel like my place to make such suggestions in real life!
A very simple, yet very effective idea. Huzzah! KHH, prophetess, once again proves her prescience.
I like it, Kristine. I especially like the transition to RS angle. The notion that a suddenly 18-year old girl is just magically going to bond with a bunch of older women is really, really naive, as actual experience demonstrates time and time again. And I like the idea of promoting equity/reciprocity with the young men to the extent possible.
The question is: is this an innovation that a bishop could institute at the ward level, or is it something that would have to go up the ladder and be contemplated church-wide? Even if it is the latter, don’t be too surprised if this idea were to receive a favorable reception. Lots of innovations in church practice were initiated at the grass roots level.
Kev, I think you’re right on — I see no reason that this couldn’t be done as a grassroots effort.
Kristine. This is so revolutionary that I can’t stand it. Why hasn’t anybody done this already!? Seriously. This should be done.
Good idea, Kristine. In our ward, the YW are joining RS for opening exercises once a month. Is that churchwide or our innovation?
I’ve seen a lot of that (#7).
Excellent, excellent idea. Maybe someone with access to the CHI could tell us whether the visiting teaching rules would prohibit this or whether it could be done on a local level.
We actually do this in my ward – SSSHHH!!!
Laurels are invited to be companions to their mothers or older sisters. The pluses and minuses are about what you describe, Kristine. But one very big advantage you don’t mention is that it is often easier for a woman to schedule time to go visiting with her own daughter than it is with another adult woman.
We also invite two laurels to accompany two priests when they administer the sacrament to shut-ins on Sunday afternoons. The YW participate by giving a spiritual thought or scripture reading. I’ve found that an experience like this with no adults around to oversee them increases the respect that YW and YM have for each other.
Very good idea. I also like the suggestion of YW and RS meeting together for an opening. Why not indeed?
This is a wonderful, wonderful idea!!! Why hasn’t this been done already (or more–seeing Mark IV’s post) ?
wait! since when do we visit teach in companionships?! okay, i jest… but we haven’t had vt companionships in the past four wards, including the current one. one ward did “pods,” which were groups of women who were already cliquish and checked off their vt for the month by going to the mall or out for lunch. when i was called as vt coordinator, i agreed to do it on the condition that we did it the right way. you would not believe how much opposition i came up against. the rs1c ranted and raved about how she had a friend who did it in their ward and had received express permission by phone from mary ellen smoot. um, okay. we ran atrocious numbers anyway, i didn’t see why we couldn’t at least report those numbers knowing we were doing things the way the lord had intended.
anyone here grammatically inclined enough to expound upon “visiting” versus “visit” in vt?
I will pose this question to my bishop friend/coworker tomorrow, if you want another opinion from a current bishop.
As the father of a 9-year-old daughter who talks about being a missionary and going to med school (and for whom I don’t see much support in our ward for either activity), I’m all in favor of anything that would help her develop her skills when she hits the YW.
This afternoon at her achievement day activity, the girls received instruction on skin and hair care. The cub scouts got to make boats from a cereal box, a strip of wood, a rubber band, and a balloon. My daughter would rather have been with the cub scouts.
This sounds like an excellent idea to me.
THe only problem I would foresee, though not that big a one, is a lot of VT is done during the day when many of the YW are in school.
Otherwise, I don’t see any reason why not.
Tim J – there are lots of places where women work during the day and VT at night, plus there’s all afternoon after school, plus Saturdays, plus Sundays….
Jack – You’re right: VT and HT are not analogous – VT is much more likely to get done (at least in my 40 years of experience with both programs). But, seriously, you’d be surprised at how much conversation can be had between YW and RS members – after all, the RS “peer group” goes from 18 to death (unlike the MP “peer group” that’s divided into Elders and HP’s). And, last-but-not-least, I know several good VT’s perfectly capable of fixing leaky pipes, broken cars, freaky computers, squeaky doors and a whole passle of other household items (often while dragging whiny children along the way), so don’t be so fast to discount the non-traditional talents of your sisters.
Discounting talents? Let the visiting teachers fix the pipes, but don’t do it at the exclusion of good conversation.
despite what you might think, I would actually be pretty shy about seriously trying to get a bishop/RS President to try it. Doesn’t feel like my place to make such suggestions in real life!
Well then, it only follows that you try it out here in the Bloggernacle something akin to Ronan and Steve’s monthly HT visits. Once you’ve perfected the cyber version–you should certainly be ready to implement it in real life! You may eve be reporting on it Church wide next April in general conference!!
Our ward RS president tried, unilaterally, to implement this in our ward a couple of years ago. She may have heard about Mark IV’s ward. She did not discuss it first with any ward leaders.
The experiment ended after 6 months or so.
Had it been collaboratively implemented, it might have had the beneficial results Kristine suggests, although I am sympathetic to my daughter’s concerns about time demands during senior year.
I would add that I made it a practice to take my daughters (and my son) with me, one or two at a time, as home teaching companions from the time they were infants (I have rarely had a formally assigned HT companion). I can remember being my dad’s HT companion at times long before I turned 14.
not that anyone ever bothers to home or visit teach us, but i’d greatly appreciate a spiritual message over “jaw jacking.” the lone time i was visit taught, the two sisters spent so much time chit-chatting that it was bothersome. i had two very small children, was now running behind schedule for the day, and wasn’t feeling very edified as they compared their adult children. i kept a stiff upper lip, but it was a long two hours! they concluded by giving me a photocopy of the message from the ensign and letting me know i could call on them.
Comment #21 by DavidH brought up the issue I wondered about. How would youth who are not part of Relief Society be responsible for a function of the society? Not meant as a damper on the brainstorming, but I wonder how the stewardship would work. It’s also interesting how proposed benefit #0 is left completely in the background for this post and set of comments.
Why would any RS or YW organization want to waste 15-25 minutes doing opening exercises like Priesthood does?
My experience with having YM companions for HT has been that they either don’t participate by not coming along or they don’t participate by coming along and not saying anything. I don’t have any sons though.
I do know many fathers love that they get a sort of “free pass” on having spiritual time with their son and on having an easy companion to work with, and I would think that is the one major pro of the arrangement.
I think that this is a great idea, primarily because one of the great limitations that I see in the YW program is the lack of “responsibility” that the young women have in the church. I have blogged on it elsewhere, but in my experience, YM get invaluable experiences from their priesthood duties in preparing/passing the sacrament and through HT, while YW are taught to view the world through the lens of “personal progress”. I have been very pleased to see my son who is 12.5 preparing a lesson for his HT family and trying to serve those families. For this, I give much of the credit to my husband who is conscientiously mentoring him in this regard.
I think that joining for opening exercises would help a lot with transition as well. Back to the example of my son, when he goes to Priesthood, he sits with his friends, but he is also getting the experience that he is part of a larger group.
Also, John Mansfield, how can youth who are not a member of an Elder’s Quorum or High Priest’s Quorum be responsible for a function of that quorum? How does the stewardship work for the YM?
Personally, I always wanted to get VT visits while I was in a singles ward. I didn’t think it was fair that the girls got both (and the VT’s usually brought treats) while we only got HT’s (who never brought treats).
Maybe you can add that on as an option to the proposal.
Kristine, I think this is a great idea.
Kris, I’m not John Mansfield, but his point was that the VT program is specifically directed for the benefit of the Relief Society members, whereas the HT program is for the benefit of ward members. One of the scriptural chargers of Aaronic Priesthood Teachers (14-year-olds) is to teach the members of the ward. They are included in the HT program to help them perform this duty. Deacons aren’t included because it isn’t part of their charge.
DavidH, if YW are too busy preparing for college to VT, and if President Hinckley is concerned that too few YM are going to college, it looks like Kristine should be instead proposing that YM not be allowed to Home Teach! They have college applications to write . . .
Matt, I think there’s lots of room for flexibility here. As noted above, my son is a deacon and he’s started HT. In terms of scriptural charges, do we really need to look any further than Luke 10:29-37 or Mosiah 2:17.
The last few YW leadership training meetings I have been to, have placed great emphasis on the fact that we are helping the YW to become future leaders — I don’t take this just to mean event planners. VT provides a great opportunity to expose YW to diverse sisterhood, to serve and develop compassionate attributes.
OK, here’s how it worked for us.
First, the idea originated with the laurels’ presidency. The YW themselves wanted a way to provide ongoing, meaningful service. Over the course of a month or so, the idea made its way through the youth committee meetings and ward councils. People liked the sound of it, but were somewhat timid about taking the first step. The bishop told the SP what was being contemplated, and he gave approval. Note: it helps if your bishop has a reputation as a straight arrow. He’ll have credibility, and the stake will be more willing to provide covering fire when other wards hear about it and demand to know what the heck is going on. Our SP just told people we were doing a temporary test. From an adminstrative standpoint, you can do quite a lot of innovation if you just tell people you are involved in a “pilot program”.
To address Julie’s point, we did check the handbook, and we didn’t find anything that strictly forbids it. I was really happy with elder Ballard’s talk in conference when he described the handbook as guidelines which must be observed, but which allow for a lot of creativity (his word) and adaptation to local needs.
Following up on what Matt said, it is true, strictly speaking only boys of at least teacher age are to home teach. But every ward I have ever lived in uses the deacons as home teachers, and nobody gets heartburn.
I second, third, fourth, twenty-eighth this idea–whatever comment number we’re on by now. I really think this is a fabulous idea. And in case someone hasn’t suggested it already (I haven’t read all of the comments), this might also increase the number of sister missionaries serving. Maybe?
Considering the sheer number of Church obligations our Laurels have, I think something like this would inspire absolute mutiny. Not counting leadership meetings for the presidency (which adds between .5 and 2 hours per week,) my sister spends a minimum of 10 hours a week just in Church/seminary, not counting any prep time, personal study, etc. They can barely get the girls to show up on Wednesdays. Admittedly I, as a YSA, basically don’t do any YSA activities at all while I’m in school; it’s a personal struggle to accept my VT’s requests for appointments, given the amount of homework the Russian department likes to hand out. I was nearly tearing my hair out last week, when my VT was five minutes late (I could have been conjugating or declining or something!!!!) And the YW like to cancel things without calling anyone; my sister brings her homework to the church on Wednesdays just in case.
Then again, if you let the girls out of one YW activity per month as compensation, they’d fall over themselves to accept, I think. At least, the ones who don’t like Wednesday after Wednesday of personal beauty tips and trust exercises and so forth.
And there’s no hypocrisy here as far as YM/YW is concerned — most of the YM don’t seem to go on their HT assignments. Our HT always has his YM companion, but considering that the YM in question is a) the bishop’s oldest son, b) our HT’s grandson AND c) one of my younger sister’s closest friends this is an unusual situation (he also spends most of the visit playing with our cats.) I wasn’t sure about the wisdom of having a YM home teaching in a house with three YSA/YW daughters, but then again, he actually shows up nearly every time (our last HT was assigned to us for three years, and only had a companion – almost always a different guy – a third of the time.) And it’s probably only because he’s there that my sister is willing to show up in the living room at all.
I can’t count the times in my adult life that I have heard leaders bemoan the fact that YW aren’t making the transition to RS. It’s not a mystery to me. Young Women in the church generally have little contact with RS while growing up. The RS and YW usually operate as closed societies, one exclusively for youth, one exclusively for adult women; so why are we surprised when younger women act on the impression that RS is not for them? The organization has effectively taught them that lesson their whole lives.
1. RS and YW meet together every week for opening exercises. The RS president presides, just as the Bishop presides in priesthood opening exercises. Contrary to a prior comment this doesn’t take 25 minutes, more like 10 minutes.
2. The women’s session at general conference becomes the RS/YW session. Women would attend with their daughters and the meeting would focus on the YW as much as on the adults.
3. The RS birthday would become a social event for women and YW, just as the father and sons campout, which celebrates the restoration of the Aaronic priesthood, is a social event for men and boys.
4. Kris’ excellent suggestion that YW become involved in visiting teaching.
I think the biggest thing that needs to change is the mindset of RS and YW. RS needs to change from a closed society for adults into a society that is nurturing women and young women. If the combined opening exercises continue as RS starts now and the YW are treated as just visitors, they will continue to see RS as them rather than us. In our priesthood opening exercises a YM always plays the piano, even if it is excrutiatingly slow; a YM always leads the music, even if he just waves his arms; and a YM always offers the prayer. We want them to get this experience and we want them to know that they are an important part of the priesthood. I think RS would have to give up some of its cherished rituals and be more welcoming to change.
Likewise, like a previous comment illustrated, the YW president will have to give up some of her power and allow her organization to be integrated. But the YM president seems able to accept this, I think the YW president could also.
In our ward, the Laurels attend RS once per month. The girls generally dread this particular Sunday (and, over the years, I have viewed their opinions from the vantage point of being a YW advisor, a RS teacher, and the mother of a Laurel). As RS teachers, we were encouraged to involve the girls in the lessons, and the RS Presidency makes an attempt to invite the girls to lessons that might interest them. Our stake RS invites the Laurels to numerous stake events with the RS. All of these are attempts to ease the challenging YW-RS transition, and all seem to be disliked by the Laurels. They think we RS sisters are B-O-R-I-N-G (and I did too, at their age).
My sister observed that YM at least get to go into the EQ, with men somewhat closer to their age range, while the RS takes all, from 18 to the grave. If I were running the show, I would try a “Junior RS” for ages 18 to 30; perhaps the YW would feel more comfortable with the younger married women.
Three cheers for experimentation with any of these areas, including visiting teaching. I know the Church is seriously concerned about the number of members who become “less active” during the college and young adult years.
Oops, didn’t mean to suggest most women 18 to 30 are married; we have a YA ward in our stake, so in our RS most younger singles are elsewhere, but we do have a group of married sisters in their 20s to whom the Laurels might relate.
In the meantime, if I had a teen daughter, I’d consider always bringing her along, even telling the RS I can go partnerless because she’s always unofficially there. Of course, that’s pretty hypothetical. My girl is 18 months old!
The problem, peony, is that in the wards I have been in all the “young” married women, who would relate well to the YW are in the YW program allready! Which then hhurts the one or two sisters in RS not in YW or primary as well. The biggest change should be a personal one, not an institutional one. However, the RS, being an auxiliary, doesn’t have as many restrictions on how it is to be run.
Also, I believe that the YM HT at age 14. I think 12 is an exception. Growing up, you HT with your dad from 14-16, and then 16-18 taught with another person (Most likely a HP).
The value of this idea depends entirely on what one thinks visiting teaching is for.
While such a program might provide a relatively painless initiation into Relief Society for laurel-aged girls, I’m not sure that having a 17 or 18 year old girl as a visiting teacher would always be a good idea for the sister being visit taught.
My youngest sister wanted me to add that she’d be for it provided the girls could get a necklace in exchange (after, say, a year of participation.) She’s still miffed they got rid of the Beehive/Mia Maid/Laurel necklaces, I think.
Occasionally magazines such as Time or Newsweek feature brief compilations of “great ideas” that come from abroad and might be worth trying in the U.S.
Why not have an article in Dialogue or Sunstone that follows this same model, i.e.: the editors could issue a “call for proposals” and gather grassroots suggestions similar to Kristine’s suggestion here: simple ideas and practices that may benefit the church as a whole, but aren’t currently widely, if at all, practiced. The editors could then select the 25 or 30 best ideas and publish them, each in a half-page or so paragraph.
Sarah, do they do give them something instead of the necklaces now? I hadn’t realized that they no longer did that. I haven’t known many girls who cared about it in the past.
Maybe we’ll try something like that here at BCC. Remind me about it sometime in case I forget. It’s a great idea.
Hi, Kris! Great post. I must admit that anything associated with Relief Society used to scare the heck out of me as a teenager. The RS women seemed completely out of touch with my teenage life, – even though many of them were only three or four years older than I. The last thing I wanted to do as a fourteen year old was to hang out with people like my parents. That said, I didn’t ever actually make the transition to Relief Society from YW, so perhaps a “Junior” Relief Society might help those who worry about being instantly transformed into an adult with serious responsibilities as soon as she walks into the RS room.
– It would be most beneficial to use the YW to assist VT that goes on in the evenings, because they couldn’t help much during the day.
– Except, you restrict this to the summertime only.
– The difference between YM HTing and YW VTing is analogous to the expectations we put on missionary service for YW and YM. For YM, it’s expected as a manner for preparation for priesthood leadership. For YW, missions are “encouraged but not required” (I disagree with that assertion, as I think most YW leaders do a great job dissuading YW from serving missions).
– The time commitment with seminary, YW activities/service projects, and college prep may be an issue.
He said he wouldn’t be opposed to implementing it in his ward, but it would have to be run by the RS/YW as a joint “program”. He indicated that the management of the VT program is managed by the RS, not by him.
I find it hard to see why this would apply to the YW and not the YM.
Obviously it applies to both YW and YM.
My friend’s point is that for some, the time commitment is easier to use as an excuse if you’re not already obligated to help with home/visit teaching. The YM are essentially obligated to it. The YW or not. So when you propose that the YW do it, then the time commitment comes into it.
Neither of us think it’s a valid point. But he threw it out as an perceived obstacle to overcome.
OK, so how much time commitment do the YM spend on HT, anyway?
Hard to have fake HTML tagging for humorous purposes when the comments strip out the brackets.
This is a wonderful idea, Kristine. It wouldn’t work in our ward, because we put one woman who will go, who will call, and actually care, with one who will not.
We don’t have enough to put with the young women who would get them out. I tried it with the 18 year olds, but no one would follow up.
But in wards where there are actually two women who are partners who will get out, you could split them up and that would be a really good idea to send them with young women. | 2019-04-19T22:44:46Z | https://bycommonconsent.com/2006/10/04/a-modest-proposal/ |
A campaign group is seeking talks with Chinese developers over the future of a new Bradwell nuclear site. Blackwater Against New Nuclear Group has taken the unusual step of seeking direct discussions with the Chinese state-owned nuclear companies who are considering developing their own nuclear power station at the Bradwell site on land owned by EDF Energy. BANNG’s Chair, Professor Andy Blowers, has written to the heads of the China National Nuclear Corporation and the China General Nuclear Power Group pointing out the “formidable obstacles” that would have to be overcome before new nuclear power could be brought to Bradwell.
Following an 11-month investigation into UK support for the Hinkley Point C nuclear project, the Commission approved a modified UK support package on 8 October 2014. Austria announced yesterday that it will launch its appeal on Monday 29 June challenging the Commission’s clearance decision before the General Court of the European Union. Luxembourg has stated that it will join Austria’s appeal. Germany has announced that, following a thorough analysis of the Commission’s State aid decision, it will not join the appeal. State aid appeals can last six years or more. During this period the Commission’s decision would be presumed to be lawful. At this stage the appeal appears unlikely to succeed. Even if the appeal is successful, the Commission could conduct another investigation (lasting at least six months) and reach a substantively identical decision. In the unlikely event that the Commission, after an appeal and second investigation, concludes that the aid is illegal, the relevant aid would need to be returned to the UK Government with significant ramifications for investors and financiers of Hinkley Point C.
Austria is lining up a legal complaint against the UK over its portrayal of nuclear power as a “modern, sustainable” energy source, when it is to be supported by state subsidies. The complaint is “symbolic,” Vienna said. “We cannot accept that a technology such as this being portrayed through subsidies as being modern, sustainable and future-oriented,” Chancellor Werner Faymann said after a cabinet meeting on Tuesday. “This is a further important step in our anti-nuclear policy, which aims to make Europe nuclear-free in the long run,” Faymann said. “Subsidies should support new and modern technologies, which is not the case with nuclear energy,” he said. The complaint, which was to be be filed on Monday at the European Court of Justice, “is also of symbolic value against nuclear power,” the center-left Faymann said.
Capenhurst Nuclear Services (CNS) has selected Cavendish Nuclear to support its legacy cylinder facility (LCF) near Chester in England, UK. The LCF will transfer nuclear materials from legacy cylinders into suitable vessels. It is planned to be commissioned by 2020. Under the new contract, Cavendish Nuclear and CNS will work together to on reference design for the LCF, and ensure that the project objectives are met in a cost-effective, and environmental-friendly manner.
The former shadow energy minister Tom Greatrex has warned that the Energy and Climate Change select committee risks losing credibility under its new Scottish National Party chair. In an exclusive column for Utility Week the former Labour MP said that the “rigour and balance” seen in the previous committee under Tim Yeo’s leadership could be lost due to the relative inexperience of the SNP’s Angus MacNeil. “A respected and knowledgeable committee chair can make a real difference to how policy is developed, implemented and adjusted – as the last parliament showed. Having asked just two written questions of [the Department of Energy and Climate Change] in the last five years, MacNeil’s focus has self-evidently been elsewhere,” Greatrex said.
Tom Greatrex: In a recent report, the Institute of Government highlighted the increasing importance and prominence of select committees in the last parliament. While inquiries on phone hacking and tax avoidance caught the headlines, the energy committee chaired by Tim Yeo was widely respected as major policy changes were introduced. The detailed approach to scrutiny apparent in almost all of its reports meant they were taken seriously. As a member for a few months in 2010, and then as an observer as a shadow minister for much longer, I saw how the committee brought a degree of rigour and balance to a range of complex issues all too easily misrepresented in partisan debate. A respected and knowledgeable committee chair can make a real difference to how policy is developed, implemented and adjusted – as the last parliament showed. Having asked just two written questions of Decc in the past five years, MacNeill’s focus has self-evidently been elsewhere. He needs to demonstrate early a resistance to pursuing party interests first, and that the committee will focus on evidence. With some of the expertise likely to be present among other members, that should be possible. Without it, the credibility of an important source of analysis could be undermined precisely when the wider energy debate needs authoritative scrutiny of government policy.
How does Scotland satisfy its climate change commitments and keep the lights on? Lewis Macdonald: The Economy, Energy and Tourism Committee is asking precisely that question in its inquiry into Security of Supply, and hearing from a wide range of expert witnesses. It held a very similar inquiry in the last Parliament. I was a member of the committee then too, and it is striking how some of the detail has moved on but the fundamental challenges have not really changed. We need to find ways to reduce unnecessary energy use and increase energy security, while recognising that decarbonising heat and transport are likely to result in increasing our reliance on electricity. Callum McCaig: Scotland’s renewable energy has the potential to make a huge contribution in achieving carbon reduction targets both here in Scotland and across the UK. We also have huge potential in terms of pumped storage, which if developed, will ensure that electricity from renewable sources can be accessed at any time. Likewise, investment in interconnection will ensure that the lights are kept on. Over and above that, where new thermal generation is required to meet Scotland’s energy demand there is ample opportunity to explore t he enormous potential of carbon capture and storage ensuring carbon emissions are kept to a minimum. Is there a place for nuclear in Scotland’s energy mix? Macdonald: Nuclear power plays a big part in Scotland’s energy mix at the moment, and that will increase after the closure of the coal-fired power station at Longannet. As a low-carbon source of electricity, it can play a big role in future too, although like other low-carbon sources it is more expensive than simply burning coal. Current Scottish Government strategies seem to rely on importing electricity from nuclear power stations in other countries, as well as continuing power production from Scottish nuclear plants as long as possible. It would be more honest to remove the presumption against new nuclear, and then support whichever low-carbon technologies succeed in driving down costs in the 2020s. McCaig: There is a place for the current nuclear power plants as they wind down, but in terms of new nuclear, no. The proposed new plant at Hinkley is hugely expensive and will require a subsidy of around £1bn a year over 35 years. The events at Fukushima show how devastating nuclear accidents can be. There are many cheaper and safer alternatives that we should be exploring.
The government’s household energy efficiency programme is veering off track, according to a review of major projects run by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC). The government’s domestic energy efficiency initiative aims to fit green improvements to one million homes by March this year, through the Green Deal and Energy Company Obligation (ECO) programmes. The report echoes widely held concerns across the energy efficiency sector that the Green Deal is struggling to deliver large scale improvements and the ECO scheme has been effectively watered down and is close to being completed. The new report, published yesterday, also raises concerns about a number of other key DECC programmes, handing out an ‘Amber’ alert to the programme of electricity market reforms, the £1bn Carbon Capture and Storage commercialisation competition, the Renewable Heat Incentive, the planned nationwide rollout of smart meters, and the search for a nuclear waste storage site. A further nuclear programme is seen as slightly ahead of schedule, while all data relating to the new nuclear plant at Hinkley Point was withheld, meaning it was not given a score on the report’s sliding scale.
After the Chernobyl disaster in 1986, a solution of potassium iodide (KI) was applied to over 10 million children and 7 million adults, as a preventative measure to prevent accumulation of radioactive iodine-131 in the thyroid. The main objective was to block accumulation of radioactive iodine, which is a carcinogenic present in the material released from the nuclear reactor. Results show people living in affected areas that did not receive the potassium iodine injection are at a much higher rate of thyroid cancer and other related diseases. In contrast, in populations that received the injection, levels of these conditions are within normal levels. Chernobyl also elucidated the fact that even as far away as 500 km, cases of thyroid cancer have increased significantly since the accident, and treatment with potassium iodine would have been advisable.
It would not take much highly enriched uranium to kill hundreds of thousands of people: as little as what could fit in a five-pound bag of sugar. That it has not happened so far does not mean it may never happen, especially when one considers that there are more than 2,000 metric tons of dangerous nuclear materials in hundreds of sites scattered across the globe. And that there have been more than 2,300 cases of theft or loss of nuclear or radioactive material since the early 1990s. Consequently, one of the greatest dangers facing the global community is the risk of terrorists getting enough uranium or plutonium to build a working, crude nuclear bomb, or to spike a conventional bomb with enough radioactive material to create a so-called “dirty bomb”—one which disperses harmful radioactive material over a wide area. The latter in particular is quite a plausible scenario; just think how the public would react if such a device exploded in a major urban center.
Europe will likely get more than half of its electricity from renewable sources by the end of the next decade if EU countries meet their climate pledges, according to a draft commission paper. A planned overhaul of the continent’s electricity grids will now need to be sped up, says the leaked text, seen by the Guardian. “Reaching the European Union 2030 energy and climate objectives means the share of renewables is likely to reach 50% of installed electricity capacity,” says the consultation paper, due to be published on 15 July. “This means that changes to the electricity system in favour of decarbonisation will have to come even faster.” The EU has set itself a goal of cutting emissions 40% on 1990 levels by 2030, and an aspiration for a 27% share for renewables across Europe’s full energy mix, which includes sectors such as transport, agriculture and buildings that do not necessarily rely on electricity. Around a quarter of Europe’s electricity currently comes from renewable sources.
A review panel decision in favour of a plan to bury dangerous nuclear waste near Lake Huron was illegal and unreasonable, a citizen’s group argues in a new Federal Court application. In asking the court to set aside the decision, the group says the panel that approved the Ontario Power Generation proposal failed to consider Canada’s international obligations, was biased, and violated the Canadian environmental rules.
John Kerry will seek to discover on Saturday whether Tehran’s “red lines” have sabotaged the chances of a final nuclear agreement when he meets his Iranian counterpart in Vienna.
Bill Gates has announced he will invest $2bn (£1.3bn) in renewable technologies initiatives, but rejected calls to divest from the fossil fuel companies that are burning carbon at a rate that ignores international agreements to limit global warming.
A report by the UK Carbon Trust finds that floating wind projects could deliver energy for as low as £85/MWh (€119/MWh) by 2020, if the market reaches commercial scale and technology advances are consolidated.
AS yet more predictions emerge of a crisis hitting Scotland’s onshore wind power industry, an emergency summit is to be held in Glasgow early next month to discuss the impact of the UK Government’s decision to end wind farm subsidies. Energy Minister Fergus Ewing has called for the meeting with key players in the renewables sector to hear the concerns of the industry after the Westminster Government decided to end subsidies for onshore wind a year early. According to renewables industry sources, the decision to call an early halt to the Renewables Obligation scheme could cost Scotland thousands of jobs and millions of pounds in investment. Two top academic experts on energy yesterday joined the condemnation of the UK Government saying it will leave Scotland the “worst affected”. Professor Peter Strachan of Robert Gordon University and Aberdeen University’s Dr David Toke warned of the consequences for Scotland’s onshore wind industry including a threat to thousands of jobs. In an article for Energy Voice, they said the UK Government’s decision to cut subsidies for onshore wind and future prospects for the onshore wind industry across the UK and particularly in Scotland “appear dire”. Commenting, SNP Energy and Climate Change spokesperson Callum McCaig MP said: “The Tory government are being reckless with Scotland’s onshore wind industry.
Belize commits to 100 per cent clean energy with Carbon War Room. Caribbean nation is the latest to sign up to the NGO’s Ten Island Challenge. Belize currently sources 60 per cent of its electricity from local hydro and biomass resources, and the remaining 40 per cent is from imported fossil fuel resources. The challenge, set by Richard Branson’s environmental NGO and supported by the Rocky Mountain Institute and the Clinton Climate Initiative, has already been adopted by seven other Caribbean nations, including Grenada, St. Lucia and the Bahamas.
While we keep burning harmful fossil fuels on an unimaginable scale, there’s also a number of good news: A growing number of communities around the world set themselves a goal of 100% renewables. What we need most are thus visionaries and political will, argues Stefan Schurig. Across the world today we are observing a movement among local governments, nations, islands, businesses, communities and citizens towards 100% renewable energy (RE). In fact, the City of Vancouver has just joined this movement, proving again that political will can catalyze change. At a hugely inspiring Forum last week in Vancouver the mayor himself showed strong commitment to reach this target. Copenhagen, San Francisco, Sydney, Frankfurt and many more places have already proven that the necessary technologies and knowledge exist. Frankfurt for example is well on track to shifting to 100% renewable electricity by 2015.
An application to carry out exploratory fracking in the UK for the first time in four years has been refused by Lancashire County Council’s planning committee. The decision to refuse fracking firm Cuadrilla’s plans for Roseacre Wood near Blackpool is “very significant” and a “test case” for the UK’s nascent shale gas industry, says the BBC. A government moratorium on fracking was imposed in 2011 after Cuadrilla caused earth tremors at another nearby site. The council’s decision is the first since that ban was lifted in 2012.
Labour called for a moratorium and, if proved safe, local referendums before developments went ahead. Industry body UK Onshore Oil and Gas (UKOOG) reacted angrily, saying a moratorium would “achieve nothing”. Ineos, with more than 700 square miles of fracking exploration licences across Scotland, a few days later issued a stark warning that delays risked the collapse of UK manufacturing. Later that week, SNP Energy Minister Fergus Ewing was on his feet at Holyrood, announcing his own moratorium while a public consultation and research was carried out, nipping the Labour attacks designed to appeal to left-leaning voters in the bud. So far, so predictable. Environmentalists welcomed the move, and journalists waited for Ineos and UKOOG, so outraged at the prospect just days ago, to issue angry reaction. It never came. Instead, both Ineos and UKOOG (of which Ineos is a member) welcomed the moratorium. What we didn’t know then, and what Mr Ewing did not think to mention in his 3000 word contribution at Holyrood that day, was that Nicola Sturgeon was – at the same time – meeting with billionaire Ineos boss Jim Ratcliffe. That information was dragged out of St Andrew’s House using Freedom of Information laws. Sources close to the FM said the clash was an innocent coincidence. Fine. So what did they talk about? The Government won’t tell us. An account of the meeting has been heavily redacted, citing commercial sensitivity. Ineos warned it would be relying less on gas supplies from the north sea, and told the First Minister it considers “the exploitation of unconventional resources in Scotland/UK are vital for both energy supplies and feedstocks.” What she said, remains secret. Labour MSP Lewis Macdonald, on February 18, submitted a series if parliamentary questions. He asked whether the moratorium would cover testing and preparatory drilling, when new studies promised would be carried out, and whether Underground Coal Gasification (UCG), a technique many consider more dangerous than fracking that is technically offshore but requires onshore infrastructure, was covered. The consultation meanwhile, initially promised within a few months , is not expected to begin until the winter. It means that a decision on whether to allow fracking will probably not have to be made until after the next Holyrood election. How convenient. | 2019-04-20T14:45:07Z | http://www.no2nuclearpower.org.uk/news/27-june-2015/ |
Workers’ self-management and related forms of workers’ control over production is associated with periods of societal transformation. In its most advanced form it presents a challenge to capitalist property relations as part of a revolutionary process. Workers’ Councils, as a form of self-management, have occurred under capitalism but also in Communist command economy states (Ness and Azellini, 2011). The relationship between the practice of self-management and the class nature of the state is not, however, straightforward. The state, when perceived as an agent of coercion or control, may seek to either facilitate or suppress social movements which develop from below (Tilly,1978). Facilitation may be used to institutionalise and contain conflict, suppression may mean the use of force to dispel the movement. There remains strategic choice for the state because of the structural interdependency of state and capital. The state may thus act to restrict or contain the potential for self-management, most trenchantly within capitalism by resisting any challenge to property relations. An example can be taken from the revolutionary turmoil of Germany in 1918, when in return for concessions on trade union rights and recognition of collective agreements, the social democratic leadership of the unions agreed not to touch existing property structures or advocate any socialisation of occupied factories (Grebing, 1969). Collaborationist Works Councils were established following the agreement between Hugo Stinnes for the employers and Karl Legien for the trade unions as an alternative to the revolutionary workers’ councils. The state also reflects the balance of class forces, including factional tensions between sections of the ruling elite, which further complicates the relationship. For this reason it is vulgar to suggest that self-management should not be a legitimate project until the capitalist state is destroyed, just as we should not assume that the destruction of capitalism in state form would automatically lead to self-management and workers’ control from below.
This paper examines self-management in the wider context of political economy and the role of the state. Most literature focuses either on labour process analysis or social movement aspects of the phenomenon (see De Peuter and Dyer-Witheford, 2010 for a recent review). Self-management and workers’ control is also often viewed as a practice isolated from wider political economy. Most importantly, there appears less emphasis on understanding the role of the state in shaping or re-shaping practice, or the state is even eschewed as an inevitably conservative and bureaucratic independent agent (e.g. Holloway, 2002) In developing our understanding we utilise a mix of contemporary documents and case study interviews in assessing our three country examples. First, we examine self-management in Titoist Yugoslavia in the aftermath of the Tito-Stalin split of 1948. Self-management was a central policy of the Titoist regime as it sought to distance itself from authoritarian and bureaucratic Communism and modernise its production capability as it turned towards western markets. Indeed, Yugoslavia has been used as a comparator yardstick in recent discussions of other experiments such as those in Chavez’s Venezuela (e.g. Lebowitz, 2001: 44-46). To pursue this comparison, and make more sense of the role of the state and the market, we examine the particularities of the new movements for self-management and co-operative working in the contemporary Latin American arc of protest against neo-liberalism, focusing on both Argentina and Venezuela. The national specificities of each of these two countries is different, with the recovered companies which emerged ‘from below’ in Argentina contrasting with the movement ‘from above’ as part of Hugo Chávez’ Bolivarian Revolution and ‘Twenty First Century Socialism’ in Venezuela. In our examples we record the contextual factors which shaped the movements, and isolate the state’s influence to either promote or contain them. In our conclusion we analyse factors of continuity and change, and discuss the state’s role in relation to these different episodes of workers’ self-management.
We outline here some key features which can be utilised to describe the concept and practice of self-management.
Self-management is a slippery concept, and can be schematically located within a spectrum. It may simply consist of shared decision-making, or a co-operative venture containable within the capitalist mode of production. As Ramsay (1977) suggested, employers may utilise forms of worker participation (joint consultation, profit sharing etc.) as a way to demobilise worker militancy. In its most socially advanced form, however, it may embrace workers’ control over both production and decision-making, enabled by the eviction of management from the enterprise, and the socialisation of ownership as part of a wider socialist project. Self-management may address the ‘property question’ by means of a full-bloodied socialist project to overthrow capitalism. Within this spectrum, we discern a trajectory, whereby self-management may be seen as a mobilising force for social transformation away from capitalism, or, alternatively, forms of worker participation may be used by capital and/or the state in reverse trajectory to demobilise, contain or discipline worker militancy and self-determination. Along the spectrum, but in a transformative direction, the circuit of capital may be interrupted or even broken, as surplus is capable of being distributed socially rather than recycled in money or commodity form. De Peuter and Dyer-Witheford (2010: 30) construct a concept of ‘labour commons’ whereby the logic of such redistribution would act to create a ‘circulation of the common’ by which associated labour acts with redistributive motives, adding socialist principles to the practicalities of co-operative working. Self-managed factories may thus deviate from the capitalist social relations of production as they may replace capital as the mediator between the worker and their labour power. As such, self-management may not simply be seen as a technical exercise in workers’ decision making, but be seen in ideological terms, as an expression of challenge to the logic of capital.
‘...the act of occupying a factory gives room to workers’ control of the labour process and to a more democratic, collective decision-making, but workers’ need to compete in the market reduces the sphere of collective decision, leading to centralisation of power and divisions between directive and productive workers, hampering the possibility for workers to enrich their job and avoid self-exploitation’.
The inference is that to be successful and sustainable, self-management, or workers’ control, must be combined with a conscious socialist political project to overthrow capital and to construct a workers’ state.
. Transformation is seen as something which gradually evolves from below rather than something which challenges capital and state power directly in an historical moment of confrontation. The prescribed process of emancipation or liberation echoes Holloway’s (2002: xi-xii) ‘open Marxist’ critique of classical Marxism to ‘change the world without taking power’. Holloway’s vision is that ‘the rejection of the notion of taking state power is part of a deeper process...in which people refuse to bow to the logic of capital, in which they decide to stop creating capitalism and do something sensible with their lives’. He argues that the society we should aspire to should be neither in the reformist or revolutionary tradition of assuming power but should instead be a ‘non-power’ society based on direct rather than representative democracy ‘..where power relations are dissolved’. The question of how power is achieved, or arrested from the state, is deliberately left open, subject to a constant process of self-education ‘You cannot build a society of non-power relations by conquering power’ (Holloway, 2002: 17). This voluntaristic interpretation of the revolutionary process, on closer reading, also appears to downplay class as an agency of transformation. Holloway argues, for example, that ‘Social discontent today tends to be expressed far more diffusely, through participation in non-governmental organisations...through the individual or collective concerns of teachers, doctors or other workers......(and) in the development of autonomous community projects of all sorts’ (2002: 21). More recently, in addressing problems of ‘social cooperation’ under ‘Twenty First Century Socialism’, Lebowitz (2012) has further stretched the analyses of state power by differentiating between the state in its form of ‘vanguard Marxism’ - equivalent to the Stalinised command economies, and the conditions necessary for the development of a ‘genuine Marxist socialism’ from below. In these interpretations the state is continually viewed with suspicion, a potentially hostile force. For Holloway the possibility of a ‘workers’ state’ is viewed with equal hostility, an oxymoron which is ‘absolutely absurd’ (Callinicos and Holloway, 2005: 122).
In refining our understanding the relationship between state, labour and capital we must accept that many examples of self-management can be driven by exogenous shocks as well as by endogenously generated ideological projects. The development of workers councils in 1918/1919 Germany, the soviets in revolutionary Russia, or the cordones in 1970s Chile may well be seen as cases whereby worker co-operation and solidarity emerged endogenously as an ideological expression of emerging revolutionary class struggle and consciousness among workers. In contrast, the key driver for the worker occupation movement in Britain in the 1970s was an exogenous shock as British employers and state sought to restructure British industry in the face of economic crisis and soaring inflation. The same might be true of the ‘recovered factories’ movement in Argentina, whereby the movement from below was initially a defensive reaction to job loss, albeit a reaction that ignited expressions and emerging ideologies of worker solidarity as it progressed. The relationship between the two processes must therefore be conditioned by interplay within the productive forces of the base and the ideological and social forces of the superstructure. Within both spheres the state also acts to preserve and encourage the ‘national interest’, and seeks to create an environment that is conducive for capital accumulation within the wider world economy. Self-management may pose a threat or an opportunity to such accumulation, and the state’s response will reflect both regional and national specificities as a result. Specificities will in turn, as Martinez Lucio (2011:657) suggests, reflect historically developed workplace/labour movement legacies, repertoires of protest, traditions and discourse which may even include ‘sabotage’ and direct action as a motivating force rather than participation and control.
It is to these specificities that we now turn to further our analysis. In each of our cases we first present some contextual detail of self-management, before addressing the ideological impetus and trajectory of the project and the role of the state in determining outcomes.
Yugoslavia under Tito: A Reverse Trajectory?
‘...the old order was overthrown and a new popular administration constructed around liberation committees. ...a hierarchy of committees would control a whole town or territory, complete with postal service, health service, and publicly controlled industry’ (Swain and Swain, 1993: 17-18).
Seizure of factories and productive facilities was by military means, and enterprises were taken into state ownership ex post facto. The state was framed within the historic split between Stalin and Tito, which isolated the fledgling Yugoslavia from the Soviet Bloc. The final split came in January 1948 when Tito stationed troops in Albania to provide help to the communist partisans fighting in Greece. Stalin had already promised the Allies that he would not support the fight for a Greek Communist government, and so this break of ‘discipline’ by Tito was a move too far. Stalin then insisted that the Yugoslav communists should surrender foreign policy initiatives (including in the Balkans) to the Soviet Union. Following negotiations between Stalin and Yugoslavia’s emissary Milovan Đilas in Moscow, the Central Committee of the Yugoslav Communist Party rejected Stalin’s proposal on 1 March 1948.
Tito characterised the Soviet Union in terms of an unhealthy relationship between Party and State whereby ‘ ..the Party in the Soviet Union is becoming more and more bureaucratic and is growing to be part and parcel of the bureaucratic state apparatus, becoming identified with it, and simply a part of it’ (Tito, 1950: 14). Đilas, the Montenegrin Vice President of the Republic and one of the key intellectuals of the Yugoslav Communist Party, denounced the Soviet Union as ‘state capitalist’, inferring that a counter-revolution had taken place under Stalin within the socialist motherland (Swain and Swain, 1993: 73). In terms of overall policy Tito had expressed no previous preference for anything other than the orthodox Stalinist position. He became General Secretary of the Yugoslav CP in 1937, at the height of the Moscow Trials, and his Government after 1945 was built on solidly Stalinist principles of one-party rule, the deliberate development of a leader-cult, and ‘socialism in one country’ (Đilas 1969: 14). The Government’s economic and political programme followed the Stalinist command model. Ministries determined output and prices in a drive towards capital accumulation over consumption. The rigid command structure of the partisan army was carried over into everyday life and social organisation. In the process a privileged nomenklatura was confirmed (graphically described by Đilas in 1957 in The New Class). As was common in other Stalinist states, there was no legal right to strike.
Our own experience, and that of other socialist countries, has shown that when the management of the economy is exclusively in the hands of the State machinery, the inevitable result is a growing tendency towards greater centralisation of power and closer amalgamation of State and Party machinery: they grow stronger and strive to divorce themselves from society and impose their power upon it. (page 21 cited in Lane 1976: 144).
How do things look in the Soviet Union thirty-one years after the October Revolution? The October Revolution made it possible for the state to take the means of production into its hands. But these means are still, after 31 years, in the hands of the state. Has the slogan “the factories for the workers” been put into practice? Of course not. The workers still do not have any say in the management of the factories....The workers only have the possibility and the right to work but this is not very different from the role of the workers in capitalist countries. The only difference for workers is that there is no unemployment in the Soviet Union and that is all.
The role of the trade unions under the new conditions where the working people are taking part in the management is somewhat altered....The work of trade unions will also be eased by the fact of the workers becoming acquainted with the process of management of production...In any case, this will contribute a great deal to the stabilisation of work discipline in the factories, mines and other enterprises.
The emphasis was on self-management of an enterprise to increase its internal efficiency, to improve quality, and to impose discipline. The market orientation of the project would fulfil the purpose of allowing Yugoslav industry to trade with the west, given its new found isolation from the Soviet bloc (Lydall, 1984: 67).
A second feature of self-management was therelationship with the market and dubiety over the role of ordinary workers in the decision-making structure of the enterprise. This contradiction emerged in 1957 when the regime was shaken by a strike in the coal mines at Trbovlje which, as Wilson (1979: 117) records, led to fear in the regime as it ‘might easily have spread to other mining districts’. The strike presented an alternative way forward for ordinary workers to achieve their goals of better living and working (Marinković, 1995), and challenged the official ideology. Partly in response, a law agreed that year gave more discretion to the Workers’ Councils to determine how the ‘social product’ (i.e. profit) of individual enterprises might be distributed between investment and wages. A contemporaneous turn to foreign trade led to a period of capital formation and the growth of the economy. Reforms in 1965 were intended to further liberalise the economy and provide a solution to the emerging crisis of corporate and national indebtedness. Banks were given the freedom to run along ‘capitalist’ lines, and to invoke discretion when granting credit to individual enterprises. In 1969 a further major strike took place among dock workers in Rijeka, and in 1973 a strike of 2,000 workers took place in the Zmaj factory in Belgrade (Shabad, 1980). Strikes once again developed towards the end of the 1980s when strikes were finally allowed legality (USDS 1987, 1988). The problems of the economy, this time that of a rapid rise in the rate of inflation to 150 per cent, were again met by further market-based liberalisation. This included the expansion of private investment and the encouragement of further foreign direct investment.
The majority of strikes were about pay, but were short-lived as most factory ‘managers/directors’ (who were appointed or elected by the Workers Councils) quickly conceded to the workers’ demands. The significance of these unofficial strikes is that they exposed an underlying division between state, party and enterprise management (the self-management ‘class’), and rank-and-file workers. Basic wage levels set within centrally-fixed limits, but enterprises were free to establish top-up bonuses, and in this fashion the role of the centre was confirmed. Lane (1976: 152) reviews the evidence of decision-making structures and concludes that ‘Studies which have examined the participation of various groups also show that the workers’ council is not the source of effective power in the enterprise’. A hierarchy of power and authority existed with top management and party and union officials exhibiting most power, and workers through the workers’ council being the least influential. Kolaja (1965: 67) suggested that ‘in both factories [studied] the workers’ council fell under the influence of the director who was also a prominent member of the League [of Communists] organisation’. In 1967 the process of separation was deepened when firms were given the right to retain part of their foreign earnings from exports (thus releasing them from the obligation to cross-subsidise other firms through transfers of earnings via the central bank). Foreign-owned companies were allowed to invest in Yugoslavia, subject to a maximum 49 per cent holding of assets. Such market-based liberalisation had the side effect of increasing unemployment as firms laid-off workers in less profitable areas. The resultant unemployment among sections of workers in turn acted to increase inequality among workers in general (Lydall, 1984: 84).
As Yugoslavia built bridges with western market capitalism, self-management proved useful in terms of enterprise innovation, worker discipline, control and direction. In effect the pull of the market confirmed self-management as little different from the employee participation or ‘industrial democracy’ experiments which had run in parallel in western capitalist enterprises. As more powers to retain and redirect surplus were given to self-managed enterprises, so too were those enterprises forced into competition with one another and with those in the western markets. So while the state wished to enable self-management as a modernisation project, it contemporaneously imposed market discipline, thus negating the possibility of ‘commons’ as the logic of capital prevailed.
If the ideology and political economy of the state had corrupted self-management ‘from above’, what might happen within a liberal democracy when workers control came ‘from below’? We now turn to the British example to explore this question.
1970s Britain: A Blocked Trajectory?
The 1970s was a period of heightened industrial and political unrest in western Europe at the faltering end of the post-war economic boom. Factory occupations occurred throughout , most notably in France in 1968, in revolutionary Portugal in 1974/75, and in Britain in 1972 and beyond. In Britain the economy was in deeper crisis, exhibiting higher inflation than competitors, a weak currency and with the Labour Government in 1974 turning to the IMF for a $4bn loan. Post-war economic expansion had been marked by a growth of TUC affiliated union membership from 9.3 million in 1950 to 11.2 million twenty years later. As trade union power had increased, so too had the network of independent shop stewards, creating a duality of power between trade union leaderships and the rank-and-file (see Upchurch et al, 2009: 81-112). Restructuring inevitably posed a threat to trade union power. It also threatened the material base of the weak corporatist industrial relations polices pursued by successive post-war governments.
The shock of factory closures sparked rank-and-file led work-ins, occupations and worker co-operatives. A movement developed, crystallising ideologically around the politically left-leaning Institute of Workers Control (IWC) and left Labour Party leaders such as Tony Benn. Alternative political visions were promoted, including an ‘Alternative Economic Strategy’ of import controls, a siege economy and alternative production per se. (Cooley, 1982). An internal IWC debate between the two positions of revolution or reform came to a head following the occupation and work-in of the Upper Clyde shipyard in 1972 and the subsequent wave of over 260 factory occupations in the engineering industry (Tuckman, 1985: Darlington and Lyddon, 2001). An article in Socialist Register by Richard Hyman (1974) exploded the debate, when he challenged the ‘reformist’ position of the IWC as untenable. The majority position in the IWC favoured an extension of workers’ involvement through practices of ‘co-determination’ not dissimilar to the system of Mitbestimmung found in West German Works Councils (Coates and Topham, 1974). Hyman argued, in contrast, that workers’ control could only be achieved by challenging the power of capital directly.
Each perspective demands wholly different strategies; yet within the IWC literature the issue appears fudged and confused. The lack of clarity on this point, it seems to me, reflects a more general ambivalence on the issue of reform and revolution (Hyman, 1974: 249-250).
This apparent ‘fudge’ posed indirectly the role of the state, or rather the lack of ambitions towards the state from the ‘reformist’ position of the IWC.
The political formation of this co-existence remained obscure, ‘the answer to such questions does not yet exist—not even as a model theoretically guaranteed in some holy text or other’ (1978: 264-65). Poulantzas had adopted the Althusserian position of the post-1968 French Communist Party (PCF), which had made an ideological shift and dropped the Marxist concept of the ‘dictatorship of the proletariat’ in the development of its ‘Eurocommunist’ position. This position, anti-Stalinist in intent, was rooted in the proposition that all attempts to construct workers’ direct control over the state would lead to despotism. Indeed, instead of rehearsing projects of workers self-emancipation from below, Poulantzas presented a reformist ‘check’ on such processes by embracing the simultaneous continuance of bourgeois democratic forms in the guise of parliamentary, representative democracy. ‘If we base everything on direct, rank-and-file democracy...sooner or later, (it) inevitably leads to statist despotism or the dictatorship of experts...if workers’ councils form their own state power...it is not the withering away of the State or the triumph of direct democracy that eventually emerges, but a new type of authoritarian dictatorship’ (1978: 255, 264).
The workers’ occupation movement in the UK began to fade as the occupations were defeated and workers’ take-overs of such workplaces as the motor cycle manufacturers Norton Villiers or the Scottish Daily News proved unsustainable. This was despite some limited Labour Government support in1974 under the influence of the new left-wing Secretary of State for Industry, Tony Benn. The support, however, was partial and limited to ‘compensate the owners for the workers takeover in the purchase of usually obsolete plant and equipment’. (Tuckman, 2010: 31). The demise of the factory occupations and worker co-operatives related to their inability to escape the logic of capital. As Clarke (1977: 373) noted ‘the co-operatives were impelled to conform to many of the practices of private industry on matters of pay, hours, intensity of work, management control and so on... pay was generally lower than in outside industry’. As an alternative to worker co-operatives the TUC, in talks with the Labour Government, supported the 1974 and 1977 Bullock Reports on Industrial Democracy, which sought to place workers’ representatives ‘on the board’ of both nationalised industries and large private enterprises. However, the more militant wing of the trade union movement rejected such calls for being too collaborationist, and the key moment of industrial ‘democracy’ passed by (McIlroy et al, 1999).
However, a new era of neo-liberal prescriptive ideology and practice also began to redefine the landscapes of political economy. Within Latin America, a new wave of factory occupations occurred in Argentina, and a revival of ‘Bolivarian’ socialism was generated in Venezuela which included the enablement of workers co-operatives. It is to these that we now turn.
Argentina’s experiment with autogestion emerged during 2001 in the midst of economic and political crisis in which the government announced the largest sovereign debt default ($93bn) in world history. Argentineans responded with social uprisings which removed four Presidents in two weeks. Millions of citizens began to collectively participate in self-organised actions designed to reclaim control over the decisions that affected their daily lives, including neighbourhood assemblies, pots and pans protests, piquete road blocks, community soup kitchens and barter clubs. An estimated 10,000 employees in over 160 factories, hotels, hospitals and other industries decided to restart the production process themselves by ‘recovering’ the workplaces that their bosses had abandoned. While participants in the worker-recovered companies (ERTs in Spanish) may not have possessed a clearly-defined ideological agenda, self-management in Argentina did contain an expansive political edge inspired by the ideas of autonomy, removal of hierarchy and promotion of horizontal decision-making (Dinerstein, 2007) as the people demanded the removal of the entire political class.
Workers’ self-management has been interpreted as a defensive response by non-unionised employees to preserve their jobs motivated by the desire to confront the injustice of having remained unpaid for many months (Monteagudo, 2008). More positively, it has been presented as evidence of anti-power (Holloway, 2002). This is signalled by the recovery of autonomous spaces left by the abandonment of both the state and the traditional reformist agents of political parties and trade unions. Most workers felt betrayed by the CGT (Argentina’s only legally recognised union confederation), because it had used its corporatist prerogative within the Peronist government to tacitly support structural adjustment. The more pluralist CTA confederation, established by dissident unions in 1992 and which opposed President Menem's neoliberal reforms (Serdar, 2012), also remained paralysed when confronted with the radicalisation of workers’ and other social movements (Svampa, 2007). The ERTs emerged out of the tension between workers’ perceived right to work and the business-owner’s legal right to maintain possession of the firm - a contradiction which could not be satisfied. Autogestion in Argentina was thus the product of the synthesis of two contradictory processes – on the one hand as a collectivist class response to defend jobs, and on the other an individualist ‘save yourself’ mentality inculcated in workers’ minds as part of the neoliberal project. The movement allowed workers to improve their personal material circumstances whilst also engaging in a political project that sought workers’ control through the National Movement of Recovered Companies (MNER).
The response of the state was initially ambiguous (Rebón, 2004). Under President Duhalde, support for recovered factories was limited only to those ERTs viewed as his political allies. Things changed in May 2003 with the election of President Nestor Kirchner, who positioned himself on the side of the social movements and was voted in on a populist, left-leaning Peronist ticket. He legitimised the existing ERTs through the introduction of favourable microeconomic policies (Svampa, 2007). The state’s broadly supportive position can be explained because firstly it is clear that the principle goals of the project aligned closely with the professed ‘National-Popular’ objectives of Kirchnerismo. Supporting autogestion helped to give credence to the government’s narrative against neoliberalism. However, in reality Kirchnerismo helped to embed the Argentine economy in global capitalism and reproduced an unequal class structure (Wylde, 2011). The policies that the Argentine government enacted have been used as tools to depoliticise the movement through the process of institutionalisation. The 2004 Programme for Self Managed Work (PTA) provides subsidies to the ERTs, and in this way the political goals of the movement have been exchanged for the recognition of their practical aspirations (Dinerstein, 2007). The Kirchner government launched a series of social projects (Planes) that have led to the creation of some 13,000 state-sponsored cooperatives employing 300,000 (Silveira, 2011). However, within these cooperatives the degree of workers’ control is more limited than in the ERTs as they are run by administrative councils rather than workers’ assemblies and are heavily reliant on state patronage (Orgaz, 2005). The attempted containment of autonomous movements confirms the Kirchners’ famously-stated desire for the restoration of a ‘normal capitalism’ after the crisis, and also exemplifies a return to traditional segmented neo-corporatist practices of social control historically favoured by Peronist governments (Etchemendy and Collier, 2007). The sympathetic state role is also attributable to the fact that at no point has the existence of the ERTs fundamentally challenged the capitalist nature of property relations. In over a decade since the birth of the movement, only 12 per cent of recovered companies have been granted permanent legal expropriation (Facultad Abierta, 2010) whilst the remainder possess some form of temporary status. The state has also failed to adequately support self-managed enterprises in terms of marketing their products (Svampa, 2007).
Finally, the National Institute for Cooperativism and Social Economy (INAES) has helped to further incorporate and normalise the radical goals of many of the recovered companies. However, in 2003, divisions over political strategies caused the movement’s national coordinating body – the MNER to splinter and the rival National Movement for Worker-Recovered Factories (MNFRT) was founded in an attempt to move away from the MNER’s preferred strategy of using direct confrontation and street mobilisations (Ranis, 2005). In this sense it can be said that Argentina’s self-management project was established ‘from below’, but during the last decade has since largely been assimilated and co-opted ‘from above’.
Most of the original ERTs have thrived since 2001 and workers’ self-management has now expanded from 161 into 205 workplaces (Facultad Abierta, 2010). This has occurred in the face of enormous legal, financial and operational hurdles such as being saddled with the failed enterprises’ huge debts, inheriting broken machinery, and legal precariousness. For many individual ERTs this has only been possible because they have pragmatically sought to succumb to legal institutionalisation in order to gain tax advantages and access to credit (Ranis, 2005), whilst simultaneously pursuing defiant acts of resistance that break with the logic of capital and resist the ruthlessness of market competition.
. Half of all ERTs pay all their workers an equal ‘wage’, whilst two thirds insist on an equal length for the working day. Where wage differentials do exist, they were found to be largely marginal and symbolic (Facultad Abierta, 2010) and where self-managed companies have consolidated their operations, workers now receive higher rates of remuneration than they do in equivalent traditionally-organised companies (Magnani, 2011).
In Venezuela workers’ self-management emerged as a top down process, as part of the Bolivarian Revolution initiated by Hugo Chávez in 1998-1999. This process, renamed 21st century Socialism in 2005, has been funded by booming oil revenues (Karl, 1997). Indeed, the state is the nations’ landlord, which means that it ‘can charge a royalty to international oil capital to produce on its subsoil’ (Purcell, 2011: 569). Historically there had been a fusion between the economic and political domains, which allowed the development of a rentier capitalist class - notably managers from the state enterprise Petroleos de Venezuela, PDVSA (Coronil, 1997). To maintain social peace, the state redistributed a fraction of oil revenues to the middle class and to a much lesser extent the working class through social programmes.
The pact between oil company and state exploded in the early 1980s as the result of three series of pressures: the rise of external debt from 1983, falling oil revenues, and the exhaustion of the redistributive system. PDVSA produced as much oil as possible, opened up to foreign capital, and escaped taxation through creative accounting (Hammond 2011: 364). There was no longer a political commitment to reinvest oil revenues in the social economy, which had been at been at the core of Venezuela’s democracy. It was in this context that Hugo Chávez, a military man of humble origins, attempted a coup in 1992. Although the coup failed, Chávez became a symbol of the rise of the oppressed. When he became President in 1998, he inherited a deeply impoverished and highly polarized country. Chávez had no real distinctive political agenda at first, apart from the promise to break away from neo-liberal policies and to place human needs at the heart of all economic activities.
There are three distinct phases in the political reform process. In the first phase (1998-2003), market relations were kept in place (Lebowitz, 2006). The government’s priority was to stabilise the social and economic situation through the Plan Bolivar 2000 (which was directly managed by the armed forces). When Chávez was elected, the price of oil had hit a low point, further undermining the state of the economy. In 2000 Chávez persuaded OPEC members to abide by their quotas (Hammond, 2011: 365). The government then promoted a mixed economic model where cooperatives and small family businesses could coexist with privately controlled circuits of production and distribution. The creation of cooperatives was seen as a key instrument for achieving a transition to an endogenous model of economic development based on the satisfaction of human needs in the community.
In the second phase (2002-2005), the Bolivarian Revolution became radicalised. It became clear that the political opposition, supported by the employers association FEDECAMARAS, the Confederación de Trabajadores de Venezuela, CTV, and PDVSA, would do everything in their power to force Chávez out of office. The government response was to take a more anti-business stance. Chávez announced that 1,149 enterprises were to be expropriated. In the event, the government did not implement a systematic expropriation policy. Moreover, the Venezuelan labour movement did not demonstrate a strong capacity to occupy/and manage expropriated factories, in contrast to its Argentinean counterpart.
Crucially, the government wanted to keep direct control of the some of the most strategic sectors of the economy, especially the oil industry, PDVSA. As a result, the government resisted workers’ calls for self-management and repossession, arguing that it needed to grant special status to the organisation because of its strategic importance (Azzelini 2009: 13). 2005 was also a crucial year in that the government openly declared its commitment to 21st Century Socialism, by which they meant the participation in the decision-making process of excluded or semi-excluded sectors of the population as opposed to the traditional working class (Ellner 2012). For Chávez, what mattered was not the form of property relations,but whether enterprises reinvested their resources in the community forsocial needs. In this socio-productive model, social enterprises (empresas de produccion social, EPS) were meant to lead to the adoption of ‘socialism of the 21st century’, by opposition to the socialism of the 20th century as experimented by the Soviet Union (a model of state capitalism) or workers’ self-management in Yugoslavia (Alvarez, 2009).
Another key element of the emergency response to the economic and social crisis of 2002-2003 was the creation of the Missions. The Missions, Barrio Adentro and Mercal, for example, were originally set up in the municipality of Caracas to attend to health and alimentation needs. In February 2003 the city asked the Cuban government to send Cuban doctors to deprived neighbourhoods, the barrios. The programme was piloted and then rolled out nationally. The Mission Mercal provided subsidised food in government-sponsored cooperatives. From 2004, the government used the massive windfall in oil revenues to fund the expansion of the Missions by creating a mission each time it identified a new social need. In the Mission Vuelvan Caras the aim was to create a model of endogenous development based on local socio-economic projects. The contours of the whole project could be defined by six principles and objectives:1) The state should assume a pro-active role in the economy through the nationalisation of strategic industries; 2)economic development should be endogenous; 3) the state should promote participatory democracy through Communal Councils; 4) civic engagement of the people in the revolutionary process; 5) market-led mechanisms should ultimately disappear and be replaced by alternative forms of social relations based on the socialisation of revenues: and 6) new values of altruism, solidarity and social utility of work should be promoted as an alternative to consumerism and individualism.
The development of the Bolivarian Revolution can thus be analysed as an initial counteraction against an endogenous political threat in 2002/2003. The political mobilisation of socially excluded people was crucial for the survival of the Presidency, leading to a war of position between pro and anti-Chavistas. During the Presidential re-elections of 2006 Chávez asserted the socialist character of the Bolivarian Revolution, which was later confirmed in the 2007-2013 Plan. Booming oil prices led to an increase in rent revenues and enabled the government to experiment its vision of 21st century socialism on a large scale.
The last and third period (2007-2010) consisted in an acceleration of the radicalisation process.. As usual, the President attempted to regain the political ground by launching a series of initiatives. First, confronted with a phenomenon of massive desertion in the Mission Vuelvan Caras, the government officially replaced it with the Mission Che Guevara in 2007. This corresponded to an official recognition of the failure of the cooperatives on the grounds that they were not conducive to socialism. Second, in 2007-2008 the Chavista government expropriated strategic sectors including electricity, steel, cement and telecommunications (Ellner, 2012: 111).
Finally, as Hintze (2008) suggests, the programme suffered from a lack of continuity in terms of political orientations, especially as there was a high degree of turnover at the executive level. This process of permanent change became a clear obstacle to programme consolidation.
In this paper we have sought to explore the relationship between the state and movements for self-management and workers’ control. In doing so we have located our analysis in contemporaneous political economy, noting a spectrum of self-management in practice and a trajectory of development (or retreat). What is clear is that the state, far from having a neutral or passive role, has often sort to shape developments, especially at our key points of trajectory when (capitalist) property relations are threatened or when the circuit of capital is fractured or interrupted. In such instances the role of the state cannot be ignored, or reduced to a ‘non-power’ position whereby the question of state power and the manufacture of ideology based on state power is sidestepped. In our British case an exogenous shock of industrial restructuring led to an endogenous movement for ‘workers’ control’, exemplified by occupations of factories and other workplaces and a campaign to enhance the theory and practice of self-management. However both the occupations and the intellectual movement stumbled as the British Labour government sought to deflect and contain the momentum by the creation of passive forms of ‘industrial democracy’ that sought to bring workers ‘on the board’ but left managerial prerogative and capitalist property relations intact. Support for practical projects was minimal and the intellectual movement, perhaps thrown off course by a weak state response, was similarly thrown into confusion by a ‘fudged’ debate between the exigencies of revolution or reform. This debate challenged and engaged (albeit without definite conclusion) with contemporary theories of the state from Miliband and Poulantzas. The trajectory towards workers’ control was nevertheless blocked, and the movement receded. In Argentina, the state acted in not dissimilar fashion towards the emerging movement ‘from below’. As in Britain, the movement of recovered factories was initially spurred by a defensive reaction to an acute financial and industrial crisis, but this time firmly located within neoliberal prescriptive restructuring. Following the exogenous shock an endogenous movement developed, which not only challenged capitalist property relations but also began to exploit potential fissures in the circuit of capital, creating genuine alternatives to the logic of capital. Forms of participatory democracy began to take centre stage, circuits of capital were fractured through the establishment of ‘commons’ and the theoretical debate between state and ‘non-state’ power coagulated. However, the momentum for transformation appeared subsequently to be blocked, and the circuit of capital restored, as the neo-Peronist Kirchner governments incorporated the movement from below by legislation designed to normalise capitalist property relations. Alternative forms of co-operative projects were initiated by the state which blunted the ideological challenge of the movement from below. In effect the role of the state appeared crucial in slowing down and then blocking the trajectory. In Venezuela, were see a more complex arrangement between state and movement locked into the peculiarities and specificities of the ‘Bolivarian’ revolution. The state has played an active role in encouraging and shaping endogenous projects designed to both modernise industry and also to raise consciousness among the masses. However, the project appears stalled by a lack of ‘real’ self-determination, and is in effect an exogenously produced endogeneity prone to the risk of failure. Finally, in our first example of Cold War Yugoslavia, we see a reverse trajectory of movement away from socialised production to the primacy of the market. We suggest that the Titoist state had constructed self-management from above in its early years ideologically to distance itself from the Soviet alternative but also as a modernisation and disciplining project on a small but growing proletariat. All the weaknesses of self-management were contained in the contradictions between top down authority, still in the Stalinist mode, and a developing class-based divide within the enterprise that denuded self-management of any radical edge. The strategy of survival chosen by the Yugoslav state within the world economy was to introduce market principles into self-managed enterprise, which eventually restored the (capitalist) circuit of capital and full capitalist property relations in post Tito times. As such we see in the Chavista self-management and worker co-operative apparatus an emerging bureaucracy that has echoes of the Yugoslav self-management class. The ‘turn to the market’ was a strategic choice of the Yugoslav state leadership, restricting and containing the opportunities for ‘commons’ in much the same way as the Argentinian state has operated in contemporary times. In all three cases the state has actively intervened to shape or re-shape processes of self-management as part of a strategic choice to reconstitute the nature of the state in the interests of capital accumulation. The state’s adjustment to wider political economy has in such fashion played a crucial role in determining the trajectory and position on the spectrum of self-management.
In summary, our survey would suggest a defining, rather than marginal role for the state. This is not to say that self-management cannot offer a transformative vision towards full workers’ control and socialised production, but rather that this vision cannot be understood in isolation from an understanding of the nature of the state, and neither can it be accomplished without facing the realities of state power.
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I wrote a reply to a part of this article (correcting important misunderstandings) but thought it was too long to post as a comment so posted it as a blog. | 2019-04-19T14:16:39Z | http://www.workerscontrol.net/authors/spectrum-trajectory-and-role-state-workers%E2%80%99-self-management?page=1 |
To get the full 411 about all that is happening in and around the Tennessee Valley this fall including information on Fall Break Camps, Trick/Trunk or Treating options, Halloween Parties, and more why not mosey on over to the full 2018 Fall Activity Guide. Then be sure to share the scoop with your friends so you’ll see familiar faces when you are out and about this fall season.
Join us for the 23rd Annual Redstone Arsenal Family and MWR Oktoberfest, brought to you by Papa Johns Pizza! This fun event features a carnival, German music, glassware, beer and food, a Craft Biergarten, a Sports Pavilion (to catch up on the big games of the weekend and more), and more! This is a cash only event.
Enjoy the oncoming fall weather by strolling, shopping and sipping around the Square Downtown at the final Friday Night Art Walk. There are dozens of vendors with a wide variety of arts and crafts as well as live music. The event takes place during open entertainment district hours, so adults, feel free to stroll with your favorite beverage while shopping and enjoying local art.
Grab a drink and join Arts Huntsville and Downtown Huntsville, Inc. for the Purple Cup Secret Art Walk in #downtownhsv! We’ll lead you on a tour of downtown’s hidden public art – from murals to sculptures to whimsical doorways located off the beaten path. Meet us outside Green Bus Brewing at 206 Eustis Ave and we’ll begin our guided stroll around the Arts & Entertainment district to discover the’ secret art’ that brings downtown Huntsville to life! You’ll be given a Secret Art Walk map to check off your discoveries as we go. The tours last 20-30 minutes and will start at 6pm with a tour leaving roughly every 15 minutes, with a final tour starting at 7:30pm.
The Monte Sano Art Festival will be back on Monte Sano Mountain the third weekend of September 2018. The festival is free to attend, but Monte Sano State Park will charge $10 per car for parking. Cash only. The Monte Sano Art Festival has been an enjoyed tradition in Huntsville, Alabama for sixteen years. In 2018, we will continue to feature more than 140 of the region’s finest artists in an array of wonderful media. Along with the outdoor festival exhibitors, 2018 will continue to feature local food trucks and musicians throughout the park. This festival is always a highlight of the arts calendar!
Our Fall vendor Event is just around the corner! This event will be indoor/outdoor depending on the weather. Admission is free and all proceeds from bake sale, and sale of spots go directly to refurbishing our Bethlehem Walk!
This one-day, family-friendly spectacular features a wealth of global performances, from folk dance and traditional instrumentals to ethnic song and martial arts demonstrations; food trucks; FREE hands-on children’s games and crafting; an Open Air Market; and table displays featuring cultural artifacts, travel/historic literature, handicrafts, native apparel, educational videos, and so much more!
An evening event for the entire family! Dress up in your favorite fairytale or superhero attire, experience fairytale and superhero character meet and greets with photo opportunities, enjoy royally sweet and villainously savory treats, dance the night away with Metropolitan DJ, try your luck at unlocking a treasure, and more! All proceeds benefit local UCP Huntsville client families.
The Tour de Ville is a relaxed and entertaining bike ride through Downtown Huntsville that supports the Boys & Girls Clubs of North Alabama. The ride begins and ends at S.R. Butler Green located at Campus No. 805. Riders will enjoy several noteworthy “rest stops” along the route where refreshments, entertainment, and interesting local information will be presented. The post-ride celebration will feature live music, with free pizza for kids under 16, food, drinks, and local craft beer available for purchase. While the ride is going on, a children’s bike rally (for all ages) involving obstacle courses, bike riding instruction, and bike safety instruction will be held at Butler Green. Money raised from the event will provide needed funds to keep the doors wide open for all kids at Boys & Girls Clubs of North Alabama, Williams Unit. Note: Only children ages 8 and up are allowed to participate on the ride. However, the on-site kid’s bike rally on Butler Green is for kids of all ages.
Fitness Fest is a free community event hosted by Randolph School. And everyone in the Huntsville area is invited to take part in the fun. Our outdoor event will have tons of physical activities for the kids. Plus, families can stroll around the track, participate in Zumba, or get more information from local health and fitness vendors.
Just us at our 2nd annual Fall Festival! This event is a family-friendly event featuring a zip line, bounce houses, slides, face painting, games, hay ride, foam house, escape room, pumpkin painting, train ride, food and much more.
Get your unique gift items and stocking stuffers for the holidays and stock your pantry – this event only happens every 2 years! Shop for and take in the wonderful scents of herb seeds, dried flowers, baked items, herb jellies, honey, and more. Demonstrations include Making Pesto at 10am, Making Natural Perfumes at 10:30am, Making Hummus & Pita Chips at 11am, and Making Botanical Inks for Arts & Crafts at 11:30am. Proceeds support the Huntsville Botanical Garden Herb Garden. This event accepts cash or checks only.
Presented by 1818 Farms, the fourth event in the “Behind the Picket Fence…History Lives” Mooresville Bicentennial series will be a free to the public outdoor walking tour conveying the story of our Town’s progress and transformation through the 1900s with interactive displays, photography, demonstrations, and collections.
These guided hikes offer natural beauty and exercise for the entire family! They’re free, but donations to help preserve green space are accepted. You don’t need fancy equipment! However, we do recommend long pants and comfortable shoes with good tread, bottled water, hiking sticks, trail snacks, and a camera to capture the experience. Dogs welcome, but must be on leads. In case of rain, hikes will be canceled. Please verify cancellation via the website or on Facebook Page.
This week-long celebration of Eva, AL history and community includes a bluegrass festival, the worlds largest hayride, community singing, and concludes with “The Big Day” on Saturday. Enjoy an antique tractor and car show, parade, a baked goods contest, live entertainment, contests, raffle drawings, plus games for all ages – rides, train ride, etcetera, food vendors, and much more!
The HOTC is hosting the 16th Annual Dog Fair at Monte Sano State Park and is attended by thousands of people each year, many bring their dogs, others adopt dogs from the local rescue groups and humane society. Don’t miss the WAGS kid’s learning activities and kids’ dog shows!
Monrovia Community Center invites you to enjoy entertainment, fun, food, games, and giveaways at their 2018 Fall Fest. MCC is a 501c3 non-profit focused on helping the youth within the North Alabama area grow through sportsmanship, mentorship, and spiritually. The Fall Fest is free and open to the public, with some cost for food.
Where German Heritage is greeted with a Southern Style! 8 days of traditional German Music, food, dancing, Classic car show, arts & crafts, Hundfest, Bratwurst Eating contest, Miss Oktoberfest, the Burgermeister Ball, Stein Hoisting contest and our very own Cullman Community Lion’s Club Bed Race are just a few events that you can enjoy while visiting our Craft Beer Garden located in our entertainment district. Authentic German Dinners hosted throughout our downtown, along with guided walking tours, shopping, music and fun, bring Cullman’s German History to life!
Returning for the 54th year, the October Harvest Festival is set for October 5-6, 2018, bringing with it two days of music, arts and crafts and other family-friendly fun. The free event takes place in historic downtown Boaz, located along Highway 168 just off of US Highway 431. During the October Harvest Festival, over 200 arts and crafts vendors will line Main Street giving festivalgoers a chance to shop for unique items. Children will be entertained throughout the day with a free inflatable play area with rides and games (tickets required for a nominal fee). Other activities include live music from the Two-Tone Willie, Nate Fortner, Boaz Jazz Band, and Snead Singers, other entertainment, a huge antique car show with muscle cars, trucks, antique tractors, motorcycles and the Miss Harvest Festival Pageant where a one-year tuition scholarship to Snead State Community College will be awarded to the upper division winner. Festivalgoers will not want to miss the chance to get the new Harvest Festival t-shirt designed by a talented local student. Many of the shops located in the downtown area will have sidewalk sales and special offers in addition to the festivities.
The Huntsville-Madison County Public Library is celebrating its Bicentennial Year (formed in 1818!) and we want to celebrate! Please join us for this FREE event at the Earlyworks Museum. The day will feature birthday cake, puppet shows, crafts and more! Illustrator Laura Murray, creator of Amazing Alabama, will be hosting a coloring workshop in the afternoon.
Join us for a day of shopping at the 3rd annual Craft and Vendor fair at the Meridianville Athletic Association! All your favorite vendors and more will be there. Shop early for the holidays and maybe something for yourself too.
Experience life at Asbury at our Fall Festival! This is THE event of the fall to bring your kids/grandkids/neighbors’ kids/friends’ kids to! With free food, the Big Green Bus, games, hay rides, and fun ideal for kids up through 5th grade, we’ll have a blast together!
Fall Break at the Garden is so fun! Bring the family to Hamburgers & Hayrides for a delicious lunch and lots of outdoor fun. Fresh Market will grill awesome hamburgers, served with sides and beverages. Then, hop on a hayride to the back of the Garden and get lost in our corn maze! Don’t forget to check out the Scarecrow Trail and the Gardens of Myth exhibit while you’re here.
The unique and quirky Pop Up Parks return to Downtown Huntsville October 11th – 21st! Pop Up Parks 2018 presented by Maynor & Mitchell Eye Center will feature 12 parking spots converted into mini-parks around the Downtown Square. The event’s motto: “Move out the cars, bring in the people.” Downtown Huntsville, Inc invites the community to come out, play on the mini-parks, and enjoy all the amazing things Downtown Huntsville has to offer.
Astronomy Day at the VBAS facilities will include family fun activities hosted by local science groups, planetarium shows and telescope observing (weather permitting). Outdoor hands-on activities from 1:00 – 5:00 PM will be offered by VBAS, as well as local science enthusiasts. In the past we have had representatives from HAL5 (National Space Society Huntsville Chapter), U.S. Space & Rocket Center, and Lonnie Puterbaugh: Astronomy Van. Short planetarium shows will allow guests to view the night sky indoors, while special solar telescopes outside will offer views of sunspots and solar flares. Visitors may tour both observatory facilities to hear stories about the construction and installation of the telescopes. Evening activities will kick off at 7:00 PM with a presentation indoors by our keynote speaker, former NASA Astronaut, Brigadier General Robert Stewart, USA, Retired, who will speak on his experiences aboard the Space Shuttle. Following our keynote speaker we will have telescopes set up to view the nigh sky, weather permitting.
Downtown Huntsville will soon welcome a global invader – in the form of 23-foot-tall inflatable illuminated Rabbits. Arts Huntsville, in partnership with Downtown Huntsville, Inc., is bringing whimsy and delight to downtown Huntsville this October with Intrude, a traveling public art installation by Australian artist Amanda Parer of Parer Studio. Huntsville joins the ranks of Denver, Seattle, Singapore, Sydney, Berlin, and other metropolitan destination cities, to host Intrude. Intrude will be on display to the public Friday, October 19th through the 28th in Big Spring Park East and West. The rabbits range from 10 to 23 feet tall. The public is welcome to gently interact with the bunnies and share their experience with the exhibit using the hashtag #IntrudeHsv.
Annual Alabama Gourd Festival theme “Gourds Under the Sea” at the Cullman Civic Center. Enjoy the beautiful works of art made from gourds. Find that unique gift for someone special on your list or something for yourself. You will find plenty of raw gourds, supplies and tools for purchase. Children can decorate their own ornamental gourd for free. The whole family will enjoy touring the fabulous ribbon competition exhibit room. Learn something new as gourd artist demonstrate their art techniques, or take a class from an experienced gourd artist.
For more than 30 years, Colorfest has drawn thousands of visitors to the quiet little mountain village of Mentone to drink in the cool, crisp mountain air, admire the glory of the fall foliage, and enjoy the festivities of Colorfest. Always held the third weekend in October, the festival combines nightly bonfires, live music, fabulous foods, boutique shopping, children’s fun, and of course, the incredibly talented artists and craftsmen who display their wares along Mentone Brow Park.
Hands-on activities, face painting, and lots of telescopes will be on hand at this fun fall family-friendly event, open to the public! The Von Braun Astronomical Society will be there to show you the moon and other visible planetary bodies. Everyone can enjoy the Astronomy Van with a 3D show, PBS’s Janet’s Planet show, a Science Magic Show with Dr. Osborne, and a live science show withDr. Bon & the Science Guys. There will be entertainment on the large inflatable movie screen as well as music.
MES PTA is hosting our second car show featuring Cars, Jeeps, Motorcycles and more. We will have awesome vehicles, marketplace vendors, bounce house, food, music and much more. We are inviting everyone to come enjoy the day with us.
Come bounce in our castle bounce house, win goodies at the cake walk, join in one of three costume contests with door prizes! That’s not all! Chili Contest, say, WHAT?! Yes, come, taste and vote on our your favorite pot of chili, made just for you by our members. If you need a break from the brisk air, you can warm yourself up with a cup of hot chocolate or apple cider. There will be movies, popcorn, cotton candy, games galore, which includes pumpkin bowling! If you are more of a crafty person, we have magnets, silly scarecrow faces, and Fall place-mats waiting for your creative minds. The fun doesn’t stop there, there is pumpkin painting and games for the littler ones!
Each year the Peinhardt farm is open to the public for one Saturday in October. The farm is opened for everyone to come out and experience history in a setting that will take you back in history and allow you to actually participate in some “hands-on” work. Exhibits and demonstrations are spread over 40 acres. Events have included old-time woodworking, mules, horses and wagon rides, antique tractor shows, petting animals, sorghum syrup making, grist mill, blacksmith horseshoeing, and the sawmill.
Free Family Fun! Hotdogs, drinks, popcorn, games, crafts, moon bounce, family photos, and Bingo!
This is a free to the public, fun family event and market featuring numerous food, clothes, and art vendors! Come out and support Buckhorn Middle while shopping vendors, painting pumpkins, enjoying shaved ice, and so much more.
Join your local Alabama Tinkergarten leaders as they celebrate this autumn season and the end of Daylight Savings with a Fall Lantern Walk. This is a free community family event that will include activities before a sunset stroll. The walk is stroller and dog friendly and costumes and flashlights are encouraged! Tinkergarten leaders across the country will be hosting walks and we are so excited to host the first for North Alabama, we can’t wait to see you outside!
Free and open to the public, come in costume for fun, food and games… and CANDY. There will be games and activities for all aged children!
Hartselle Parks & Recreation along with the Historic Hartselle Downtown Merchants are happy to announce the Third Annual Hartselle Hay Day in Downtown Hartselle. This is a free community event featuring a costume contest, inflatables, hay rides, food trucks and of course, lots of candy!
Nominated for 2017 Downtown Huntsville Event of the Year, Hunt+Gather is an annual juried & curated artisan & makers market, featuring artisans, makers, creators, & innovators from North Alabama & the Tennessee Valley.
Wear your costume and come out for a night full of friends and fun. There will be different carnival games for the kids to play for candy and treats.
Bring your Halloween characters and join the characters from our latest productions for a morning of autumn inspired crafts, dance and of course cupcakes. Our dancers will introduce the art of storytelling through ballet as we enjoy excerpts from the upcoming Nutcracker: A Yuletide Ballet. Space is limited, so register today!
With three covered bridges still in existence, Easley, Horton Mill, and Swann Covered Bridges, Blount County carries the title of Covered Bridge Capital of Alabama. As a tribute to its roots, a one-day festival is held every year in Oneonta and offers free family fun including a guided river walk, a covered bridge tour, a pancake breakfast, a quilt show, an arts and crafts show with a kid’s zone, a car show, live music, great food and more. The highlight of the Covered Bridge Festival is the arts and crafts show located in downtown Oneonta’s entertainment district. Throughout the day, festivalgoers can peruse the booths of vendors selling an assortment of homemade items, handmade jewelry, artwork, wood creations and more. For the early risers, the Blount County Children’s Center will host its annual pancake breakfast from 7 to 10 a.m. at Lester Memorial United Methodist Church, located at 108 Third Avenue East. This year, the Covered Bridge Festival will continue on into the evening as SwampTails Restaurant transforms a block into a spooky spectacular costume party with live music, food and more. Festivalgoers are encouraged to come dressed in their favorite costume and enjoy an early start on the Halloween holiday.
Our Village’s FIRST community event! Y’all come join the fun! Hayrides, face painting, gorgeous luxury homes to tour, free family portrait sessions, pumpkin patch, pumpkin painting contest, and MORE!
Get an early start on prepping for the holidays with over 70 area crafters, makers, artists, and small businesses at the 5th annual Taste of the Holidays Market! This year’s booth fees will directly support the ministry of 305 8th Street. Come taste free samples of sweet & savory recipes while you shop, get free gift wrapping, and enter to win a free holiday dinner for 8. Last year, this event featured over 1800 shoppers!
Join us on Sunday, October 28th from 3-5 PM for Mayfair’s AutumnFest 2018! Come for our Giant Trunk-or-Treat + food trucks, inflatables, rock wall, hayride, free snow cones & more!
Rain or shine, join Calvary Baptist in Scottsboro for games, food, inflatables, hayride, and s’mores.
Fall Festival – Trunk or Treat at Hillwood is a free event open to children and their families. Church members will greet and assist visitors with love and friendliness as they explore fun events such as horse rides, mini-train ride, games, and inflatables. We will also have hot dogs, and drinks as well as car trunks and pickup trucks full of candy! Come and have some fun with us!
Join Risen Life Church Without Walls for our Fall Festival on Wednesday, October 31 in front of The Legacy Center on Jordan Lane!
Burritt’s Folklife Festival will showcase craftspeople, artists and presenters who will share their knowledge about the traditions, skills, handicrafts and arts of our region during the 1800s and early 1900s. Come hear traditional music and watch demonstrators as they show you how our ancestors worked, lived and created art. Skills that will be demonstrated include blacksmithing, flint knapping, Native American flute making and playing, spinning, quilting, open hearth cooking and much, much more. These exciting days of family fun will be Saturday from 10:00-4:00 and Sunday 12:00-4:00. You won’t want to miss this wonderful experience!
A Fall Festival that has something for everyone! Free to attend, but tickets are $20.00 for 25 tickets, which are good for pony rides, games, face painting, photo booth, etc. Food trucks will be on site and there will be bakery goods and arts and crafts items for sale. The evening will end with a bonfire to include hot chocolate and s’mores!
Rocket City NerdCon (RCNC) 2018 is a celebration of all things nerdy. If your fanaticism for pop culture, comic books, movies, tv, books, games, collectibles, crafting, cosplay, LARPing, etc. borders on obsessively nerdy, this is the place for you! Come meet other people who geek out over similar subjects, and let your inner nerd flag fly. Tickets are good for the whole weekend, and you must have a ticket to enter panel rooms and workshops. The library will be open to the public during normal library hours (Saturday, 9:00am-5:00pm, and Sunday, 1:00-5:00pm), but only ticket holders will be allowed in the library on Saturday evening and Sunday morning. | 2019-04-19T03:18:24Z | https://www.rocketcitymom.com/2018-fall-festivals-carnivals-special-events-huntsville-north-alabama/ |
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The process of establishing whether you are trading with a legally authorized and quality online dispensary should not be too hard. If at any moment you feel something is not right, you need to focus on other dispensaries. You therefore should see all the discussed qualities displayed moments after logging on to their site. You should also spend some time reading through their online reviews. This is how you access more info about what you shall get from them.
On occasion, we need to take time off your hustling to pamper yourself. You have to get a decent place to take some time off, and one of them is in San Diego. However, most people don’t know the things to do in San Diego. This state is widely known as a tourist attraction site because of its sailboat tours. There are assortments of things that make going to San Diego very good idea. They range from the fantastic weather to the fantastic food, to the awesome nightlife. However, the main reason many people want to visit is the San Diego Sailing. It has sustained a lot of mariners as it gives enough opportunity to everybody, regardless of whether you are a learner or extremely experienced, to give it a shot. The number of people who love sailing is very large, and this is mainly because the state is a big one. The long beaches are a sight to behold and visiting the place is an experience of a lifetime.
The climate there is ideal for cruising more often than not, and this is one of the numerous variables that make individuals look for San Diego. The waters are again very quiet, and the odds of getting an accident on them are extremely low. The general population of San Diego has likewise put made sailing one of the fundamental sources of payment for the occupants of this state. Most of the people who inhabit this place are Hispanic. For those individuals, cruising is something that they have been doing for hundreds of years and therefore, cruising is second nature to a significant number of them. Sailboat tours are also a thing there for those tourists who wish to go to San Diego but have no wish to use their own boats. The top sailing charters in San Diego that are there have also made this place better than their counterparts in other states.
For those tourists who want to sail San Diego but come from other places, that can be arranged in a couple of ways. This is especially the case for those who come from places very far away and have never been to the state. The best way to do this is by searching for the best sailing tours in San Diego. There are numerous ways to achieve this outcome, but the most famous one is by searching on the internet or asking the people who you socialize with for recommendations. This process of picking a sailing tour company is a very important one and should be treated as such. You could make sure you pick a legitimate one by choosing the famous ones. You could likewise search for the sail San Diego reviews with the goal that you recognize what organizations are generally prescribed. San Diego team building is likewise accessible for the individuals who are looking for that service. | 2019-04-18T16:28:44Z | https://htws.info/page/3/ |
Our client Boojum is due to open in Cork this week…and the excitement is Cork is well and truly building.
Late last month the Boojum team came to town and caused a major buzz as they travelled around in their branded cars filled with Boojum goodies.
While I knew Boojum was popular I didn’t quite realise how popular it was and how much people wanted it to open in Cork!
I can’t believe the buzz and anticipation in Cork City for the award winning Mexican restaurant to open its doors. With stores already in Belfast, Dublin and Galway, Cork will be the first new city for Boojum in 4 years, and their 3rd new store to open in the past 12 months.
Boojum addict t-shirts have become a highly coveted item belonging only to the most loyal of customers and Boojum Cork have commissioned special edition t-shirts especially for the Cork customers designed (and modelled!! See below) by our very own Paul Wade in our Fuzion design department.
Since they were revealed we have been inundated with calls from people looking to get their hands on one.
The t-shirts will be available exclusively from Boojum Cork so keep an eye on the Boojum Cork Facebook and Twitter accounts where they may just give away a t-short or two!
The new store, which will be located on 7 Winthrop Street, is approximately 2700 sq ft over 2 floors, seating 50 people.
Will one of these be you?!!
We can’t let the South Mall go south!!
When I was in college in Cork in the early ‘80’s I used love to walk down South Mall and take in the atmosphere of this bustling busy business street and I vowed I’d someday work there – that is of course, after I travelled and conquered the world!!!
I always knew that Cork would be my home and after a long and winding road now it is. I can’t believe that I am lucky enough to not only work on the South Mall, but that I own a business on this historic business precinct.
We have an equally good location in Dublin on Fitzwilliam Street and even though we continue to grow in Dublin, Cork will always be my base and the South Mall will always be where I am drawn to work – and often play thanks to great places like Electric, right across the road from us!
I know though at the moment I am seeing the Mall with tinted glasses.
Because it’s home to me the glare of all the “To Let” and “For Sale” signs fade into the façades of the buildings. But what must people think when they look at the South Mall now, when viewing the area as a location to set up a business?
With all the vacant signs, it’s probably the last place people new to the city would consider setting up a business. I bet sometimes some people think all that is missing is the tumble-weed – although there are weeds growing off many of the empty buildings!!!
Reports and studies are great but are they getting us anywhere? Is anyone taking the advice, recommendations on board? Where are the incentives to encourage people to move into the South Mall? Are the Estate Agents doing their jobs properly? Is there something more the business community could be doing? Is there more that the landlords should be doing to make their properties more attractive to businesses?
It just breaks my heart sometimes when I see another business leave, just as strongly as it leaps for joy when I see a business opening. Thankfully there have been a few in the last six months.
Perhaps the business community on the South Mall should join together?
Now I know we have an excellent Chamber of Commerce and there is the Cork Business Association – but should we mount an organic PR campaign for the South Mall; where businesses pro-actively talk up this great business precinct and support the businesses on the Mall.
This could not only help keep businesses on our main business centre but also encourage more businesses to make the South Mall their home. We could make sure new businesses on the Mall are welcomed by neighbours, through social media, through one to one well wishes and the ultimate support, by doing the best to do business with neighbouring businesses.
The South Mall could once again become a real thriving business community, supporting each other and encouraging new neighbours.
Fuzion are delighted to be working on two great initiatives that have been introduced by the Government and are being operated by the Local Enterprise Boards.
The first of these is Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur, which was recently launched by the Taoiseach and the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation.
It is a new competition to find Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur, with a total fund of €2 million available to invest in winning businesses and entrepreneurs in every county in the country.
The competition is being run by the new Local Enterprise Offices, and the winners at county level will be eligible for an investment in their business of up to €25,000, while the winners at national level can receive an additional investment of up to €50,000. Investments in the winning businesses will be determined according to business prospects and investment needs.
This is really encouraging to see as it recognises the importance and encourages entrepreneurship in Ireland. The competition is applicable to anyone aged 30 and under with an outstanding idea/commercial venture for a start-up or existing business.
Almost any young person with a business idea can enter the IBYE competition.
It doesn’t matter what their background is and it encourages anyone who has researched a business idea, anyone who is itching to be their own boss, or an existing young entrepreneur, who has an idea to improve their existing business.
It also includes anyone who wants to return home and set up their own business in Ireland. Getting some of Ireland’s best talent to return and set up a new business would be fabulous for our economy.
The competition falls into three categories including Best New Idea, Best Start Up and Best Idea by an Established business.
If you know anyone who fits this bill then please encourage them to enter the competition, which has some great prizes including financial and other supports.
Young entrepreneurs can apply via the IBYE website.
Any initiative that encourages, supports and celebrates young entrepreneurs must be applauded – well done!
Check out the other terrific initiative, Online Trading Vouchers which is designed to encourage and assist Irish businesses with eCommerce potential to get trading online and not miss the opportunity to expand their business. Vouchers of up to €2,500 are available to qualifying businesses.
A few months ago I found myself having a coffee in town on a Saturday morning chatting with an old school buddy who I hadn’t see in thirty years. We had connected on LinkedIn and it was as if those thirty years had disappeared in a flash.
I always thought he was “sound”, one of the good guys and in truth not a whole pile had changed – both of us had done a lot of living in between but we were essentially the same two school mates – we had a good laugh recalling stories about our teachers and football matches we had played in. I had a photo of our “winning” team in some school tournament and there we were the two of us in our red kit!
Both of us have done well in our varied careers and he was in the early stages of a new online project – by the end of the conversation he asked if I wanted to come on board with the project utilising our expertise on some type of a shareholding arrangement. In a few years the plan was to sell the business and we would all make good money. Hmmm ….sounded good.
After this me met a few times and got down to business and delved into the nitty gritty of his project and our involvement in it.
While his project was really interesting to my surprise I found myself not being as enthusiastic as he was about it. Why was this I was asking myself?
Like every great “driver” he was pushing me for our plans and input. I did this of course but I discovered his project wasn’t my No.1 priority. My clients and our own projects motivate me and this project just wasn’t having the impact that I was expecting.
It wasn’t a client and it wasn’t “my” project.
My buddy needs more than 1,000% from me and everyone else involved in the project for it to be a success. I realise this more than anyone.
Before we damaged our friendship we gracefully concluded our arrangement and that was cool with both of us. We’ll meet again for coffee soon – probably in about another 30 years!
It’s important that we spend our time chasing our own dreams.
Sometimes are you better off not saying the right thing?
Must be a great shop !
At this stage between the initial briefing meeting and the time spent researching and working on the plan we have spent well over a day’s work before we meet with the prospect and present our Marketing\PR plan for his business.
This is always a tricky stage for us – if you want to have a chance of winning the new account you have to punch in the time, put in the research, brainstorm and put all your best ideas and thinking into the plan.
We don’t get paid for this but we do obviously hope that the client likes what we are proposing and then engages us to execute the plan for them – Put your best foot forward if you are serious about winning the business.
We are two hours into our presentation and the prospect seems to be embracing the plan and it is all looking very positive. Our plans are always quite comprehensive and cover everything from being found on-line, a review of marketing collateral and website, a PR plan including ideas that should generate the right media coverage and a social media plan to accelerate all of these efforts.
At the end of the presentation, while everything seems to be going well there is one huge, risky issue that we wish to discuss.
“We feel your business name isn’t right” we gently explain to the prospect. This could be as delicate as telling someone you don’t like their child’s name!
“But what about my website, my branding, the money I’ve invested to date in advertising, pushing the name out there?” he asks.
“It is saying the wrong thing about your business, it is giving the wrong impression of what you are about” … he seems to be digesting and contemplating what we are saying , so we continue “we feel strongly that we would be doing a huge disservice to you if we drove on with a plan without first addressing the issue of your business name“.
After a few minutes he admitted that he always had some concerns about the name “fit” and we were the only (maybe foolish?) ones he met that had raised the issue.
We presented him with some alternative names that we felt more accurately captured the essence of the business offering and he seemed genuinely interested in them.
In truth we could have made life easier for ourselves and probably for him by just ignoring the business name issue and presenting a plan that was in keeping exactly to the brief.
In 1960, the relatively unknown Senator John F Kennedy debated against Vice President Nixon in a US first television live debate in a presidential election campaign.
It’s widely acknowledged that without that debate, Kennedy would never have been president. Nixon, pale and underweight from a recent hospitalisation, appeared sickly and under pressure, also famously refusing makeup, while Kennedy appeared calm and confident, tanned, robust and healthy, wearing full make up.
Those who listened to the debate on the radio thought Nixon had won. Those who watched it on television, thought Kennedy had been victorious. While Nixon went on to perform much better in subsequent debates (and to look better, due to weight gain), 20 million people watched that first one, and the damage had been done.
For the first time ever in the US, viewers judged presidential candidates on not just content, but style, stage presence, appearance. For the first time, it demonstrated that how you present yourself, counts.
In our working lives we make presentations, give interviews and conduct meetings, leaving first impressions every day. We don’t want to be all style and no substance, but how you present yourself, matters. How you dress, how you shake hands, how you speak at that first meeting, may be the only shot you have, so you have to make it count.
Sometimes we are casual in our approach with business associates, with prospective clients, with colleagues, and we conspiratorially confess that business hasn’t been great, that we couldn’t wait to leave the office to go home and watch the Olympics, assuming we are making friends, but this is not the climate for over sharing- this economic climate requires your game face!
People like to think they’re doing business with a focused, capable, confident person, and that first impression will do at least half the convincing, that you’re the right person for the job.
Nixon himself insisted on campaigning right up to an hour before that famous debate, not having fully recovered from a hospital visit either, but he never got a chance to explain that in the live debate- the public presumed him exhausted, weaker than his opponent. Not fair, not true, but the rest is history.
Of course we all do our best to look smart going to work, and make a greater effort for important meetings, but we should probably assume that how we present ourselves says more about us than we realise. Bear it mind as you’re getting dressed tomorrow morning- time to get your game face on!
Jill Collins is an account director at Fuzion.
Jill Collins conducts presentation skills training and media training in both Cork and Dublin.
“Guess who is selling his bar and buying a 5 star restaurant” Tommy, my Sales Manager said to me. I was the General Manager of Deasy & Co at the time, a subsidiary of Guinness.
One of our loyal customers who was running a good solid suburban bar had done a decent job with the place and he was made an offer to sell up. The offer was “too good to be true” and our customer was going to make a clear profit from the deal.
His plan was to buy and run this very successful five star, fine dining restaurant whose reputation had been built around a well known chef. He reckoned he could manage the purchase with the windfall from the pub sale and even be in a position to upgrade the restaurant premises with some support from the bank.
The problem as we all saw it was that our guy wasn’t exactly Mr.Sophistication and in truth he was the last person that we could imagine operating this 5 star restaurant. He always did well in the pub but that was with a very different, country type crowd.
My buddy Tommy was really close to him – should he have a strong word with him and advise him against his dream?
Our customer was determined, full of enthusiasm so maybe we were the ones that were wrong – who were we to say anything? If Tommy said something to him it could backfire and damage the professional friendship they had.
Shortly after the restaurant opened under the new owner we went there for a meal to support him. Our worst fears were realised as we had a poor meal and you could see that our customer, who was a really nice guy just wasn’t able for this level of fine dining. Maybe he was on a learning curve and it would get better?
Unfortunately within a year the place was shut, the “fine dining” reputation in tatters, he had lost huge money and the building was handed back to the bank and our customer had lost everything.
The crazy thing was that we all saw it coming ….
Would you have said something ?
My son Brendan Canty has just qualified from CIT, having completed a multi media course. He wants to work in film in some way and he is also really passionate about music.
How unusual – a 22 year old being passionate about music!
Like every other parent you worry about what your children will do – you want them to find a job, earn a living and in this climate it has never been quite so tough.
“You need to find a god solid job” I hear myself saying..
Well – he has set up his own website operating under the name Feel Good Lost and he has been busy producing videos for bands from all over the world – with the web and modern technology this is all quite easy, apparently!
His last music video was for a “secret” American solo artist who goes under the name Slow Magic and the track he produced was for a song called Corvette Cassette. There is a video producers peer website called Vimeo (this is like a worldwide YouTube for video and film producers), which has just featured this song as a staff pic – at the time of writing the video has been viewed 63,000 times across the world.
While Brendan does some excellent corporate video work for Fuzion and his own clients he excels when he combines his love of music and his film profession. On Friday nights he DJ’s in The Pavilion in Cork combining music and visuals as part of his unique set operating under the Feel Good Lost name.
Slow Magic // Corvette Cassette from Feel Good Lost on Vimeo.
He is following his dream and his passion and it had me thinking about career choices and Three Circles..
The basic principle is that if companies concentrate their efforts on activities that meet all three of these criteria then they will inevitably be very successful – this is one of the factors that Jim Collins attributes to the success of what he calls “Great” companies.
If you are looking for a new job or a new challenge how about using the Three Circle Criteria for deciding which path you choose?
Are you Making a Sale or Changing a Customers Routine?
Do you change your routine easily?
I admit it … I’m boring!
Every Sunday morning myself and Dee go for a walk with our four legged creature, Bing to the local park with our good friends Tommy and Joan and their four legged creature, Tammy.
This routine was so predictable – walk to Ballincollig Park, lap of the first field, walk alongside the river to the lower fields, cut up through the Gunpowder mills and the GAA fields, into the village, stop for coffee and scones at Nosh and Coffee, chat, walk through the village and home. This as I mentioned is what we do pretty much every Sunday.
A few months ago a very cute little mobile coffee kiosk moved into the car park at the start of the park serving coffee and buns and they even have a few very neat tables and chairs outside their unit complete with flowers in vases. Now, this didn’t really suit our break “routine” as the location of the kiosk was at the start of our walk and not in the middle so even though it was a really nice set up it wasn’t quite right for us (its a big deal changing people’s habits!).
Recently we did our usual walk but some of the “crew members” were a little hungover so having completed stage one of our walk we double backed, cut the walk short and went back to the little kiosk, “Cafe Chico” (the owner called the kiosk after her dog, who she brings with her for company each day) for some very welcome refreshments.
The woman working in the kiosk was really friendly, the coffee and home made scones were perfect and to top it all she offered us biscuits from a tin especially for the four legged creatures – Wow! this woman knew and understood her customers really well.
Officially we have changed our routine! Now the first leg of our walk is the same as it was before but now we do a few laps of the lower fields, double back along the river to lap the first field again and then return to the beginning to enjoy our coffee, scones and chat at Cafe Chico!
Why? She runs a great little friendly business, she understands her customer and she goes a little further than you would expect but fully appreciate.
Are you making a sale or are you changing a customers routine – which is worth more?
While we can look after your PR needs, your reputation starts with what you do yourself.
Broken Man – We need him now more than ever ..
n he bounded about two years ago full of energy, enthusiasm and little bit of arrogance but full of confidence.
His plan was to launch a brand new product in a sector that he reckoned was totally under serviced but one that was growing in interest and importance. He was fully convinced about the viability of this project and needed our help to design and launch it in the marketplace. We were swept along by this guys enthusiasm and everyone in the team got behind the new project – it was really exciting.
The new product did come out, probably at the worst possible time – in the middle of 2009 when no one was taking a chance on anything new. Despite his enthusiasm and powers of persuasion the revenue targets were badly missed.
The product sold well in outlets where it was given a chance on the shelves but in most others it was returned within the week! That often happens with new products that battle for space on the retailers shelves. Product feedback was really superb by the few who actually managed to get their hands on it.
Fast forward to 2011 ..
We did manage to get a few quid off what was owed to Fuzion but there was still a really large sum outstanding. I guessed the phone call would be a waste of time but in any case it had to be made..
..no answer, he’s probably not up to the conversation – can’t be easy. Two minutes later I get a call back and we have a really good chat.
His other business ventures had also ceased (construction sector), he didn’t have money for me just now but promised to pay when fortunes improved. His mortgage payments have slipped by a few months and he was now job hunting. There is nothing here for him he reckoned .. his preferred destination is Australia but he wouldn’t get a work visa so he guessed he would end up in Abu Dhabi. This would be difficult as he has two young kids.
He is a broken man, his world is in tatters – he is not the only one I have met recently.
The truth is this broken man is an entrepreneur, someone who is willing to take a chance, someone who will make things happen. Sometimes things go wrong but often they go right and they end up employing people and service providers in the process.
In Ireland we need the broken man now more than ever – if you meet him give him a break and encourage him to get on his feet again. | 2019-04-19T09:31:27Z | https://fuzionblog.wordpress.com/category/start-up-business/ |
The second Soul for Europe conference took place in Berlin in November 2006 as a follow up to the first which was held in 2004. It seems likely to become a regular feature of the European cultural process, reflecting the recognition that further development of Europe ’s unique alliance of nation states will only be effective if it evolves to include common cultural values, goals and conditions of co-existence. A glance at the reports of the two past conferences reveals that these tasks are more complicated than they might seem to those looking from the windows of the European Parliament, the European Commission and the many other institutions created during the half century lifetime of the united Europe project.
At that time Europe was a continent that had been torn apart, the scars of war still visible; its populations, recently engaged in killing each other, exhausted.
It was the need to survive and overcome these difficulties that brought about economic union. The determination to construct a barrier against future wars and conflicts created political and military union. After more than half a century it has become clear that this is not enough. It is difficult to imagine Europe being fully unified without fixed mechanisms for developing fruitful cultural co-existence between its nations.
Since the EU was formed, the European nations have experienced a population surge with the arrival of millions of migrants. Not all of these have been able or willing to adapt to the conditions of living in contemporary Europe. A very complex ethno-cultural and multi-religious situation in Europe has given birth to many problems and conflicts that at first glance look insoluble.
As the prototype of a peaceful and effective model of world development, the EU is currently going through a more testing time than ever. This test, which started with the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the break-up of Yugoslavia, continued with war in the heart of Europe – the Balkans. That war re-awakened the old disputes of the continent: interethnic and inter-religious conflicts, xenophobia and a widening social stratification that cannot be solved by paternalistic measures alone. Serious disparities in their economic development between old and new members of the EU, and growing bureaucratization at both pan-European and national government level – all this is just the visible tip of the iceberg. Underneath lie huge layers of inter-cultural and inter-faith oppositions and differences.
Put plainly, the Soul for Europe initiative is a first step towards a possible new development in the quality of the EU. The original need was to build the economic and political foundations of a united Europe. And even though the EU has not yet reached idyllic harmony, it is impossible now to negate the economic and political foundations and the advantages of its unification.
The next stage, which is likely to be protracted and increasingly complex, includes the step by step creation of cultural interaction, and social and national unity. The geographical spread of Europe, the size of its population, its cultural and national diversity, make this a task unprecedented in its scope. History has seen many failed attempts at unification. The last in which we were witnesses and participants was the “Soviet” project. The main lesson handed down by the “Soviet” project is the following: no attempt to create social harmony by ignoring and destroying national, ethnic, religious and cultural differences can succeed in the long term, no matter how great the sacrifices made in its attempted implementation.
Furthermore, any attempt to replace cultural and religious diversity with a uniting ideology, a system of values imposed from above, is doomed to failure. History has many examples of empires and dictatorships that failed for these very reasons.
The initiators of the project A Soul for Europe understand that there are many obstacles on the way to finding the parameters for cultural harmony within a united Europe. Even if and when the conditions of mutual coexistence for different cultures in the spheres of religion, philosophy and day to day life have been worked out, the process of implementing and realizing them, and importing them into all aspects of the life of nations, regions, families and citizens will be long and hard.
Not all those who addressed the conference demonstrated the required depth of understanding of the project A Soul for Europe. Some addresses demonstrated a narrow, pedestrian understanding of the medium of culture; seeing it merely as a set of activities connected to art, enlightenment and academia that should not be ignored because of the serious economic benefits it can bring. Unfortunately this limited understanding of culture, used mainly by some Eurocrats, is not only unproductive but could demolish any serious fresh venture into the next stage of bureaucratic initiatives. On the other hand the organizers wish to bring into the project not only politicians and bureaucrats but also a wider circle of Europe ’s and the world’s intellectual elite and to address a range of different European social groups. All this gives hope that the project A Soul For Europe will, eventually, germinate and be brought to fruition.
The development of Europe depends on the power of culture, which must be used in a sustainable manner. This will help ensure that we have a Europe of Europeans, and not just a Europe of institutions, administrations and regulations.
”The EU has reached a stage of its history where its cultural dimension can no longer be ignored. ” This statement was made by the President of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso, at the opening of the Berlin Conference “A Soul for Europe”. The venue was located just a few steps away from the Brandenburg Gate, and the conference took place shortly after the new EU president, the Commission, and the newly elected European Parliament assumed office. It was, moreover, the end of 2004, the year in which the European Union was enlarged by ten new member states. The initiative “A Soul for Europe” is dedicated to stimulating, shaping and guiding the process already set in motion by the conference.
The initiative is intended to give content to the motto of the Berlin Conference while helping to find ways of putting these ideas into practice.
Civil-society initiative “A Soul for Europe” was initiated by a group of private individuals who conceived and realized the idea of the Berlin Conference. The civil-society nature of the initiative is what accounts for its credibility and efficiency and the wide range of topics it addresses. The Berlin group of initiators and the board of trustees – especially Richard von Weizsäcker – enjoy credibility in terms of their profound interest in the project’s Europe-oriented objectives and are above all suspicion as regards their motives in representing the project ’s interests. Members of the European Parliament such as Hannes Swoboda, Elmar Brok and Jo Leinen as well as its president Hans-Gert P öttering, – none of them directly involved in cultural affairs – were among the first to embrace the cause. Another early proponent was the President of the German Bundestag, Wolfgang Thierse, who agreed to approach the presidents and speakers of other European parliaments with a view to securing their interest in the conference. And Matthias Wissmann, Chairman of the Bundestag Committee on European Union Affairs, also worked to gain the support of his opposite numbers in other countries.
In addition, Europe’s most important cultural TV channel ARTE, represented by its President Jérôme Clément, has become one of the initiative’s partners.
2. These are the introductory sentences of the preamble to the European Union’s Charter of Fundamental Rights. The European Union has helped secure the longest period of peace and freedom in European history. Given the enmities and animosities that have plagued Europe for centuries, the process of European unification is not only a political and economic achievement. Unifying the peoples and states of Europe is a process that is unfolding an extraordinary spiritual and cultural dimension.
3. The best way to safeguard the achievements of European integration is by promoting a sense of common European identity among the continent ’s citizens, alongside the traditional regional and national identities. By feeling and acting as Europeans, we, its citizens, can help create what Jacques Delors calls “A Soul for Europe”.
4. The initiative A Soul for Europe seeks to help develop dynamic notions of what the “European idea” means and improve awareness of our continent’s cultural assets and potential. Culture helps people to identify personally with the process of European integration and play an active role in it. As Jos é Manuel Barroso put it at the Berlin Conference in November 2004, “… the EU has reached a stage of its history where its cultural dimension can no longer be ignored ”. This cultural dimension can indeed help promote European citizens’ sense of identity with the EU and give Europe a clearer profile worldwide.
- The European idea. From which roots and according to which concepts is Europe evolving and what do we hope to achieve by pursuing this development?
- The foreign policy defining Europe’s position in the world. What experiences and competences can Europe draw on to make its unique contribution to the world?
- The internal structure of Europe, which is organized in accordance with the principles of democracy, the rule of law and Europeans ’ peaceful coexistence.
- The structural and promotional policies through which Europe supports the development of its regions.
6. Culture is alive in all parts of Europe. The activities of the cities, regions and nations must therefore reflect the responsibility they share for Europe and demonstrate an awareness of the fact that their cultural work and cooperation are not only of local, regional and national significance but also contribute to the development of Europe.
7. European cultural actors should be aware of their responsibility for Europe and be afforded the appropriate means and scope to meet this responsibility.
It is a great pleasure for me to join you at this Berlin Conference on “A Soul for Europe”.
Some people tell me that a President of the European Commission should not speak about culture, an area where the main competence remains at the national and regional level. I disagree. The European Commission by definition is the institution par excellence to represent the European interest, and I find it impossible not to talk about something so central to Europe as culture and its meaning for us. So I am determined to speak up for, and highlight, the cultural dimension of Europe. And this conference is an excellent occasion to do so.
My thoughts turned to this gathering when I heard that Anna Politkovskaya had been assassinated. The murder of this brave journalist is just one example of an increasing number of challenges to European values. Values like freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and tolerance. So my intention today in Berlin, the heart of Europe, is to issue a wake-up call in the defence and preservation of our values.
We need to defend the European spirit of freedom.
With world events unfolding as they are, I feel that it is our duty, as politicians but also as individuals, to say today that the European values which bind together our continent and our common project – freedom, humanism and tolerance – are being challenged. I should also make it clear to you all, as movers and actors in the world of culture, that, in the defence of its values and in the fight for its values, Europe needs you!
Europe needs culture since culture, without any doubt, contributes to its well-being, its greater welfare and its social cohesion. But, beyond that, Europe needs culture in order to proclaim, at this time of instability, that our values are not negotiable.
Europe needs everyone who regards our values and our culture as the fundamental basis of our society. Our values, especially freedom, constitute the “European spirit” around which Europe is being constructed. For Europe is also an eminently cultural invention. It has consciously opted to rise above national, regional and local identities, even while respecting them, and to bring its peoples together by focusing on the common references to their deep roots. European identity is about diversity. And the way we integrate that diversity cannot be based on exclusive identities, but on common values. Yes, deep roots are important, but it is also important to recognise that modern Europeans are grafted onto many different roots, based on the many different peoples and cultures that came before us. In other words, European identity is not based on territories or ethnicity, but on shared values and culture.
Europe gave the world humanism and democracy, to both of which it remains profoundly attached.
But the novelty of the European project lies in the fact that respect for diversity – in terms of history, language and culture – is at the very core of Europe’s culture and is its natural expression.
The contribution made by culture to the defence of this diversity and to this spirit of openness, which are our most precious assets, is, to my mind, more necessary than ever.
Globalisation could generate among some Europeans a sense of alienation and even a sense of loss of identity. This should not happen. Europe must respond. And the best response it can give is to preserve its values. By equipping itself to confront the new forms of competition on the world market and by calling on its human capital and its knowledge, Europe can endow itself with the means of constructing a European society that is dynamic, creative and open. Above all, it is by adapting to change that Europe will be able to remain true to its values.
It is in this sense, perhaps more than any other, that culture plays a key role in the “European pact”. Culture is the place where creativity most fully expresses itself, and it is a force for innovation and initiative. It is also a vehicle for social integration and hence for social cohesion. Lastly, culture promotes a sense of belonging while paving the way for a plurality of identities.
Culture carries real economic weight. It contributes to wealth creation. It creates new jobs. It contributes to innovation, the spirit of enterprise and knowledge. A recent report commissioned by the EU shows that 2.6% of its GDP comes from cultural activities – an enormous amount, in real terms.
This is why I do not regard as sacrilegious the idea that culture and creation can stimulate Europe ’s economic and social success. I do not see anything taboo in the idea that the cultural economy can also contribute to European integration.
Culture also plays an active role in giving fresh impetus to the European Union through local development. Creative activities, which often have a strong territorial dimension, do not always lend themselves well to relocation. Though, even here, Europe must be capable of holding on to its creative workers, who, like scientific researchers, might be tempted to go elsewhere in a quest for better conditions.
Apart from territorial cohesion, culture is, as I have already said, a factor for social cohesion. Cultural activities are among the valuable means of building an “inclusive Europe”. Culture is an essential factor of human development. It improves the living conditions of vulnerable categories among the population, of young people in difficulty and of those who endure poverty or insecurity. In these times of rootlessness and growing solitude, culture provides a link to society at large.
By forging links between individuals, culture can influence their participation in collective life. It is from culture that the sense of a shared destiny transcending the diversity of origins and languages springs. It is the weft around which the rich tapestry of values is woven. Culture, then, is the keystone of the sense of belonging and of active citizenship that Europe needs. By facilitating dialogue, culture opens the way to development in an increasingly multicultural and multilingual society.
For all the reasons I have mentioned – and about which, I am sure, the Commissioners participating in the conference will talk in greater detail, I see a greater need than ever before to emphasise the cultural dimension of Europe, and to involve young people fully in the project. This is a message to everybody, to artists and intellectuals, to political decision-makers, and to civil society.
Events in the world today should impress on us a sense of urgency.
Let me return to my main point today. Throughout the world we see fanaticism on the rise.
Throughout the world we hear the mutterings of fundamentalisms. Throughout the world we sense that intolerance is taking a stronger hold. Let us not hide the truth. Let us face up with the utmost resolution to the dangers that threaten our freedom and our values. Europe, which “invented” tolerance for individuals, for their opinions, for their beliefs and for their differences, must make its own special voice heard. Let us not hesitate and then one day regret that we did not say “no” in time and out loud.
So it is important to defend respect for diversity. But at the same time we must not lose sight of the fact that this respect is based on a deeper respect for certain principles which cannot be negotiated.
Freedom of expression, freedom of religion, or the right not to be religious , and freedom of creation are simply not negotiable.
A serious threat today is self-censorship. When we start anticipating reactions, and telling journalists, and artistic and cultural creators that they have to show prudence, we are de facto narrowing the space of freedom.
There is also a risk that we take such disproportionate action in the interests of greater security that we also narrow the space of freedom. We cannot lose our soul in the struggle against terrorism. Putting our liberty in danger in this way would be a victory for terrorism.
At the beginning of the 21st century, we should, all together, reinforce the foundations of our European home. Which means preserve and reinforce our values. Defend freedom of thought. Defend freedom of speech. Defend freedom of creation. Let us never accept that a book should not be published, that a caricature should be censured or that an opera should be kept off the stage!
Together, let us defend cultural pluralism and the diversity of cultural expression. Together, let us defend multilingualism, one of the inviolable principles of European integration, and a better understanding between language communities. Let us encourage language learning and the translation of works of European literature, which would enrich us all.
Together, let us defend the freedom to create new musical works, new films and audiovisual works, the plastic arts and the performing arts.
Together, let us defend freedom through dialogue between cultures, in Europe and the wider world. Let us listen. Let us offer a hand. But let us also assert that, as Europeans, we place our democratic values above everything else.
Together, let us defend freedom by asserting the right to dream and imagine in a Europe that is reconciled in democracy, tolerance and peace.
Let every one of us, each in our own place, make our own contribution to this heroism of reason so that history – both that of Europe and that of the world – is never again given any opportunity to repeat its past mistakes.
I welcome this opportunity to talk to you about “Europe’s soul” in the world.
Berlin is a city which simply “breathes” Europe’s history and is at the same time a symbol of our unity. What could be a better place to consider “Europe’s soul” and to ask oneself what it means to be European?
The question of Europe’s image is more relevant now than ever before. The world is growing smaller. We are not in a zero sum game. We are earning a massive globalisation dividend.
On the other hand, there is a “dark side” to all this: extremism and the spread of weapons of mass destruction, the impact of regional conflicts on security, the economy and energy supply, not to mention migration and climate change.
The answer, however, is not to retreat into a “Fortress Europe”. We cannot safeguard Europe’s prosperity and values by “opting out” of history.
Globalisation is taking place. And Europe must go on the offensive if it is to help shape its course. The EU is not the Trojan horse of globalisation, but our answer to it. “Globalisation management”: that is the EU’s raison d’être today.
A stronger EU on the world stage is not only a question of efficiency; it is also a contribution to the Union ’s legitimacy. The current “dissatisfaction with Europe” has a lot to do with fear of globalisation. Over two thirds of all EU citizens would like to see a stronger EU external policy. It is up to us to provide it.
Such an EU external policy cannot, however, be a value-free realpolitik. That would be both out of keeping with the way we see ourselves and counterproductive in an interconnected world.
In these changing times, it is important that Europe should be mindful of its inner compass, of its “soul”. For Europe is not only an economic entity; it is a spiritual and cultural one as well.
This is not to take refuge in abstractions. It means placing substantive emphasis on our fundamental values. It means building on that tradition which we hold dearest. On our basic values, our civilisation, ideas about the future, emotions and ambitions.
Our values, our “soul” and our culture are not “museum pieces”, but on the contrary future building blocks for a globalised society.
Our culture creates an identity in turbulent times, an inner understanding, a sense of togetherness. It is not, therefore, an intellectual luxury, but a vital political construct. Europe is above all a community of values.
That is important in world politics. For Europe’s considerable soft power is based on the global gravitational pull of our guiding values.
The vast majority of people in the world view Europe as a power for good. That is a fact of which we are far too little aware. It should not be the case that our partners are bedazzled by Europe ’s success, while Europeans themselves bemoan it, as Jean-Claude Juncker so aptly put it. We need to resolve this paradox.
It is virtually impossible to sum up Europe’s richness in a few words. Allow me, however, to make an attempt at it, starting with Paul Val éry, who said that Europe was born of three sources: Jerusalem, Athens and Rome.
Our cultural basis is our Judeo-Christian heritage, as modernised by the Enlightenment. It is the triad of spirituality, democracy and individual freedom based on law.
Let me throw a few key concepts into the ring and explore them in greater depth as I go along.
First of all, Europe stands for a culture of diversity and not for a culture of uniformity. Not for nothing is our motto “united in diversity”, and not “e pluribus unum”.
The fascinating thing about Europe is this small-scale mosaic, which – patchwork though it is – can trace its origins back to common thoughts and currents.
Just think of Europe’s music, literature and architecture, as exemplified, for instance, by the common features of our architectural heritage, from the romanesque to the modern. This is an expression of a collective “cultural unconscious” slumbering inside of us. It is the sum of our historical experiences, which we should take as a basis for our future policy.
This diversity also demonstrates that the removal of frontiers does not lead to an “abandonment of self” or to a loss of identity. On the contrary: people actually gain in substance through the crossfertilisation.
Our diversity is therefore a strength in a global information society. Europe is a successful example of “globalisation writ small” – politically, legally and economically, as well as culturally. We must make much better use of this “inter-cultural know-how”.
Conversely, this diversity is doubtless also a challenge, especially to the political cohesion of our societies.
What we need is a new basic consensus. We need an unequivocal declaration of belief in our value base, not least by immigrants. Standing up for open societies means more than indulging in ideological arbitrariness.
A second fundamental value, related to the first, is that Europe stands for a culture of freedom.
Europe means defending the inviolable dignity of the individual and his freedom of choice. Europe is, however, also the contrast between freedom and responsibility. It is the deep humanism of Erasmus and the sharp irony of Voltaire. It is the love of freedom in Schiller ’s Don Carlos and Beethoven’s Fidelio, just as it is the tolerance of Lessing’s Nathan der Weise.
As the basis of a liberal society, this tolerance is particularly important now, at a time when what some see as the “clash of civilisations” threatens to become a self-fulfilling prophesy. Chancellor Merkel was right when she recently said that Europe has a future only as a “continent of tolerance”, in the sense of “tolerance as the capacity for serious dialogue”.
Tolerance is based not least on the realisation that, as the holder of rights and obligations, the individual lies at the heart of ethics. Europe is thus the birthplace of individualism. Not only that, but we have learnt from the excesses of the era of the masses and the catastrophes of collectivism in the 20th century.
But individual freedom is not unfettered. It is socially embedded, it depends on “ligatures”, as Ralf Dahrendorf put it. It must not undermine itself. That, too, is European.
This manifests itself in our understanding of economic freedom: we must preserve the essence of Europe ’s blend of entrepreneurial freedom and social security, our declared belief in a social market economy. We need reforms for precisely that purpose.
We must radiate this balance towards the outside world. For globalisation can function only if it is an inclusive process and people do not go by the board.
Thirdly: Europe stands for a culture of law; for the strength of the law, and not the law of the stronger. One of the civilising achievements of integration is that it has raised law to a supranational level. Our Community based on the rule of law is not an administrative project, but a cultural feat.
We must now drive this fundamental juridification forward at the global level, towards an effective multilateralism.
A strong international legal order is, however, not an end in itself but the backbone of a complex world. Globalisation is not taking place in a political vacuum. It needs rules of the game in order to function and to be able to realise its potential.
One example of this “export of the rule of law” is the new EU-China Law School, which will help to integrate China and its young elite into the global concert.
Fourthly: Europe stands for a culture of conflict resolution. The “founding spirit” of our integration project is the abolition of “war as the continuation of diplomacy by other means”.
In saying that, I do not wish to fall back on a cliché such as “Europe is from Venus, the USA is from Mars”. Europe may be not unlike the Kantian paradise of peace and the rule of law, but that does not mean that we can wall ourselves off.
The large, complex conflicts of the past 15 years or so have shown that lasting conflict resolution must be of a political, and not purely military, nature.
We must therefore focus on the deeper roots of conflicts and radicalism. Nowadays, long-term state building is one of the most important forms of security policy, aimed as it is at preventing the formation of “black holes” in the international system.
With its broad, post-modern external policy, the EU can make a significant contribution here. And that policy must in turn build on values. For conflict resolution is based on respect and an ability to relativise, without, however, giving up one ’s own “core values”.
Fifthly: Europe stands for a culture of creativity.
The Faustian search for knowledge, the genius of Leonardo da Vinci, but also Hamlet ’s doubts, together with scepticism and critical thinking – these are all part of the “conditio europea“.
We cannot leave them to lie fallow. In the 21st century, human capital is our most valuable raw material. We must invest more in it, both financially and, above all, socially. Chancellor Merkel has rightly pointed out in this connection that Europe must be mindful of its “creative imperative”.
You can see how strong the international dimension of Europe’s “soul” is. Getting it across is therefore not only a question of our moral self-awareness. It is also in our own self-interest.
Our fundamental values are cornerstones of open societies. Promoting them worldwide creates security. By supporting good governance, we are strengthening the fabric of globalisation.
We have to acknowledge that, in the recent past, a lack of co-determination, human rights violations and economic misery have given birth to a radicalism that does not stop at our borders.
Which is not to say that we simply want to “export”, or even impose, our culture. I am not pleading in favour of “liberal imperialism”. That would be inappropriate and counterproductive.
Instead, we must cautiously contribute to a “homegrown” system change that takes account of the basic human need for freedom and co-determination.
The universality of this value substratum is reflected in the UN Human Development Reports on the Arab world. These illustrate how strongly people in the region yearn for reform and democracy. Let us remember also that on the Square of Heavenly Peace in Beijing in 1989, Beethoven ’s Ninth Symphony was being played as the tanks rolled in.
In short, in the words of Victor Hugo: “One can resist the invasion of an army but one cannot resist the invasion of ideas ”.
The EU must therefore spread the “soul” of its external policy. Through diplomatic negotiation and targeted pressure, through dialogue with civil society and with religious leaders; through the promotion of human, and in particular women ’s, rights, and through economic and financial incentives, including in the area of education, in order to counteract the explosive freedom and gender deficit in many parts of the world.
Our experience with the “caricatures crisis” of early 2006 has shown us how to cope with this challenge: firm in our principles, but ready for dialogue. We must forge an alliance of civilisations, as Prime Ministers Zapatero and Erdogan suggest.
Navid Kermani, who will be speaking to you tomorrow, is right in saying: “Europe is the geographical expression of the universal idea of the Enlightenment”. “Europe’s borders” must accordingly be defined not only geographically but also in terms of political philosophy. Anyone who shares these values unreservedly can be a European.
Ladies and Gentlemen, this brings me to the conclusion of my address.
Not only does Europe have to face up to economic competition, but it is also engaged in a global spiritual contest. Whoever seeks to prepare Europe for the struggle must hone his value awareness.
Capitalising on the success of our European project therefore involves ideas, and not just institutions.
You all know the famous words of our founding father, Jean Monnet: “If I had to do it all over again, I would begin with culture”.
In other words, “Europe makes culture”. But above all, “culture makes Europe”. This cultural imperative holds true today more than ever before. “No one falls in love with an internal market”, to quote Jacques Delors.
This value awareness calls for political awareness. It is up to us to project more strongly the “European way of life“, our freedom, openness, diversity and respect for the rule of law, so as to reinforce the basic identity of the European project.
It is our duty to spread this way of life. This is what is at the heart of EU external policy in the 21st century. What is involved, therefore, is not just Europe ’s internal make-up, but also its international “mission”. Perhaps Europe’s global role is a new European narrative in embryo form.
That would be – to paraphrase Derrida and Habermas – the “rebirth of Europe from the spirit of globalisation”.
It is an important place and time for Europe. The Brandenburger Tor is the symbol of the German and the European reunification. On 17 November 1989, the “velvet revolution” started in Czechoslovakia. The quest for freedom and human dignity has been leading us all towards our current unity.
It is good to be back after the ground–breaking Conference of November 2004. The process that was set in motion here in Berlin has put culture firmly on the table of the debate on our united Europe. In these years there are many discussions and questions about crisis in Europe or about future of Europe. There is a lot of apathy and skepsis around. I think it is the culture which can give decisive contribution to the European unity: values and political force.
‘A Soul for Europe’ has evidently brought to the fore a sentiment that was running like an undercurrent in various circles across the continent. It was loudly called for by former President of the Commission Jacques Delors. And before, by Robert Schumann, Europe ’s Founding Father, this appeal was put into his famous message, enshrined in his book Pour l ’Europe.
I congratulate the project’s initiators and organisers for that. The European Commission welcomes this process. I personally commend its vitality and I am happy to see that the Commission and other EU institutions are participating actively in it.
I have been asked to focus my speech of today on the intercultural dialogue. But I would first like to say a few words on the link between culture and the Lisbon growth and jobs agenda.
We have just published a study on the Economy of culture in Europe. I presented it to EU culture ministers at a Council meeting earlier this week.
This is a very interesting document. It highlights both the direct contribution of the cultural and creative sectors to the Lisbon Agenda (in terms of GDP, growth and employment), as well as the indirect contribution (links between creativity and innovation, links with the ICT sector, regional development and attractiveness).
1.9 % for the food, beverage and tobacco industries. It employs 5.8 million people (and this is a conservative estimate). Our research confirms that the cultural and creative sectors have a significant impact on growth and jobs.
We have to overcome the usual image of a dichotomy between economy and culture.
The EU should help to build an environment that stimulates creativity in our economies and societies. Creativity and innovation are essential for growth and competitiveness in the knowledge era. Let me add one thing in this respect. Support to the cultural industries is often perceived as an extravagant expense. However, nothing could be further from the truth. Culture is not a luxury; it is in fact an extremely sound investment.
Every Euro spent on culture generates large returns in economic terms – as I said – but also in terms of employment, quality of life and social benefits.
Artists and cultural operators are – among other things – the critical conscience of our societies. A lively cultural scene helps us reflect on who we are, what keeps us together, where we want to go.
And we are already preparing the next step: an ambitious political Communication on Culture, which I will present in the first half of next year, under German Presidency. Cultural operators and artists can contribute a great deal. One notable example is the “Civil Society Platform for 4 Intercultural Dialogue”, which is just starting to take shape.
This is an initiative led by the European Forum for Arts and Heritage, the European Cultural Foundation, and the Network for European Foundations. I am glad also to see that the “Soul for Europe” will take part in this platform.
Let me now move on to the Commission to organize 2008 as the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue.
I launched the idea as soon as I was appointed Commissioner for Education and Culture. My proposal quickly gathered consensus and it is now planned for 2008.
There are plenty of good reasons why the Union should work on intercultural dialogue; let me give you just two of them.
Firstly, building Europe has always meant integrating histories, value systems, and world views. There is a strong sense in which our process of integration has always been a dialogue between cultures.
The EU is traditionally committed to promoting cultural diversity and intercultural dialogue around the world.
The second reason why this is the time to focus on intercultural dialogue is that Europe ’s cultural landscape has grown more diverse in the past few years as a consequence of its enlargements and of immigration.
It is now common for European cities – large and small – to host many different cultural, religious, and language communities. I think that diversity in unity is the best narrative for Europe in the XXI Century. Unfortunately this new “richness” is not lived or viewed positively by all. I do not need to remind you of some of the worrying tensions in our societies. If we are serious about building a peaceful and creative society for tomorrow we need therefore to build a culture of dialogue and understanding now. Future starts – as always – today.
The policy move is necessary and urgent, but it won’t be easy. That is why the intercultural dialogue became also one pillar within the new programme Culture 2007.
- finally, intercultural dialogue is linked to a more political goal: creating a sense of European citizenship.
It is clear that intercultural dialogue is relevant not only within the EU but also in our relations with third countries.
Although the proposal is focussed on the territory of the EU, other countries will be associated, particularly our neighbours in the rest of Europe and around the Mediterranean, through our civil society dialogue with candidate countries, including cooperation with the Anna Lindh Foundation.
I want to stress that we recognise that ultimately intercultural dialogue is a bottom-up process. It is for this reason that the Commission wants to work with a wide array of partners: national governments, regional and local authorities, and of course civil society.
Indeed, we need to learn from the grass-roots. That is why we have asked civil society to send us their ideas for the initiatives which will be funded by us as part of the Year.
We believe that learning from best practices is essential. Indeed, next week, we will host a conference and exhibition in Brussels identifying good practices of projects funded by Community programmes. We are also launching a study on Member State approaches to intercultural dialogue, and the results should be available by next summer.
I often hear sceptical voices, doubting what we can achieve with a single Year. I understand these concerns. However I want to underline that the Commission wants this European Year to be the beginning, not the end of something; the start of a truly long-term, durable process that lasts well beyond 2008.
As of next year, all the policies under my responsibility will be used to promote dialogue between cultures, and the same will also apply to some of our external policies. It will remain a priority in years to come.
- Thousands more citizens involved in our citizenship programmes, each year, including town twinning exchanges each year.
The objective and the criterion of culture must be promotion and respect of human dignity. This is the first value which unites us. Relation to human dignity is actually a defining line in relation to humanity and civilizations. I believe that maintaining an open, peaceful and constructive dialogue among all the political, social, and cultural partners is absolutely essential. In effect, I would like to put forward the claim that this permanent dialogue is the very proof of Europe ’s living and sharing soul. Dialogue is not weakness; it is a sign of maturity. In a dialogue, 1 + 1 is more than 2, because it brings synergy – more and new knowledge, understanding and relation. It is true in a family, in a community, in a nation, between nations.
Because indispensable values for any sustainable community – humanity and solidarity – are the functions, the products of a responsible, emphatic human soul. To give a soul for Europe is very important, hence – as Jean Monnet said very wisely – “we are not building an alliance of states, we integrate people”.
I‘m not sure whether it is pure coincidence or whether it was deliberate that I am down on the programme to talk on the subject of “Civil society and politics from the perspective of the national parliament”, whilst Hans-Gert Pöttering will then look at the same issue from the perspective of a “European parliamentarian”. I myself will be interested to see the extent to which this leads to two different perspectives on the same topic. In terms of basic principles, I am fairly sure that a broad consensus exists not only between the two of us, but probably amongst the participants in this conference as a whole, that a free society requires not only a democratically elected government and a parliament with political responsibility, but also an active civic society, and that neither should be allowed to replace the other. Whilst this interaction and network of links between civic society and democratic institutions is vital in general, this is particularly the case for the field of art and culture. One of the practical questions which must be asked concerning operative responsibilities concerns the allocationof responsibilities to particular persons or bodies, initially from a national perspective. The second question is: what does this mean for the relationship between the different Member States and their civil societies and the European Community within a constitutional framework? I should like to share a few thoughts on both these questions.
Since its very foundation, the Federal Republic of Germany has regarded itself as a country of culture. This has been explicitly underlined in a range of declarations, not least in some rulings made by the Federal Constitutional Court. And, incidentally, it was reflected directly in terms of constitutional law and international law for the first time in the Unification Treaty: the treaty through which the two German states cemented national unity. Germany ’s image of itself as a country of culture naturally does not mean that responsibility for art and culture should essentially be seen as a matter for the state and is anchored there. Nevertheless, Germany ’s image of itself as a country of culture does distinguish it from other states and societies with the European Community in some ways – there is a belief which has developed over the centuries that promotion of art and culture is essentially a task for the state.
The fact that the state has particular responsibility at all levels for promotion of art and culture is reflected, incidentally, in the fact that almost exactly 90 per cent of all expenditure on art and culture comes from public budgets. And the fact that what does, thank God, exist within an increasingly active civic society in terms of private involvement, private foundations and sponsoring activities – without which conferences like today’s would scarcely be possible – constitutes less than 10 per cent of overall spending on art and culture in Germany.
Incidentally, this does not allow us to draw final and adequate conclusions about the importance of one or the other. It does, however, make clear the extent to which this country, this state, these constitutional institutions, view the promotion of art and culture as a public function – and this has certainly not only been the case since the establishment of the second German democracy. It is the continuation of a long historical development and tradition. I very much hope that this remains the case and, as far as the Bundestag is concerned – the body for which I am, after all, intended to speak today – I have no doubt that its organs and institutions place great value on the continuation of this tradition. This not only applies to the Committee on Cultural and Media Affairs which is particularly concerned with this topic. It also undoubtedly applies to the views shared by the leaderships of the parliamentary groups, the other committees and the other bodies and organs of the German Bundestag.
At this point, the first contrast occurs to me – one which is certainly not insignificant. In terms of concrete measures to promote art and culture, the ambitions of the European Community are extremely modest. The resources earmarked appear – to put it rather uncharitably – ridiculously small. Viewed from a purely statistical point of view, the scale of them seems almost grotesque compared with the resources which the European Community views as necessary to promote agriculture, for example. I only mention this by way of illustration and obviously do not aim to examine conclusively in an aside the relevance of one or other of these things. In fact I should like to stress that I do not believe it vital or even necessarily desirable for the European Community to aim to take on greater responsibility for direct promotion measures in the field of art and culture – though I realise that this conclusion may be frustrating for some of you. I believe that the efforts involved in establishing this form of European support framework would not be in sensible proportion to the success thus achieved, and my experiences with European support programmes in the area of art and culture tend to reinforce my scepticism, rather than inciting me to propose that they should be massively expanded. Perhaps Hans-Gert P öttering will mention in his speech whether, and to what extent, alternative ideas exist from the perspective of the political groups in the European Parliament.
And, by the way, this brings us directly onto the subject of the Constitutional Treaty, which has with good reason repeatedly been stressed as important, or at least mentioned, at this conference. One of the main topics at issue here is the question of division of responsibility between the European Community and its Member States. Naturally, it is a matter of how the Community sees itself, which is linked to how the Member States see themselves – the fact that operative responsibility for education, along with art and culture, lies with the Member States and not with the European Community. This means that independent responsibilities for the European Community in such tasks may only be established or further developed in a few specific areas, which can be identified with almost surgical precision and where opportunities open to the Community tangibly exceed what can be achieved by the individual Member States.
Nevertheless – to return to an issue which we mentioned or heard mentioned a number of times in the opening speeches yesterday – when we talk about the European constitutional Treaty, we are not only talking about the responsibilities of the Community and those of the Member States and about structures which this Community needs to take action in many policy areas. We are also talking – and must talk – about the central values and directions which form the very foundations of the Community. And from the point of view of a national Parliament too, I should like to urge that this truly fundamental perspective should not be forgotten in any of the efforts to reactivate the Constitutional Treaty.
I firmly believe that there is no chance of the internal consistency which we urgently need within the European Community, if we do not return to the cultural foundations, and thus the values, the principles, the directions on which this Community is founded. I therefore believe strongly that it is precisely from this point of view that the reactivation of the established shared cultural beliefs and principles is one of the prerequisites for the future European Community Constitution. And, incidentally, this is even the case regarding future boundaries of this Community which, for me at least, cannot be plausibly justified except in terms of the cultural identity of this Community.
Finally, I would like to make a practical suggestion which can perhaps be linked with the follow-up activities to this Berlin Conference and the other activities planned in the meantime on a somewhat smaller scale and, above all, in a decentralised fashion. I think the idea of naming a different European city Capital of Culture each year, as has been done for over 20 years, was a good idea whose long-term effects only became clear over the course of time.
These cities become involved in particular activities to showcase national and European art and culture over this year. And I believe great opportunities are presented by the fact that, having worked its way through the major capital cities, the European Community is now venturing further out into the provinces – in the most positive sense of the word – and showcasing and creating access to the wealth of art and culture which naturally is not only to be found in the capital cities and which particularly deserves greater public attention. Next year, we will have two Capitals of Culture in Europe – Luxembourg and Sibiu – and, from then onwards we will almost always have at least two, if not three European Capitals of Culture. Generally, one of them will be from the “old West Europe” and one from the “new Member States”. In 2010, one of the Capitals of Culture will once again be in Germany. For the first time, it will be a whole region – the Ruhr. And, at the same time, the city of Pécs will be Capital of Culture for Hungary. A decision has also been taken to include a city outside the current set of Member States of the European Community – Istanbul – in this circle of European capitals and metropolises of culture. I believe it is worth considering creating a close network between the range of European Capitals of Culture from the past twenty years, most of which were national capital cities, and the European Capitals of Art and Culture over the next 10 – 20 years, which will be much more decentralised. The ties created, sometimes at a personal level, between cultural decision-makers in politics and civil society would allow ever closer links to be forged on all the topics being addressed at this conference. I believe this would not only be a good opportunity for an exchange of experience as to how the promotion of art and culture can be organised more or less effectively using varying degrees of leverage – particularly with regard to combining public and private involvement. Above all, it would be a brilliant opportunity to cultivate this spirit and constantly reactivate it year after year in order to make a true practical contribution to the goal of this conference: – creating “A Soul for Europe”.
In 1554, the Flemish mathematician and cartographer, Gerhard Mercator, produced the first more or less accurate map of Europe. With this map, he was able to give Europeans an idea of the geography of the continent and its borders. Culturally, however, the Europeans had known long before this that the continent of Europe is one single unit.
Today, however, you sometimes get the impression, that the exact opposite is the case. Sure, our European citizens are familiar with the map and the borders but they are not really aware of what really constitutes Europe. So I ’m very happy to see you here in Berlin at what is now the second conference looking at the cultural soul of Europe.
I would like express my sincere thanks to Volker Hassemer and Nele Hertling for taking the initiative in this respect. The Federal Government considers this conference to be an important plea in favour of European culture and consequently is consciously supporting and promoting this event.
Conveying a positive picture of Europe to people is a huge challenge. I am convinced that culture must always be at the very centre of all such efforts. Because Europe has always been a cultural unit. Paradoxically, this unity exists because of cultural diversity. I ’ll go even further than that and say that the tense relationship between unity and diversity is what made Europe a stronghold of liberty in the first place. Blaise Pascal once summed up this relationship very clearly, saying that “plurality which is not reduced to unity is confusion. Unity which does not depend on plurality is tyranny ”.
The frequently criticised technocracy in Europe puts many people off. The European Union will only survive if it is also, and above all, seen as a community of culture and of values. We must voice this more clearly in the future. In the first half of 2007, Germany will assume presidency of the Council of the European Union. This will give us in Germany, as cultural politicians and culture creators, the opportunity to present our country as a major European cultural nation in Brussels. The many cultural framework events planned during the German presidency will enable us to grasp that opportunity. On this subject, allow me to mention in particular two major exhibitions being held in Brussels. The “Views of Europe” exhibition, to be opened by the Federal Chancellor on 7th March 2007, will look at how Europe was perceived in 19th century German art, whilst the “Visite” exhibition will exhibit some of the works from the Federal Art Collection.
The presidency of the Council will also provide the opportunity to reinforce and raise the profile of cultural policy as an advocate for all cultures in Europe. One thing you can be sure of: the Federal Government will carry out its duties in this regard with the utmost vigour! At the first Berlin conference two years ago, Germany, France and Poland proposed a European cultural charter project. I ’ll make it quite clear to you now that yes, I too am in favour of getting this up and running.
If we truly want to make Europe more accessible for people we must provide easier access to our common cultural heritage. This is my motive for lending my wholehearted support to the European Digital Library project.
During the German presidency of the Council, one of my focal points, as chairman of the Council of Ministers for Culture and Media, will be to drive the “Television Without Frontiers” European Directive much further forward. This too is ultimately a cultural issue because it is always important to strengthen diversity and maintain the plurality of opinions. The television Directive is the centrepiece of European legislation in the audio-visual field. It creates the conditions for the free movement of television services within the European Union and as such promotes the development of a European media market. The “Television Without Frontiers” Directive was negotiated in 1989.
Though it was amended in 1997, it did not radically change. New transmission methods for audiovisual media services and the change in economic conditions that they brought about have made further adaptations of the Directive necessary.
You will perhaps be aware that the Federal Government had one particular objection to the revised version of the television Directive favoured by the Commission, namely that it allowed for so-called paid-for product placement.
In Germany, the separation of advertising from programme content is a fundamental principle of journalism – indeed, it is also a fundamental cultural principle in the truest sense of the word. Our persistence has paid off and we have achieved at least partial success. Along with our European ministerial colleagues, we have come to a majority decision in favour of a compromise put forward by the Finnish Council President, which fundamentally prohibits product placement, but allows each Member State to permit it within its own national laws, albeit within narrow limits and under specific conditions.
This is a major change in direction, compared with what the EU Commission had originally planned, and it would not have been brought about had the Federal Government and the Federal States not held so steadfastly to their views.
I also consider myself to be an “advocate of culture” and as such I must also focus on the cultural dimension of the media. Consequently, I also see the European “Television Without Frontiers” Directive from the point of view of cultural policy. The EU television Directive will help to ensure that cultural diversity and plurality of opinions in Europe is also given sufficient consideration in television programmes. It ’s my intention to discuss this matter with my European colleagues whom I have invited to an informal council meeting on 12th and 13th February on the occasion of the Berlin International Film Festival.
Culture doesn’t just have a non-material, spiritual dimension, but to a considerable extent an economic one too. Culture and business are not mutually exclusive. On the contrary, it ’s often overlooked that, in Europe, the economic sectors with the highest growth rates are the cultural and creative industries. In certain circumstances they are even turning out to be “job motors”.
Consequently, it was a mistake that Europe’s cultural and creative potential was given little or no consideration when the Lisbon Strategy was being formulated. Indeed our goal of keeping Europe as one of the most competitive regions in the world is one of the very reasons why we should not forget the relationship between culture and business.
What would Berlin be, for example, without culture and the surge of tourism that we experience purely because of this culture? In Europe, there is still room for developing cultural tourism in particular still further. Our fantastic art treasures and sites of cultural interest have a magnetic attraction for tourists from all over the world. It ’s essential that we build on this. It is high time that we put a stop to one long-nursed prejudice – namely the view that culture always costs money. In fact, culture also brings in money and creates jobs.
If we emphasise this more strongly we won’t be weakening the intrinsic value of culture. On the contrary, we will be underlining it, as well as providing another important argument for the principle that the promotion of culture is not all about subsidy but is rather an investment in the future.
Therefore, I would like to make the issue of cultural economics the second focal point of my work during the German presidency of the Council of the European Union, alongside the television Directive, and place it on the agenda for the informal meeting of ministers in Berlin on the 12th and 13th February.
During its presidency of the Council, the German government will do all it can to ensure that Europe can progress determinedly towards integration. In this respect, culture is a key factor and should therefore play a more central role in all our efforts than it has done in the past. This Berlin conference on European cultural policy is making an important contribution to ensuring that Europe is given a soul.
The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation supports the movement “A Soul for Europe” since the Berlin Conference of November 2004. This support represents our commitment to the strengthening of a “united Europe”, leveraging the value of cultural diversity and fostering a deeper mutual understanding of all the peoples of our continent.
I am sure that Compagnia di San Paolo, the Riksbanken Jubileumsfond and the Robert Bosch Stiftung, our partners in this joint-venture, share the same rationale for this project-sponsoring.
The partnership between our four foundations has two far-reaching objectives: first, to revitalize the relationship between civil society and political European institutions, and second, to resonate and disseminate the issues this initiative brings to the fore.
On what concerns the first objective, we must remember the double legitimacy of the European Union. In fact, the European Union is not only a union of sovereign States, but also a union of peoples which share a common supranational European citizenship.
In the quest to find the balance between these two dimensions of European integration, the European cultural dimension could emerge as a catalytic element. For most part of the European success story, the Economy was the most visible mechanism to promote growth and to overcome the differences between member states. Present external challenges and the expectations of European citizens call for a more political, social and cultural approach. Jean Monnet said that “… les homes n’acceptent le changement que dans la nécessité et ils ne voient la nécessité que dans la crise.” (Men only accept change in face of necessity and are only aware of necessity when in crisis). It is our duty to respond to necessities and to avoid crisis.
It was the sense of disconnection between the European Union institutions and European citizens, expressed by opinion polls, that lead the European Commission to the preparation of a “Communication on Culture” to be adopted in the first quarter of 2007. One purpose of this communication is to analyze both what Europe can do for culture and what culture can do for Europe.
Please allow me to briefly contribute to this double perspective debate.
e) To facilitate the learning of non-European languages (e.g. Arabic, Mandarin, Persian, Hindu) as a factor of openness and of immigrants ’ integration.
On what culture can do for Europe, I would first underline that culture can reinforce our common values and can move-forward the notion of European citizenship.
Second, culture could leverage innovation and competitiveness through the promotion of creation and creativity. A more dynamic and creative environment can be a positive factor for the accomplishment of the Lisbon Agenda goals. A recent paper of ECP clearly shows the interaction between creativity – innovation – competitiveness. The key figures of the study on the Economy of Culture in Europe that the European Commission revealed this week clearly demonstrate the impact of culture and creativity on the European economy: the cultural and creative sector contributed 2.6% of the EU GDP in 2003; the growth of the cultural and creative sector in Europe, from 1999 to 2003, was 12.3% higher than the growth of the general economy; in 2004, at least 5,8 million people worked in the sector, equivalent to 3,1% of total employed population in Europe.
Third, as biodiversity is essential to our survival and development, we should use the cultural diversity of our continent for the European project benefit. Civil society institutions have a special role to play on what concerns intercultural, interethnic and interfaith dialogue. Foundations, in particular, as independent bodies have the capacity to develop their work cross-borders and cross-beliefs.
Foundations can indeed foster mutual knowledge through networking and issue-based cooperation. We can broaden exposure to transnational experiences, strengthening intercultural dialogue and mutual understanding. This is a clear commitment of the European Foundation movement, assumed by the European Foundation ’s Centre (EFC).
Europe will inevitably and increasingly be more intercultural. Civil society institutions can and must help to adopt best practices in fostering the understanding of the migrations phenomena. They should also play a key role in favouring minority cultures integration.
Civil society should contribute to a paradigm shifting based on the following perspectives: bringing together artists and scientists, helping to cross different methods and perspectives while promoting creativity practices at different levels; and helping to find new approaches which go beyond the traditional Eurocentric essentialism and promote the comprehension and dialogue between different cultures.
Civil society can also help to convey the concerns of European citizens to the political decision bodies through participatory mechanisms such as the initiative European Citizens ’ Consultations promoted by the Network of European Foundations for Innovative Cooperation (NEF), which also supports the project “A Soul for Europe”.
The initiative “A Soul for Europe” shows itself to be a new model of civil society participation. A stronger and wider “A Soul for Europe” alliance can provide a new opportunity for civil society to move forward the European agenda..
Europe is in search of its identity. I don’t think one needs to look very far. To my mind, the European Union embodies the principles of an open society and it ought to serve as a model and motive force for a global open society.
The concept of open society was first used by the French philosopher Henri Bergson in his book The Two Sources of Morality and Religion published in 1932. One source is tribal and that leads to a closed society whose members feel an affinity for each other and fear or hostility toward the other tribes. By contrast, the other source is universal and leads to an open society which is guided by universal human rights and seeks to protect and promote the freedom of the individual.
This scheme was modified by the Austrian-born British philosopher, Karl Popper in his seminal book The Open Society and Its Enemies published in 1944. He pointed out that open society can be endangered by abstract, universal ideologies like communism and fascism which claim to be in possession of the ultimate truth.
Popper was a philosopher of science and he argued that the ultimate truth is beyond the reach of the human intellect. Even scientific theories cannot be verified beyond doubt; they can only be falsified and it is only the fact that they can be falsified that qualifies them as scientific. We cannot base our decisions on knowledge alone and our imperfect understanding introduces an element of uncertainty into the world in which we live that is very difficult to cope with.
Ideologies like communism and fascism seek to eliminate uncertainty but they suffer from a fatal flaw: They are bound to be false and misleading exactly because they claim to be in possession of the ultimate truth. These ideologies can be imposed on society only by using various forms of repression. By contrast, an open society accepts the uncertainties inherent in our imperfect understanding (or fallibility), and seeks to establish laws and institutions which allow people with divergent views and interests to live together in peace. The distinguishing feature of these laws and institutions is that they safeguard the freedom of the individual.
The Second World War resulted in the defeat of the Nazi regime and its ideology. Europe was rebuilt with the generous help of the United States and eventually a process leading to the formation of the European Union was set in motion. The European Union became a textbook example of the open society. It consists of a number of nations and nationalities, none of which occupies a controlling position and all of which are pledged to maintain democratic institutions and protect individual freedoms and human rights. Even this may be appropriate to an open society because, as Karl Popper argued, our imperfect understanding does not permit permanent and eternally valid definitions of social arrangements. The arrangements must reflect the will of the participants and they must be open to adjustment and improvement. Accordingly, he refused to provide a definition of open society.
The European Union was brought into existence by a process of piecemeal social engineering, the method Karl Popper considered appropriate to an open society. The process was directed by a far-sighted and purposeful elite which recognized that perfection is unattainable. It proceeded step by step, setting limited objectives with limited timetables knowing full well that each step would prove to be inadequate and require a further step. The process was helped along first by the threat from the Soviet Union and then by the globalization of the economy which tended to favor larger economic units. That is how the European Union was constructed, one step at a time.
The process has now ground to a halt. The European Constitution was defeated by the referenda held in France and the Netherlands.
The Constitution may have been, in any case, an over-ambitious step. The Union is now left in an untenable condition with an enlarged membership of twenty-seven and a governing structure that was originally designed for six, although it managed to function for fifteen. The political will to keep the process moving forward has eroded. The memory of past wars has faded and the threat posed by the Soviet Union has disappeared.
The prevailing arrangements are too cumbersome and — unless the forward momentum can be regained — the dissatisfaction with the present state of affairs is liable to generate momentum in the opposite direction. That is already happening. Nationalist, xenophobic, anti-Muslim sentiments are on the rise almost everywhere, aggravated by the failure to integrate immigrant communities.
The situation is all the more disturbing because the disarray within the European Union is matched by the disarray in the world order. The United States used to be the dominant power in the world. It used to set the agenda for the world. But after the terrorist attacks of 9/11, President Bush declared war on terror and that was the wrong agenda executed the wrong way.
As a result, the United States has lost power and influence in a precipitous manner and is no longer in a position to set the agenda of the world. Nor is it in a position to project overwhelming military power in any part of the world as it was when President Bush announced the Bush doctrine, and as a result the world order has become much less stable. Indeed, it is threatening to descend into world disorder.
The proper role for the United States would be to lead the world in a cooperative effort to deal with the problems that confront humanity and can be dealt with only by greater international cooperation — such as the threats posed by rogue regimes, the breakdown of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, climate change and the need to maintain stability in the global economic system and reduce poverty.
In the past, the United States fulfilled its role as the leader of the free world. After the Second World War, the United States used its power and influence to establish the United Nations and the Bretton Woods Institutions and to engage in The Marshall Plan. That is what made America great. The Bush doctrine and the war on terror was a sharp break with the American tradition. It left the world leaderless and the world is in disarray.
The EU needs to play a more active role in the world than it has in the past. The EU is used to taking its lead from the United States, reacting to its agenda, sometimes positively, sometimes negatively, but it basically accepted the world order as given. That has to change and it cannot be achieved by individual countries acting on their own.
The European Union cannot possibly take the place of the United States as the leader of the world. But it can set an example for the world in international cooperation both within its own borders and beyond. Indeed, it has already done so.
Member states have delegated some aspects of their sovereignty in order to create a common market and they have kept the prospect of membership open to others. This has been a powerful tool in turning candidate countries into open societies.
All that is needed now is for the people of Europe to be inspired by the idea of the European Union as the embodiment of the open society ideal and the motive force for a global open society.
What does this mean in practice? I believe the debate about the Constitution should be shelved; that is not what the people are interested in. Whatever the reason, the Constitution was defeated in two referenda. To try and force it down people ’s throats now would undoubtedly arouse renewed resistance. Perhaps it was too big a bite to be swallowed in one piece. It needs to be unbundled and presented piecemeal. That is in keeping with the method of the piecemeal engineering which proved so successful in the past.
The most valuable and most needed piece is a common foreign policy which would guide a common defence policy.
That is the baby that was thrown out with the bath water. That should be the priority and it would not require a referendum. I see the merit of a bill of rights but it does not have the same sense of urgency about it because there are so many declarations already in force. If giving the Charter the force of law requires referenda, it may be better to wait until Europe has regained its momentum. Simplifying the decision-making process is more urgent, but that is something for the Member States to negotiate with each other in a revision of the Nice Treaty and it is unlikely to interest the general public.
What is of general interest is to improve the integration of immigrant communities. These are the outlines of a practical programme for moving the European Union forward again.
In the meantime, the absence of institutional reform should not be allowed to serve as a pretext for inaction.
- and the prospect of using trade, aid and the prize of membership as catalysts to encourage neighbouring states to become open societies.
Regrettably, the EU has not made full use of its potential. Europe has made little progress in formulating a common energy policy. As a result it is increasingly dependent on Russia, and Russia has not hesitated to exploit its bargaining position. The EU has failed to give adequate support to Georgia or to impose adequate sanctions on Uzbekistan for the massacre in Andijan. The European Neighbourhood Policy never gathered any momentum and the treatment of Turkey is pushing an important ally in the wrong direction.
Needless to say, a common European Union foreign policy should not be anti-American. Such a posture would be self-defeating because it would reinforce the division of the international community that the Bush administration has initiated. I am speaking about the European Union setting an example in international cooperation that eventually the United States under a different leadership — which is on the way — would emulate. By the same token, a global open society emphatically does not mean global government. Government inevitably interferes with the freedom of the individual. A global government could not avoid being repressive even if it were built on liberal principles. A global open society could not even be as closely integrated as the European Union because the affinity among the member states would be less pronounced.
What a global open society does stand for is the rule of law on an international scale. According to the neoconservatives who have exercised such a nefarious influence within the Bush administration, international relations are relations of power, not law. According to them, international law merely ratifies what military power has accomplished. To some extent that is true today. For instance, the United Nations has ratified the occupation of Iraq which had been brought about by illegitimate means. But it ought not to be true tomorrow. International relations, including the exercise of military power, ought to be governed by international law more effectively than they are today.
Europe as the prototype of a global open society is an abstract idea. Whether it is strong enough, persuasive enough, to serve as the unifying force guiding the European Union forward, remains to be seen. One thing is certain, the process that has carried the European Union so far cannot be revived in the same form as before. It was driven by an elite and the population at large has felt left out. This cannot continue, if for no other reason than on account of the referenda that are used with increasing frequency. A referendum expresses the people ’s will in a raw, capricious form without the intermediation of an elite. Therefore, if the European Union is to revive, it has to be by popular demand. One way or another, civil society has to be mobilized. The elite has a role but it is to shape public opinion.
I can only speak for myself. I find that the idea of Europe as a prototype for a global open society is very inspiring indeed. Although I am not a European citizen, I am a believer in the open society. I have a network of foundations inside and outside the European Union committed to promoting that idea.
I am ready to support an Open Society Initiative for Europe that would mobilize civil society behind the idea of Europe as a model and a motive force for a global open society. The world badly needs a more united Europe committed to the principles of open society and I hope Europe will rise to the challenge.
We are addressing no less a question than what we mean when we say “Europe”. Do we mean a zone in which every nation seeks to extract for itself the maximum benefit, at best observing a fair balance of interests?
No, we see Europe as a community of Europeans, drawing energy from their diverse cultures in order to hold their own in the world together and to interact peacefully and productively. This view alone is the rationale for our initiative, which seeks to use culture to promote Europe ’s development.
The process of European unification needs a soul in order to secure not only external development but also qualitative progress, without which it cannot achieve stability. Our concern, then, is with the future of Europe, not with ensuring a thriving culture. We are not lobbying for culture when we say that Europe must use its cultural energies to move forward.
I. Where do we stand?
The first Berlin Conference in 2004 was the initiative’s kick-off event. Happily, it set in motion the “Berlin Process”, which is scheduled to run until 2008, meaning that we have now reached the halfway mark.
During and after the conference, we were able to win the support of strong partners and allies that share our ideas and are helping to implement them.
We are a civil-society initiative of European individuals determined to maintain our independence with regard to both the substance and organization of our work. This is what gives our work its impact.
The world is becoming increasingly complex and more difficult to control. We believe that there is less and less justification for delegating the responsibility for public affairs to professional policymakers.
This responsibility must be shared by the citizens of Europe.
What we want is a Europe of Europeans. It is the citizens themselves that must increasingly provide the impulses – not acting on behalf of the state and its policy-makers but as their partners.
If civil society is to effectively assume its share of responsibility and bring its influence to bear, new forms of cooperation are needed between civil society and policy-makers. That is why we have, with the active support of the Steering Committee in the European Parliament, tried out and put into practice a new model for cooperation between civil society and policy-makers. This model gives our private commitment the chance to have a public impact, maintaining the autonomy and informal organization of our civil-society initiative and at the same time enabling it to influence public affairs.
This model has proved successful, thanks to the members of the parliamentary Steering Committee, in particular its Chairman, Professor P öttering. They have not only served as active intermediaries between the initiative and those wielding political power but have also provided important advice. They have proved themselves to be true representatives of the people.
II. What do we seek to achieve?
Conference and the self-set limit of 2008, by which time we aim to have brought our work to an initial conclusion, as agreed with the sponsors, the Steering Committee and President Barroso.
By involving young Europeans from many different countries, the 2004 Berlin Conference already achieved a substantial multiplier effect among those belonging to the generation that will be shaping the Europe of tomorrow. This time, their number will be considerably larger, and we wish to thank all those who have helped secure their participation or have contributed to the complex organizational and logistical work this entailed, in particular the People Network, courtesy of our partner, the Felix Meritis Foundation, Amsterdam.
Over the next two years, we plan to put the initiative “A Soul for Europe” increasingly in the hands of the younger generation, gradually making ourselves – the original initiators – superfluous.
The first Berlin Conference in 2004 gave rise to a series of projects that are carrying forward the impulse it provided and giving concrete form to various facets of the underlying idea.
How are these five projects helping to implement the concept?
a) They are demonstrating that its implementation is feasible and worthwhile.
1. Firstly, “A Soul for Europe” means holding a conference at regular intervals to assess the extent to which the political and social actors working for Europe are harnessing cultural energies to achieve their goals. Secondly, it means designing the conference – as we have done in Part 3 of this year’s conference – in such a way as to make Europe a platform for debating cultural issues of strategic importance to the world as a whole.
2. And secondly, “A Soul for Europe” also means bridging the emotional gap between the European public and European policy-makers. This is the goal of the project “Discourses on Europe”, a public forum at which representatives of Europe’s intellectual and artistic elites will present their thoughts and ideas to members of Europe ’s institutional elite. Daniel Barenboim will begin the event and then pass on the baton to Wim Wenders.
3. Thirdly, “A Soul for Europe” means using culture to help define Europe’s contribution to the world credibly and in concrete terms. In this context, we will, in Part 3 of the conference, be discussing the Jewish-Islamic dimension of Europe and, in tomorrow ’s session with Commissioner Ferrero-Waldner, the ALEPH project.
4. Fourthly, “A Soul for Europe” means ensuring the systematic and sustainable stabilization of social and economic structures by means of local and regional cultural activities. This is demonstrated by the project “Culture for Regional Development”.
5. Fifthly, “A Soul for Europe” means reaching out to the cities and regions, which are the true purveyors of European culture, and creating there a broader awareness of the fact that cultural work is work for Europe and that the citizens of the cities and regions share the responsibility for Europe.
6. Sixthly and lastly, “A Soul for Europe” means using film as a medium and art form, in which Europe’s soul takes shape in an especially direct and effective way, to communicate – in particular to young people – a personal image of Europe and help them see themselves as Europeans.
Over the next two years, these projects will be consolidated and brought to a conclusion, enabling us to undertake an overall assessment of the initiative at the 2008 Berlin Conference.
The soundness of the idea “A soul for Europe” has been demonstrated. What we now need to do is multiply the initiative’s impulse. The small, informal initiative alone is not up to a challenge of this scale.
Many other organizations with a cultural or general European orientation are pursuing the same goals as the initiative “A Soul for Europe” without explicitly expressing allegiance to this cause.
It is natural that those who feel a sense of commitment to the idea of “A Soul for Europe” should join forces in what we call an “Alliance”. This creates synergies and enhances the project’s impact through the profession of belief in a shared goal.
The Alliance accords equal rights to all those involved, respecting and preserving the diversity of the various partners. The partners are bound together only by their commitment to the common cause.
The two Berlin Conferences, held in November 2004 and November 2006, brought together representatives of international cultural life, the business sector and European policy-makers as well as young Europeans – many of them from the accession countries and the EU’s neighbours – to demand that instead of being merely an economic community of interests Europe should be a community of Europeans making use of their cultural assets and potential.
- for promoting structural and regional policy to support the development of Europe ’s regions.
Opening up and developing Europe’s cultural dimension is also a basic requirement for securing the commitment of the young generation of Europeans, who will constitute the Europe of tomorrow.
The civil-society initiative “A Soul for Europe” is supported by a high-ranking Board of Trustees and a Steering Committee in the European Parliament, which links the work of the private initiative with that of political decision-makers. The initiative is thus practising an innovative, forward-looking model of cooperation between civil society and policy-makers, which is based on two principles: the independence and autonomy of the private initiative, and the willingness of parliamentarians and decision-makers to act as intermediaries in dealing with the power elite.
The Berlin Conferences are one of the projects of the initiative, which from its base in Berlin is developing an international network and seeking active support for its goals from the cities and regions, in the EU member states as well as in the worlds of culture, business and European policy-making.
Hannes Swoboda and Jacques Toubon as well as Erhard Busek and Christian Schwarz-Schilling.
The Second Conference held under the auspices of the ‘A Soul for Europe’ initiative was held in the hall of the Dresdner Bank building, next to the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin on 17 to 19 November 2006. It brought together about 500 participants; members and officials of the European Commission, the European Parliament, the Council of Europe and several national parliaments, together with representatives of civil, business and artistic society, including a wide range of young participants from countries that are not yet members of the European Union. The EU Ministers for Culture were represented by Minister Isabel Pires de Lima (Portugal) and State Minister Bernd Neumann (Germany).
The 2006 Berlin Conference recognised the potential of culture as an indispensable force in the process of European integration. It gave added impetus to the purpose of reshaping Europe in a way that engages not only the political and economic but also the creative aspirations of its citizens. In a passionate speech, the film director Wim Wenders called on the political establishment to rejuvenate enthusiasm for a Europe that celebrates civilisation, promotes humanism and enables its people to realise their dreams.
After the opening statements the conference discussions were divided into a number of sessions designed to explore in depth the variety of challenges facing Europe and to suggest practical means of addressing them. The first day looked at harnessing European culture for the economy, cooperation between civil society and public bodies, and the intention to create an alliance of organisations to promote the ideas behind ‘A Soul for Europe’ over the medium term.
The second day looked more closely at political realities. Discussions focused the definition and purpose of Europe, culture as an element of policy making, Europe ’s world position, and international social cohesion. The final session on 19 November was open to a wider public and devoted to exploring the Jewish and Islamic dimension of creating an open Europe. On issues between public bodies and civil society several speakers from the ‘accession’ countries felt that too little progress had been made in modernising cultural policies or financial and institutional models. Too often thinking was confined to the national perspective and the structures discouraged people from forming or participating in networks that could widen the view. Ivan Krastev, of the Centre for Liberal Studies in Sofia, was concerned that European states were proving adept at recognising difference but were losing respect for dissent.
The session on the definition of Europe concentrated on the need to find ways of using the media to transform itself into a more responsive agent of integration. Europe needs to be treated as domestic, not foreign, coverage. Translation is vital but so too is the need for journalists and editors who are able to be mobile and to harness contacts outside their own national territories and language groups.
Many of these themes and concerns were reflected in subsequent sections of the conference. Former French Culture minister Jacques Toubon called for a substantial upward revision of the finances for cultural co-operation in the European Commission ’s budget from 2008 and others stressed the vital contribution of the Council of Europe in helping cultural policy reform.
Much of the debate centred on how to take the initiative and themes of the Berlin Conference forward in the coming years. The prospect of the Year of Intercultural Dialogue being held in 2008 provides a context and focus for activity in the medium term. The Conference looks to the programmes for that year to demonstrate Europe ’s ability to play an active role in global dialogue, to lay firm foundations for permanent engagement and to establish the appropriate institutions and programmes to ensure the dialogue is fruitful. The Berlin Conference invited the key organisations in Europe ’s cultural and political life to form an alliance that could press for transformation and monitor its progress. The alliance would seek out new partners and develop the relationships with the institutions of national governments, the European Union and the Council of Europe. It would link organisations promoting the development of Europe and gaining the support of its citizens, organisations that foster Europe ’s cultural strength, public European institutions and those with national or international mandates, and private organisations and foundations bound to the European ideal.
The goal of the Conference and the Alliance that stems from it is to broaden the vision of Europe beyond the utilitarian necessities of economic and regulatory harmonisation. It is to ensure that integration is based on the cultural potential in all areas of policy and on the centrality of an open and inclusive cultural policy leading to successful reform, social cohesion and prosperity. In the coming years the work of the initiative will be broadened, deepened and rejuvenated through subsidiary meetings, political advocacy and evaluation. It will reconvene as the Berlin Conference in 2008 to review progress. | 2019-04-18T13:17:29Z | http://www.heraldofeurope.co.uk/issues/a-soul-for-europe.html |
The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad (reporting mark CBQ) was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Wyoming, and also in New Mexico and Texas through subsidiaries Colorado and Southern Railway, Fort Worth and Denver Railway, and Burlington-Rock Island Railroad. Its primary connections included Chicago, Minneapolis-St. Paul, St. Louis, Kansas City and Denver. Because of this extensive trackage in the midwest and mountain states, the railroad used the advertising slogans "Everywhere West", "Way of the Zephyrs", and "The Way West".
In 1967, it reported 19,565 million net ton-miles of revenue freight and 723 million passenger miles; corresponding totals for C&S were 1,100 and 10 and for FW&D were 1,466 and 13. At the end of the year CB&Q operated 8,538 route-miles, C&S operated 708 and FW&D operated 1362. (These totals may or may not include the former Burlington-Rock Island Railroad.) In 1970, it merged with the Northern Pacific and Great Northern Railroads to form the Burlington Northern Railroad.
The earliest predecessor of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy, the Aurora Branch Railroad, was chartered by act of the Illinois General Assembly on October 2, 1848. The charter was obtained by citizens of Aurora and Batavia, Illinois, who were concerned that the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad would bypass their towns in favor of West Chicago on its route; at the time, that was the only line running west from Chicago. The Aurora Branch was built from Aurora, through Batavia, to Turner Junction in what is now West Chicago. The line was built with old strap rail and minimal, if any, grading. Using a leased locomotive and cars, the Aurora Branch ran passenger and freight trains from Aurora to Chicago via its own line from Aurora to Turner Junction and one of the G&CU's two tracks east from there to Chicago. The G&CU required the Aurora Branch to turn over 70 percent of their revenue per ton-mile handled on that railroad; as a result, in the mid-1850s, surveys were ordered to determine the best route for a railroad line to Chicago.
The line from Aurora to Chicago was built through the fledgling towns of Naperville, Lisle, Downers Grove, Hinsdale, Berwyn, and the west side of Chicago. It was opened in 1864, and passenger and freight service began. Regular commuter train service started in 1864 and remains operational to this day, making it the oldest surviving regular passenger service in Chicago. Both the original Chicago line, and to a much lesser extent, the old Aurora Branch right of way, are still in regular use today by the Burlington's present successor BNSF Railway.
The company was renamed Chicago and Aurora Railroad on June 22, 1852, and given expanded powers to extend from Aurora to a point north of LaSalle; this extension, to Mendota, was completed on October 20, 1853. Another amendment, passed February 28, 1854, authorized the company to build east from Aurora to Chicago via Naperville, and changed its name to Chicago and Southwestern Railroad. The latter provision was never acted upon, and was repealed by an act of February 14, 1855, which instead reorganized the line as the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad.
With a steady acquisition of locomotives, cars, equipment, and trackage, the Burlington Route was able to enter the trade markets in 1862. From that year to date, the railroad and its successors have paid dividends continuously, and never run into debt or defaulted on a loan—the only Class I U.S. railroad for which this is true.
After extensive trackwork was planned, the Aurora Branch changed its name to the Chicago and Aurora Railroad in June 1852, and to Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy Railroad in 1856, and shortly reached its two other namesake cities, Burlington, Iowa and Quincy, Illinois. In 1868 CB&Q completed bridges over the Mississippi River both at Burlington, Iowa, and Quincy, Illinois giving the railroad through connections with the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad (B&MR) in Iowa and the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad (H&StJ) in Missouri. The first Railway Post Office was inaugurated on the H&StJ to sort mail on the trains way across Missouri, passing the mail to the Pony Express upon reaching the Missouri River at St. Joseph, Missouri.
The B&MR continued building west into Nebraska as a separate company, the Burlington & Missouri River Rail Road, founded in 1869. During the summer of 1870 it reached Lincoln, the newly designated capital of Nebraska and by 1872 it reached Kearney, Nebraska. That same year the B&MR across Iowa was absorbed by the CB&Q. By the time the Missouri River bridge at Plattsmouth, Nebraska was completed the B&MR in Nebraska was well on its way to the Mile High city of Denver, Colorado. That same year, the Nebraska B&MR was purchased by the CB&Q, which completed the line to Denver by 1882.
Burlington's rapid expansion after the American Civil War was based upon sound financial management, dominated by John Murray Forbes of Boston and assisted by Charles Elliott Perkins. Perkins was a powerful administrator who eventually forged a system out of previously loosely held affiliates, virtually tripling Burlington's size during his presidency from 1881 to 1901.
Burlington Route system map, 1892. Burlington lines are black; connecting railroads are red.
Ultimately, Perkins believed the Burlington Railroad must be included into a powerful transcontinental system. Though the railroad stretched as far west as Denver and Billings, Montana, it had failed to reach the Pacific Coast during the 1880s and 1890s, when construction was less expensive. Though approached by E. H. Harriman of the Union Pacific Railroad, Perkins felt his railroad was a more natural fit with James J. Hill's Great Northern Railway. With its river line to the Twin Cities, the Burlington Route formed a natural connection between Hill's home town (and headquarters) of St. Paul, Minnesota, and the railroad hub of Chicago. Moreover, Hill was willing to meet Perkins' $200-a-share asking price for the Burlington's stock. By 1900, Hill's Great Northern, in conjunction with the Northern Pacific Railway, held nearly 100 percent of Burlington's stock.
In 1901 a rebuffed Harriman tried to gain an indirect influence over the Burlington by launching a stock raid on the Northern Pacific. Though Hill managed to fend off this attack on his nascent system, it led to the creation of the Northern Securities Company, and later, the Northern Securities Co. v. United States ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Following the purchase of the Burlington by GN and NP, expansion continued. In 1908, the CB&Q purchased both the Colorado & Southern and Fort Worth & Denver Railways, giving it access south to Dallas and the Gulf of Mexico ports in Houston and Galveston. It also extended its reach south in the Mississippi Valley region by opening up a new line from Concord, Illinois south to Paducah, Kentucky. It was during this period that the Burlington was at its largest, exceeding just over 12,000 route miles in 14 states by the 1920s. With the First World War having the same effect on the railroad as on all other railroads, during the 1920s, the Burlington Route had an increasingly heavy amount of equipment flooding the yards. With the advent of the Great Depression, the CB&Q held a good portion of this for scrap. Despite the decrease of passengers, it was during this time that the railroad introduced the famed Zephyrs.
In 1929, the CB&Q created a subsidiary, the Burlington Transportation Company, to operate intercity buses in tandem with its railway network. In 1936, the company would become one of the founding members of the Trailways Transportation System, and still provides intercity service to this day as Burlington Trailways.
As early as 1897, the railroad had been interested in alternatives to steam power, namely, internal-combustion engines. The railroad's shops in Aurora had built an unreliable three-horsepower distillate motor in that year, but it was hugely impractical (requiring a massive 6,000-pound flywheel) and had issues with overheating (even with the best metals of the day, its cylinder heads and liners would warp and melt in a matter of minutes) and was therefore impractical. Diesel engines of that era were obese, stationary monsters and were best suited for low-speed, continuous operation. None of that would do in a railroad locomotive; however, there was no diesel engine suitable for that purpose then.
Always innovating, the railroad both purchased "doodlebug" gas-electric combine cars from Electro-Motive Corporation and built their own, sending them out to do the jobs of a steam locomotive and a single car. With good success in that field, and after having purchased and tried a pair of General Electric steeple-cab switchers powered by distillate engines, Burlington president Ralph Budd requested of the Winton Engine Company a light, powerful diesel engine that could stand the rigors of continuous, unattended daily service.
The experiences of developing these engines can be summed up shortly by General Motors Research vice-president Charles Kettering: "I do not recall any trouble with the dip stick." Ralph Budd, accused of gambling on diesel power, chirped that "I knew that the GM people were going to see the program through to the very end. Actually, I wasn't taking a gamble at all." The manifestation of this gamble was the eight-cylinder Winton 8-201A diesel, a creature no larger than a small Dumpster, that powered the Burlington Zephyr (built 1934) on its record run and opened the door for developing the long line of diesel engines that has powered Electro-Motive locomotives for the past seventy years.
The Burlington railroad was owned by the Great Northern and Northern Pacific railroads. As early as 1960 the three railroads were planning on merging into one. A proposed name for the merger was "The Great Northern, Pacific and Burlington lines".
As the financial situation of American railroading continued to decline through the 1960s, forcing restructuring across the country, the Burlington Railroad merged with the Great Northern, Northern Pacific, and the Spokane, Portland and Seattle railroads on March 2, 1970 to form the Burlington Northern. Passenger service was markedly reduced, as people had shifted to using private automobiles for many trips.
The Alton-Burlington Ozark State Zephyr in 1936.
The railroad operated a number of streamlined passenger trains known as the Zephyrs which were one of the most famous and largest fleets of streamliners in the United States. The Burlington Zephyr, the first American diesel-electric powered streamlined passenger train, made its noted "dawn-to-dusk" run from Denver, Colorado, to Chicago, Illinois, on May 26, 1934. On November 11, 1934, the train was put into regularly scheduled service between Lincoln, Nebraska, and Kansas City, Missouri. Although the distinctive, articulated stainless steel trains were well known, and the railroad adopted the "Way of the Zephyrs" advertising slogan, they did not attract passengers back to the rails en masse, and the last one was retired from revenue service with the advent of Amtrak.
California Zephyr (Chicago–Oakland): Chicago–Denver handled by CB&Q; Denver–Salt Lake City by Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad; Salt Lake City–Oakland by Western Pacific Railroad.
These trains were operated jointly with Northern Pacific Railway and had a different name when they were east or westbound.
The club car of the Chicago Limited and the Denver Limited. The train had an eastbound and westbound name.
Aristocrat (Chicago–Denver): replaced the Colorado Limited.
Ak-Sar-Ben (Chicago–Lincoln): replaced Nebraska Limited and replaced by Ak-Sar-Ben Zephyr.
American Royal (Chicago–Kansas City): replaced by the American Royal Zephyr.
Atlantic Express (Seattle-Tacoma-Chicago): jointly with Northern Pacific Railway.
Black Hawk (Chicago–Twin Cities overnight).
Buffalo Bill (Denver-Yellowstone) Seasonal tri-weekly service between Denver, Colorado and Yellowstone National Park via Cody, Wyoming.
Coloradoan (Chicago–Denver): replaced by the Aristocrat.
Exposition Flyer (Chicago–Oakland) in conjunction with D&RGW and WP prior to the launching of the California Zephyr.
Empire Builder: handled Great Northern Railway's flagship between Chicago and Minneapolis.
Mainstreeter: handled the Northern Pacific Railway's secondary transcontinental between Chicago and Minneapolis.
Nebraska Limited (Chicago–Lincoln): replaced by the Ak-Sar-Ben.
North Coast Limited: handled Northern Pacific Railway's flagship between Chicago and Minneapolis.
North Pacific Express (Chicago-Seattle-Tacoma): jointly with Northern Pacific Railway.
Overland Express (Chicago-Denver). This train, along with The Aristocrat and the Colorado Limited, were promoted as companion trains to the streamlined Denver Zephyr.
Shoshone: (Denver-Billings) operated between Denver, Colorado and Billings, Montana. Referred to affectionately as "The Night Crawler".
Western Star: handled the Great Northern Railway's secondary transcontinental between Chicago and Minneapolis.
Zephyr Connection: (Denver-Cheyenne) offered daytime service along Colorado's Front Range between Denver, Colorado and Cheyenne, Wyoming.
The California Zephyr is still operated daily today by Amtrak as trains Five (westbound) and Six (eastbound). Another Amtrak train, the Illinois Zephyr, is a modern descendant of the Kansas City Zephyr and the American Royal Zephyr services.
The Burlington was a leader in innovation; among its firsts were use of the printing telegraph (1910), train radio communications (1915), streamlined passenger diesel power (1934) and vista-dome coaches (1945). In 1927, the railroad was one of the first to use Centralized Traffic Control (CTC) and by the end of 1957 had equipped 1,500 miles (2,400 km) of its line.
The railroad had one of the first hump classification yards at its Cicero Avenue Yard in Chicago, allowing an operator in a tower to line switches remotely and allowing around-the-clock classification.
^ Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, Corporate History of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company and Affiliated Companies, 1917, p. 8: "A provision of the Amendment, of date February 28, 1854, which changed the name of this company to "Chicago and Southwestern Railroad Company," was never acted upon or recognized by this company."
^ Dorin (1976), p. 9.
^ Dorin (1976), p. 10.
^ Schwantes (2003), p. 187.
^ Yago (1984), p. 172.
^ "The Pioneer Zephyr". ASME. Archived from the original on 2015-10-24. Retrieved 2017-01-17.
^ Dorin (1976) Chapters 2, 4, 5. pp. 14–29, 36–77, 78–90.
^ a b A Marvelous Vacation in Cool Colorado (ad for the Denver Zephyr). Life Magazine. 19 April 1937. p. 79. Retrieved 26 February 2012.
^ Mann, Charles F.A. (September 17, 1935). "Most Powerful Diesel Ready for Rail Service". The Meriden Daily Journal. Retrieved 28 March 2012.
^ The Scenic Way to California (ad for the Exposition Flyer). Life Magazine. 21 April 1941. Retrieved 26 February 2012.
Dorin, Patrick C. (1976). Everywhere West: The Burlington Route. Seattle, Wash.: Superior Publishing Company. ISBN 0-87564-523-2. LCCN 76017317. OCLC 2225153.
Schwantes, Carlos A. (2003). Going Places: transportation Redefines the Twentieth-century West. Indiana University Press. ISBN 0-253-34202-3.
Yago, Glenn (1984). The Decline of Transit: Urban Transportation in German and U.S. Cities, 1900–1970. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-25633-X.
Bryant, Keith L., Jr., Editor. Encyclopedia of American Business History and Biography, Railroads in the Twentieth Century. New York: Facts on File, 1990.
Hidy, Ralph W., et al. The Great Northern Railway, A History. Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 1988.
Klein, Maury. The Life and Legend of E.H. Harriman. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 2000.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad.
The Northern Securities Decision Northern Securities Co. v. United States at Cornell Law School's Supreme Court Collection. | 2019-04-22T06:47:52Z | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago,_Burlington_%26_Quincy |
Money market funds (MMFs) provide short-term finance to financial institutions, corporations and governments. By providing finance to those entities, MMFs contribute to the financing of the economy of the Union. Those entities use their investments in MMFs as an efficient way to spread their credit risk and exposure, rather than relying solely on bank deposits.
On the demand side, MMFs are short-term cash management tools that provide a high degree of liquidity, diversification and stability of value of the principal invested, combined with a market-based yield. MMFs are mainly used by corporations seeking to invest their excess cash for a short time frame. MMFs, therefore, represent a crucial link bringing together demands and offers of short-term cash.
Events that occurred during the financial crisis have shed light on several features of MMFs that make them vulnerable when there are difficulties in financial markets in which case MMFs could spread or amplify risks throughout the financial system. When the prices of the assets in which an MMF has invested start to decrease, especially during stressed market situations, the MMF cannot always maintain its promise to redeem immediately and to preserve the principal value of a unit or share issued by the MMF to investors. That situation, which according to the Financial Stability Board (FSB) and the International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) can be particularly serious for constant or stable net asset value MMFs, could trigger substantial and sudden redemption requests, potentially triggering broader macroeconomic consequences.
Large redemption requests could force MMFs to sell some of their investment assets in a declining market, potentially fuelling a liquidity crisis. In those circumstances, money market issuers can face severe funding difficulties if the markets for commercial paper and other money market instruments dry up. That in turn could lead to contagion within the short-term funding market and result in direct and major difficulties in the financing of financial institutions, corporations and governments, and thus the economy.
Asset managers, backed by sponsors, can decide to provide discretionary support to maintain the liquidity and the stability of their MMFs. Sponsors are often forced to support their sponsored MMFs that are losing value due to reputational risk and fear that panic could spread into sponsors' other businesses. Depending on the size of the MMF and the extent of the redemption pressure, sponsor support could reach proportions that exceed their readily available reserves. Therefore, an MMF should not receive external support.
In order to preserve the integrity and stability of the internal market, it is necessary to lay down rules regarding the operation of MMFs, in particular on the composition of the portfolio of MMFs. Those rules are intended to make MMFs more resilient and limit contagion channels. Uniform rules across the Union are necessary to ensure that MMFs are able to honour redemption requests from investors, especially during stressed market situations. Uniform rules on the portfolio of an MMF are also required to ensure that MMFs are able to face substantial and sudden redemption requests by a large group of investors.
Uniform rules on MMFs are furthermore necessary to ensure the smooth operation of the short-term funding market for financial institutions, corporate issuers of short-term debt and governments. They are also required to ensure the equal treatment of investors in an MMF and to avoid late redeemers being disadvantaged if redemptions are temporarily suspended or if an MMF is liquidated.
It is necessary to provide for the harmonisation of prudential requirements related to MMFs by setting out clear rules that impose direct obligations on MMFs and the managers of MMFs throughout the Union. Such harmonisation would enhance the stability of MMFs as a source of short-term finance for governments and the corporate sector across the Union. It would also ensure that MMFs remain a reliable tool for the cash management needs of industry in the Union.
The Guidelines on a common definition of European money market funds adopted by the Committee of European Securities Regulators on 19 May 2010 to create a minimum level playing field for MMFs in the Union were, one year after their entry into force, applied by only 12 Member States, thus demonstrating the persistence of divergent national rules. Different national approaches fail to address the vulnerabilities of money markets in the Union and fail to mitigate contagion risks, thereby endangering the functioning and stability of the internal market, as evidenced during the financial crisis. The common rules on MMFs provided for in this Regulation therefore aim to provide a high level of protection for investors and to prevent and mitigate any potential contagion risks resulting from possible runs by investors on MMFs.
In the absence of a regulation setting out rules on MMFs, diverging measures might continue to be adopted at national level. Such measures would continue to cause significant distortions of competition resulting from significant differences in essential investment protection standards. Diverging requirements on portfolio composition, eligible assets, their maturity, liquidity and diversification, as well as on credit quality of issuers and of money market instruments, lead to different levels of investor protection because of the different levels of risk attached to the investment proposition associated with an MMF. It is therefore essential to adopt a uniform set of rules in order to avoid contagion of the short-term funding market which would put at risk the stability of the Union's financial market. In order to mitigate systemic risk, constant net asset value MMFs (CNAV MMFs) should only operate in the Union as public debt CNAV MMFs.
The new rules on MMFs build upon Directive 2009/65/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (4), which forms the legal framework governing the establishment, management and marketing of undertakings for collective investment in transferable securities (UCITS) in the Union, and also upon Directive 2011/61/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (5), which forms the legal framework governing the establishment, management and marketing of alternative investment funds (AIFs) in the Union.
In the Union, collective investment undertakings can operate as UCITS, managed by UCITS management companies or UCITS investment companies authorised under Directive 2009/65/EC, or as AIFs, managed by alternative investment fund managers (AIFMs) authorised or registered under Directive 2011/61/EU. The new rules on MMFs build on the existing legal framework established by those Directives, including the acts adopted for their implementation, and should therefore apply in addition to those Directives. Furthermore, the management and marketing rules laid down in the existing legal framework should apply to MMFs taking into account whether they are UCITS or AIFs. Equally, the rules on the cross-border provision of services and freedom of establishment laid down in Directives 2009/65/EC and 2011/61/EU should apply correspondingly to the cross-border activities of MMFs. At the same time, a number of rules in relation to the investment policies of UCITS laid down in Chapter VII of Directive 2009/65/EC should be explicitly disapplied.
Harmonised rules should apply to collective investment undertakings whose characteristics correspond to those associated with an MMF. For UCITS and AIFs that have the objective of offering returns in line with money market rates, or of preserving the value of the investment, and that seek to achieve those objectives by investing in short-term assets such as money market instruments or deposits, or entering into reverse repurchase agreements or certain derivative contracts with the sole purpose of hedging risks inherent to other investments of the fund, compliance with the new rules on MMFs should be mandatory.
The specificity of MMFs results from the combination of the assets in which they invest and the objectives they pursue. The objective of offering returns in line with money market rates and the objective of preserving the value of an investment are not mutually exclusive. An MMF can have either one of those objectives or both objectives jointly.
The objective of offering returns in line with money market rates is to be understood in a broad sense. The anticipated return does not need to be perfectly aligned with EONIA, Libor, Euribor or any other relevant money market rate. An objective which seeks to outperform the money market rate by a slight margin is not to be considered to take a UCITS or AIF outside the scope of the new uniform rules provided for in this Regulation.
The objective of preserving the value of the investment is not to be understood to be a capital guarantee promised by an MMF. It is to be understood as an aim that a UCITS or AIF seeks to pursue. A decrease in value of the investments does not imply that the collective investment undertaking has changed its objective of preserving the value of an investment.
It is important that UCITS and AIFs that have the characteristics of MMFs be identified as MMFs and that their capacity to comply on an ongoing basis with the new uniform rules on MMFs be explicitly verified. For that purpose, competent authorities should authorise MMFs. For UCITS, their authorisation as MMFs should be part of the authorisation as UCITS in accordance with the harmonised procedures under Directive 2009/65/EC. For AIFs, as they are not subject to harmonised authorisation and supervision procedures under Directive 2011/61/EU, it is necessary to provide for common basic rules on authorisation that mirror the existing harmonised rules for UCITS. Such procedures should ensure that the manager of an AIF authorised as an MMF is an AIFM authorised in accordance with Directive 2011/61/EU.
In order to ensure that all collective investment undertakings displaying the characteristics of MMFs are subject to the new common rules on MMFs, the use of the designation ‘MMF’, or any other term that suggests that a collective investment undertaking shares the characteristics of MMFs, should be prohibited unless that undertaking is authorised as an MMF under this Regulation. To prevent circumvention of the rules in this Regulation, competent authorities should monitor the market practices of collective investment undertakings established or marketed in their jurisdiction to verify that they do not misuse the MMF designation or suggest that they are an MMF without complying with the new legal framework.
Given that UCITS and AIFs can take different legal forms that do not necessarily endow them with legal personality, the provisions in this Regulation requiring MMFs to take action are to be understood to refer to the manager of the MMF in cases where the MMF is constituted as a UCITS or as an AIF that is not in a position to act by itself because it has no legal personality of its own.
Rules on the portfolio of MMFs should clearly identify the categories of assets that are eligible for investment by MMFs and the conditions under which they are eligible. To ensure the integrity of MMFs, MMFs should also be prohibited from engaging in certain financial transactions that would endanger their investment strategy and objectives.
Money market instruments are transferable instruments normally dealt in on the money market and include treasury and local authority bills, certificates of deposits, commercial papers, bankers' acceptances, and medium- or short-term notes. Money market instruments should be eligible for investment by MMFs only insofar as they comply with maturity limits and are considered by an MMF to be of high credit quality.
In addition to the case in which an MMF invests in bank deposits in accordance with its fund rules or its instruments of incorporation, it should be possible to allow an MMF to hold ancillary liquid assets, such as cash in a bank account accessible at any time. The holding of such ancillary liquid assets could be justified, inter alia, in order to cover current or exceptional payments, in the case of sales, for the time necessary to reinvest in eligible assets.
Securitisations and asset-backed commercial paper (ABCPs), should be considered to be eligible to the extent that they respect certain requirements. Due to the fact that during the financial crisis certain securitisations were particularly unstable, certain quality criteria should be imposed on securitisations and ABCPs so that only those securitisations and ABCPs that perform well should be eligible. Until such time as the Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council for simple, transparent and standardised (STS) securitisations that is proposed (the proposed Regulation on STS securitisations) is adopted and becomes applicable for the purposes of this Regulation, MMFs should be allowed to invest in securitisations and ABCPs up to a limit of 15 % of their assets. The Commission should adopt a delegated act to ensure that the criteria identifying STS securitisations apply for the purposes of this Regulation. Once that delegated act applies, MMFs should be allowed to invest in securitisations and ABCPs up to a limit of 20 % of their assets, whereby up to 15 % should be able to be invested in securitisations and ABCPs which are not STS.
An MMF should be allowed to invest in deposits to the extent that it is able to withdraw the money at any time. The effective possibility of withdrawal would be impaired if the penalties associated with early withdrawal are so high as to exceed the interest accrued prior to withdrawal. For that reason, an MMF should take due care not to make deposits with a credit institution that requires above average penalties or to engage in too long deposits where that results in too high penalties.
In order to take account of the differences in banking structures across the Union, particularly in smaller Member States or in Member States where there is a highly concentrated banking sector, and where it would be uneconomical for an MMF to use the services of a credit institution in another Member State, such as where that would necessitate a currency exchange with all the associated costs and risks, some flexibility in the diversification requirement for deposits with the same credit institution should be allowed.
Financial derivative instruments eligible for investment by an MMF should only serve the purpose of hedging interest rate and currency risk and should only have as an underlying instrument interest rates, foreign exchange rates, currencies or indices representing those categories. Any use of derivatives for another purpose or on other underlying assets should be prohibited. Derivatives should only be used as a complement to the strategy of an MMF and not as the main tool for achieving the MMF's objectives. In the event that an MMF invests in assets labelled in another currency than the currency of the MMF, it is expected that the manager of the MMF would hedge the entire currency risk exposure, including via derivatives. MMFs should be entitled to invest in financial derivative instruments if that instrument is traded on a regulated market as referred to in point (a), (b) or (c) of Article 50(1) of Directive 2009/65/EC or traded over-the-counter (OTC) provided certain conditions are fulfilled.
Reverse repurchase agreements should be able to be used by MMFs as a means to invest excess cash on a very short-term basis, provided that the position is fully collateralised. In order to protect investors, it is necessary to ensure that the collateral provided in the framework of reverse repurchase agreements is of high quality and does not display a high correlation with the performance of the counterparty, in order to avoid a negative impact in the event of default of the counterparty. In addition, an MMF should be allowed to invest in repurchase agreements up to a limit of 10 % of its assets. Other efficient portfolio management techniques, including securities lending and borrowing, should not be used by an MMF as they are likely to impinge on achieving the investment objectives of the MMF.
In order to limit risk-taking by MMFs, it is essential to reduce counterparty risk by subjecting the portfolio of MMFs to clear diversification requirements. To that end, reverse repurchase agreements should be fully collateralised and, in order to limit the operational risk, a single reverse repurchase agreement counterparty should not account for more than 15 % of an MMF's assets. All OTC derivatives should be subject to Regulation (EU) No 648/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council (6).
For prudential reasons and in order to avoid the exercise of significant influence over the management of an issuing body by an MMF, excessive concentration by an MMF in investments issued by the same issuing body should be avoided.
MMFs operating solely as employee savings schemes should be able to diverge from certain requirements applicable to investments in other MMFs insofar as the participants in such schemes, who are natural persons, are subject to restrictive redemption conditions that are not linked to market developments but instead related to particular and predefined life events, such as retirement, and other special circumstances, including but not limited to the acquisition of a main residence, divorce, sickness or unemployment. It is important for employees to be allowed to invest in MMFs, which are considered to be one of the safest short-term investments. Such derogation does not endanger the objective of this Regulation to ensure financial stability, as employees investing in MMFs via their employee savings schemes cannot redeem their investment on demand. Redemptions are only able to occur in the case of certain predefined life events. Therefore, even in stressed market situations, employees will not be able to redeem their investment in MMFs.
MMFs should have a responsibility to invest in high-quality eligible assets. Therefore, an MMF should have a prudent internal credit quality assessment procedure for determining the credit quality of the money market instruments, securitisations and ABCPs in which it intends to invest. In accordance with Union law limiting over-reliance on credit ratings, it is important that MMFs avoid mechanistic reliance and over-reliance on ratings issued by rating agencies. MMFs should be able to use ratings as a complement to their own assessment of the quality of eligible assets. Managers of MMFs should undertake a new assessment of money market instruments, securitisations and ABCPs whenever there is a material change, in particular when it comes to the attention of the manager of an MMF that a money market instrument, securitisation or ABCP is downgraded below the two highest short-term credit ratings provided by any credit rating agency regulated and certified in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council (7). To that end, the manager of an MMF should be able to establish an internal procedure for the selection of credit rating agencies suited to the specific investment portfolio of the MMF and for determining the frequency at which the MMF should monitor the ratings of those agencies. The selection of credit rating agencies should remain consistent over time.
Taking note of the work done on reducing investor over-reliance on credit ratings by international bodies, such as IOSCO and the FSB, as well as in Union law, including in Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009 and Directive 2013/14/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (8), it is not appropriate to prohibit any product, including MMFs, from soliciting or financing an external credit rating.
In order to ensure that managers of MMFs do not use different assessment criteria for evaluating the credit quality of a money market instrument, securitisation or ABCP and thus attribute different risk characteristics to the same instrument, it is essential that managers of MMFs rely on the same criteria. To that end, the minimum criteria for the assessment of a money market instrument, securitisation and ABCP should be harmonised. Examples of internal credit quality assessment criteria are quantitative measures on the issuer of the instrument, such as financial ratios, balance sheet dynamics and profitability guidelines, each of which is evaluated and compared to those of industry peers and groups, and qualitative measures on the issuer of the instrument, such as management effectiveness and corporate strategy, each of which is analysed with a view to determining that the issuer's overall strategy does not impede on its future credit quality. A favourable outcome of the internal credit quality assessment should reflect sufficient creditworthiness of the issuer of the instruments and sufficient credit quality of the instruments.
In order to develop a transparent and coherent internal credit quality assessment procedure, the manager of an MMF should document the procedure and the credit quality assessments. That requirement should ensure that the procedure follows a clear set of rules that can be monitored and that the methodologies employed are communicated, upon request, to the investors and competent authorities in accordance with this Regulation.
To reduce the portfolio risk of MMFs, it is important to set maturity limitations, providing for a maximum allowable weighted average maturity (WAM) and weighted average life (WAL).
WAM is used to measure the sensitivity of an MMF to changing money market interest rates. When determining the WAM, managers of MMFs should take into account the impact of financial derivative instruments, deposits, repurchase agreements and reverse repurchase agreements and reflect their effect on the interest rate risk of the MMF. When an MMF enters into a swap transaction in order to gain exposure to a fixed rate instrument instead of a floating rate, that fact should be taken into account for determining the WAM.
WAL is used to measure the credit risk of an MMF's portfolio: the longer the reimbursement of the principal is postponed, the higher the credit risk. WAL is also used to limit the liquidity risk of an MMF's portfolio. In contrast to the calculation of the WAM, the calculation of the WAL for floating rate securities and structured financial instruments does not permit the use of interest rate reset dates and instead only uses a financial instrument's stated final maturity. The maturity used for calculating the WAL is the residual maturity until legal redemption, since that is the only date on which the management company can reasonably expect that the instrument will have been reimbursed. Due to the particular nature of the underlying assets for some securitisations and ABCPs, in the case of amortising instruments, the WAL should be able to be based on the maturity calculation for amortising instruments either on the contractual amortisation profile of such instruments or the amortisation profile of the underlying assets from which the cash-flows for the redemption of such instruments result.
In order to strengthen MMFs' ability to face redemptions and prevent their assets from being liquidated at heavily discounted prices, MMFs should hold on an ongoing basis a minimum amount of liquid assets that mature daily or weekly. Daily maturing assets should comprise assets such as cash, securities that mature within one working day and reverse repurchase agreements. Weekly maturing assets should comprise assets such as cash, securities that mature within one week and reverse repurchase agreements. In the case of public debt CNAV MMFs and low volatility net asset value MMFs (LVNAV MMFs), a limited percentage of government paper with a residual maturity of 190 days that can be settled within one working day should also be able to be counted towards the weekly liquidity requirements. In the case of variable net asset value MMFs (VNAV MMFs), a limited percentage of money market instruments or units or shares of eligible MMFs should also be able to be counted towards the weekly liquidity requirements provided they can be settled within five working days. To calculate the proportion of daily and weekly maturing assets, the legal redemption date of the asset should be used. The possibility for the manager of an MMF to terminate a contract on a short-term basis can be taken into consideration. For instance, if a reverse repurchase agreement can be terminated by giving prior notice of one working day, it should count as a daily maturing asset. If the manager has the possibility of withdrawing cash from a deposit account by giving prior notice of one working day, it should count as a daily maturing asset. When a financial instrument embeds a put option and the put can be freely exercised on a daily basis, or within five working days, and the strike price of the put is close to the expected value of the instrument, that instrument should count respectively as a daily or weekly maturing asset.
Given that MMFs can invest in assets with different maturity ranges, it is important for investors to be able to distinguish between different categories of MMFs. Therefore, an MMF should be classified as either a short-term MMF or as a standard MMF. Short-term MMFs have the objective of offering money market rate returns while ensuring the highest possible level of safety for the investors. With short WAM and WAL, the duration risk and credit risk of short-term MMFs are kept at low levels.
Standard MMFs have the objective of offering returns slightly higher than money market returns, and they therefore invest in assets that have an extended maturity. To achieve such outperformance, standard MMFs should be permitted to employ extended limits for the portfolio risk such as WAM and WAL.
Under Article 84 of Directive 2009/65/EC, the managers of MMFs that are UCITS have the possibility of temporarily suspending redemptions in exceptional cases where circumstances so require. Under Article 16 of Directive 2011/61/EU and in Article 47 of the Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 231/2013 (9), the managers of MMFs that are AIFs can use special arrangements in order to cope with a supervening illiquidity of the funds' assets.
In order to ensure appropriate liquidity management, MMFs should establish sound policies and procedures to get to know their investors. The policies that the manager of an MMF puts in place should help in understanding the MMF's investor base, to the extent that large redemptions could be anticipated. So that an MMF does not face sudden massive redemptions, particular attention should be paid to large investors representing a substantial portion of the MMF's assets, such as with one investor representing more than the proportion of daily maturing assets. The manager of an MMF should whenever possible look at the identity of its investors, even if they are represented by nominee accounts, portals or any other indirect buyer.
As part of prudent risk management, MMFs should, at least bi-annually, conduct stress testing. The manager of an MMF is expected to act in order to strengthen the MMF's robustness whenever the results of stress testing point to vulnerabilities.
In order to reflect the actual value of assets, the use of mark-to-market should be the preferred method of valuation. The manager of an MMF should not be allowed to use mark-to-model when mark-to-market provides a reliable value of the asset, as mark-to-model is prone to providing less accurate valuation. Assets such as treasury and local authority bills, medium- or short-term notes are generally the ones that are expected to have a reliable mark-to-market value. For valuing commercial papers or certificates of deposit, the manager of an MMF should check if accurate pricing is provided by a secondary market. The buy-back price offered by the issuer is also considered to represent a good estimate of the value of the commercial paper. Some assets can be inherently difficult to value based on market prices, for example some OTC derivatives which are thinly traded. Where that is the case and where mark-to-market does not provide a reliable value of the assets, the manager of an MMF should assign a fair value to the asset by using mark-to-model, for example the manager of an MMF should use market data such as yields on comparable issues and comparable issuers or by discounting the asset's cash-flows. Mark-to-model uses financial models to allocate a fair value to an asset. Such models can, for example, be developed by the MMF itself, or the MMF can use existing models from external parties such as data vendors.
Public debt CNAV MMFs have the objective of preserving the capital of the investment while ensuring a high degree of liquidity. The majority of public debt CNAV MMFs have a net asset value (NAV) per unit or share set, for example, at EUR 1, USD 1 or GBP 1, when they distribute the income to the investors. Other public debt CNAV MMFs accumulate income in the NAV of the fund while maintaining the intrinsic value of the asset at a constant value.
To allow for the specificities of public debt CNAV MMFs and LVNAV MMFs, they should also be permitted to use the internationally recognised amortised cost method as set out under international accounting standards adopted by the Union for certain assets. Nevertheless, for the purpose of ensuring that the difference between the constant NAV per unit or share and the NAV per unit or share is monitored at all times, public debt CNAV MMFs and LVNAV MMFs should also calculate the value of their assets on the basis of mark-to-market or mark-to-model.
As an MMF should publish a NAV that reflects all movements in the value of its assets, the published NAV should be rounded at a maximum to the nearest basis point or its equivalent. As a consequence, when the NAV is published in a specific currency, for example EUR 1, the incremental change in value should be done every EUR 0,0001. In the case of a NAV at EUR 100, the incremental change in value should be done every EUR 0,01. In addition, if the MMF is a public debt CNAV MMF or a LVNAV MMF, the MMF should be able to publish the constant NAV and the difference between the constant NAV and the NAV. In that case, the constant NAV is calculated by rounding the NAV to the nearest cent for a NAV at EUR 1 (every EUR 0,01 move).
In order to be able to mitigate potential investor redemptions in times of severe market stress, public debt CNAV MMFs and LVNAV MMFs should have in place provisions for liquidity fees and redemption gates to ensure investor protection and prevent a ‘first mover advantage’. The liquidity fee should adequately reflect the cost to the MMF of achieving liquidity and should not amount to a penalty charge that would offset losses incurred by other investors as a result of the redemption.
External support provided to an MMF with a view to maintaining either liquidity or stability, or de facto having such effects, increases the contagion risk between the MMF sector and the rest of the financial sector. Third parties, including credit institutions, other financial institutions or legal entities in the same group as the MMF, providing such support could have an interest in doing so, either because they have an economic interest in the management company managing the MMF or because they want to avoid any reputational damage in the event that their name is associated with the failure of an MMF. Because those third parties do not always commit explicitly to providing or guaranteeing the support, there is uncertainty whether such support will be granted when the MMF needs it. In those circumstances, the discretionary nature of sponsor support contributes to uncertainty among market participants about who will bear losses of the MMF when they do occur. That uncertainty likely makes MMFs even more vulnerable to runs during periods of financial instability, when broader financial risks are most pronounced and when concerns arise about the health of the sponsors and their ability to provide support to affiliated MMFs. For those reasons, external support for MMFs should be prohibited.
Prior to investing in an MMF, investors should be clearly informed whether the MMF is of a short-term nature or of a standard nature and whether the MMF is a public debt CNAV MMF, a LVNAV MMF or a VNAV MMF. In order to avoid misplaced expectations from the investor, it should also be clearly stated in any marketing document that an MMF is not a guaranteed investment vehicle. MMFs should also make available certain other information to investors on a weekly basis, including the maturity breakdown of the portfolio, the credit profile and details of the 10 largest holdings in the MMF.
In addition to reporting already required under Directive 2009/65/EC or 2011/61/EU and to ensure that competent authorities are able to detect, monitor and respond to risks in the MMF market, MMFs should report to their competent authorities a detailed list of information on the MMF, including the type and characteristics of the MMF, portfolio indicators and information on the assets held in the portfolio. Competent authorities should collect that data in a consistent way throughout the Union in order to obtain a substantive knowledge of the main evolutions of the MMF market. To facilitate a collective analysis of potential impacts of the MMF market in the Union, such data should be transmitted to the European Supervisory Authority (European Securities and Markets Authority) (ESMA), established by Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council (10), which should create a central database of MMFs.
The competent authority of an MMF should verify whether the MMF is able to comply with this Regulation on an ongoing basis. Therefore, competent authorities should be given all the supervisory and investigatory powers, including the ability to impose certain penalties and measures, necessary for the exercise of their functions with respect to this Regulation. Those powers should be without prejudice to powers existing under Directives 2009/65/EC and 2011/61/EU. The competent authorities of the UCITS or AIF should also verify compliance of all collective investment undertakings that display the characteristics of MMFs and that are in existence at the time this Regulation enters into force.
In order to specify further technical elements of this Regulation, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) should be delegated to the Commission in respect of the introduction of a cross-reference to the criteria for STS securitisations and ABCPs, in respect of specifying the quantitative and qualitative liquidity and credit quality requirements applicable to assets, and in respect of specifying the criteria for credit quality assessment. It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making (11). In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States' experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts.
The Commission should also be empowered to adopt implementing technical standards by means of implementing acts pursuant to Article 291 TFEU and in accordance with Article 15 of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010. ESMA should be entrusted with drafting implementing technical standards for submission to the Commission with regard to a reporting template containing information on MMFs for competent authorities.
ESMA should be able to exercise all the powers conferred on it under Directives 2009/65/EC and 2011/61/EU with respect to this Regulation. It is also entrusted with developing draft implementing technical standards.
By 21 July 2022, the Commission should undertake a review of this Regulation. That review should consider the experience acquired in applying this Regulation and analyse the impact on the different economic aspects attached to MMFs. It should also consider the impact on investors, MMFs and the managers of MMFs in the Union. It should also assess the role that MMFs play in purchasing debt issued or guaranteed by the Member States, while taking into account the specific characteristics of such debt given that it plays a vital role in financing Member States. In addition, the review should take into account the report referred to in Article 509(3) of Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (12), the impact of this Regulation on short-term financing markets, and regulatory developments at international level. Finally, by 21 July 2022, the Commission should present a report on the feasibility of establishing an 80 % EU public debt quota, since the issuance of EU short-term public debt instruments is governed by Union law, which therefore justifies, from a prudential supervisory point of view, a preferential treatment as opposed to non-EU public debt. Given the current scarcity of EU short-term public debt instruments and the uncertainty with respect to the development of the newly established LVNAV MMFs, the Commission should review the viability of establishing an 80 % EU public debt quota by 21 July 2022, including an assessment of whether the LVNAV MMF model has become an appropriate alternative to non-EU public debt CNAV MMFs.
The new uniform rules on MMFs provided for in this Regulation should comply with Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (13) and with Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council (14).
Since the objectives of this Regulation, namely to ensure uniform prudential, governance and transparency requirements that apply to MMFs throughout the Union, while taking full account of the need to balance safety and reliability of MMFs with the efficient operation of the money markets and the cost for its various stakeholders, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States but can rather, by reason of its scale and effects, be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union. In accordance with the principle of proportionality, as set out in that Article, this Regulation does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives.
1. This Regulation lays down rules for money market funds (MMFs) established, managed or marketed in the Union, concerning the financial instruments eligible for investment by a MMF, the portfolio of an MMF, the valuation of the assets of an MMF, and the reporting requirements in relation to an MMF.
have distinct or cumulative objectives offering returns in line with money market rates or preserving the value of the investment.
2. Member States shall not add any additional requirements in the field covered by this Regulation.
‘manager of an MMF’ means, in the case of an MMF that is a UCITS, the UCITS management company, or the UCITS investment company in the case of a self-managed UCITS, and, in the case of an MMF that is an AIF, an AIFM or an internally-managed AIF.
2. The authorisation of an MMF shall explicitly state the type of MMF, from those set out in paragraph 1.
1. No collective investment undertaking shall be established, marketed or managed in the Union as an MMF unless it has been authorised in accordance with this Regulation.
Such authorisation shall be valid for all Member States.
2. A collective investment undertaking that requires authorisation as a UCITS under Directive 2009/65/EC and as an MMF under this Regulation for the first time shall be authorised as an MMF as part of the UCITS authorisation procedure pursuant to Directive 2009/65/EC.
Where a collective investment undertaking has already been authorised as a UCITS under Directive 2009/65/EC, it may apply for authorisation as an MMF in accordance with the procedure set out in paragraphs 4 and 5 of this Article.
3. A collective investment undertaking that is an AIF and that requires authorisation as an MMF under this Regulation shall be authorised as an MMF pursuant to the authorisation procedure laid down in Article 5.
4. No collective investment undertaking shall be authorised as an MMF unless the competent authority of the MMF is satisfied that the MMF will be able to meet all the requirements of this Regulation.
any other information or document requested by the competent authority of the MMF to verify compliance with the requirements of this Regulation.
6. The competent authorities shall, on a quarterly basis, inform ESMA of authorisations granted or withdrawn pursuant to this Regulation.
7. ESMA shall keep a central public register identifying each MMF authorised under this Regulation, its type in accordance with Article 3(1), whether it is a short-term or standard MMF, the manager of an MMF and the competent authority of the MMF. The register shall be made available in electronic format.
1. An AIF shall be authorised as an MMF only if the competent authority of the MMF approves the application submitted by an AIFM, that has already been authorised under Directive 2011/61/EU to manage an MMF that is an AIF, and also approves the fund rules and the choice of the depositary.
information about the investment strategies, the risk profile and other characteristics of MMFs that are AIFs that the AIFM manages or intends to manage.
The competent authority of the MMF may ask the competent authority of the AIFM for clarification and information concerning the documentation referred to in the first subparagraph or an attestation as to whether MMFs fall within the scope of the AIFM's management authorisation. The competent authority of the AIFM shall respond within 10 working days of such request.
3. Any subsequent modifications of the documentation referred to in paragraph 2 shall be immediately notified to the competent authority of the MMF by the AIFM.
the AIFM has not provided the documentation referred to in paragraph 2.
Before refusing an application, the competent authority of the MMF shall consult the competent authority of the AIFM.
5. Authorisation of an AIF as an MMF shall not be subject to a requirement either that the AIF be managed by an AIFM authorised in the AIF home Member State or that the AIFM pursues or delegates any activities in the AIF home Member State.
6. Within 2 months of submission of a complete application, the AIFM shall be informed whether or not authorisation of the AIF as an MMF has been granted.
7. The competent authority of the MMF shall not grant authorisation of an AIF as an MMF if the AIF is legally prevented from marketing its units or shares in its home Member State.
1. A UCITS or an AIF shall use the designation ‘money market fund’ or ‘MMF’ in relation to itself or the units or shares it issues only where the UCITS or the AIF has been authorised in accordance with this Regulation.
A UCITS or an AIF shall not use a misleading or inaccurate designation which would suggest it is an MMF, unless it has been authorised as an MMF in accordance with this Regulation.
A UCITS or an AIF shall not have characteristics which are substantially similar to those referred to in Article 1(1), unless it has been authorised as an MMF in accordance with this Regulation.
2. The use of the designation ‘money market fund’, ‘MMF’ or of another designation that suggests that a UCITS or AIF is an MMF shall mean use in any external documents, prospectuses, reports, statements, advertisements, communications, letters or any other material addressed to or intended for distribution to prospective investors, unit-holders, shareholders or competent authorities in written, oral, electronic or any other form.
1. An MMF and the manager of the MMF shall comply at all times with this Regulation.
2. An MMF which is a UCITS and the manager of the MMF shall comply at all times with the requirements of Directive 2009/65/EC, unless otherwise specified in this Regulation.
3. An MMF which is an AIF and the manager of the MMF shall comply at all times with the requirements of Directive 2011/61/EU, unless otherwise specified in this Regulation.
4. The manager of an MMF shall be responsible for ensuring compliance with this Regulation and shall be liable for any loss or damage resulting from non-compliance with this Regulation.
5. This Regulation shall not prevent MMFs from applying investment limits that are stricter than those required by this Regulation.
1. Where an MMF comprises more than one investment compartment, each compartment shall be regarded as a separate MMF for the purposes of Chapters II to VII.
2. MMFs authorised as UCITS shall not be subject to the obligations concerning investment policies of UCITS laid down in Articles 49 to 50a, Article 51(2), and Articles 52 to 57 of Directive 2009/65/EC, unless explicitly specified otherwise in this Regulation.
units or shares of other MMFs.
3. An MMF may hold ancillary liquid assets in accordance with Article 50(2) of Directive 2009/65/EC.
where an MMF invests in a securitisation or ABCP, it is subject to the requirements laid down in Article 11.
2. Notwithstanding point (b) of paragraph 1, standard MMFs shall also be allowed to invest in money market instruments with a residual maturity until the legal redemption date of less than or equal to 2 years, provided that the time remaining until the next interest rate reset date is 397 days or less. For that purpose, floating-rate money-market instruments and fixed-rate money-market instruments hedged by a swap arrangement shall be reset to a money market rate or index.
3. Point (c) of paragraph 1 shall not apply to money market instruments issued or guaranteed by the Union, a central authority or central bank of a Member State, the European Central Bank, the European Investment Bank, the European Stability Mechanism or the European Financial Stability Facility.
a simple, transparent and standardised (STS) securitisation or ABCP.
the securitisations referred to in points (a) and (c) of paragraph 1 are amortising instruments and have a WAL of 2 years or less.
4. The Commission shall adopt, by 6 months from the date of entry into force of the proposed Regulation on STS securitisations, a delegated act in accordance with Article 45 amending this Article by introducing a cross-reference to the criteria identifying STS securitisations and ABCPs in the corresponding provisions of that Regulation. The amendment shall become effective at the latest by 6 months after the date of entry into force of that delegated act or from the date of application of the corresponding provisions in the proposed Regulation on STS securitisations, whichever is the later.
for ABCPs, in addition to points (a), (b) and (c), requirements relating to the sponsor and to the sponsor support of the ABCP programme.
the credit institution has its registered office in a Member State or, where the credit institution has its registered office in a third country, it is subject to prudential rules considered equivalent to those laid down in Union law in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 107(4) of Regulation (EU) No 575/2013.
the OTC derivatives are subject to reliable and verifiable valuation on a daily basis and can be sold, liquidated or closed by an offsetting transaction at any time at their fair value at the MMF's initiative.
the MMF has the right to terminate the agreement at any time upon giving prior notice of no more than two working days.
the market value of the assets received as part of the reverse repurchase agreement is at all times at least equal to the value of the cash paid out.
2. The assets received by an MMF as part of a reverse repurchase agreement shall be money market instruments that fulfil the requirements set out in Article 10.
The assets received by an MMF as part of a reverse repurchase agreement shall not be sold, reinvested, pledged or otherwise transferred.
3. Securitisations and ABCPs shall not be received by an MMF as part of a reverse repurchase agreement.
4. The assets received by an MMF as part of a reverse repurchase agreement shall be sufficiently diversified with a maximum exposure to a given issuer of 15 % of the MMF's NAV, except where those assets take the form of money market instruments that fulfil the requirements of Article 17(7). In addition, the assets received by an MMF as part of a reverse repurchase agreement shall be issued by an entity that is independent from the counterparty and is expected not to display a high correlation with the performance of the counterparty.
5. An MMF that enters into a reverse repurchase agreement shall ensure that it is able to recall the full amount of cash at any time on either an accrued basis or a mark-to-market basis. When the cash is recallable at any time on a mark-to-market basis, the mark-to-market value of the reverse repurchase agreement shall be used for the calculation of the NAV of the MMF.
they are issued or guaranteed by a central authority or central bank of a third country, provided that a favourable assessment has been received pursuant to Articles 19 to 22.
The assets received as part of a reverse repurchase agreement in accordance with the first subparagraph of this paragraph shall be disclosed to MMF investors, in accordance with Article 13 of Regulation (EU) 2015/2365 of the European Parliament and of the Council (17).
The assets received as part of a reverse repurchase agreement in accordance with the first subparagraph of this paragraph shall fulfil the requirements of Article 17(7).
7. The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 45 to supplement this Regulation by specifying quantitative and qualitative liquidity requirements applicable to assets referred to in paragraph 6 and quantitative and qualitative credit quality requirements applicable to assets referred to in point (a) of paragraph 6 of this Article.
For those purposes, the Commission shall take into account the report referred to in Article 509(3) of Regulation (EU) No 575/2013.
The Commission shall adopt the delegated act referred to in the first subparagraph no later than 21 January 2018.
the targeted MMF does not hold units or shares in the acquiring MMF.
An MMF whose units or shares have been acquired shall not invest in the acquiring MMF during the period in which the acquiring MMF holds units or shares in it.
2. An MMF may acquire the units or shares of other MMFs, provided that no more than 5 % of its assets are invested in units or shares of a single MMF.
3. An MMF may, in aggregate, invest no more than 17,5 % of its assets in units or shares of other MMFs.
the annual report shall indicate the maximum proportion of management fees charged to the MMF itself and to the other MMFs in which it invests.
the employee savings scheme referred to in point (a) only allows investors to redeem their investment subject to restrictive redemption terms which are laid down in national law, whereby redemptions may only take place in certain circumstances that are not linked to market developments.
6. Short-term MMFs may only invest in units or shares of other short-term MMFs.
7. Standard MMFs may invest in units or shares of short-term MMFs and standard MMFs.
10 % of its assets in deposits made with the same credit institution, unless the structure of the banking sector in the Member State in which the MMF is domiciled is such that there are insufficient viable credit institutions to meet that diversification requirement and it is not economically feasible for the MMF to make deposits in another Member State, in which case up to 15 % of its assets may be deposited with the same credit institution.
2. By way of derogation from point (a) of paragraph 1, a VNAV MMF may invest up to 10 % of its assets in money market instruments, securitisations and ABCPs issued by the same body provided that the total value of such money market instruments, securitisations and ABCPs held by the VNAV MMF in each issuing body in which it invests more than 5 % of its assets does not exceed 40 % of the value of its assets.
3. Until the date of application of the delegated act referred to in Article 11(4), the aggregate of all of an MMF's exposures to securitisations and ABCPs shall not exceed 15 % of the assets of the MMF.
As from the date of application of the delegated act referred to in Article 11(4), the aggregate of all of an MMF's exposures to securitisations and ABCPs shall not exceed 20 % of the assets of the MMF, whereby up to 15 % of the assets of the MMF may be invested in securitisations and ABCPs that do not comply with the criteria for the identification of STS securitisations and ABCPs.
4. The aggregate risk exposure to the same counterparty of an MMF stemming from OTC derivative transactions which fulfil the conditions set out in Article 13 shall not exceed 5 % of the assets of the MMF.
5. The aggregate amount of cash provided to the same counterparty of an MMF in reverse repurchase agreements shall not exceed 15 % of the assets of the MMF.
OTC financial derivative instruments giving counterparty risk exposure to that body.
By way of derogation from the diversification requirement provided for in the first subparagraph, where the structure of the financial market in the Member State in which the MMF is domiciled is such that there are insufficient viable financial institutions to meet that diversification requirement and it is not economically feasible for the MMF to use financial institutions in another Member State, the MMF may combine the types of investments referred to in points (a) to (c) up to a maximum investment of 20 % of its assets in a single body.
7. By way of derogation from point (a) of paragraph 1, the competent authority of an MMF may authorise an MMF to invest, in accordance with the principle of risk-spreading, up to 100 % of its assets in different money market instruments issued or guaranteed separately or jointly by the Union, the national, regional and local administrations of the Member States or their central banks, the European Central Bank, the European Investment Bank, the European Investment Fund, the European Stability Mechanism, the European Financial Stability Facility, a central authority or central bank of a third country, the International Monetary Fund, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Council of Europe Development Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Bank for International Settlements, or any other relevant international financial institution or organisation to which one or more Member States belong.
the MMF includes a prominent statement in its prospectus and marketing communications drawing attention to the use of the derogation and indicating all administrations, institutions or organisations referred to in the first subparagraph that issue or guarantee separately or jointly money market instruments in which it intends to invest more than 5 % of its assets.
8. Notwithstanding the individual limits laid down in paragraph 1, an MMF may invest no more than 10 % of its assets in bonds issued by a single credit institution that has its registered office in a Member State and is subject by law to special public supervision designed to protect bond-holders. In particular, sums deriving from the issue of those bonds shall be invested in accordance with the law in assets which, during the whole period of validity of the bonds, are capable of covering claims attaching to the bonds and which, in the event of failure of the issuer, would be used on a priority basis for the reimbursement of the principal and payment of the accrued interest.
Where an MMF invests more than 5 % of its assets in the bonds referred to in the first subparagraph issued by a single issuer, the total value of those investments shall not exceed 40 % of the value of the assets of the MMF.
9. Notwithstanding the individual limits laid down in paragraph 1, an MMF may invest no more than 20 % of its assets in bonds issued by a single credit institution where the requirements set out in point (f) of Article 10(1) or point (c) of Article 11(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/61 are met, including any possible investment in assets referred to in paragraph 8 of this Article.
Where an MMF invests more than 5 % of its assets in the bonds referred to in the first subparagraph issued by a single issuer, the total value of those investments shall not exceed 60 % of the value of the assets of the MMF, including any possible investment in assets referred to in paragraph 8, respecting the limits set out therein.
10. Companies which are included in the same group for the purposes of consolidated accounts under Directive 2013/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (18) or in accordance with recognised international accounting rules, shall be regarded as a single body for the purpose of calculating the limits referred to in paragraphs 1 to 6 of this Article.
1. An MMF shall not hold more than 10 % of the money market instruments, securitisations and ABCPs issued by a single body.
2. The limit laid down in paragraph 1 shall not apply in respect of holdings of money market instruments issued or guaranteed by the Union, national, regional and local administrations of the Member States or their central banks, the European Central Bank, the European Investment Bank, the European Investment Fund, the European Stability Mechanism, the European Financial Stability Facility, a central authority or central bank of a third country, the International Monetary Fund, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Council of Europe Development Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Bank for International Settlements, or any other relevant international financial institution or organisation to which one or more Member States belong.
1. The manager of an MMF shall establish, implement and consistently apply a prudent internal credit quality assessment procedure for determining the credit quality of money market instruments, securitisations and ABCPs, taking into account the issuer of the instrument and the characteristics of the instrument itself.
2. The manager of an MMF shall ensure that the information used in applying the internal credit quality assessment procedure is of sufficient quality, up-to-date and from reliable sources.
3. The internal assessment procedure shall be based on prudent, systematic and continuous assessment methodologies. The methodologies used shall be subject to validation by the manager of an MMF based on historical experience and empirical evidence, including back testing.
when methodologies, models or key assumptions used in the internal credit quality assessment procedure are changed, the manager of an MMF is to review all affected internal credit quality assessments as soon as possible.
1. The manager of an MMF shall apply the procedure laid down in Article 19 to determine whether the credit quality of a money market instrument, securitisation or ABCP receives a favourable assessment. Where a credit rating agency registered and certified in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009 has provided a rating of that money market instrument, the manager of the MMF may have regard to such rating and supplementary information and analysis in its internal credit quality assessment, while not solely or mechanistically relying on such rating in accordance with Article 5a of Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009.
the liquidity profile of the instrument.
The manager of an MMF may, in addition to the factors and general principles referred to in this paragraph, take into account warnings and indicators when determining the credit quality of a money market instrument referred to in Article 17(7).
the person or persons responsible for the internal credit quality assessment procedure.
2. The manager of an MMF shall keep all the documentation referred to in paragraph 1 for at least three complete annual accounting periods.
3. The internal credit quality assessment procedure shall be detailed in the fund rules or rules of incorporation of the MMF and all documents referred to in paragraph 1 shall be made available upon request to the competent authorities of the MMF and to the competent authorities of the manager of the MMF.
the meaning of material change as referred to in point (d) of Article 19(4).
1. The internal credit quality assessment procedure shall be approved by the senior management, the governing body, and, where it exists, the supervisory function of the manager of an MMF.
Those parties shall have a good understanding of the internal credit quality assessment procedure and the methodologies applied by the manager of an MMF, as well as a detailed comprehension of the associated reports.
2. The manager of an MMF shall report to the parties referred to in paragraph 1 on the MMF's credit risk profile, based on an analysis of the MMF's internal credit quality assessments. Reporting frequencies shall depend on the significance and type of information and shall be at least annual.
3. Senior management shall ensure, on an ongoing basis, that the internal credit quality assessment procedure is operating properly.
Senior management shall be regularly informed about the performance of the internal credit quality assessment procedures, the areas where deficiencies were identified, and the status of efforts and actions taken to improve previously identified deficiencies.
4. Internal credit quality assessments and their periodic reviews by the manager of an MMF shall not be performed by the persons performing or responsible for the portfolio management of an MMF.
for the purpose of the calculation referred to in point (f), money market instruments or units or shares of other MMFs may be included within the weekly maturing assets of a short-term VNAV MMF up to a limit of 7,5 % of its assets provided they are able to be redeemed and settled within five working days.
the investment strategy of the short-term MMF implies that there is a high probability that the option will be exercised at the exercise date.
the amortisation profile of the underlying assets from which the cash-flows for the redemption of such instruments result.
2. If the limits referred to in this Article are exceeded for reasons beyond the control of an MMF, or as a result of the exercise of subscription or redemption rights, that MMF shall adopt as a priority objective the correction of that situation, taking due account of the interests of its unit holders or shareholders.
3. All MMFs referred to in Article 3(1) of this Regulation may take the form of a short-term MMF.
for the purpose of the calculation referred to in point (d), money market instruments or units or shares of other MMFs may be included within the weekly maturing assets up to 7,5 % of its assets provided they are able to be redeemed and settled within five working days.
the investment strategy of the standard MMF implies that there is a high probability that the option will be exercised at the exercise date.
2. If the limits referred to in this Article are exceeded for reasons beyond the control of a standard MMF or as a result of the exercise of subscription or redemption rights, that MMF shall adopt as a priority objective the correction of that situation, taking due account of the interests of its unit holders or shareholders.
3. A standard MMF shall not take the form of a public debt CNAV MMF or a LVNAV MMF.
An MMF that solicits or finances an external credit rating shall do so in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009. The MMF or the manager of the MMF shall clearly indicate in the MMF's prospectus, and in all communication to investors in which the external credit rating is mentioned, that the rating was solicited or financed by the MMF or by the manager of the MMF.
1. Without prejudice to any more stringent requirements set out in Directive (EU) 2015/849 of the European Parliament and of the Council (19), the manager of an MMF shall establish, implement and apply procedures and exercise all due diligence with a view to anticipating the effect of concurrent redemptions by several investors, taking into account at least the type of investor, the number of units or shares in the fund owned by a single investor and the evolution of inflows and outflows.
the degree of correlation or close links between different investors in the MMF.
3. Where investors route their investments via an intermediary, the manager of an MMF shall request the information to comply with paragraphs 1 and 2 from the intermediary in order to manage appropriately the liquidity and investor concentration of the MMF.
4. The manager of an MMF shall ensure that the value of the units or shares held by a single investor does not materially impact the liquidity profile of the MMF where it accounts for a substantial part of the total NAV of the MMF.
1. Each MMF shall have in place sound stress testing processes that identify possible events or future changes in economic conditions which could have unfavourable effects on the MMF. The MMF or the manager of an MMF shall assess the possible impact that those events or changes could have on the MMF. The MMF or the manager of an MMF shall regularly conduct stress testing for different possible scenarios.
hypothetical macro systemic shocks affecting the economy as a whole.
2. In addition, in the case of public debt CNAV MMFs and LVNAV MMFs, the stress tests shall estimate for different scenarios the difference between the constant NAV per unit or share and the NAV per unit or share.
3. Stress tests shall be conducted at a frequency determined by the board of directors of the MMF, where applicable, or the board of directors of the manager of an MMF, after considering what an appropriate and reasonable interval in light of the market conditions is and after considering any envisaged changes in the portfolio of the MMF. Such frequency shall be at least bi-annual.
4. Where the stress test reveals any vulnerability of the MMF, the manager of an MMF shall draw up an extensive report with the results of the stress testing and a proposed action plan.
Where necessary, the manager of an MMF shall take action to strengthen the robustness of the MMF, including actions that reinforce the liquidity or the quality of the assets of the MMF and shall immediately inform the competent authority of the MMF of the measures taken.
5. The extensive report with the results of the stress testing and proposed action plan shall be submitted for examination to the board of directors of the MMF, where applicable, or the board of directors of the manager of an MMF. The board of directors shall amend the proposed action plan if necessary and approve the final action plan. The extensive report and the action plan shall be kept for a period of at least 5 years.
The extensive report and the action plan shall be submitted to the competent authority of the MMF for review.
6. The competent authority of the MMF shall send the extensive report referred to in paragraph 5 to ESMA.
7. ESMA shall issue guidelines with a view to establishing common reference parameters of the stress test scenarios to be included in the stress tests taking into account the factors specified in paragraph 1. The guidelines shall be updated at least every year taking into account the latest market developments.
1. The assets of an MMF shall be valued on at least a daily basis.
2. The assets of an MMF shall be valued by using mark-to-market whenever possible.
the issue size and the portion of the issue that the MMF plans to buy or sell.
4. Where use of mark-to-market is not possible or the market data is not of sufficient quality, an asset of an MMF shall be valued conservatively by using mark-to-model.
market risk, interest rate risk, credit risk attached to the asset.
When using mark-to-model, the amortised cost method shall not be used.
5. A valuation carried out in accordance with paragraphs 2, 3, 4, 6 and 7 shall be communicated to the competent authorities.
6. Notwithstanding paragraphs 2, 3 and 4, the assets of public debt CNAV MMFs may additionally be valued by using the amortised cost method.
7. By way of derogation from paragraphs 2 and 4, in addition to the mark-to-market referred to in paragraphs 2 and 3 and the mark-to-model referred to in paragraph 4, the assets of LVNAV MMFs that have a residual maturity of up to 75 days may be valued by using the amortised cost method.
The amortised cost method shall only be used for valuing an asset of a LVNAV MMF in circumstances where the price of that asset calculated in accordance with paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 does not deviate from the price of that asset calculated in accordance with the first subparagraph of this paragraph by more than 10 basis points. In the event of such a deviation, the price of that asset shall be calculated in accordance with paragraphs 2, 3 and 4.
1. An MMF shall calculate a NAV per unit or share as the difference between the sum of all assets of the MMF and the sum of all liabilities of the MMF valued in accordance with mark-to-market or mark-to-model, or both, divided by the number of outstanding units or shares of the MMF.
2. The NAV per unit or share shall be rounded to the nearest basis point or its equivalent when the NAV is published in a currency unit.
3. The NAV per unit or share of an MMF shall be calculated and published at least daily on the public section of the website of the MMF.
1. A public debt CNAV MMF shall calculate a constant NAV per unit or share as the difference between the sum of all of its assets valued in accordance with the amortised cost method, as provided for in Article 29(6), and the sum of all of its liabilities, divided by the number of its outstanding units or shares.
2. The constant NAV per unit or share of a public debt CNAV MMF shall be rounded to the nearest percentage point or its equivalent when the constant NAV is published in a currency unit.
3. The constant NAV per unit or share of a public debt CNAV MMF shall be calculated at least daily.
4. The difference between the constant NAV per unit or share and the NAV per unit or share calculated in accordance with Article 30 shall be monitored and published daily on the public section of the website of the MMF.
1. A LVNAV MMF shall calculate a constant NAV per unit or share as the difference between the sum of all of its assets valued in accordance with the amortised cost method as specified in Article 29(7), and the sum of all its liabilities, divided by the number of its outstanding units or shares.
2. The constant NAV per unit or share of a LVNAV MMF shall be rounded to the nearest percentage point or its equivalent when the constant NAV is published in a currency unit.
3. The constant NAV per unit or share of a LVNAV MMF shall be calculated at least daily.
1. The units or shares of an MMF shall be issued or redeemed at a price that is equal to the MMF's NAV per unit or share, notwithstanding permitted fees or charges as specified in the prospectus of the MMF.
the units or shares of a LVNAV MMF may be issued or redeemed at a price that is equal to that MMF's constant NAV per unit or share, but only where the constant NAV per unit or share calculated in accordance with Article 32(1), (2) and (3) does not deviate from the NAV per unit or share calculated in accordance with Article 30 by more than 20 basis points.
In relation to point (b), when the constant NAV per unit or share calculated in accordance with Article 32(1), (2) and (3) deviates from the NAV per unit or share calculated in accordance with Article 30 by more than 20 basis points, the following redemption or subscription shall be undertaken at a price that is equal to the NAV per unit or share calculated in accordance with Article 30.
Potential investors shall, prior to the conclusion of the contract, be clearly warned in writing by the manager of an MMF of the circumstances in which the LVNAV MMF will no longer redeem or subscribe at a constant NAV per unit or share.
1. The manager of a public debt CNAV MMF or of a LVNAV MMF shall establish, implement and consistently apply prudent and rigorous liquidity management procedures for ensuring compliance with the weekly liquidity thresholds applicable to such funds. The liquidity management procedures shall be clearly described in the fund rules or instruments of incorporation, as well as in the prospectus.
a suspension of redemptions for a period of up to 15 working days.
2. When, within a period of 90 days, the total duration of the suspensions exceeds 15 days, a public debt CNAV MMF or a LVNAV MMF shall automatically cease to be a public debt CNAV MMF or a LVNAV MMF. The public debt CNAV MMF or the LVNAV MMF shall immediately inform each investor thereof in writing in a clear and comprehensible way.
3. After the board of the public debt CNAV MMF or of the LVNAV MMF has determined its course of action with regard to both points (a) and (b) of paragraph 1, it shall promptly provide details of its decision to the competent authority of that MMF.
1. A MMF shall not receive external support.
2. External support means direct or indirect support offered to an MMF by a third party, including a sponsor of the MMF, that is intended for or in effect would result in guaranteeing the liquidity of the MMF or stabilising the NAV per unit or share of the MMF.
any action by a third party the direct or indirect objective of which is to maintain the liquidity profile and the NAV per unit or share of the MMF.
1. An MMF shall indicate clearly which type of MMF it is in accordance with Article 3(1) and whether it is a short-term or a standard MMF in any external document, report, statement, advertisement, letter or any other written evidence issued by it or by the manager of the MMF, addressed to or intended for distribution to prospective investors, unit-holders, or shareholders.
the net yield of the MMF.
that the risk of loss of the principal is to be borne by the investor.
4. No communication by the MMF or by the manager of an MMF to investors or potential investors shall in any way suggest that an investment in the units or shares of the MMF is guaranteed.
5. Investors in an MMF shall be clearly informed of the method or methods used by the MMF to value the assets of the MMF and calculate the NAV.
Public debt CNAV MMFs and LVNAV MMFs shall explain clearly to investors and potential investors any use of the amortised cost method or of rounding or both.
1. For each MMF that it manages, the manager of the MMF shall report information to the competent authority of the MMF on at least a quarterly basis.
By way of derogation from the first subparagraph, for an MMF whose assets under management in total do not exceed EUR 100 000 000, the manager of the MMF shall report to the competent authority of the MMF on at least an annual basis.
The manager of an MMF shall upon request provide the information reported pursuant to the first and second subparagraphs also to the competent authority of the manager of an MMF, if different from the competent authority of the MMF.
If necessary and duly justified, competent authorities may solicit additional information.
every event in which a situation mentioned in Article 34(3) occurs and the measures taken by the board in accordance with points (a) and (b) of Article 34(1).
4. ESMA shall develop draft implementing technical standards to establish a reporting template that shall contain all the information referred to in paragraphs 2 and 3.
ESMA shall submit those draft implementing technical standards to the Commission by 21 January 2018.
Power is conferred on the Commission to adopt the implementing technical standards referred to in the first subparagraph in accordance with Article 15 of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010.
5. Competent authorities shall transmit to ESMA all information received pursuant to this Article. Such information shall be transmitted to ESMA no later than 30 days after the end of the reporting quarter.
ESMA shall collect the information to create a central database of all MMFs established, managed or marketed in the Union. The European Central Bank shall have a right of access to that database, for statistical purposes only.
1. The competent authorities shall supervise compliance with this Regulation on an ongoing basis.
2. The competent authority of the MMF or, where relevant, the competent authority of the manager of an MMF shall be responsible for supervising compliance with Chapters II to VII.
3. The competent authority of the MMF shall be responsible for supervising compliance with the obligations set out in the fund rules or in the instruments of incorporation, and the obligations set out in the prospectus, which shall be consistent with this Regulation.
4. The competent authority of the manager of an MMF shall be responsible for supervising the adequacy of the arrangements and organisation of the manager of the MMF so that the manager of the MMF is in a position to comply with the obligations and rules which relate to the constitution and functioning of all the MMFs that it manages.
5. Competent authorities shall monitor UCITS and AIFs established or marketed in their territories to verify that they do not use the MMF designation or suggest that they are an MMF unless they comply with this Regulation.
issue an order to ensure that an MMF or the manager of an MMF complies with this Regulation and desists from a repetition of any conduct that could infringe this Regulation.
1. Member States shall lay down the rules on penalties and other measures applicable to infringements of this Regulation and shall take all measures necessary to ensure that they are implemented. The penalties and other measures provided for shall be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.
2. By 21 July 2018, the Member States shall notify the Commission and ESMA of the rules referred to in paragraph 1. They shall notify the Commission and ESMA without delay of any subsequent amendment thereto.
fails to comply with any of the requirements regarding valuation, in infringement of Article 29, 30, 31, 32, 33 or 34.
withdraw an authorisation granted in accordance with Article 4 or 5.
1. ESMA shall have the powers necessary to carry out the tasks attributed to it by this Regulation.
2. ESMA's powers in accordance with Directives 2009/65/EC and 2011/61/EU shall be exercised also with respect to this Regulation and in compliance with Regulation (EC) No 45/2001.
3. For the purpose of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010, this Regulation shall be included under any further legally binding Union act which confers tasks on the Authority referred to in Article 1(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010.
1. The competent authority of the MMF and the competent authority of the manager of an MMF, if different, shall cooperate with each other and exchange information for the purpose of carrying out their duties under this Regulation.
2. Competent authorities and ESMA shall cooperate with each other for the purpose of carrying out their respective duties under this Regulation in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010.
3. Competent authorities and ESMA shall exchange all information and documentation necessary to carry out their respective duties under this Regulation in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010, in particular to identify and remedy infringements of this Regulation. The competent authorities of the Member States responsible for the authorisation or supervision of MMFs under this Regulation shall communicate information to the competent authorities of other Members States where such information is relevant for monitoring and responding to the potential implications of the actitivies of individual MMFs or MMFs collectively for the stability of systemically relevant financial institutions and the orderly functioning of markets on which MMFs are active. ESMA and the European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB) shall also be informed and shall forward that information to the competent authorities of the other Member States.
4. On the basis of the information transmitted by national competent authorities pursuant to Article 37(5), ESMA shall, in accordance with powers conferred on it under Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010, prepare a report to the Commission in light of the review outlined in Article 46 of this Regulation.
1. By 21 January 2019, an existing UCITS or AIF that invests in short-term assets and has as distinct or cumulative objectives offering returns in line with money market rates or preserving the value of the investment shall submit an application to the competent authority of the MMF together with all documents and evidence necessary to demonstrate the compliance with this Regulation.
2. No later than 2 months after receiving the complete application, the competent authority of the MMF shall assess whether the UCITS or AIF is compliant with this Regulation in accordance with Articles 4 and 5. The competent authority of the MMF shall issue a decision and notify it immediately to the UCITS or AIF.
2. The power to adopt delegated acts referred to in Articles 11, 15 and 22 shall be conferred on the Commission for an indeterminate period of time from the date of entry into force of this Regulation.
3. The delegation of power referred to in Articles 11, 15 and 22 may be revoked at any time by the European Parliament or by the Council. A decision to revoke shall put an end to the delegation of the power specified in that decision. It shall take effect the day following the publication of the decision in the Official Journal of the European Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect the validity of any delegated acts already in force.
6. The delegated acts adopted pursuant to Articles 11, 15 and 22 shall enter into force only if no objection has been expressed either by the European Parliament or by the Council within a period of 2 months of notification of that act to the European Parliament and to the Council or if, before the expiry of that period, the European Parliament and the Council have both informed the Commission that they will not object. That period shall be extended by 2 months at the initiative of the European Parliament or of the Council.
1. By 21 July 2022, the Commission shall review the adequacy of this Regulation from a prudential and economic point of view, following consultations with ESMA and, where appropriate, the ESRB, including whether changes are to be made to the regime for public debt CNAV MMFs and LVNAV MMFs.
take into account the regulatory developments at international level.
By 21 July 2022, the Commission shall present a report on the feasibility of establishing an 80 % EU public debt quota. That report shall have regard to the availability of short-term EU public debt instruments and assess whether LVNAV MMFs might be an appropriate alternative to non-EU public debt CNAV MMFs. If the Commission concludes in the report that the introduction of an 80 % EU public debt quota and the phasing out of public debt CNAV MMFs that include an unlimited amount of non-EU public debt are not feasible, it should present the reasons for that. In the event that the Commission concludes that the introduction of an 80 % EU public debt quota is feasible, the Commission may make legislative proposals to introduce such a quota, whereby at least 80 % of the assets of public debt CNAV MMFs are to be invested in EU public debt instruments. In addition, if the Commission concludes that LVNAV MMFs have become an appropriate alternative to non-EU public debt CNAV MMFs, it may make appropriate proposals to remove the derogation for public debt CNAV MMFs altogether.
The results of the review shall be communicated to the European Parliament and to the Council, accompanied, where necessary, by appropriate proposals for amendments.
It shall apply from 21 July 2018, with the exception of Article 11(4), Article 15(7), Article 22 and Article 37(4) which shall apply from 20 July 2017.
(1) OJ C 255, 6.8.2014, p. 3.
(2) OJ C 170, 5.6.2014, p. 50.
(3) Position of the European Parliament of 5 April 2017 (not yet published in the Official Journal) and decision of the Council of 16 May 2017.
(4) Directive 2009/65/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 on the coordination of laws, regulations and administrative provisions relating to undertakings for collective investment in transferable securities (UCITS) (OJ L 302, 17.11.2009, p. 32).
(5) Directive 2011/61/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2011 on Alternative Investment Fund Managers and amending Directives 2003/41/EC and 2009/65/EC and Regulations (EC) No 1060/2009 and (EU) No 1095/2010 (OJ L 174, 1.7.2011, p. 1).
(6) Regulation (EU) No 648/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2012 on OTC derivatives, central counterparties and trade repositories (OJ L 201, 27.7.2012, p. 1).
(7) Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 September 2009 on credit rating agencies (OJ L 302, 17.11.2009, p. 1).
(8) Directive 2013/14/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 May 2013 amending Directive 2003/41/EC on the activities and supervision of institutions for occupational retirement provision, Directive 2009/65/EC on the coordination of laws, regulations and administrative provisions relating to undertakings for collective investment in transferable securities (UCITS) and Directive 2011/61/EU on Alternative Investment Funds Managers in respect of over-reliance on credit ratings (OJ L 145, 31.5.2013, p. 1).
(9) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 231/2013 of 19 December 2012 supplementing Directive 2011/61/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to exemptions, general operating conditions, depositaries, leverage, transparency and supervision (OJ L 83, 22.3.2013, p. 1).
(10) Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 establishing a European Supervisory Authority (European Securities and Markets Authority), amending Decision No 716/2009/EC and repealing Commission Decision 2009/77/EC (OJ L 331, 15.12.2010, p. 84).
(11) OJ L 123, 12.5.2016, p. 1.
(12) Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 on prudential requirements for credit institutions and investment firms and amending Regulation (EU) No 648/2012 (OJ L 176, 27.6.2013, p. 1).
(13) Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 October 1995 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data (OJ L 281, 23.11.1995, p. 31).
(14) Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the Community institutions and bodies and of the free movement of such data (OJ L 8, 12.1.2001, p. 1).
(15) Commission Directive 2007/16/EC of 19 March 2007 implementing Council Directive 85/611/EEC on the coordination of laws, regulations and administrative provisions relating to undertakings for collective investment in transferable securities (UCITS) as regards the clarification of certain definitions (OJ L 79, 20.3.2007, p. 11).
(16) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/61 of 10 October 2014 to supplement Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 of the European Parliament and the Council with regard to liquidity coverage requirement for Credit Institutions (OJ L 11, 17.1.2015, p. 1).
(17) Regulation (EU) 2015/2365 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2015 on transparency of securities financing transactions and of reuse and amending Regulation (EU) No 648/2012 (OJ L 337, 23.12.2015, p. 1).
(18) Directive 2013/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 on the annual financial statements, consolidated financial statements and related reports of certain types of undertakings, amending Directive 2006/43/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Council Directives 78/660/EEC and 83/349/EEC (OJ L 182, 29.6.2013, p. 19).
(19) Directive (EU) 2015/849 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2015 on the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing, amending Regulation (EU) No 648/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council, and repealing Directive 2005/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Commission Directive 2006/70/EC (OJ L 141, 5.6.2015, p. 73). | 2019-04-25T22:56:13Z | https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2017/1131/oj |
Glen Wakeman is the co-establisher and pioneer of LaunchPad Holdings. Glen Wakeman possesses other prestigious roles including being a renowned financial service executive; mentor, as well as, small enterprise owner. His expertise is attributed to his experience at GE in business augmentation that lasted for more than two decades. Glen Wakeman is passionate about expanding businesses by enhancing the agility of individuals and developing the organization. He achieves his achievements through the incorporation of an outstanding methodology that assesses and boosts five original performance dimensions. The premiere policy is leadership. Glen Wakeman postulates that the leadership aspect prepares the organization for transitioning. On the other hand, human capital aligns with essential elements including tactics and vision. Risk management as a methodology helps in curbing distraction. Glen states that execution methodology is vital to integrating the procedures with the people and the technology.
Besides working at LaunchPad Holdings, Glen Wakeman serves at Nova Four as the company’s President. Nova Four is an enterprise accelerator that offers advice and capital to startup organizations. Glen’s dominance in different sectors has facilitated his stay in six nations and his responsibility for operations in thirty countries. Glen Wakeman attained his qualifications as an expert businessperson from the Chicago University where he acquired his MBA. Additionally, Glen Wakeman has a BS in Finance and Economics from Scranton University. Currently, the Six Sigma Black Belt approved Mr. Wakeman.
A tight schedule characterizes Glen Wakeman’s typical day at work. He commences his day by performing reviews on the expected number of sales, performance, and service. Later, Glen Wakeman allocates roles between himself and his associate. Once they have all the needed items necessary for operation throughout the working day, Glen and his affiliate speculate the market competition and client trends. Glen Wakeman realizes his ideas by talking them out. Furthermore, he is excited by the tendency to use machines to solve a range of business complications. According to Glen Wakeman, curiosity is a good trait because it supplements his productivity significantly. Glen postulates that interest helps him endure through solution finding, innovation and most importantly, the satisfaction of the customers. Glen yearns to understand how things are to change them appropriately.
Russel Gurnhill, ex-joint managing director, will be Telereal Trillium’s new Chief Executive Officer. Adam Dankin who also held the joint managing director rank, will take over the tasks as the new managing director whose duties will include managing new businesses and services. Group Property Director, Graeme Hunter, will remain in his current position in overseeing the entire property matters of Telereal Trillium; whereas Michael Hackenbroch will still be the Group Finance Director who will be in-charge of the company’s overall financial matters.
Before his employment with Telereal, Graham Edwards served as the chief investment officer of Talisman Globe Asset Management, which also led to his establishment of the Pears FSA – a registered asset management division of Telereal. His affiliation with Pears also assisted him in gaining his CEO position at Telereal Trillium – a company he helped expand that currently oversees property assets over £1billion.
With regards his promotion, Graham Edwards said that the renewal of leadership has already been discussed beforehand with everybody concerned in the organization. And while changes in the organization’s structure happened, the company will initiate a synchronized and suitable action to the shifting priorities and demands of the business.
To assure their existing clients and potential clients of the continuing excellent standards of their services, Edwards continued to say that Telereal Trillium is composed of a proficient and extremely knowledgeable team that can appropriately formulate and identify value for their investors, promote exemplary service to property affiliates, and adequately augment the government’s housing infrastructures objectives in terms of strategic residential and land development. And he ensures that Telereal Trillium will carry on in managing and owning one of the biggest portfolio properties within the United Kingdom.
And at present, Telereal Trillium is doing just that, as the company carries on to transact new deals that will continue to see its continuous success in the future.
When entrepreneurs have a desire to do more and learn more, it’s all about the why. This is why Talk Fusion is such an inspiration to those who want to start a viable business. Bob Reina knew the same thing when he began to develop the idea for Talk Fusion. His idea was to find a way to end the homelessness for animals as well as animal cruelty. Everyone has a passion and this is his passion and his strong WHY behind his company.
The Talk Fusion company is known as one of the top companies in Direct Sales as well as in video communications. Videos have been made by Talk Fusion to promote the Humane Society and to build the case for animals that are without homes and for those that have been abused and neglected. While many entrepreneurs just want more free time, for Reina himself it was so much more. He wanted to create something unique, innovative, and most of all he wanted to create an opportunity for others around him to become successful.
No one knows better than Reina what it means to have a clear purpose, direction, and vision. When he started Talk Fusion, his goal was to create opportunity. His why was to support a cause that is close to his heart, but ultimately he wanted this to become an opportunity for people to build their own businesses as well as reach their dreams of business ownership. Anyone can choose to try their hand at the journey of entrepreneurship but not everyone makes it. Reina wanted to make it possible for all to achieve their goals and dreams by using products that made sense and ultimately could be a business that would grow and flourish driving more income for families around the world.
Reina is also known for his sense of humor, and his ability to keep people engaged while he is speaking and training. One of the most outstanding qualities of Reina is that he has a ton of self-discipline, making him the ideal trainer for the team leader of any organization.
The appointment of its new CEO by one of the largest optical transport vendors, Coriant, is both ambitious and bold to say the least. Shaygan Kheradpir is more than suited for this position following his recent appointment with impressive IT departments such as General Telephone & Electric Corporation (GTE), Verizon and playing a major role in Barclays (https://www.ece.cornell.edu/ece/people/advisory.cfm?s_id=112&page=1). Moving from Juniper Networks Inc. Kheradpir took over Coriant in place of Pat DiPetro, who took the place of Vice Chairman. Kheradpir and DiPetro. In a way, the two executives will also be changing roles as DiPetro will also be taking over Kheradpir’s role as operating partner at Marlin Equity Partners.
The interchanging roles between Kheradpir and DiPetro serve as leverage for the company since Marlin Equity Partners was behind the formation of Coriant. Coriant came about through stitching together the optical units of Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN), Tellabs and Sycamore Networks (http://www.fiercetelecom.com/story/former-juniper-ceo-verizon-veteran-kheradpir-takes-reins-coriant/2015-09-29). Kheradpir has also had close associations with Coriant, earlier before his appointment, as its Operating Executive to Marlin Equity Partners. This reveals that he will be more than equipped with handling his new position following his knowledge on the company’s routine and operations.
Kheradpir’s passion and ambition can be traced back to his academic career and his rather challenging background. Coming from a place that regards university-level education to be not so important, Kheradpir went against the odds and attained a bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate in electrical engineering from the prestigious Cornell University. His communications career began with GTE IN 1987. During his tenure, Kheradpir’s modern improvements brought significant change to the company’s efficiency and cost structure.
Kheradpir was fortunate enough to move up the corporate ladder as the Chief Information and Technical Officer of Verizon Communications. He played a major role in the Management team that was behind the formation of Verizon. I his entire leadership period it is vital to note that he implemented groundbreaking initiatives that helped transition the communications company from a telephone company to broadband. While his efforts seem to be more concentrated in the communications technology sector, he was also part of Barclays Bank as its Chief Operations and Technology Officer. While at Barclays, he not only handled the bank’s technological agenda but also oversaw the operations and systems in the efficient delivery of products and services to clients all around the globe.
Former Chief Executive Officer at Coriant, Pat DiPetro, mentioned that Kheradpir was an impressive addition to the company following his valid insights on the company’s focused operational execution. With his recent amicable and fruitful relations with the company, Kheradpir is more than equipped to advance Coriant to its next level of growth. His biggest challenge, however, will be combating the ever rising competition from worthy competitors such as Alcatel-Lucent, Ciena, Cisco, and Infinera.
Talk Fusion is the unique creation of CEO Bob Reina, and the company is combining video with audio communication. Talk Fusion uses special technology that allows for video communication between two parties, and there are many people who are turning to video communication over audio. This article explains what Talk Fusion does, now Bob Reina has led the company to prosperity and what the future holds for video chatting.
Bob has quite a lot of industry experience that he has used to build the technology that makes Talk Fusion great. His company uses software that allows for video email and video chatting at any time, and his industry expertise helps guide the company. Talk Fusion is successful because Bob knows what it takes to succeed in the telecommunications industry.
#2: Who Benefits From Talk Fusion?
Everyone in the business sector benefits because Talk Fusion allows for real-time video chats that will bring people together over a common issue. The technology is installed on a business computer, and the computers transmit the video to other users on the same chat. Video email is used to send quick messages in a video format to colleagues, and the service runs on a platform that is faster than the competition.
#3: How Will Video Email Change The Business World?
The video email technology created by Bob Reina and Talk Fusion will allow people to give brief explanations of certain topics over their computers. The brief video is sent as an email, and the recipient need not read the response when they may watch and listen. Talk Fusion saves everyone’s time, and someone who cannot type what they want to say may speak it as part of a video.
Bob Reina has created a powerful brand that helps people remain productive in the office, and the Talk Fusion video chat services help bring people together from around the world.
I use Talk Fusion for my children and I to communicate with their father overseas and to be honest, it has been a life saver for us. The day he left I thought we were going to be stuck communicating with the awful computer video chats that went in and out every time you logged on. Thankfully for Talk Fusion, we did not have this problem. Not even once. The first week of my husband being overseas with the military, I had absolutely no idea about Talk Fusion what so ever. It was my sister in law who came across it and got a hold of me immediately. She did an online search to find it because she has well was sick and tired of glitch in her screen every time she tried calling him over the computer. When someone you love is fighting for your country, you want the best video program possible.
After the first week of using Talk Fusion, my mind was completely at ease knowing that every night before bed we could all talk with Matthew online without the worry of losing signal with him. It is because of Bob Reina that this is even a possibility for us. I actually got a little emotional after the first few times of using Talk Fusion because of the clear view of my husband, and I wrote Bob an email. I was shocked at how quickly he replied. He was extremely grateful for my email and very enthused to hear that my husband was serving in the military at that moment in time. What shocked me the most was when he offered me a free month of Talk Fusion to talk with my husband. I was extremely grateful of his offer and the gratitude he expressed towards my husband. I have yet to run into someone to contribute towards anything that has to do wit my husband serving overseas. It was absolutely amazing.
Even after my email conversation with Bob, I ended up doing some research on him and his career. Not only was he a great individual personally, but he was also a great man in the community and at his business. From what I read from reviews and recommendations, Bob Reina is an all around great CEO of talk Fusion. This probably has something to do with his 20 some odd years experience in relationship marketing. Alongside of his relationship marketing skills, he also is a huge contributor to many of animal causes as he has apparently always had a soft spot in his heart for furry friends. A man like this surely deserves some sort award, or two, or even three!
Philip Diehl, the president of US Money Reserve, gave his opinion on the continued circulation the penny to PR Newswire on January 26.
While some people may enjoy picking up spare change it can not be denied that the value of the penny has gone down significantly over the years. If a person was to take the time to bend over and scoop one of these coins off the ground today they would be getting paid less for their time than working at a minimum wage job. What makes these infinitesimally small valued coins seem like an even worse idea is the fact that they cost much more to produce than they are worth. In fact, production of pennies costs American taxpayers $105 million each year.
Those who wish to keep the penny in circulation likely have their own best interests in mind as the largest proponents are members of zinc lobbies and those who assist in the production of the coin. One of their most popular arguments is stating that if the penny were no longer in use then companies would be forced to raise prices on consumer goods. In turn this would result in inflation. In a completely cash-based economy this statement may have been true, however in today’s world over three quarters of transactions take place thanks to technology and cash is rarely used. This could allow prices to remain the same when paying with cards. Furthermore, Diehl asserts that many companies would likely round their prices down a couple of pennies in order to try and gain a competitive advantage.
Others still propose that if the penny is to be taken out of circulation, why not the nickel which costs 9.4 cents to produce. The counter argument here is that the nickel could still be reformatted in order to cost less and eventually become profitable, but the penny is already made of 97.5 percent zinc making this impossible.
The US Money Reserve prides itself on expert knowledge and guide while giving superior customer service. These qualities help to make the process of purchasing precious metals as easy as possible. The US Money Reserve is the largest distributor of United States issued gold, silver, and platinum coins. Get coupons for US Money Reserve on RetailMeNot. | 2019-04-23T04:20:59Z | http://clubhouseatfountainhills.com/category/ceos/ |
Dumpster Market, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, with an address of 485 Massachusetts Ave. Suite 328 Cambridge, MA 02139, and/or its affiliates (“we” or “Dumpster Market”) provide website features and other services to you when you visit Dumpster Market.com (the “Website”), use our services, use our mobile application, if any, or use any software or other application we may make available in connection with the foregoing (collectively, “Dumpster Market Services”). Your use of the Dumpster Market Services is conditioned upon your acceptance of the terms and conditions set out in this Agreement (this “Agreement”).
We reserve the right to make changes to this Agreement and the Policies at any time. We will make a reasonable effort to notify all active Participants (defined below) of material changes made to this Agreement and/or the Policies and the date in which such changes take effect. All modified terms and conditions shall take effect immediately after posting to the Dumpster Market website, or upon the stated date included within the announcement, if any. It is the Participant’s responsibility to review this Agreement and Policies on a regular basis and keep informed of any modifications thereto. We further reserve the right to modify discontinue any or all Dumpster Market Services at any time and without notice and without any liability or responsibility to you.
Customer. A person (whether an individual, company or other entity or organization) that arranges to have junk or waste removed by a Hauler.
Hauler. A person (whether an individual, company or other entity or organization) that provides junk or waste removal services to a Customer.
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Dumpster Market is a Neutral Venue for Customers and Haulers. We are not a broker, Customer, or Hauler, or an agent for any broker, Customer or Hauler. The Website acts as a venue or passive conduit where Customers and Haulers can interact and enter into agreements for the removal of junk and waste from Customer locations. We are not a party to any agreement made between Participants via the Website or other Dumpster Market software platforms. As a result, we have no control over the quality, safety, or legal aspects of the transactions that take place on our website.
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Customer Credit Card. We require that Customers provide us with approval to retain his/her credit card information in our third-party payment gateway system (Stripe Inc.) and to charge the payment method in accordance with our services descriptions and the Haulers’ terms and conditions. As an example, in the event that a Customer orders (and pays in advance for) an open-top construction container for disposal of up to 3 tons, but the container actually ends up containing 5 tons, the Hauler will charge for the overage when Hauler dumps the waste at a disposal facility. In that situation, the Hauler will provide a disposal ticket and Dumpster Market will notify the Customer by email and charge the payment method we have on file. If Customer is assessed overage fees for items stated in the Vendor’s Terms and Conditions, Dumpster Market will notify the customer by email and charge the payment method on file for the stated amount plus a transaction fee.
Prohibited Items. Customer may not request services through the Website or the Dumpster Market that would cause any person to violate any applicable law, statute, ordinance, regulation or that requests or would cause a Hauler to transport or dispose of prohibited items. Prohibited items are hazardous or dangerous goods that may pose a danger to health, safety, or property while being transported (such as explosives, radioactive materials, flammable gases and solids, and toxic substances). Hazardous materials that cannot be shipped through the mail or by commercial carrier are not allowed on Dumpster Market. Full responsibility rests with the Customer to comply with all laws and regulations with respect to listing jobs involving, and requesting, the removal of all item(s).
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Hauler Representations. As a Hauler, you must legally be able to remove waste that you agree to remove through the Website or the Dumpster Market Services. If you provide pricing and terms on the Website for waste removal services, you must also have in place a valid commercial general liability insurance policy with a limit of not less than $1,000,000 for each occurrence and in the aggregate, and by making an offering on the Website you are representing and warranting to Dumpster Market that you have such a policy. As a Hauler, you must have a valid license to operate the vehicle(s) you intend to use. You agree that it is your sole obligation to comply with all applicable laws, rules, statutes and regulations including without limitation any licensing requirements. You are solely responsible for all aspects of services, pricing and terms you offer to a Customer. You are solely responsible for performing any removal, and are not permitted to subcontract or bid out any removal services to third parties. All rates, services and terms of service are solely provided by the Haulers and not by Dumpster Market. You understand and acknowledge that all job information is provided by other registered users and Dumpster Market has no control over or responsibility for the accuracy of this information. You are responsible for reading all of the job details and by booking services on Dumpster Market you are entering into a legally binding agreement to complete the services as requested by the Customer. All information as provided by Hauler must be accurate, current and complete.
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Refunds and Credits. For all cancellations that have been made in a timely basis, the amount charged at checkout will be refunded to the Customer through the payment method originally used, less a service charge of twenty-five dollars ($25.00).
Excessive Hauler Cancellations. Haulers that have excessive cancellations after a transaction is booked will be charged a variable surcharge asset set forth below, based on the number of cancellations in the prior 12 months. This surcharge will be deducted from any amounts otherwise due and owing Hauler from Dumpster Market for other work performed or charged to the Hauler.
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will not knowingly involve the upload, or insertion of, any programming language or code into or onto the Website or the Dumpster Market Services.
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In the event that any prohibited activity results in the loss by Dumpster Market or nonpayment to Dumpster Market of a Transaction Fee or other fee to which Dumpster Market otherwise would be entitled, Dumpster Market shall be entitled to receive from you, and you shall pay on demand from Dumpster Market, an amount of One Hundred Dollars ($100.00). Such amount is intended as liquidated damages and not as a penalty. This shall not limit Dumpster Market’s ability to avail itself of any other remedy to which Dumpster Market may be entitled in equity or at law. You and Dumpster Market agree that the actual losses to Dumpster Market resulting from such prohibited activities are uncertain and would be difficult to ascertain, and that the amount stated above represents reasonable compensation in the event of a breach by you of these prohibitions.
our knowledge of criminal convictions or civil actions which we deem to be of risk to the Dumpster Market community.
Reinstatement. Upon your removal or suspension from the Dumpster Market Services you may petition for reinstatement. Your petition for reinstatement must include a written statement as to why you should be reinstated and an acknowledgement and understanding of previous violations. Your petition will be reviewed at our discretion and any determination as to your reinstatement will be based on our sole judgment. Your submission of a petition does not, in any manner, guarantee that you will be reinstated. We will contact you as to our decision to reinstate you. We are not obligated to give you any reason or basis as to our decision. You understand that any decision as to reinstatement may be a simple yes or no. All decisions are final.
Feedback and Ratings. For each Dumpster Market transaction, the Customer and the Hauler are allowed to rate each other by leaving feedback for one another. Feedback consists of a zero-to-five-star rating, along with a short comment about your experience. Ratings will be cumulative.
Content and Use of Feedback. Feedback consists of comments left by other Dumpster Market Participants and a composite feedback rating compiled by Dumpster Market. You agree that you will not use your Dumpster Market feedback in any venue other than the Website and the Dumpster Market Services. Participants should always use caution and good judgment when leaving feedback for another Participant because, Participants could be held legally responsible for damages to a Participants’ reputation if a court were to find that the remarks constitute libel or defamation. Under federal law (including without limitation the Communications Decency Act), because Dumpster Market does not censor feedback or investigate it for accuracy, Dumpster Market is not legally responsible for the remarks that Participants post, even if those remarks are defamatory. However, this law does not protect the person who leaves the feedback from responsibility for it.
Reply to Feedback Received. Share your side of the story by responding to any comment that has been left for you. Your response will be shown directly below the comment left by the other Dumpster Market Participant.
Mutual Feedback Withdrawal. If both Participants are able to resolve a problem after feedback has been left, you can mutually agree to withdraw the feedback rating and comment. Both Participants must agree, and feedback will be withdrawn at the same time upon confirmation of the request by both Participants.
Feedback Comment Withdrawal. Dumpster Market will remove individual feedback comments only in very rare circumstances, such as but not limited to, when they violate certain Dumpster Market policies and instances when Dumpster Market receives a valid court order to remove feedback.
Dispute Resolution – Disputes with Dumpster Market. Disputes between you and Dumpster Market regarding our Services should be reported to Dumpster Market Support. Subject to the requirement that legal disputes must be submitted to arbitration as described in Section 54, we will attempt to resolve any disputes you have with us.
Dispute Resolution – Disputes among Participants. Because we are a neutral venue, we are not responsible for resolving any disputes between you and other Dumpster Market Participants regarding services, and it is the responsibility of Customers and Haulers to resolve all monetary disputes, damage claims, breach of contract claims, or other claims outside of Dumpster Market. Not as a limitation on the foregoing, if you report a dispute to Dumpster Market, we will make reasonable efforts to help both parties communicate; however, all disputes must be resolved directly between you and the other Participant. Therefore, if we are contacted by a Participants who claims to have a dispute with you regarding transactions completed on Dumpster Market and they request your contact information (including but not limited to any of your provided phone numbers and/or addresses) to discuss or settle the dispute, you expressly authorize us to release your provided contact information to the Dumpster Market Participants and you agree to release us from any and all liability associated therewith. We encourage you to report all Participant-to-Participant disputes to law enforcement officials, or a certified mediation or arbitration entity. When appropriate, we also encourage you to report disputes involving fraud, theft, or other criminal activity to the appropriate law enforcement agencies. Dumpster Market shall have no liability for, and you hereby release and agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless Dumpster Market from any and all liability arising from or relating to, any act or omission of Dumpster Market with respect to any dispute arising between you and another Dumpster Market Participant.
Refunds. In very limited circumstances, and at Dumpster Market’s sole discretion, Dumpster Market may issue refunds to Customers for services that have not been provided or completed. Dumpster Market shall not provide refunds relating to any completed services.
Usage. If we make available a mobile application, when using the Dumpster Market Services on a mobile device and/or the Dumpster Market mobile application, you shall: (a) observe all traffic laws and otherwise drive safely; (b) use your good personal judgment while driving, (c) not interact with the app, unless your vehicle is stationary and legally parked; (d) not use the Website Services for any illegal, unauthorized, unintended, unsafe, hazardous, or unlawful purposes.
Compatibility. Dumpster Market does not warrant that the mobile application will be compatible or interoperable with your mobile device or any other piece of hardware, software or equipment. Compatibility and interpretability problems can cause the performance of your mobile device to diminish or fail completely, and may result in permanent damage to your mobile device, and corruption of the software of and files located on your mobile device, and Dumpster Market shall have no liability should these problems arise. You assume all responsibility and risk for the use of the Dumpster Market Services and mobile applications.
No Obligation Regarding Versions. You may only access the Dumpster Market Services using authorized means. It is your responsibility to check to ensure you download the correct application for your device. Dumpster Market is not liable if you do not have a compatible mobile device or if you download the wrong version of the application for your mobile device. Dumpster Market reserves the right to terminate the Dumpster Market Services and the use of any mobile application or version thereof, including without limitation in the event you use the Dumpster Market Services or mobile application with an incompatible or unauthorized device. You will comply with all applicable law from your home nation, the country, state and/or city in which you are present while using the Dumpster Market Services or mobile application.
No Agency. Your agreeing to be bound by the terms of this Agreement, your provision of services and/or your use of the Dumpster Market Services, does not confer or imply any contractor (independent or otherwise), agency, partnership, joint venture, employee-employer or franchiser-franchisee relationship with us.
Release and Indemnity Regarding Disputes among Participants. Should you have a dispute with one or more Dumpster Market Participants, you release and agree to hold harmless, indemnify and defend Dumpster Market, LLC and its owners, governing persons, agents, and employees from and against all claims, demands and damages (actual and consequential) of any kind and nature, known and unknown, suspected and unsuspected, disclosed and undisclosed, arising out of or in any way connected with such disputes, including without limitation any injuries or damage to property.
Indemnity Regarding Your Actions. You agree to hold harmless, indemnify and defend Dumpster Market, LLC and its owners, governing persons, agents, and employees from any claim or demand, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, made by any third party due to or arising out of your negligence, breach of this Agreement, breach of any separate agreement made between you and another party through the Dumpster Market Services or violation of any law or the rights of a third party.
Confidentiality/Non-Disclosure. As a result of the performance of this Agreement and whether due to any intentional or negligent act or omission, we may disclose to you or you may otherwise learn of or discover, our documents, business practices, object code, source code, management styles, day-to-day business operations, capabilities, systems, current and future strategies, marketing information, financial information, software, technologies, processes, procedures, methods and applications, or other aspects of our business (“Our Information”). You hereby agree and acknowledge that any and all of Our Information is confidential and shall be our sole and exclusive intellectual property and proprietary information. You agree to use Our Information only for the specific purposes as allowed by the performance of this Agreement. Any disclosure of Our Information to a third party specifically including a direct competitor is strictly prohibited and will be vigorously challenged in a court of law. All obligations contained herein shall survive the termination of this Agreement. Furthermore, you acknowledge that our information is proprietary, confidential and extremely valuable to us, and that we would be materially damaged by your disclosure of Our Information. You acknowledge and agree that monetary damages provide an insufficient remedy for the breach of this confidentiality obligation, and that we shall be entitled to injunctive relief.
Taxes. You are solely responsible for any and all taxes, levies, charges and fees incurred or that may be payable to any taxing authority in connection with the transactions hereunder, other than any income tax incurred by Dumpster Market. All fees stated for use of the Dumpster Market Services are net of any applicable taxes.
Record Keeping/Audit. Dumpster Market reserves the right to keep all records of any and all transactions and communications between you and other Participants for administration purposes in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations. All Haulers are required to retain records of transactions bid or obtained through the Website for one (1) year from the date of the services performed. Dumpster Market shall have the right to review, inspect and copy such records for the purpose of determining compliance with this Agreement on reasonable notice.
Non-solicitation. During the term of this Agreement you shall not solicit to hire nor hire our employees of whom you become aware of through the performance of this Agreement. Furthermore, you shall not otherwise interfere with any of Dumpster Market’s other business relationships including but not limited to those with other Dumpster Market Participants. Specifically, you shall not knowingly, directly or indirectly, solicit or attempt to solicit, divert, and/or send marketing content to any Dumpster Market Participant in which you initially constituted a relationship through Dumpster Market.
Unsolicited Idea Submission. We always want to receive messages and feedback from Dumpster Market Participants and welcome any comments regarding the Website or the Dumpster Market Services. However, Dumpster Market policy does not allow us to accept or consider ideas, suggestions, or proposals other than those we specifically request. The intent of this policy is to avoid the possibility of future misunderstandings when new functionality and features developed internally by Dumpster Market might be similar or even identical to your idea. If you do send Dumpster Market an unsolicited suggestion, idea, or proposal, or if you send, at the request of Dumpster Market, a comment or suggestion to improve the Website or the Dumpster Market Services (for example, through discussion boards or via email) (collectively, the “Submission”), Dumpster Market will consider the Submission to be non-confidential and non-proprietary. Dumpster Market shall have no obligations concerning the Submission, contractual or otherwise (including but not limited to an obligation to keep the Submission confidential), and shall not be liable for any use or disclosure of any Submission. Dumpster Market shall be entitled to unrestricted use of the Submissions for any purpose whatsoever, commercial or otherwise, without notice or compensation to you.
Remedies. Remedies for use of the Website or the Dumpster Market Services that violate this Agreement or our Policies include, but are not limited to, the immediate removal your listing(s), bids and/or profile, notifying our Participants of your actions, issuing a warning, temporarily suspending your account, terminating your account, and refusing to provide our Services to You. Dumpster Market reserves the right to exercise any rights or remedies which may be available to it against the Participant if the Terms and Conditions of this Agreement are violated. Exercise of one remedy shall not preclude the availability of another remedy.
your need to modify practices, content, or behavior or your loss of or inability to do business, as a result of changes to this Agreement or our policies.
changes to any Dumpster Market products or features, or to the Services and Tools.
Dumpster Market is not liable for any direct, indirect, punitive, incidental, special or consequential damages arising out of, or in any way connect with your access to, display of or use of the Website or Dumpster Market Services or with the delay or inability to access, display or use the Website or Dumpster Market Services (including, but not limited to, reliance upon reviews appearing on the Website, any computer viruses, information, software linked or otherwise arising out of the access to, display of or use of this Website) whether based on a theory of negligence, contract, tort, strict liability, consider protection statutes, or otherwise, and even if Dumpster Market has been advised of the possibility of such damages.
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Agreement, Dumpster Market’s liability to you for any action relating to the Dumpster Market Services, the Website or otherwise, irrespective of the form of the claim, shall not exceed twelve (12) months of fees actually paid to Dumpster Market in connection with the Dumpster Market Services with respect to the specific Dumpster Market Services in question, as provided to you.
Some jurisdictions do not allow certain disclaimers of warranties or limitations or exclusion of damages, so such disclaimers and exclusions may not apply to You.
Legal Compliance. You shall comply with all applicable domestic and international laws, statutes, ordinances and regulations regarding your use of the Website and the Dumpster Market Services, and your listing of jobs and description of items, or offers to dispose of such items.
Arbitration. Any legal claim arising out of or relating to this Agreement or our services, excluding legal action taken by Dumpster Market to collect our fees and/or recover damages for, or obtain an injunction relating to, the Dumpster Market operations, intellectual property, and the Dumpster Market Services, shall be settled by binding arbitration in accordance with the commercial arbitration rules of the American Arbitration Association. The arbitration shall be conducted in Austin, Texas before a single arbitrator, and judgment on the arbitration award may be entered into any court having jurisdiction thereof.
Trademark and Domain Name Protection. The Website and the Dumpster Market Services contain trademarks, trade names, trade dress, service marks, domain names or other indicia of ownership (collectively the “Marks”) owned or licensed for use by Dumpster Market. Unless otherwise agreed to in a writing signed by Dumpster Market that specifically references this Section 55, no right, property, license, permission or interest of any kind in or to the Marks is or is intended to be given or transferred to or acquired by you pursuant to the execution, performance or non-performance of this Agreement or any part thereof. You shall in no way contest or deny the validity of, our right of title to or license of use for, the Marks, and you shall not encourage or assist others directly or indirectly to do so, during the term of this Agreement and thereafter. You shall not utilize the Marks in any manner that would diminish their value or harm their reputation. You may not frame or utilize framing techniques to enclose any trademark, logo, or other proprietary information (including images, text, page layout, or form) of the Website or Dumpster Market Services without express written consent. You may not use any meta tags or any other “hidden text” utilizing Dumpster Market’s name or trademarks without the express written consent of Dumpster Market. You shall not use or register any domain name that is identical to or similar to any of the Marks.
Security. Dumpster Market uses industry standard practices to safeguard your personal information, including firewalls and Secure Socket Layers (SSL). We utilize several different security techniques to protect data from unauthorized access, but we cannot guarantee the security of our system. We also do not guarantee uninterrupted or secure access to our system, as the operation of the Website and the Dumpster Market Services can be interrupted by numerous factors outside of our control.
Governing Law and Venue. This Agreement and your use of the Website and the Dumpster Market Services shall be governed by the laws of the State of Pennsylvania, without regard to its conflict of laws principles. Exclusive venue for any dispute that cannot be submitted to arbitration as required by Section 54 shall be in any court of competent jurisdiction in Travis County, Texas.
Other Terms and Conditions. We have the sole discretion to set forth and post additional terms and conditions for your use of the Dumpster Market Services at various places throughout the Dumpster Market Services. Such additional terms and conditions shall be considered an effective amendment to this Agreement and said terms and conditions shall be incorporated herein. If there is any conflict between those additional terms and conditions and the specific terms and conditions set forth herein, the terms and conditions set forth in those additional terms shall govern.
No Modification; Severability; Waiver; Attorneys’ Fees; Interpretation. This Agreement may not be modified, supplemented, qualified, or interpreted by any trade usage or prior course of dealing not made a part of the Agreement by its express terms. The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of this Agreement shall not affect the validity of this Agreement as a whole and any such provision should be enforced by applicable authority, and reconstructed if need be, to apply to the maximum extent allowable under applicable law. The failure by either party to enforce at any time any of the provisions of this Agreement, to exercise any election or option provided herein, or to require at any time the performance of the other of any of the provisions herein will not in any way be construed as a waiver of such provisions. Reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs will be awarded to the prevailing party in the event of litigation involving the enforcement or interpretation of this Agreement. The section headings used herein are for convenience only and shall not be given any legal import.
If you do not agree to all of the terms and conditions of this Agreement, you must not use the website or Dumpster Market Services. By using the Dumpster Market Services and the website, you acknowledge that you have read and understood the terms and conditions of this Agreement and you agree to be bound by these terms and conditions. | 2019-04-22T04:26:09Z | https://dumpstermarket.com/terms-and-conditions/ |
Toenail fungus treatment – Eliminate it within couple of weeks!
The main cause of nail fungi or generally nail fungi is some kind of small microorganisms that stick as well as live below the dark sides of nails. Mainly, old individuals are contaminated by this infection, yet one whose bulk of time is spent in water can additionally be infected by toe nail fungi. The only option that will certainly be left in the end will be to reduce as well as throw the contaminated nail from off your body if fungus is not dealt with within a risk-free time limit. So this was the introduction to nail fungus. Now allows move on to some functioning therapies. The most reliable therapy for toe nail fungus is to soak the damaged area in vinegar. Vinegar has some distinct and also necessary residential properties that quit and afterwards reverse the growth of fungi.
Second therapy refers to use tea tree oil. This oil is made use of for lots of purposes amongst which therapy of nail fungus is among the major one. You can purchase this oil for like $40 from any kind of incredibly shop or any kind of large medical store. Currently what you have to do is to straight apply this oil on the infected region. You can additionally use oil dropper to go down the declines of oil on the infected area. Do this twice a day as well as until the toe nail fungi entirely vanished. According to my monitoring, it will certainly take two weeks for lite fungi to totally get vanished. I have an additional effective as well as cheap method for you. This technique is extremely renowned and also called Toenail that fungus permanently.Check out the post right here http://clearnailplusreviews.com. It has been utilized by my forefathers as well as many other individuals around the Globe. And every person who has actually used it has got 100 percentages success. You can as well obtain success. If you are interested, then check out the source box below.
Operating a children’s party can be nerve-racking as the kids get enthusiastic and you have to keep watch over them, there’s the wreck to consider, the location, the meals. And we determine what kids are like at expressing their emotions, if you get it completely wrong they are positive to inform you, with no a sense of guilt. This information will enable you to have a profitable children’s party.Planning for a children’s party may be costly so it is best to work you party as at low costs that you can. Working the party at home and preparing the foodstuff oneself will keep the price down. Should you follow this number of actions it helps keep your charges down and also help you to produce the very best birthday party for your personal son or daughter?
When preparing your Childs party it’s a smart idea to check with your baby what they wish to do for party. Question them whatever they would love in include in their party, question them what video games they wish to enjoy, ask them once they would love so that it is themed and extravagant attire. Conversing with your kids and such as their hopes will ensure that the last party helps make your baby happy.When preparation your party think about the time, little ones can be worn out within the past due mid-day so make sure you have it in the late morning hours while they are most alert. Don’t permit the party continue more than two hours or else you will turn out trying to entertain extremely fatigued and grumpy children.
The guests list towards the party doesn’t need to be large. Recall the more youngsters you ask the greater number of costly it will be. You can purchase Brighton Children Entertainment materials from the World Wide Web at low costs and in addition get some good children party invitations to present to the tiny kinds that are asked to your party. They then send again an answer so do you know what type of numbers to anticipate.It’s a wonderful idea to get a themed party, keeping in mind needless to say questioning your little one what type of concept they could like. You could have princess style or pirate design and there are numerous areas where you may acquire children’s party materials which can be themed to get a very affordable value. Having a design will energize your kids, and you might integrate styled games in the party.
Every single child’s party will need to have online games. This may have them amused on an hour or so, and distract them from the mischief. If you’re using a designed party you might have video games to fit these styles. It’s advisable to have around three video games planned to ensure they are busy right up until lunch or dinner time.It’s better to get ready the meals yourself. Keep it simple, various types of snacks and sausage moves, some different forms of brownies, and several crisps. Be sure to have consumed which has no additional sweets, since you don’t want to end up with a room filled with hyperactive youngsters. Buying the food in multi load and planning it your self can save you a lot of money as using the services of catering might be costly, plus kids don’t take in a lot and tend to be pleased with several sandwiches, crisps and drink.
Consuming everything in profile, there are options around for anyone like us. With new out of your box new dispatches becoming integrated common you are going to naturally strategy one of the most sizzling new movies in the past anyone else. So tend not to cease considering the way Netflix is not going to provide to your property. You ought to give interchange online movie hire companies a go. Methods get started below 6.00 on a monthly basis so any person may come to be a section. Based mostly on what sort of buyer you are unable to avoid simply being, you can peruse six unique patterns that happen to be suggested to suit every single motion picture finding lifestyle.
Should you not have space plan shrewd to view above several movies for every 30 days there is arrange for you. Should you be an impassioned Digital video disc customer, you may decide to go deep into a countless platform. With these plans you are able to come back and exchange up to three Digital video disc each and every time. In case you are an actual DVD Watcher fan, this offer will definitely protect you an huge number of money annually in lease fees by yourself. Different techniques enable you to hire around 8 videos instantly. Online flick rental lessons of action speedily improve your property Digital video disc local library to join in excess of 72,000 certain movie titles. In depth sharp from the scenario new motion picture free of charge are being consolidated into their web site, and tornadomovies rapidly accessible to you. Investigating the online video clip collection is uncomplicated and gives each one of you the benefits for get whichever motion picture satisfies your point of view.
Should you be particularly energetically films or slather flicks on the internet motion image rental people have in excess of 25 distinctive motion picture types to pick from. If you intend to find a movie, nevertheless could not last under being a greatest need the title, you may search for the flick through that on-screen character’s label. Or on the other hand if you genuinely take pleasure in an unequivocal boss’ function, you are able to ingest each motion picture that director has made. The key issue challenging with regards to buying your movies online is creating feeling of what videos you will need to see at the beginning. With the online watch movies photo hire company you can expect to unquestionably find out movies that you simply would decidedly have by no means become on the video clip go shopping, or movies which you considering that a good while ago dismissed.
Sound is a concern all over the place, and for everybody. Whether someone lives in a wonderful residence, great rise condominium, modest flat or usually spends the majority of their time at your workplace. The causes of disturbance are as diverse; woofing puppies, slim wall space, loud audio, quarreling nearby neighbors, and in many cases standard, inescapable things such as neighborhood website traffic and honking commuters. Nevertheless, it comes with an economic, easy, and easy to customize answer with this, along with other difficulties is usually to put in a pair of vertical window blinds.As opposed to well-known opinion, window blinds are helpful for longer than just maintaining the early morning sunshine out of a sleeper’s view. Window blinds can insulate a room for all manner of uses. Based on the thickness in the slats that define a selected set of window blinds, they’ll prevent unwelcome light, support cease undesirable sound, while keeping out unwanted temperature or cool. The panels of window blinds, when shut down, form just one pile just like a wall. The thicker the slats are, the better their properties as insulators. Just as if adding an added wall structure, disturbance and light could have a more challenging time infiltrating shut down blinds. Additionally, a closed pair of window blinds can keep cool, conditioned oxygen in the place likewise that this would stop heat from escaping out by way of a window from the winter season.
Of all available types of window blinds, among the best types to get are straight blinds. Top to bottom blinds are dangling panels which are from the club on top of a window right down to the floor, or windowsill. One of their wonderful pros is the fact that top to bottom blinds are the most custom of window blinds. As an example, a set of vertical blinds could be as long, and as vast, mainly because it required. In addition, the slats can available to the left, off to the right, or they are able to part such as a stage curtain, whatever is easiest for your area. Also offered remarkable ability to open up at various facets, which allows in lighting, seem, or outside air because the occupant wishes, in conjunction with the enormous variety of colors and resources that vertical blinds come in, they’re one of the best principles for the investment on the market.
Window blinds singapore, and straight blinds especially, aren’t simply for use in your home. When someone has a business office with Microsoft windows, possibly types that look inside of and out, top to bottom blinds may add an additional atmosphere of fashion and privacy. If place of work window seem away from the constructing, then that results in work open up for vibrant lighting, traffic and commuter noises, and in many cases high or very low temperature ranges. Introducing a pair of vertical blinds to these home windows may give the person who makes use of your office additional control above these components, and can assist get rid of disruptions. When the reverse holds true even though, and the Microsoft windows from the place of work check to the hallway, or perhaps to a job flooring filled up with cubicles, incorporating a set of window blinds can still be a great idea. With bright, over head phosphorescent lighting, buzzing telephones, chatting staff members, the sound of incessant typing, and even the constant distraction of folks continually being able to look over the window can be very distracting.
It can be that time yet once again. You are which include besides the style, making use of minimize vacation lighting fixtures and adding out the seasons’ dishware, in the event it gets to be obvious that some items are actually ruined in addition to broken with the activities. But instead of establishing them this showing up 12 months, why not stay away from a few money and restoration them rapidly and pretty. Cracked adornments, menorahs, foods and perhaps home household furniture might actually be mended in a time. In addition, in your own home itself you may have chipped floor ceramic tiles, decrease floorboards, or several other little providing you might servicing concurrently.
Before you begin dreading the repairs, to express practically nothing at all your execute repeatedly moves on the redesigning retailer check this out. You might very easily right each one of these goods and much cheaper than 10, and in one morning hours, using a solitary compartment of polyurethane glue. Polyurethane glue is just not in fact your ordinary glue. On the other hand, it is one of the most potent plus a lot flexible glues out there. Granite, marble, windows, Formica, concrete, brick, natural rock, fiberglass, ceramic, hardwood, plastic-type-type supplies, organic leather material bondic評價 textile and silicon are just some of the type of substance that you might only and proficiently schedule upkeep with polyurethane glue. Furthermore, polyurethane glue is typical water-verification, and may last in opposition to abnormal home heating system and cool so no reason is interested in making use of it on meals, or maintaining mended merchandise external. Here’s working with polyurethane to fix popular property and vacation merchandise searching for a swift restoration.
*Make sure the outside lining areas acquiring glued collectively are clear.
*Apply the glue to one of many resources. Recognize that a bit will go a tremendous tactics, so use moderately.
*Make your regimen routine maintenance.
*Clean aside any an excessive amount of glue developing a fabric.
*Clamp, prop up, or peacefulness the part for this reason the earlier broken things continue to be entirely linked. For tiny components you could possibly tie a string throughout the position, or silicone music businesses it jointly.
*Wait around numerous hr. The polyurethane web link must be frequent on the inside of 1 hour, nevertheless, you must retain the bit itself very first working day so that the glue to entirely dried up out.
Catering has existed for many years. The most traditional methods of catering have been on-website or off of-internet site. Caterers possibly prepared the meals proper at the celebration or they helped bring the cooked meals to the function. They were the regular methods caterers would supply their party catering services. Right now, there are more plus more meals truck caterers giving catering services for celebrations and also other events.
Meals pickup trucks are one of the modern trends in the foods sector; with a lot of mid-dimensions towns finding the pickup trucks show up on every single street corner. From pulled-pork sandwiches to vegan offerings, the great thing about these trucks will be the wide array of racial portions they supply.While the meals truck trend is going up, there were also some setbacks, like metropolis polices, as well as operators acquiring simply being really rigid with regards to auto parking. Inspite of the big influx of clients, van operators are planning beyond the package and questioning whereby they can go someplace else. Meals truck operators are getting into the party catering business. A lot of pickup trucks are cashing in about the wedding sector, as they possibly can create lots of food for your visitors and with food items pickups getting so fashionable and new in the party catering amsterdam, what is much cooler than having a pickup truck serve the food around the largest day of your life?
In case you are putting together a party on an upcoming occasion, like an anniversary, wedding ceremony, or proposal party, there are some recommendations you may stick to when employing a foods truck when your party catering service.
If you possess it at your residence, be a great next door neighbor and make sure they know of your impending shindig. They are grateful to the heads up.
Talk with the foodstuff truck proprietor and make sure he or she can easily make a selection of distinct meals, which includes vegan and vegan possibilities. Your invited guests will probably be thankful.
be sure you have eager visitors!
Pursuing these ideas will allow you to if you decide to follow the “food pickup truck like a caterer” tendency. It’s also turned out to be an expense efficient way for party catering, together with little labor and personnel engaged, you have a better variety of food at a cheaper. And with the way things have been together with the overall economy, easy and cheaper options are excellent.
See via, quick-drying out bondic adhesives supply a variety of operate. From tiny do-it-all all by yourself home redesigning jobs to generate responsibilities to quick enhancements, swift dried up bodice glue is definitely a reasonably priced important beneficial source which is without doubt essential to usually retain the two at home and even the storage area. You will discover several types of glue for kinds of work. Though teenagers can make use of rubber certain or Elmer’s glue for collages and macaroni jeweler storage units, people need to have stronger online link adhesives that hold significantly more big goods. Speedy-drying out bondic is good for generating small modifications who want to achieve developing a 2nd or two. Options that very-sturdy bondic coordinate glue is most effective on entail: metal, windowpane, earthenware, plastic-type-variety materials, hardwood manufactured, and fiberglass in addition to really clear.
Envision a bondic that continues very successful, dries speedily typically within a few minutes and ties even much stronger 60 minutes or possibly a great deal more seeking computer software. That is certainly exactly what bodice glue does. Quickly-dealing with all-target bodice glue are frequently easily dispensed, mixing up in instances in the event the adhesive and encapsulates appear from the dispenser. Your back linking have an effect on transpires in only characteristics, restoring products completely and permitting them to be snugly and totally dealt with in particular instances. After a couple of time, those things are completely cemented and should be prepared for use.
Quick drying out bodice glue is quite low fat in regularity which might be hidden for your personal human eye by yourself, making it ideal for even most hypersensitive enhancements including caffeine mug takes care of, higher-coasted jeweler or picture buildings. The liquefied is personal-evolving, so schedule servicing is rarely noticeable. You can use quick-drying bodice glue to online hyperlink like items or appropriate region permutations. It is far better to benefit from the products at location warmness for optimum result. In addition, it really is a fantastic principle to aid glue clears of the epidermis or perhaps without delay typically always rinse with soapy water if epidermis does generate in touch with bondic. Many individuals use basic safety mitts being an much more provider. And, it is normally a remarkable strategy to keep up a cloth in close proximity to clean up conditions and extra is now.
Should You Quit Your Job as well as Work as a Freelancer?
Today increasingly more individuals are thinking of functioning separately or to go freelance because of numerous factors. Although functioning as a consultant looks eye-catching as a result of liberty of time, lots of people do rule out comprehensive regarding this profession as well as you require to have clear understanding of this profession prior to you stop your task as well as go freelance. Many individuals at one factor of time operating in their work have actually considered this going freelance, particularly those that remain in the modern technology and also duplicate writing market. Going freelance is not as very easy as claimed; it has both benefits and also downsides related to it. In this post I would love to assist you in this procedure of determining whether you need to delve into freelancing stopping your Nine to Five work. Right here are the inquiries you need to ask on your own prior to you determine to function as a consultant:.
Among the vital factors that you require to ask on your own prior to you take choice to function as a consultant is just how pleased are you with your existing task. Many people think of freelancing when they are not pleased in their present work with the sort of job they are currently doing or job stress or does not like a person to choose what they need to do. You require to determine exactly how pleased you with your existing work are. If you are pleased with your work after that you have no factor to function as a consultant as though hard to function later on in the brand-new function, if you take choice in rush.
Additionally you require to take into consideration that you will certainly not have the advantages you appreciate being a worker of an organization as a consultant as well as likewise it is not specific that you will certainly have job to do as soon as you finish one job with a customer and visit this site. There will certainly constantly be some unpredictability concerning discovering an additional task after existing one finishes. On the various other hand, you functioning as a consultant has liberty to determine when you intend to function, where you wish to function either house or any type of location you such as, just how much time you wish to invest as well as with whom you wish to deal with.
Freelancing calls for one to take choices by themselves relative to the means one wishes to function and also time invested in the job. If you operate in a work currently, a lot of the choices are taken by your employer or others in your group pertaining to function. As a consultant you will certainly have freedom and also control to take choices. Likewise note that you just will be accountable for the result of those choices. The solitary huge incentive for many individuals that make a decision to go freelance is this set, taking choices by yourself as well as not obtaining determined by a person you do not such as yes, I am describing your Boss below. As a consultant you can make a decision just how much you intend to function as well as you have adaptability to require the quantity of loan you credit your customers.
How to Competent Pearland Electrician Work?
Searching for an electrician in Atlanta is rather easy currently, many thanks to the marvelous of the net! With many professional electrical specialists around, you now have a broad array of choices to pick from that to hire and who to pass! To select the one that believe can offer you the best solutions; merely execute a little study over the internet. This would help you compare the solutions given by various electricians in Atlanta. In addition, it would certainly aid you gain comprehensive info about their skills and experience. All the electricians in Atlanta are in much demand nowadays due to the raising variety of electrical repair service jobs. Just about each and every single home calls for help with electric circuitries, boards and switches.
Regardless of where you stay in Atlanta, looking up electricians in your location is no more an issue! The variety of qualified electricians that are capable of taking care of electric issues has actually risen to an excellent level. The best component is that they are accredited specialists and can fix cables, mount new boards, and carry out maintenance jobs and so on.
For every single job related to electrical fixings, you require a meticulous professional. Research study for’ electricians in Atlanta’ online and see that providing the most effective services in your community.
Cost-saving is something that nearly every individual on the planet is interested in. Never ever believe of conserving, when it comes to the protection of you and your family members. This is since this financial investment in electric repair work is ensured to supply safety to your family members. Sometimes, a new electrician may not understand much regarding protection gears. This is a significant reason it is best to discover a highly knowledgeable and knowledgeable electrician in Atlanta over the internet.
When working with a skilled Electrician Pearland, keep in mind to employ just top quality professional that excels at what he does and charges simply the right costs for his job. Not only do electricians in Atlanta take treatment of domestic demands, yet they supply solutions for business customers. While looking them up, you should ascertain that they make use of high-quality products, wires, buttons, and boards and so on.
Take an expert is guidance, it is best to reach out for an electrician and obtain your electric repair done prior to it obtains far too late. Instead of resting and squandering time, turn on your laptop computer and look up electricians in Atlanta over the net currently! | 2019-04-24T06:58:46Z | http://www.diente.org/author/admin/page/15/ |
ABSTRACT:This paper examines the political motivations and legal justification for the Israeli government’s ongoing efforts to acquire and settle land in two peripheral regions of the country: the Galilee in the north and the Negev in the south. This study also seeks to uncover the impact of these policies on the indigenous minority populations of these regions, the Palestinian communities in the Galilee and the Palestinian Bedouin communities of the Negev desert.
This research examines the political motivations and legal justification for the ongoing efforts of the Israeli government to develop and settle two regions of the country, the Galilee in the North, and the Negev in the South. The study seeks to further uncover the impact of this settlement pattern on two minority populations in Israel, the Palestinian minority in the Galilee and the Bedouin Palestinians of the Negev desert. Following the formation of Israel in 1948, the newly established state sought to strengthen and consolidate Jewish presence throughout its territory, particularly in targeted areas such as the Galilee and the Negev. One of the most formidable instruments used by state authorities to accomplish this aim of Jewish settlement is land use planning. Israeli control of land use resulted in policies that strengthened Jewish presence throughout the newly established state. These policies remain controversial because of the way in which they place Palestinians and Palestinian Bedouin communities in systemic cycles of under-development and under-representation. One of the most critical mechanisms enabling the state to carry out this policy was the law.
This research poses two primary questions: 1) How is the legal system used to reshape demographic and territorial landscapes across regions? 2) How does the empowerment of the state in this legal process ultimately impact minority groups?
The argument in this research is that the newly formed state of Israel was able to implement this policy of settlement by reinterpreting and rewriting existing land ownership laws, thus enabling the state to control the development patterns in different, targeted regions. The court system was a primary agent of this policy. Settlement policy has had the effect of ultimately depriving Palestinians and Palestinian Bedouin citizenry of equal access and rights over land. Land law has, therefore, facilitated the creation of ethnically divided and unequal Arab-Jewish space in Israel.
The theoretical foundations of this study derive from critical studies of power, geography, and law. Michel Foucault is the key figure who theorized how space reflects power structures in societies and states. Critical legal geographers, notably Alexandre Kedar and Geremy Forman, have established more specific theoretical approaches which apply directly to this research. Kedar explains the way in which legal systems, particularly the Supreme Court, play a crucial role in maintaining “geographies of power” by empowering the state in its land disputes cases (1). Finally, the work of Forman emphasizes the way in which the movement, or flow, of law between the local, regional, and national levels of the legal system also facilitates the movement of law from place to place (2). This process of “legal diffusion” also embodies the subsequent evolution, spread, and impact of these laws on a region or locality.
The interdisciplinary nature of this study examines critical perspectives on indigenous-settler dynamics, methods of colonization, ethno-national conflict, and nation-state development. Critical legal studies broadly describe the ways in which law functions to normalize the status quo such that it maintains systems of privilege. Essentially, legalism works to maintain the advantages of powerful groups within a society. Gordon’s broad explanation, “law as legitimating ideology” has been expanded and detailed in theories presented by critical legal scholars in the past couple of decades (3). Although each scholar maintains a unique critical theory, they ultimately support the notion that legal systems seek to not only justify but also disguise and normalize hierarchies of privilege based on class, race, and gender (4). Society comes to view these institutional inequalities as natural systems of governance. Critical legal studies seek to analyze legalism through these power hierarchies. Critical legal geography utilizes this approach to explain the way legal systems play a critical role in the construction of spatial hierarchies (5).
Legal geography is conceptualized in two terms. The first term “law in space” or “legalizing space” refers to how law is utilized as an agent to transform space. The second term “space in law” or “spatializing law” refers to how space has the capacity to create and shape law. The interplay between both abstract concepts of “law in space” and “space in law” physically manifests itself in the alteration and reallocation of land and people (6). The academic study of the development and evolution of this relationship through time is coined “historical legal geography.” This field, as it is examined through the critical perspective, will be an integral component of this research project.
Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, the Israeli government began the task of developing a number of core state institutions intended to secure territorial areas within the borders of the newly configured state of Israel. These territorial areas allegedly posed a threat to Israeli sovereignty and security. The perception of an internal Palestinian threat led to policies that primarily centered on security in Arab areas within the Green Line. As a core state institution, the Israel Land Administration functioned to not only increase the inventory of land for military needs, but to also accommodate Jewish settlement and increase control over Palestinian areas. In 1948, only 13.5 percent of Israeli territory was publicly owned. The state sought to establish a new land regime that would address this challenge to national development (7). The land administration developed within the framework of military government until 1966. Although state policy towards Palestinian citizens has evolved since this time period, the terms of Palestinian citizenship have consistently hinged on questions of security and national identity (8). Notions of Jewish nationalism as inextricably tied to state policy goals are reflected in the very terminology expressed in state documentation, particularly in regards to state land planning. Essentially, “settlement of title” or the land registration process was a system by which the state re-categorized, registered, and strengthened rights over land for the purpose of maximizing state land holdings. This process evolved through various phases in a series of laws and policies that became the institutional means for accomplishing what Israeli policymakers by 1949 described as the “Judaization” of land in Israel (9).
Israeli land laws were by no means an invention of the Israeli government. Following the precedent established by the British during the Mandate period (1917-1947), Israeli policymakers retained aspects of the 1858 Ottoman Land Code and British land policy to accomplish settlement of title most notably between 1948 and 1969 (10). The Ottoman administration encouraged land registration and stronger private property rights through terms of cultivation. At that time, this was done to develop tax farming as a more consistent and reliable taxation system. Ottoman land policies served as one aspect of the Tanzimat Reform period (1839-1878), a time marked by increased political centralization for needed military and economic growth throughout the empire. Land categorization was used as a primary tool by which the Ottoman Land Code defined the terms of title over land (11). This paper will specifically analyze the evolution of the 1858 Ottoman Land Code’s mawat land category from this historical context.
The terms of mawat land categorization have evidently changed since the Ottoman period. The 1858 Land Code defines mawat as land in “empty places,” without ownership, and uncultivated. This land was left for the public use of nearby villages and could be re-categorized as miri (land with private title) if it came into continuous cultivation (12). This public land was generally used as grazing land or was more often times used as an area where nearby villages expanded their farms or houses as needed by the residents. The key change instituted by the British Mandate in regards to this land category was the interpretation of public land as government land: land belonging to the administration of the British Mandate. This land was no longer available for free use by local villages. In fact, under the 1921 Mewat Land Ordinance, any person known to use these areas without the consent of the Director of Lands would face punishment as a trespasser. This policy was introduced to encourage a “modern” and western capitalist market within Mandate Palestine, strengthen private ownership rights, and create a more organized land registration system (13). Here we see a clear example of the way in which the British inherited and largely maintained the Ottoman Land Code amongst other local governing structures, yet also manipulated it with supplementary legislation as well as the introduction of a number of foreign legal concepts to better secure Mandate interests at the expense of indigenous land rights (14). It was indeed the British that introduced the socio-spatial power hierarchies that were inherited by the Israelis by 1948 (15). The Israel Lands Administration built off of this tradition of colonization and “modernization” as well as decades of Jewish settlement to further secure state land rights and sovereignty. Therefore, the legal construct surrounding settlement of title was very much tied to domestic policy goals aimed at furthering Jewish immigration, settlement and expansion, also to further control the Palestinian minority, which posed a perceived threat to the state (16).
The changing terms of the mawat land category are just one example of this. The role of the judiciary in the extension of settlement of title and land use planning has centrally impacted the development of ethno-national relations within Israel. This is exemplified by the fact that since the establishment of the state in 1948, the Supreme Court of Israel has intervened only once to stop what has been the state’s systematic expropriation of private property. Even in an unprecedented decision in 1994 to defend private property rights of an Arab owner, it was later reversed (17). This point is significant because the role of land in the nation-building process as well as the development of a national discourse is vital for national mobilization. In the case of Israel, much of the cultural, economic, and political path towards nation-building was done through the struggle over land (18). The rights over and control of this land is inextricably linked to the social identities of political life within Israel (19). Legal argument is utilized in this modern society to reconfigure geographies of power by creating legal terms over land rights and land access (20). Therefore, law works as one, but not the only, agent of land policy and empowers the state in its land dispute confrontations. This was historically done to fulfill specific state development goals aimed at: 1) the absorption of Jewish immigrants 2) the settlement of Jewish immigrants and 3) the expansion of [the] state (21). The role of various levels of the Israeli court system in the process of settlement of title will be analyzed through this critical perspective.
The judiciary succeeded in empowering state policy goals by prioritizing the burden of proof and changing the terms of title over land in such a way that made it extremely difficult for native Palestinians to prove ownership in a court of law (22). The process of “judicial land redemption,” which began in the Haifa District Court in the 1950s, is intrinsic to state land use planning in the Negev region to this day (23). The spatial transfer, circulation, and impact of these laws from one region to the next through the court system is called “legal diffusion” (24). This term embodies not only the movement of law but also the extent to which it penetrates and shapes the social and political landscapes of a locality. Moreover, the state’s litigatory advantage, as a “government compound repeat player” in both the district and Supreme Court also reveals the way in which the legal system allowed the state to enjoy a number of systemic advantages that were simply not available to smaller “single player” Palestinian farmers (25). The larger effect of these legal mechanisms will be analyzed through a dual lens: first, the way in which legislation transformed territory and demographics within both the Galilee and the Negev in favor of state policy goals (law in space). And second, how the unique demographics and territory of both the Galilee and the Negev led to regionally-derived legislation (space in law). This cyclical relationship between geography and law has held powerful effects on the evolution of Palestinian citizens’ rights and ethno-national divisions within the state.
This study works off of central concepts in the field of legal geography to illustrate the importance of law as a critical means of asserting territorial control. The case of Israel is especially pertinent to the field of legal-geography due to the ever-expanding nature of the state’s internal and external borders. The process of settlement of title as a tool of colonization has had the effect of not only blurring regional borders but also expanding the scope of Arab-Jewish ethnic power hierarchies. These power hierarchies have been spatially manifested in the state’s peripheries through land use planning policies.
The comparative study primarily provides a starting point from which future studies on regional land use planning in Israel can be analyzed. The empirical model for this study is of particular importance to the continued expansion of this body of work. The comparative study allows for the impact of land planning on settled Palestinian populations of the Galilee and the Palestinian Bedouin populations of the Negev to be analyzed (26). The empirical model further illustrates the way in which the unique demographics and landscapes of each region have ultimately shaped the historic development of the law. Due to the status of Bedouin land rights still in question within the Negev, this study serves as a starting point for a number of future studies on the region.
The shifting nature of Israel’s borders leaves a developing case open for scholars in the field of legal-geography: How are borders in the Negev and West Bank reconstructed and expanded? How has the judiciary facilitated and legalized the process? What implications does such process hold for notions of citizenship and land rights within a continuously expanding state? How does this process construct and enforce socio-spatial power hierarchies on the regional, national, and transnational level?
(1) Kedar, Alexandre. “On the Legal Geography of Ethnocratic Settler States: Notes Towards a Research Agenda.” Law and Geography, Oxford University Press (2003): pp. 401-439.
(2) Forman, Geremy. “A Tale of Two Regions: Diffusion of the Israeli ’50 Percent Rule’ from the Galilee to the Occupied West Bank.” Law and Social Inquiry, 34.3 (Summer 2009): pp. 671-711.
(3) Hunt, Alan. “The Theory of Critical Legal Studies.” Oxford Journal of Legal Studies, 6.1 (1986): p. 13.
(5) See works such as: Foucault, Michel. Security, Territory, Population – Lectures at the College de France (1977-1978). Ed. Michel Senellart. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007; Delaney, David. “Running with the land: legal historical imagination and the spaces of modernity.” Journal of Historical Geography. 27.4 (2001): 493-506; and: Huxley, Margo. “Space and Government: Governmentality and Geography.” Geography Compass. 2.5 (2008): 1635-1658.
(6) Forman, Geremy. Israeli Settlement of Title in Arab Areas: ‘The Special Land Settlement Operation’ in Northern Israel (1955-1967). PhD Thesis, University of Haifa, Faculty of Humanities – Department of Land of Israel Studies, February 2005. p 24. Also see Nicholas Blomley and Delaney, David. “Running with the land: legal historical imagination and the spaces of modernity.” Journal of Historical Geography. 27.4 (2001): 493-506.
(9) Lustik, Ian. Arabs in the Jewish States: Israel’s Control of a National Minority. University of Texas Press, Austin, Texas, 1980: p.6. Also see: Forman, 2005: p 109; and Forman, Geremy and Alexandre Kedar. “From Arab land to ‘Israel Lands’: the legal dispossession of the Palestinians displaced by Israel in the wake of 1948.” Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, Volume 22. (2004): pp. 809-830.
(10) Holzman-Gazit, Yifat. Land Expropriation in Israel: Land, Culture, and Society. Burlington: Ashgate Publishing Company, 1988.
(11) Forman, Geremy. Lecture. Lecture Sunday February 2010 – April 2010. Tel Aviv University – Faculty of Law.
(12) 1858 Ottoman Land Code. Translated by F. Onlgey. London: William Clowes and Sons, Lmtd, 1892. Article 103.
(13) 1921 Mewat Land Ordinance. Laws of the State of Israel, Volume 1.
(14) Shehadeh, Raja. “The Land Law of Palestine: An Analysis of the Definition of State Lands.” Journal of Palestine Studies, 11.2 (Winter 1982): p. 82-99. Also see: Kedar: 2003, pp. 424-425; and Braverman, Irus. Planted Flags: Trees, Land, and Law in Israel/Palestine. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009: pp. 14-17.
(15) Bunton, Martin. Colonial Land Policies in Palestine (1917-1936). Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007: p 59.
(16) Forman, Geremy and Alexandre Kedar. “From Arab land to ‘Israel Lands’: the legal dispossession of the Palestinians displaced by Israel in the wake of 1948.” Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, Volume 22. (2004): p. 809.
(18) Yiftachel, Oren. “Territory as the Kernel of the Nation: Space, Time, and Nationalism in Israel/Palestine.” Geopolitics, 7.2. (2002): p. 215-248. Also see: Shafir, Gershon. Land, Labor, and the Origins of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, 1882-1914. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1989: pp. 20-21.
(19) Kedar, Alexandre and Oren Yiftachel. “Land Regime and Social Relations in Israel.” Swiss Human Rights Book, Vol. 1. Hernando de Soto & Francis Cheneval eds. Ruffer & Rub (2006): p. 51, pp. 129-296. Also see: Delaney, David. “Running with the land: legal historical imagination and the spaces of modernity.” Journal of Historical Geography. 27.4 (2001): p. 495.
(20) Delaney, David. “Running with the land: legal historical imagination and the spaces of modernity.” Journal of Historical Geography. 27.4 (2001): 493-506.
(21) Lustik, Ian. Arabs in the Jewish States: Israel’s Control of a National Minority. University of Texas Press, Austin, Texas, 1980: p.6.
(22) Kedar, Alexandre. Interview by Rena Zuabi. July 2010. Haifa, Israel.
(23) Kedar and Yiftachel: p. 140.
(24) Forman 2009: p. 677.
(26) See works such as: Yahel, Havatzelet. “Land Disputes Between the Negev Bedouin and Israel.” Israel Studies, 2.2: P. 1-22; Falah, Ghazi. “Israeli State Policy Towards Sedentarization in the Negev.” Journal of Palestine Studies, 18.2 (Winter 1989): Pp. 71-91; and: Yiftachel, Oren. “Epilogue: Studying Naqab/Negev Bedouin – Towards a Colonial Paradigm?” HAGAR Studies in Culture, Politics, and Identity, 8.2: 2008: pp. 83-108. | 2019-04-26T14:11:18Z | https://prospectjournal.org/2011/06/16/land-use-planning-and-the-palestinian-minority-in-israel-a-comparative-regional-study/ |
"Although microvertebrate accumulations are commonly used for paleoecological reconstructions, taphonomic processes affecting the final taxonomic composition of an accumulation are often ignored. This research explores the effects of abiotic taphonomic processes on the taxonomic composition of terrestrial microvertebrate accumulations by comparing a floodplain and a channel lag deposit from the Maastrichtian Hell Creek Formation in eastern Montana. Distribution of skeletal elements with specific physical attributes and relative abundance of taxa correlate with the hydraulic indicators (i.e., grain size, sedimentary structures) of the depositional facies. Transport distances, hydraulic equivalencies of dominant skeletal elements, amount of hydraulic sorting and reworking, and degree of time averaging vary between deposits and significantly affect taxonomic distributions. Relative abundance data, in conjunction with chi-square test results and rank-order analysis, show that size, shape, abrasion, and taxonomic compositions vary significantly between assemblages. The fine-grained assemblage is dominated by tabular, low-density elements, such as cycloid scales and fish vertebrae. Dense, equidimensional elements, such as teeth and ganoid fish scales, dominate the sandstone assemblage. Rank-order analysis results demonstrate that relative abundance of hydraulically equivalent skeletal elements from morphologically similar organisms can be compared regardless of accumulation in nonisotaphonomic deposits. Statistical comparisons were made among osteichthyans using ganoid scales, caudates using vertebrae, ornithischians using teeth, and testudinates using shell fragments. Results show that portions of the assemblage analyzed using hydrodynamically equivalent elements are not significantly different, despite different depositional environments."
Now this is my kind of accident to come up on! I hope they had some BBQ sauce with them! "Twenty-five tons of beef ribs went up in smoke overnight after the truck in which they were transported caught fire south of Chicago. Illinois State Police Master Sgt. David Bird says the blaze was ignited in the semitrailer's breaking system early this morning. It spread and consumed the entire trailer, turning the 50,000-pound meaty load into a massive barbecue alongside the interstate. The truck's driver wasn't injured."
Good for them for standing up for something they believe in! "Madison Vorva and Rhiannon Tomtishen, both 12, started doing research last fall on endangered orangutans in Indonesia as part of their Bronze Award project. They discovered that the habitat of orangutans is being threatened by conversion of the land to the production of palm oil, which is an ingredient in Girl Scout cookies...."
Testicle bill dangles over Fla. legislators - Ban on trendy replicas on trucks: Good policy or anti-freedom?
I hate these things, it would be nice to see them gone! Glad to hear other states are looking to ban them as well. They are so stupid that I do not even want to post a picture of them here, but I am sure if you Google it you can find some. "They're proudly displayed by any self-respecting bull, but dangling big metal ones on the back end of a truck could be banned in Florida. Metal replicas of bull testicles have become trendy bumper ornaments in some parts of the Sunshine State, but state Sen. Carey Baker is campaigning to ban the orbs...."
If you are on Facebook, you can join the Switching Gears w/ Junior group! See you there!
In episode 2 Chris and Ron are joined by Dave Schumaker from Geology News. They discussed plagiarism, earth day, gas prices, alternate energy, oil shales, and Where on Google Earth. Check it out!!
The next PodClast will be recorded on May 3 so be sure to keep an eye out for that!
I have never seen Easy Rider so all the way through, hence its absences. What are some of your favorites?
Anyway, this week I thought I would participate in the Scientiae Carnival, which is hosted by a blog that is all about "Stories of and from women in science, engineering, technology and math." Below are my responses to the topic "our changing views of ourselves and our careers as we progress through life."
How have your career goals changed in the past year? 5 years? 10 years?
My career goals... Boy, where to start on this one. Ten years ago I was finishing my senior year of high school. I was all about getting out of Arkansas, moving to Montana and starting my paleo studies. I knew that I wanted to do vertebrate paleontology and I was going to major in geology and biology to get me there. That was never a question. I moved to Montana and started my freshman year at Rocky Mountain College in Billings. Of course I wanted to go to the mecca of paleo school for all undergrads, Montana State, but my parents convinced me to go to Rocky because it was associated with the Lutheran/Methodist church and we could get me more scholarships there for me (my dad is a Methodist preacher). As it turned out, that school was way too expensive, so I didn't last but a semester there. And where did I end up - back in Arkansas. Ya. There were other 'circumstances' of course that got me back there, but it was a pot hole in the road to getting where I thought I wanted to be. I went to the local community college for a year, and then I moved up to Fayetteville to attend the University of Arkansas. I always swore I would not go to school there, but I was stuck in Arkansas at that time. I lucked out and found a really great spot for myself in the geology department there and they all became sort of an extended family. There were only two vertebrate paleontologist in the entire state of Arkansas at that time (2000), and I was one of them (Dr. Leo Carson Davis was the other)! It was while I attended UofA that I was able to learn how to do research and was in an environment where the people around me stimulated me to do work and continue to climb the paleo ladder. I attended my first Society of Vertebrate Paleontology annual meeting (SVP) while I was an undergrad in 2001 and presented a poster at the next years meeting over my very first research project. I remember how excited I was when I saw my first published abstract in JVP (Journal of Vert Paleo)! Going to SVP as an undergrad, completely alone and without knowing anyone other than my fellow Arkansas paleontologist (both of them – Blaine Shubert had joined us by that time), was an experience I will never forget. I just walked around and talked to anyone and everyone I could. I met so many people there that I know call my friends. While I was at Arkansas I did a senior thesis on the only known dinosaur remains from Arkansas. My advisors, Walter Manger and Doy Zachery, are invert paleo and stratigraphy guys and they helped me best they could with the projects and were great mentors, as was Dr. Carson Davis. I feel as though I really learned alot from them and I am thankful to have landed there.
Five years ago I graduated from UofA and moved on to Grad School. This was a bumpy time of my life. I had many people in my life pass away in a very short amount of time during grad school. The competition in my program was something new to me, since I had been the only vert paleo person where I had came from. I am not a fan of competing against other people, and in the end, I felt as though I had gotten the short end of the stick because I did try to be more independent and not ask for as much help as maybe I should have. The level of mentorship and comradery I had gotten use to at Fayetteville was not present in at my new school. I felt much more like I was on my own in every aspect, which I know can be good and will make you more self reliant. Not to say I did not make friends there - I did! But we have all pretty much seemed to have drifted away and only speak on occasion (I am still very much in contact with several folks from my undergrad days). My grades as an undergrad were not stellar (not a 4.0), and my GRE scores were also not spectacular, so I did not have funding for my first year of my masters program. Instead I worked two jobs to stay afloat while going to classes. It was very difficult. In the end I was able to prove my worth and they gave me funding and a TA position for my second year. I really enjoyed teaching my labs and I was glad I had the experience. When it came time to develop other skills you should learn as a master’s student, I feel as though I fell short (such as improving your writing process, building on your research skills...). Once again, maybe this was my fault for not asking for more help. I thought it was better if I showed I could work as an independent researcher. Who knows what the right thing to do would have been. Hindsight is 20/20, right? I was able to finish my program in two years and was very happy to have it over with.
I had big plans to continue on and climb up another rung on the paleo career ladder, but someone else had other ideas for my future, so that, combined with my GRE scores, have kept me from moving forward as I had always intended and planned to. Due to the public nature of this blog I will not go into gory details (I really wish I could, its something I truly need to let go of and stop carrying the hurt around inside me). I was just not admitted to any programs due to the GRE scores and individuals strong opposition against me going on. This person had the pull and in the end I felt very hurt, confused and betrayed, even though I know they thought they were doing what they should have. I wish they had just initially said that they did not support my plans and I would have made other arrangements, but how was I to know when they did not seem to have a problem with it when asked for their help the first time. This person did encourage me to peruse my other skills, which I have, and that seems to have worked so far.
Without a PhD program to move on to, I felt lost. What was next!? My plans had been totally messed up and I just really had no idea what the next step was. I felt like the rug had been pulled out from underneath me and I was hanging there in mid air. I didn't know if I would fall to my death or land on soft ground. Luckily for me, soft ground found me in the shape of my favorite place on this entire planet - Glacier National Park. I was able to get a great job there as the park paleontologist and geologist the summer after graduation (2005). It was exactly what I needed and gave me some peace in my life that I was severely lacking at that point. There was still this huge void out there, lurking, waiting for me to fall into its dark depths - the point of "now what!" after the seasonal job ended. I interviewed for two paleo jobs in Utah, but got neither. Then, as luck would have it, I got the gig I have now at Augustana College working for Bill Hammer. My job here has been great for my moral and general self confidence, and I have felt like actually doing research again. Hammer has been very helpful and has encouraged me to do more field work, research, teaching, and I have really had a chance to improve my preparation skills. I have learned quite a bit from this job and from him, and above all I have learned that I am good at what I do, and I do not have to posses a PhD to prove that to anyone. I am who I am. I may not be able to conquer the freaking GRE, which really schools and individual’s weight far too heavily (in my opinion, probably a bit bias). I am good at research. I can do certain things well. Something’s I need work on, but that is life. I am a good at prep and that is a skill that not everyone can do. People can not do research on fossils unless they are properly cared for and cleaned first. In spite the views of some paleontologist, fossil preparators are just as important as the person that does the research and they should be treated accordingly, rather than looked down upon as a "lesser" and not even considered a paleontologist by some. I am glad I was able to find this thing that I appear to be good at. I enjoy it, it gives me solace and clarity when my brain will just not shut up, and it has allowed me to stay in paleo and continue to work towards my goals.
The past ten years have really been an adventure. It’s had its great and its very bad points. I have learned that they are some really great people out there who want nothing more than to help you get where you want to go and will encourage you every minute of the way. There are also others out there who are evil, crazy, carry so much hate around in them they try to push it off on anyone they come in contact with, and who are really only there to bring you down and screw you over. It’s up to you to know which is which and who you should surround yourself with.
How has your perception of self changed in the past year? 5 years? 10 years?
Ten years ago I had these grand plans. I was going to get my PhD before I was 30, be successful, married and the happiest person in the world. Wow, has my perception changed!! I have accomplished quite a bit. I do know that. I have a master’s degree and I worked hard to get it! Five years ago I still thought I was on the cusp on being able to fulfill all my dreams and that grad school was going to help me do that. It didn't (entirely). What I have learned about myself from that time is that I am a stronger person that I give myself credit for. I now know that there are certain things I am good at; really, really good at. And there are other things that I am just really bad at. Unfortunately what I think one needs to succeed and what the 'standardized cookie-cutter paleo student' image that everyone thinks you have to be to fit the "professional paleontologist" image are not the same. I guess I do not fit into the box ‘they’ want me to. But I know I have the support of many people and that not everyone is “out to get me”! I feel truly lucky for the friends and colleagues I have. They help me to be a better person and a better paleontologist.
I do not think I am any less ambitious that I was ten years ago, but maybe now I have a better understanding of how the paleo machine works. I just have to find my place within it. I might not get to the highest rung of the ladder, but I know I have not fallen off of it and will keep doing my best to better myself and achieve my goals. I am who I am. I have had a paleo related job every day since I graduated and I know I am super lucky in that respect! So many don't. I even got to turn down a job! I may not have accomplished all of my goals, but I think I am still doing pretty well with the hand I have been dealt.
How much of a role have things outside of science had on your changing career goals?
Early on I let may outside factors rule my life. I changed schools more than once to accommodate other people (significant other). I delayed things I wanted to do for other people (significant other). It got me no where unfortunately. I had a long relapse in there, but I was able to climb back and I think I am doing pretty well for myself. I can’t blame it all on others. My brain and I are not always friends, and sometimes I am just not smart enough to get where I want to be I guess. I wish I were more intelligent, articulate, or better at playing the game. I finally figured out that I have to work with what I have been given. I had to learn to love myself for who I am. I can not make my brain work any better than it does. I can try to learn and improve, but I am only what I am. And I have to accept that. While I am about to give up a job I really love for a man I really love, I know that I am not giving up a part of myself in the process, and that is the most important thing that I never did before. This new chapter is only going to help me continue to pursue my goals because this time I know I have this individual’s utmost support and encouragement on all levels. My goals might have been delayed some, but they are still there.
So, this is a bit longer than I intended it to be. I hope I have not bored you to tears. Thanks for reading. Feel free to comment if you like. I always like to hear what others think about my long ramblings….
I am slowly getting my website updated. It has been pretty neglected as of recently. I finally have my pictures from the First Annual Fossil Preparation and Collections Symposium at Petrified Forest National Park up. I hope to get some of this past summer/falls pictures up as well, including my hike up to the Burgess Shale/Walcott Quarry, Ceratopsid Symposium, Jamaica, and Colorado field work. I'll keep those who might be interested updated.
The next 10 minutes, the couple fought off the bobcat before Thompson pinned it to the ground with a stick and killed it with a hammer from his backpack.
Tests later determined the animal was rabid.
"I knew immediately it was a rabid bobcat and we were in trouble," Thompson said.
"I have no idea,'' he said. "But it was totally obvious to me."
While there was no frothing at the mouth, the cat's behavior was odd, Thompson said. It was not afraid of the hikers.
They tried to get away from the bobcat, but it pursued them. It lunged at Mangin, climbing up her legs and wrapping its body around her, clawing and biting.
"It just jumped on me and sunk its teeth in my calf," she said. "It seemed unreal. I grabbed it off of my leg and threw it. It jumped back on me. I was screaming and gasping. I was so terrified."
Thompson used his backpack to knock the cat off his wife. He hollered for her to take the dogs, which stood by during the attack.
Mangin and the pets ran up a hill, with the cat in pursuit. Thompson got between the cat and his wife, and it jumped on his back.
"I hit it with the backpack over my shoulder," he said. The cat fell to the dirt and lunged again.
"It attacked me again, and I threw it down." Thompson finally was forced to kill the animal...."
Mickey Rowe (co-owner of the Dinosaur Mailing List) encourages you to continue thinking about Aetogate and to contact New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson (don't let it fade away, although we do eagerly await the results of the SVP Ethics Committee). I truly do not think that Bill Parker and Jeff Martz are trying to raise a stink over nothing. They are honest guys with nothing to gain from this. I think what it boils down to is that they never want to see anyone worry about being scooped or have to fear for the safety of their research ever again. And, really, that is not too much to ask. No one should ever have to fear for their research or retaliation from their scientific elders or peers (even if it is for disagreeing over Aetogate or any other issues). In fact, it is noble that they have put their necks and careers on the line to stand up to what they perceive to be an injustice. If you do not know about Aetogate you can catch up here and here. If you are interested in writing to the governor you can find a sample letter here.
I am going to be out of town for the next several days at the Geological Society of America North-Central Section meeting in Evansville, Indiana. Post will be light, if not non existent. Have a great week!
Mike Gravel was born on May 13, 1930 (!). He served the state of Alaska as a Democratic Senator in the U.S. Senate from 1969 to 1981. He is primarily known for his efforts in ending the draft following the Vietnam War (Yea for that!). While a Senator, Gravel spoke the Pentagon Papers into public record. On March 26, 2008, he announced he would no longer be running for president as a democrat, but as a libertarian (had to look that one up), citing differences over the war in Iraq.
Then it tells me I am 78% similarity with Hillary and 76% with Barack. Interesting. Not that I am going to base my vote on what a quiz tells me to do. But still, interesting. I have never heard of Mr. Gavel to be honest. No offense to him, but when I saw "1930" I realized the dude is pretty old and has seen quite a bit I am sure. Plate Tectonics didn't even exist yet when he was a kid (well, he's not that old - they existed, it was just not a recognized theory yet)! I thought McCaine was old, but this guy takes the cake. I wonder why I have not heard of him till now (other than that heavy rock I live under), since we seem to have similar values.
I would be interested in hearing where others fall out in this quiz, if they like to share their results.
Nalgene - Now what? Why no buy-back option?
I can't think of a single geologist/paleontologist I know who has not owned at least one Nalgene bottle sometime in their life. I know I am the owner of at least 5. But now my "cute" newer colored Nalgenes are forced to find a new use due to their condemned status. In case you have not heard, some Nalgene's contain the chemical bisphenol-A (BPA) - a common building block of hard polycarbonate plastics. To check and see if your bottle contains BPA just turn it over and look for a '7' inside a triangle design (see picture).
Nalgene announced Friday that it will phase out the use of BPA in their bottles and offer this website to help you find a new alternative (at your own cost. See the last paragraph of this blog for other alternative water bottles.). It would be nice it Nalgene would take the initiative to offer a buy-back program where we could turn in our #7 bottles for safe ones, to help offset our cost. I know I bought my bottles because I knew they would last for a very long time. And now more than half of my bottles are useless for the purpose I bought them for. Rather irritating! What am I going to do with them now? I am hoping someone at ReadyMade turns it into a contest. Who knows, maybe I will turn them into lamps or pencil holders, or something (offer some ideas, please!!).
"Because BPA mimics estrogen, there has been increasing concern that exposure, especially by fetuses, newborns, and infants, may cause long-term health impacts such as early puberty in girls, reproductive problems, and cancers later in life."
"...Canada’s Minister of Health, Tony Clement, declared that the Canadian government is taking action to reduce BPA exposure, especially in newborns and infants.
“We have immediately taken action on bisphenol-A (BPA) because we believe it is our responsibility to ensure families, Canadians and our environment are not exposed to a potentially harmful chemical,” said Clement.
side note: So, why are those "..my last Nalgene Bottle"s stickers on my bottles (see top picture)? Last summer I went to a hippie fair at a park in Boulder, which I really enjoyed. There were all sorts of folks there, including PETA and Rock Mountain Animal Defense (RMAD). I am not a vegan or even a vegetarian, don't get me wrong, I love my meat, as many of you who know me can attest to. If veggies would evolve to taste good I would love to just eat them and let the animals be. I think being a vegetarian is a great idea in theory, just not my thing.
Anyway, the RMAD People showed me an article about Nalgene making contraptions to hold bunnies for lab testing and other animal testing supplies. NOT COOL! ("Nalge dropped this device from its catalog shortly after the boycott began. RMAD has been unable to confirm, however, that the company in fact no longer sells it.").
Nalgene counteracts by saying: "Nalge Nunc International realizes that animal research is essential to medical research. There is no laboratory procedure or computer simulation that can reproduce the complex systems of a living organism. There is nothing short of controlled animal research that can prove the safety and efficacy of a drug or surgical procedure. Without animal research, there would be no polio vaccine, no heart by-pass surgery, no chemotherapy and no insulin. Without animal research, we will never be able to cure AIDS, multiple sclerosis or Alzheimer's."
Some of these comments are misleading (details here, half way down page). And, as I like some animals more than some people, I do not see the point in animal testing. Why should convicted murders get a free ride in a state owned 'hotel' (although not as cushy)? - put them to use. Ok, so maybe thats a bit harsh. I just think with all of our "intelligence" we could find a way to do things without hurting the other organisms that we share the planet with. Why are we so superior?
So, if that bothers you, check out the GSI Outboor lexan bottles (recommended by RMAD) or the Klean Kanteen. RMAD notes that "The GSI Outdoor bottle, like the Nalge bottle, is made with a polycarbonate plastic developed by General Electric, a multi-national corporation that is the subject of numerous boycotts. The difference between GSI and Nalge is that Nalge supports and directly profits from animal research." I also can not confirm that they do not contain BPA, as I do not own one, so look for the #7 on the bottom before you buy one or contact the manufacture. The Klean Kanteens "are made from #304 stainless steel, the material of choice in the food processing, dairy, and brewery industries. Stainless steel is easy to clean, durable, inert, sanitary, toxin-free, and non-leaching."[link] Unfortunatly, they are made in China. I guess there is always the good and the bad.
5.2 Earthquake? Ya, I slept though it.
Ya, I guess I missed it (I live in the Quad Cities right now, above the "LL" in the picture to the left). This earthquake (a 5.2 the USGS reports) was in the Wabash Seismic Zone (not the New Madrid seismic zone, my bad - thanks to Erica for pointing that out). And I have to sleep though it (*see update below). Bummer. Its probably a good thing though. I do not like earthquakes. Kelty knew something was up though and was acting weird all morning (I thought she just wanted attention).
It was reported at 4:37am southeast of where I am living right now in the quad cities, although I guess folks here felt it. There were two aftershocks, a 2.6 and a 2.5. I missed those too. "The strongest earthquake recorded in Illinois was in 1968, a 5.3-magnitude temblor centered near Dale in Hamilton County, about 75 miles southeast of St. Louis, according to the USGS." Thats not far off from what we had today, but they had damage back then (sounds like it was very minimal this morning)."
I think I am suffering from lack of tornado season/spring destruction. Its like missing Christmas or Easter - feels like I am living in a different country or on a different planet this time of year. My space time continuum has been interrupted.
Two fossils for sale have recently been in the news. One is a Triceratops that went up for bid Wednesday in Paris. It is from a private collection, a 'museum' that the owner has in his home in South Dakota. The fossils did not sell, so I assume it will be returning to the living room of someone with more money than they know what to do with and who has no value for scientific research. Things like that make me very bummed. Tax write off dude – just donate it to a museum!
Another story was forwarded to me last week while I was out of town (thanks Jack!). The Blackfeet Nation (Reservation) shares most of its western border with Glacier National Park, and there are known outcrops of the Two Medicine Formation all over the res. Fossils have been found quite often on their land, with many being sold to factions such as Canada Fossils. Prenoceratops pieganenis* comes to mind as important fossil (the first basal neoceratopsian bonebed) that has been sold from the tribe lands. It appears that now they are planning on selling (or trying to sell) another fossil from their lands: a juvenile tyrannosaur, "Cameron" (see picture below), discovered in 1995. The fossils have been on display at the Blackfeet Heritage Center in Browning, right next door to the Museum of the Plains Indian for the past few years. I had no idea! I have driven by the center so many times and never had any idea it was there (I lived in the park in 2005, and was just though Browning back this past September), let alone that I should maybe go inside and take a look around. I think this is a missed opportunity for the tribal people (more on that below)!
"From vintage automobiles to antique weathervanes, the rare collectible market offers a haven for investing if done wisely and if placed in only the finest and rarest specimens but no venue of this field has more promise than that of collecting rare fossils. In comparison to all other rare collectible markets, it is one of the MOST UNDERVALUED markets….Despite what some scientists or 'anti-private ownership' individuals may tell you to discourage the fossil trade, the highest quality and rarest fossils DO APPRECIATE and their value goes up each and every year. This is simple logic. They are not making fossils any more. …This transpires while collector demand for only the finest quality specimens drives onward, forcing values and prices higher as time goes on. …"
Ick, I want to puke. I guess I fall into their "scientists or 'anti-private ownership' individuals" category. It's people like this who are making science more and more impossible and think that everything has to have a dollar value assigned to it. To them it is just another untapped market that they can make a buck off of, regardless of what suffers.
I truly do understand the plight of the Blackfeet Nation. I have been to their land and seen first hand how they live and the conditions many are faced with. I also grew up in Oklahoma ("Indian Territory" - mass exodus destination for many tribes), have a bit of Indian in me, and have seen my fair share of 'good' and 'bad' reservations (still, I know I am not an expert, this is just my opinion). It is all very sad. However, as an alternative to selling off their fossil and their tribal treasures, I would rather see them erect a museum to showcase these things properly (or work it into a permanent display at the Museum of the Plains Indian)! With the close proximity of Glacier National Park and the high volume of tourist traffic Browning and the reservation get every summer (spring to fall even), I think, if done correctly, they could make a killing! Displaying the fossils from their land proudly would give the Blackfeet the financial backing they need, while also promoting education and science! I realize the debt they are in and it would financial backing, but I think if a project were put together with tribal support it could be a success. Training the local tribal people to give informative tours, and in excavation, preparation, collections management, and research techniques could also help to promote a wonderful community of learning for the Nation! The biggest problem would probably be finding someone the tribe felt they could trust to help them get up and running, and someone who would be willing to let them take the reins once it is going the direction it needs to be (and not take advantage of them or their situation). I believe it would need to be an internally managed tribal project to ultimately succeed however. (The current management problems would first need sorted out!) Partnerships with other local and state museums could also be beneficial (sharing specimen cast for example), if done in a non threatening/dominating/controlling way. I truly hope that they will take the pros and cons and look into keeping their fossils and properly promoting and advertising them for themselves. If I had known that Cameron was at the Blackfeet Heritage Center I would have stopped to see it! Good promotion and advertising is paramount when you are a small museum. I say keep the money where it needs to be – on the Blackfeet Reservation for the Piegan people! It may not get them $5 million dollars fast, but in the long run it will be far more valuable!
* Chinnery, B. 2004. Description of Prenoceratops peiganenis gen.et sp. nov. Dinosauria, Neoceratopsia) from the Two Medicine Formation of Montana. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 24(3): 572-590.
What is a PodClast? Basically is is several folks from the geoblogosphere who are getting together to talk about recent geology stories in the news. In the first episode, which took place on April 13, Chris Town (from the blog "goodSchist") and Ron Schott (from the blog "Ron Schott’s Geology Home Companion") got together to talk about "recent volcanic activity on Kilauea, Hawaii.... the pros and cons of peer-reviewed papers and ... career opportunities for people entering the professional geology world."
The next episode is scheduled for April 26th.
The customer paid and walked out with his monkey. Startled, the tourist went over to the shopkeeper and said, "That was a very expensive monkey. Most of them are only few hundred dollars. Why did that one cost so much?"
"Oh, that one's a P.Geo - a professional geologist - is can log drill holes, update and construct geological models, they are experts in igneous and metamorphic petrology and petrography, hydrogeology, sedimentolgoy and structural geology. SOME can even do basic calculations. All the really useful stuff," said the shopkeeper.
I am back from my trip to Petrified Forest. It was a GREAT meeting! I will post an update on the meeting along with some pictures soon. I am still playing catch-up. Hope to get back to blogging soon!
This week I will be attending the Petrified Forest Fossil Preparation and Collections Symposium. You can see a complete list of the talks and posters that will be presented here. I anticipate a lack of internet, so there will probably be a lack of postings till next week. I'll be sure to take plenty of pictures and report back on the meeting. Have a great week!
There was a time in my life (ya, it was high school) when I was really into level 4 pathogens. I mean, really, really into them. I would gobble up any book I could find on the subject and for a few moments I thought it might be more fun that paleo. Then I realized that the study of these viruses are typically to discover a "cure" and to me, as harsh as it might seem, we need these viruses (and I am not always a huge fan of the general human population as it is). I think of them as mother nature’s way of trying to curb our worlds population, which is already somewhat out of hand. Not trying to be cold hearted or mean, it’s just a fact. And if I ever catch the plague and die, I will realize that this is just the way it is.
Anyway....this leads me to the topic of this blog posting, a story that caught my eye the other day. A cure for Ebola? One of the most gnarly and harsh pathogens we have out there, is it a good idea to have a "vaccine" that we inject people with so they can work in "hot zones." Sounds like the set up for your typical zombie movie (think 21 Days Later or I am Legend). I think it is just a mater of time before we manipulate viruses to much and it all backfires on us (more sci-fi fun from The Stand, The Andromeda Strain, Outbreak, ect…I can’t remember them all right now). Time for another extinction event?
So far, there have been over 1500 cases of Ebola haemorrhagic fever in humans. Illness starts abruptly and symptoms include fever, headache, sore throat, weakness, joint and muscle aches, diarrhoea, vomiting and stomach pain. A rash, red eyes and bleeding may also occur. Ebola haemorrhagic fever can have a mortality rate of around 90% in humans.
Because Ebola virus is so dangerous, producing and testing a vaccine is extremely challenging for the scientists. One significant factor slowing down progress has been that there are only a very limited number of high containment facilities with staff capable and authorised to conduct the research.
"Ebola virus is a Biosafety Level 4 threat, along with many other haemorrhagic fever viruses", says Dr Sanchez. "As well as the difficulty in getting the right staff and facilities, vaccines for viruses like Ebola, Marburg and Lassa fever have been difficult to produce because simple 'killed' viruses that just trigger an antibody response from the blood are not effective. For these viruses we need to get a cell-mediated response, which involves our bodies producing killer T-cells before immunity is strong enough to prevent or clear an infection."
The researchers have now used several different recombinant DNA techniques, which have allowed them to trigger a cell-mediated response and produce a vaccine that is effective in non-human primates. One of the candidate vaccines is about to be tested on people for the first time, after entering Phase 1 clinical trials in autumn 2006.
"Ebola virus infection of humans can be highly lethal but monkeys rarely survive the infection and have been very useful as animal models. Ebola vaccine trials using nonhuman primates have provided unambiguous results and have allowed the development of protective vaccines to progress rapidly", says Dr Sanchez. "Successful human trials will mean that we can vaccinate healthcare workers and other key personnel during outbreaks of Ebola haemorrhagic fever, helping us to protect their lives and control the spread of the disease"...."
The rat has been adopted. Glad he found a home. Now I will know more details next time, should I see one in need of a home. Thanks!
I am thinking about adopting one. Does anyone out there know anything about keeping one?
This particular rat could no longer be cared for by his family, so he was looking for a new home at PetCo today. And he looked sad. His name was Templeton (appropriate). I am a sucker for homeless animals and would take them all home with me if I could. I have really missed the absence of Teebo (my guinea pig) and Whitley and Woodstock (my cockatiels). I have wanted to get another bird for a while now, but realize I should wait till I am moved to do that. I also really (really!) want a dog, but we need to wait till we have a place with a yard. I am terrified of mice, but a rat is larger and more like a guinea pig with a tail (right?). I worry that Kelty, my cat, might enjoy it to much, but she was always nice enough to Teebo.
So, my question to you readers is this: are rats good pets? Level of easy needed in care? What do they eat? Are they nice or pissy?
Since I am on a LOL kick this weekend, why not throw in some Star Wars pictures [link]. I know Travis will at least appreciate these.
Reposted from here & here. While I am not a structural geologist, I still find the humor here. Translate your own speak into LOL here.
More research by the Glacier National Park USGS group! I was able to see an early presentation on this work back in 2005 when I worked in the park. You can read more about the Northern Divide Grizzly Bear Project here and more information on the Grizzly Bear DNA Project here.
".... Between 2005 and 2007, Kate Kendall of the U.S. Geological Survey and her colleagues took video footage of black and grizzly bears doing what looks like the go-go at their favorite "rub trees." They also got film of bears lumbering beneath stretches of barbed wire used to snag hair samples.
The research is part of a larger study to estimate the population size and distribution of bears in northwestern Montana using genetic analyses of the bears' hair samples.
Scientists think bears shimmy their backs against trees in a kind of bump-and-grind to scratch hard-to-reach spots and to communicate their presence to other Ursus kin.
"It's probably primarily a form of chemical communication," Kendall said. "Often bears will sniff the trees before and after they rub on them."
Though Kendall has yet to pinpoint exactly what makes for a bear-loving rub tree, both grizzlies and black bears seem to agree on the specs. "Multiple bears are using the same trees, including within the same day black bears and grizzly bears," Kendall told LiveScience."
Its that time of year again! It's times like these I miss living back down south where they get real weather! Not that tornadoes are always a good thing, but I find them to be pretty cool at time. I grew up in central Oklahoma/Texas and later in western Arkansas/Eastern Oklahoma, so I have dealt with tornadoes my entire life.
Yesterday central Arkansas got hit by some gnarly storms [video of storm destruction]. My dad and several friends live in the area so I was worried when I heard (not till noon today however, the press is not really covering it, internet wise). My dad and friends are all ok. My friend Erica and her husband made it safely though the storm, although it pass about a block from their place from the sounds of it. My dads church lost part off its roof (it had lost more of the roof earlier this year in high winds, they had just replaced it). The storm took out a bank just north of my dad's house (less than a mile, you can see it from the back yard) and part of the roof off the wal-mart near it. Sounds like it really trashed the airport. I guess it was only a F3 though.
I have many memories of tornadoes growing up where I did. The first one I remember was probably when I was 4 or 5 and we had to go hid in the basement of our church in Ponca City. I remember looking up in the sky wondering when the giant tomatoes were going to fall, since I thought my mom had said "tomato" not "tornado!" I remember sitting on my grandmas' porch and watching on go through a field out in the distance when I was probably 5 or 6 in northern Oklahoma... Seeing one go past northern Oklahoma City when we went to pick my mom up from work when I was a kid.... I remember when one came through Van Buren, Arkansas, in 1996(?95?) over Mothers Day weekend. The movie Twister premiered that weekend, so it was rather ironic. They decorated the theater with real tornado debris. There is one scene in that movie where they fly over an area that was hit by a tornado, and it happens to be a city in Oklahoma where my parents first lived after getting married. You could still see their old place. We use to chase after tornadoes when I was in high school for fun. I have ton's of tornado stories, but I will stop boring you now.
Glad everyone made it though alright. I am sure we will have more over the next few months (just not here in the land-o-gray)!
This is the animal that I work on at Augustana College! While most of his remains that have been recovered are prepared, we still have several blocks of unprepared material, and this is what I work on.
The name Cryolophosaurus means "frozen crested reptile." The characteristic feature of this dinosaur is the large crest on the top of the skull, above the eyes. The nasal bones extend toward the back of the skull as ridges, and then join with the lacrimal bones to form a grooved crest which extends perpendicularly from the skull. Cryolophosaurus was discovered in the Jurassic Hanson Formation in the Transantarctic Mountains and represents the only theropod dinosaur to be found in Antarctica.
Read more about Cryolophosaurus: Transantarctic Vertebrate Paleontology Project website.
See more of my Cryolophosaurus pictures here.
Ontogeny of cranial epi-ossifications in Triceratops. John R. Horner and Mark B. Goodwin. 2008. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 28(1): 134-144.
Abstract: "Historically, the scarcity of non-adult Triceratops fossils collected from Upper Cretaceous sediments of North America limited our understanding and promoted controversy with regard to the morphology, and presence or absence of cranial epi-ossifications in the widely known horned dinosaur. The recent discovery of several exceptionally well preserved juvenile and subadult Triceratops skulls and numerous juvenile, subadult, and adult cranial elements, from the Hell Creek Formation of eastern Montana, confirms the ontogeny and morphology of epi-ossifications: epinasal, epijugal, epiparietal, and episquamosal. We describe the ontogeny and timing of the fusion of each of these epi-ossifications and the rostral from a cranial growth series. Although the timing is variable, the epinasal fuses first, followed by the rostral, the epijugals, the episquamosals, and lastly by the epiparietals. Co-ossification of the epinasal, rostral, and epijugals unites several of the anterior (rostral-nasal-premaxillae) and lateral (jugal-quadratojugal) skull elements. In combination with forward directed postorbital horns and massive fan-shaped frill, cranial epi-ossifications may have enhanced visual display and species communication in Triceratops."
I'll admit that I am an internet junky. I have often wondered what adults did before the internet, other than talk to each other and read books ;) I know I am in a generation of people who are pretty connected to technology, if they want to be. The oldest person I know on Facebook is my mom and another person her age. But they are never on there (maybe once every two or three months). Same with Myspace. But being on the internet when your older if different than being on the internet when you are, say, three! So how old is to old to start letting your kids be online?
It sounds like Facebook crack for a three year old! So, would you let your kid have one of these? Of is it to much to ask that kids play with normal stuffed animals and use their imaginations. Heaven forbid we take away their personal DVD players and make them look out a window on car rides! Sure, I am obviously not a parent, and I'll be the first to admit I do not know anything about kids. But has that much changed in the past 25-30 years? | 2019-04-24T03:13:53Z | http://paleochick.blogspot.com/2008/04/ |
I decided to focus this year’s month of writing (Feb 2016) on a theme. Several factors (beyond my control) have led to these not being uploaded daily; but I did a sprint at the end to complete the series. I thought it would be useful to put the whole series in one blog. Obviously, no teacher would be expected to include everything in a lesson, but hopefully it will provide some pointers to an aspect of pedagogy we all know, but no one talks about.
This time last year, I was traveling extensively; but somehow, I still managed to complete the #28daysofwriting challenge. I thoroughly enjoyed writing and sharing, as well as reading other contributions by learned colleagues. I value my celebratory mug – which was a lovely surprise at the end.
This year, I have decided to use #29daysofwriting to share some thoughts and unpack different aspects of #differentiation and #personalisation. I wrote about this briefly last year in a blog entitled “Cocktails in the Classroom” (Day 19). This year I hope to take it to a deeper level … 29 golden nuggets!
In my role, I meet a range of practitioners across many settings, in many local authorities and when I ask what differentiation means to them – I get a range of responses, as well as often the assumption: everyone knows what differentiation is. Do they? When I ask the children, I regularly receive the comment (or similar) “We sit on the elephant or giraffe table because we are not very clever”. Differentiation is NOT about groups or ability setting. Each day, I aim to unpack a different aspect of differentiation and personalisation with the hope it will support colleagues re-think how to create a conducive learning environment (cross phase). My contributions are not exhaustive, and I look forward to colleagues adding their ideas too.
Additional reading: What makes great teaching?
Hands or no hands? It’s a hot topic – how do we encourage debate and dialogue in the learning environment?
Learning is essentially a dialogue between yourself and others. Learning does not happen in isolation. Learning is the application and transformation of knowledge and skills acquisition to several contexts, based on prior learning and connectivity. So, for it to be effective we need reflection, feedback & on-going dialogue. We also need to know when it is time to move on.
When I taught in primary/middle schools, at the back of the room I hung sign that said “I need some Bubble Time with Ms Devi”. As the children came in the morning – if they had something on their heart or mind that they needed to share, they would take a clothes peg which had their own unique number on it and pin it to the sign. By the time registration was over, I could see at a glance how many children were not in a place to learn. You have to bear in mind, most of my classroom teaching was in deprived areas – so often children had had quite a lot going on before they got to school. Many were just hungry! The class agreed rule was, once the learning activity was set, I made 1-2-1 time for those who had hung up their peg. No-one could disturb us whilst in Bubble Time and so the children got better at being independent learners and using peer support. The method resolved so many issues quickly and behaviour incidents were minimal. The children never abused it – because they valued my time and they knew I valued each one of them. I have seen colleagues use adaptions of the method during tutor time in secondary schools.
Indirectly, the children are learning to listen, discern and make informed decisions (character building).
If you have any thoughts on response signals – do share … after all learning is about dialogue!
Day 2 challenge: What is your model for learning? How is this reflected in classroom behaviours? (Again, great as a 10-minute staff meeting activity).
Welcome to day 3! Aka #MilkTrayMan announcement day!
At the start of each year, I think deeply about each pupil in each class I am teaching and how best to seat the children/young people. My decisions are not based on ability. What I consider is the learning space, group dynamics, friendships, let-handedness and other strengths/needs to name a few factors.
For some specific topics and lessons, I put together a special PiP. This is not fixed and changes according to how I am delivering the lesson.
On some occasions, I let the pupils decide who they think they can work best with. They value being asked.
Having these 3 levels (not based on ability) makes for a dynamic learning environment, where the children work in different groups at different times and if it doesn’t work out – it is easy to move someone without embarrassing them. Support staff find it helpful too – they know the PiP before the lesson. The kids love it and next to the visual planner I have a PiP sign – so children who do not like surprises can see what PiP we are working from today.
Some settings – I have a focus table. A space where I sit and if children (all abilities) are struggling with any aspect of their work, they come, sit alongside me for a few minutes – have some additional input and then back to their place.
Imagine a learning activity as a jigsaw puzzle; where each person has a unique piece to contribute. The learning picture is bigger than each individual piece; however, without each piece the puzzle is incomplete. This is how I set up differentiated outcomes. I know ‘Must, Should & Could’ was a popular way of differentiating outcomes – I found it often (not always) put children in boxes!
Each child knowing, they have something to contribute to a bigger picture enables everyone to feel valued. This doesn’t work for all lessons/topics – but where it can and does – the learning comes alive like magic. A key part of differentiating learning outcome is knowing your pupils. We will address personalisation on Day 20.
Over a decade ago, when I taught in Harrow (so during the National Strategies and NC levels era), I was part of the local authority assessment group looking at the use of rubrics in learning. I loved them! It helped children get a sense of where they are; but more importantly what to do next to progress. Rubrics bring clarity to outcomes. For too long we have focused on lesson objectives and sometimes at the expense of learning outcomes.
Sometimes a learning activity naturally lends itself to being divided up e.g. Children producing a topic newspaper. Someone taking on the role of journalists and reporters, others focused on visuals, others on layout and or editing etc.
Chili challenges (hot, very hot, super-hot and extra hot) is used in some schools. Where this is done well, children are comfortable choosing across learning opportunities. It is important to be aware like ‘must, should & could’ – it can become fixed and stagnated if emphasis is placed on differentiating tasks rather than outcomes. A learning activity leads to outcomes, but the same activity can result in different outcomes. For example, a piece of writing can be set with different learning outcomes. Equally different activities can lead to the same outcome.
Differentiating outcomes isn’t a stand-alone and needs to be considered in relation to other aspects of differentiation such as sequencing (Day 6), questioning (Day 7), choice (Day 9) and Instruction (Day 14).
Whatever approach is used – it is vital to celebrate the achievement of learning outcomes.
Day 4 Challenge: Reflect on what strategies you use to differentiate outcomes that still ensures each child is progressing? How much time and in what way do you celebrate achievement in the learning process?
The early years curriculum includes opportunities for children to recognise and form patterns using a variety of dimensions (e.g. colour, shapes, size). This process learning of ‘sequencing’ is the foundation for reading, comprehension and maths. I always encourage EY practitioners to purse the left to right and top to bottom direction to also support motor-perceptual development for writing as well.
Learning, I believe, in essence is a process – interactive, dynamic and fluid. Equally, a process is several ordered (and sometimes discreet) steps that when connected together transport thinking and perceptions to a new positional value of understanding. There is a change!
This process relies on us to simultaneously access ‘prior learning’ consciously in our minds and build in new layers of depth, knowledge and understanding. This is not something we are ‘formally’ taught; but acquire experientially during our formative years. However, for many children; there are several barriers if they have not developed these strategies.
Holding information in your head and processing other information simultaneously places a high demand on working memory. Working memory (WM) develops around the age of 7. There are strategies to support children develop their WM techniques; as there are tools to measure WM in children and adults. Day 2 we talked about Response Signals – how many times has a child put up their hand to answer a question and then when asked the reply is “I forgot” – the burden of processing and retaining is too much (especially if they haven’t learnt their own method for rehearsal).
Another challenge may be to see & recognise the steps (in order) in a process and/or the connectivity of those steps. Again, this can happen when we give out multiple instructions (I’ve been guilty of this…) e.g. ‘ I would like you to go to the trays, take out your English books, open to a new page and write down the date and title’. Many children get to the trays and then stand there wondering what they are meant to do. Overload!
So, today’s differentiation strategy is simply – let’s make time to break down the steps of the learning process (whatever it might) into a sequence of steps. Let’s communicate this clearly and where possible – make time to highlight the memory hooks to previous learning. Repetition (exact and using different analogies) works for different children and it is important for us to use this effectively in the learning environment. Knowing when to repeat and when to move on, comes from knowing the children and ‘how’ they learn. This is not about VAK – in fact I am not a fan of teachers using VAK. For me it is about understanding the learner.
Day 5 Challenge: Go back to your response to the Day 2 Challenge – considering this blog, would you refine anything?
“There are wheels within wheels in this village and fires within fires” – The Crucible.
The interpretation of this quote is deep and can be viewed on many levels. But the Gestalt meaning I took away was – look deeper beneath the layers.
Yesterday, we looked at steps in a sequence. Today the focus is on breaking down a single step in the learning process to sub-steps. Let’s take the task: “Write the title in your book and underline it” – what does this involve?
Where in the book /on the page is it required to be written?
What instrument is to be used to write the title?
How to hold the instrument?
How to form the letters/connect them – on/above the line and direction of travel?
Place a ruler under written words – is it horizontal and how do I know?
Nine sub-steps to complete a simple task. Modelling and repetition through practice/trial and error will, for many children make this an automated process; which they do not need to think about the sub-steps. However, for some children a gap in any one of these steps can affect their ability to complete the task.
Therefore, for some children we need to develop strategies to break down the sub-steps and still give them independence.
Day 6 challenge: Talk to a colleague about a child in your care who struggles with completing routine tasks independently. Break down the task in to sub-steps. What can you do to support them with the sub-steps? Try it and then share with your colleague the outcome. There is no right or wrong and it may be a question of trying several different methods, before you find the one that works. Share your intervention and outcome with the child’s parents – can they use this strategy at home?
Which of the following questions makes you want to probe further into something you are learning?
Can you list three _________?
What conclusions can you draw …?
What choice would you have made? And why?
How could you rephrase the meaning ___?
Can you predict the outcome if ___?
I could go on. I always found planning the questions I was going to ask or wanted answered helped me draw out further curiosity from my learners, as well as helped me to assess where they are at. At first, I had to consciously write out the questions and have them in front of me. I wanted the children to give me more than just one-word answers. In time, I wanted to steer away from just the 5Hs and W to questions of meaning and possibilities. Eventually, this became second nature and the real turning point came – when the children of their own accord started asking questions of the authors they were reading or questions that led to deeper investigations.
I had a Question Wall in my classroom and the children could write ANY question they had (not always subject or topic related). I regularly reviewed these and where appropriate used them in my lessons including PSHE or assemblies.
Developing a shared ‘language for learning’ is the foundation for metacognition; (high impact, low cost intervention – EFF Sutton Trust Toolkit). Children & young people cannot reflect on their learning unless that have a language for learning!
Day 7 Challenge: Think about the questions you will ask in lessons this week. What could you do differently? Can you use different questions with different outcomes?
I have been poorly, so many of my posts are being uploaded late, I hope readers still find the series useful.
Many years ago, as a school we were looking at literacy skills across the curriculum; in particular writing. So, we invited a specialist to come and work with our Year 6 classes for the day and we as teachers were timetabled to observe. By the end of the day, our most reluctant writers were constructing paragraphs and even stories!
1) Differentiated texts/content. The texts (linked to history topics) had been differentiated to three different levels. The children all read the same information, but the text clearly had three levels of vocabulary and three different font sizes.
2) Supporting the three levels of text was one visual stimulus in colour (photograph and in black and white) – we will talk about ‘Resource Differentiation’ on Day 13.
3) A range of writing frames that helped to layer ideas and build up written work into paragraphs. Again, more about this on Day 16.
I started to use this in my class and noted a significant difference in engagement – we did not set for English/Literacy. So quite a mixed ability class.
Initially, the visual was presented and discussed at length. Several scaffolded activities and effective questioning helped to draw out the children’s understanding. Then the three levels of text were introduced. The children moved into three groups – read the text and then came back to discuss it with children in the other groups. That way, the children who read the vocab rich text orally shared with their peers what they had learnt, but equally those with simplified text were able to contribute to the discussion. Everyone felt valued.
Day 8 Challenge: Think about a stimuli text you use could this be presented at three levels? How can the interactive white board be used to explore different levels of text?
Some people thrive on being given a choice, others shy away from it. It is important to understand what underpins choice – it is the ability to know who you are, what you like and what you want. Understanding our learners is key to introducing choice. In terms of a life skill, it forms a fundamental platform for communication, social skills and making decisions.
Think of young babies. Non-verbal communication and play, at that age helps children begin to grasp the concept of cause and effect. I smile, someone smiles back! In time they begin to make choices, “This situation warrants me to cry and scream because I’m not happy”. This early stage of communication is so vital and for many children who struggle with communication, it is often a question of developing activities that deepen cause-effect reasoning.
Communication happens in a context and so the development and application of cause and effect moves to contextual clues. For example, it is acceptable to walk about the house barefooted in pyjamas, but this is not appropriate in school.
As part of the preparation for adulthood, this is a vital skill. Especially learning to say no or, this is what I would like please.
Obviously, space does not permit an in-depth discussion on this or the development of self-regulation, but I hope this helps you to start thinking about the power of choice.
Choice can be introduced into the school environment in a variety of ways to meet the needs of different learners. One method, I love using is choice boards. Using a 3×3 grid, I identify 9 tasks I would like the children to complete over a period of time. Three of these are non-negotiable – everyone has to do these. Out of the remaining six – I might say choose three. The order in which these are completed the children can choose; unless (as in some cases) one precedes another task.
Day 9 Challenge: Think about a typical day in your classroom – how many opportunities for making choices do your learners have? Is there a need to change this? How might you go about it?
Today’s focus is on time – thinking/processing time and doing/completing time.
Just by providing children space to think can be a great way to stimulate and promote independence. Particularly if the child has working memory difficulties (see Day 5 Sequencing). The Mastery Curriculum approach is premised on Variation Theory. Whilst it presupposes everyone learning at the same pace, variation theory takes into account a number of factors including the time pupils need to absorb new information and apply in a meaningful way across contexts (synoptic assessment). Hence through variation, there is depth of learning and breadth of application. Horizontal and vertical progress.
In a class of thirty, it is possible to use a range of questions as well as give different children different thinking times to answer them. For example, if I have a child with working memory difficulties I often give them a question saying, “I want you to think about xyz and I’m going to come back to you”. I am giving them space, but indirectly, I am also giving them permission to zone-out from the class conversation to focus on their particular question. Key for those who have processing overload. I continue with the rest of the class and then come back to them. It provides children with working memory difficulties, the confidence to take part and not always fear the “I forgot” blankness that can come. Working memory loss is catastrophic – there is no recycling bin or are you sure you want to delete prompt. It’s gone! Ever have children who put up their hand to answer and as you ask, their consistent response is “I forgot” or they walk up to the board to show their working out/ideas on the board and then wonder why they are standing there!
Naturally, thinking space for working memory difficulties is supported by other strategies such as mini whiteboards, post-its, prompts etc. (i.e. whatever works for the child in reducing the processing load). See interventions link below.
This can be extended to give children different times to complete tasks with the added factor of support (Day 12) or independently.
I personally feel we don’t create enough thinking time or space in school. Would we be more productive, if we made more space to think? Here is my Fedex Free School (Day 9) blog from last year.
Day 10 Challenge: Have a look at the intervention principles for supporting working memory in the classroom – how might this better help you support children?
A lot of the blogs in this series have focused on children who experience several barriers to learning. Today I want to reflect on children for whom the work is not challenging and who quite simply they get bored. The SEND Reforms 2014 has made us as practitioners think about the kind of support we provide. For instance, two children may outwardly appear to be operating at the same level. However, one child has significant gaps in learning, but cognitively able, so may require accelerated learning opportunities to fill conceptual or procedural gaps. Whereas another child may have cognitive difficulties, for example and therefore requires small steps, repetition, and scaffolds. Repetition and iteration are not necessarily the same thing!
Pace goes hand in hand with purpose. Moving away from the three-part lesson model to mini-plenaries enables us as practitioners to be more flexible and responsive to the learners and the progress they are making.
Does an extension task just mean more of the same or more work?
Over the years, when supporting schools and practitioners, I have met several children who say to me “If I finish my work quickly, the teacher just gives me more work! So, I’ve learnt to just do the bare minimum”. These are young people, who are capable of more, but perceive being able as being given more work. So, we need to ask – what is the purpose of an extension activity? Do we make this clear? Is it to embed existing knowledge and skills in a different context, a paradigm shift to provide a new perspective or to add to further and deepen understanding?
The pace of the lesson supports the rhythm of learning and this sometimes is dependent on the time of day or what has preceded the lesson. There are no fixed answers, but it does require some thought and a dialogue with the learners themselves. Can they devise their own extension tasks? What do they see as the purpose? Can extension activities be linked to their personal interests (application).
I speed read. I have done so since I was at school, but I only discovered this consciously when I was in my 30s. It is to do with my eye movement patterns. I have not been taught – it is just something I do. Looking back over my school reports, I read over and over how bored I was with the learning/lessons. Is it any wonder! I (like others who have a difference) assumed everyone was like that and so I couldn’t understand why the teacher made us go over and over the same text.
Day 11 Challenge: Think about the classes you teach – how do you cater for the more able? Are you aware of children who get it and then get bored? What does an extension activity mean in your learning environment? What do the children think it means?
Looking at support in the classroom relates to both peer and adult support and goes hand-in-hand with perceptions on independence. As a SENCo, back in 2008, I introduced a Scale of Independence in my school. I was keen for teachers, parents, children and support staff to have a dialogue on the quality of support expected and provided. The scale was a simple grid with four levels ranging from fully dependent to fully independent. Since then, the grid has been evaluated turned into pupil-friendly speak and one PMLD special school added a fifth layer “I can help others”. So, my first question today is how do you measure independence in your setting?
Support as a differentiation strategy is closely linked with pupil interaction plans (PiPs) or seating plans.
How do we use different skills and talents in the room to support each other? This isn’t just about pairing the more able with those who struggle. It is about optimising relationships in the learning environment. Sociograms are great for gaining insight knowledge around this.
Depending on your context extra adults may be part of the norm or a luxury you dream of. Research over recent years has led us to think more deeply about how we deploy support staff (i.e. their role), what their practice is (i.e. their purpose) and how prepared they are (i.e. how they contribute to the learning, as opposed to task completion). In my classroom, more often than not my support staff are tasked to work with the more able; whilst I focused on those who needed additional, specialist help.
Day 12 Challenge: Reflect on the lessons you taught this week – how did you use support in the classroom either peers or staff? What could you do differently?
On a number of occasions, when I have visited classrooms – my first thought has been sensory overload! These are predominantly classrooms that look like an IKEA warehouse. I am not being negative or critical, but make time to sit in the seat one of your students and look at your classroom from their eyes.
One NQT had placed the graphemes to the phonemes the children were learning right at the top of the wall. When I asked her why, her response was “There was no other space to put them”. The children of this class were asked to feedback on the learning environment and what things on the wall or otherwise they found useful and helpful to their learning. The room was stripped down to a functional minimum and the learning dynamics in the classroom changed dramatically. They were no longer distracted by the stuff!
Practitioners often believe the use of visuals is helpful – it depends on a child’s language development and their working memory. It is helpful to look at the hierarchy of language.
When introducing any resource, it is useful keep in mind sensory motor co-ordination. I always encourage left to right and top to bottom movement.Clockwise and anticlockwise go without saying.
Day 13 Challenge: Think about the resources you use in your lessons – do they support the hierarchy of language development? What further research do you need to undertake?
Differentiated Instruction combines several differentiation techniques already mentioned into a coherent whole. It is about honouring each individual learner and considering the combination of content, process and outcomes required to progress their learning.
The Report by The Sutton Trust (Oct 2014) What makes great teaching? is a recommended read.
Interesting less successful strategies included lavish praise, grouping by ability, using notions of preferred learning styles and aimless discovery approaches.
Day 14 Challenge: Draw a process scheme or flow chart to show how you differentiate. Share this with colleagues and ask for feedback.
I have deliberately put task differentiation towards the end of differentiation series; because I think it is the most commonly used form of differentiation. But too often used to de-mark difference than highlight collaboration.
What if task differentiation though, was perceived as a constructing a jigsaw and each learner or groups of learners know they are bringing a jigsaw piece to the bigger picture of learning. This no longer becomes about ability, but collective purpose and team work. Within the work environment, task differentiation is a way of managing collaborative efforts towards a united whole.
2) Developmental tasks for those who are capable of being extended further into deeper understanding.
I would like to suggest these categories provide a somewhat artificial approach to differentiation. Firstly, I think learning should be rooted in real life learning scenarios that have an outcome beyond the scope of the classroom. AshokaU Curriculum schools ground learning in local problem solving. Other schools talk about REAL Projects. The scope of these learning opportunities can vary, and creative curriculum design enables teachers to consider broader implications and applications. Secondly rather than perceive task differentiation as a layered process why not present it to the children as a co-constructive learning opportunity. Thus, focusing on the united efforts of all learners.
Day 15 Challenge: When presenting task differentiation to the class consider how you can help each learner/groups of learners see the connectivity between what each of them brings to the process. What can you do differently?
As I have continued through this series, I have become more and more conscious how my writing style tends to pose more reflective questions than suggest any new content. That’s because I believe we are all experts in our own right. My intent in focusing on differentiation and personalisation was to start a dialogue to help us all (myself included) unpick this aspect of classroom practice further, based on 1.24 of the 0-25 SEND Code of Practice.
AMR in the classroom is so powerful. It starts from the premise that the recording of learning can be undertaken in a variety of ways. Obviously, these can be audio recorded or shared verbally. From a written perspective, I like to see the thinking behind the work that is presented. So, I use a variety of scaffolds to unpick what the children know, what they want to know and what they have learnt.
You can use these whilst planning your lesson, but also ask the children how they want to present their thinking/learning.
Day 16 Challenge: Think about the range of alternative methods of recording you use in your classroom? Is the progress and creativity of learners inhibited because we insist on a set layout for the outcome?
Expectations in the classroom can inhibit or empower learners. I heard a story recently of a teacher who had two children in the same class with the same name. One was focussed and an attentive learner who achieved well. The other less so. He was distracted and too often his work remained incomplete. During a parent-consultation evening, the teacher got the parents mixed up and he told the distracted boy’s parents what a delight it is to teach their child. The parents went home and shared this with their son. Those words of encouragement changed this boy’s life and he started to be more attentive and engaged. As a result he progressed. Why? He felt – here is a teacher who wants me here. We could discuss this story from many angles, but the point I want to make here is expressed expectations and encouragement can make a significant difference.
So, do we have high expectations for all our students? What does that look like? Visiting schools, I talk to a wide range of pupils and it breaks my heart when children openly say to me “We are on this table, because we are not very bright”. In schools, we spend a lot of time on self-esteem and confidence, but not so much on self-efficacy.
Let’s invest time in defining the learner role, not just through a contract that we ask all children to sign, but through deep meaningful conversations that convey our high expectations of learners.
Day 17 Challenge: How and when do you share your expectations of learners with them? What could you do differently? What are the learners’ expectations of you as the teacher? Do these need to change?
Search ‘Learner role’ online – what new things are you beginning to discover?
I’m going to start this blog with a visual. It contains 27 ways of giving feedback. You may not agree with all of them and many may not be applicable. Make a list of the ones you do use – what could you add to your list? Does it differ for different children or different learning content/methodology?
In recent months, there has been a lot of debate about marking and life without levels. Fundamentally, the purpose of marking is providing the learner with feedback about what they are doing well at and how they could move on further. Feedback should be both encouraging and challenging. It is not about the colour of pens; but valuing effort, input, outcome and potential.
More than a decade ago, I was involved in a local authority assessment focus group and we started to explore traffic light marking. Contextually this was during The National Strategies era and expectations on daily marking were high and beyond the workload of teachers. Traffic light marking involved marking six books a night across a range of abilities and using the feedback to adjust the next lesson on the next day, if required. The next night another six books and so on. In a week; every book was seen at least once; but more importantly feedback was used to inform planning, delivery and further learning. Parents were comfortable with our approach and it meant teachers were not staying late every night to mark.
Feedback needs to be timely, purposeful, authentic and real – what values does your approach to feedback represent? Is this clear in your school policy?
Day 18 Challenge: What strategic approaches to marking can you use to ensure feedback informs lesson planning and extends learning, but remains manageable?
Summative i.e. on the day without any knowledge of what has gone on before – a bit like Come Dine with Me.
In addition, we cannot forget the range of types of observation that can be undertaken and pupil voice.
Day 19 Challenge: Look at the types of assessment you use – is there a broad and balanced approach? Can you use the 7 types above to categorise your approach to assessment? How is the data from any form of assessment used to enhance the learning?
At the heart of differentiation and personalisation is the relationship between the teacher and the learner. In differentiation, provision is teacher-led. Whereas personalisation is learner-led. It is not a question of one or the other; but more about how the two combines to optimise the learning opportunities for all learners.
Differentiation tends to focus on what has to be taught/learnt, how, why followed by who. Personalisation flips this process by first asking who am I teaching? This embraces knowledge of their prior learning, their interests, their motivation factors (intrinsic or extrinsic … not all children like stickers) and how far can I stretch them out of their comfort zone for them to still experience success and be resilient to setbacks. The next consideration is why? How will this learning add to what they already know or where they want to go. Next comes what to teach, followed by how.
Over the last 9 days of this #29days of writing series, I will explore 9 aspects of personalisation. In the meantime, … I would encourage you to read Oceans of Innovation.
Day 20 Challenge: Look back over some of your plans – do you start with the what or who? What can you do differently?
Allowing someone to drive and design their own learning involves risk and letting go. Can this be undertaken within the boundaries of a classroom learning environment? For sure. It makes the learning process alive and real. Establishing the basics of classroom management is a given and children and young people like to know where the boundaries are. However, within the framework of the learning context, we can give them freedom to design their own learning. The design might take the form of an outcome, a direction, a method or pace. Learners who become designers of their own learning are much more highly motivated and the dialogue switches from how to complete the task to what is the best choice I can make to understand this new piece of knowledge or skill? Who can I work with and how? In effect, they become learning architects stretching the boundaries of innovation to be creative and resourceful.
I would also like to propose that in terms of sustainability this approach is better at developing life skills and ensuring lifelong learning habits or behaviours.
I can cite numerous experiences, when I have let the children design their own learning. How I set this up differed on each occasion, depending on the topic, the age of the children and how independent they were etc. However, each time, I saw accelerated learning in some of my most vulnerable learners. You have to try it to see it! It also helps children embrace diversity, by seeing there is not a set way to achieving an outcome.
Day 21 Challenge: What aspects of the curriculum that you deliver is it possible to co-design or let the learners design their own learning? How might you put this into practice?
I love talking about aspirations and how we work with children, young people and their families to develop their aspirations. Here is a link to a national poster on aspirations I co-designed in 2015.
Aspirations connect the now with the future.
There is high activity in the NOW, but not much planned for the FUTURE – the children are in perspiration cycle and they will burn out!
The is low activity in the NOW, but high activity envisioned for the FUTURE (i.e. your wanna be footballers) – the children are in the imagination zone!
Day 22 Challenge: Think about the learners in your care – are they hibernating, imagining, perspiring or aspiring? If we inspire as teachers – does aspiration naturally follow?
I remember buying my first car; as it if it were yesterday. It was mine and so the hours I invested in cleaning it, decorating it and making sure it ran smoothly in some way far outweighed the value of the car.
When we own something our perspective and sense of care shifts. It is no longer distant, but an extended part of who we are. The same is true of learning. I met the head teacher of a secondary PRU last week and she made an interesting distinction between self-development (something we do a lot of in schools) and personal development (looking at the holistic aspect of who we are, what we believe and the out-working of our identity and beliefs in everyday life). Learning shapes our identity and the company we keep. Encouraging learners to take greater responsibility of their learning and voice enables them to challenge themselves and others from a premise of personal growth and interdependence.
I have been guilty of this … too often responsibility is artificially discussed in schools through tasks and jobs. Surely responsibility for one’s learning goes deeper from a positional clarity on why am I here and how can I benefit? For me, what I have observed over the years, where I gave learners responsibility (from two-year olds to adults) there was a deepening of self-regulation. Over time, this helped them to be better citizens and experience stronger resilience when things went wrong or not as they had expected. There was no one to blame, not even themselves! Just an opportunity and the momentum to do differently and try again!
Day 23 Challenge: Think about how you encourage learner responsibility – what could you do less of or more of?
A few years ago, I ran a 10K race for charity and the focus was on ‘my personal best’ (PB). Not how I did in relation to others, but how I was improving. One of my friends met me along the route on their bike and encouraged me along! In a learning environment, where focus is on PB, the teacher takes on the role of a coach. As a coach, the teacher draws out the solutions and strategies from the learner. This may be totally different to how the teacher perceives it, but because of the relationship, there is respect and honouring allowing the learner to experiment with his/her ideas. Even if it means getting it wrong!
In our classrooms, do we focus on PBs on meeting nationally defined milestones? Nationally defined milestones are helpful to keep us on track, but we cannot be driven by them. I guess this goes back to our perceptions of assessment, feedback and marking.
Day 24 Challenge: How do learners in your care define their PB? As a coach, how do you encourage them on, to go further and extend their PB?
I was one of the first girls in my school to take and pass a Computer Science O’ Level. Coding, back then helped me to develop my thinking processes. What I found is I became very proficient at project management processes, regardless of what industry I worked in. The use of technology is education is a highly debated subject and I don not claim to be an expert.. Like others, I believe the SAMR model focuses too much on activity design than quality of teaching.
What I do think we need to develop more of is thinking skills and decision making. In terms of a life skill, this is vital to long-term sustainability and personal growth. Everyone has to make decisions at some point in their life. Some will be successful, others not. Either way, without being given opportunities to make decision in the small things, it is hard to make decisions about the bigger issues in life.
Day 25 Challenge: What proportion of your lesson, do you allow students to make their own decisions and accept the consequences that go with it? Is there scope to increase this?
We only purse that which we perceive as valuable. Is independence seen as a sought after commodity in your setting? What are the enablers and barriers? No man is an island and so the ability and skill to work with others is pivotal to growth and feedback.
Day 26 Challenge: Spend some time reflecting on how you encourage learners to pursue independence and interdependence.
The EEF Toolkit clearly articulates the impact metacognition has on learning. However, the reality is learners cannot reflect on their learning is they do not have a language and model for learning. Over the years, I have seen several schools try to encourage metacognition without first establishing a language for learning.
On Day 24, we talked about Goal Setting and Day 18 Feedback. ‘Even Better If’ (EBI) is a language some schools use to extend pupils’ personal best. The phrase is used as part of the whole school community culture. That’s means teachers, peers and parents all give feedback using EBI. It makes it non-personal and there is a shared understanding about the intent behind the comment. A shared language implies partnering.
Interdependence is mutual dependence between things. Surely a contradiction. We want our children and young people to be independent!?! Day 26 Whilst identity and purpose is important for learners, so are relationships.
I think we have a great opportunity in schools to support young people develop healthy attitudes towards relationships. Not always easy, as often they arrived scarred from events along their journey. How many times though have we read that classic story where the relationship of a teacher and a student helps to turn around the life of the student and they go on to achieve outstanding things.
Over the years, I have had the good fortune to meet many of my students as adults and it always amazes me how the simplest of things I said or did had the biggest impact.
Teaching is about sowing seeds and sometimes we never know or see the fruit of our endeavors.
Day 28 Challenge: Take a moment to celebrate your life as a teacher. Remember all the magic moments and when you have gone that extra mile for a student. Thank you for who you are and all that you do!
It’s hard to believe we’re the end of the #29daysofwriting. Hopefully these 29 days have provided you with vignettes to rethink and affirm your own approach to differentiation and personalisation.
It seems a little odd title to finish on ‘Failure’. Maybe I should have called it ‘resilience’. My fundamental premise being what is the culture in your setting to ‘failure’? Last year, I wrote a blog on ‘Failure is not an option‘ (Day 3); which was all about how we respond to change and adapting the plan. As I embarked on this journey, I had a plan … but then life happened! However, in adapting the plan – hopefully I have made a difference. I certainly have enjoyed sharing my thoughts.
Day 29 Challenge: Make time to rest and celebrate!
Thank you for reading my series on differentiation and personalisation. I hope it has helped you to reflect and celebrate the good practice in your classroom and possibly extend you to thinking differently in some areas. | 2019-04-25T20:01:42Z | https://butterflycolour.wordpress.com/29-days-of-writing-2016-differentiation-and-personalisation/ |
A 230-volt incandescent light bulb with a medium-sized E27 (Edison 27 millimeter) male screw base. The filament is visible as the mostly horizontal line between the vertical supply wires.
An SEM image of the tungsten filament of an incandescent light bulb.
Incandescent bulbs are much less efficient than other types of electric lighting; incandescent bulbs convert less than 5% of the energy they use into visible light, with standard light bulbs averaging about 2.2%. The remaining energy is converted into heat. The luminous efficacy of a typical incandescent bulb for 120 V operation is 16 lumens per watt, compared with 60 lm/W for a compact fluorescent bulb or 150 lm/W for some white LED lamps.
Some applications of the incandescent bulb (such as heat lamps) deliberately use the heat generated by the filament. Such applications include incubators, brooding boxes for poultry, heat lights for reptile tanks, infrared heating for industrial heating and drying processes, lava lamps, and the Easy-Bake Oven toy. Incandescent bulbs typically have short lifetimes compared with other types of lighting; around 1,000 hours for home light bulbs versus typically 10,000 hours for compact fluorescents and 30,000 hours for lighting LEDs.
Incandescent bulbs have been replaced in many applications by other types of electric light, such as fluorescent lamps, compact fluorescent lamps (CFL), cold cathode fluorescent lamps (CCFL), high-intensity discharge lamps, and light-emitting diode lamps (LED). Some jurisdictions, such as the European Union, China, Canada and United States, are in the process[needs update] of phasing out the use of incandescent light bulbs while others, including Colombia, Mexico, Cuba, Argentina and Brazil, have prohibited them already.
Historian Thomas Hughes has attributed Edison's success to his development of an entire, integrated system of electric lighting.
The lamp was a small component in his system of electric lighting, and no more critical to its effective functioning than the Edison Jumbo generator, the Edison main and feeder, and the parallel-distribution system. Other inventors with generators and incandescent lamps, and with comparable ingenuity and excellence, have long been forgotten because their creators did not preside over their introduction in a system of lighting.
In 1761 Ebenezer Kinnersley demonstrated heating a wire to incandescence.
In 1802, Humphry Davy used what he described as "a battery of immense size", consisting of 2,000 cells housed in the basement of the Royal Institution of Great Britain, to create an incandescent light by passing the current through a thin strip of platinum, chosen because the metal had an extremely high melting point. It was not bright enough nor did it last long enough to be practical, but it was the precedent behind the efforts of scores of experimenters over the next 75 years.
Over the first three-quarters of the 19th century, many experimenters worked with various combinations of platinum or iridium wires, carbon rods, and evacuated or semi-evacuated enclosures. Many of these devices were demonstrated and some were patented.
In 1835, James Bowman Lindsay demonstrated a constant electric light at a public meeting in Dundee, Scotland. He stated that he could "read a book at a distance of one and a half feet". Lindsay, a lecturer at the Watt Institution in Dundee, Scotland, at the time, had developed a light that was not combustible, created no smoke or smell and was less expensive to produce than Davy's platinum-dependent bulb. However, having perfected the device to his own satisfaction, he turned to the problem of wireless telegraphy and did not develop the electric light any further. His claims are not well documented, although he is credited in Challoner et al. with being the inventor of the "Incandescent Light Bulb".
In 1838, Belgian lithographer Marcellin Jobard invented an incandescent light bulb with a vacuum atmosphere using a carbon filament.
In 1840, British scientist Warren de la Rue enclosed a coiled platinum filament in a vacuum tube and passed an electric current through it. The design was based on the concept that the high melting point of platinum would allow it to operate at high temperatures and that the evacuated chamber would contain fewer gas molecules to react with the platinum, improving its longevity. Although a workable design, the cost of the platinum made it impractical for commercial use.
In 1841, Frederick de Moleyns of England was granted the first patent for an incandescent lamp, with a design using platinum wires contained within a vacuum bulb. He also used carbon.
In 1845, American John W. Starr acquired a patent for his incandescent light bulb involving the use of carbon filaments. He died shortly after obtaining the patent, and his invention was never produced commercially. Little else is known about him.
In 1859, Moses G. Farmer built an electric incandescent light bulb using a platinum filament. He later patented a light bulb which was purchased by Thomas Edison.
In 1872, Russian Alexander Lodygin invented an incandescent light bulb and obtained a Russian patent in 1874. He used as a burner two carbon rods of diminished section in a glass receiver, hermetically sealed, and filled with nitrogen, electrically arranged so that the current could be passed to the second carbon when the first had been consumed. Later he lived in the US, changed his name to Alexander de Lodyguine and applied and obtained patents for incandescent lamps having chromium, iridium, rhodium, ruthenium, osmium, molybdenum and tungsten filaments, and a bulb using a molybdenum filament was demonstrated at the world fair of 1900 in Paris.
On 24 July 1874, a Canadian patent was filed by Henry Woodward and Mathew Evans for a lamp consisting of carbon rods mounted in a nitrogen-filled glass cylinder. They were unsuccessful at commercializing their lamp, and sold rights to their patent (U.S. Patent 0,181,613) to Thomas Edison in 1879.
Heinrich Göbel in 1893 claimed he had designed the first incandescent light bulb in 1854, with a thin carbonized bamboo filament of high resistance, platinum lead-in wires in an all-glass envelope, and a high vacuum. Judges of four courts raised doubts about the alleged Göbel anticipation, but there was never a decision in a final hearing due to the expiry date of Edison's patent. A research work published 2007 concluded that the story of the Göbel lamps in the 1850s is a legend.
Joseph Swan (1828–1914) was a British physicist and chemist. In 1850, he began working with carbonized paper filaments in an evacuated glass bulb. By 1860, he was able to demonstrate a working device but the lack of a good vacuum and an adequate supply of electricity resulted in a short lifetime for the bulb and an inefficient source of light. By the mid-1870s better pumps became available, and Swan returned to his experiments.
With the help of Charles Stearn, an expert on vacuum pumps, in 1878, Swan developed a method of processing that avoided the early bulb blackening. This received a British Patent in 1880.[dubious – discuss] On 18 December 1878, a lamp using a slender carbon rod was shown at a meeting of the Newcastle Chemical Society, and Swan gave a working demonstration at their meeting on 17 January 1879. It was also shown to 700 who attended a meeting of the Literary and Philosophical Society of Newcastle upon Tyne on 3 February 1879. These lamps used a carbon rod from an arc lamp rather than a slender filament. Thus they had low resistance and required very large conductors to supply the necessary current, so they were not commercially practical, although they did furnish a demonstration of the possibilities of incandescent lighting with relatively high vacuum, a carbon conductor, and platinum lead-in wires. This bulb lasted about 40 hours. Swan then turned his attention to producing a better carbon filament and the means of attaching its ends. He devised a method of treating cotton to produce 'parchmentised thread' in the early 1880s and obtained British Patent 4933 that same year. From this year he began installing light bulbs in homes and landmarks in England. His house, Underhill, Low Fell, Gateshead, was the first in the world to be lit by a lightbulb and also the first house in the world to be lit by hydroelectric power. In 1878 the home of Lord Armstrong at Cragside was also among the first houses to be lit by electricity. In the early 1880s he had started his company. In 1881, the Savoy Theatre in the City of Westminster, London was lit by Swan incandescent lightbulbs, which was the first theatre, and the first public building in the world, to be lit entirely by electricity. The first street in the world to be lit by an incandescent lightbulb was Mosley Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom. It was lit by Joseph Swan's incandescent lamp on 3 February 1879.
Thomas Edison began serious research into developing a practical incandescent lamp in 1878. Edison filed his first patent application for "Improvement In Electric Lights" on 14 October 1878. After many experiments, first with carbon in the early 1880s and then with platinum and other metals, in the end Edison returned to a carbon filament. The first successful test was on 22 October 1879, and lasted 13.5 hours. Edison continued to improve this design and by 4 November 1879, filed for a US patent for an electric lamp using "a carbon filament or strip coiled and connected ... to platina contact wires." Although the patent described several ways of creating the carbon filament including using "cotton and linen thread, wood splints, papers coiled in various ways," Edison and his team later discovered that a carbonized bamboo filament could last more than 1200 hours. In 1880, the Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company steamer, Columbia, became the first application for Edison's incandescent electric lamps (it was also the first ship to use a dynamo).
Albon Man, a New York lawyer, started Electro-Dynamic Light Company in 1878 to exploit his patents and those of William Sawyer. Weeks later the United States Electric Lighting Company was organized. This company didn't make their first commercial installation of incandescent lamps until the fall of 1880 at the Mercantile Safe Deposit Company in New York City, about six months after the Edison incandescent lamps had been installed on the Columbia. Hiram S. Maxim was the chief engineer at the United States Electric Lighting Company.
Lewis Latimer, employed at the time by Edison, developed an improved method of heat-treating carbon filaments which reduced breakage and allowed them to be molded into novel shapes, such as the characteristic "M" shape of Maxim filaments. On 17 January 1882, Latimer received a patent for the "Process of Manufacturing Carbons", an improved method for the production of light bulb filaments, which was purchased by the United States Electric Light Company. Latimer patented other improvements such as a better way of attaching filaments to their wire supports.
In Britain, the Edison and Swan companies merged into the Edison and Swan United Electric Company (later known as Ediswan, and ultimately incorporated into Thorn Lighting Ltd). Edison was initially against this combination, but after Swan sued him and won, Edison was eventually forced to cooperate, and the merger was made. Eventually, Edison acquired all of Swan's interest in the company. Swan sold his US patent rights to the Brush Electric Company in June 1882.
The United States Patent Office gave a ruling 8 October 1883, that Edison's patents were based on the prior art of William Sawyer and were invalid. Litigation continued for a number of years. Eventually on 6 October 1889, a judge ruled that Edison's electric light improvement claim for "a filament of carbon of high resistance" was valid.
In 1896 Italian inventor Arturo Malignani (1865–1939) patented an evacuation method for mass production, which allowed obtaining economic bulbs lasting 800 hours. The patent was acquired by Edison in 1898.
Hungarian advertising of the Tungsram-bulb from 1906. This was the first light bulb that used a filament made from tungsten instead of carbon. The inscription reads: wire lamp with a drawn wire – indestructible.
Spectrum of an incandescent lamp at 2200K, showing most of its emission as invisible infrared light.
On 13 December 1904, Hungarian Sándor Just and Croatian Franjo Hanaman were granted a Hungarian patent (No. 34541) for a tungsten filament lamp that lasted longer and gave brighter light than the carbon filament. Tungsten filament lamps were first marketed by the Hungarian company Tungsram in 1904. This type is often called Tungsram-bulbs in many European countries. Filling a bulb with an inert gas such as argon or nitrogen slows down the evaporation of the tungsten filament compared to operating it in a vacuum. This allows for greater temperatures and therefore greater efficacy with less reduction in filament life.
In 1906, William D. Coolidge developed a method of making "ductile tungsten" from sintered tungsten which could be made into filaments while working for General Electric Company. By 1911 General Electric began selling incandescent light bulbs with ductile tungsten wire.
In 1917, Burnie Lee Benbow was granted a patent for inventing the coiled coil filament. In 1921, Junichi Miura created the first double-coil bulb using a coiled coil tungsten filament while working for Hakunetsusha (a predecessor of Toshiba). At the time, machinery to mass-produce coiled coil filaments did not exist. Hakunetsusha developed a method to mass-produce coiled coil filaments by 1936.
Between 1924 and the outbreak of the Second World War, the Phoebus cartel attempted to fix prices and sales quotas for bulb manufacturers outside of North America.
In 1925, Marvin Pipkin, an American chemist, patented a process for frosting the inside of lamp bulbs without weakening them, and in 1947, he patented a process for coating the inside of lamps with silica.
In 1930, Hungarian Imre Bródy filled lamps with krypton gas rather than argon, and designed a process to obtain krypton from air. Production of krypton filled lamps based on his invention started at Ajka in 1937, in a factory co-designed by Polányi and Hungarian-born physicist Egon Orowan.
Consumption of incandescent light bulbs grew rapidly in the US. In 1885, an estimated 300,000 general lighting service lamps were sold, all with carbon filaments. When tungsten filaments were introduced, about 50 million lamp sockets existed in the US. In 1914, 88.5 million lamps were used, (only 15% with carbon filaments), and by 1945, annual sales of lamps were 795 million (more than 5 lamps per person per year).
Of the power consumed by typical incandescent light bulbs, 95% or more is converted into heat rather than visible light. Other electrical light sources are more effective.
Luminous efficacy of a light source may be defined in two ways. The radiant luminous efficacy (LER) is the ratio of the visible light flux emitted (the luminous flux) to the total power radiated over all wavelengths. The source luminous efficacy (LES) is the ratio of the visible light flux emitted (the luminous flux) to the total power input to the source, such as a lamp. Visible light is measured in lumens, a unit which is defined in part by the differing sensitivity of the human eye to different wavelengths of light. Not all wavelengths of visible electromagnetic energy are equally effective at stimulating the human eye; the luminous efficacy of radiant energy (LER) is a measure of how well the distribution of energy matches the perception of the eye. The units of luminous efficacy are "lumens per watt" (lpw). The maximum LER possible is 683 lm/W for monochromatic green light at 555 nanometers wavelength, the peak sensitivity of the human eye.
The luminous efficiency is defined as the ratio of the luminous efficacy to the theoretical maximum luminous efficacy of 683 lpw, and, as for luminous efficacy, is of two types, radiant luminous efficiency (LFR) and source luminous efficacy (LFS).
The chart below lists values of overall luminous efficacy and efficiency for several types of general service, 120-volt, 1000-hour lifespan incandescent bulb, and several idealized light sources. The values for the incandescent bulbs are source efficiencies and efficacies. The values for the ideal sources are radiant efficiencies and efficacies. A similar chart in the article on luminous efficacy compares a broader array of light sources to one another.
The spectrum emitted by a blackbody radiator at temperatures of incandescent bulbs does not match the sensitivity characteristics of the human eye. Most of the radiation is not in the range of wavelengths to which the eye is sensitive. Tungsten filaments radiate mostly infrared radiation at temperatures where they remain solid – below 3,695 K (3,422 °C; 6,191 °F). Donald L. Klipstein explains it this way: "An ideal thermal radiator produces visible light most efficiently at temperatures around 6,300 °C (6,600 K; 11,400 °F). Even at this high temperature, a lot of the radiation is either infrared or ultraviolet, and the theoretical luminous efficacy (LER) is 95 lumens per watt." No known material can be used as a filament at this ideal temperature, which is hotter than the sun's surface. An upper limit for incandescent lamp luminous efficacy (LER) is around 52 lumens per watt, the theoretical value emitted by tungsten at its melting point.
Although inefficient, incandescent light bulbs have an advantage in applications where accurate color reproduction is important, since the continuous blackbody spectrum emitted from an incandescent light-bulb filament yields near-perfect color rendition, with a color rendering index of 100 (the best possible). White-balancing is still required to avoid too "warm" or "cool" colors, but this is a simple process that requires only the color temperature in kelvins as input for modern, digital visual reproduction equipment such as video or still cameras unless it is completely automated. The color-rendering performance of incandescent lights cannot be matched by LEDs or fluorescent lights, although they can offer satisfactory performance for non-critical applications such as home lighting. White-balancing such lights is therefore more complicated, requiring additional adjustments to reduce for example green-magenta color casts, and even when properly white-balanced, the color reproduction will not be perfect.
Thermal image of an incandescent bulb. 71–347 °F = 22–175 °C.
For a given quantity of light, an incandescent light bulb produces more heat (and thus consumes more power) than a fluorescent lamp. In buildings where air conditioning is used, incandescent lamps' heat output increases load on the air conditioning system. While heat from lights will reduce the need for running a building's heating system, in general a heating system can provide the same amount of heat at a lower cost than incandescent lights.
Halogen incandescent lamps have higher efficacy, which will allow a halogen light to use less power to produce the same amount of light compared to a non-halogen incandescent light. Halogen lights produce a more constant light-output over time, without much dimming.
There are many non-incandescent light sources, such as the fluorescent lamp, high-intensity discharge lamps and LED lamps, which have higher luminous efficiency, and some have been designed to be retrofitted in fixtures for incandescent lights. These devices produce light by luminescence. These lamps produce discrete spectral lines and do not have the broad "tail" of invisible infrared emissions. By careful selection of which electron energy level transitions are used, and fluorescent coatings which modify the spectral distribution, the spectrum emitted can be tuned to mimic the appearance of incandescent sources, or other different color temperatures of white light. Due to the discrete spectral lines rather than a continuous spectrum, the light is not ideal for applications such as photography and cinematography.
The initial cost of an incandescent bulb is small compared to the cost of the energy it uses over its lifetime. Incandescent bulbs have a shorter life than most other lighting, an important factor if replacement is inconvenient or expensive. Some types of lamp, including incandescent and fluorescent, emit less light as they age; this may be an inconvenience, or may reduce effective lifetime due to lamp replacement before total failure. A comparison of incandescent lamp operating cost with other light sources must include illumination requirements, cost of the lamp and labor cost to replace lamps (taking into account effective lamp lifetime), cost of electricity used, effect of lamp operation on heating and air conditioning systems. When used for lighting in houses and commercial buildings, the energy lost to heat can significantly increase the energy required by a building's air conditioning system. During the heating season heat produced by the bulbs is not wasted, although in most cases it is more cost effective to obtain heat from the heating system. Regardless, over the course of a year a more efficient lighting system saves energy in nearly all climates.
Since incandescent light bulbs use more energy than alternatives such as CFLs and LED lamps, many governments have introduced measures to ban their use, by setting minimum efficacy standards higher than can be achieved by incandescent lamps. Measures to ban light bulbs have been implemented in the European Union, the United States, Russia, Brazil, Argentina, Canada and Australia, among others. In Europe, the EC has calculated that the ban contributes 5 to 10 billion euros to the economy and saves 40 TWh of electricity every year, translating in CO2 emission reductions of 15 million tonnes.
In the US, federal law has scheduled the most common incandescent light bulbs to be phased out by 2014, to be replaced with more energy-efficient light bulbs. Traditional incandescent light bulbs were phased out in Australia in November 2009.
Objections to banning the use of incandescent light bulbs include the higher initial cost of alternatives and lower quality of light of fluorescent lamps. Some people have concerns about the health effects of fluorescent lamps. However, even though they contain mercury, the environmental performance of CFLs is much better than that of light bulbs, mostly because they consume much less energy and therefore strongly reduce the environmental impact of power production. LED lamps are even more efficient, and are free of mercury. They are regarded as the best solution in terms of cost effectiveness and robustness.
Some research has been carried out to improve the efficacy of commercial incandescent lamps. In 2007, the consumer lighting division of General Electric announced a "high efficiency incandescent" (HEI) lamp project, which they claimed would ultimately be as much as four times more efficient than current incandescents, although their initial production goal was to be approximately twice as efficient. The HEI program was terminated in 2008 due to slow progress.
US Department of Energy research at Sandia National Laboratories initially indicated the potential for dramatically improved efficiency from a photonic lattice filament. However, later work indicated that initially promising results were in error.
Prompted by legislation in various countries mandating increased bulb efficiency, new "hybrid" incandescent bulbs have been introduced by Philips. The "Halogena Energy Saver" incandescents can produce about 23 lm/W; about 30 percent more efficient than traditional incandescents, by using a reflective capsule to reflect formerly wasted infrared radiation back to the filament from which it can be re-emitted as visible light. This concept was pioneered by Duro-Test in 1980 with a commercial product that produced 29.8 lm/W. More advanced reflectors based on interference filters or photonic crystals can theoretically result in higher efficiency, up to a limit of about 270 lm/W (40% of the maximum efficacy possible). Laboratory proof-of-concept experiments have produced as much as 45 lm/W, approaching the efficacy of compact fluorescent bulbs.
Incandescent light bulbs consist of an air-tight glass enclosure (the envelope, or bulb) with a filament of tungsten wire inside the bulb, through which an electric current is passed. Contact wires and a base with two (or more) conductors provide electrical connections to the filament. Incandescent light bulbs usually contain a stem or glass mount anchored to the bulb's base that allows the electrical contacts to run through the envelope without air or gas leaks. Small wires embedded in the stem in turn support the filament and its lead wires.
An electric current heats the filament to typically 2,000 to 3,300 K (3,140 to 5,480 °F), well below tungsten's melting point of 3,695 K (6,191 °F). Filament temperatures depend on the filament type, shape, size, and amount of current drawn. The heated filament emits light that approximates a continuous spectrum. The useful part of the emitted energy is visible light, but most energy is given off as heat in the near-infrared wavelengths.
Three-way light bulbs have two filaments and three conducting contacts in their bases. The filaments share a common ground, and can be lit separately or together. Common wattages include 30–70–100, 50–100–150, and 100–200–300, with the first two numbers referring to the individual filaments, and the third giving the combined wattage.
Most light bulbs have either clear or coated glass. The coated glass bulbs have a white powdery substance on the inside called kaolin. Kaolin, or kaolinite, is a white, chalky clay in a very fine powder form, that is blown in and electrostatically deposited on the interior of the bulb. It diffuses the light emitted from the filament, producing a more gentle and evenly distributed light. Manufacturers may add pigments to the kaolin to adjust the characteristics of the final light emitted from the bulb. Kaolin diffused bulbs are used extensively in interior lighting because of their comparatively gentle light. Other kinds of colored bulbs are also made, including the various colors used for "party bulbs", Christmas tree lights and other decorative lighting. These are created by coloring the glass with a dopant; which is often a metal like cobalt (blue) or chromium (green). Neodymium-containing glass is sometimes used to provide a more natural-appearing light.
Many arrangements of electrical contacts are used. Large lamps may have a screw base (one or more contacts at the tip, one at the shell) or a bayonet base (one or more contacts on the base, shell used as a contact or used only as a mechanical support). Some tubular lamps have an electrical contact at either end. Miniature lamps may have a wedge base and wire contacts, and some automotive and special purpose lamps have screw terminals for connection to wires. Contacts in the lamp socket allow the electric current to pass through the base to the filament. Power ratings for incandescent light bulbs range from about 0.1 watt to about 10,000 watts.
The glass bulb of a general service lamp can reach temperatures between 200 and 260 °C (392 and 500 °F). Lamps intended for high power operation or used for heating purposes will have envelopes made of hard glass or fused quartz.
Most modern bulbs are filled with an inert gas to reduce evaporation of the filament and prevent its oxidation. The gas is at a pressure of about 70 kPa (0.7 atm).
The role of the gas is to prevent evaporation of the filament, but the fill must be chosen carefully to avoid introducing significant heat losses. For these properties, chemical inertness and high atomic or molecular weight is desirable. The presence of gas molecules knocks the liberated tungsten atoms back to the filament, reducing its evaporation and allowing it to be operated at higher temperature without reducing its life (or, for operating at the same temperature, prolongs the filament life). On the other hand, the presence of the gas leads to heat loss from the filament—and therefore efficiency loss due to reduced incandescence—by heat conduction and heat convection.
Early lamps, and some small modern lamps used only a vacuum to protect the filament from oxygen. The vacuum increases evaporation of the filament but eliminates two modes of heat loss.
Vacuum, used in small lamps. Provides best thermal insulation of the filament but does not protect against its evaporation. Used also in larger lamps where the outer bulb surface temperature has to be limited.
Krypton, which is more advantageous than argon due to its higher atomic weight and lower thermal conductivity (which also allows use of smaller bulbs), but its use is hindered by much higher cost, confining it mostly to smaller-size bulbs.
Krypton mixed with xenon, where xenon improves the gas properties further due to its higher atomic weight. Its use is however limited by its very high cost. The improvements by using xenon are modest in comparison to its cost.
Hydrogen, in special flashing lamps where rapid filament cooling is required; its high thermal conductivity is exploited here.
The gas fill must be free of traces of water. In the presence of the hot filament, water reacts with tungsten forming tungsten trioxide and atomic hydrogen. The oxide deposits on the bulb inner surface and reacts with hydrogen, decomposing to metallic tungsten and water. Water then cycles back to the filament. This greatly accelerates the bulb blackening, in comparison with evaporation-only.
The gas layer close to the filament (called the Langmuir layer) is stagnant, with heat transfer occurring only by conduction. Only at some distance does convection occur to carry heat to the bulb's envelope.
The orientation of the filament influences efficiency. Gas flow parallel to the filament, e.g., a vertically oriented bulb with vertical (or axial) filament, reduces convective losses.
The efficiency of the lamp increases with a larger filament diameter. Thin-filament, low-power bulbs benefit less from a fill gas, so are often only evacuated.
Early lightbulbs with carbon filaments also used carbon monoxide, nitrogen, or mercury vapor. However, carbon filaments operate at lower temperatures than tungsten ones, so the effect of the fill gas was not significant as the heat losses offset any benefits.
Early bulbs were laboriously assembled by hand. After automatic machinery was developed, the cost of bulbs fell. Until 1910, when Libbey's Westlake machine went into production, bulbs were generally produced by a team of three workers (two gatherers and a master gaffer) blowing the bulbs into wooden or cast-iron molds, coated with a paste. Around 150 bulbs per hour were produced by the hand-blowing process in the 1880s at Corning Glass Works.
The Westlake machine, developed by Libbey Glass, was based on an adaptation of the Owens-Libbey bottle-blowing machine. Corning Glass Works soon began developing competing automated bulb-blowing machines, the first of which to be used in production was the E-Machine. Corning continued developing automated bulb-production machines, installing the Ribbon Machine in 1926 in its Wellsboro, Pennsylvania factory. The Ribbon Machine surpassed any previous attempts to automate bulb production and was used to produce incandescent bulbs into the 21st century. The inventor, William Woods, along with his colleague at Corning Glass Works, David E. Gray, had created a machine that by 1939 was turning out 1,000 bulbs per minute.
The Ribbon Machine works by passing a continuous ribbon of glass along a conveyor belt, heated in a furnace, and then blown by precisely aligned air nozzles through holes in the conveyor belt into molds. Thus the glass bulbs or envelopes are created. A typical machine of this sort can produce anywhere from 50,000 to 120,000 bulbs per hour, depending on the size of the bulb. By the 1970s, 15 ribbon machines installed in factories around the world produced the entire supply of incandescent bulbs. The filament and its supports are assembled on a glass stem, which is then fused to the bulb. The air is pumped out of the bulb, and the evacuation tube in the stem press is sealed by a flame. The bulb is then inserted into the lamp base, and the whole assembly tested. The 2016 closing of Osram-Sylvania's Wellsboro, Pennsylvania plant meant that one of the last remaining ribbon machines in the United States was shut down.
The first successful light bulb filaments were made of carbon (from carbonized paper or bamboo). Early carbon filaments had a negative temperature coefficient of resistance—as they got hotter, their electrical resistance decreased. This made the lamp sensitive to fluctuations in the power supply, since a small increase of voltage would cause the filament to heat up, reducing its resistance and causing it to draw even more power and heat even further. In the "flashing" process, carbon filaments were heated by current passing through them while in an evacuated vessel containing hydrocarbon vapor (usually gasoline). The carbon deposited on the filament by this treatment improved the uniformity and strength of filaments as well as their efficiency. A metallized or "graphitized" filament was first heated in a high-temperature oven before flashing and lamp assembly. This transformed the carbon into graphite, which further strengthened and smoothed the filament. This also changed the filament to have a positive temperature coefficient, like a metallic conductor, and helped stabilize the lamp's power consumption, temperature and light output against minor variations in supply voltage.
In 1902, the Siemens company developed a tantalum lamp filament. These lamps were more efficient than even graphitized carbon filaments and could operate at higher temperatures. Since tantalum metal has a lower resistivity than carbon, the tantalum lamp filament was quite long and required multiple internal supports. The metal filament had the property of gradually shortening in use; the filaments were installed with large loops that tightened in use. This made lamps in use for several hundred hours quite fragile. Metal filaments had the property of breaking and re-welding, though this would usually decrease resistance and shorten the life of the filament. General Electric bought the rights to use tantalum filaments and produced them in the US until 1913.
From 1898 to around 1905, osmium was also used as a lamp filament in Europe, and the metal was so expensive that used broken lamps could be returned for partial credit. It could not be made for 110 V or 220 V so several lamps were wired in series for use on standard voltage circuits.
In 1904, the tungsten filament was developed by Croatian inventors Franjo Hanaman and Alexander Just. Tungsten metal was initially not available in a form that allowed it to be drawn into fine wires. Filaments made from sintered tungsten powder were quite fragile. By 1910, a process was developed by William D. Coolidge at General Electric for production of a ductile form of tungsten. The process required pressing tungsten powder into bars, then several steps of sintering, swaging, and then wire drawing. It was found that very pure tungsten formed filaments that sagged in use, and that a very small "doping" treatment with potassium, silicon, and aluminium oxides at the level of a few hundred parts per million greatly improved the life and durability of the tungsten filaments.
To improve the efficiency of the lamp, the filament usually consists of multiple coils of coiled fine wire, also known as a 'coiled coil'. Light bulbs using coiled coil filaments are sometimes referred to as 'double-coil bulbs'. For a 60-watt 120-volt lamp, the uncoiled length of the tungsten filament is usually 22.8 inches (580 mm), and the filament diameter is 0.0018 inches (0.046 mm). The advantage of the coiled coil is that evaporation of the tungsten filament is at the rate of a tungsten cylinder having a diameter equal to that of the coiled coil. The coiled-coil filament evaporates more slowly than a straight filament of the same surface area and light-emitting power. As a result, the filament can then run hotter, which results in a more efficient light source, while reducing the evaporation so that the filament will last longer than a straight filament at the same temperature.
There are several different shapes of filament used in lamps, with differing characteristics. Manufacturers designate the types with codes such as C-6, CC-6, C-2V, CC-2V, C-8, CC-88, C-2F, CC-2F, C-Bar, C-Bar-6, C-8I, C-2R, CC-2R, and Axial.
Filament of a burnt-out 50-watt incandescent lightbulb in an SEM in stereoscopic mode, presented as an anaglyph image.
Filament of a 50-watt incandescent lightbulb in an SEM in stereoscopic mode, presented as an anaglyph image.
Electrical filaments are also used in hot cathodes of fluorescent lamps and vacuum tubes as a source of electrons or in vacuum tubes to heat an electron-emitting electrode.
One of the problems of the standard electric light bulb is filament notching due to evaporation of the filament. Small variations in resistivity along the filament cause "hot spots" to form at points of higher resistivity; a variation of diameter of only 1% will cause a 25% reduction in service life. These hot spots evaporate faster than the rest of the filament, which increases the resistance at that point—this creates a positive feedback that ends in the familiar tiny gap in an otherwise healthy-looking filament. Irving Langmuir found that an inert gas, instead of vacuum, would retard evaporation. General service incandescent light bulbs over about 25 watts in rating are now filled with a mixture of mostly argon and some nitrogen, or sometimes krypton. Lamps operated on direct current develop random stairstep irregularities on the filament surface which may cut lifespan in half compared to AC operation; different alloys of tungsten and rhenium can be used to counteract the effect.
Since a filament breaking in a gas-filled bulb can form an electric arc, which may spread between the terminals and draw very heavy current, intentionally thin lead-in wires or more elaborate protection devices are therefore often used as fuses built into the light bulb. More nitrogen is used in higher-voltage lamps to reduce the possibility of arcing.
While inert gas reduces filament evaporation, it also conducts heat from the filament, thereby cooling the filament and reducing efficiency. At constant pressure and temperature, the thermal conductivity of a gas depends upon the molecular weight of the gas and the cross sectional area of the gas molecules. Higher molecular weight gasses have lower thermal conductivity, because both the molecular weight is higher and also the cross sectional area is higher. Xenon gas improves efficiency because of its high molecular weight, but is also more expensive, so its use is limited to smaller lamps.
During ordinary operation, the tungsten of the filament evaporates; hotter, more-efficient filaments evaporate faster. Because of this, the lifetime of a filament lamp is a trade-off between efficiency and longevity. The trade-off is typically set to provide a lifetime of several hundred to 2,000 hours for lamps used for general illumination. Theatrical, photographic, and projection lamps may have a useful life of only a few hours, trading life expectancy for high output in a compact form. Long-life general service lamps have lower efficiency but are used where the cost of changing the lamp is high compared to the value of energy used.
If a light bulb envelope leaks, the hot tungsten filament reacts with air, yielding an aerosol of brown tungsten nitride, brown tungsten dioxide, violet-blue tungsten pentoxide, and yellow tungsten trioxide that then deposits on the nearby surfaces or the bulb interior.
In a conventional lamp, the evaporated tungsten eventually condenses on the inner surface of the glass envelope, darkening it. For bulbs that contain a vacuum, the darkening is uniform across the entire surface of the envelope. When a filling of inert gas is used, the evaporated tungsten is carried in the thermal convection currents of the gas, depositing preferentially on the uppermost part of the envelope and blackening just that portion of the envelope. An incandescent lamp that gives 93% or less of its initial light output at 75% of its rated life is regarded as unsatisfactory, when tested according to IEC Publication 60064. Light loss is due to filament evaporation and bulb blackening. Study of the problem of bulb blackening led to the discovery of the Edison effect, thermionic emission and invention of the vacuum tube.
A very small amount of water vapor inside a light bulb can significantly affect lamp darkening. Water vapor dissociates into hydrogen and oxygen at the hot filament. The oxygen attacks the tungsten metal, and the resulting tungsten oxide particles travel to cooler parts of the lamp. Hydrogen from water vapor reduces the oxide, reforming water vapor and continuing this water cycle. The equivalent of a drop of water distributed over 500,000 lamps will significantly increase darkening. Small amounts of substances such as zirconium are placed within the lamp as a getter to react with any oxygen that may bake out of the lamp components during operation.
Close-up of a tungsten filament inside a halogen lamp. The two ring-shaped structures left and right are filament supports.
The halogen lamp reduces uneven evaporation of the filament and eliminates darkening of the envelope by filling the lamp with a halogen gas at low pressure, rather than an inert gas. The halogen cycle increases the lifetime of the bulb and prevents its darkening by redepositing tungsten from the inside of the bulb back onto the filament. The halogen lamp can operate its filament at a higher temperature than a standard gas filled lamp of similar power without loss of operating life. Such bulbs are much smaller than normal incandescent bulbs, and are widely used where intense illumination is needed in a limited space. Fiber-optic lamps for optical microscopy is one typical application.
A variation of the incandescent lamp did not use a hot wire filament, but instead used an arc struck on a spherical bead electrode to produce heat. The electrode then became incandescent, with the arc contributing little to the light produced. Such lamps were used for projection or illumination for scientific instruments such as microscopes. These arc lamps ran on relatively low voltages and incorporated tungsten filaments to start ionization within the envelope. They provided the intense concentrated light of an arc lamp but were easier to operate. Developed around 1915, these lamps were displaced by mercury and xenon arc lamps.
Incandescent lamps are nearly pure resistive loads with a power factor of 1. This means the actual power consumed (in watts) and the apparent power (in volt-amperes) are equal. Incandescent light bulbs are usually marketed according to the electrical power consumed. This is measured in watts and depends mainly on the resistance of the filament, which in turn depends mainly on the filament's length, thickness, and material. For two bulbs of the same voltage, type, color, and clarity, the higher-powered bulb gives more light.
The table shows the approximate typical output, in lumens, of standard incandescent light bulbs at various powers. Light output of a 230 V version is usually slightly less than that of a 120 V version. The lower current (higher voltage) filament is thinner and has to be operated at a slightly lower temperature for same life expectancy, and that reduces energy efficiency. The lumen values for "soft white" bulbs will generally be slightly lower than for clear bulbs at the same power.
The actual resistance of the filament is temperature dependent. The cold resistance of tungsten-filament lamps is about 1/15 the hot-filament resistance when the lamp is operating. For example, a 100-watt, 120-volt lamp has a resistance of 144 ohms when lit, but the cold resistance is much lower (about 9.5 ohms).[c] Since incandescent lamps are resistive loads, simple phase-control TRIAC dimmers can be used to control brightness. Electrical contacts may carry a "T" rating symbol indicating that they are designed to control circuits with the high inrush current characteristic of tungsten lamps. For a 100-watt, 120-volt general-service lamp, the current stabilizes in about 0.10 seconds, and the lamp reaches 90% of its full brightness after about 0.13 seconds.
Incandescent light bulbs come in a range of shapes and sizes.
Incandescent light bulbs come in a range of shapes and sizes. The names of the shapes vary somewhat from region to regions. Many of these shapes have a designation consisting of one or more letters followed by one or more numbers, e.g. A55 or PAR38. The letters represent the shape of the bulb. The numbers represent the maximum diameter, either in 1⁄8 of an inch, or in millimeters, depending on the shape and the region. For example, 63 mm reflectors are designated R63, but in the US, they are known as R20 (2.5 in). However, in both regions, a PAR38 reflector is known as PAR38. ANSI C79.1-2002, IS 14897:2000 and JIS C 7710:1988 cover a common terminology for bulb shapes.
Light emitted in (nearly) all directions. Available either clear or frosted.
Lamps greater than 200 watts.
lamps used in chandeliers, etc. Smaller candle-sized bulbs may use a smaller socket.
Reflective coating inside the bulb directs light forward. Flood types (FL) spread light. Spot types (SP) concentrate the light. Reflector (R) bulbs put approximately double the amount of light (foot-candles) on the front central area as General Service (A) of same wattage.
Parabolic aluminized reflector (PAR) bulbs control light more precisely. They produce about four times the concentrated light intensity of general service (A), and are used in recessed and track lighting. Weatherproof casings are available for outdoor spot and flood fixtures.
Available in numerous spot and flood beam spreads. Like all light bulbs, the number represents the diameter of the bulb in 1⁄8 of an inch. Therefore, a PAR 16 is 2 in in diameter, a PAR 20 is 2.5 in in diameter, PAR 30 is 3.75 in and a PAR 38 is 4.75 in in diameter.
Multifaceted reflector bulbs are usually smaller in size and run at a lower voltage, often 12 V.
"HIR" is a GE designation for a lamp with an infrared reflective coating. Since less heat escapes, the filament burns hotter and more efficiently. The Osram designation for a similar coating is "IRC".
Very small lamps may have the filament support wires extended through the base of the lamp, and can be directly soldered to a printed circuit board for connections. Some reflector-type lamps include screw terminals for connection of wires. Most lamps have metal bases that fit in a socket to support the lamp and conduct current to the filament wires. In the late 19th century, manufacturers introduced a multitude of incompatible lamp bases. General Electric introduced standard base sizes for tungsten incandescent lamps under the Mazda trademark in 1909. This standard was soon adopted across the US, and the Mazda name was used by many manufacturers under license through 1945. Today most incandescent lamps for general lighting service use an Edison screw in candelabra, intermediate, or standard or mogul sizes, or double contact bayonet base. Technical standards for lamp bases include ANSI standard C81.67 and IEC standard 60061-1 for common commercial lamp sizes, to ensure interchangeablitity between different manufacturer's products. Bayonet base lamps are frequently used in automotive lamps to resist loosening due to vibration. A bipin base is often used for halogen or reflector lamps.
Lamp bases may be secured to the bulb with a cement, or by mechanical crimping to indentations molded into the glass bulb.
Miniature lamps used for some automotive lamps or decorative lamps have wedge bases that have a partial plastic or even completely glass base. In this case, the wires wrap around to the outside of the bulb, where they press against the contacts in the socket. Miniature Christmas bulbs use a plastic wedge base as well.
Lamps intended for use in optical systems such as film projectors, microscope illuminators, or stage lighting instruments have bases with alignment features so that the filament is positioned accurately within the optical system. A screw-base lamp may have a random orientation of the filament when the lamp is installed in the socket.
Incandescent lamps are very sensitive to changes in the supply voltage. These characteristics are of great practical and economic importance.
This means that a 5% reduction in operating voltage will more than double the life of the bulb, at the expense of reducing its light output by about 16%. This may be a very acceptable trade off for a light bulb that is in a difficult-to-access location (for example, traffic lights or fixtures hung from high ceilings). Long-life bulbs take advantage of this trade-off. Since the value of the electric power they consume is much more than the value of the lamp, general service lamps emphasize efficiency over long operating life. The objective is to minimize the cost of light, not the cost of lamps. Early bulbs had a life of up to 2500 hours, but in 1924 a cartel agreed to limit life to 1000 hours. When this was exposed in 1953, General Electric and other leading American manufacturers were banned from limiting the life.
The relationships above are valid for only a few percent change of voltage around rated conditions, but they do indicate that a lamp operated at much lower than rated voltage could last for hundreds of times longer than at rated conditions, albeit with greatly reduced light output. The "Centennial Light" is a light bulb that is accepted by the Guinness Book of World Records as having been burning almost continuously at a fire station in Livermore, California, since 1901. However, the bulb emits the equivalent light of a four watt bulb. A similar story can be told of a 40-watt bulb in Texas that has been illuminated since 21 September 1908. It once resided in an opera house where notable celebrities stopped to take in its glow, and was moved to an area museum in 1977.
In flood lamps used for photographic lighting, the tradeoff is made in the other direction. Compared to general-service bulbs, for the same power, these bulbs produce far more light, and (more importantly) light at a higher color temperature, at the expense of greatly reduced life (which may be as short as two hours for a type P1 lamp). The upper temperature limit for the filament is the melting point of the metal. Tungsten is the metal with the highest melting point, 3,695 K (6,191 °F). A 50-hour-life projection bulb, for instance, is designed to operate only 50 °C (122 °F) below that melting point. Such a lamp may achieve up to 22 lumens per watt, compared with 17.5 for a 750-hour general service lamp.
Lamps designed for different voltages have different luminous efficacy. For example, a 100-watt, 120-volt lamp will produce about 17.1 lumens per watt. A lamp with the same rated lifetime but designed for 230 V would produce only around 12.8 lumens per watt, and a similar lamp designed for 30 volts (train lighting) would produce as much as 19.8 lumens per watt. Lower voltage lamps have a thicker filament, for the same power rating. They can run hotter for the same lifetime before the filament evaporates.
The wires used to support the filament make it mechanically stronger, but remove heat, creating another tradeoff between efficiency and long life. Many general-service 120-volt lamps use no additional support wires, but lamps designed for "rough service" or "vibration service" may have as many as five. Low-voltage lamps have filaments made of heavier wire and do not require additional support wires.
Very low voltages are inefficient since the lead wires would conduct too much heat away from the filament, so the practical lower limit for incandescent lamps is 1.5 volts. Very long filaments for high voltages are fragile, and lamp bases become more difficult to insulate, so lamps for illumination are not made with rated voltages over 300 volts. Some infrared heating elements are made for higher voltages, but these use tubular bulbs with widely separated terminals.
The Centennial Light is the longest-lasting light bulb in the world.
Various lighting spectra as viewed in a diffraction grating. Upper left: fluorescent lamp, upper right: incandescent bulb, lower left: white LED, lower right: candle flame.
^ Many of the above lamps are illustrated and described in Houston, Edwin J. & Kennely, A. E. (1896). Electric Incandescent Lighting. New York: The W. J. Johnston Company. pp. 18–42 – via Internet Archive.
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^ a b c Instead of a 26 mm E26 screw used for 110 V, European 230 V light bulbs use a 27 mm (E27) screw. Likewise, European candle-flame bulbs use E14 instead of E12. See also Edison screw types.
^ a b Size measured in millimeters. See also A-series light bulb.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Incandescent light bulbs. | 2019-04-20T19:03:24Z | https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrical_filament |
The remarkable Hispano-American Social Scientist and Cultural Researcher, Prof. J R Monroy and Psychologist J.L. Sylvester, founded a unique cultural-diplomatic project and organisation entitled LACCS-UK, to contribute to a better cultural understanding among all nations accredited at the Court of St.James's.
J R Monroy studied History, Sociology and Law at the University of Chile but his lifelong interest in music was also immensely strong. He is a talented guitarist and when he arrived in London he was astonished to discover that the classical music of Latin America and the Caribbean was virtually unknown in Britain In general and amongst the London public in particular.
Juan R. Monroy and J. L. Sylvester soon realised that the European perception of Latin American music, musicians and culture from a continent of several hundred millions of inhabitants was woefully deficient. They were determined to do something about it and the result was the foundation LACCS-UK with the collaboration of several Latin American Embassies, Caribbean High Commissions and groups of intellectuals, writers, musicians, historian, social scientists, etcetera. LACCS-UK has done notable work during the last three decades, to create a better international understanding in Britain of the Latin American culture and its universal legacies.
Recently Prof. J R Monroy, Hon Chair LACCS-UK was received by H.E. Mr Kyaw Zwar Minn, Ambassador of the Republic of The Union of Myanmar. It was a friendly and educational meeting in Prof. J R Monroy learnt about the ancient Myanmar Civilisation in Asia.
LACCS-UK recently visit to H.E. Marie Ndjeta Opombo, Ambassador and Representative to the International Maritime Organisation (IMO). Prof. JR Monroy, Hon. Chair - Public - Social and Cultural Diplomacy 36th Years Anniversary.
Photo: H.E. Mr Khaled Al-Duwaisan, Ambassador of the State of Kuwait to the United Kingdom and Professor J.R.Monroy, Hon. Chair LACCS-UK.
Mr Alvaro Menanteau, Musicologist and Director Radio Programme at Radio Universidad de Santiago, Chile and Prof. J R Monroy, LACCS-UK.
An Interview by Alvaro Menanteau about LACCS-UK's music experience in United Kingdom. Talking about Chilean's contribution to LACCS-UK 36 years on promoting world music at international concert halls in London.
Professor J R Monroy, Founder and Hon,Chairman LACCS-United Kingdom, was received by Mr Adolfo Flores, Director of Radio Beethoven in Santiago, Chile, on Friday 21st October 2018.
Professor Juan Monroy at Studio Radio Beethoven, Santiago, Chile, with Oscar Ohlsen, Producer of the radio programme 'Guitar'. 'Guitar' has been broadcast every Sunday since 1989 and features an hour of discussion with a selection of exclusive pieces for classical guitar.
H.E. Ambassador Liu Xiaoming and Madam Hu Pinghua request the pleasure of the company of Professor Juan Monroy at a reception on Thursday 27th September 2018.
The Brazilian Music 35th Anniversary at the Purcell Room at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre, was in July 2018 a great diplomatic and cultural success as it was reported by Diplomat Magazine, a prestigious U.K. international publication. The concert and reception was attended by numerous Heads of Mission, and Diplomats. Carlos Barbosa-Lima's concert was given in a full house Purcell Room.
You may also be interested in our featured interview with the Diplomat from May 2018.
The Ambassador of Brazil H.E. Mr Eduardo dos Santos requests the pleasure of the company of Professor Juan R Monroy a reception to celebrate the Brazilian National Day. Also to bid farewell to Ambassador Eduardo dos Santos.
At H.E.Ambassador of Brazil Residence. H.E. Mr Eduardo dos Santos and Prof. J.R. Monroy, Hon Chair LACCS-UK.
LACCS-United Kingdom, courtesy visit to the Embassy of the Republic of Uzbekistan. Left: Professor JR Monroy, Hon. Chair LACCS-United Kingdom and H.E. Dr Alisher Shaykhov, Ambassador of Uzbekistan to the Court of St. James's.
At O'Higgins Square, Bridge Road, Richmond-upon Thames, on Tuesday 21st August 2018, LACCS-UK payed homage to the memory of the 240th anniversary birth of General Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme, Liberator of Chile and Peru (1778-1842).
General Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme, was born in Chillan, Chile in 1778 and he lived in Richmond from 1776-1779, where he studied at a private Academy, taken lessons in drawing and painting, classical languages, Latin and Greek, mathematics and geometry, swordsmanship, English, French, classical literature, etc, in summary he was educated as an English gentleman of the 18th century.
O'Higgins personality changed completely when he met in London General Francisco de Miranda (1750-1816), who was a propagandist of the Hispano- American Independence. Young Bernardo was captivated by Miranda's ideals of freedom and by his plan to liberate Hispano-American colonies.
In his return to Chile at the beginning of the 19th century, O'Higgins, immediately supported the liberation movement, finally he was one of the most important heroes of the Independence of Chile, Peru and Hispano-19 America (1817-1823).
General Bernardo O'Higgins was the organiser of the 19th century Chilean State, democrat and a man of progressive social, political, commercial and cultural ideals. Maybe to be compared to other continental leaders such as Abraham Lincoln or George Washington.
LACCS-UK laying the wreath at the bust of General Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme O'Higgins Square, Bridge Road, Richmond-Upon-Thames. Representing LACCS-UK: Professors JR Monroy Hon. Chair and JL Sylvester, Executive Director.
Coronel Christian Bolivar, Military Attache Embassy of Chile, Cllr. Ben Khosa, Mayor of Richmond-upon-Thames, Mrs Khosa, H.E. Mr David Gallagher, Ambassador of Chile and Professor JR Monroy, Hon. Chair LACCS-UK.
Cllr Mona Adams, Deputy Mayor, Richmond-upon-Thames, Prof. JR Monroy and Prof. JL Sylvester, Executive Director LACCS-UK with the lady Queen Guard who played the "Last Post" in remembrance to the Chilean hero.
LACCS-UK attended the 19th Anniversary of the Enthronement of His Majesty The King Mohammed VI H.E. Abdesselam Aboudrar.
Ambassador of the Kingdom of Morocco requests the pleasure of the company of Professor J. R. Monroy, Hon. Chair at a Reception held at the Berkeley Hotel, Knightsbridge, London.
LACCS-UK visiting The Embassy of the Republic of Angola in London.
Professor J R Monroy, Hon. Chair LACCS-UK was welcomed by H.E. Mr Rui Mangueira, Ambassador of the Republic of Angola to the Court of St. James's.
Ambassador of the Arab Republic of Egypt Residence in London.
On the occasion of the 66th Anniversary of the National Day of the Arab Republic of Egypt, Charge d' Affaires Mrs Nermine El Zawahry, request the pleasure of the company of Professor J. R. Monroy, Hon. Chair LACCS-UK at a Reception on Monday 23rd July 2018 from 12.30 to 2.30pm.
HE Mr Nabil Ben Khedher, Ambassador od Tunisia, received Professor JR Monroy. Hon. Chair LACCS-UK at His Excellency Office in London. Prof. JR Monroy courtesy visit to the Embassy of Tunisia.
Professor J R Monroy, Hon Chair LACCS-UK was welcomed by His Excellency Mr Antonio Manuel Lagdameo, Ambassador of the Embassy of the Republic of the Philippines.
Professor J R Monroy was received by Mr Shao Zheng Counsellor at there Embassy of the People's Republic of China. Counsellor Shao Zheng presented to Prof. JR Monroy a decorative book with the photos and the history of the Embassy of People's Republic of China in United Kingdom.
Visiting Ankara, Turkey with Brazilian guitarist Carlos Barbosa-Lima and Maestro Ahment Kanneci at the stage of the local theatre and before CBL performance. An invitation to LACCS-UK to be part of a Festival in Ankara.
The Embassy of Uzbekistan in London in collaboration with British Uzbek Society (BUS), organised the event: 'Uzbek Youth Culture - Discover the Dynamic, Creative Millennials', an informative event of Uzbekistan education and culture.
Dr Mansur Kamalov, Deputy Rector (Academic),Tashkent State University of Law and Professor J R Monroy, Hon Chair LACCS-UK.
Professor J R Monroy, Founder and Hon,Chairman LACCS-United Kingdom, was received by Mr Adolfo Flores, Director of Radio Beethoven in Santiago, Chile, on Friday 29th March 2018.
A mutual collaboration was agreed between LACCS-UK programme: 'Music Without Frontiers' and Radio Beethoven, which will be an online correspondent.
Professor J R Monroy was invited by Canning House to the presentation of Canning Medal to H.E. Ivan Romero Martinez, Ambassador of Honduras and Dean of GRULA. Canning House, London SW1X 8PS. 24th January 2018.
On the occasion of the Independence Day of the Republic of Kazakhstan His Excellency Erlam Idrissov and Professor J R Monroy, Hon. Chairman LACCS-UK. National Day Reception at the Jumeirah Carlton Tower 1 Cadogan Pl, Knightsbridge, London SW1X 9PY.
Professor J R Monroy, Hon. Chairman LACCS-UK and HE Mr Antonio M. Lagdameo, Ambassador of the Republic of the Philippines to the Court of St. James's.
Laccs-UK Courtesy Visit To The Embassy Of The Republic Of Angola.
H.E. Dr Miguel Gaspar Fernandes Neto, welcomed the courtesy visit of Professor J R Monroy, Hon. Chairman LACCS-UK. Tuesday 14th November 2017.
On the occasion of the 94th Anniversary of the Proclamation of the Republic Mr Abdurrahman Bilgic, Ambassador of the Republic of Turkey and Mrs Esra Bilgic, requested the pleasure of the company of Professor J R Monroy at a Reception held at the Ambassador Residence, on Monday 30th October 2017.
Professor J R Monroy, Hon. Chairman LACCS opened a diplomatic ceremony inviting the Heads of Mission attending the concert of the Embassy of Costa Rica organised in association with Latin American and Caribbean Cultural Society, an independent and non profitable organisation better known in England as LACCS-UK.
My own reflection on my experience working with LACCS-UK for 34 Years On.
Working for 34 years in the field of Cultural and Public Diplomacy in London, gave me a personal and professional satisfaction. However, I can honestly say, that doing my job, I learned and appreciated very much the thinking and cultures of many nations represented culturally, diplomatically and artistically in LACCS-UK's decades of hard work and dedication to promote the idea of bringing together nations of different cultures and traditions, and what is more, upgrading the co-operative spirit within the Diplomatic Community in the United Kingdom.
H.E. Dr Jose Enrique Castillo Barrantes, Ambassador of Costa Rica, and Professor J R Monroy, Hon. Chairman LACCS-UK were accompanied by a significative numbers of Heads of Missions from Latin America, Caribbean Region, Europe, Africa and Asia.
His excellency Señor Jose Enrique Castillo Barrantes and Professor JR Monroy, Hon. Chairman LACCS-United Kingdom, recently agreed to collaborate in an special cultural project to promote Costa Rican young musicians and composers in U.K.
LACCS-UK AT THE FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE (FCO).
Professor J R Monroy, Hon. Chairman LACCS-UK was welcomed at the FCO by Mr Nigel Baker, Head of South American Department and Deputy Director Americas. King Charles Street, London SW1A 2AH.
CELEBRATION OIF BOLIVIA NATIONAL DAY 3rd August 2017.
Profesor J R Monroy, Hon, Chairman LACCS-UK and HE Mr Roberto Calzadilla Sarmiento, Embajador de Bolivia to the Court of St. James's.
Celebration of the Arab Republic of Egypt National Day at the Ambassador Residence in London.
Prof. JR Monroy, Hon. Chairman LACCS-United Kingdom was welcomed by H.E. Mr Nasser Ahmed Kamel, Ambassador of the Arab Republic of Egypt.
Celebration of Bulgaria National Day at the Ambassador Residence, 6th March 2017.
Front left to right: H.E.Mr Konstantin Dimitrov, Ambassador of the Republic of Bulgaria, Professor J.R. Monroy, Hon. Chairman LACCS-UK, Commodore Mr Kostas Andreev, Military, Air and Naval Attache Embassy of Bulgaria and Mrs Andreeva.
At Kuwait National Day Celebration: 23rd February 2017, Dorchester Hotel Park Lane, London W1.
Professor J R Monroy, Hon. Chairman LACCS-UK, Min. David Najera, Minister and Charge d' Affaires a.i. Embassy of Mexico, Ms Jacqueline Orozco Gutierrez, Assistant, Embassy of Mexico.
206th Anniversary Celebration of the Independence of Chile at the Hyatt London, Sept., 2016.
H.E. Mr Rolando Drago Rodriguez, Ambassador of Chile, Mr Arnaud de Saint-Exupery, General Manager/ Area Vice President U.K. & Ireland, Hyatt Regency London - The Churchill and Professor J R Monroy, Hon Chairman LACCS-UK.
At the Chartwell Suite Professor J R Monroy, Hon Chairman LACCS-UK and General German Octavio Schell O' kuinghttons.
Professor J R Monroy during his journey to Chile was invited by Radio Beethoven for an interview and conversation with Oscar Ohlsen, conducting the 32 years on radio programme entitled "Guitar", which is broadcast every Sunday at mid day.
This is one of the oldest radio programme focus in the classical guitar. This radio conversation will be broadcast on line on Sunday 8th February 2017 at 12 hrs (Chilean time).
You may listen to the interview below.
LACCS-UK was welcomed by the Rt Hon. Boris Johnson MP, today Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs. and opportunity to explained LACCS-UK's moto to contribute "to a better cultural understanding amongst all nations accredited to the Court of St.James's,"
Since 1983 more than 400 musicians from 100 nationalities has been introduced to British audiences.
LACCS-UK was invited to attend the Evensong of the Republic of Mozambique National Day attended by H.E. The High Commissioner for Mozambique. Westminster Abbey, London.
From left to right: H.E. Mr Felipe Chidumo and Prof. JR Monroy, LACCS-UK.
Ambassador of the Slovak Republic Mr L'ubomir Rehab requested the pleasure of LACCS-UK at the Slovak Dances Concert, performed by composer and pianist Peter Breiner, celebrating the opening of the Slovak Presidency of the Council of the European Union, Thursday 7 July 2016 at St.John's Smith Square, London SW1P 3HA.
H.E. Mr L'ubomir Rehab and Professor JR Monroy, LACCS-UK after the successful diplomatic and cultural evening.
From left to right: Mrs Valentina Prevolnik Rupel, H.E. Mr Tadej Rupel, Ambassador of the Republic of Slovenia and Professor J. R. Monroy, Hon. Chairman LACCS-UK.
From left to right: Professor J R Monroy, Hon. Chairman LACCS-UK, H.E. Mr Amar Abba, Ambassador of Algeria. H.E. Mr Nabil Ammar, Ambassador of Tunisia, and Mr Mohamed Yahya Sidi Haiba, Charge d' Affaires of Mauritania.
Prof. J R Monroy Hon. Chairman LACCS-UK and Beihdja Rahal. Pre-concert rehearsal at the stage of Cadogan Hall.
UK-Bolivia Trade & Investment Forum Sheraton Piccadilly, Central London.
Prof. J R Monroy , representing LACCS~-UK and Ing. Alberto Tejada Ferrufino, Vice President ENDE Corporation.
Professor J R Monroy, Hon Chairman LACCS-UK was invited by H.E. Mr Nkwelle Ekaney High Commissioner for the Republic of Cameroon and Mrs Janet Mejane Ekaney, to the diplomatic reception on the occasion of the Republic of Cameroon National Day, held at Hyatt Regency, The Churchill, Portman Square, London.
Tata Diplomat of the Year Award ceremony held at Langham Hotel, Tata Diplomat of the Year Award.
Photo No 1: Professor J R Monroy, Hon Chairman LACCS-UK and HE Mr Sione Sonata Tupou, Tonga High Commissioner.
Prof. J R Monroy, Hon Chairman LACCS-UK and Mr David Renato Nanjera Rivas, Minister, Deputy Head of Mission Embassy of Mexico.
From left to right: Professor J R Monroy, Hon. Chairman LACCS-UK, Mrs Youssef, Mrs & Mr Anouar Ben Youseff, Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of Tunisia, Mrs Miriam Nasser and H.E. Mr Ivan Romero Martinez, Ambassador of Honduras.
H.E. Marie-Pierre Lloyd High Commissioner for the Republic of Seychelles and Professor J R Monroy, Hon Chairman LACCS-UK.
Professor J R Monroy had the opportunity to introduced himself and LACCS-UK's work in the field of Cultural Diplomacy in United the Kingdom. LACCS-UK's contribution to improve cultural understanding among all nations accredited at the Court of St. James's.
H.E. Mr Euripides L. Evriviades, High Commissioner fror the Republic of Cyprus, welcomed Professor J.R Monroy, Hon, Chairman LACCS-UK courtesy visit to His Excellency Office in London.
Prof. JR Monroy visit to Cyprus High Commissioner is part of an annual diplomatic and social programme to strengthen cultural ties and friendly social relations with Cyprus and other Missions in London.
LACCS-UK attended for many year the celebration of The Slovak Republic National Day in London.
In the past years contributed to enhanced the country's rich cultural legacies, specially in the field of classical music. LACCS-UK looks forward to continue its collaboration with the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in the field of Cultural Diplomacy.
H.E. The Ambassador of the Slovak Republic and Mrs Dana Rehak welcoming Prof. JR Monroy, Hon. Chairman LACCS-UK.
The social and diplomatic gathering to celebrate the Slovak Republic National Day was attended by numerous diplomats and guests from the public and private sector.
During this commemorative occasion H.E. Mr L'ubomir Rehak addressed the audience with an historical account of the relations between United Kingdom and The Slovak Republic.
Mr Zakaria Nasir, Deputy High Commisioner, High Commission of Malaysia and Professor JR Monroy, Hon.Chairman LACCS-UK.
LACCS-UK was invited to attend the concert to celebrate the Latvian Presidency of the Council of the European Union with KAMER YOUTH CHOIR at St. Sepulchre Without Newgate Church, Holborn Viaduct, London EC1A 2DQ.
Prof J R Monroy with H.E. Mr Andris Teikmanis, Ambassador of the Republic of Latvia and Mrs Inguna Penike, at the concert of the Youth Choir KAMER held at the St. Sepulchre Without Newgate Church Holborn, Viaduct, London EC1A 2DD.
Youth Choir KRAMER, conducting by Janis Liepins, performed a full programme of Latvian folk songs, some of them of medieval origins.
Professor J R Monroy, visited Mr Tedwin Herbert, Charge d' Affaires for the High Commission of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
Professor J R Monroy visiting Mr Tedwin Herbert, Charge d' Affaires High Commission of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. Behind is a nice steel drum, which is the modern instrument invented in Trinidad and Tobago earlier 1930's.
Professor J R Monroy attending the King of Thailand Royal Birthday.
A VISIT OF COURTESY TO H.E. MR CARLOS DOS SANTOS HIGH COMMISSIONER OF THE REPUBLIC OF MOZAMBIQUE London, Tuesday 25th March 2013.
Prof. J R Monroy, Founder and Chairman LACCS-UK-UK and H.E. Mr Carlos Dos Santos, High Commissioner for the Republic of Mozambique.
Professor J R Monroy, Founder and Chairman, LACCS-UK-UK was invited to the celebration of the 85th Anniversary of the Chilean Air Force (FACH), on Thursday 21st March 2013.
Professor J R Monroy and Group Captain Rafael Carrere, Air Attache at the Embassy of Chile in London.
Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman, LACCS-UK-UK was Speaker at the ICD 2013 "The Cultural Bridges Conference in U.K., which was held at the House of Commons on the 20th March 2013. Prof. J R Monroy was a panelist in the subject "The Political and Economic Dimensions and the Implications of the Contemporary State Multiculturalism Policies:"
H.E. Mr Nabil Ammar, Ambassador of Tunisia, and Professor J.R. Monroy, Chairman Latin American and Caribbean Cultural Society, a courtesy visit.
Prof. J.R. Monroy, presented an archive copy of "Nuevo Mundo 2000", to H.E. Ambassador Volodymyr Khandogiy, this publication was edited on the occasion of the Eleventh Heads of Mission Assembly, held at Le Meridien Hotel, on the 8th November 2000. In this memorable diplomatic gathering, H.E. Ambassador Professor Volodymyr Vassylenko, co-hosted the diplomatic event, alongside Their Excellencies Mr Ma Zhengang, Ambassador of the People's Republic of China, Mr Patrick Edwards, Acting High Commissioner for the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The Chairman of the 11th Heads of London Heads of Mission was Ambassador Dr Mohamed I. Shaker, Chairman of the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs. HE Professor George B. Kirya, then, High Commissioner of Uganda and Doyen of the Diplomatic Corps, was Co-Chairman of the Assembly.
The 11th Heads of Mission Assembly received messages from His Excellencies Mr Leonid Kuchma, President of Ukraine and H.E. Dr Arthur N.R. Robinson, President of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. "Nuevo Mundo 2000", published important International Speeches of the Heads of State of Ukraine, The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and Mr Jiang Zemin, President of the People's Republic of China.
An event marking the 65th anniversary of the death of a Czechoslovak statesman and diplomat at the Embassy of the Czech Republic, 7th March 2013.
H.E. Mr Michael Zantovsky, Ambassador of the Czech Republic in the UK welcome the guests and authorities participating in this diplomatic evening.
The Second Part of the conference was dedicated to discuss Jan Masaryk as diplomat and soldier during the First War World and his participation as diplomat during the pre Second War World until his death in 1948.
Opening remarks by H.E. Mr Karel Schwarsenberg, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic.
Coffee time at the Conference.
Mrs Jana Prikrylova, 3rd Secretary (Political Affairs) Embassy of the Czech Republic and J.R. Monroy, Professor Emeritus, UCH, Founder and Chairman LACCS-UK-UK, Expert in Latin American Education to the Assessment Committee, EDU.
Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK is welcomed by H.E. the Ambassador of the Republic of Bulgaria and Mrs Nadya Ivanova Dimitrova, at the Ambassador Mr Konstantin Stefanov Dimitrov's residence.
On Wednesday, 20 February 2013 from 5.00pm to 7.00pm the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, London, and Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government with the support of Hong Kong Trade Development Council & Hong Kong Tourist Board, celebrated at The Banqueting House, Whitehall, London SWIA, the Chinese YEAR OF THE SNAKE.
Ms Erica Ng, Director General, Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, London welcome the distinguished guests and gave speech about Hong Kong successful economic, business and cultural achievements. Ms Erica Ng, Ms Linda Lai, Special Representative for Hong Kong Economic & Trade for the European Union and members from Hong Kong Trade Development Council and Tourist Board.
Ms Linda Lai welcome to Professor J.R. Monroy to the reception at The Banqueting House.
A traditional Chinese ensemble entertaining the evening.
The Toast for the Year of the Snake. Center: Ms Linda Lai, Special Representative for Hong Kong Economic and Trade Affairs of the E.U. next Ms Erica Ng, Director General, London and members of the Council and Tourist Board.
H.E. Dr Dejan Popovic, Ambassador of the Republic of Serbia at the Court of St. James's, Professor J.R.Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK, Captain (Naval) Kikola Lunic and Mrs Nevena Lunic.
Prof. J.R. Monroy Professor Emeritus UCH, was invited by H.E. Dr Dejan Popovic to attend the celebration of the Republic of Serbia National Day, on Tuesday 19th February 2013.
Prof. J.R.Monroy presented a copy of the First Finnish Concert Programme of Classical guitar at the Purcell Room by Timo Korhonen, to H.E. Mr Pekka Huhtaniemi, Ambassador of Finland at the Court of St. James's. The concert was held on Tuesday 25th March 1993.
Professor J R Monroy, Founder and Chairman of LACCS-UK-UK, visited H.E. Mr Pekka Huhtaniemi, Ambassador of Finland at his office in London, the occasion was the 20th Years Anniversary of the first concert of Finnish classical guitar at the Purcell Room, Southbank Centre.
On Tuesday 25th March 1993, Timo Korhonen, established the Finnish classical guitar series in LACCS-UK, introducing music by the Finnish composer Harri Suilamo (1954), a contemporary composer born in Uskela, Finland on 22nd March 1954. His piece entitled "Anfang... for guitar, 1966 fp in GB", it is a set of four miniatures based on Prelim written in 1994 for two guitars. J. Sylvester, then, wrote in the concert programme: "The piece is founded on the use of idiomatic musical resources that come naturally to the guitar in slightly the same way as, say on a more professional scale, the Preludes and Etudes by Heitor Villa-Lobos.
Timo Korhonen debut at the Purcell Room, includes two more gigantic master pieces for the classical guitar: "Royal Winter Music, The First Sonata on Shakespearean Characters for Guitar, 1975-76" by Hans Werner Henze and "Douze Etudes Pour La Guitare, Manuscript Version, 1928, by Heitor Villa-Lobos.
The first Finnish guitar concert in LACCS-UK 's Series at the Purcell Room, was under the patronage of H.E. Mr Pertti Salolainen, then, Ambassador of Finland at the Court of St. James's. In addition Timo Korhonen became one of the most distinguished and versatile Finnish classical guitarist and his contribution to the music is today recognised in Finland and around the world.
Soprano Adriana Kucerova and Tenor Filip Tuma were acclaimed by the guests for their brilliantly performance.
Professor J.R. Monroy, Founder and Chairman LACCS-UK-UK was invited by H.E. Mr. Miroslav Wlachovsky, to attend the celebration of the 20th Anniversary the Slovak Republic and the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Slovak Republic and the United Kingdom.
A memorable recital of Slovak, European songs and a selection of arias from the Bel Canto Traditions were brilliantly performed by Adriana Kucerova and Filip Tuma, soprano and tenor respectively. Both opera singer were graduated at the Academy of Performing Arts and the State Conservatory in Bratislava. They were accompanied by virtuoso pianist Robert Pechanec.
On Thursday 7th February 2013, Professor J. R. Monroy visited the Embassy of the Republic of Bolivia, to present to Ms Veronica Paola Melendres Argote, Charge d' Affaires, a copy of the programme of the First Concert of Bolivian Music held on the 18th March 1993 at the Purcell Room, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre. To commemorate the 20th Anniversary of the first Bolivian concert at the SBC, LACCS-UK will continue to support and promote Bolivian music with another special programme in 2013.
In the meeting Prof J.R. Monroy emphasised the artistic personality of Luzmila Carpio, a quechua descendant of an ancient Amerindian people, better known in Europe as the nightingale of the Andes, she was accompanied by Heriberto Santiago Murillo, playing Andean native instruments such as: zamponas, quenas, charango, kamachena, bombo, tarka, etc. Luzmila Carpio had a great artistic impression on British audiences at the SBC.
Ms Veronica Paola Melendres Argote, Charge d' Affaires, Embassy of Bolivia, thanks Prof. J.R. Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK, for his kind attention to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the first Aymara and Quechua concert at the SBC.
On Thursday 17th January Professor J. R. Monroy, was received by Jamaican High Commissioner H.E. Aloun Ndombet-Assamba at her Excellency office, during the meeting Prof. J. R. Monroy presented a copy of the diplomatic publication, "Nuevo Mundo 2000", (New World 2000), 1991 edition, which was published on the occasion to Commemorate the V Centenary of the voyage of Christopher Columbus, to the Caribbean Islands and to welcome the opening of the European Single Market in 1992.
This diplomatic celebration was co-hosted by H.E. Mrs Ellen Gray Bogle, C.D. Jamaican High Commissioner, H.E. General Gary Prado S. Ambassador of Bolivia and H.E.Baron Hermann von Richthofen, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany. The Heads of Mission Assembly received messages of greetings by the Rt Hon Peter Lilley MP, then Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, and by the Heads of States, Rt. Hon Michael Manley, P.C., MP Prime Minister of Jamaica, H.E. Lic Jaime Paz Zamora, President of the Republic of Bolivia, and by Herr Hans-Dietrich Genscher, Minister for Foreign Affairs.
His Excellency Aloun Ndombet-Assamba presented to Prof. J. R. Monroy with a nice small barrel of Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee. (Product of Jamaica).
"The Power of the Arts and Culture to Promote Democracy and Global Peace".
Professor J R Monroy, Founder and Chairman of LACCS-UK-UK was invited to attend to the ICD Annual Conference on Cultural Diplomacy 2012, to discuss the subject "The Power of the Arts & Culture to Promote Democracy & Global Peace".
"The Power of the Arts and Cultural to promote Democracy and Global Peace" One of the main panel of discussion: Moderator: British Ambassador Anthony Russell Brenton Members of the panel were: Minister Hassan B. Diab, The Hon. Erna Hennicot Schoepges, Professor Dr Mark Aspinwall, Professor Dr John M.Hobson, Professor Dr Staak Koenis, Professor Dr Ovidiu Pelican and Mr Mark D. Donfried, Director of ICD.
Prof. Colin Evans, Commissioner of EDU Administrative Office, Brussels and Prof J R Monroy, Founder and Chairman LACCS-UK-UK.
"Green Growth to overcome the Financial Crisis and create jobs" Speaker, The Hon. Ruud Lubbers, Former Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Former UN High Commissioner for Refugees. 15th December 2012.
"Europe and Russia: Cultural Soul Mates or Competitors?" Speaker, Ambassador Anthony Russell Brenton, ICD Advisory Board Member, Former British Ambassador to Russia.
Prof. J.R. Monroy was interviewed by the Department of PR & Communications- ICD International by Rosie Vilnius and colleague.
The the interview was focussed in Latin American Culture and how LACCS-UK has been successfully presenting projects for the European audiences. Prof Monroy explained that LACCS-UK is a pioneer organisation promoting cultural ties between Europe and the New World. LACCS-UK experience of 30th Years working in the field of Cultural Diplomacy in London, has been recognised by Her Majesty the Queen and by many Heads of Mission accredited at the Court of St. James's.
LACCS-UK has created a unique Latin American cultural programme contributing to a more comprehensive understanding of the real cultural values of Latin America. LACCS-UK identifies some specific issues related to the mutual cultural understanding between Europe and Latin America, among them I can mention, to create a permanent interchange of artists and intellectuals of both regions, a more cohesive work of the E.U. and Latin American institution related to Higher Education and culture.
J R Monroy, Professor Emeritus UCH, Founder and Chairman LACCS-UK-UK, with Miss Elvira Gonzalez-Valles (Spain), Head of Programme , Press, PR and Multimedia, video interview.
J. R Monroy, Professor Emeritus UCH, giving his lecture on the subject: "Political Power and Cultural Identity in Latin America".
Prof. J R Monroy concluded his lecture saying: " That Latin American countries are today better prepared intellectually and politically, in finding a real solution to their cultural identities; to open the door for economic prosperity; to understand that the government must provide equal social and economic benefits for the countryside, industrial, mining and city labourers. Today freedom and democracy are principles rooted in the consciousness of a new generation of intellectuals, professionals, middle and working classes. In short, the economic and cultural progress only will be possible with the participation of the people and with the genuine leadership of political cadres capable to interpret the enlightenment of the Nation".
The Berlin Conference ended with Concluding Statements by Ambassador Cynthia Schneider IDC Advisory Board Member, Distinguished Professor in the Practice of Diplomacy, Georgetown University, Former USA Ambassador to the Netherlands and Hon. Dr Nazar Al Baharna, ICD Advisory Board Member, Former Foreign Minister of Bahrain.
A ICD documentary about Islam Arts and Culture. The question was how civilisations influence each other?
Mr Mark D. Don invited Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK-UK and Ambassador and Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey, The Rt Hon. Yasar Yakis to attend a session of the Conference "City in Europe" organised by the European Parliament. First on the left : The Hon. Erna Hennicot Schoepges, Vice President of the ICD Advisory Board, Former Luxembourgian Minister of Culture and Religious Affairs.
Professor J. R Monroy at the Brandenburg Gate, saying a farewell to the historical capital city of Berlin. December, 2012.
J R Monroy was interviewed by Oscar Ohlsen, presenter of the radio programme 'Guitar', at Radio Beethoven in Santiago,Chile. The interview was about LACCS-UK Pearl Jubilee in 2013, 30th years Anniversary promoting in London Latin American classical music, with emphasis in new classical guitar music by European and Latin American composers.
A moment of enjoyment after the interview as the presenter Oscar Ohlsen and Jose Oplusitle, Radio controller of Radio Beethoven, had the opportunity to seeing one of LACCS-UK Chilean concert programme in London.
Emeritus Professor J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK - UK , met Dr Larissa Dmitrieva, First Deputy Chief Representation of the Government of Ivanovo Region at the Trade Delegation of the Russian Federation, London 13th November 2012.
LACCS-UK ATTENDED CONFERENCE AT MARRIOTT LONDON HEATHROW.
Programme - Day 2. Professor J R Monroy, Founder and Chairman LACCS-UK-UK, in his speech related to the topic: 'The way forward in energy-energy security and climate change: advancing the global environment Agenda", He illustrates a proposal for a new international understanding between the public and private sectors in the global environment.
Programme - Day 2. Mr Nick Dunlop, Secretary General, Climate Parliament, talking about his personal experience working in the research field of alternatives and renewable energies in Europe and emerging countries.
Prof. J. R. Monroy, Founder and Chairman of LACCS-UK attended the Annual conference of The Global Diplomatic Forum, on the 23rd and 24th July 2012, which was held at the Marriott London Heathrow. The Title of the conference was: GLOBAL ENERGY SECURITY - THE WAY FORWARD.
The Conference received a Message from H.E. Dr Boutros Ghali, Former Secretary General of the United Nations.
The two days discussions subjects were focus in various related topics to connect global energy and its markets, geo-political regions such as Middle East/North Africa, Russia and Eurasia. Nuclear energy and its geopolitics implications in the modern word, energy security for vulnerable countries, mainly in Africa and Asia, the future balance with renewable and alternatives energies, the climate change and its energy challenges for the 21st century and finally technology innovation related to the political attitude to understand and to improve worldwide the energy security.
Prof. J R Monroy had the opportunity to talk about the Latin American experience in the last decade, with regards innovation and security of energies in countries such as Brazil and Chile. Prof. J. R. Monroy talked about energy and innovation of technology from an historical point of view, and in his analysis he suggest to the conference to explore the idea of an alliance between the industrial countries with the emerging nations to create innovate technology to be applied to an environmental model of sustainable economy. Also to explore an alliance between the private and public sectors, to incentive investments for research in technology innovation.
In summary: The conference of GDF 2012 was an important intellectual contribution to understand the complex challenges of the global demand of energy and other alternatives of sustainable energy programmes.
Linda Yueh, Economics Editor, Bloomberg, Alice Hibbert, Business Reporter, BBC World, Sophie Long, Presenter BBC, Angus McCrone, Chief Editor, Bloomberg New Energy Finance, Samantha Simmonds, News Presenter, Sky News, Owen Thomas, Anchor, Bloomberg, Dr Christopher Frei, Secretary General, World Energy Council, Phillip Lowe, Director General of Energy, European Union Commission, Dr Phyllis Yoshida, The Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Energy Cooperation, The U.S. Department of Energy, Lord Boswell of Aynho, House of Lords, Parliament of United Kingdom, Bill Farren-Price, Chief Executive, Petroleum Policy Intelligence, Dr Hans Schindler, Former German Diplomat, Programme Director at the Institute of Strategic Dialogue, Dr Shamil Yenikeyeff, Research Fellow, Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, University of Oxford, Dr Armen Sarkissian, Former Prime Minister of Armenia, President of Euroasia House, Paul Spence, Director of Strategy and Corporate Affairs, EDF Energy, Sarah Butler-Sloss, Founder/ Director, Ashden, H.E. Mt Edward Turay, High Commissioner for Sierra Leon, Ali Fassi Fihri, Director General,National Office of Electric, Morocco, Vivien Foster, Sustainable Energy Department, the World Bank, Rushara Ali, Labour Member of Parliament, Bethnal Green and Bow, Pradeep Pursani, Business Director - Breathing Space, Shell Foundation, H.E. Fouad Douiri, Minister of Energy, Morocco, Ryan Hobert, Director for Energy and Climate Change, United Nations Foundation, Christine Lins, Executive Secretary, REN21 Secretary, United Nations Environment Programme, Nick Dunlop, Secretary-General, Climate Parliament, Maite Jaureguy Naudin, Director of the Centre for Energy, the French Institute of International Relations, Baroness Worthington of Cambridge, House of Lord, United Kingdom, etc.
LSBM 2nd Teaching and Learning Conference at the LU.
Opening Address: Dr Rosemary Skordoulis (LSBM Principal) LSBM Research Centre, Video Introduction to the Conference.
Afternoon Session 2: Panel Discussion Topic: Changing Markets: The Future for Higher Learning Education in a Globalised World"
From left to right: Professor J.R. Monroy, Founder and Chairman LACCS-UK, Mr Aliar Hossain, LSBM, Chair and Mr Mark T. Jones, Director of External Affairs for Park Royal College.
HEARTS AND MINDS: CAPTIVITY TEACHING AND INNOVATIVE PEDAGOGIES.
The Conference Co-pordinator was Mr Aliar Hossain, PgD Course Leader & MBA Supervisor at LSBM. Dr Rosemany Skordoulis (LSBM Principal), addressed and opened the conference. Dr Peter Wynarczyk, Deputy Dean at the Metropolitan Business School, introduced an interesting topic:"Arcademia or Knacademia: Creative Destruction, Dissolution, or Melding", an original approach to the academic learning and to the creative thinking.
Mr Vick Krisnan, Barrister and Principal Lecturer in Law and Business subjects, "The growing importance of emotional intelligence as a determination of success in academia", a new method to understand the systematic learning in academia, etc.
An interesting panel discussion was the topic: "A Winning Attitude to Teaching: How Innovative Pedagogies can Engage Your Students", with valuable contribution from experienced academics such as Dr Hasanat Hossain (MBE), Mrs Isobel Wood, Mr John Howells, Mr Reza Aboutalebi, and Chaired by Dr Rosemary Skordoulis, brought to the conference valuable conclusions about the academic experience of each panel participant.
"Changing Markets: "The Future for Higher Education in a Global World".
The participants were Professor J R Monroy, Founder and Chairman, LACCS-UK and Mr Mark T. Jones, Director of External Affairs at the Park Royal College and was Chaired by Mr Aliar Hossain, LSBM.
Professor J.R. Monroy, analyzed the subject from a sociological and historical point of view taking into consideration the past and present changes in both the academic thinking and the structure of the university system. He explained how the current high education is under the control of a powerful market and for this reason is unable to fulfil its missions. However, a transition to a new multinational University system will bring equally risks and challenges for the consolidation of a new international university model for the 21st century.
Professor J.R. Monroy illustrated how the traditional educational pyramid was inverted to create an academic explosion around the world, not having the standard of quality-knowledge in the teaching profession and without social responsibilities for the national community. He concluded saying that today we are having a global crisis, and we are waiting to build the right model of a higher learning institution, that is to say, to visualize the future "utopia" of a free and multicultural University.
With regard to the Latin American University System, Professor J.R. Monroy refer to the Chilean case, in which in spite of several changes in its bureaucratic administration, the University have not been able to contribute to the economic growth with the purpose to incentive the creation of a new "know-how" to be applied in the industry and businesses. The aim is to innovate with a new learning systems, to make easy an alliance with the State and industrial sectors, to up grade professional standards intended for competing successfully in the international academic markets, to become independent from the world of high learning centres.
The University system in Chile needs a regulator to advice in the planning of the number of graduates in liberal, scientific and technological careers, accordingly with the social and economic necessities of the country. The Nation is in need of a University system capable to respond to the challenges of the 21st century, or the contrary, I can say, that the Public University will fail to resolve its own academic problems and will become an stagnant High Learning Institution.
In the garden of the H.E. The Ambassador of Russian Federation Residence: Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman, LACCS-UK and Mr Thomas Bergeson, Brigadier General, United States Air Force, Senior Defence Official & Defence Attache, Embassy of the United States of America.
Prof J R Monroy, was invited by the Commercial Office of the Brazilian Embassy in London to attend the III Brazil-UK Oil & Gas Meeting: Co-operation in Human Resources & Skills Development, held at the Townhouse Aberdeen City Hall, Scotland on 10th May 2012.
The meeting was well attended by more than one hundred companies and institutions related to training of human resources in the oil & gas industries in Brazil. Opening remarks were given by Mrs Valerie Watts, CEO, Aberdeen City Council, H.E. Mr Roberto Jaguaribe, Ambassador of Brazil and The Rt Hon Michael Moore, MP, Secretary of State for Scotland.
In summary, the III Meeting Brazil-UK Oil & Gas, was focussed in the training and re-training of human resources for the Brazilian oil & gas industries, the seminar was well represented by Brazilian governmental institutions and private companies dedicated to improve the technical skills and professional learning with the aim to satisfied the high demand of manpower for the Brazilian energy industries in the States of Rio de Janeiro and Rio Grande do Sul.
Prof. J R Monroy, at the Aberdeen County Hall, impressive decorative halls of the 17th century, timber panelling, fine decorative timber hammer-beam roof and minstrels gallery, one with Scottish heraldic shields and other with timber pews, gallery and benches. The display of the flemish Medieval flag, a reminiscence of the trading ties between Aberdeen and the Low Countries in the past centuries.
Prof J R Monroy, (LACCS-UK), and Senhor Paulo Buarque Guimaraes, Superintendente, National Organization of Petroleum Industry (ONIP).
MONDAY 30th APRIL 2012, 47 PORTLAND PLACE, LONDON. W1B IJH.
H.E. Dr Muhamet Hamiti, Ambassador of the Republic of Kosovo, H.E. Ms Kamela Palma, Belize High Commissioner, Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman, LACCS-UK and H.E. Mr T. Mhanza Thayeb, Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia.
At the Embassy of the Republic of Bulgaria.
Mr Urs Schmid, Minister, Embassy of Switzerland and Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman, LACCS-UK.
Reception at the Corinthia Hotel, London, 16th Feb, 2012.
Celebration of the Independence of the Republic of Kosovo.
Left: Councillor Aslam Choudry, The Worshipful The Mayor of the London Borough of Brent and Professor J R Monroy, Chairman, LACCS-UK.
Left: Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman, LACCS-UK, Mr Campbell Gordon, Partner Optimus Capital, and Cllr, Chris Edge, London Borough of Merton.
The Churchill, 30 Portman Square.
Mr Peter Taylor, Insurance Solutions Limited, Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK, Mrs Maria Rosa Picart De Francis, and Mrs Taylor.
The University Reform movements in Latin America are connected to a process of social changes from rural to a semi-industrial society. learning and teaching methods were traditional and scholastic, without consideration by the authorities to introduce new methods and ignoring a massive illiterate population. The problem of illiteracy in young people was part of the contradiction between countryside and the emergency of the modern cities (urbanism as an incentive to social mobility), middles classes.
The Universities as educational institutions, reflected a period of transition to a new model of learning institution, it reflects the intellectual capacity of the middle classes to reform the University, to end with the oligarchy learning institution and to reaffirm a new concept of democratic education.
The new high learning institution was denominated University Reform, and it was inspired and supported by the middle classes, the intelligentsia and the student movements, who patronized a liberal approach to teaching and learning, with a new concepts, such as University autonomy, co-government, academic freedom, etc.
The reformist were a dynamic force to modernize the traditional methods of teaching and learning in the High Education system in Latin America.
Mr Alejander Khvtisiashvili, Senior Counsellor Embassy of Georgia, Mr Riaan Jonk, Managing Director, London School of Bussiness and Management, Dr Rosemary Skordoulis, College Principal, LSBM, and Prof. J R Monroy, LACCS-UK, Chairman.
Dr Rosemary Skordoulis, introduced Prof. J R Monroy and his Lecture: A view of the Academic Learning and Teaching in Latin Universities (Pre and Post Reforms).
Prof. J R Monroy, explained his academic experience in teaching and learning, and described the evolution of the learning in the Latin American Universities, and how teaching, learning and higher education in Latin America are conditioned by social, cultural and economic factors, creating sometimes, crisis in National Education Systems.
Prof. J R Monroy, congratulated and received a Diploma, for his academic contribution by Prof. Aliar Hussain, Conference Co-Ordinator, London School Business and Management.
RECENT VISIT TO MALTA AND VALLETTA.
Professor J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK, recently received an invitation from Dame Francoise Tempra, Founder of the MALTA International Art Biennale, to give a lecture on the subject, "Latin America: what do we learn from its 200 years of Independence". The 30 minutes talking was also preceded by a recital by Bolivian pianist Rossana Tamarri. The evening was an opportunity to listen music and to reflect on Latin America history. An interesting occasion to enjoy Music, art and History.
Professor J R Monroy had the opportunity to meet in Valletta, H.E. Dr Michael Refalo, former Malta High Commissioner at the Court of St. James's in London.
NATIONAL DAY CELEBRATION AT THE BOLIVAR HALL.
Prof. J R, Monroy is welcome by Mr Alvaro Sanchez, Deputy Head of Mission.
Dr Aquiles Alencar Brayner, British Library, Dr Elizabeth Cooper, Curator Latin American Collection, British Library and Prof. J R Monroy, LACCS-UK.
Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman, LACCS-UK, greet to H.E. Mr Aleksandr Mikhnevich, Ambassador of the Republic of Belarus.
>From left to right: Mr Sirous Sajjadi, First Secretary, Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK.
Mrs Maria Rosa Picart De Francis, Mr Reginald Alan Francis and Prof. J R Monroy.
On the occasion of the Third Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence of Kosovo, at the Institute of Directors, Pall Mall, London SW1Y 5ED.
Prof. J R Monroy (left), Terry & Geraldine Alliston (Smile International).
Occasion of The Anniversary of the Victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran.
Professor J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK and H.E.Mr Acisclo Valladares Molina, Ambassador of Guatemala at the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
The Austrian Ambassador and his family enthusiastically supported the 200th Years Independence Anniversary of Latin America at the South Bank Centre.
Prof. J R Monroy (centre), left, H.E. Mrs Maria Teles carreira, Ambassador of Angola and Mr Mario Afonso de Almeida, enjoying the music and friendship of the Bicentennial Celebration of Latin America at the SBC.
CHILEAN NATIONAL DAY AND CELEBRATION OF THE CHILEAN BICENTENNIAL AT H.E. THE AMBASSADOR OF CHILE RESIDENCE, THURSDAY 16th SEPTEMBER 2010.
Group Captain Claudio Ibacache, Air Attache, Embassy of Chile, welcomes Professor J R Monroy, Chairman of LACCS-UK at the Chilean Ambassador's Residence.
Dr Carl Roberts, High Commissioner of Antigua and Barbuda, Her Excellency Ms Kamela Palma, Belize High Commissioner, Lt Colonel Cao Zhenhua, Air Attache, Embassy of the People's Republic of China and Prof. J R Monroy.
Lt Colonel Cao Zhenhua, Air Attache, Embassy of the People's Republic of China and Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman of LACCS-UK.
Mr Claudio Rojo, Consul General, Embassy of the Republic of Argentina and Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK.
Professor J R Monroy, Mrs Maria Rosa Picart de Francis and Professor Beravale.
Professor J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK and Mr Jaime Aguilera Guerra, President of Instituto O'Higginiano, London.
VISIT TO BOLIVIA : LA PAZ, August 2010.
Professor J R Monroy, visited in August 2010 Bolivia. He was invited in La Paz by Lic. Maria Esperanza Tellez Laguna, Executive Director of the National Conservatoire of Music, to talk about his own personal experience working in the field of management in music for more than two decades at the most important public venues in London such as South Bank Centre, Barbican Hall, St. John's Smith Square, Wigmore Hall and others.
Prof. Monroy's own management experiences were well received by the students and his ideas were considered very valuable to learn how to introduce new music into traditional audiences and to organise a programme to entertain and to educate the public with music by national composers.
The talk ended with participation of several students, making their questions to Prof. Monroy and evaluating the need of management system as an important role for music students in General education.
Lic. Maria Esperanza Tellez Laguna, Executive Director, National Conservatoire of Music, La Paz and Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK, With several samples of Concert Programme With Bolivian Music, presented in London since 1984 onward.
A group of Bolivian students at the National Conservatoire of Music, La Paz with (left), Lic. Maria Esperanza Tellez Laguna, Prof. J R Monroy, LACCS-UK, Chairman and Prof. of Guitar Marcos Puna.
With the Thai Ambassador in Santiago, Chile.
Professor J R Monroy, Chairman of LACCS-UK in his recent visit to Santiago, was received by Thai Ambassador H.E. Vipawan Nipatakusol, at the Royal Thai Embassy in Santiago, Chile.
Professor J R Monroy paid a courtesy visit to H.E. Ambassador Vipawan Nipatakusol and informed that LACCS-UK is promoting traditional Thai music in Latin America and also that HM The King of Thailand Suite was broadcasted by radio Beethoven in the programme "Guitar", in which Prof. Monroy was interviewed by Oscar Ohlsen.
It is important to mention that Radio Beethoven and its programme "Guitar", is the first Latin American radio to broadcast H.M. The King Bhumibol Adulyadej's music. This cultural initiative was an important contribution to make known to the Latin audience the rich and millenarian culture and music of the Kingdom of Thailand.
At the same time Prof. J R Monroy, explained to Her Excellency Madame Vipawan, the exciting project to premier H.M. King Bhumibol Adulyadej's music in a concert to be held on 28th October at St. John's Smith Square in London, in the presence of HE Ambassador Kitti Wasinondh, and members of the Diplomatic Corps and friends of Thailand in the U.K. A young Thai classical guitarist Ekachai Jearakul, was selected to premier in London H.M. The King of Thailand Suite.
In the photos below, Prof. J R Monroy with H.E. Ambassador Vipawan Nipatakusol. Her Excellency congratulated Prof. J R Monroy for his brilliant initiative to bring Thai traditional music to Chile.
RECEPTION TO CELEBRATE THE NATIONAL DAY OF THE BOLIVARIAN REPUBLIC OF VENEZUELA.
Prof J R Monroy, LACCS-UK Chairman is welcome by H.E. Dr Samuel Moncada, Ambassador of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and Captain Luis Alejandro Ojeda, Permanent Representative to the IMO.
Mrs Maria Rosa Picart De Francis, Former Ambassadress of the Principality of Andorra, Prof. J R Monroy and Miss F.A. Croft.
Professor Hovhannes I. Pilikian, American University of Beirut and Professor J R Monroy, LACCS-UK Chairman, enjoyed friendship to celebrate the 199th Years of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela Independence.
Prof, J R Monroy and Mr Tetsuo Kitada, Second Secretary, Embassy of Japan in the United Kingdom.
Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK, HE Mr Sami Khiyami, Ambassador of the Syrian Arab Republic and Mr Nabih Moukayed.
Lecture by Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman and Founder of the Latin American and Caribbean Cultural Society (LACCS-UK).
Abstract: Latin America: what can we learn from 200 years of Independence?
This lecture attempts to explain how during the development of Latin American history several social and economic processes of 19th and 20th centuries have failed to find practical solutions to the problem of dependency relations between the New World and the industrial countries.
A quick analysis of the contradictions between the rural and urban areas, and the role of the middle and working classes which has reformed the traditional society of the 20th century.
Also I mentioned cultural dependency and cultural identity as two contradictory social and political attitudes, which Latin America has to face to fulfil its new international role.
In Summary : Latin America Bicentennial is a lesson to learn how the new Latin emerging markets will confront the 21st century challenges to improve social, cultural, economic and political life.
Panel Discussions: Europe Meets Latin America - The Economy and the Culture.
Centre: Prof. Mark C. Donfried, Moderator, Executive Director ICD, Prof.Federico Foders, Kiel Institute and Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK.
Professor J R Monroy taking part in the panel discussion about Latin American Culture. Left: Dr Matthias S Tantow, Director Galerie Tantow (Kunst aus Lateinamerika), Berlin.
Professor J R Monroy talking about the Andean Culture and his own experience with regards the project of Higher Education in the Andean region.
Professor Mark C Donfried, Executive Director & Founder of ICD - Institute for Cultural Diplomacy, Congratulated Prof. J R Monroy for his interesting Lecture and active participation in the various Panel-discussions about the Culture in Latin America.
A happy moment for the scholars receiving their Diploma for the attendance of the week conference Europe Meets Latin America - A Forum for Young Leaders.
Prof J R Monroy was invited to A CHAMPAGNE & CANAPE' RECEPTION by THE PRESIDENT' S CLUB President: Cllr. John Marshall in the honour of BORIS JOHNSON - MAYOR OF LONDON, held at Norton Rose, More London Riverside, London SE1 at 7.30 pm.
The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, addressed a select audience from Finchley and Golders Green Conservatives. From left to right: Professor J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK, Mr Reuben Thompstone, Cllr Mike Freer, Parliamentary Candidate for Finchley and Golders Green and Cllr John Marshall.
Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, congratulated Prof. J R Monroy for his dedication to promote better understanding of the cultures of Latin America and United Kingdom for more than two decades in London.
Annual Ceremony of the Embassy of Chile to Commemorate the Birth of Bernardo O'Higgins "Liberator of Chile" at Richmond, August 2009.
Captain Ronald Quipildor and Mrs Quipildor, Defence Attache, Embassy of Bolivia, HE Rafael Moreno, Ambassador of Chile, and Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK.
H.E. The Ambassador of Bolivia, Mrs Maria Beatriz Souviron, third left and Rossana Tamarri Galarza, Pianist, with Prof. J R Monroy, Juanita Silvestre and Colleagues.
Chile National Day at the Ambassador of Chile residence.
Captain Otto Mrugalski, Maritime Adviser of Chile to the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), H.E. Gilberto Arias, Ambassador of Panama, H.E. Mr Paul Farquharson, High Commissioner of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas and Prof. J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK.
Mr Rodrigo Espinoza, Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of Chile, H.E. Mr Juraj Zervan, Ambassador of the Slovak Republic, Prof J R Monroy, (LACCS-UK) and H.E. Mr Sami Khiyami, Ambassador of the Syrian Arab Republic.
Professor J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK with Senior Colonel, Wang Shujun, Air Attache, The Chinese People's Liberation Army Anniversary, Embassy of the People's Republic of China. The 86th Anniversary of the Republic of Turkey celebrated at the Ambassador residence in London.
Brigadier General Mohammad Farghal, Military Naval & Air Attache, Embassy of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Prof. J R Monroy and Mrs Farghal.
Asia Pacific Panel Discussion: "Some Reflections on Asia/Pacific on TIMES OF CRISIS AND HOPE."
Monday 20th April 2009 at 6.30 p.m.
Professor J R Monroy, Founder and Chairman of the Latin American & Caribbean Cultural Society (LACCS-UK).
Dr Kerry Brown, Senior Fellow, Asia Programme, Chatham House.
Professor Laixiang Sun, SOAS. University of London.
Title: Some Reflection on Asia/Pacific on Times of Crisis an d hope.
First I explained my own concept of CRISIS which is an attempt to explained it together with the dialectical nature of the development of capitalism and its implications in the evolution of a society either primitive or modern. Some examples were given of how "crisis" in history find new stages of superior level.
Secondly this new social or economic order bring hope through communication and trade; with regard to the Pacific region which is two thirds of the population, I mentioned some disadvantages of the Pacific region for future association to free trade and political under- standing, amongst a variety of languages, customs, religions, and cultures.
In the second section of the paper I analysed how the Pacific South American countries faced the problem of the opening of the Pacific market and trade and their awakening to the world politics. I focussed on the strategic role of China, South East Asia, India and Australia New Zealand, as the main political and economic forces to be considered important for the future development of the Pacific South American countries.
I considered the case of Chile, as exceptional for its historical ties to the Pacific region, for its natural geo-political location in the map of the South American continent. I illustrated some samples in which Chile at the end of XVIII century was exploring the possibility of trade with Australia, and later by mid of 19th century, the Chilean trade with California and Australia, via Pacific, and the creation of the first South American merchant navy. Finally, the take over of the Eastern Island, considered the last natural resource of the Polynesia.
In summary I concluded that we do no be afraid of the concept of crisis, on the contrary we need to concentrate our thinking in positive experiences and learn from previous world crisis in the past, and specially concentrate our reflection in the future relations of Asia/Pacific and the Pacific Coast of Latin America, in which obviously Chile will play an strategic and valuable role.
Prof. J. R Monroy, Founder and Chairman of the Latin American and Caribbean Cultural Society (LACCS-UK), visited CHILE in December 2007 to explore ways of co-operation between LACCS-UK and the Chilean Cultural and Educational institutions.
From last week of November to December 2007,Prof. J R Monroy visited several Chilean Universities to explore opportunities for co-operation, specially with Music Department and with special interest to develop the Chilean classical guitar.
An interesting proposal project were discussed with the Institute of Music of the Catholic University in Santiago, for 2009-2010. The basic idea was to create a join project for young musicians, to stimulate the learning of new repertoires for the classical guitar and string ensembles with special concerts and music activities abroad.
A visit to the University of La Serena, with Dra Catalina Cvitanic Abarca, Director of External Communication, agreed to promote LACCS-UK activities to the students, and to explore future co-operations in join projects for young and gifted musicians.
Prof. J R Monroy was invited by the Department of External Communication, University of Bio Bio, Concepcion, to give a talk about LACCS-UK's 25 Years Experience in the field of performing art, in England, and it was an opportunity to met some colleagues of the Music Department, of the University of Concepcion.
It was agreed that in a second visit in 2008, Prof. J R Monroy will give a Lecture in the subject of "The Praxis of the Music" and "Sociology of the Music". (Focussed in Latin America and Europe).
His visit was undoubtedly an experience to learn more about the Chilean musical education with regard to teaching and learning of classical guitar as well as its progress in the last decades, especially in the Northern and Southern regions of the country.
Prof. J R Monroy was warmly welcomed by Professors Alejandro Gallegos, Director of the Music Department, Fernando Lillo, in charge of the Chair of Classical Guitar at the University of Concepcion and Isabel Almeida, Chair of Guitar, at the University of Bio Bio. Finally, following the Chilean tradition to welcome the guest, he was invited to a lovely local restaurant on the border of Bio Bio River, to enjoy a selection of delicatessen prepared with local fishes, meat and aromatic wines. It was really a happy journey!
A VISIT TO THE ABORIGINAL LANDS OF KAKADU, NATIONAL PARK, AUSTRALIA.
Kakadu National Park is a commonwealth Reserve under the Environmental Protection and Bio-diversity Conservation Act 1999. Kakadu is a cultural landscape It was shaped by the spiritual ancestors of Aboriginal people during the Creation Time.
A cup of tea to relax for my trip to the land of Aboriginal floodplain language called Gagudju.
With my innocent camera I tried to get the sleeping reptile of the freshwater: Crocodylus johnstoni, and Crododilus porosus, Estuarine (saltwater), crocodiles, also found in India, South East Asia and Papua New Guinea.
Professor Helen Garnett PSM Vice Chancellor, Charles Darwin University, Professor J R Monroy, Chairman LACCS-UK and Adrian Walter, Dean Faculty of Law, Business and Arts, and Artistic Director.
Dean Adrian Walter, introduced Prof. J R Monroy to the lecture THE PRAXIS OF THE MUSIC: LATIN AMERICA.
Professor J R Monroy in class on the subject Sociology of the Music: The praxis of the Latin American guitar and the learning of the experience.
Carlos Barbosa-Lima is interviewed in local Radio Darwin, Australia.
LACCS-UK with three legendary South American guitarist of all time! From left to right. Carlos Barbosa-Lima (Brazil), Gentil Montana (Colombia), Prof. J R Monroy (LACCS-UK) and Eduardo Fernandez (Uruguay). It was an evening of romantic guitar with boleros! A mixture of classical and South American rhythms!
Time to depart, but not before an aromatic morning coffee at the Darwin University cafeteria. Carlos Barbosa-Lima, Eduardo Fernandez and Juan R Monroy.
My camera in action! The Lesser Town Bridge Tower. was built in the second half of the 15th century.
Finally to cross the historical site. The medieval Charles Bridge to the Old Town, which is a different world with narrow alleys, secluded squares, thin and Gothic towers. A city who experience the worst time in European history, from Hitler, Stalin and the Cold War.
Brno is a medieval city, 800 years old in Central Europe near to Praha, Viena and Bratislava. Today is a cultural centre with universities and judiciary institutions.
The legendary Jorge Morel in action! Classes and tutorial session to young guitar students.
Brno, at the medieval Liberty Square, you can enjoy as I did a nice pint of the famous Czech beer!
Lunch time: from left to right: Juan R Monroy, Jorge Cardoso, Maria Isabel Siewers and the legendary Jorge Morel.
Sociology of the music and the Praxis: An analysis of two decades of experience in the performing arts by LACCS-UK in London. Ideas were discussed with the students related to the origins and form of styles and practical step to be a performer.
Juan R Monroy, Chairman of LACCS-UK, with Milan Tesar, one of the most important composer for the Czech classical and popular guitar music. His works are published in various international publishing houses. (Germany, France and Japan amongst others).
During a break: Prof. J R Monroy with the famous Slovak guitarist Josef Zsapka. Dagmar and Josef Zsapka also constitute an international duo of flute and guitar with a brilliant technique and beautiful sounds with different styles. | 2019-04-23T12:11:07Z | http://www.laccs.com/monroy.htm |
Microsoft acquired Connectix Corporation, a provider of virtualization software for Windows and Macintosh based computing, in early 2003. In late 2003, EMC announced its plans to acquire VMware for $635 million. Shortly afterwards, VERITAS announced that it was acquiring an application virtualization company called Ejascent for $59 million. Sun and Hewlett-Packard have been working hard in recent times to improve their virtualization technologies. IBM has long been a pioneer in the area of virtual machines, and virtualization is an important part of IBM's many offerings. There has been a surge in academic research in this area lately. This umbrella of technologies, in its various connotations and offshoots, is hot, yet again.
The purpose of this document can be informally stated as follows: if you were to use virtualization in a an endeavor (research or otherwise), here are some things to look at.
" ... [my paper] was mainly about multi-programming (to avoid waiting for peripherals) although it did envisage this going on at the same time as a programmer who was debugging his program at a console. I did not envisage the sort of console system which is now so confusingly called time sharing.". Strachey admits, however, that "time sharing" as a phrase was very much in the air in the year 1960.
The use of multi-programming for spooling can be ascribed to the Atlas computer in the early 1960s. The Atlas project was a joint effort between Manchester University and Ferranti Ltd. In addition to spooling, Atlas also pioneered demand paging and supervisor calls (that were referred to as "extracodes"). According to the designers (1961): "... the Supervisor extracode routines (S.E.R.'s) formed the principal 'branches' of the supervisor program. They are activated either by interrupt routines or by extracode instructions occurring in an object program." A "virtual machine" was used by the Atlas supervisor, and another was used to run user programs.
In the mid 1960s, the IBM Watson Research Center was home to the M44/44X Project, the goal being to evaluate the then emerging time sharing system concepts. The architecture was based on virtual machines: the main machine was an IBM 7044 (M44) and each virtual machine was an experimental image of the main machine (44X). The address space of a 44X was resident in the M44's memory hierarchy, implemented via virtual memory and multi-programming.
IBM had provided an IBM 704 computer, a series of upgrades (such as to the 709, 7090, and 7094), and access to some of its system engineers to MIT in the 1950s. It was on IBM machines that the Compatible Time Sharing System (CTSS) was developed at MIT. The supervisor program of CTSS handled console I/O, scheduling of foreground and background (offline-initiated) jobs, temporary storage and recovery of programs during scheduled swapping, monitor of disk I/O, etc. The supervisor had direct control of all trap interrupts.
Around the same time, IBM was building the 360 family of computers. MIT's Project MAC, founded in the fall of 1963, was a large and well-funded organization that later morphed into the MIT Laboratory for Computer Science. Project MAC's goals included the design and implementation of a better time sharing system based on ideas from CTSS. This research would lead to Multics, although IBM would lose the bid and General Electric's GE 645 would be used instead.
Regardless of this "loss", IBM has been perhaps the most important force in this area. A number of IBM-based virtual machine systems were developed: the CP-40 (developed for a modified version of IBM 360/40), the CP-67 (developed for the IBM 360/67), the famous VM/370, and many more. Typically, IBM's virtual machines were identical "copies" of the underlying hardware. A component called the virtual machine monitor (VMM) ran directly on "real" hardware. Multiple virtual machines could then be created via the VMM, and each instance could run its own operating system. IBM's VM offerings of today are very respected and robust computing platforms.
Only one "bare machine interface" is exposed. Therefore, only one kernel can be run. Anything, whether it be another kernel (belonging to the same or a different operating system), or an arbitrary program that requires to talk to the bare machine (such as a low-level testing, debugging, or diagnostic program), cannot be run alongside the booted kernel.
We shall shortly enumerate several more reasons for needing virtualization, before which let us clarify what we mean by the term.
Let us define "virtualization" in as all-encompassing a manner as possible for the purpose of this discussion: virtualization is a framework or methodology of dividing the resources of a computer into multiple execution environments, by applying one or more concepts or technologies such as hardware and software partitioning, time-sharing, partial or complete machine simulation, emulation, quality of service, and many others.
Note that this definition is rather loose, and includes concepts such as quality of service, which, even though being a separate field of study, is often used alongside virtualization. Often, such technologies come together in intricate ways to form interesting systems, one of whose properties is virtualization. In other words, the concept of virtualization is related to, or more appropriately synergistic with various paradigms. Consider the multi-programming paradigm: applications on *nix systems (actually almost all modern systems) run within a virtual machine model of some kind.
Since this document is an informal, non-pedantic overview of virtualization and how it is used, it is more appropriate not to strictly categorize the systems that we discuss.
Even though we defined it as such, the term "virtualization" is not always used to imply partitioning - breaking something down into multiple entities. Here is an example of its different (intuitively opposite) connotation: you can take N disks, and make them appear as one (logical) disk through a virtualization layer.
Colloquially speaking, "virtualization abstracts out things."
Virtual machines can be used to provide secure, isolated sandboxes for running untrusted applications. You could even create such an execution environment dynamically - on the fly - as you download something from the Internet and run it. You can think of creative schemes, such as those involving address obfuscation. Virtualization is an important concept in building secure computing platforms.
Virtual machines can provide the illusion of hardware, or hardware configuration that you do not have (such as SCSI devices, multiple processors, ...) Virtualization can also be used to simulate networks of independent computers.
Virtual machines can be used to run multiple operating systems simultaneously: different versions, or even entirely different systems, which can be on hot standby. Some such systems may be hard or impossible to run on newer real hardware.
Virtual machines can isolate what they run, so they provide fault and error containment. You can inject faults proactively into software to study its subsequent behavior.
You can treat application suites as appliances by "packaging" and running each in a virtual machine.
Virtual machines are great tools for research and academic experiments. Since they provide isolation, they are safer to work with. They encapsulate the entire state of a running system: you can save the state, examine it, modify it, reload it, and so on. The state also provides an abstraction of the workload being run.
Virtualization can be used to retrofit new features in existing operating systems without "too much" work.
Generically speaking, in order to virtualize, you would use a layer of software that provides the illusion of a "real" machine to multiple instances of "virtual machines". This layer is traditionally called the Virtual Machine Monitor (VMM).
A VMM could itself run directly on the real hardware - without requiring a "host" operating system. In this case, the VMM is the (minimal) OS.
A VMM could be hosted, and would run entirely as an application on top of a host operating system. It would use the host OS API to do everything. Furthermore, depending on whether the host and the virtual machine's architectures are identical or not, instruction set emulation may be involved.
A different approach, with rather different goals, is that of complete machine simulation. SimOS and Simics, as discussed later, are examples of this approach.
Although architectures have been designed explicitly with virtualization in mind, a typical hardware platform, and a typical operating system, both are not very conducive to virtualization.
As mentioned above, many architectures have privileged and non-privileged instructions. Assuming the programs you want to run on the various virtual machines on a system are all native to the architecture (in other words, it would not necessitate emulation of the instruction set). Thus, the virtual machine can be run in non-privileged mode. One would imagine that non-privileged instructions can be directly executed (without involving the VMM), and since the privileged instructions would cause a trap (since they are being executed in non-privileged mode), they can be "caught" by the VMM, and appropriate action can be taken (they can be simulated by the VMM in software, say). Problems arise from the fact that there may be instructions that are non-privileged, but their behavior depends on the processor mode - these instructions are sensitive, but they do not cause traps.
One of the most popular architectures, IA-32, is not virtualization friendly. The analysis in a paper titled Analysis of the Intel Pentium's Ability to Support a Secure Virtual Machine Monitor reports at least seventeen instructions on the Pentium that make it "non-virtualizable". IA-32's privileged instructions cause a General Protection Exception when executed in non-privileged mode. Instructions like STR can be problematic: STR can be executed at any privilege level, but it tells you the security state of the machine (the value it retrieves has the Requestor Privilege Level, or RPL).
The IA-32 TLB (unified code and data in 386/486, separate in the Pentium) is hardware managed. In contrast, architectures such as Alpha, MIPS, PA-RISC, and SPARC use software managed TLB's, which are easier to virtualize than hardware page tables. An IA-32 TLB entry cannot be tagged, say with an address space identifier (ASID), which would make it easier (and less expensive, in terms of TLB flushes) to manage the address spaces of the VMM and its virtual machine kernels.
Architecture amicability aside, there are various other problems to solve.
When a process on a guest system running on a (hosted) virtual machine invokes a system call, it should not be handled by the host. The host should notify the guest operating system. One solution is for the virtual machine monitor to use ptrace() to trace process execution and identify system call entry. The VMM can then nullify the system call (say, by "converting" it to getpid(), or to an invalid system call), which is executed by the host. Upon system call exit, the VMM notifies the guest system kernel (through a signal, say), which can take appropriate action.
A similar situation exists in case of page faults.
Mach is capable of running Unix as an application program. To achieve this, Mach uses a Unix Server for providing BSD system services/resources, and a Transparent System Call Emulation Library that executes within the address space of a Unix task. Now, Mach supports system call redirection - you can have a certain set of system calls to be handled by user-space code within the calling task. When a user-level Unix task issues a system call, the Transparent Emulation Library intercepts the call (using the redirection facility), and transforms it into a remote procedure call to the Unix Server (not always though - sometimes the Emulation Library can handle the call).
When a typical operating system kernel running on real hardware has nothing to do, it runs its idle thread, or loop. When the same kernel runs on a virtual machine, this behavior is undesirable, because the virtual machine is wasting its processor time. The virtual machine could have a mechanism to suspend itself, instead of running the idle loop. For example, the Denali Isolation Kernel uses a purely virtual instruction (idle-with-timeout) for this purpose.
Along similar lines, the virtual machine monitor would not know when a memory page is no longer being actively used by a virtual machine.
Depending on how much, and how virtualization is done, there will be more such issues. Figuring out yet more optimal ways to virtualize (particularly in the face of hard-to-virtualize hardware) is an active area of research.
A virtualization framework may make use of emulation or simulation, perhaps because the guest and host architectures are different, or even otherwise.
In the context of software, an emulator reproduces the behavior of one system on another. It executes, or strives to execute, the same programs as the "original" system, and produces the same results for the same input. It is important that the user of an emulator is not supposed to care how. Software emulators abound for old and new hardware architectures, video game consoles, etc.
In the context of computing, a simulation is an imitation of some real system. A simulator can be informally thought of as an "accurate emulator". The ARMn is a multiprocessor cycle-accurate simulator that can simulate a cluster of ARM processor cores connected by custom communication schemes. The VCS Verilog Simulator from Synopsys can do gate-level ASIC simulation, useful to semiconductor people. There is exists an instruction-accurate simulator for the picoJava processor core, which is essentially an accurate (reasonably) software model of the real thing, and so on.
A related family is that of in-circuit emulators: a combination of hardware and software that lets you run code on actual hardware while providing flexible and powerful debugging facilities, etc.
Today the Turing machine has become the accepted formalization of an effective procedure [Hopcroft and Ullman, Introduction to Automata Theory, Languages, and Computation]. Alonzo Church hypothesized that the Turing machine model is equivalent to our intuitive notion of a computer. A Universal Turing Machine can compute any function that any Turing machine can compute (Turing proved this). Often, the Church-Turing thesis is (mis)understood to imply that the Universal Turing Machine can simulate the behavior of any machine. Nevertheless, given that an arbitrary computer is equivalent to some Turing machine, it follows that all computers can simulate each other.
We have seen that in the original, traditional sense, virtualization provides multiple execution environments (virtual machines), each of which is identical to the underlying computer. Each virtual machine looks like a "real" machine to its user, whereas in reality, it is an isolated (from others) environment running on the really real machine under the supervision of a Virtual Machine Monitor (VMM). Recent years have introduced several new connotations for the phrase "virtual machine" (as some of the examples will indicate). This section provides brief overviews of several frameworks (methodologies, projects, products, concepts) related directly or indirectly to virtualization.
Rather than creating virtual machines to run entire operating systems, API emulation can be used to create execution environments for running alien programs on a platform.
Sun used WABI (Windows Application Binary Interface) to make Solaris more appealing to those needing Windows applications. The WABI software sits between an application and the operating system, intercepts the applications Windows calls, and translates them to "equivalent" Unix calls. On x86, the guest instructions were run directly on the processor, while they were emulated and/or binary translated on SPARC. WABI can also use an optional DOS emulator to run DOS applications.
Sun later had the SunPC software that emulates a PC hardware environment on Solaris (SPARC). The software-only SunPC emulated a 286, but you could install a SunPC Accelerator Card (that had a coprocessor such as a 133 MHz AMD 5x86), and run Windows 95, although one session at a time since real hardware was used.
A later product is the SunPCi III, a coprocessor card with features such as: mobile 1.4 GHz AMD Athlon XP 1600+ processor, up to 1 GB PC2100 RAM, AGP 8x equivalent 24-bit graphics, 10/100Base-T Ethernet, up to 3 USB 2.0 ports (two on an optional daughterboard), and a FireWire port (on the optional daughterboard). The A: drive is the physical floppy drive, while C: and D: are emulated via files on Solaris. Other drives can be mapped to local or networked file systems, or the local optical drive.
Lxrun is software for executing Linux a.out and ELF binaries (x86 only) on x86 Unix systems such as SCO OpenServer, SCO UnixWare, and later, Solaris. This is achieved by "remapping" Linux system calls on the fly. You need the Linux shared libraries that the application requires, as well as the Linux dynamic loader. Lxrun is thus a system call emulator. There are various caveats as to what kind of applications will not run, etc.
Newer versions of the real-time LynxOS have Linux ABI compatibility.
Similarly, FreeBSD provides binary compatibility with a few Unix like systems, including Linux. Over time, FreeBSD has evolved to actually include a process file system (linprocfs) that emulates a subset of Linux's procfs.
Wine is software that lets you run Windows applications on Linux, FreeBSD, and Solaris. Wine is x86 only, and does not emulate a processor.
It is perhaps not a widely known fact outside the Solaris community that Microsoft had versions of Internet Explorer and Outlook Express for Solaris (SPARC). This was achieved not by porting them to Solaris, but by using API emulation. Mainsoft, the software company behind that effort, now has a product called Visual MainWin that allows for applications developed on Windows using Visual Studio to be run on Solaris, Linux, HP-UX, and AIX. It recompiles the applications from source on the deployment platform, using the latter's compilers.
There are far too many other examples to be enumerated here.
Bochs is an open source x86 emulator written in C++. It is a user-space emulator, and emulates the x86 processor, several I/O devices, and a custom BIOS. Bochs is highly portable, and rather slow (not surprising since it emulates every instruction and I/O devices): the primary author of Bochs reports 1.5 MIPS on a 400 MHz Pentium II.
Nevertheless, Bochs is extremely flexible and customizable.
The Chorus system's kernel provides a low-level framework on top of which distributed operating systems could be implemented. For example, System V Unix was implemented on Chorus this way, by making use of System V specific emulation assist code in the Chorus kernel.
Many frameworks, particularly those targeted at hosting providers, make use of chroot() for filesystem sandboxing, either within the kernel, or in user-space. FreeBSD's jail uses chroot(). Virtfs is a relatively simpler chroot() based solution for Linux.
The Denali isolation kernel is an operating system, essentially an IA-32 virtual machine monitor , that allows for untrusted services to be run in isolated (protected) "domains". Denali does not aim to allow for unmodified operating systems to run on it: an operating system must be ported to the Denali architecture (for example, the processor architecture as presented by Denali is not x86, but a version modified for virtualizability and scalability).
Dis is the virtual machine designed for the Inferno operating system. Although Dis is conceptually similar in Java to many respects, the inventors describe key differences (such as an instruction set that matches existing processor architectures more closely, a less lazy garbage collection, etc.) in The design of the Inferno virtual machine.
Disco was the outcome of a Stanford University project with the goals of extending modern operating systems to run efficiently on large-scale shared memory multiprocessors without a large implementation effort. Disco is essentially a VMM, implemented as a multi-threaded shared memory program, sitting atop the hardware and allowing multiple virtual machines. It virtualizes all resources of the underlying machine. An instance of a virtual machine has a MIPS R10K processor, main memory with contiguous physical addresses starting at zero, a specified set of devices such as disk, network interfaces, periodic interrupt timers, clock, and a console. The execution of a virtual processor is emulated via direct execution on the real processor. The MIPS TLB can be reloaded by software, and each TLB entry is tagged with an address space identifier, so that the TLB does not have to be flushed on a MMU context switch. Disco adds special device drivers (such as for UART, SCSI, Ethernet, etc.) into the operating system, and intercepts all device accesses from a virtual machine. Disco was used to run Silicon Graphics IRIX 5.3.
Ensim has done a lot of pioneering work in the area of virtualizing operating systems on commodity hardware. Ensim's Virtual Private Server (VPS) technology allows you to securely partition an operating system in software, with quality of service, complete isolation, and manageability. There exist versions for Solaris, Linux, and Windows.
The FreeBSD "jail" mechanism allows you to create an isolated existing environment via software means. Jail uses chroot(2), and each jail has its own "root". Processes in a jail do not have access to or visibility of files, processes, or network services in other jails. A jail can be restricted to a single IP address.
The jail feature is implemented by making various components of the FreeBSD kernel "jail aware", such as the pty driver, the system call API, the TCP/IP stack, and so on.
In 1998-99, I worked on the ECLIPSE operating system at Bell Labs. There was a great interest in Quality of Service then. ECLIPSE was derived from FreeBSD and included support both for quality of service (even for legacy applications), and a layer to manage it. ECLIPSE had fair-share schedulers for CPU, network, and disk. Protocols like NFS, WWW, and FTP were QoS aware. A pseudo filesystem (the reservation filesystem) was used to provide the user-level API for managing resources.
While retrofitting QoS in an existing operating system (such as FreeBSD) is a good idea, one cannot deny that it cannot be perfect due to the architecture of the existing system. Typically you associate resource guarantees (or weights) with an execution context (say, a "domain", in which processes can run). One now needs to tag processes that belong to this domain, which is great except there is plenty of activity in the kernel that doesn't traditionally have access to process context. Modifying data structures to propagate the tags is unclean, and may break compatibility (say, because you changed the size of the proc structure). Thus, unless you design an operating system with QoS in mind, interactions in the system are complex enough that it is extremely difficult to charge all activity to its rightful owner.
In light of the problem described above, ECLIPSE also included Signaled Receiver Processing (SRP) to alleviate a certain set of issues: protocol processing of received packets in BSD Unix is interrupt-driven and may cause scheduling anomalies that are unacceptable in systems that provide QoS guarantees. SRP is an alternate mechanism that generates a signal to the receiving process when a packet arrives. The default action of this signal is to perform protocol processing asynchronously. However, a receiving process may catch, block or ignore the signal and defer protocol processing until a subsequent receive call. In any case, protocol processing occurs in the context of the receiving process and is correctly charged. Therefore, SRP allows the system to enforce and honor QoS guarantees. Note that this is not the same as Lazy Receiver Processing (LRP).
Hive is an internally distributed system consisting of multiple independent kernels, or cells. The idea is to improve reliability by containing faults within a cell, thus not affecting processes running on other cells. Each memory page in hive has a small write permission bitmap, which allows the system to discard corrupt page upon fault detection.
In Hewlett-Packard's own words: "Hewlett-Packard has created a family of flexible, powerful, and far-reaching partitioning solutions - the HP Partitioning Continuum for Always-On infrastructures. The solutions provide hard partitions, virtual partitions, and resource partitions ..."
The HP Virtual Partitions (VPAR's) provide operating system and application (including name space) isolation. A VPAR runs its own copy of HP-UX (potentially different versions), and can be dynamically created, with a specific set of resources assigned to it. Within a VPAR, you can further create resource partitions.
There is a virtual machine monitor (the vPar Monitor) that sits on top of the hardware (it is booted on the real hardware instead of HP-UX) and assigns ownership of hardware resources to virtual machine instances (the vPar's). Note that a vPar accesses physical memory and I/O hardware directly, without involving the Monitor. A vPar is not, however, aware of the hardware resources that are not assigned to it.
Linux/RK is an Linux-based resource kernel implementation. The effort focuses on incorporating quality of service (with respect to CPU, physical memory pages, network bandwidth, and disk I/O) in a portable manner.
IBM's Logical Partitioning (LPAR) allows you to run multiple, independent operating system images of AIX and Linux on a single server (that supports such partitioning, such as the pSeries family). The minimum resources needed for a pSeries partition are: one processor, 256 MB memory, an I/O slot and its attached devices. The AIX Workload Manager (WLM) is used for resource management.
IBM introduced Dynamic Logical Partitioning (DLPAR) in AIX 5L Version 5.2. DLPAR allows you to dynamically add and remove resources from active partitions.
Other server families, such as the iSeries, and other IBM operating systems, such as OS/400, also support logical partitioning. There is a primary OS/400 partition, that loads a hypervisor (known as "the Hypervisor"), which provides partition control, mediation, and isolation. You can then have further OS/400 partitions, as well as Linux partitions.
Note that the POWER4 architecture has features that help in virtualization (such as a special Hypervisor mode in the processor, the ability to include an address offset when using non-virtual memory addressing, support for multiple global interrupt queues in the interrupt controller, and so on. The firmware of these machines is also specialized for virtualization.
IBM has a number of server offerings. The zSeries is IBM's mainframe range that can run operating systems such as z/OS, z/OS.e, z/VM, VSE/ESA, a transaction processing OS (TPF), and Linux. The iSeries are midrange servers running OS/400 and Linux. The pSeries exist in various ranges, and run AIX and Linux. There are other server solutions for clustering, storage, etc.
Mac-on-Linux, or simply MOL, is a virtual machine implementation that runs under Linux on most PowerPC hardware, and allows you to run Mac OS (7.5.2 to 9.2.2), Mac OS X, and Linux. Most of MOL's virtualization functionality is implemented as a kernel module. A user process takes care of I/O, etc. There's even an (very limited) Open Firmware implementation within MOL.
The Macintosh Application Environment (MAE) was an X application that ran on RISC machines (such as SPARCstation running SunOS and HP 9000/700 running HP-UX) and provided a virtual Macintosh environment. MAE emulated the Motorola 68LC040 processor, with native execution whenever possible for performance. MAE was based on System 7.x.
Microsoft has had its share of virtualization in the past. Windows NT had several subsystems, or execution environments, such as the virtual DOS machine (VDM), the Windows on Win32 (WOW) virtual machine for 16-bit Windows, the OS/2 subsystem, the POSIX subsystem, and the Win32 subsystem. Note that while the OS/2, POSIX, and Win32 subsystems are server processes, DOS and Win16 run within the context of a virtual machine process. They all are dependent on the NT executive for basic operating system mechanisms though.
The VDM was essentially a virtual DOS (derived from MS-DOS 5.0 code base) running on a virtual x86. On x86, a trap handler was present to handle privileged instructions. Windows NT also ran on MIPS, so an x86 emulator had to be there in the MIPS version.
Similarly, Windows 95 used virtual machines to run older (Windows 3.x and DOS) applications. There was a System virtual machine that ran the kernel, GDI, etc. The System virtual machine had an address space shared by all 16-bit Windows programs, and a separate address space for each 32-bit Windows program.
Microsoft has included virtualization as a key component of its server offerings for the Enterprise with the acquisition of Connectix in early 2003. As with Virtual PC, the idea is to run multiple operating systems simultaneously on one machine.
Microsoft, and many enterprise software vendors, have also been making their applications virtualized. Microsoft's SQL Server 2000 has multiple instance capability. Microsoft's Exchange Server, File/Print Servers, IIS Server, Terminal Server, etc. also don't really need virtualization support in the operating system. There are pros and cons of virtualizing within an application, but there are scenarios in which anything stronger, or lower level, is overkill, or not optimal.
Nemesis is an operating system designed at the University of Cambridge Computer Laboratory to support quality of service. The Nemesis kernel is extremely small and lightweight, and most of the operating system code executes in the application process itself. The kernel has a scheduler and some other code for low-level CPU management. There is a single global page table (a single address space), although per-process memory protection is still there. Since the kernel performs much less work on behalf of an application, there is much less scope for the "wrong" process being charged for somebody else's work (often referred to as QoS crosstalk).
Related ideas can be found in Bell Labs' Pebble Operating System, the V++ Cache Kernel, and the MIT Exokernel Operating System. Yet another example is that of the "Separation Kernel" that John Rushby talks about in his 1981 paper titled Design and Verification of Secure Systems. Rushby's paper discusses the specific case of the "Secure User Environment" (SUE): a minimally small and very simple kernel, providing a fixed, small number of regimes, each of which runs a fixed, small program.
Plex86 in its current life aims to provide a lightweight x86 virtual machine for running Linux. It does not handle instructions that cannot be virtualized (thus, it does not do any binary rewriting or code scanning). It also does not model any I/O devices.
The Linux kernel needs minor modifications in order to run under Plex86.
Programming languages are often implemented using virtual machines. Benefits of doing this include isolation (the virtual machine is a sandbox) and portability. The UCSD P-System was very popular in the 70s and the early 80s. It was a virtual machine running p-code (akin to bytecode), with UCSD PASCAL being the most popular programming language. The operating system itself was written in PASCAL.
The Java Virtual Machine (JVM) is another well known virtual machine. The JVM is an abstract computer: there is a Java VM specification that describes the "machine" (in terms of things such as a register set, a stack, a heap that's garbage collected, a method area, an instruction set, etc.) A JVM implementation for a particular platform (such as x86/Linux, x86/Windows, SPARC/Solaris, and so on) represents, among other things, a software implementation of the above specification. Note that it is also possible to implement the JVM in microcode, or even directly in silicon. The picoJava, for example, is a Java processor core. You can compile a Java program on any platform X and run it on any platform Y, given X and Y support JVM implementations. Unless Y is a "Java processor", its instruction set would be different from the (platform-independent) bytecode produced by the Java compiler. A JVM could interpret the bytecode one (Java) instruction at a time, or use JIT (Just-In-Time), a JVM-integrated optimization (it usually is faster, but not always) that takes the bytecode and compiles it into native code for the machine it is running on.
Note that the Java virtual machine doesn't really care about the Java programming language: it only knows the format of the class file, that contains JVM instructions (bytecodes), a symbol table, etc.
The JVM is not a multi-user virtual machine, although there have been research efforts to re-architect the JVM for safe multi-tasking with multi-user support.
Microsoft's .NET CLI is another example, and so is Parrot. There are many more popular and/or successful programming language virtual machines.
QLinux is an operating system that extends Linux to support quality of service. It was a result of joint work by the Universities of Massachusetts (Amherst) and Texas (Austin). QLinux includes a hierarchical start-time fair queueing (H-SFQ) CPU scheduler, an H-SFQ packet scheduler for network, the Cello disk scheduler, and Lazy Receiver Processing to incorporate fairer accounting of protocol processing overheads.
QLinux is very similar to ECLIPSE: the latter is based on FreeBSD, uses different scheduling algorithms, and uses a pseudo filesystem as a management interface.
Shade is a virtual machine that emulates a target system's ABI by dynamically cross-compiling the target machine code to run on the host system. Shade is also a program profiler: it can be used to (programmatically) trace/profile the programs that it executes.
Shade was a result of joint research by Sun Microsystems and University of Washington, Seattle.
Scout is a modular operating system targeted for small network appliances. It is communication-oriented, and incorporates several well-known network architecture improvements under one roof. It supports assigning of resources/limits to multiple data flows, that can be explicitly scheduled (so as to provide QoS guarantees). Incoming packets are "early demultiplexed" to these flow queues, and they are also dropped early if the queues become full. The single abstraction that captures these ideas is termed the path (a single TCP connection encapsulating a flow of data is a path, for example). SILK stands for Scout in the Linux Kernel. Scout exists as a Linux kernel module in SILK. It includes its own CPU scheduler and threads package (the Linux scheduler is still there). SILK runs as a highest priority real-time kernel task (which is different from LRP).
Simics is a platform for complete system simulation. It began life as gsim in 1991, which itself was based on the g88 which was written by Robert Bedicheck while at Tektronix. In the words of its project members: "[Simics] attempts to strike a balance between accuracy and performance. That is, it is sufficiently abstract to achieve tolerable performance level with, at the same time, sufficient functional accuracy to run commercial workloads and sufficient timing accuracy to interface to detailed hardware models." Simics model various processors and devices accurately enough to be able to run unmodified operating systems.
Simics is available for sparc-sun-solaris, x86-any-linux, and x86-microsoft-windows. Simics can run various Linux ports (ARM, MIPS, PowerPC, SPARC, x86, AMD64, IA64) on top of Simics hardware simulations, as well as VxWorks (PowerPC), OSE (PowerPC), Solaris (SPARC), and various Windows (x86, AMD64).
SimOS is a complete machine simulator developed at Stanford. It is capable of modeling complete computer systems (CPU, caches, multiprocessor memory buses, network devices, disk drives, other I/O devices, ...), although it allows you to control the level of simulation detail. Note that it is very similar to Simics. The SimOS project started in 1992 with the simulation of the Sprite system on SPARC hardware. The next implementation of SimOS simulated the (MIPS based) hardware of an SGI machine in enough detail to support IRIX. This implementation ran on an SGI machine as a host computer, allowing a direct-execution mode.
SimOS has also been extended to model a Digital Alpha processor, on which a port of Digital Unix can be run, and to the PowerPC, on which AIX can be run.
SimOS can optionally use Embra, a processor simulator that uses dynamic binary translation to generate code sequences that simulate the given workload.
Transitive is a company offering products based on dynamic binary translation. Quoted verbatim from its web site: "Transitive was founded in 2000 to create a software solution that enables applications written for one processor based system to be easily transported to another processor based system. The software solution, known as dynamic binary translation, is designed to allow system vendors the maximum flexibility in moving software applications to the optimum hardware platform."
Transitive says it has working solutions based on MIPS, x86, ARM/Xscale, PowerPC, and Itanium.
SimOS runs on mips-sgi-irix-5.x, mips-sgi-irix-6.x, alpha-dec-digitalunix, sparc-sun-solaris, and [5|6]86-any-linux.
Complete system simulators like Simics and SimOS have different primary uses than, say, something you would use to run an additional operating system for productivity. The variable level of detail these simulators can reproduce can be used to design and develop processors and devices, debugging and developing operating systems (since the sequence of events leading to an error can be captured in greater detail), testing for reliability and fault tolerance, studying memory behavior (since various kinds of memory and memory spaces can be simulated) etc.
Sun introduced static partitioning in 1996 on its E10K family of servers. The partitions, or domains, were defined by a physical subset of resources - such as a system board with some processors, memory, and I/O buses. A domain could span multiple boards, but could not be smaller than a board. Each domain ran its own copy of Solaris. In 1999, Sun made this partitioning "dynamic" (known as Dynamic System Domains) in the sense that resources could be moved from one domain to another.
By the year 2002, Sun had also introduced Solaris Containers: execution environments with limits on resource consumption, existing within a single copy of Solaris. Sun has been improving and adding functionality to its Resource Manager (SRM) product, which was integrated with the operating system beginning with Solaris 9. SRM is used to do intra-domain management of resources such as CPU usage, virtual memory, maximum number of processes, maximum logins, connect time, disk space, etc.
The newest Sun reincarnation of these concepts is (tentatively) called "Zones": a feature in the upcoming Solaris 10. According to Sun, the concept is derived from the BSD "jail" concept: a Zone (also known as a "trusted container") is an isolated and secure execution environment that appears as a "real machine" to applications. There is only one copy of the Solaris kernel.
While working for Ensim Corporation, I started the Solaris Virtual Private Server Project in late 1999. By the end of 2000, we had a virtualized version of Solaris, rather similar to the Solaris 10 Zones feature. There is only one instance of the kernel, but the operating system is divided into multiple isolated execution environments via a thin software layer, implemented mostly as a set of kernel modules. Each instance is visible as a "normal" operating system to applications within it, and is capable of running arbitrary complicated existing applications unmodified (such as the Oracle database server), with quality of service, and in complete isolation from applications on other instances.
Each instance can be managed (administered, configured, rebooted, shutdown, etc.) independently of others.
Note that this was product quality software and all work was done without ever having seen the source code for Solaris.
Sphera is a hosting automation and management software company. One of their products (now marketed as an underlying technology) is VDS, or Virtual Dedicated Server, that partitions a physical machine into multiple execution environments in software.
SWsoft announced its acquisition of Plesk (maker of Plesk Server Administrator) and Yippi-Yeah! E-Business (maker of Confixx, a control panel popular in Europe). SWsoft's own product, Virtuozzo, allows you to create Virtual Private Servers (or VPS, a terminology originally coined by Ensim). Virtuozzo instances can be dynamically partitioned, and have quality of service guarantees.
It may be worthwhile in certain scenarios to virtualize just the network stack, rather than an entire system. Isolated multiple network stacks (each with its own port space, routing table, packet filters, parameters, etc.) could be provided, either within the kernel, or running as user processes. Each stack could be given resource limits or guarantees.
This approach has been used in academic projects as well as by virtualization companies in their software.
User-Mode Linux, or simply UML, is a port of the Linux kernel to the abstract um architecture. In other words, UML is the Linux kernel ported to run on itself, that is, the system call interface. UML runs on Linux as a set of Linux user processes, which run normally until they trap to the kernel.
UML originally ran in what is now referred to as the tt (trace thread) mode. In this mode, a special trace thread ptraces UML threads, gets notified upon system call entry/exit, nullfies the original call (say, to getpid()), and notifies the UML kernel to execute the intended system call. Since the UML kernel and its processes both are in the "real" user space, the processes can read from and write to the kernel's memory. UML makes the relevant memory read-only temporarily, which hampers performance greatly. Modifications to the Linux kernel exist (the skas mode, for "Separate Kernel Address Space") that address many of these issues.
You can even compile a version of UML that can be nested inside another UML.
UMLinux is a framework for evaluating the behavior of networked Linux machines in the presence of faults. The faults themselves are injected via software in various locations such as the memory, CPU registers, block devices, and network interfaces. UMLinux is similar to User-Mode Linux (UML), but since the emphasis was on studying dependability behavior, UMLinux had memory protection of the user mode kernel (which UML did not, initially). Furthermore, UMLinux (the virtual machine, the "guest" kernel, and all the guest processes) is implemented as a single process on the host system.
Microsoft acquired Connectix, the maker of Virtual PC, in early 2003. Connectix was founded in 1988. The Virtual PC product was introduced in 1997, and has been the only viable x86 virtual machine solution for the Macintosh. The Windows product (Virtual PC for Windows) was introduced later. There is a version even for OS/2.
VMware, recently acquired by EMC, was founded in 1998. Its first product was VMware Workstation (1999). The GSX Server and ESX Server products were introduced in 2001.
VMware Workstation (as well as the GSX Server) has a hosted architecture: it needs a host operating system (such as Windows or Linux). In order to optimize the complex mix of performance, portability, ease of implementation, etc., the product acts as both a virtual machine monitor (talking directly to the hardware), and as an application that runs on top of the host operating system. The latter frees the VMM from having to deal with the large number of devices available on the PCs (otherwise the VMM would have to include device drivers for supported devices).
VMWare Workstation's hosted architecture includes the following components: a user-level application (VMApp), a device driver (VMDriver) for the host system, and a virtual machine monitor (VMM) that is created by VMDriver as it loads. Thereafter, an execution context can be either native (that is, the host's), or virtual (that is, belonging to a virtual machine). The VMDriver is responsible for switching this context. I/O initiated by a guest system is trapped the the VMM and forwarded to the VMApp, which executes in the host's context and performs the I/O using "regular" system calls. VMware uses numerous optimizations that reduce various virtualization overheads.
GSX Server is also hosted, but is targeted for server deployments and server applications.
VMware ESX Server enables a physical computer to be available as a pool of secure virtual servers, on which operating systems can be run. This is an example of dynamic, logical partitioning. Moreover, ESX Server does not need a host operating system (like VMware workstation) - it runs directly on hardware (in that sense, it is the host operating system). ESX server was inspired by work on Disco and Cellular Disco, which virtualized shared memory multiprocessor servers to run multiple instances of IRIX. As mentioned earlier, the IA-32 architecture is not naturally virtualizable. Certain "sensitive" instructions must be handled by the VMM, and cannot be simply executed in non-privileged mode because they don't cause a General Protection exception. ESX Server solves this problem by dynamically rewriting portions of an operating system kernel's code to insert traps at appropriate places - in order to catch such sensitive instructions. ESX Server can run multiple virtual CPUs per physical CPU. Multiple physical network interface cards can be logically grouped into a single, high-capacity, virtual network device.
Since virtualization-unfriendliness of IA-32 is a long standing issue, many approaches have been used to address it. Scanning code dynamically and inserting an illegal instruction before each instruction of interest is one option (which would then cause traps). You can also replace such instructions with subroutine calls.
Almost all common x86 operating systems do not use all four privilege modes provided by IA-32, which has been exploited for schemes to protect a guest operating system kernel from its user level processes.
z/VM, a multiple-access operating system that implements IBM virtualization technology, is the successor to IBM's VM/ESA operating system. z/VM can support multiple guest operating systems (there may be version, architecture, or other constraints), such as Linux, OS/390, TPF, VSE/ESA, z/OS, and z/VM itself. z/VM includes comprehensive system management API's for managing virtual images.
The real machine's resources are managed by the z/VM Control Program (CP), that also provides the multiple virtual machines. A virtual machine can be defined by its architecture (ESA, XA, and XC, that refer to specific IBM architectures), and its storage configuration (one of V=R, V=F, and V=V, refers to how the virtual machine's guest real storage is related to the host real storage).
TBD, even though this is the most important section of this document! | 2019-04-22T04:45:24Z | https://www.kernelthread.com/publications/virtualization/ |
Given that Bible translations are back in the news, I've given some thought to a blog post offering some introductory thoughts on translation differences and their importance.
1. We should give deep thanks to God for the translation of the Bible into English.
2. We should give deep thanks to God for those who have labored to translate the Bible into English.
We rarely stop to ponder the countless hours that scholars have labored to study the original languages and then worked in committee in order to produce the translations that we have today. We may disagree with their decisions here or there, or disagree across the board with the translation philosophy employed, but we must recognize that these men and women are seeking to glorify God and to serve Bible readers by aiming to reflect the original meaning and to connect with people today.
3. When viewing "translation continuum" charts, it is helpful to be aware of the how the issue is being framed and the philosophies defined.
It is instructive to notice what publishers are doing when they seek to present their understanding of how translations differ. If you're ever looking at a chart, you can discern almost instantly which publisher is behind it: their translation is always right in the middle, occupying the "golden mean," "the balanced, mediating position." This is not a criticism, but an observation that helps us see some of the subtle differences in understanding and presentation.
On the left-hand side you have "word for word" translations, represented on the extreme side by interlinears. On the right hand side you have "thought for thought" translations, represented by The Message. Right smack in the middle you have the NIV and TNIV, in that order. Note that the NLT is solidly on the "thought for thought" side of the continuum.
But Tyndale, the publisher of the NLT, has a somewhat similar continuum.
The difference is that the "thought for thought" category has moved to the center (golden mean; balanced, mediating position) and the extreme on the right (still The Message) is now labeled "paraphrase."
Another thing to notice is that the labels are apparently being defined differently. For Zondervan, the prototypical "word for word translation" is an interlinear, while for Tyndale it is the NASB. For Zondervan, the archetypal "thought for thought translation" is The Message, whereas Tyndale places the NLT in that category and puts The Message into the "paraphrase" category.
We should be cautious in how we use the word "literal."
I know many will disagree with me on this, but I think we should have a moratorium on the word "literal." It may have its place, but I think the word is fraught with potential misunderstanding. It is extremely commonplace for a preacher to say that term X is "literally" A. What we are seeking in interpretation is an author's communicative intention in using particular words in particular ways in particular contexts. A good lexicon provides readers with a range of words in the receptor language that correspond with, or denote, the term in the source language. But merely looking up term X in the lexicon and seeing the verbal equivalent A does not mean we should say that "X is literally A."
One fruitful way to understand the differences in translation is to identify the degree to which they seek to provide clarification.
Translation from one language to another requires a linguistic change: the grammatical form of the source language must be reworked and decoded into the receptor language.
The difference in translation philosophy and practice comes about, in part, based upon the degree to which the translators seek to go beyond this linguistic requirement in order to provide further clarification.
What is an essentially literal, or transparent, translation?
An “essential literal” or “transparent” translation seeks to minimize such clarifications as much as possible.
A transparent translation conveys as much as possible of what was said, and how it was said, in as near word-for-word form as the target audience allows, though inevitably with some difference and imperfectly.
For serious study, readers need a translation that is more transparent to the "otherness" of Scripture. We need a translation that allows the Bible to say what it says, even if that seems strange and odd to readers at first glance.
. . . As a member of Christ's body and a Bible teacher, I am pleading for a type of translation that is more consistently transparent, so that the original shines through it to the extent permitted by the target language.
One example of this approach is seen in the translation of the image in 1 Kings 2:10, where David is said to be sleeping with his fathers (1 Kings 2:10). Alan Jacobs (Professor of English at Wheaton College and a prolific essayist and cultural critic) discussed this in his essay, “A Bible for Everyone” (First Things, December 2003). He explained why it is crucial to know the difference between an idiom and a metaphor.
It is a distinction both simple and vital. It is highly unlikely that a Jew of David’s time, or at any time in Israel’s history, would have found a family member’s dead body and run to tell everyone that grandpa was now sleeping with his fathers. Hebrew has words to express quite directly that someone has died; the chronicler of Kings chooses here to eschew them in favor of a particularly hieratic and formal way of describing the death of David. When (in 2 Samuel 1) a man comes from the camp of Israel’s army to report to David, he says simply that Saul (along with his son Jonathan) has died. The deaths of Saul and Jonathan are given no cultural or political meaning, because by the time this history was written the people of Israel no longer identified Saul as having special importance for their national identity. David, by contrast, is for the Israelites their first true King, the head of a proper dynastic line; therefore he does not merely die, he “sleeps with his fathers” in Jerusalem, the “city of David.” The phrase is not an idiom—a common phrase lacking an evident literal meaning—instead, it is a carefully chosen image of David’s place in the culture of Israel.
By translating it “sleep with his fathers,” an essential literal or transparent translation recognizes that the form of the original is essential to communicate accurate meaning.
Metaphors grab us and work on us and in us. . . . [I]t is the foreignness of metaphors that is their virtue. Metaphors make us stop and think, Now what does that mean? It is not clear to me that replacing metaphors with abstractions makes it easier for readers. . . . Metaphors are multifaceted and function to invoke active thought on the part of the receiver. Receivers must think and feel their way through a metaphor, and it is this very process that gives the metaphor its power to take hold of receivers as they take hold of it.
So Which Translation Approach Is Best?
I believe that Christian brothers and sister—whether professors, pastors, or people in the pew—can have good faith disagreements regarding translation philosophy. My intention here is not to denigrate other translations, but rather to provide further explanation for the translation approach behind the ESV.
I've been mulling over whether or not to do a post or two about translation theory, since translations are back in the news. Whether or not I'll get around to it, I'm not sure, but two of my points would be that much of the issue comes down to (a) the meaning of "meaning" and (2) the relationship between "form" and "meaning."
But perhaps I can offer just a thought or two about the word literal. The word is almost unavoidable, but I think we should take pains to use it carefully and rarely. The reason is that it can be used in a number of different ways, and it is quite easy to misunderstand.
Consider the question, "Do you take the Bible literally?"
Many of us would answer, "Yes," because we take the Bible seriously in accord with its varying genres seeking to determine the author's intent; in other words, we don't treat it as a fictional fable with spiritualized lessons. The questioner probably has in mind things like whether Adam and Eve were historical people, whether Jonah was really swallowed by a whale, whether Jesus really walked on water, etc. They are not asking silly things like, "So if Jesus says he's the door, where are his hinges?" They want to know if we understand the details of history and miracles metaphorically.
With regard to translation debates, some people use "literally" to mean translating woodenly. For them, translating "literally" is tantamount to "transcribing" (which is not the same as "translating").
And on the other side of the spectrum, there are well-known pastors who tell their congregations every week that in this passage, the term "X" is "literally, A." In other words, by "literally" they mean lexically.
So when someone asks me if I take the Bible literally, or what this passage means literally, or what the literal meaning of this word is, it's quite difficult to answer until we know how they are using the word. Are they asking about seriousness, the cognitive element of a metaphor, the lexical meaning of a word, etc.
Let me say just one more thing about the idea of saying about a word that it "literally" means X.
What we are seeking in interpretation is an author's communicative intention in using particular words in particular ways in particular contexts. A good lexicon is a helpful too but an artificial construct. It provides readers with a range of words in the receptor language that correspond with, or denote, the term in the source language. But merely looking up term X in the lexicon and seeing the verbal equivalent A does not mean we should say that "X is literally A." It may be that A accurately represents X, but that is not determined by the lexical entry but rather by the context and the way in which the author intends to use the word to communicate his point.
We all know the story of the two criminals crucified with Jesus on the cross.
The details are relatively sparse. We know that three men were crucified: Jesus the Messiah, with one man on his left, and one man on his right (Luke 23:33).
One of the men--on the left or on the right, we don't know--"railed at" (or reviled) Jesus, saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” (Luke 23:39).
Little did he know that the only way for Jesus to "save them" was to refuse to "save himself."
But the railing criminal received a surprising response. He was rebuked by his fellow criminal, who responded: “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong" (Luke 23:40-41).
He recognized the necessity of fearing God, the reality of his guilt, the justice of his punishment, and the innocence of Jesus. These were all the facts he knew. He then turned to Jesus and cried out, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."
Mark 15:32: "Those who were crucified with him also reviled him."
“Each of Vern Poythress’s books has been, in my judgment, the best book on its particular subject, whether science, hermeneutics, dispensationalism, theological method, gender-neutral Bible translation, or the Mosaic law. Not only are these books expertly researched and cogently argued, but they are explicitly Christian in their starting point, method, and conclusion (to use a phrase of Cornelius Van Til). Poythress does not merely claim that these disciplines allow a place for God, or that a theistic worldview provides useful context, or that engagement in such studies is somehow useful to Christians. Rather, he comes right in your face with the claims of Christ: All of these studies are grounded in the nature and work of the triune God, and nothing can be rightly understood apart from him. God is not merely a possibility, not merely a conclusion, but the starting point for any understanding at all.
If you have BTW on your blogroll, it'd be a help if you would adjust your link accordingly.
You'll have to subscribe to the new feed, as this current one will no longer be updated.
In my inaugural post at the new site I explain why I'm happy to have BTW associated with TGC. Hope to see you over there!
WTS Books is offering Mike Horton's new book, The Gospel-Driven Life: Being Good News People in a Bad News World (Baker), for 45% off. The offer is good for the next week and a half.
This book is a sequel to Christless Christianity, moving from "the crisis to solutions, in the hope that we will see a new reformation in the faith, practice, and witness of contemporary Christianity."
The goal of this book is to reorient our faith and practice as Christians and churches toward the gospel: that is, the announcement of God's victory over sin and death in his Son, Jesus Christ. The first six chapters explore that breaking news from heaven, while the rest of the book focuses on the kind of community that this gospel generates in our world. It is not merely that there is a gospel and then a community of people who believe it; the gospel creates the kind of community that is even now an imperfect preview of the kingdom's marriage feast that awaits us.
You can read some free sample material from the book here.
We are not an ancient, agrarian society.
Most importantly, our property was not assigned directly by God.
Our economy is not based on a fixed piece of land.
Our nation is not under the Mosaic covenant.
Most of us are not Jews.
We should find ways to give opportunities for the poor to succeed.
The Bible supports the existence of private property.
The Bible relativizes private property.
Our God is the God of second chances.
You may have read, in this paper or elsewhere, six members of our church recently circulated unsolicited letters and a petition voicing their opposition to my leadership and requesting a congregational meeting to vote on whether to keep me as their pastor. Citing things like my desire not to wear a robe when I preach, not honoring the legacy and preferences of Dr. Kennedy to the degree that I should, making personnel changes (bringing in my staff from New City), and not preaching political sermons, these six members have been working to remove me as pastor.
The saddest thing about all of this is that, because of the visibility of both Coral Ridge and my family, this conflict has taken on a national interest. The reason this grieves me so deeply is because the Bible says God wants the church to be a visual model of the gospel. He wants us, in other words, to live our lives together in such a way that we demonstrate the good news of reconciliation before the watching world.
The late Francis Schaeffer once noted that bitter divisions among Christians give the world the justification they're looking for to disbelieve the gospel. But when reconciliation, peacemaking, and unity are on display inside the church, that becomes a powerful witness to this fractured world. "Just as I have loved you," Jesus commanded, "you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another" (John 13:34-35).
To get this matter behind us once and for all, the elders and I have called this congregational meeting and a vote will take place on Sunday. You will no doubt read about the result, but whatever it is, I want to say three things to the South Florida community that I love so much and have called home for 37 years. . . .
You can read the rest here. And please pray for Tullian and for Coral Ridge, especially regarding the vote this Sunday.
Al Mohler's latest article reflects on the combination of two disturbing developments: (1) 95% of mothers who discover the high risk of Down syndrome in their babies through prenatal screening choose to have the lives of these babies terminated. (2) New technologies for prenatal diagnosis are on their way. The almost-certain result is that there will be more prenatal testing, and therefore more termination of human life.
Dr. Mohler also cites this journal article by Dr. Brian Skotko (an expert in DS), who cites evidences that nearly 1 in 4 doctors either actively "urge" termination or "emphasize" the negative aspects of DS so as to encourage termination.
. . . health care providers have historically operated under the assumption that if a woman consents to prenatal screening or diagnosing, she must believe that having a child with DS would be an undesired outcome and wish to terminate her pregnancy if such a diagnosis were made prenatally.
Knowing that assumption is crucial. As Dr. Mohler writes: "Expectant parents should read that sentence over and over again, and so should those who counsel them."
Stephen Smallman has given us a great gift with his new book, The Walk: Steps for New and Renewed Followers of Jesus (P&R, 2009).
It’s now the first resource I’d recommend for disciples wanting to make disciples (which should be all of us). Marked by good theology, a focus on the Bible, and a warm and winsome approach, this “discipleship for dummies” manual is just what all of us need.
"This is the fruit of a lifetime of experience in ministry. I recommend this warm, practical, gospel-centered and very useful manual on discipleship."
"Lots of people have a heart for discipleship, but few have the ability to apply the gospel to a person's spiritual journey (seeker and believer alike) with the compassion and wisdom of Steve Smallman. His heart for God and for people energizes his ministry and this book."
"Basic, clear, and biblical throughout. All who read this book will have their knowledge of the gospel deepened, and they will also learn to make better use of the gospel in their pursuit of holiness and ministry to others. May Christ continue to bless his church with books like this!"
You can read online for free the preface, table of contents, and first chapter.
As I consider the last six months (and especially this upcoming Sunday) and how kind God has been to convince me that everything minus Jesus equals nothing, but Jesus plus nothing equals everything, I am reminded of my grandmother who passed away in June 2007. She knew Christ’s companionship like no one I’ve ever known. She reveled in the wrecking power of the gospel day in and day out. She lived life like she had nothing to lose because she knew that, in Christ, she had nothing to lose! This enabled her to live with great freedom, fearlessness, and unbounded courage.
For many, many years I have begged God to make me like her– to give me a sharp mind, a soft heart, and a steel spine like he gave her. I can only hope and pray that as God continues to strip me of everything but Him, I would become more like her.
There’s an important difference between unevangelized and unreached peoples.
Unevangelized people are unconverted individuals in places where there are established churches. Unreached peoples are those that live in regions where there are no churches and no access to the evangelical gospel in their culture.
And to answer your question about the present trend; 96% of the missionary work force is still laboring in unevangelized, but not truly unreached regions. Here it is again – 9 out of 10 Christian missionaries that go cross-cultural are still going to reached places!
Here’s still another way to say it – Something like 90% of all “ministers” worldwide are concentrating on only 2% of the world’s population! We are massively overly evangelizing places where the gospel is already well planted! I believe that we need a substantial strategic redeployment of the missionary workforce to the areas where there is still no access to the evangelical gospel.
The “Big Book” fallacy is the notion that anything that is said in a big book, especially a multivolume series of big books, must be, at a minimum, factually correct, and at a maximum, correct in its judgment. This is fallacious, because error is error, regardless of its domicile. Peer-reviewed error may be less common than non-peer-reviewed error, but it still exists. No editor checks the factual accuracy of every sentence he edits, and therefore, even in big books, multi-volume big books, and/or multi-volume big books with good reputations, error still exists, and we should not repeat the error without either citing the source or checking the source.
See the two examples he cites--the first from Kittel's TDNT, the second from Keil's commentary on Joel 2:28.
Slate has a nifty tool to create a plot for the next Dan Brown conspiracy-thriller-novel. Just plug in a city and a sect, and their computer will do the rest!
When relationships are built around the truths of the gospel—the truth that we are walking in light even though we are still sinners in need of cleansing by his blood—we can be free from feelings of inferiority and the demanding spirit that is born of pride. We can pursue relationships without fear of being discovered as the sinners we are. This kind of open relationship rests solely on the realities of the gospel. We are more sinful and flawed than we ever dared believe, and so is everyone we know. Because of this, we won’t be surprised by other’s sins. They won’t expect us to be sinless either, so we don’t have to give in to self-condemnation and fear when they see us as we really are. We don’t have to hide or pretend anymore.
I highly recommend this album. This album is a means of preaching the gospel to yourself. It is a tool to remind yourself of God’s adopting grace. It will help convince you of God’s passionate and personal love for you. Listening to the truths of these songs will help clear away any suspicions you have of God, and help you to contemplate his love for you, evidenced nowhere more clearly than in the death of his beloved Son.
An excellent post by Voddie Baucham, contrasting two recent Basketball Hall of Fame induction speeches: the arrogant and self-serving speech of Michael Jordan, and the humble, grateful speech of David Robinson.
Here's an attractive, easy way to view Crossway's academic catalog for next year.
It's a book about the importance of knowing Jesus Christ and building your life on a true knowledge of him. I care very much about its message and want to do all I can to spread it to people who are indifferent or unconcerned about Christian theology. I'd like to create a series of short videos that can be played online to generate interest in the book.
But I have another desire that informs what I'm announcing today: I want to encourage Christians to get involved in the arts--in particular, film. At different times and different ways I've done what I could to encourage young filmmakers to hone their gifts and use film to influence the world for Christ.
So I'm combining my need for promotional videos with my desire to make an investment in Christian filmmakers. And I'm doing this in the form of a contest.
Somehow just meeting Warren reinforced in my mind the challenge we face as we reconcile ourselves to a fast-paced, digital world in which a person can quickly dash off a missive that can severely impact another person on the other side of the continent. It seems that ethics and morality have been a bit slow to catch up to ability in this new digital world. As I read those three reviews I realized that in each case there would be things I might say just a little differently. I am too often prone to forget that the authors whose books I review are real people and I am too quick to ignore my conscience when I consider whether the things I write and post online for all the world to read are things I would also say face-to-face. I hope this will help me in the future as I seek to be fair and godly in all that I write.
Those doing textual criticism in the NT will be interested in this blog post by Dan Wallace about a new web-based application that can save a significant amount of time.
Registration for the DG conference (Sept. 25-27) on Calvin is still open.
In addition to the talks on Calvin, there will be a couple of additional events.
On Friday evening, Sept. 25, they will preview the 80-minute documentary, Collision, which traces the debates and conversations of Douglas Wilson and Christopher Hitchens. The movie, which I've seen, is very much worth your time. You can pre-order the DVD from Amazon, and watch the first 13 minutes at the end of this post.
COLLISION - 13 min VIMEO Exclusive Sneak Peek from Collision Movie on Vimeo. | 2019-04-20T03:21:19Z | https://theologica.blogspot.com/ |
On mindfulness, investigation into the nature of things, energy, delight, tranquillity, concentration and equanimity.
The following pages are called the Seven Facets of Insight, although their subject matter is more commonly referred to as the “Seven Factors of Enlightenment” (satta sambojjhaṅga). Factors are constituents (aṅga) which form the make-up, whereas “facets” seem to indicate their various aspects.
It is a point of controversy, whether enlightenment or realisation is a gradual process of evolution (and that seems to be the predominant view of present Theravāda in Sri Lanka, though far from exclusive), or whether the knowing and seeing of the truth is not an evolution at all. To many, (orthodox as well as independent thinkers) it is rather a revolution than an evolution. There will be, of course, the necessary ground conditions, but the factual moment of enlightenment or realisation is a point of seeing (not a point of view!) which cannot be taught, although it would be possible to pin-point the obstacles to seeing.
For some, these obstacles appear as help; their danger lies in our attachment to those crutches. We note a thorn in our flesh; then we make use of another thorn to remove it. Having succeeded, what are we doing with the two thorns? Do we throw them away? Or do we keep them for further use on another occasion? That would be like preserving them as relics, and enshrining them in a dagoba!
The seven facets are not to be seen as a system of evolution in emancipation; but each aspect provides a more complete view as from a different approach and thus they do not constitute a gradual course of enlightenment, but rather different sights, till in the end the picture is complete. Each facet reflects the light and thereby sheds new light, allowing the light to shine through. Each one gives more freedom; yet, there is no freedom till all obstacles have been removed. Thus these factors are facets; they do not lead to the light, but they allow the light which is within each one of us to shine through and brighten our understanding, if we care and dare to look.
Such is the revolution of the mind, when thought ceases and insight takes over.
It is clear from the Pāli word that the seven factors to be discussed here are not seven steps or stages which gradually lead up to enlightenment. They are the constituents of enlightenment (bojjhaṅga), the members (aṅga), the components so to say, which contribute each and all to the full realisation of enlightenment (bodhi). Enlightenment is not, however, something dependent on those factors, or separate from them. They constitute and are enlightenment. And thus one may say that enlightenment, although not produced by them, as Nibbāna is the unconditioned (asaṅkhata). It contains them, comprises, includes those constituents. Without them there would be no enlightenment, no realisation.
To understand this clearly one should be very pure in conscience and in consciousness, that is innocent and unprejudiced. Without such purity of virtue, which is non-attachment to property and views, without such clarity of intelligence, unbiased and unconditioned, there can be no penetrating insight which alone can see and understand the reality of things as they are (yathā-bhūta-ñāṇa-dasana). This “seeing” has no special object and no intention of purpose; and thus truth is not a goal to achieve, enlightenment is not a destination, realisation is not an ideal to become real; but it is a total revolution in living, a complete freedom from all restrictions, an awakening of intelligence, which cannot revert to a dream-state of memory and imagination, while seeing what is.
The constituents of this supreme enlightenment (sambojjhaṅga) are seven, and they are included in another set of 37 factors which form the culture and the development of wisdom (bodhipakkhiya dhamma). Here we are interested in the seven constituents (satta sambojjhaṅga) which form the penetrating insight of the four Noble Truths, which is the realisation of the deliverance of Nibbāna.
The seven are mindfulness (sati), investigation into the nature of things (dhamma-vicaya), energy (viriya), delight (pīti), tranquillity (passaddhi), concentration (samādhi) and equanimity (upekkhā), It is the harmony of these seven which constitute enlightenment, and are thus the seven conditions which conduce to full comprehension and the complete ending of all conflict. Individually, however, they seem to have characteristics which are more suitable to some states of mind than others on different occasions. Thus, investigation into the nature of things together with energy and delight are more profitable when a sluggish mind needs exertion, while tranquillity, equanimity and concentration assist in subduing an over-enthusiastic mind. Mindfulness on the other hand is essential in providing food for all.
And so it is mindfulness (sati) which is indispensable, and which, therefore, heads the list of seven. The root-meaning is derived from (smṛti), remembrance, and hence it is frequently interpreted as memory. However, as a constituent factor of wisdom it is an alert awareness in the present rather than a flash-back to the past as memory. Memory is essential for the continuance of existence, because without memory there is no recognition, no knowledge, and hence no possibility of striving, it is then in memory that the ‘I’ can find itself, can make itself secure, and in projection thereof can continue. But that, of course, is the very source and cause of all conflict, namely the conflict between the ideal and the actual. And so, while memory secures the ideal, it is mindfulness which is alert in watchfulness over the actual.
For alertness there must be purity of conscience and clarity of consciousness, When there is attachment either to property or to opinions, there is no purity of mind, and in this cloud of possessiveness it is not possible to be detached and free from conditioning. When there is pre-occupation of thought through prejudice or fear, there is no contact possible with that which is real. Alertness avoids both, by being mindful of that which is. Thus an alert mind will be aware of the mind’s inclinations, objects of thought, purposes of will, intentions of desire; and in that mindfulness it will not be influenced by memory, nor conditioned by ideals.
Mindfulness then leads to insight, because it is awareness of the true nature of an action. Awareness is knowledge without assertion or comparison, without denial or acceptance; for all these judgements are the expressions of the reflecting ‘self’, which distorts the view in isolating itself from the conditioning environment. It is the delusion of ‘self’ which approves or disapproves of certain feelings, But by mere attentiveness, watchfulness, awareness and mindfulness those feelings will be perceived as sensuous reactions to the environment. The understanding of this action-reaction-process will overcome all misconception about individuality, whereby the root-cause of the conflict will have been removed. Then, no thoughts will arise such as: “I feel pain or pleasure”; but simply: “this is feeling”; no thoughts as: “I am freed”; but simply: “this is a liberated thought”; no thought as: “this is my body”; but simply: “such is matter, its origin and dissolution”.
Thus, mindfulness solves the problem of conflict, just because it has no purpose of its own. For, while it is through purposeful volition that opposites are created as the cause of all conflict, pure mindfulness avoids all such complications by merely seeing things as they are.
Mindfulness is real meditation, in which the object-matter is not a chosen object, but the actual operation of the mind itself. In actual meditation of insight (vipassanā) the problems of conflict cease to have any meaning. Here the conflict between being and becoming is not dissolved in a search for a solution, but it is seen as the working of thought, of ‘self’ in isolation and in opposition, Here, the motive of the search becomes the object of awareness, not with a view to achieving control of mind or attaining the goal of an ideal, but as being the actual working of thought. Then, without appropriation or rejection, without method or purpose, it will be seen that the working of thought in actuality is the search for survival of a thought, an experience in the past, a thought in which the ‘I’ continues, and which the mind, that same ‘self’, tries to project in order to become in the future as an ideal, an abstract thought, which can exist for ever as a spiritual soul in the security of being.
It is only mindfulness which can be aware of every movement of thought, of every experience of volition. And in seeing without distortion, without reference to the memory of experience, there is the realisation of the void of the ‘self’, and hence of the void of conflict.
This is a research into the nature of things (dhammavicaya) in its widest sense. Not only the doctrine (dhamma) of the Buddha is here the object of discernment (sallakkhaṇa), but even the general phenomena as they appear, either in one’s own conditioning (ajjhatta-dhamma), or as external phenomena (bahiddha-dhamma) which become the objects of one’s reactions.
It is referred to as a critical analysis, which would provide the necessary knowledge required for action. And as action is life, it is obvious that this research is of very great importance. The spirit of enquiry is, of course, far removed from the unskilful doubt or perplexity (vicikicchā), which is a wavering state of indecision. Research as a factor of enlightenment, is very much decided as regards its motivation, even if the object of research has not been fully analysed and understood. This decisiveness of investigation may, on the other hand, prove to be an obstacle – in so far, as there may be prejudice involved in the search. A search, of course, is always in the dark, even if there is some indication of direction in which investigation should take place.
Such indications are provided by those who are experts, who have the knowledge and the experience, and who, therefore, can be of help in showing the way. In this regard, the teaching of the Buddha is a most valuable help, just because the Buddha refused to be a saviour, but only showed the way to go, to investigate, to find out for ourselves. If therefore our reliance on the teaching (dhamma) becomes such as to result in the attachment to blind faith, then all research will have come to an end, and with it the possibility of understanding.
Now, in investigation it is natural to draw up a plan of action; and in following that plan one expects to reach the desired destination. And therein lies the flaw and the danger against which the Buddha himself warned us, namely the reliance on authority, which is the retention of the past through memory. True investigation, to be an actual analysis and research, cannot start with presuppositions and working hypotheses. An open mind without attachment to the past (which includes even the words of the Buddha) and without desire for the future (which includes also one’s own interpretation of those words to suit one’s own convenience and prejudice) – only such an open mind may observe the phenomena which are, which arise, which cease. And thus, this research is very closely linked with the alertness of mindfulness (sati), which watches and sees, and in seeing understands.
Now, perception (saññā) in the mind can see the conception of an idea (viññāṇa), while the full understanding of this process constitutes the insight (paññā) which is enlightenment, of which investigation (dhamma-vicaya) is a factor. As long as perception is guided towards a preconceived notion, there will be distorted knowledge, aimed at achievement and attainment of virtue or possession. And that aim of action will naturally give colour to the idea conceived in the mind. Then the aim will be seen, and knowledge will be interpreted in that light; but that is not the understanding of what is, not insight into the real nature of things.
This real nature of things, whether they are one’s own conditioning or one’s reactions thereto, is now the object of investigation. When this research is begun without any motive beyond the understanding thereof, the mind is open and innocent, is not attached and not averse. Then any activity of thought will at once be bared. The mere opening up is a revelation: and that is the truth; that is enlightenment.
There can be knowledge without insight. Knowledge can be acquired through books, through hearing, through learning, through remembering, through inference, through authority; it is an acquisition which strengthens the ‘I’-concept which provides a further goal, a purpose in existence, a means of continuance, a projection of ‘self’.
But, insight has no goal in the future, it has no base in the past, it is just seeing things now, as they are. Insight is seeing one’s actions as reactions to a motive; and in understanding this process, the motive which is the continuation of a delusion ceases. That means that action as a reaction ceases; thought as memory ceases; will as an ideal ceases. For, none of those is real, now, in the present. Thus, in insight there is freedom of understanding and that is enlightenment.
At this stage of moral evolution the actuality of the factors of enlightenment are functioning on a ground, which has sufficiently been cleared of obstacles and impediments, so that the out-going force of effort (āyama), which was so important on the Noble Eightfold Path, can function as the inner strength of energy (viriya).
Thus, where right effort (Sammā-vāyāma) is restricted as a fourfold endeavour to remove the obstacles which have arisen, or to prevent them from arising, or to bring about favourable conditions, or to improve the existing ones, there is now operating an inner energy (viriya), which is the positive contribution to the arising of an intelligent awakening, as a factor of enlightenment. Both aspects, of course, are equally important; and hence one finds this factor not only mentioned as a step on the path (magg’ aṅga) and a factor of enlightenment (bojjh’ aṅga), but also among of the group of five powers (pañca bala) and again among of the group of five controlling faculties (pañca indriya). In all of these classifications there is a slight difference of aspect: the outgoing effort on the path, the inner energy towards awakening, the power of overcoming obstacles, and the faculty of culture, of evolving.
Energy (viriya) is then the capacity, the inner force, the latent ability which only requires a suitable environment, such as an impelling condition to become an active operation. It is not activity itself, but the power to act. Hence one can speak of static or latent energy, which, however, is merely potential and not actual. Energy is, therefore, more of the nature of a characteristic, and as such it is classified as a mental factor (viriya cetasikā).
Methodical effort is directed towards a goal. There is in it the element of purposeful striving, of desire for attainment, of protection of an ideal to be achieved. Such effort has nothing vague or experimental about it, as the goal of the ideal has already been fixed. Hence, in right effort (Sammā-vāyāma) there is no doubt, no indecision, no wavering, no hesitation, no perplexity. Such is the effort required on the path (magg’aṅga) and is therefore always right effort (Sammā-vāyāma), directed towards an object which will produce a skilful effect.
But energy as mental factor (viriya cetasikā) is one of the six particular ones (pakiṇṇaka cetasikā), or miscellaneous ones which do not occur in all classes of thought, such as the seven general mental factors (sādhāraṇa cetasikā). It is not exclusively good or skilful (kusala), such as right effort on the path (Sammā-vāyāma); and thus it derives its significance from its association with other skilful or unskilful mental factors. Hence it is called “either one or the other” (añña samāna). It gives vigour to the action of its concomitants, it supports them for better or for worse; and thus it has a double function, unlike the fourfold function of effort. By supporting it prevents the other factors from falling away, and thereby makes them persevere; its other function being the taking of initiative (uṭṭhāna viriya) which has exertion as its characteristic (ussahana-lakkhaṇa).
Energy is always mental (Atthasālinī I, iv, 2). Hence it does not arise through any of the five bodily senses, neither does it arise or associate with investigation of an incomplete thought (santīraṇa), which must not be confused with the investigation (dhamma-vicaya), the spirit of enquiry, which is another factor of enlightenment.
This digression was necessitated by the need to avoid possible confusion in the word “investigation” as research-analysis (dhamma-vicaya) and as the reaction following a mental impression (santīraṇa), the first being a factor of enlightenment, the latter being the seventh thought-moment (cittakkhaṇa) in a single thought-unit (cittuppada).
The exuberant joy (pīti) which is a mental exultation is not a sensational feeling but an emotional exuberance of zestful delight in various degrees of intensity. It is either accompanied by directed and sustained thought (savitakka-savicāra), in which case it is directed by the discursive process of logical application, and has similarities and dissimilarities as its objects in view; or it is dissociated from those mental activities (avitakka-avicāra), which brings delight to a higher plane and a more refined development which is no longer dependent on the logic of thought, as is evidenced in the second stage of mental absorption (jhāna).
It is the exuberance of this emotional experience which prevents the mind to become sluggish. Concentration on, and recollection of, the good qualities and virtues of the Buddha, his order and his teaching, the efficacy of right conduct, especially of generosity, leading to the bliss of rebirth in happy spheres, are some of the factors contributing to the development of this zestful delight, which can be experienced even without sensory satisfaction. It is much more intense than the happiness of well-being, because it has the thrill of expectation, because it does not have the fear of loss and because it is entirely intellectual. Thus, it is an ideal factor leading up to wisdom, as long as the zestful interest is not centred on a desire for self-satisfaction. This danger is not imaginary, for the element of expectation in its anticipation may well inspire some forms of desire, which then would open an escape route for a mind in conflict, leading away from insight.
Although delight could be experienced, having a wish for gratification as its object, that would, of course, never be a factor of enlightenment. Thus, great satisfaction is sometimes derived from the compassion of others, which then becomes a clinging to one’s misery being the source of that satisfaction. Such attitude would be found in a mind which finds delight in morbidity. It is then that delight (pīti) combines with the unhealthy disposition of sloth (thīna).
In the chain of dependent origination and cessation, which shows the evolution of ignorance into conflict, and the solution of conflict into understanding, there the experience of conflict (dukkha) leads one to confidence (saddha) in a teacher or physician, whose prescription may provide a turning point of misery into joy (pamojja), which in turn will become sheer delight (pīti). This delight itself will then be the factor which through serene tranquillity of mind (passaddhi) becomes the factor of wisdom (bojjh‘aṅga) which is enlightenment.
And so it will be seen that this delightful interest has to be handled with extreme care, as it can lead on in a search for self-gratification, as well as to the realisation of no-self (anatta), which is the freedom of emancipation. Thus it is of great significance to note that the karmically inoperative state (kriya-citta) which can arise only in one “who is purged of the intoxicants” (khiṇāsavā), that is, in an arahant, is yet accompanied by joy (somanassa sahagata), for he alone can have delight and yet be not affected by it.
It is only in the fourth stage of mental absorption in the spheres of pure form (rūpa-jhāna) that delightful interest (pīti) is replaced by the predominant factor of well-being in the harmony of ease (sukha). When thus the excitement of rapturous joy, which is so natural in the process of acquisition within the sight of the goal of achievement, has given way to intelligent awareness (sampajāna), it is then that the three final factors take over which constitute the experience of emancipation in enlightenment.
A final note on the place of joy in Buddhism, which is sometimes regarded as pessimistic owing to the stress laid on conflict, will not be out of order here. Out of the 121 different mental states composed of numerous mental factors (cetasikā), there are only two which are accompanied by melancholy (domanassa sahagata), owing to their being yoked to repugnance or aversion (paṭigha-sampayutta), but there are 62 which are accompanied by joy in its different manifestations of delightful interest (pīti), ethical well-being (sukha), mental joy (somanassa), as pleasurable investigation (santīraṇa) or aesthetic pleasure (hasituppāda).
Composure of mind is that serenity (passaddhi) in which both the concomitants of consciousness, namely, reception of contact (vedanā), perception of cognition (saññā) and conception or formation of concepts (saṅkhāra), as well as consciousness itself as recognition (viññāṇa), are free from the disturbances of defilements (kilesa).
It is the calming down of the searching mind, the coolness of the passions of love and hate the pacification of conflict, the repose of agitation. And in that atmosphere of tranquillity it is possible for a state of utter calm to arise, a state of mind in which there is no attachment to the past, no veneration for tradition merely because it is ancient, no fear of consequences, no hope of ideals, no escape from the unknown and no projection of imagination, of the image-forming mind (saṅkhāra). Thus, there is a calming down of the restlessness of a mind in search, in doubt, in conflict. It is from the zest of delight (pīti) that the tranquil mind passes on to the sense of security which is bliss (sukha) in the absence of conflict (dukkha), leading to insight and final release (vimutti).
It is only the tranquil mind which is not conditioned, not motivated, not dependent; and thus in its freedom there is a direct understanding in perfect equilibrium without opposition. This tranquillity is due to an un motivated approach, which is not a search, but which is seeing without choice, without distortion, which is acting without craving, which is understanding through direct insight, and which is, thereby, a factor of enlightenment.
Insight is prevented and obstructed by fore-sight, when the ideal is chosen as the object for surviving and attainment. This striving is the self-projection which disturbs, distorts and disfigures the present moment, which can only be seen in the tranquil reflection of a calm mind and cool emotions. When thought, which is memory, has ceased to function with its clinging to the past, when thought, which is a self-projected ideal, has ceased to function with its craving for the future, then there is only the present moment, which can be seen and understood in the tranquillity of a mind which has ceased to think and project. That is the atmosphere in which there can be direct perception of what is, of the activity of thought and the reaction of volition, a direct experiencing without interpretation, direct understanding without purpose or desire, without comparison or distortion, without desire or aversion. That is the light, in which there is truth and the realisation of truth, which is enlightenment.
The tranquillity (passaddhi) of mind and mental factors provides the proper setting for mental concentration (samādhi) which is the culture of calm (samatha-bhāvanā). It is the unification of the activities of the mind, the balancing of the faculties of the mind, the focussing of the factors of the mind on one centre. Thus it excludes distraction and leads to one-pointedness of mind (ekaggatā).
Concentration (samādhi) is a means and an end. It is a means of recollection (anussati) and hence of gathering one’s thought. That alone, of course, is not enough, even if it prevents distraction. For, gathering is always a tendency of collecting; and that is also true of recollection. Here it is the bringing together of what is remembered of what is selected, of what is thought profitable.
And thus, basically, recollection (sati) and concentration (samādhi) are very close. They are mentioned as it were in one breath in many groupings. In the Noble Eightfold Path they are found together as right mindfulness (Sammā-sati) and right concentration (Sammā-samādhi). Here concentration is said to be another name for one-pointedness of mind (citt’ekaggatā); and under that name concentration is also found as one of the seven general mental factors (sabba-citta-sādhāraṇa-cetasikā), though not necessarily “right” (sammā), as even a wicked thought needs concentration to produce its evil effect.
It is the faculty of bringing together (samannāhara) which ultimately constitutes consciousness and without which there would be no contact and no cognition. It is in concentration that the mental hindrance (nīvaraṇa) of sensual desire loses its attraction. Thus, concentration is an application of the mind, focussing its attention, selectively and intentionally; for which reason it is a form of mind-culture (bhāvanā) and a means to calm (samatha). The methods of concentration are the spiritual exercises, enumerated and explained by Buddhoghosa at great length in his Visuddhi Magga. It is in this monumental work that the commentator approaches the deliverance of mind (vimutti) along with the three channels of virtue (sīla), Concentration (samādhi) and insight (paññā). And so concentration becomes the link between virtuous conduct and the insight of enlightenment.
As a method, concentration is not important, and it may be used according to one’s temperament. But in a way, it is also the end, being in the centre of all movement. Leading to, and constituting the peace of mind in which truth can be discerned without distortion, it is concentration (samādhi) which leads to insight (paññā). It is not through reason and intellect that the truth can be seen, for in logic there is only the deduction of a conclusion from pre-arranged premises. Scholastic speculations have been able to devise analytical methods of a gradual realisation in sixteen stages based on discovery, cognition, comprehension and realisation of each of the four Noble Truths in succession, thus making of mind-culture a sum in arithmetic. Opinions in various schools of Buddhism have differed, as they differ up to this present time, each one quoting some text to illustrate or prove his own contention of a gradual or an instantaneous realisation. All these are mental exercises, but not concentration. In fact, they prevent concentration, as the focus is placed on the method rather than on deliverance. The Buddha’s simile of the man wounded by a poisonous arrow, refusing the arrow to be removed before his knowledge were satisfied about its composition, etc., would be very applicable here too. In searching for the means, the end is lost sight of.
And that makes insight-meditation the end instead of the means. There is no difference of opinions about the end, because the end is not something on which one can have opinions. Opinions arise when there is lack of understanding. When there is insight, that is, when one sees and understands, one has no more opinions: one sees what is. If there is anger, one sees that there is anger, that anger has arisen, not in itself, but in the ‘I’ which has separated itself in isolation, in opposition, which is conflict. Then the ‘I’ is understood to be that anger in its opposition. When it is seen and understood, that this ‘I’ is only a creation of thought to maintain its existence and continuance in isolation and opposition, in craving and in hate, in self-love and in anger, then the basis of this delusion will have gone, and with it all conflict. That is the end of concentration and meditation. The end is the ending, the cessation of purpose, of aim, of volition. This is not only a concentration on the non-substantiality of objects and phenomena, but insight which abandons even the subject of the meditator.
Equanimity (upekkhā) frequently sums up and completes a series of psycho-analytical and ethical qualities and is also found in synonyms such as even-mindednesss, none-pointedness (ekaggatā), balance of mind (tatra-majjhattatā), with various shades of difference. Thus it is not only the culmination of the seven factors which constitute enlightenment (sambojjhaṅga), but it is also an important mental factor (cetasikā) found in all wholesome mental states (kusala citta). It is one of the four illimitables, (appamaññā) or boundless states which form the four sublime states (brahmavihāra), namely, loving kindness (mettā), compassion (karuṇā), altruistic joy (muditā), and equanimity (upekkhā). It is the culmination in the practice of the ten perfections (dasa pāramitā) by a being, aspiring to the supreme enlightenment of the Buddha, summit of the perfection of a bodhisatta.
But it is not a hedonic indifference, which is a sensation of neither pain nor pleasure, a natural aspect of feeling the zero point between joy and sorrow (adukkha-m-asukha). Such total indifference might ultimately amount to criminal negligence, in which case it will be a help (upekkhā-sahagata) in unskilful, undesirable mental states, associated with greed or with aversion, or with perplexity and utter delusion. But, that of course is not the equanimity which results from the peace of understanding, as a factor of wisdom.
As balance of mind, it is more intellectual than emotional; as equipoise more ethical in its detachment; as even-mindedness it is the perfect detachment which is beyond good and evil; as one-pointedness it is the attainment of the highest absorption in states of mental concentration, preventing distraction and scattering of energy. And so it manifests itself as peace of mind (samatha) and mental balance (avikkhepa).
It keeps the process of thought well balanced, and is, therefore, always preventing the mind to lose its equilibrium by going to extremes. Hence it is called the neutral middle (majjhattā). In the realisation of the sameness of all beings it reveals itself in the calming down of tendencies, both of aversion and of fawning (paṭigh’ anunaya-vūpasama-paccupaṭṭhana: Atthas. I. v. 13). As a factor of enlightenment it is dependent on detachment (viveka nissita: Samy. N. IV. 367). As a characteristic element of the fifth state of mental absorption (jhāna), it is described as “Utter purity of mindfulness, which comes of disinterestedness (upekkhā satiparisuddhi), where ”no ease is felt, nor any ill” (Dhs, § 175).
In comparison with the other three sublime states (brahma-vihāra) the simile is given of a mother’s love to her four sons, one a baby whom she loves with tender affection (mettā), desiring his happiness and growth; one a boy suffering from a serious illness, whose distress she feels in her own heart with compassion (karuṇā); one a promising youth whose good qualities constitute the mother’s joy (muditā) and pride; and a young man who can manage his own affairs, for whom the mother need not feel any more anxiety, for her mind is set at rest (upekkhā).
The factor of equanimity is indeed a factor of wisdom (bojjhaṅga) which has replaced not only discursive thought and sustained application (vitakka-vicāra) together with the ensuing zest (pīti), but even the ease (sukha) experienced in the higher grades of mental absorption (jhāna) in the spheres of pure form. Perplexity (vicikicchā) and indolence of body and mind (thīna middha) were set aside in the first trance with the ending of thought. Spiritual joy (pīti) overpowered all hateful tendencies (vyāpāda). The agitated mind (uddhacca-kukkucca) was calmed by the ease of well-being (sukha). And now that the urge of the senses (kāmacchanda) is brought face to face with the even-mindedness of equanimity (upekkhā) it is clear that here there is no confrontation, however, no subjection of the passions, no mortification of the flesh, no sublimation by the spirit. There is just one-pointedness which does not admit any thought of condemnation or indulgence, which does not attempt an escape, long for salvation, build up a defence, or strive for attainment, a realisation of an ideal. There is just seeing this one thing, this one problem, this one conflict, which is approached in an unbiased attitude of mind with the faculty of insight (pañc’indriya).
What is the problem? Why is there conflict?
There is no fight for victory, no attempt at conquest, no search for a solution, no striving for acquisition, no desire for achievement. Thought has ceased, and so has feeling. There is just a fact, the fact of impermanence (anicca) which becomes a conflict (dukkha) because there is no security for a ‘self’ (anatta). When that fact is seen and understood, it is also seen and understood that this search for the ideal ‘self’ is the basis and the source of conflict. Thus, the problem is simple, the fact is clear, and the conflict is in the mind. Only when the mind refuses to move away from its problem, when there is no biased thinking, no conditioned striving, no idealised action, then thought must cease its agitation; then its action is lost in equanimity, even-mindedness, balanced awareness, intelligent understanding.
In understanding that there is no conflict when there is no fear of memory and no agitation for the achieving of an ideal – when hope and fear are seen as the factors which make the ‘I’ – in that balance of equanimity there is peace and truth.
These are the seven factors of enlightenment (satta sambojjhaṅga). They do not lead to enlightenment, as learning may lead to knowledge. They are enlightenment; they constitute wisdom which is now perfected as insight (paññā). Just as seeing is understanding, so these factors are the constituents (aṅga) of enlightenment. One cannot, practise equanimity in order to become enlightened, But if the mind is enlightened, it will be evenly balanced at ease and in peace.
Seeing is understanding; but there is so much distortion and conditioning, that seeing things as they are is one of the most difficult things to do, although it does not require any effort or instigation. The obstacles which prevent seeing have been conditioning man’s outlook for many thousands of years within this world-cycle. It needed a Buddha to show the way out of this jungle. The jungle is in our own entangled way of thinking and projecting; it is the delusion of ‘self’, which refuses to leave that jungle, out of fear that it will not survive. And that fear is very real, for it is on the outcome of such speculation that depends the continuation and hence the very existence of that ‘self’. The ‘I’ is that hope for continuance; it is also the fear of discontinuance, the fear to let go that past which is but a memory, which is all that the ‘I’ can project into an ideal.
Seeing this without hope or fear is understanding what is now in the present, in which there is no continuance but an ever new insight, which is enlightenment and freedom from conflict. | 2019-04-18T22:17:12Z | http://henri-van-zeyst.buddhasasana.net/seven-facets-of-insight/seven-facets-of-insight.htm |
The growing number of negative events worldwide, among them natural disasters, artificial disasters and terrorism, has led the public to focus attention on the impact of such events on the economy and the capital market. This research examines the effects of natural disasters, artificial disasters and terrorism on the stock market in order to reveal profit opportunities. In this research, we collected data on 344 significant events that received media attention and examined the differences between the three types of events using the Pessimism Index. Some of the results include the following: (1) natural disasters cause the greatest damage to the economy, whereas terrorism causes the least damage; (2) natural disasters exhibit the highest level of severity, whereas artificial disasters have the lowest severity. The research reveals some opportunities for investors to obtain arbitrage profits. During natural disasters, the stock index decreases on the day of the events and on the two subsequent days. Therefore, investors should short sell the index on the day of the disaster and hold it for 2 days. On the contrary, during artificial disasters or terrorist incidents, the index drops only on the day of the event and the next day, so investors should short sell the index on the day of the disaster and hold it until the end of the first working day following the incident.
The growing number of natural disasters, artificial disasters1 and terrorist incidents around the world has led the public to focus attention on the impact of these events on various economic activities and on the growth of the global economy. These disasters and terrorist incidents, which are usually sudden and unpredictable, have increasingly affected a large portion of the world population over the last decades. Human activity enhances the effect of such events in that, as the population grows and building expands, previously unpopulated areas become more vulnerable.
They are caused by natural forces, but human actions can intensify or expedite them.
The events are very powerful and are measured by specified indices, such as the Richter scale for measuring the magnitude of earthquakes or the Volcanic Explosivity Index for measuring the relative explosiveness of volcanic eruptions.
The events are very sudden, last a short time and are unpredictable (or give very short notice as in the case of a tsunami).
The events cause casualties and major economic damage.
Countries around the world are vulnerable to different natural hazards. In some countries, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur frequently; in others, typhoons and landslides are common, while still others suffer frequent floods or droughts. Nevertheless, in examining the ways and abilities to cope with natural disasters, it is important to distinguish between developed countries that invest major sums of money in dealing with the hazards of nature and developing countries that have no budget for coping with such hazards.
The cost of natural disasters has increased rapidly in recent years, reaching over a 100 billion dollars annually (National Center for Environmental Information n.d.). One of the largest natural disasters was the tsunami in Indonesia in 2004. The earthquake in the Indian Ocean, measuring 9.3 on the Richter scale, was one of the deadliest in modern times, and it created huge tsunami waves that washed over the northwest part of Indonesia. Over 230 000 people were killed by the tsunami, more than 1 million people were left homeless and the economic damage exceeded $3bn (Encyclopedia Britannica n.d.:1 of 2).
The term ‘disaster’ is used to describe an event or a situation that sows destruction, affecting life, health, property and the surroundings. Disasters are usually caused by human beings and can include airplane crashes, train accidents and building collapses, just to name a few. The numbers of people killed in such disasters are usually small compared to natural disasters, but the economic damage can be larger. One of the biggest disasters of the last decade was the collision of a passenger train and a freight train in Los Angeles in 2008, resulting in the deaths of 25 passengers and economic damage of over $500m (Rubin, Simmons & Landsberg 2008).
Terrorism is an act of violence directed towards civilians. Terrorism strives to achieve political, religious or social goals using fear. In recent years, terrorists changed and developed their method and usually hit organisations in open economic channels (Abadie & Gardeazabal 2008:20).
The attack of 11 September 2001, which took the lives of 3000 people, caused 430 000 employees to lose their jobs and resulted in economic damage of over $30bn (https://www.history.com/topics/9-11-attacks).
The train terror attacks in Madrid in 2004 that resulted in 192 deaths, 1500 injured and billions of dollars in economic damage (p. 2 of 2).
The purpose of this research is to compare the effect of different types of events on the capital market.
Many researchers have studied the impact of natural disasters on the economy. They found that such disasters have a significant negative effect on the real gross domestic product (GDP) in the affected countries and that major events affect both short-run and long-run output while more minor events affect neither long-run nor short-run output. They also found that climate disasters encourage the accumulation of human capital and technological development, which in turn effect economic growth, whereas geological disasters lead to the destruction of human capital (Bergholt & Lujala 2012:20; Cavallo et al. 2013:34; Cuaresma, Hlouskova & Obersteiner 2008; Kim 2011:19; Skidmore & Toya 2002:682).
Focusing on the effect of natural disasters on the financial market, Noy (2009:229) found that higher per capita income and greater openness to trade as well as more government spending increase the market’s ability to avoid the effects of a natural disaster on the country’s economy. In addition, higher foreign currency reserves and higher levels of domestic credit together with capital accounts that are less open appear more robust and better able to endure natural disasters. Studying the capital market in Australia, Worthington and Valadkhani (2004:16) used data from 31 December 1982 through 01 January 2002 and found that bushfires, cyclones and earthquakes had a major effect on market returns, whereas severe storms and floods did not have a similar effect. The net effects can be positive and/or negative. Most of the effects were felt on the day of the event, with some adjustment on the days that followed.
In a later study, Worthington (2008:2185) used daily returns on the Australian capital market between 1980 and 2003 to study the effect of natural events and disasters. He found that the disasters were not responsible for any of the volatility in stock value.
Some researchers have studied the effect of aviation disasters on the capital market. Bosch, Eckard and Singal (1998:515) examined whether there is a spillover effect or a switching effect on rival companies. They found a switching effect when the non-crash airline overlapped with the crash airline and a spillover effect when there was no such overlapping. Kaplanski and Levy (2010:178, 196), for example, used data from January 1950 to December 2007 to examine the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) rate of return. The researchers assumed that aviation disasters affect people’s mood and anxiety, which in turn have a negative effect on the capital market. The model they used included the stock index return as an independent variable and a dependent dummy variable representing the day of the week, the day after a holiday, the first days in the tax year and the size of the effect. The event window began on the day before the event and continued three days after the event. The researchers found a significant effect, with an average market loss of more than $60bn per disaster, although the actual loss was less than $1bn. On the third day after the disaster, the stock prices started to increase. They also found that the effect was larger when the stock was smaller and riskier and when the stock belonged to a less stable industry.
Capelle-Blancard and Laguna (2010:204) studied the effect of industrial disasters on the capital market using companies related to the accident and not the stock index market. They used data covering the years 1990 through 2005 and found that the capital market was negatively affected by an accident in the 2-day period after the event. The effect was strongly related to the severity of the event and to the level of the company’s safety records. Focusing on a single disaster with long-lasting effects in which the damage increased during the five months after the event, Kollias, Papadamou and Stagiannis (2012:197) researched the effect of a deep-water horizon accident – the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill – on the stock values of firms in the gas and oil industry. As might be expected, the results showed a decrease in the stock value of the involved company and indeed of the entire industry.
Terrorism is a form of violent struggle usually directed against civilians. The purpose of terrorism is to create fear in an attempt to achieve political, religious or social goals. During recent years, terrorist groups have made significant advances in their methods and in the technology they use to carry out terrorist incidents. The organisations hit hardest by terrorism are the open economic channels that allow unlimited movement of people, capital, products and service among countries around the world (Abadie & Gardeazabal 2008:20).
The effect of terrorism on the economy and on financial markets has been thoroughly researched by several researchers. Their findings show that in countries where foreign trade, tourism and foreign investments are more important than other financial sectors, the aggregate financial loss will be greater, and that diversity is the most important element in the solvency and stability of financial markets although a flexible reaction on the part of authorities is also very important (Harrigan & Martin 2002:107; Johnston & Nedelescu 2006:23; Sandler & Walter 2004:314).
Eldor and Melnick (2004:385) used data for the period 1990 through 2003 on the Israeli stock and bond market to study the effect of 639 terrorist incidents. They used several parameters, including the location and target of the incident, the type of terrorist incident and the number of casualties and wounded. The results showed a negative and permanent effect on the capital market since the beginning of the Al-Aqsa Intifada in September 2000. In addition, suicide bombings and bombings in which victims were wounded had a permanent negative effect on the market, whereas attacks on transportation and attacks within the Green Line had a transitory negative effect on the market. On the contrary, looking at the same time period in Israel, Peleg et al. (2011:278) showed that although Israel’s financial base remained sensitive to each act of terror, sustained psychological resilience was indicated with no apparent overall market shift.
Researching the same issue, Tavor (2011:79) found that the response of the capital market is larger in non-confrontational areas and in central areas. Brounen and Derwall (2010:597) researched the effect of 31 terrorist incidents in the period 1991–2005 on eight important financial markets. They found an average drop of 0.34% on all the markets during the day of the event and a drop of 0.92% on the market where the terrorist activity took place. In addition, they found that the market returned to its original values in 2–3 days. A similar result was achieved by Nikkinen and Vahamaa (2010:273), who examined the impact of terrorist activities on the British capital market and found a large drop on the Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE) index in the short-term after a terrorist attack. Bilson et al. (2012:57) focused on major terrorist incidents (more than 10 casualties and significant economic damage) and found that terrorist incidents cause significant ‘infection’, mainly in developed countries, but that the average effect lasts only for a short period of time.
Chesney, Reshetar and Karaman (2011:266) tested the impact of terrorist incidents on the capital market, the bond market and the commodity market in several countries. They found that two-thirds of the terrorist incidents had a strong and significant effect on all markets. Industrial companies and airlines were most sensitive, whereas banking was less sensitive. Terror has a negative effect on gold and other commodities as well. The researchers found that the effect is strongest on the day after the event and declines on the following days. They also compared the effect of terror to the effect of other disasters and found several similarities. In the case of natural disasters, however, the negative impact is usually observed in the post-event period, meaning that markets need more time to evaluate the long-term effect of such events.
In this article, we attempt to bridge the gap in the literature by comparing the effect of different events on the capital market. Currently existing research focuses on terrorist incidents and on artificial or natural disasters and their effect on the capital market, without taking into consideration the type of event (natural disaster, artificial disaster or terrorism). Measuring and comparing the impact of different types of events can help in understanding the way people evaluate different types of risk.
In addition, most previous research focused on the effect of a particular type of event, that is, air crash or earthquake, and on a certain industry, that is, airline or company. This research, in contrast, focuses on the effect of a disaster on the stock value in the country where the disaster occurred.
In this research, we collected data for three types of events: artificial disasters, natural disasters and terror incidents that took place in different countries around the world from 02 September 1983 through 06 March 2013. Data were collected from several websites that cover international disasters and included the following: a description of the event, the number of casualties and fatalities, the location of the event, the estimated financial damage and other data regarding the country where the event occurred. The sample includes 344 significant events that received media attention: 127 artificial disasters, 88 natural disasters and 129 terrorist incidents. Data regarding each country’s major financial indices were collected from YahooFinance.com, Investing.com and Bloomberg.com, which serves as the main source of information regarding the major capital market indices around the world.
Three types of events affect the economy and the capital market in a particular country. In this research, the focus was on the effect of particular events on the capital market and on whether the effect of different types of events was similar or whether each type of event had a different effect. Data were collected for each event on the day before the event and for the 30 days following the event. Nevertheless, because the events we examined are heterogeneous and because natural disasters typically have a long-lasting effect while terror incidents are short-term, the research focused only on the 2 days following the event in order to create a common ground for comparison. To this end, the study examined the closing prices of the central index in the targeted country on the day of the incident (Yt), on the day before the incident (Yt-1) and on the 2 days following the incident (Yt+1 and Yt+2).2 If the event took place during the trading day or in the morning of the trading day, the trading day was counted as the day of event. If the event took place after the close of the trading day or on a day without trade, the first trading day after the event was considered the day of the event.
where Yt represents the return of the central index on the day of the event, Yt-1 represents the return of the index a day before the event, Yt+1 represents the return of the central index on the day after the event and Yt+2 represents the return of the central index 2 days after the event.
The Pessimism Index has been used extensively in the past in investigating terrorist incidents. This index reflects the level of investors’ pessimism in the capital market following a particular event. We extended the index to all types of events. In building the index, four different parameters involved in deciding on the intensity of the event were considered.4 The first parameter is the number of fatalities in the event (D1). For this parameter, four categories ranging from 1 to 4 were defined, where 1 represents an event with up to 100 fatalities, 2 represents an event with 101–1000 fatalities, 3 represents an event with 1001–10 000 fatalities and 4 represents an event with more than 10 000 fatalities. The second parameter is the number of casualties (D2), with four categories similar to those for the number of fatalities. The third parameter (D3) is the location of the event. This parameter has two categories: 1 represents an event in a non-central area or city, and 2 represents an event in a major city or central area. D4 represents the estimated damage of the event. This parameter has three categories: 1 represents economic damage less than $100m, 2 represents economic damage between $100m and $1bn, and 3 represents economic damage greater than $1bn. The PI event severity index is based on these parameters. For example, the PI index for the September 11 terror attack is: 12 (the number of deaths was 2996, therefore D1 = 3; the number of casualties was 14 837, therefore D2 = 4; the attacks happened in major cities, therefore D3 = 2; and the total damage was over $1bn, therefore D4 = 3).
The level of the index ranges from 4 to 13. A higher value on this index indicates an event that caused a great deal of damage in a central location, whereas an index level of 4 indicates an event with little damage in a non-central location.
Hypothesis 1: All types of event will influence the expected profitability of companies and therefore the risk premium because of the increased level of uncertainty, which causes a decline in the share prices. The main hypothesis is that there will be negative correlations between the events and the capital market and that these correlations will be more negative if the severity of the event is greater.
This hypothesis is in line with previous studies; among them are Worthington and Valadkhani (2004:16) and their research on natural disaster, Kaplanski and Levy (2010:196) on aviation disasters, Capelle-Blancard and Laguna (2010:204) on industrial disasters, and Brounen and Derwall (2010:597), Nikkinen and Vahamaa (2010:273) and Tavor (2011:79) on terror.
Hypothesis 2: The effect of different disasters on the capital market will vary based on the type of event. Chesney et al. (2011:266) found that it takes the financial market longer to react to natural disasters.
This section provides a general description of the data that were collected for this research and their impact on the capital market, as shown in Table 1.
TABLE 1: Statistical data on event severity and type.
Table 1 depicts the PI and its components based on type of event. The table includes three panels: panel A represents artificial disasters, panel B represents natural disasters and panel C represents terrorist incidents. The table shows that the number of fatalities and casualties is higher for natural disasters (MFatalities =1.49 and MCasualties = 2.01, respectively), while lower levels of fatalities and casualties are associated with artificial events (MFatalities = 0.95 and MCasualties = 0.64, respectively). Data for the location of the event show that 62% of the terrorist incidents took place in central locations (MCentral = 1.62), whereas only 50% of natural and artificial disasters took place in central locations (MCentral = 1.49 and MCentral = 1.51, respectively). This is because the purpose of terrorism is to create fear and horror and to attract media attention, and therefore, terrorists target central locations. On the contrary, artificial and natural disasters are usually unintentional, so that the probability they will occur in a central or a non-central location is similar.
The economic damage caused by these three types of events is large and influences not only the affected area but the country’s economy as a whole. Table 1 shows that the economic damage is highest in natural disasters (MFinancial_loss = 2.44) and lowest in terrorism (MFinancial_loss = 1.16).5 An evaluation of the severity of the events shows that the severity of natural disasters is highest (PI = 7.34), whereas the severity of artificial disasters is lowest (PI = 4.65).
TABLE 2: Influence of type of event on the capital market during the 4 days around the event.
The results show that natural disasters had the highest negative effect on the capital market, whereas the index returns show an average decrease of 2.782% during the 2 days after the event. The other two types of events show a negative effect that lasts only 1 day after the event, with an average decline of 1.146% for artificial disasters and of 0.975% for terrorist incidents. This table and Table 1 support Hypothesis 2, which stated that different types of events will have a differential effect on the stock market. The results in the tables show that natural disasters are the most severe and therefore have a greater impact on the capital market.
We then used linear regression to test the correlations among the daily returns in the event window (-1, 0, +1, +2). We tested whether the daily return on each of the days since the event correlates with the return on the days prior to the event. In addition, we tested the correlation between the return of the indices on the day of the event and the severity of the event. Table 3 depicts the econometric model for this test for Equations 1–3. The table includes three panels: panel A represents artificial disasters, panel B represents natural disasters and panel C represents terrorist incidents.
TABLE 3: Regression estimates comparing the effect of three types of events – artificial disasters (Eqn 4), natural disasters (Eqn 5) and terrorist incidents (Eqn 6).
This table tests the correlation between event severity and index returns on the 4 days surrounding the event (t = -1, 0, +1, +2).
Regression estimates comparing the effect of three types of events – artificial disasters, natural disasters and terrorist incidents – on the capital market are provided in Table 3.
The econometric model exhibits in Equations 5 to 7.
The results in Table 3 show that there is no correlation between the index returns on the day of the event and the returns on the day before the event for all three types of events. The results for artificial disasters and terror events are similar, meaning there is a linear correlation between the index returns on the day of the event and their returns after the event, as can be seen from Equation 5. This means that if there is a decline in the index on the day of the event, investors have the opportunity to build a profitable strategy and short sell the index on the day after the event. In addition, there is no correlation between the index returns on the day of artificial disasters or terrorist incidents and the returns 2 days after the event, indicating that the effect of the event is short-term (Equation 6). The severity of the event does not affect the performances of the indices on the day of the event. This is in line with the results of Worthington and Valadkhani (2004:16).
In examining natural disasters, we found that they have a different effect on the capital market. For this type of event, there is a correlation between the index returns on the day of the event and the returns on the 2 days following the event. This means that if there is a decline in the index on the day of the event, investors can build a profitable strategy and short sell the indices on the 2 days following the event. With respect to event severity, we found a correlation between severity and index returns on the day of the event. This means that a higher PI points to more negative returns from the event. In conclusion we can say that natural hazards have a stronger impact on the capital market.
This research tested two hypotheses. Hypothesis 1 assumed that there would be a negative correlation between the events and the capital market and that this correlation would be more negative if the event was more severe. The results of the analytical model fully support this hypothesis, in line with previous research (Brounen & Derwall 2010:597; Capelle-Blancard & Laguna 2010:204; Kaplanski & Levy 2010:196; Nikkinen & Vahamaa 2010:273; Tavor 2011:79; Worthington & Valadkhani 2004:16).
Hypothesis 2 was also confirmed because we found that the impact of a natural disaster lasts longer and that events of that type have a larger effect, in line with previous research (Chesney et al. 2011:266).
The results indicate that all three types of events showed an average decline in the indices on the day of the events and on the days that follow. On the day of the event, the strongest decline is for terrorist incidents and the smallest decline is for artificial events. In the case of event severity, the largest decline exhibited for natural disasters and not for terrorist incidents.
A possible explanation for the larger decline on the day of a terrorist incident than on the day of a natural disaster might be a psychosocial one. Many terrorist organisations strive to wage a moral-psychological battle against the population by sending threatening messages and posting videos prior to the incident. Such activities cause more fear and uncertainty among investors, resulting in a larger decline of the stock indices. Natural disasters provide no such prior announcements, and therefore, it takes investors longer to translate the event into a decline on the indices, despite the event’s severity.
Based on this research, further research is recommended to test the influence of disasters on the stock market based on the characteristics of the different countries, such as whether a country is developed or developing, a democracy or a dictatorship, among others.
This study has two limitations. One limitation is the difficulty in gathering historical data from countries that experienced major disasters affecting their economy and their capital market.
The other limitation is the problem in determining investment strategies from intra-daily data at the day of the event. Some of the events happened in countries where intra-daily data were not available after the fact. Therefore in this research, we used daily data.
Over the last century, many countries have experienced both natural and artificial disasters, as well as terrorist incidents. These events have affected not only the area or the people involved but also the nation’s economy.
The main focus of this research was to examine the effects on the capital market of three types of events: natural disasters, artificial disasters and terrorism. The research analyses the effects of event severity on the capital market returns.
The descriptive statistics show that natural disasters cause the greatest economic damage, whereas terrorism causes the least damage. In addition, the number of casualties and deaths is highest for natural disasters and lowest for artificial disasters, so that the severity of natural disasters is highest, whereas the severity of artificial disasters is lowest.
Therefore, our finding that natural disasters have the highest negative impact on the capital market and that this impact continues to decline during the 2 days after the event is a reasonable finding. The other two types of events have a negative effect that lasts only 1 day after the event.
Terrorist incidents usual occur in central cities because of the terrorists’ goal of attracting as much public attention as they can, a goal that can be more easily achieved in central cities. Artificial disasters and natural disasters are unpredictable and arbitrary and therefore distributed evenly among central and non-central locations.
The effects of natural or artificial disasters as well as of terrorist incidents on the economy of countries as reflected by the capital market are very important and are the focus of this research. It is important to see how different types of events affect the capital market and whether their effects vary.
The research results show that natural disasters have the highest negative impact on the capital market and that this effect lasts longer than the effect of the other two types of events, which lasted only 1 day after the event. This finding supports earlier results like those of Chesney et al. (2011:266) and may be explained by the fact that such events cause the greatest economic damage and the highest number of casualties and deaths.
The outcome of the regression model shows that there is no correlation between the index returns on the day of the event and the returns on the day before the event for all three types of events. Artificial disasters and terrorist incidents behave similarly, with both showing a linear correlation between the indexes return on the day of the event and the return after the event, indicating that the event’s effect is short-term. The severity of the event does not affect the performances of the indices on the day of the event.
Natural disasters have a different effect on the capital market. In this case, there is a correlation between the index return on the day of the event and the return on the 2 days following the event, indicating that the event has a longer effect (see also Chesney et al. 2011:266). There is a correlation between event severity and the index return on the day of the event, indicating that the higher the PI, the more negative the event return will be. In conclusion, we can say that natural disasters have a stronger effect on the capital market.
Both of the research hypotheses were corroborated. Specifically, Hypothesis 1 was fully corroborated in that we found a negative correlation between disaster events and the capital market and that the correlations are more negative if the event is more severe.
Regarding Hypothesis 2, we found, in line with previous research (Chesney et al. 2011:266), that the effect of a natural disaster lasts longer and that natural disasters have a larger effect.
The research reveals some opportunities for investors to make a profit. If they short sell the index on the day of such an event, they can gain some positive returns on the following days. Further research is recommended to compare the financial behaviour in developing versus developed countries, democratic versus non-democratic countries and so on.
This research tests whether investors have the option to build a strategy that on average will beat the stock market based on three types of events. The research focuses on characteristics of the event, such as the number of injured and dead, economic damage and the like. Of course, there are other factors that affect the stock market based on the characteristics of the given country, such as the size of the economy and its financial situation. Nevertheless, this research focused on the events themselves and not on the country in which they occurred. Further research may examine the effect of an event on the stock market based on the characteristics of the given country whether it is developed or developing country, small or big, and so on.
T.T. was the project leader and S.T-R. performed most of the statistical and the literature review.
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1. The term ‘artificial disasters’ refers to disasters not caused by nature.
2. The time that was tested was longer, but most of the damage and uncertainty was on the 2 days following the event. Therefore, the research focused on this period.
3. Natural disasters can last longer than 2 days, and therefore, their effect may be longer lasting. This has been researched in the past. The purpose of this article is to compare the effect of different types of events. Therefore, the smallest common denominator of 2 days was used.
4. In order to check the robustness of the results, we divided the groups differently and received similar results.
5. If psychological effect and fear among the population could be easily measured in financial terms, the economic damage of terror incidents would likely be larger compared to the other two types of events.
6. We tested only 2 days after the events based on Nikkinen and Vahamaa (2010:273), who found that the effect of such events is short-term. | 2019-04-22T14:46:34Z | https://jamba.org.za/index.php/jamba/article/view/534/1019 |
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Delicious organic pasta Angela’s Fresh Organic Pasta is made by Angela Ross and her crew in Invermere, BC, and it’s available in Blush Lane Aspen and Bridgeland markets, plus Save on Foods in Canmore, and all over BC. This great pasta is 100% certified organic, made with natural semolina flour and spring water, no preservatives or eggs and all ingredients are non-GMO. Semolina flour is very digestible and light, a perfect option for people with gluten intolerance. It does not contain cholesterol, saturated fats or trans fats, it has a high protein content and is low in fat. Semolina flour is rich in fiber and contains calcium, iron, potassium, selenium, zinc, magnesium and loads of antioxidants. Fresh, delicious pasta for a balanced diet. Visit angelaspasta.com for all the tasty details.
Washable paper made in Italy…. Washable paper? It’s called Uashmama and pronounced washmama and made by an Italian who worked in the leather shoe industry and created a sustainable product similar to the process of manufacturing fine Italian leather. Washable paper is made using a virgin fiber through cultivation and not deforestation. The bags are soft yet resilient, where the manufacturing process is similar to leather as the paper is “tanned and stretched” using a vegan method and natural vegetable dyes, making it durable to withstand washing and daily use. Their use is limited only by one’s imagination – bread, flowers, plants, storage around the house or as a tote for trips to the market. Find them at Savour Fine Foods in Inglewood. Visit uashmama.ca for all the interesting details.
Strong food trends for 2019 This from Axiom Foods, a Los Angeles-based company involved in clinical trials, education and affecting change in the global food supply, and one of the largest plant protein makers in the U.S. and one of the largest makers of yellow pea protein. Here’s what they say about what’s coming down the high way in 2019. Trend #1, Larger variety of non-dairy milks; Trend #2, More neutral and higher-concentrated plant proteins; Trend #3, Intestinal biomes and healing foods; Trend #4, Tailoring maillard reactions to get specific animal protein flavours; Trend #5, Improved absorption rate of plant proteins.
Modern Steak downtown is now open! Famous for owning its own prize-winning Black Angus Bull and only serving Ranch Specific Alberta, Modern Steak has opened its second location on Calgary’s busy Stephen Avenue. The restaurant has taken up residence in the historical Imperial Bank building, formerly home to Catch Oyster Bar. Watch for the same amazing feature nights as the original Kensington location, like Date Night Wednesday where two can dine for $78, Half Price Wine Thursdays and $99 Tomahawk Sundays. Also be sure to check out Bar Modern on the main floor. A brand new, casual meat-centric cocktail bar concept that expands the Alberta Beef-focused menu to include 4K pork, Sungold lamb and Kingsland Chicken. Beautiful, up-tempo and value driven, this is sure to be a hotspot. See you there!
Clean, safe, local lettuce Inspired Greens in Coaldale, AB, lives by “clean means clean” with its greenhouse-grown lettuce varieties grown with triple-filtered water in a closed, environmentally safe and secure environment, with plants untouched by human hands from seed to harvest. Available in grocery stores across western Canada. The Palate’s publisher/editor buys them all the time at Co-op stores, because that’s where she shops for lots of food. Visit inspiredgreens.ca for more information.
Read these: Taste Canada Award Winners... October is cookbook month and every year Taste Canada awards Canada’s best cookbooks and food blogs. This year, the culinary narratives’ gold went to Vikram Vij’s VIJ, silver went to Rod Phillips’ 9000 Years of Wine, a world history. The general cookbooks gold went to Lynn Crawford’s Farm to Chef and the silver to Aimée WimbushBourque’s The Simple Bites Kitchen. The regional/cultural cookbooks gold went to Lindsay Anderson and Dana VanVeller’s Feast: Recipes and Stories from a Canadian Road Trip and silver went to Rod Butters’ The Okanagan Table: The Art of Everyday Home Cooking. Singlesubject cookbooks awarded gold to Renée Kohlman’s All the Sweet Things and silver to Kristy Gardner’s Cooking with Cocktails. Health and special diet cookbooks awarded gold to Greta Podleski’s Yum & Yummer and silver to Laura Wright’s The First Mess Cookbook. Taste Canada also awards French language cookbooks and blogs. Growing Winter Food: How to grow, harvest, store and use produce for the winter months, by Linda Grey, Fox Chapel Publishing. This won’t be out until March, but it sure does look like a good and useful book, filled with beautiful pictures and lots of good advice on things like making the most of your garden, including when to plant vegetables, herbs and fruits, and when to harvest them. AND, specific vegetables, herbs and fruits affected by bugs and other problems and how to help prevent. Interestingly, it says kale doesn’t have any known problems! Plant lots of kale, it’s good for us! Great recipe ideas, too. Cooking For Friends, by David Wood (Whitecap Books, $34.95, soft cover), the owner of the Salt Spring Island Cheese Company who says: “Food is much more than nourishment. It opens a Pandora’s box full of doors, to variety and excitement, memory, comfort, texture, and flavour, and most of all to the company and conversation of good friends.” Like while eating Polenta and Mushroom Ragout. Comfort Cooking for Bariatric Post-Ops and Everyone Else! By Lisa Sharon Belkin (Friesen Press, Victoria, BC, soft cover, $34.49; hard cover, $47.49). How to eat after weight-loss – bariatric – surgery, which the author had, so she knows. Her recipes are so you don’t regain and also eat well.
coopwinespiritsbeer.com/events We look forward to raising a glass with you!
Here we are again, another trip around the sun and another grab-bag of available edibles. Sadly, and as usual, not much that’s local… although brave entrepreneurs growing greenhouse and hydroponic produce are giving lie to that. Keep your eyes peeled for sea bass being raised in tandem with salad greens, hopefully soon to be on the market.
Citrus has always been our primary winter consolation, but dates and avocados, also from far afield, help immeasurably to relieve our winter blues. And let’s not forget the hardy root vegetables that help make our cold weather soups, stews and braises so tempting. The somewhat lowly parsnip often gets a bum rap, but its sweet nutty earthiness shouldn’t be ignored. AVOCADOS, like tomatoes, are botanically fruits, but eaten more often as vegetables. Avocados shine in spring and summer salads made with smoked fish and grapefruit but are available all year and go a long way to brightening up a leafless winter. Try adding slices to a Caprese-style salad dressed with balsamic vinegar or add cubes of avocado to a tomato salsa fresca. For something different, make a chunky spread with smoked salmon and avocado served on small crostini for your next party. Start by chopping up about 1 lb. of smoked salmon and 2 avocados; don’t cut either too small or overmix or they’ll just dissolve and disappear. Add 1 small red onion, chopped into small dice and fresh herbs like mint, dill and basil, finely chopped. Toss with about 3 T. whole capers and a simple vinaigrette made with sherry vinegar, olive oil, honey, Dijon mustard, lemon juice and salt & pepper.
BUY: Avocados bruise easily, so buy them unripe and finish the process at home. Hass avocados are the most common variety we see; they start to turn black as they ripen.
PARSNIPS pair well with carrots – they’re first cousins, after all. Just don’t include parsnips on your crudité platter. They need cooking to achieve their full potential. Add a couple of parsnips to elevate your potato mash and mixed roasted vegetable medleys alike. My favourite parsnip recipe, however, is a rich creamy puréed soup with carrots and white wine. Start by peeling and coarsely chopping 4 medium carrots and 4 medium parsnips. In a large heavy pot, sauté some chopped onion and a bit of fresh garlic in olive oil and butter until translucent. Add the chopped veg and salt as you go. Deglaze with a generous splash of good white wine, whatever you’re drinking, and then add about 6 c. good chicken or vegetable stock. Lower the heat and cook covered until the carrots and parsnips are very tender. Either remove the vegetables and blend or use a hand-held blender, and purée until you get the consistency you like. Taste for seasoning… salt, pepper, a bit more wine, perhaps. Stir in some heavy cream or crème fraiche just before serving. A little chervil as garnish is very nice if you can find it.
BUY: Look for parsnips that are neither too big (woody cores) or too thin (hard to peel and often immature). Hardness and smooth unblemished skins are important indicators of quality as well.
FRESH DATES are not a common sight but are slowly making their way into specialty food stores throughout the season, late summer through winter. Dried dates are, of course, available year-round but even then, try to find the freshest dried dates which will be superior. A distinctive salad of fresh dates, pomegranate seeds and apples is a winter treat. Make sure the dates are ripe, see right. Cut a slit in the sides of about 15-16 dates and remove the seeds. Cut them into 3-4 pieces. Add the dates to the seeds from a large pomegranate and the peeled chopped flesh of a tart apple or Asian pear. Toss with the juice of one lemon, 2-3 T. pomegranate juice, 1 t. honey, 1 t. finely grated fresh ginger, and the merest pinch of both cinnamon and kosher salt.
TIPS: Avocados ripen well at room temperature, never refrigerate them until you’ve cut them open and then in a small tightly sealed container. Apparently ripening can be accelerated by keeping them in a paper bag or buried in rice. I’ve forgotten an avocado in rice once, however, and don’t do that anymore. DID YOU KNOW? Avocados have the distinction of ripening only after they are picked. Another good reason to buy them under-ripe.
TIPS: Parsnips make great chips; just peel and slice lengthwise, a little less than 1/4-inch thick, then fry in peanut oil (heated to 365°F.) until golden. Drain, salt and serve immediately. DID YOU KNOW? Parsnips require a long growing season, 3-4 months, and only really develop their true sweet nature after a frost. If kept properly (in some places, in the ground), good parsnips can be found until March or April.
BUY: If you can find fresh dates, look for light brown fruit sold clustered on a stem that is shiny and plump with softly yielding flesh. Avoid any that have mold or blemishes, but sugar crystals or a powdery sugar coating are not a problem; the dates can be revived with a little steam or on a baking sheet under a damp towel in a 300°F. oven for 15 minutes. TIPS: Make a stuffing from chèvre, chopped nuts, chopped citron and a touch of honey and fill seeded dates, then roll lightly in sugar… the original sweetmeat, possibly even the first candy. DID YOU KNOW? There are about 1,500 varieties of dates, with about 100 grown in California. The one we’re most apt to see is the Medjool descended from the trees brought to California from Morocco in 1927.
Ellen Kelly has written about food, among other culinary pursuits, for years and is a regular contributor to City Palate.
Sweet heat on a cold winter’s day Cold days and a piping mug of hot chocolate just go hand in hand. If your childhood memories of steaming cups of hot cocoa, topped with marshmallows, have you craving this favourite cold weather treat, visit the Silk Road Spice Merchant and pick up any of their six unique hot cocoa spice blends. Each blend has been created to pair perfectly with chocolate, offering flavour combinations like Chai Masala Hot Cocoa, Winter Spiced Hot Cocoa and Spicy Mexican Hot Cocoa. This sweet heat beverage is comfort in a mug and might even be the perfect gift for your Valentine.
UNIQUE FOOD EXPERIENCE ON YOUR NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION LIST?
Artisan vinegars Salt Spring Island Vinegars start with local fermented fruit that’s been turned into wine, placed into tanks for natural cultures to convert the alcohol to acetic acid before it becomes vinegar. Sometimes the process can take a year to make, but the wait is worth it. Mix up some salad greens, cooked cuzbed squash, pepitas and feta cheese and serve with this tasty Salt Spring Island Blackberry Balsamic Vinaigrette.
One pan wonders Each Le Creuset Iron Handle Skillet is made in a single-use sand mold that is destroyed after use, ensuring no two pieces are identical. Once cast, each piece receives two coats of enamel to ensure a chip resistant finish. Enameled cast iron skillets are kitchen treasures that have long stood the test of time. These kitchen staples can be used for stovetop frying, oven baking and can even be used on your grill. With so many magnificent colours to choose from like Cerise, Caribbean, Oyster or Bonbon, you’d be hard-pressed to pick just one. Good thing wedding season is right around the corner.
Wanda Baker is a Calgary food writer and author of bakersbeans.ca who writes about life, adventures and food.
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“The other white meat” has come a long way in the last generation or two, since excessive recommended cooking times meant many of us grew up on dry, overcooked pork. A better understanding of pork-related pathogens and improved processing practices means the next generation will not grow up with the same association. Pork is – or should be – wonderfully moist and flavourful, even when you pick up the leaner cuts. And while there’s nothing wrong with a good pork chop, there are so many interesting things to do with pork – cuts can be quick and affordable for daily dinners, or more extravagant when you’re looking for something fancy. A crown roast of pork is stunning, delicious, fun to serve, and comes with a natural well in the middle to fill with stuffing and other good things – it really needs to make a comeback. The biggest obstacle with pork, now that the overcooking issue has been addressed and people are accustomed to the idea of their pork a little pink, is thinking beyond the usual; quick-cooking tenderloin makes amazing satay, and though pork shoulder is made for cooking low and slow, it has much potential beyond pulled pork. Braise it with oranges and milk, chilies for tacos, or red wine and tomatoes for the most satisfying ragu. Fall-off-the-bone ribs are easy (and not as messy) if you pre-roast them first on a rimmed sheet pan in the oven, covered with foil, at around 300°F for 2-1/2 hours; you can then wrap them in their cooking foil to refrigerate until they’re ready to slather with sauce and finish on the barbecue. And if you love a good chop, buy them on the bone and try cooking them like a steak: in a blazinghot cast-iron pan, flipping often (the only difference between a beef steak and pork chop) so that it doesn’t begin to curl. An inch-thick chop should take 6-8 minutes; while it rests, swirl a pat of butter around the pan to loosen any of those flavourful browned bits, and pour it overtop.
Join us as we toast our Chef Dave Bohati after his victory representing Murrieta’s at the regional qualifiers of the Canadian Culinary Championships. Winning gold is the first step on the way to nationals. Congratulations Chef!
cutting all the way through to the meat underneath. Rub the garlic clove over the surface of the pork, drizzle with oil and rub all over. Pull the leaves off a couple sprigs of thyme and sprinkle overtop; drizzle with a little more oil. Let the meat stand for about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 450°F and place the onions in the bottom of a roasting pan. Place the pork belly on top and place a sprig or two of thyme and the halved garlic around it; drizzle the exposed garlic with a little oil and roast for 30 minutes. Turn the heat down to 300°F and continue to roast for 2-1/2 hours, until the meat is tender and the skin is crisp. If you like, toss a few new potatoes into the pan around the meat, shaking it up to coat them with the rendered fat, about three quarters of the way through the cooking time. Let rest on a cutting board before slicing. Serves 4-6.
While ground beef provides the baseline for so many weeknight meals, even more affordable ground pork is often overlooked. Here’s what to do with it: cook it until crispy with green onions, ginger, garlic and cilantro, and toss it with peanut sauce and quickly cooked noodles.
It’s possible to make a tasty pile of pulled pork even without a smoker. Browning pieces will add more flavour; use your favourite barbecue spice rub, if you have one, in place of the brown sugar and spices.
The cut most famously used for long-smoked or braised pulled pork makes for an amazing pot of ragu – add fennel seed too, if you like, and some crushed tomatoes or passata at the end if you like it saucier.
Drizzle some oil into a heavy, ovenproof pot set over medium-high heat. Place the pork shoulder in a large bowl and toss with the chili powder, paprika, brown sugar, cumin, and enough salt and pepper to suit your taste. Brown the meat in batches, transferring it to another bowl or plate as you go. Add the onion to the pan and cook for a few minutes, until it starts to soften and loosen any browned bits in the bottom of the pan.
Crown roast of pork – a bone-in pork loin shaped in a circle with the bones sticking up to resemble the points of a crown – is making a comeback. It’s impressive to serve, easy to carve, and a perfect alternative to turkey when you’re making a special dinner for a small crowd. And it’s far easier to stuff than a turkey; simply mound the stuffing in the middle.
cheese and then oozing it onto anything and everything. caution: will result in full bellies, laughter, independent culinary creations and utter satisfaction.
After the cheer and excitement of December, looking at three more months of cold and snow is a gloomy proposition, but a gathering of friends helps drive away the winter blues. There’s something attractively primal about gathering around a table in the gloom of winter and eating a perfectly roasted leg of lamb.
Enjoy a pre-show soiree, best seats in the house for the opening night performance, and a glittering post-show reception with the dancers.
Traditionally I’d always rubbed the lamb leg with salt and pepper and roasted it on a bed of lemon slices and rosemary. But after a trip to France’s Jura region, specifically a visit to a Boucherie in Dole, I discovered a tastier and more interesting way to cook lamb; I was working as First Mate on a barge and on a quiet afternoon had biked into town. There, I saw a small, perfectly formed leg of lamb, shank bone stripped clean of flesh, the meaty upper leg stuffed with morel mushrooms and herbs and neatly bound with butchers twine. I had to have it! Back to the boat, I coated the lamb with a paste of minced garlic, lemon juice, Dijon mustard and honey and roasted it. That was a memorable feast – cooked and consumed in the galley kitchen while moored on the mighty Doubs river. Since then, I’ve cooked this stuffed leg of lamb many times. It’s always a spirit-reviving feast.
Stuffed Leg of Lamb with Pear Habanero Compote for a Snowy Soirée To make this like the lamb I had in the Jura, the thigh bone is removed. You are not butterflying the leg – the bone is removed without cutting the leg open – the better to stuff the cavity. If you are confident with your knife skills you can do it yourself, or you can do as I did and utilize your local butcher to do the boning and stuffing for you. This brought me to Dave Sturies, co-owner and head butcher of Empire Provisions. Dave’s free range lamb comes from local producer Ewe-Nique Farms. He was happy to help and expertly boned and stuffed the leg with bread crumbs, minced garlic, chopped flat leaf parsley, tarragon and rosemary. It couldn’t have been easier. Diced morel mushrooms are traditionally used as stuffing, but I cooked the mushrooms on the side. The pear habanero compote is optional – but it’s very complimentary to the lamb and can be made ahead of time and frozen until needed. 1. Removing the thigh bone.
2. Stuffing the leg with bread crumbs, garlic and herbs.
6. Cooked stuffed lamb sliced and delicious.
Bring the water and sugar to a boil, add the pear and habanero and boil to a pulp. Strain the liquid and allow the pulp to cool. Remove pear seeds and stringy bits, mash and use immediately as a side with the lamb.
Karen Ralph is a cookbook co-author and long-time contributor to City Palate, whose syrups and shrubs can be found at Eau Claire Distillery.
Ellen Kelly and Sharon Schuld Located in the heart of 17th Avenue SW in Calgary, 5S17 is a Japanese Fusion restaurant that celebrates the five senses of the culinary experience. French/Asian Fusion Cuisine (with a pronounced Japanese influence) in casual, yet intimate surroundings. Colm McClean and Satoru Kogo make a charismatic duo as owners/operators of this charming little spot on 17th Ave SW. And it is small; with the open kitchen and the long, elevated banquette, it feels like an upscale open-air food stand located in a far more exotic locale. This impression is echoed by the friendly, personalized service and attention to detail, something you experience the minute you walk in the door. We’ve been in before and knew finding enough good food for two – maybe even a couple of glasses of more-than-decent wine – for under $50 wouldn’t be a problem. The obvious care taken with the ingredients at 5S17 (a paean to the five senses) is almost at odds with the remarkably reasonable prices. From the excellent brioche buns (they had me at brioche, I’m afraid) to the well-crafted sauces and marinades, the overall ethic is obviously qualitative. After ordering two glasses of Montalto Pinot Grigio ($8/glass), we decided to start with dumplings, always a favourite, and these pan-fried pork wraps didn’t disappoint. Moist and tasty, a great deal at $7.00 for 4 or $13.00 for 8 pieces. Onward to Steak ‘n’ Chips, Saturo-style, with some of the best fries we’ve had anywhere. Must be that classic French training coming out! Slices of house-marinated skirt steak went beautifully with both the Sriracha BBQ and teriyaki sauces; never mind the ketchup, we happily dipped our fries in, too. My dinner-mate, Sharon Schuld (owner of Pudding Yarn just around the corner… lucky girl), wanted to try one of the delicious-sounding sandwiches as well, so “The Smash” was next up. The combination of slow braised brisket (yuzu rubbed and red chili marinated) and Thai chicken, accompanied by a side of perfectly grilled zucchini sticks, rounded out our early-evening repast perfectly. When the bill came, we were delighted to see that we hit the $50 mark exactly! Don’t let the seemingly endless refurbishing of 17th Avenue deter you. The avenue needs the facelift and the businesses need us! Be patient and eat on!
TOTAL $50.00 ********************** Thank you for dining with us!
Jason and Pam Zaran After a very active Saturday we found ourselves super hungry and looking to get something special for dinner without breaking the bank. Back in the day we had neighbours from Nepal, and enjoyed the special dishes they would share with us such as Mo:Mos! So on this night we decided to go to The Himalayan, which we had heard rave reviews about. Though we didn’t have a reservation, we showed up at 9 p.m. to a packed house and waited for an open table. Upon entering we were greeted warmly and John, our host, was beyond courteous. Before we were seated, he got us situated at the bar where we quickly ordered some memorable Mo:Mos to satiate our immediate hunger. We barely had time to get comfortable and our table was ready. We were seated in a cozy corner (perfect for a chilly night outside), which provided both privacy and an adequate view of the restaurant décor. The Himalayan looked newly refurbished with accents that referenced Nepali culture – such as the welcoming Buddha at the door! Our host took good care of us by explaining the menu along with sharing both his favourites and the restaurant’s most popular dishes. Immediately afterward the Mo:Mos appeared. These little pillows of pork dumpling heaven came with a zesty dipping sauce. We crushed these quickly. Yummmmm. Our main dishes included The Himalayan Grill with lamb and The Chicken Cauli. There is a choice of spice level from mild to hot, and both my wife and I got our dishes hot. The lamb grill was a beautifully prepared large sizzling hot plate with six big morsels of perfectly cooked lamb served with grilled peppers, carrots, onions and tomatoes. The meal also came with Bhat (saffron rice), Dal (lentil soup), a Nepali salad and some out-of-this-world good flat bread to share. It was lots of food and very tasty. Pam’s chicken and cauliflower stew came in a thick sauce with tomatoes, onions and spices with the Bhat and Nepali salad. She was a big fan of this dish and pretty much licked the bowl. There were so many flavours in both the dishes and, although hot, they were not over the top. We were both very full and satisfied! What a great meal for such a reasonable price. We will go back.
For years we avoided eating anywhere called a “pub.” They normally are dark, smell like stale beer and have sticky tabletops when you sit down. They also inevitably have terrible, greasy food, which comes pre-made from some national food service company. There is no wine list, just bag-in-a-box red or white. Many such places try to hide their food shortcomings by cleverly calling themselves “Gastropubs” but we discovered that mostly this is just a way to dupe unsuspecting diners who end up getting the same old slop. Then there’s Newcastle Pub. Upon entering, the first thing you notice is how clean and bright it is. In summer, a sliding glass garage door puts you in a patio mood, even if you’re inside. There are TVs, but muted, as it is decidedly not a sports bar. Service is friendly and brisk and patrons are from all walks. But most of all you will notice that everyone in the joint is eating and the food looks plentiful and delicious. These positives are because manager Jason Stuart, who will offer a hearty handshake on your second visit like you are an old friend, has been in the food business a long time, both behind a stove and out in front. So, lots of thought goes into the menu as well as fresh, tasty ingredients that are very un-pubby although there are still classics, and all at great prices. As for the pub classics, everyday at lunch and dinner there are great specials for only $10.95 so dining under $50 is a no brainer. Best of all, Thursday is half price wine day and a bottle of Dona Paula Los Cardos Malbec is only $19 and juicy steak sandwiches are $10.95 after 4 p.m., so you can live it up for only $40.90. You won’t feel like you are eating pub food when you dig into Ahi Tuna Buddha Bowl overflowing with seared tuna, quinoa, carrot, cucumber, avocado, pea shoots and roasted peanuts, which is a full meal for only $19. Similarly, the Newcastle makes superb pizza and the Mediterranean thin crust at only $15 is loaded with pesto, grilled artichokes, tomatoes, Kalamata olives, feta and fresh basil and is a big meal. With a 5 ounce glass of the Malbec at $8 and a pint of domestic draught at $7.25 a duo can feast for exactly $49.25. The Newcastle changed our mind about pubs – let it change yours too – without killing your budget.
Geoff Last and Max Brisson Tucked away behind an unassuming doorway in the Mission area is a small gem of a restaurant called Carino Riserva. The theme here is a fusion of Italian seamlessly melded with Japanese ingredients and techniques, not an easy thing to achieve. When fusion dining was all the rage many of them fell flat, essentially neither fish nor fowl, and diners quickly moved on to safer and more familiar territory. This is not the case here; the chef/ owner has a deft touch, bringing together the best of both worlds. For example, beef carpaccio, an Italian standard, is presented here as himachi carpaccio, a combination of yellow tail tuna, cherry tomatoes, feta, yuzu vinaigrette and soy sauce. There’s campanelle, a trumpet- shaped pasta with a meat ragu that incorporates wagyu beef in place of the traditional ground chuck. Rack of lamb – at a very reasonable $28 – is served with frites and a spicy teriyaki sauce. Owner/chef Toshi Karino has a solid background in wine, having spent six years as Teatro’s wine director, and as you’d expect there are some great options in that regard. There’s also a nice selection of sakes and craft beers and the restaurant does allow corkage for $25 a bottle (free corkage on Tuesdays). Ramen is all the rage right now and for good reason; it’s delicious, comforting, filling and reasonably priced. Carino does lunch from Thursday to Saturday and the focus on those days is ramen, four versions to be precise. There’s the “classico” for $10 that includes BBQ pork, green onion, seaweed, bamboo shoots and toasted seaweed, and my favourite, tonkotu gyokai umami shoyu ($14.50) that includes fork-tender BBQ pork, umami paste, bonito flakes, boiled egg and toasted seaweed. In a more fusion-y vein there’s RECEIPT the Genovese ($14) with BBQ ********************** pork, cherry tomatoes, radicchio, arugula, bean sprouts, corn, 2 x Tonkotu Gyokai Umami Shoyu 29.00 boiled egg and parmesan. If you are craving a meatier lunch you 2 x Japanese beers 15.00 could opt for the bucatini with ––––––––––-–––––––-–wagyu beef sauce, a sweet deal at $15. With 32 seats it’s a cozy TOTAL $44.00 little spot and well worth discovering if you haven’t already. My ********************** old pal Max and I got away with Thank you for dining with us! two bowls of ramen, a couple of beers and a tip for just under $50.
TOTAL $47.00 *********************** Thank you for dining with us!
by Erin Lawrence It’s a sunny afternoon and light is streaming into High Line Brewing’s Inglewood headquarters through huge floor-to-ceiling windows. The tables are full; at one a couple is playing cards. A pizza arrives to another table, hand delivered from a pizza place up 9th Avenue SE. A group of friends laughs as they sample a tray of High Line’s brews that is set down on their table. This atmosphere repeats itself nearby at The Dandy Brewing Company, and Paddy’s Barbecue & Brewery. Calgarians are increasingly choosing to head to local breweries – and now to some distilleries too – to meet friends, converse, sample new sips, and listen to music and take in local art. “I really enjoy the community that builds around craft beer,” says Citizen Brewing’s Head Brewer Ryan Hampton. “It becomes a gathering place, an art space, a community place. It’s an extension of the brewer and the staff and people respond to that. People want to try new things and it becomes a community hub.” Over at Calgary’s Eighty-Eight Brewing Co., 1980s hair metal and synthpop boom from speakers on the second level where a loft-style taproom overlooks the brewery floor. Though there’s no brewing happening on the Saturday we visit, the communal tables are full, and the beer glasses are emptying. Noble Pie is shoveling pizzas out of its pop-up pizza counter as fast as staff can roll them out. Eighty-Eight’s Stuart Valentini says the growing popularity of local craft beer and the burgeoning community might be due in part to the relaxed nature that surrounds beer drinking. “Breweries serve as a really casual place for people to congregate. They don’t have to be as formal or substantial as if you were going out to have a big dinner, so you see everything from families who come with their kids, to people who come and bring board games and set up shop for a bit.” A couple of brewery districts are evolving in Calgary, years after Big Rock Brewery opened up in a southeast industrial area and started it all: The Inglewood and Ramsay neighbourhoods have Cold Garden, Dandy, High Line, Eighty-Eight and Paddy’s. To the west in the Beltline you’ll find Last Best, Trolley 5, Brewsters and Mill Street.
To the south in the Highfield-Alyth, Bonnybrook and Manchester areas, brewpubs are continuing to pop up in once exclusively industrial spaces. Village Brewery may have been one of the first to open up shop, but now they have neighbours in Banded Peak, Annex Ale project, Legend 7 Brewing, The OT Brewing Company and Born Colorado. There are currently about 40 businesses classified as “liquor manufacturers” in the city of Calgary, more outside the city limits (like one of the originals; popular and well-known Eau Claire Distillery in Turner Valley), and about 130 in total in Alberta. Growth has been massive.
It’s not just the breweries benefiting from this spirit of community.
Erin Lawrence is a Calgary TV producer, journalist, and freelance writer who loves food, technology and travel. Find her online at ErinLYYC.com or on Twitter & Instagram @ErinLYYC.
For most Calgarians, New Year’s Eve is a night of celebration associated with drinking and partying, but for our Chinese community, it is a two-week celebration with food, family and wishes of good health and prosperity. Also called Spring Festival, it is celebrated from the first day of the first lunar month, which varies each year based on the Gregorian calendar. This year it starts on February 5th. The first day, called Lunar New Year, is the most important day of the year for Chinese family reunions. The last day is when the Lantern Festival takes place to signal the end of the Lunar New Year celebrations; this is when children go out at night carrying paper lanterns and solving riddles on the lanterns. Lunar New Year is traditionally celebrated at the oldest living family member’s home. Typically, more than 10 dishes are prepared for the feast, though that number varies with the number of family members in attendance. Two weeks prior, much preparation happens – families clean their house of garbage and bad omens of the previous year and they wear new clothes and shoes to welcome in the new year. Tangerines and oranges are passed out freely during the entire two weeks as the Chinese words for tangerine and orange sound like the words for luck and wealth respectively.
2019: YEAR OF THE PIG Chinese (Lunar) New Year in 2019 is on Tuesday February 5th and it is the year of the Pig. The Pig is the last animal in the Chinese zodiac and is part of a 12-year zodiac cycle. In fact, there are five types of Pigs – Gold, Wood, Water, Fire and Earth, which are part of a 60-year cycle. 2019 is the year of the Earth Pig. People born in 1959 or 2019, are cooperative, communicative, popular among friends and punctual. They are born lucky in life and are well versed in managing financial issues. Earth Pigs become rich in middle age due to their hard work in earlier years and can expect to live in abundance during old age. (Note: Just because 2019 is the year of the Pig, doesn’t mean Chinese families will be eating extra pork dishes this year.) I’m not aware of any other culture where food, language and symbolism are linked with family traditions as they are in Chinese culture.
CHINESE (LUNAR) NEW YEAR IN CALGARY Because Chinese New Year is traditionally a family event, it is most often celebrated at a restaurant. However, if you are interested in experiencing a Chinese New Year’s Dinner in Calgary, your best bet is to get a ticket to the Sien Lok Society’s New Year Gala Celebration. This year’s dinner is on Saturday, February 2 at the Regency Palace restaurant. This year is the 50th Anniversary, get your tickets early as it sells out quickly. Link: eventbrite.ca/e/sien-lok-societys-50th-chinese-newyear-gala-celebration-tickets-50327953263 Terry Wong, Executive Director of the Chinatown Business Improvement area, suggests trying Silver Dragon, Golden Inn or Culture Centre restaurants for a traditional dinner. Tang Dynasty and Great Taste will have a Northern China style meal, while T Pot and Regency Palace are your best bet for “hot pot” fondue delicacies, and Calgary Court and U & Me offer a contemporary Hong Kong café twist. Two Penny, at 1213 - 1st St. SW, is also a good bet. Last year they offered a Chinese New Year’s dinner banquet with dishes like Shanghai Noodles, Ling Cod Soup, Crispy Chicken, Dim Sum, Gai Lan, Mandarin Meringue Tarts and more, daily, during the two week New Year’s celebration. Dinner guests were also treated to receiving the customary red envelopes with special prizes inside. Though most of the prizes were small, one larger prize was given out each day. This year Two Penny is excited to celebrate the Year of the Pig in 2019. It will kick off celebrations on February 5th until the 15th with a banquet menu, in a similar format to this years’ CNY offering but with an evolved menu of Two Penny signature dishes, and a few celebratory dishes, made special for the occasion. This menu will be a great option for group dining, and similar to last year, there will be a few elements of surprise and delight, along with some wonderful cocktails and tea to pair with the meal. It will be around $45, a steal of a deal for the kind of meal being served.
Exceptional taste comes with age. Alberta Prime and aged for at least 28 days, every steak served becomes the perfectly prepared centrepiece of the Hy’s experience.
n Open Table posts Canada’s Best 100 Restaurants from coast to coast and this year, Calgary has 16 restaurants featured, which is the second most of any Canadian city. Recognized restaurants: Anju, Pigeonhole, Ten Foot Henry, Royale, Cucina Market Bistro, Bridgette Bar, Escoba Bistro and Wine Bar, Hy’s Steakhouse, Klein/Harris, La Chaumière, The Nash, Posto Pizzeria and Bar, Q Haute Cuisine, Sukiyaki House, Vero Bistro Moderne, WORKSHOP kitchen + culture.
n Murrieta’s general manager, Sabrina, and exec chef, Dave Bohati, who won the top position at the Gold Medal Plates 2018, now called Canada’s Great Kitchen Party. That means he’ll be off to the Canadian Culinary Championships in February competing with the gold medal winners from all over Canada. He’s very good with food and has a very good chance of winning! Good for you Dave, City Palate was one of the judges and loved your dish! And chef Bohati teamed up with a SAIT student at the SAIT Chef To Be competition to help raise money to support the student chefs. Another gold medal for Dave and his student chef-to-be and a $5,000 scholarship was awarded on Murrieta’s behalf to a SAIT student.
n River Café closes in January each year for annual repairs and maintenance, but this year necessary flood mitigation work and some building life-cycle maintenance will keep the doors closed for three more months. Check river-cafe.com for updates, or to make spring and summer bookings, and expect the doors to reopen in late April. In the meanwhile, you can join the River Café team on culinary vacation in Punta Mita Mexico. Proprietor Sal Howell, Chef Matthias Fong, River Café’s Chef de Cuisine Eric Um and Pastry Chef Kevin Yang lead an interactive exploration of coastal Pacific Mexico’s terroir. Packages include a fishing trip, local markets, cooking demonstrations and dinners on the beach – January 23rd to 27th. Check river-café.com for more details.
Made Meals Made Better, Made Easy!
n Yellow Door Bistro welcomes a new chef de cuisine, Scott Redekopp. Known for surprising and playful twists on classics, chef Redekopp just launched an enticing new winter menu. Sample the menu during the happiest of hours – Monday to Saturday from 4pm to 6pm, enjoy $5 wine, beer and cocktail features as well as 1/2 price à la carte flatbreads. Reserve your table: yellowdoorbistro.ca n SAIT’s Highwood Dining Room... With winter here, the students at the Highwood know that you want to escape the cold with a dining experience that will warm your soul. The Highwood is accepting reservations for January 9 - February 28. The gourmet buffets will be open for online bookings only and will be offered on: • January 17, 24, 31 • February 7, 14, 28 Visit sait.ca/highwood to view the menus, to find lunch and dinner parking details, campus map and to book online. Support student learning in the Highwood, 1301 - 16th Ave. NW, 403-284-8615, ext. 2, [email protected] n Cilantro invites you to “Tempt Your Taste Buds At Our Winter Dinner Series,” January 23, February 27 and March 20. Cilantro will feed you such good food and perfect wines paired with the courses. The evening will be hosted by CRMR’s wine director, Brad Royale, who will walk you through hand-picked wines that have been carefully paired with three courses and one amuse-bouche prepared by Cilantro’s hugely talented culinary team led by chef Lancelot Monteiro. Tickets are just $99 inclusive of tax and gratuity, an incredibly affordable price. Visit cilantrocalgary.com for all the details and ticket ordering.
n The world of wine awaits. Winefest invites you to indulge in hundreds of wines in all styles and flavours! One ticket includes an all-inclusive sampling of wines, hors d’oeuvres and a take-home wine glass. Guests will enjoy a variety of red, white, rosé, port, sparkling, and dessert wines from the world’s most celebrated wine regions, and a selection of sweet and savoury decadent bites. This year, Winefest is proud to present Rioja as 2019’s feature wine region. This premiere wine region in Spain is known for its tempranillo, but with a total vineyard area of 64,000 hectares, Rioja truly offers a style of wine for every wine lover. Explore and discover Rioja’s remarkable wine, along with many others at this year’s event. Early Bird prices available until Friday, January 11. Winefest takes place February 22 and 23 at Stampede Park BMO Centre, Hall E. Visit winefestcalgary.com for details and tickets.
n BeerGuysYYC announces Calgary’s first and only Beer Guys Craft Club. The Club, which launched officially on December 1, is designed specifically to provide local craft breweries with a platform to promote their establishment, while providing its members with exclusive discounts and unparalleled opportunities to explore Calgary’s ever-growing craft beer scene. Sticking with the BeerGuysYYC mission, this program is at no cost to the participating breweries, in an effort to continually promote and assist Calgary business owners. And while there is a nominal cost to the member, a portion of their membership dues will go directly to supporting local charities. So members can feel good about their nominal monthly fee of $7.95. Deals and special offers change often and are left up to the establishment. The idea for the Club came from friends, colleagues and even complete strangers inquiring as to how they too could become a “BeerGuy” and often, “BeerGal.” After a quick brainstorm, the team realized the potential for a club that not only brought people together, but also encouraged Calgarians to try something new and support local start-ups. As time goes on members can also expect exclusive member-only events and social gatherings that will truly unite craft beer enthusiasts. For more information visitbeerguys.ca and check out BeerGuysYYC on Instagram and Twitter @beerguysyyc.
n Do you know a sommelier between the ages of 21-31 who would like an opportunity to compete locally and internationally for great travel and cash prizes in the upcoming Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Jeunes Sommeliers Competition 2019!
n Support thousands of Calgary men and their families dealing with mental health issues, through the Women for Men’s Health’s The Big Ball Gala on Friday, February 1st. The biggest party of the year, held at Hotel Arts, is an evening of dance, drink, food and fun. This powerful initiative acts to increase awareness in areas impacting men, including mental health. Get your tickets here: womenformengala.com n Your Project. Their Experts. Bring them together at the Calgary Renovation Show, January 11-13 at the BMO Centre at Stampede Park. Featuring HGTV Canada star Bryan Baeumler and more than 200 home improvement companies to choose from, we have everything you need to make your home goals happen. Visit calgaryrenovationshow.com to buy your tickets and save $3 on regular adult admission. Satisfaction guaranteed - or the price of admission is on us! And visit the web site for exhibitors and all the details about what’s going on. For example, as RUST-OLEUM says, “Kitchen, spotless. Bourbon, neat.” Sounds good to us!
n Avenida Food Hall & Fresh Market isn’t a typical food court, nor is it a standard farmers’ market. In fact, they’re bringing to Calgary something the city has never seen before: an upscale urban food hall incorporating the elements of farmers’ markets, which Calgarians know and love. So what exactly is a food hall? A staple in both historical European cities such as London, Paris and Lisbon, and in vibrant North American metropolises such as New York, Boston and Montreal, food halls offer diners a unique opportunity to experiment, enjoy and discover. They give visitors the chance to affordably and conveniently explore diverse tastes from vendors specializing in cuisine preparation and production methods spanning the globe. All with a local slant. Unlike food courts, which are designed and operated to serve as many people as quickly as possible, food halls are intended to serve as culinary gathering places, facilitating memorable social experiences for the people who visit them. Originating more than one-hundred years ago within European department stores, the food hall concept has spread to major cities all over the world in recent years. Avenida Food Hall & Fresh Market will let your taste buds travel while you enjoy an open, inviting and social market atmosphere. It is the first of its kind in Calgary. The 41 vendor booths at the market include: Teff ’N’ Greens, Sunworks Farms, Touch of India, Bangkok Street Food, Pizzeria, Project 196 Ice Cream, Bumbu Grill, Takori, TEAmo Fruit Tea, Herbal Healing, Grainz Bread Shop, Latin Foods Specialties, Planet Wrap, Expat Asia, Arepas Ranch, Yummy Churros, Holy Cannoli, Juice Because, Shirley’s Greenhouse, Walkers Own Produce, So Fresh Produce, Irving’s Pork, Fantasy Pretzels & Donuts, Miss P’s Gluten Free, Mestizo Mexican Street Food, to name a few. Oh, and everything you love about local farmers’ markets is there too!
6 quick ways with... CASUALLY ELEGANT. UNIQUELY VINTAGE.
See our website for upcoming Friday Night Flights and Valentine’s Day Dinner events.
Reservations Recommended 403.268.8607 or www.SelkirkGrille.ca OPEN TUESDAY THROUGH SATURDAY FOR LUNCH AND DINNER. OPEN SUNDAY FOR LUNCH.
This is so soothing and delicious, great either hot or cold. To a pot add 2 c. water, 1/4 c. sugar, place over high heat and stir constantly until the sugar has dissolved, then from time to time. When the sugar has dissolved, add 1 camomile tea bag and 1/4 c. chopped fresh ginger. When this to comes to the boil, allow it to boil rapidly for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and allow this to steep for another 2 minutes before straining the ginger and tea. In a heavy glass tumbler add 1 oz. of St. Germain liqueur, 1/2 ounce vodka, 1 thin slice of ginger and 1 thin slice of lemon and fill the glass with the warm ginger tea. Makes 4 servings.
Ginger Vermouth Mussels This is one of my favourite fast meals, with a simple salad and a fresh baguette, Mmmmm. In a large skillet add 2 T. butter and place over medium heat. Once the butter is foaming, add 2 garlic cloves, minced, 1 T. grated fresh ginger, 1 t salt and sauté for 1 minute. Then add 1 kg. fresh mussels and 1/2 c. vermouth, give them a quick stir and cover with a tightfitting lid. Allow this to steam for about 3 to 4 minutes or until almost all the shells have opened. Add 1/2 c. whipping cream, give them a quick stir, adjust the salt to taste. Remove from heat and spoon the mussels into 2 bowls and divide up the sauce, garnish with chopped parsley and lemon zest. Serve 2.
Ginger Peanut Lamb Chops This is the sauce I also use for salad rolls, satays and I even add a little more water to make a dressing for salads, so good. In a small bowl add 1/4 c. peanut butter, 2 T. lime juice, 3 drops of fish sauce, 1 T. grated fresh ginger, 1 garlic clove, finely minced, 1/2 t. Sriracha, 1/4 c. water. Whisk until smooth, place in a pot for later. Place a skillet over high heat and allow the pan to get very hot. While this is happening rub some salt and pepper into 4 lamb chops. Add 1/4 c. canola oil to the hot skillet, then the lamb chops. Sear each side for about 2 minutes for medium rare. Remove them from the pan and allow them to rest while you gently warm the peanut sauce over low heat. Arrange the lamb onto plates and generously drizzle the sauce, garnish with sliced green onions and chopped peanuts. Serves 2.
Best Chicken Noodle Soup, Ever! The trick to making chicken broth taste intensely of chicken is ground dried ginger! This is a case where ginger is being used as a flavour bridge. To make the perfect chicken noodle soup, I always cook my noodles separately and store the leftovers separately. I only add the noodles to the soup just before serving. Put a pot of water on to boil. Once boiling add 1 t. salt and 2 handfuls of pasta of your choice. In another pot over medium heat add 2 T. olive oil, 1 onion, diced, 1 chicken breast cut into thin strips, salt and pepper. Sauté a minute or so before adding 2 medium carrots, diced, 2 celery stalks, diced, continue to sauté for 2 minutes more before adding 3 c. chicken stock, 1/2 t. ground dried ginger, 1/2 t. dried thyme and a pinch of dried sage. Once this comes to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer. When the pasta is cooked, drain and run under cold water until cooled, roll with 1 t. olive oil to evenly coat, set aside to continue to drain. Once the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes, add 1/2 c. frozen peas. Just before serving the soup adjust the salt to your taste. Place some of the noodles into four bowls and ladle soup over this and serve. Serves 4.
Squash Ravioli in Ginger Butter with Leeks and Roasted Peppers The ginger butter has such a bright flavour, yet it really complements the squash. Place a large pot of salted water over high heat. When the water is boiling rapidly, add 1 small package of squash ravioli and give it a stir. While the ravioli is boiling, place a large pan over medium heat and add 1/4 c. butter and allow it to melt. When the butter is foaming, add 1 leek, thinly sliced, 3 roasted red pepper fillets from a jar, thinly sliced, 2 T. grated fresh ginger, salt and pepper to taste, sauté gently for about 2 minutes. When the raviolis are tender, drain and add them to the pan with the ginger butter, gently stir to evenly coat. Spoon into two bowls and garnish with crumbled feta and fresh ground pepper. Serves 2.
Ginger Almond Peach Upside-Down Cake The dried ginger really enhances the almond flavour in the cake and the fresh ginger with the peaches brings out the citrus tones in the fruit. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Into a bowl, whisk together 2 c. flour, 1 t. baking powder, 1/2 t. baking soda, 1/2 t. salt and set aside. Break 2 eggs into a larger bowl and, with a whisk, slowly beat in 1/2 c. canola oil then beat in 1 c. sugar. Once this is fully incorporated, beat in 1 c. ground almonds. Set aside for later. In a pot that is about 8” wide and at least 4” deep, add 1/4 c. butter and place over high heat. Once the butter has melted, add 1 c. sugar, 1 T. grated fresh ginger and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Now add 3 c. frozen peach slices and sauté for about 4 minutes or until the peach slices have thawed and are warm. Stir in 1/2 c. whole almonds and give it a stir and remove from heat. To finish the batter, stir in 1 c. milk, then stir in the flour until smooth. Pour the finished batter over the peaches in the pot Blvd S.W. Calgary, Alberta | Phone: (403)springs 460-3771 and place the 2330 pot inFish theCreek oven. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the cake back in the centre when you touch it. Remove from the oven and let the cake rest for about 2 minutes before turning it out onto a platter. Serves 6 to 8. Chris Halpin has been teaching Calgarians to make fast, fun urban food since 1997 and is the owner of Manna Catering Service. mannaonline.com. Recipe photos by Chris Halpin.
Time marches on and another new year is upon us. Turning the page to another January in my daytimer meant that, after I’d resolved to lose weight and stop drinking (with my fingers crossed behind my back), I could embark on something I might actually accomplish, which was my annual Google search to find out what the major food trend of the upcoming twelve months would be. It turns out that the consensus among foodie prediction-makers is that this year, vast numbers of eaters will alter their diets and become “flexitarians.” My first reaction wasn’t to wonder whether this prediction was going to be accurate or not, but rather, to blurt out, “What in the hell is a flexitarian?” This new-fangled word was a head-scratcher. Before looking up the definition of “flexitarian,” I tried to imagine what in God’s name it might refer to. At first, I thought it might be some weight-loss program involving stripping, exotic dancing or contortionism as part of the exercise regimen. Then I thought it might refer to citizens of the U.K. who are angry at the E.U. and hope that Brexit comes to pass, but who will resist boycotting Euro-products and continue to eat French cheese. Brexit into Flexit? Nope. My guesses never even came close, mostly because this may be the stupidest food trend name of all time. You see, “flexitarian” describes a person who is a “flexible vegetarian.” Also known as “veggie-vores,” these are dedicated vegetarians who, from time to time, will eat meat, when the whim strikes them. I’m sorry, but these cheaters aren’t flexitanything – they are just freaking omnivores who happen to usually have a plantbased diet and want to sound all health- and environmentally righteous, while they quietly saw into a T-bone once a week. This trend is just verbal sleight-of-hand, and is the equivalent of someone saying they are “married and monogamous” while refusing to throttle back on dating when their spouse is otherwise occupied.
Once I got into researching flexitarianism, I found a host of other terms people use to cover up the fact that they claim to have gone mostly veggie, but turn into a drooling Homer Simpson around a burger. To sound all sneaky about it, some folks call themselves “reducetarianists,” “lessetarianists” or, my favourite, “meat minimalists.” The last one sounds like an artists’ colony that might have created a meat garment for Lady Gaga to wear, but would have limited itself to just a thong or a bikini. My reading suggests that as a culture, we like words that confound the truth. In fact, the American Dialect Society not long ago voted “flexitarian” as the year’s “most useful word or phrase.” This just beat out “pre-emptive self-defence,” which was defined as “an attack before a possible attack.” Which sounds kind-of like just an attack to me. I must admit that apart from my being put off by the verbal deception, there are some real positives that arise from even sneaky flexitarianism. The movement has gained real momentum due to the efforts of Sir Paul McCartney and his daughters, Stella and Mary, through their No Meat Monday campaign. As dedicated vegetarians, the Beatle and family are pushing for folks to take one day a week off eating meat. There is pretty clear science that if everyone in the world (or even most of us) took just one day off being a carnivore, the resulting environmental, animal welfare and land conservation benefits would be enormous. And I am in favour of that wholeheartedly, without any need to be sneaky. My research also turned up trending foodie words that I do favour. One of them is “freeganism,” which has a couple of meanings. The meaning that I am sorry exists applies to the poor souls who eat discarded food, usually from dumpsters. But the alternate meaning that I promise I will use in the future is “freegan,” meaning a person who only eats what they get for free. This would apply to many people with whom I have dined out, who suddenly get short arms and deep pockets when the bill arrives, leaving my credit card the only one that makes it into the point-of-sale machine. Be warned, freegans – the next time you are in a restaurant across from me and the bill is presented, pull out your card to avoid suffering a ferocious round of “pre-emptive self-defence.” Wow – a useful phrase, indeed. Allan Shewchuk is a lawyer, food writer and sought-after Italian food and wine guru. He currently has kitchens in both Calgary and Florence, Italy, but will drink wine pretty much anywhere. | 2019-04-23T17:07:23Z | https://issuu.com/citypalate/docs/cp_jf19 |
Online Shopping is rather latest thing nowadays. We buy whatever from food to digital tools online bragada mattress topper. Nonetheless, when it involves buying a product like a bed mattress that we are also utilized to going to the store and purchase, we tend to be hesitant in some cases. This can be somewhat warranted because a mattress is a quite a significant buy and returning such an item could be an inconvenience if you take place making a mistake with your selection. Here are some of the points that you need to recognize before you buy mattress online.
Are you looking for mattress sales to offer your bed a brand-new life? It is good to know that mattress sales are obtaining a lot more as well as more constant. Whereas in customer’s viewpoint – mattress sales come with unequaled financial savings and purchasers looking for spending plan products also, sometimes locate it possible to make a better as well as quality purchase.
Hundreds of research study’ s have already wrapped up that sleep is really important to our physical as well as psychological health and wellness as well as health and wellbeing. Therefore, you have to be very cautious while getting anything from mattress sales. Relied on names generally do not put their name and also service at danger for producing more by marketing poor or out-of-date products.
Well, never ever acquire an improper bed mattress even if it is being used at a cost much minimal than its regular cost. Move in advance and also leave this for others. As an individual every person gains from his/her experience. In situation if you are not still certain concerning just what is mosting likely to work far better for you than you can always opt for FREE bragada mattress topperappointment possibilities being provided occasionally. Those that currently are suffering from sleep problems or are dealing with chronic pains ought to constantly seek advice from with their orthopedic or an expert as a simple change in your sleep gear or sleep behaviors often can bring wonderful alleviation. As an instance think about soft bed mattress. These kind of mattresses suits those who such as to sleep on their sides. Hundreds of vendors are making and also offering firm mattress on the market. These mattresses are understood to be far better for sleepers that such as to sleep on their back or tummy.
Again, you have to deal very carefully below as it refers your rest or insomnia. We are not right here to dissuade minor ones in the company. Nonetheless, staying straightened with considerable brands can always be considered as a secure method to go. Large names made all their popularity and also magnificence by investing substantial initiatives as well as resources. Attempting something new for a couple of days and also particularly when items are provided with free trials, is not a poor suggestion.
The memory foam mattress comes on the leading as they are the most prominent ones. These mattresses use a lengthy lifespan, they are offered at a competitive rate, as well as their longevity scores are way far better than their counterparts. You could call it either innerspring mattress or springtime mattress directly.
Now that you recognize acquiring a mattress online will not make you be sorry for at the end, allow’s see the points you could do it make your decision as much better as feasible. There are mattresses which are better for back sleepers compared to side sleepers. Know specifically just what you are going for, and then start surfing for the cushion that would certainly match all your requirements.
As pointed out above as well, one of the largest benefits of on the internet purchasing is the accessibility to thousands of user evaluations. bragada mattress topper There are unusual opportunities that a product is a whole lot far better than exactly what it has been explained by the users, but most of the time if the evaluations are reliable, it would certainly provide you a fantastic understanding right into the experience of utilizing the bed mattress that you can not obtain from anywhere else.
Online Shopping is rather latest thing nowadays. We purchase whatever from food to electronic tools online bragada mattress topper. Nevertheless, when it involves purchasing a product like a bed mattress that we are too utilized to going to the store and get, we often tend to be reluctant in some cases. This can be rather warranted considering that a mattress is a rather a considerable buy as well as returning such a product could be a problem if you take place to make a blunder with your selection. Right here are some of the things that you need to know prior to you buy mattress online.
Are you looking for mattress sales to give your bed a new life? Well, the mattress sector is everything about simple points represented in rather bragada mattress topperchallenging fashion. Nevertheless, it is excellent to know that mattress sales are getting much more and a lot more regular. Actually, a few of the leading makers use regular offers on normal and minimal time products. These mattress sales are right for everybody. For vendors, these sales bring a great deal of advertising and marketing as well as some fast capital. Whereas in customer’s point of view – mattress sales feature unparalleled financial savings and also purchasers seeking spending plan products even, sometimes discover it feasible to earn a far better and also quality acquisition. Being a client as well as specifically the one that is out on a very essential mission of getting a mattress bragada mattress topper – you should maintain on your own stick to some principals. Always, believe before you click the “order” button as today’ s advertising techniques are type of catches. Adhering to are a couple of, basic guidelines for people that are concerning to acquire bed linens products.
Hundreds of research’ s have currently ended that rest is really crucial to our physical and emotional health as well as wellness. Therefore, you have to be really cautious while buying anything from mattress sales. Trusted names usually don’t place their name and also service at threat for producing more by marketing bad or outdated products.
Well, never ever purchase an unsuitable bed mattress just since it is being supplied at a rate much lower compared to its normal rate. Continue and also leave this one for others. As an individual every person picks up from his or her experience. In instance if you are not still certain concerning just what is mosting likely to work much better for you compared to you could constantly go with FREE bragada mattress topperexamination opportunities being used occasionally. Those who currently are dealing with rest conditions or are dealing with chronic pains must constantly talk to their orthopedic or a professional as a simple modification in your sleep gear or rest behaviors sometimes can bring terrific relief. As an example take into consideration soft cushions. These sort of cushions suits those who want to sleep on their sides. Hundreds of suppliers are producing as well as selling firm bed mattress on the market. These bed mattress are understood to be better for sleepers who like to sleep on their back or belly.
Again, you have to deal very meticulously below as it is a matter of your rest or sleeplessness. Trying something brand-new for a pair of days and also particularly when products are supplied with complimentary trials, is not a negative idea.
Well, by kind we can classify them right into three different teams. The memory foam bed mattress begins the leading as they are one of the most popular ones. These cushions use a lengthy life expectancy, they are offered at a competitive price, and their toughness ratings are way far better than their equivalents. bragada mattress topper The 2nd kind of cushions we desire to point out here is called Latex Foam. They are additionally incredibly popular in offline and also online markets. You can locate latex foam’s all-natural and synthetic variations. They come making up on a poly foam base whereas their core is composed of multiple latex layers to provide sleepers with even more convenience. Here comes the third and also the last key type of cushions. You can call it either innerspring mattress or spring bed mattress directly. These were typical in the USA as well as Europe. The innerspring mattresses come outfitted with mechanical springs to provide the customer with kind of a lift. Today’s generation has actually started doing not like innerspring cushions. All of us know, our habits are changing with the flow of time. Being components of an internet-based society, we now have new issues to resolve, and also our way of living is bringing modifications in our rest habits.
Now that you know acquiring a bed mattress online will not make you be sorry for at the end, allow’s see things you could do it make your decision as better as possible. To begin with, it is very vital that you are plainly familiar with the type of item you are looking for. Everyone has their own style of sleeping. There are cushions which are much better for back sleepers than side sleepers. There are some which would treat someone with a tight back better. Know precisely just what you are going for, and after that begin surfing for the mattress that would certainly match all your needs. Or else, you are most likely to obtain distracted by all the alternatives you will certainly see and also finish up buying something that clearly does not suit you, your demands or your way of living.
As discussed above too, among the most significant benefits of online purchasing is the accessibility to hundreds of individual evaluations. If the users are validated, the possibilities are that they would certainly review a lot more the weak points of a product that its good factors– this is all-natural for us humans and it terrific for you as a brand-new buyer to remove the products that do not suit you. Read at least 20 testimonials by previous individuals prior to you make the decision. The more reviews you could check out the much better. There are unusual possibilities that a product is a whole lot much better compared to exactly what it has actually been explained by the individuals, yet most of the time if the evaluations are credible, it would certainly provide you a great understanding right into the experience of utilizing the cushion that you can not obtain from anywhere else.
Online Shopping is rather the craze nowadays. We get whatever from food to electronic gadgets online bragada mattress topper. Nevertheless, when it involves getting a product like a mattress that we are too used to visit the shop and also buy, we have the tendency to be hesitant sometimes. This can be somewhat warranted since a bed mattress is a quite a significant buy as well as returning such an item could be a trouble if you occur to make a mistake with your option. Right here are several of things that you have to understand before you buy mattress online.
Are you looking for mattress sales to provide your bed a brand-new life? It is good to recognize that mattress sales are getting a lot more and also a lot more regular. Whereas in consumer’s point of view – mattress sales come with unequaled savings and also buyers seeking budget items even, often discover it possible to make a far better and top quality purchase.
In our sight, it is not wise to end up with a substandard acquisition for saving some dollars. Hundreds of research study’ s have currently wrapped up that sleep is really essential to our physical and psychological wellness and wellbeing. Hence, you need to be extremely cautious while purchasing anything from mattress sales. The good news is talking, there is no brain surgery involved in all. Maintain on your own stick to the trusted suppliers either online or on the standard market, and also that’s all. Relied on names generally don’t put their name and company in jeopardy for yielding even more by offering bad or out-of-date products.
Well, never acquire an inappropriate mattress just due to the fact that it is being provided at a rate a lot minimal compared to its routine price. Move ahead as well as leave this set for others. As a private everyone learns from his or her experience. In situation if you are not still sure regarding exactly what is going to function far better for you than you can constantly go with FREE bragada mattress topperassessment chances being provided below and there. Those who already are struggling with rest problems or are encountering chronic pains ought to always seek advice from with their orthopedic or an expert as a simple change in your sleep equipment or sleep practices sometimes could bring fantastic alleviation. As an example consider soft bed mattress. These sort of cushions matches those who prefer to sleep on their sides. Likewise, thousands of suppliers are producing and selling strong bed mattress on the market. These cushions are known to be much better for sleepers that like to sleep on their back or tummy.
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The memory foam bed mattress comes on the leading as they are the most popular ones. These mattresses offer a lengthy life expectancy, they are available at a competitive cost, as well as their resilience scores are way far better than their equivalents. You can call it either innerspring mattress or springtime mattress directly.
Now that you recognize acquiring a bed mattress online will not make you be sorry for at the end, allow’s see the points you can do it make your choice as much better as feasible. There are mattresses which are much better for back sleepers than side sleepers. Know specifically just what you are going for, and then start browsing for the mattress that would certainly match all your requirements.
As discussed above too, one of the greatest advantages of on-line purchasing is the accessibility to hundreds of customer reviews. If the customers are confirmed, the chances are that they would certainly discuss a lot more the weaknesses of an item that its good factors– this is all-natural for us human beings as well as it great for you as a new buyer to extract the items that do not fit you. Read a minimum of 20 reviews by previous users prior to you make the decision. The even more testimonials you can review the far better. There are uncommon opportunities that a product is a lot much better compared to what it has been explained by the individuals, yet the majority of the moment if the evaluations are qualified, it would certainly give you a great insight right into the experience of making use of the cushion that you could not receive from anywhere else.
When it comes to acquiring an item like a mattress that we are too utilized to going to the shop and get, we often tend to be reluctant in some cases. Here are some of the points that you require to understand before you buy mattress online.
Are you seeking mattress sales to provide your bed a brand-new life? Well, the bed mattress industry is about uncomplicated points represented in fairly bragada mattress topperchallenging way. Nevertheless, it readies to recognize that mattress sales are getting a growing number of frequent. As a matter of fact, a few of the leading suppliers use periodic bargains on normal and restricted time items. These mattress sales are best for everybody. For suppliers, these sales bring a great deal of advertising and marketing and also some quick capital. Whereas in consumer’s point of view – mattress sales feature unrivaled financial savings as well as purchasers seeking budget plan products also, sometimes locate it possible making a far better as well as top quality purchase. Being a customer as well as especially the one who is out on a very vital goal of buying a bed mattress bragada mattress topper – you should keep yourself stick to some principals. Constantly, assume prior to you click the “order” button as today’ s marketing methods are sort of traps. Complying with are a couple of, general standards for people who are regarding to purchase bed linens products.
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Well, never ever purchase an improper bed mattress even if it is being provided at a price a lot lesser compared to its routine rate. Relocate ahead and leave this one for others. As a specific everybody picks up from his/her experience. In situation if you are not still certain about just what is going to work much better for you compared to you can always go for FREE bragada mattress topperconsultation chances being offered right here and also there. Those that currently are dealing with sleep disorders or are facing persistent pains ought to always speak with their orthopedic or a specialist as a basic change in your rest equipment or sleep behaviors sometimes can bring excellent alleviation. As an example think about soft cushions. These kind of bed mattress suits those who prefer to rest on their sides. Hundreds of vendors are making and offering strong mattress on the market. These cushions are known to be better for sleepers that want to rest on their back or belly.
Once more, you have to deal extremely thoroughly below as it is an issue of your rest or insomnia. Trying something new for a pair of days and especially when products are provided with free trials, is not a poor idea.
The memory foam bed mattress comes on the leading as they are the most preferred ones. These mattresses provide a lengthy life expectancy, they are readily available at an affordable price, and their toughness ratings are way better than their equivalents. You can call it either innerspring mattress or springtime mattress directly.
Now that you know buying a mattress online will certainly not make you be sorry for at the end, allow’s see the things you could do it make your choice as far better as possible. There are cushions which are much better for back sleepers than side sleepers. Know precisely what you are going for, and then start searching for the cushion that would certainly match all your demands.
As stated over as well, one of the largest benefits of on the internet buying is the accessibility to thousands of individual evaluations. bragada mattress topper There are rare chances that a product is a lot much better than just what it has actually been described by the customers, however many of the time if the evaluations are reputable, it would offer you a terrific insight into the experience of using the cushion that you could not obtain from anywhere else.
Online Shopping is quite popular nowadays. We acquire whatever from food to digital gadgets online bragada mattress topper. When it comes to buying an item like a bed mattress that we are too utilized to going to the store and buy, we have a tendency to be reluctant bragada mattress topper occasionally. This could be rather justified considering that a mattress is a fairly a significant buy as well as returning such a product could be a headache if you take place making a blunder with your option. Right here are several of things that you have to know before you buy mattress online.
Are you searching for mattress sales to give your bed a brand-new life? Well, the mattress market is everything about uncomplicated points represented in fairly bragada mattress toppercomplicated fashion. It is good to know that mattress sales are getting extra as well as much more constant. In reality, some of the leading manufacturers use periodic offers on regular as well as restricted time items. These mattress sales are ideal for every person. For suppliers, these sales bring a great deal of advertising and marketing and also some fast cash money flow. Whereas in consumer’s perspective – mattress sales feature unrivaled savings as well as customers looking for budget items even, in some cases discover it feasible to earn a far better and also high quality purchase. Being a consumer and also particularly the one who is out on an extremely vital mission of acquiring a mattress bragada mattress topper – you ought to keep yourself stick to some principals. Always, assume prior to you click the “order” button as today’ s advertising and marketing strategies are kind of catches. Adhering to are a few, general standards for people that are concerning to purchase bed linens products.
In our sight, it is not important to finish up with a substandard purchase for saving some bucks. Nevertheless, numerous study’ s have already concluded that sleep is essential to our physical and also psychological health and wellness. Thus, you have to be extremely cautious while getting anything from mattress sales. Fortunately talking, there is no rocket scientific research entailed in all. Maintain on your own stick to the relied on suppliers either online or on the conventional market, which’s all. Relied on names usually do not place their name and also business in danger for yielding even more by marketing inadequate or outdated items.
Well, never purchase an inappropriate bed mattress just because it is being provided at a price a lot minimal than its regular price. These kind of mattresses fits those that like to rest on their sides. These mattresses are understood to be far better for sleepers who such as to rest on their back or stomach.
Again, you need to deal very thoroughly here as it refers your rest or insomnia. We are not right here to inhibit minor ones in the service. Staying lined up with considerable brand names can always be considered as a risk-free method to go. Heavyweights made all their popularity as well as magnificence by spending substantial efforts as well as resources. However, attempting something new for a couple of days and also specifically when items are provided with cost-free tests, is not a poor suggestion.
Well, by type we could categorize them right into three different groups. The memory foam mattress comes on the leading as they are one of the most popular ones. These cushions use a long life expectancy, they are available at a competitive cost, as well as their toughness scores are way better than their equivalents. bragada mattress topper The second sort of bed mattress we intend to point out below is called Latex Foam. They are also extremely prominent in offline and online markets. You can find latex foam’s natural as well as artificial variations. For the most parts, they come consisting of on a poly foam base whereas their core contains multiple latex layers to supply sleepers with more comfort. Below comes the third and the last primary sort of mattresses. You can call it either innerspring mattress or springtime mattress straight. These were typical in the USA and Europe. The innerspring mattresses come furnished with mechanical springs to give the customer with type of a lift. However, today’s generation has actually begun doing not like innerspring mattresses. All of us understand, our routines are changing with the flow of time. Being constituents of an internet-based society, we now have brand-new issues to resolve, and our lifestyle is bringing changes in our rest routines.
Now that you understand getting a mattress online will certainly not make you be sorry for at the end, allow’s see the things you could do it make your choice as far better as feasible. There are cushions which are much better for back sleepers than side sleepers. Know specifically just what you are going for, as well as then start surfing for the cushion that would certainly match all your needs.
As mentioned above too, among the most significant advantages of on the internet purchasing is the access to hundreds of user evaluations. If the users are validated, the opportunities are that they would certainly review extra the weaknesses of an item that its assets– this is all-natural for us people and it wonderful for you as a brand-new buyer to remove the products that do not match you. Read at the very least 20 testimonials by previous users before you make the last choice. The even more reviews you can check out the better. There are uncommon opportunities that an item is a lot far better than what it has actually been described by the individuals, however the majority of the time if the evaluations are reputable, it would give you a terrific insight into the experience of utilizing the bed mattress that you can not obtain from anywhere else. | 2019-04-20T11:10:22Z | http://imprisonbush.com/bragada-mattress-topper/ |
In discussing the theme of biblical miracles, several important areas of consideration must be surveyed.
First, exactly what is a miracle? People use that term rather loosely—frequently, not at all in a scriptural sense. And what are those tell-tale traits that identify the miracle and distinguish it from a natural phenomenon? If folks only knew what to look for in certifying the miraculous, they surely would be aware that supernatural deeds are not being performed in this age.
Second, what was the design of those “wonders” which are described so dramatically in the Bible? And how did those demonstrating these “signs” come to possess them? Further, does the Bible itself contain any information as to whether miraculous displays would be perpetual, i.e., until the end of time, or whether they were to be confined to a relatively brief span of history?
Finally, if genuine miracles are not a part of today’s world, just how does one explain the feats which are flaunted by so-called modern “faith-healers”? These are questions which we propose to answer in this study.
How does one define a miracle?
A miracle is an event which the forces of nature—including the natural powers of man—cannot of themselves produce, and which must, therefore, be referred to a supernatural agency (Fisher 1900, 9).
A miracle is a divine operation that transcends what is normally perceived as natural law; it cannot be explained upon any natural basis.
First, there are supernatural acts of creation. Certain creation activities were accomplished by the word of God (Hebrews 11:3); he merely spoke, and it was done (Psalm 33:9). Obviously, this type of divine action is not being duplicated today since the creation process of the material universe was concluded at the end of the initial week of earth’s history (Genesis 2:1-2).
Second, there were miracles which involved a temporary and localized suspension of laws regulating nature. Jesus calmed a ferocious storm on the Sea of Galilee (Matthew 8:23-27), and, on another occasion, he walked upon the waters of the lake (John 6:16-21).
Third, there were signs which involved the healing of man’s physical body. The blind were made to see (John 9:1-7), and the lame to walk (Acts 3:1-10).
Fourth, there were signs demonstrating divine power over death. Lazarus, dead four days, was raised (John 11:43-44), and, of course, the resurrection of Christ is the very foundation of the Christian system (1 Corinthians 15:16-19).
Fifth, some of the wonders of the New Testament age had to do with the expulsion of demons that had entered into human bodies (Matthew 12:22ff). This was evidence of the fact that the Savior’s power was superior to that of Satan.
Sixth, the exhibition of divine authority was seen in the manipulation of certain material things. Christ turned water into wine (John 2:1-11), and multiplied a lad’s loaves and fishes, so that thousands were fed (John 6:1-14).
Seventh, miraculous power was demonstrated in both the plant and animal kingdoms. Balaam’s donkey spoke with a man’s voice (Numbers 22:28), and the Lord Jesus, in an object lesson relative to the impending destruction of Jerusalem, destroyed a fig tree with but a word from his mouth (Matthew 21:19). In this study, we will limit ourselves mostly to a consideration of miracles recorded in the New Testament record.
What are the traits of a genuine miracle, as opposed to feigned signs? Consider the following facts.
A supernatural display of divine power is not an arguable proposition; it is a dramatic, demonstrable fact. No where in the New Testament is there a record of a divine spokesman arguing for the validity of miracles. No logical scheme is needed to establish such a case. Miracles either happen, or they don’t.
When Jesus performed signs, even his enemies did not deny the effect of such; they merely attempted to attribute his power to some other source (e.g., Satan; cf. Matthew 12:24). The leaders of the Jewish community did not doubt that Peter and John had performed a notable miracle when they healed the lame man at the temple; rather, they sought to mute the sign’s impact by threats of violence (cf. Acts 4:14ff).
Is anything being done today of such compelling nature as to elicit this type of reaction?
Those performing wonders in the first century did not do so for the purpose of enhancing themselves financially—unlike the wealthy “faith-healers” of today. When Peter encountered the lame man of Acts 3, he had no money (v. 6).
As a general rule, the miracles of the Bible era were done in the presence of a multitude of credible witnesses—even hostile observers. When the Lord multiplied the loaves and fishes, possibly some ten thousand or more people were present (cf. John 6:10ff). Truly, the signs validating Christianity were not “done in a corner” (Acts 26:26).
Actual signs must be independent of secondary causes. By this we mean there must be no possible way to explain the miracle in a natural fashion.
One is reminded of the boy whose cat gave birth to kittens. When the lad noticed the kittens were blind, he prayed for them. Sure enough, in about nine days they all could see! Hardly a miracle.
Can the miracles of Christ be explained in any natural fashion? They cannot. For instance it cannot be argued that the blind man of John 9:1ff was psychosomatically afflicted, for the gentleman had been born in that condition. How can a perfectly restored ear, that had been amputated, be explained by current processes (Luke 22:50-51)?
Even ancient enemies of Christianity, like Celsus and Porphyry, admitted that Jesus did certain extraordinary deeds; they suggested, of course, that it was mere “magic.” Their charges, however, are indirect testimony to the supernatural works of Christ. But who can remember a single “miracle” that Oral Roberts or Jimmy Swaggart is supposed to have performed?
We submit, therefore, that so-called modern miracles do not meet the criteria suggested above. They thus must be rejected and explained upon some other basis.
What was the purpose of miracles in the ministry of Christ, or in the apostolic age? As noted above, their design must be consistent with the lofty theme of redemption.
And they went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word by the signs that followed (Mark 16:20).
The function of the signs was to confirm the revelatory process, i.e., the word of truth being communicated from God to man.
spoken through the Lord, was confirmed unto us by them that heard; God also bearing witness with them, both by signs and wonders, and by manifold powers, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to his own will (2:3-4).
Of special interest in these passages is the term “confirm” (Grk. bebaioo). The word denotes evidence that establishes the validity of the divinely-given word (Brown 1975, 658). The supernatural gifts of the primitive age, therefore, had as their design the establishment of the credibility of Christ and his spokesmen, and so ultimately, the validation of their message, namely, that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the Savior of the world!
Now observe this very important point. If it can be established that those early miracles do corroborate the testimony of Christ, and those commissioned by him; and further, that the recording of these events in the New Testament was designed to perpetually accomplish that function, then it stands as demonstrated that the repetition of such signs is not needed today.
The fact is, that is exactly what is affirmed by the apostle John. He declares that the “signs” of Christ, which he records in his gospel account, “are written [gegraptai—perfect tense, abiding effect] that ye may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God” (John 20:31).
A. T. Robertson notes that this book “has had precisely this effect of continuous and successive confirmation of faith in Jesus Christ through the ages” (Robertson 1932, 317). Even those who claim that God is working miracles today, when asked if they believe that the recorded miracles of Christ in the New Testament are sufficient to establish faith in him, will answer affirmatively.
It ought to be abundantly clear, therefore, that since the miracles of the Bible continue to accomplish their original purpose, there is no need for a repetition of them today. They are not being replicated in this age!
Next, one should explore the method of gift reception, as that concept is set forth in the New Testament. Christ, of course, was empowered directly by God to work miracles. Such signs demonstrated that he was a “man approved of God” (Acts 2:22).
So far as New Testament information goes, there were only two ways by which others received spiritual gifts in the apostolic era. The first was by means of Holy Spirit baptism, i.e., an overwhelming direct endowment of the Spirit’s power. Second, miraculous gifts were bestowed by the imposition of the apostles’ hands. Let us consider the biblical facts regarding these two matters.
Holy Spirit baptism was demonstrated in only two New Testament situations. It was given to the apostles of Christ (Acts 1:5; 2:4). Then, as a very special case, it was received by the household of Cornelius (Acts 10:44-47; 11:15-17). Is Holy Spirit baptism available today? We can show that it is not by the following logical argument.
First, when Paul wrote to the Ephesians (ca. A.D. 62), he affirmed that there was but “one baptism” at that time (4:5). It is generally conceded that this baptism must be either Holy Spirit baptism or water baptism. If it can be established that the one baptism of Ephesians 4:5 is water baptism, then it is obvious that Spirit baptism was no longer available.
That water baptism is age-lasting is demonstrated by the fact that it is the baptism of the great commission (cf. Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:16). In Matthew’s account, the Lord promised that as long as his people were making disciples, baptizing, teaching, etc., he would accompany them always, even to the end of the age. Whatever the baptism of this passage is, therefore, it continues in force until the end.
This baptism, however, must be water baptism, as evidenced by the fact that it is administered by human beings: “Go . . . make disciples . . . baptizing . . .” On the other hand, Holy Spirit baptism had no human administrator; it was bestowed directly by Christ (Matthew 3:11).
It must be concluded, therefore, that the one baptism of Ephesians 4:5 was water baptism; consequently, Holy Spirit baptism had become obsolete. Such being the case, spiritual gifts are not received via Holy Spirit baptism today.
Other than by Holy Spirit baptism, miraculous gifts could be conveyed only by an apostle of Christ. Note the evidence.
Philip, the evangelist (not an apostle), could perform miracles, but he could not pass that gift along to others. Accordingly, apostles, namely Peter and John, were sent to Samaria, where Philip had been preaching, so that the church there might be furnished with certain divine gifts (cf. Acts 8:5-6; 14-17).
In connection with the foregoing circumstances, Simon the sorcerer “saw that through the laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Spirit was given” (Acts 8:18). He wanted to purchase that privilege for himself, but he was informed that he had neither part nor lot in that matter, i.e., the impartation of spiritual gifts.
At Ephesus, Paul laid his hands on twelve converts and “they spake with tongues and prophesied” (Acts 19:6).
If to others I am not an apostle, yet at least I am to you; for the seal of mine apostleship are ye in the Lord (1 Corinthians 9:2).
The Corinthian church (with its spiritual gifts) was, therefore a “seal” (divine documentation of Paul’s apostleship), and accordingly, indirect evidence that such gifts were received only from an apostle!
Paul urged Timothy to “stir up the gift of God,” which, says he, “is in you through [dia—denoting the instrument or agency by means of which the gift was imparted (Arndt and Gingrich 1923, 179)] the laying on of my hands” (2 Timothy 1:6).
Some argue that 1 Timothy 4:14 indicates that Timothy had received a spiritual gift from a certain “eldership,” which establishes a precedent for the reception of supernatural powers from a non-apostolic source. However, the passage does not suggest that.
Timothy had received a gift “by prophecy, with [meta] the laying on of the hands of the presbytery.” Meta simply denotes “attendant circumstances” and does not suggest that the gift came by the hands of the elders (Green 1907, 207).
This verse asserts that Timothy had received a spiritual gift on the same general occasion when elders had laid hands upon the evangelist—doubtless to appoint him to some special mission. It does not affirm that the elders themselves imparted miracle-working ability to Timothy.
Since, therefore, there is no Holy Spirit baptism today; and further, since there are no apostles (or successors to them) in this age, it should be quite clear that men are not in possession of supernatural gifts of the Spirit in this post-apostolic era of the Christian dispensation.
Were miraculous gifts to abide with the church until the end of time, or, due to their specific design, were they only a temporary phenomena? This matter is discussed rather comprehensively in two New Testament contexts. We will consider each of these.
In 1 Corinthians 13, the inspired apostle addresses the duration of spiritual gifts in the Lord’s church. He commences by showing that these gifts must be exercised in love, for miraculous powers, void of love, were worthless. This theme was quite appropriate in view of the disposition of rivalry which threatened the unity of the Corinthian congregation (some exalting certain gifts above others, etc.).
From this initial instruction there is a very natural transition into the character and permanence of love, in contrast to the transitory function of spiritual gifts.
Of the nine gifts mentioned in 12:8-10, Paul selects three to illustrate his argument. Significantly, all three were related directly to the revealing of God’s will to man. The apostle affirms that prophecies shall be done away, tongues shall cease, knowledge (i.e., supernatural knowledge) shall be done away. It is wonderfully clear, therefore, that these three gifts (and by implication all miraculous gifts) were not designed to be a permanent fixture within the church.
In 1 Corinthians 13:9, Paul contends that God’s will, by means of these spiritual gifts (knowledge, prophecy, etc.) was made known gradually, i.e., “in part.” The expression “in part” translates the Greek to ek merous, literally, “the things in part.” It denotes “a part as opposed to the whole” (Abbott-Smith 1923, 284).
And so, we make the following argument: The “in-part” things shall be done away. But, the in-part things are the supernatural gifts by which the will of God was revealed. Thus, the supernatural gifts, by which the will of God was made known, were to be terminated.
So, we may reason as follows: Whatever the in-part things are partially, the whole is, in completed form. But, the in-ppart things were the spiritual gifts employed in the revealing of God’s will (word). Therefore, the whole was God’s will (word)—as conveyed through the gifts—completely revealed.
God’s revelation is being made known part-by-part, through the use of spiritual gifts; when that revelation is completed, these gifts will be needed no longer, hence, will pass away from the church’s possession.
With the completion of Apostolic testimony and the completion of the Scriptures of truth (“the faith once for all delivered to the saints”, Jude 3. R.V.), “that which is perfect” had come, and the temporary gifts were done away (1951, 184).
Remember this vital point: spiritual gifts and the revelatory process were to be co-extensive. If men are performing miracles today, their messages are as binding as the New Testament record! If such is the case, the New Testament is not the final word.
The original word denotes “complete qualification for a specific purpose” (The Analytical Greek Lexicon n.d., 220). Or, as Arndt and Gingrich render it, “to equip the saints for service” (1967, 419).
Moreover, the duration of these supernatural governments was specified. They were to continue “till we all attain unto the unity of the faith” (4:13). “Till” is from mechri, and it suggests a “specification of time up to which this spiritual constitution was designed to last” (Ellicott 1978, 95).
The word “unity” (henotes) basically means “oneness” (_The Analytical Greek Lexicon n.d., 119). It derives from the term hen, the neuter of heis, and it emphasizes oneness “in contrast to the parts, of which a whole is made up” (Arndt and Gingrich 1967, 230).
Finally, the expression “the faith” refers to the revealed gospel system (cf. Galatians 1:23; 1 Timothy 5:8).
And so, to sum up: the apostle contends that spiritual gifts would continue until the gospel system, in its individual parts (as portrayed in 1 Corinthians 13), came together in oneness, i.e., the completed or whole revelation (New Testament record) (see MacKnight 1954, 335). Ephesians 4 and 1 Corinthians 13 are wonderfully complimentary.
We will now consider a couple of arguments that frequently are employed in an attempt to prove that miracles did not cease with the apostolic age.
First, some contend Paul taught that spiritual gifts would continue to the very end, i.e., unto the coming of Christ. First Corinthians 1:6-8 is cited to establish this. We offer the following points.
It is not certain that miraculous gifts are even in view within this context. Meyer argues that spiritual blessings in general are under consideration, not miraculous gifts (1879, 19).
Even if miraculous gifts are in view, the text no more asserts that they will be operative until the Lord’s return, than it does that the Corinthians themselves would remain alive until that event.
The word “end” can mean “to the uttermost” (cf. John 13:1), and thus the reference may not be to the end of time.
One may be confirmed (sustained) through the message of the inspired Word (2 Timothy 3:16,17), hence, be unreprovable in the day of Christ, without needing to possess supernatural gifts.
Second, it is claimed that the Lord is as powerful today as he was in the first century; and so, he can perform signs today.
But the question is not one of God’s power; it is a matter of his will. Does he will to perform miracles today? He does not will to create men directly from the dust of the earth. He does not will to feed us with manna from heaven, etc., though he is powerful enough to do such feats. The “he-has-the-power” quibble proves nothing.
The scholarly T.H. Horne presented a remarkable summary statement of this matter that is worthy of consideration.
Why are not miracles now wrought?—we remark that, the design of miracles being to confirm and authorize the Christian religion, there is no longer any occasion for them, now that it is established in the world, and is daily extending its triumphs in the heathen lands by the divine blessing of the preached gospel. Besides, if they were continued, they would be of no use, because their force and influence would be lost by the frequency of them; for, miracles being a sensible suspension or controlment of—or deviation from—the established course or laws of nature, if they were repeated on every occasion, all distinctions of natural and supernatural would vanish, and we should be at a loss to say, which were the ordinary and which the extraordinary works of Providence. Moreover, it is probable that, if they were continued, they would be of no use, because those persons who refuse to be convinced by the miracles recorded in the New Testament, would not be convinced by any new ones: for it is not from want of evidence, but from want of sincerity, and out of passion and prejudice, that any man rejects the miracles related in the Scriptures; and the same want of sincerity, the same passions and prejudices, would make him resist any proof, any miracle whatever. Lastly, a perpetual power of working of miracles would in all ages give occasion to continual impostures, while it would rescind and reverse all the settled laws and constitutions of Providence. Frequent miracles would be taught to proceed more from some defect in nature than from the particular interposition of the Deity; and men would become atheists by means of them, rather than Christians (1841, 117).
How does one deal with the alleged “miracles” of this modern age? In the first place, we really are not obligated to defend as divine a modern event simply because it may have certain elements that are difficult to explain. There are many illusions that modern magicians perform which the average person cannot explain; but they do have natural explanations. They are not miracles.
That aside, there are several possible bases for so-called modern miracles. As an example, let us focus upon alleged faith healings.
Some instances of faith healings are pure fakery. Consider the case of Peter Popoff, miracle-working cleric of Upland, California. Popoff, who claimed the supernatural ability to provide secret information about people in his audiences (in conjunction with “healing” them), was receiving such data through a tiny hearing aid, the messages being transmitted by his wife from backstage.
Prominent magician James Randi exposed the entire affair on nationwide television (1987, 139-181). Randi also demonstrated that Popoff was providing rented wheelchairs for people who could actually walk; then, at his services, he was pronouncing them healed.
Some “miracle cures” are claimed by people who honestly believe that God has healed them. The fact is, however, they had nothing organically wrong with them. Their ailment was psychosomatic. This means that though some bodily feature was actually affected, the real root of the problem was mental or emotional; hence, by suggestion a cure might be effected.
It is generally believed by experienced physicians that at least two-thirds of the ordinary cases of sickness which doctors are called upon to treat would, if left entirely alone, recover without the aid of the doctor or his medicine (1929, 15).
Taking advantage of this type of sickness, the faith-healer, in an atmosphere of hysteria and feverish emotionalism, produces some phenomenal “cures.” But there is nothing miraculous about such cases.
A physician in Toronto, Canada investigated thirty cases in which Oral Roberts claimed miraculous healing was effected; he “found not one case that could not be attributed to psychological shock or hysteria” (Randi 1987, 288). Dr. Sadler affirmed that after twenty-five years of sympathetic research into faith-healing, he had not observed a solitary case of an organic disease being healed.
It is commonly known that an African witch-doctor can literally command a believer in voodoo to die, and within the prescribed time, the victim will expire. This evidences the powerful control of the mind over the body. Surely no one will claim, though, that a witch-doctor has the Spirit of God.
Another explanation for some so-called faith cures is a phenomenon known as spontaneous remission. Spontaneous remission is an unexpected withdrawal of disease symptoms, and an inexplicable disappearance of the ailment. It occurs in about one out of every eighty thousand cancer patients.
Joseph Mayerle of Bremerton, Washington had exploratory surgery; it was discovered that he was consumed with cancer. His physicians gave him only a few months to live. Months sped by and his disease utterly vanished. There was nothing miraculous about it. According to newspaper accounts, Mr. Mayerle, a bartender, made no claim to faith, prayer, or a miracle-cure. Wouldn’t a faith-healer have delighted in taking credit for that case?
There is one final point of this presentation that needs to be pressed with great vigor. There is no alleged miracle being performed today by Pentecostals, or those of a similar “Christian” persuasion, that cannot be duplicated by various cults and non-Christian sects.
Those who practice Christian Science, Mormonism, Catholicism, Transcendental Meditation, Yoga, Psychic Healing, Scientology, New Age Crystal Healing, etc., claim the same type of signs as the Pentecostals. In fact, more than 20 million Americans annually report mystic experiences (including healing) in their lives (Psychology Today 1987, 64).
Since the Scriptures clearly teach that the purpose of miracles, as evidenced in biblical days, was to confirm the message proclaimed, hence, to validate the Christian system, do the multiple alleged examples of miracle-workings indicate that the Lord has authenticated all of these woefully contradictory systems? Think of the implications of that—especially in light of Paul’s affirmation that God is not the author of confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33).
There is abundant evidence that genuine miracles were performed by divinely appointed persons in the first century, but there is no proof whatever that such wonders are being replicated in this modern age.
Abbott-Smith, G. 1923. A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament. Edinburgh, Scotland: T.&T. Clark.
Arndt, William and Gingrich, F.W. 1967. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago.
Brown, Colin, ed. 1975. Dictionary of New Testament Theology. Vol. 1. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
Ellicott, C. J. 1978. Critical and Grammatical Commentary on Ephesians. Minneapolis, MN: James Family Publishing.
Fisher, George P. 1900. Manual of Christian Evidences. New York, NY: Charles Scribner’s Sons.
Horne, Thomas H. 1841. A Critical Introduction to the Holy Scriptures. Vol. 1. Philadelphia, PA: Whetham & Son.
Kittel, Gerhard, ed. 1972. Theological Dictionary of the New Testament. Vol. 8. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans.
MacKnight, James. 1954. Apostolical Epistles. Nashville, TN: Gospel Advocate.
Meyer, H. A. W. 1879. Corinthians. Vol. 1. Edinburgh, Scotland: T. & T. Clark.
Randi, James. 1987. The Faith-Healers. Buffalo, NY: Prometheus.
Robertson, A. T. 1932. Word Pictures in the New Testament. Vol. 5. Nashville, TN: Broadman.
Sadler, William S. 1929. The Truth About Mind Cure. London, England: George Allen & Unwin.
The Analytical Greek Lexicon. n.d. New York, NT: Harper & Bros.
Vine, W. E. 1951. 1st Corinthians – Local Church Problems. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. | 2019-04-26T09:47:08Z | https://www.christiancourier.com/articles/5-what-does-the-bible-say-about-miracles |
It’s mandatory that you make it exquisitely clear you have what is needed to come across the business. A outline ought to be 3 4 paragraphs in length. A summary can earn an immense impact. It is already so difficult to compose a stand out restart outline. Remove key words you may have included in your summary whenever you had been searching for employment and needing to be found with a Realtor, then then replace them with a mixture of keywords your prospects might be searching for. Inside my opinion, your linked-in Summary should be completed from the person.
It is really a fantastic beginning inputting your resume online, particularly because it is so pervasive in the businessworld, Linked-in While you likely using linked in. Where the first person was anxious, Linked in delivers slightly bit more flexibility. Linked-in has features that can be useful to help you with your job hunting and media approach. On the reverse side, LinkedIn does not confine the period of your profile.
One’s resume’s aim will be always to secure you that the meeting. Reconsider its place on your own resume if it is not related to a job targets that are intended. In other words differently, the purpose of one’s resume would be to acquire an interview. At the peak of one’s resume, you also should incorporate a livelihood objective.
Your resume includes an aim in place of a skilled overview rather. Visualize you have two resumes before youpersonally. Furthermore, make sure your resume is ordered very well. Your resume is a method to promote your self. There is absolutely no universal Resume. Make use of your ruling, and as consistently, you must prepare yourself a number of hints to all assortments of companies.
The next record you’d like to create is your own resume or CV Whenever you’re preparing to make a program to get a job. Alternatively, you should tailor your resume which you apply for. It will not be simple to write restart in 1st, but detecting the above and hints to draft this, you are going to be well in your path to come across the job. So rather than writing one resume, it’s better to tailor each one for a particular medical assistant job.
You see, no one receives off a job the rear of a restart. Assessing your first work in even a restaurant or retail might possibly not be great. It is one of one’s best learning experiences. If you are requesting for an information software development occupation, for instance, your previous expertise inside the cafe agency industry is great however, not relevant right here.
You likely already know it’s most reliable to render your address In the event you would like to re locate work. Most of your hard work is going to be thrown away in case recruiters refuse the application without reading it. Adding the important things or too many matters to your resume will probably help you save you from getting. The project, the industry, and the institution established maybe not exactly the suitable match for me.
Remember , your resume should pay attention to that which you can furnish your own company, not viceversa. Recruiters reject software if they must focus on read fonts. The format should try more troublesome to test every restart irrespective of, then you could be correct, In the event you are pondering effectively, however that’s just not the facts. Hiring managers and skim resumes to establish whether they wish to talk about you and interviewers Hurry to pick what matters to talk for you around. A HR supervisor will require just a few moments prior to picking which stack to place you personally in to scan your resume’s peak. It should be quick, for selecting Managers to test your resume fast. Selecting professionals (for the massive part) are especially enthusiastic in what you have been doing in the prior 23 decades and how it is related to the location they are attempting to fill.
Your linked in profile should be adequate. Even a linked-in account marks a significant departure in the typical resume. Your linked in profile serves like a modern-day resume a company could easily scroll. About the reverse side, there are plenty of who utilize it and may even download their linked in account.
You are going to be able to target your resume, once you are in possession of a more distinct photograph of this job place. It really is essential it disturbs individuals to watch your account. A group of UX skills terms you could used on your profile. No profile is much better than a standard one! Therefore, in the event that you would like an program, below are some hints on how you can compose an expert profile.
Becoming active in a market of goods, businesses desire to assure buyers that kind of fixes will be looked after warranty. An important fallout the corporation has. Hence, it is going to end up mandatory for the organizations to produce sure they are currently hiring quality employees, maybe perhaps not just with respect to skills however the character too. Screening organizations are smart.
The Quality Assurance section goes to become among the types to move. Warehouse stability officers have to be alert their own however although for your protection of the building. Crime scene investigator has come to be the most widely used and desired occupation in US. Most companies mostly request sort of analysis as the component in their worker screening procedure.
Evaluation specific training is easily the most critical investment that you can possibly make on your own! Industry standard certifications are a method to generate your resume sparkle. The requirements of the specific job will be contingent on the region of expertise. There aren’t any formal entrance conditions to turn into a warehouse protection officer.
Fire arms proficiency is vital. The knowledge of legislation is important to be employed being a paralegal. Notifying direction of a issue who have difficult situations and assisting managers, particularly during peak periods of business, certainly are a part of the career. A general director is accountable to get a tremendous quantity of duties. The nation club’s total manager is likely to deal with and motivate supervisors and staff in most division of the or her facility.
Your reputation will suffer being a consequence, In the event that you can’t write well. If any of the employees captured in just about any kind of activity A firm’s standing might be put on wager. While each business provides assurance of a few decades firms that are established can manage to provide warranty for four or five decades. Thus a firm which makes hardy products sustains at the very long term. It is critical for that organization to assure their workforce is equally both secure and also secure and also their employees are not indulged in any incorrect activity. Usually associations experienced workforce of specialists who’ve knowledge and acumen related to this investigation.
Employees at various levels, and also in several of fields that are diverse, have a part in generating communications. Attempt to stay calm, and also concentrate on explaining the manners in that the company’s needs may meet. Employers want to know more about job applicants with all the required skillsets and proper work and educational backgrounds. The cover is not too wonderful. Be sure you take account of one’s abilities, interests and values too in addition to practical issues like in which your own home will move to or is.
It will be potential to make their work a bit stressful which they despise. When you have located the work that you just desire to apply for, click the Apply Online” link to the best of the job description to start the internet application process. There certainly are a range of all PI tasks which are significantly more dangerous than others like faculty hunting or security repossession but, broadly speaking, personal evaluation is not a undertaking. At a time when many thoroughly and experienced trained individuals these days are attempting to find job, locating a project is. The job is easy as long because you maintain and can target your eye open. Because it’s not heavy it is going to likewise be less difficult to fit. You make every one a paranoid and nobody really wishes to interact with you personally.
You also it gets every one marginally antsy when you are about. Inspection the resume of the individual. Who’s the first man they are very likely to examine, the QA. You are maybe not every one’s favourite person around Earth and I think it truly is hard to begin a dialog with somebodyelse.
The offender must be more in a posture to go the Navy practice conditions with a medical assessment. He also must have the ability to have and maintain a secret security clearance. Next, offer a distinct qualitative instance of a goal you fulfilled in an position. The main role of a protection officer supervisor is always to protect the property and also people. Focus is place on averting terrorism. Another facet of the project of the storeman is to ensure safety and that the stability of the stockexchange. Lower the chances to obtain info about career planning, better is the likelihood of frequent reversal of livelihood.
It really is still a fact that you have plenty of life left to live. You don’t have a lot of customer work to brag with if you’re simply starting. Thus, attempt to discover the Googler’s attention who is able to enable one to find do the job. You can find people that possess so that you may go directly the livelihood of producing resumes.
A business proprietor or plantation manager should be at a place to access the info on site or using a desktop or even smartphone . No potential employer will undoubtedly probably likely be eager to take into account you personally. Consider sending your package aside from the USPS through some service if you should be targeting a distinctive hiring manager. A great hiring manager might supply a excellent bargain to you, plus they would get started a long-term alliance. The two teams want to get their win. Directing can challenge even the greatest leaders.
A superior way is always to get out exactly what the frontrunners at the exact very best are really saying. Not simply to know concerning the company or job that is specific to make certain that it’s a company you should work for. The business went below, however that I managed enough to hold until the last round of lay-offs. Almost anything could be truly known by you concerning nearly every area of the business enterprise. Let your existing team take part if you’re in a small company. This means that you are on the market for 25 or so verbs. Targeting a niche market is a great concept.
As it’s to perform LinkedIn and your restart, make sure that you interpret your expertise. To begin with, reveal you are a software engineer. Being an engineering pioneer might be hard. Just one candidate went throughout the full process, therefore there onedata purpose within their own experiment. It makes it feasible for you to differentiate from applicants that are different by demonstrating your power when contained as part of the tactical planning framework.
Every work outline is currently going to have alist of specifications they are searching for from the function. Whenever you’ve got a hundred examples to select from, for example, a manager for decades of experience, for instance, there continue to be drawbacks to become more cautious of. You may discover results. You may have the interview process to master the occupation went into an alternate person. Moreover, your inside systems want to become safe. By building a template, even in reference to crafting the (not exactly ) inevitable second occupation program, you’re getting to be keeping your self a lot of time and stress. You’ll discover an AR app for any issue, including geometry, chemistry, zoology, grammar, and sometimes programming.
In the event that you need it, take a look at the repository with an code. That’s perhaps maybe not one of the most significant strategies with respect to maintenance, and both can force us having a superb offer of the code that is identical operating along with one another, and we will need to do lots of evaluations on servers to check after. You have to edit files depending on the OS you use Todo this. Our database will be contained a table only to exemplify. Thus, it really is nearly impossible to fit all these . Don’t forget that a work description is going to have laundry set of ideal expertise that are nice-to-have. There isn’t any effective technique for to the summit of the selecting queue than to become recommended by a Google employee.
Your choice will probably be determined by the forms of information that you need to get and one’s solution’s goal broadly speaking. One other option the moment it has to do with health small business careers is a job supervisor. You have the decision to add two more skills below the Other Employment’ department to demonstrate you are proficient in areas also.
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Todo this, you have to keep prepared having a synopsis of the most important reasons. PostgreSQL is known as Postgres and additionally it is open source database. PostgreSQL is also an open source relational database, so that’s quick and simple to make use of. PostgreSQL can be just really a wonderful substitute, and also you might learn the foundations in just 1 hour. PostgreSQL is possibly strong opensource enterprise category relational database system and one of the very progress. Virtualization and Containerization the two allow one to run multiple operating systems .
In real life scenarios, 1 endeavor is dependent upon other tasks, just such as the outcome of a Map reduce task might be passed for processing to Hive project. The task of the system administrator would be always to generate and manage networks make it only a little thing or a tremendous issue. My new job doesn’t possess that duty nor will this have that payoff. Though it may seem to be a very glamorous job in the cybersecurity industry, but permit us to violate the fable.
You understand different kinds of problems, you also need to consult with system logs, you understand how to run lspci and lsmod. You want to address a specific problem linked to your components. The following matter with digital Machines that utilizes virtualization could be that it will take a moment to boot up. CKA issues possess the advantage which every issue is the unaffiliated task that will not affect other evaluation actions, and also you’re ready to return along with forwards within the occasion you get stuck or in the event that you truly experience brave enough to begin using the high rated questions by the endresult. In case you’re somewhat fresher, you may skip to the following question. Probably one among the question is Which are the occupations that are several out there on Hadoop. You will find a number of questions that pop in the heads of those who employ to find a job in their own CV.
An excellent Linux administrator is the difference between a scale platform that runs smoothly within a platform that crashes and sums of period. Usually, program admin will not have any part in the development process of applications and there exists a fence separating programmer and program administrator. The machine administrator can be a vital project which regularly will probably come with a variety of responsibilities and also good cover. Broad and also narrow-band method administrator will be the name that will encompass quite a few subspecialties. You are going to need a couple things, In the event you would like to install CI server on your environment. Apache webserver is needed to track the web server position that was present. Throughout the so AUR you’ll even get a repository that is community-driven.
It’s the Kubelet method which is liable for communicating both the bunch services with staff. Most importantly, the advice that is ideal is being bound by the large process with fluent and diction language that is proper. Red Hat tasks are not noticeable to tell apart the distribution of grades. The approach should be replicated till desired performance is reached. The task collection method contains the next rounds. So, applications can’t access yet the other’s libraries. That you won’t need to be concerned regarding the application or infrastructure upgradesthey transpire mechanically.
Some programs permit one to host the CI servers. Then you must install the plugins to get that tool Should you want to incorporate a tool. There aren’t any tools for planning because such, however there are programs for keeping the code. Infrastructure Automation tools were not affective. Normally, you can hit on exactly the same problem from the software every moment. Your computer is basically a container. Occasionally, it might be bad hardware, so as effortless as that.
Your own capability to tamper at the kernel space can benefit the diagnosis and settlement of both difficulties. Capabilities necessary are given just below. If some body gets the capacity to take into account from the 17, possessing excellent knowledge are added benefits. Mentioning your specific skills rather than highlighting your enormous skills in Linux surroundings isn’t encouraged. You don’t need any prior understanding of Linux and furthermore, it features a tutorial to put in WordPress in an Ubuntu method. It’s important to see that nothing surpasses the experience, embracing DevOps to staff that is lower and save funds to increase revenue is going to get negative impact. Show your creative aspect, and should you have experience, explain just how you have used it to solve security problems previously.
Experienced skilled Advisors An forklift operator can be a person who has been employed inside the situation for more than seven years. You may have warehouse packer encounter. Your resume is your very first chance to create an exceptional impression. Regardless you’re applying for, then you are going to wish to have a resume that is capable and skilled. Unless you’re ready to prove you are capable You’ll not be contemplated for the positioning.
Use our coverletter sample to polish your skills and receive the task that you desire. Supposing that you’re searching to get a swimmer occupation, you may wish to include the fork lifting jobs you have worked in a warehouse atmosphere all. The job of a driver demands talents and capabilities to carry out. The job wasn’t described. What’s more, you may search for operator tasks . In the event you enjoy working heavy-duty machines and love work, employed as a forklift operator is really actually a superb selection. There are a lot of things that have to be avoided as a way generate a favorable effect and to acquire the required attention from the recruiter.
Our resume builder provides examples and tips on how best to write your resume summary to you. It shows selecting managers which you simply just did a small research to what they wish to get and that you’re maybe not applying throughout the location with the resume that is exact. The next thing is always to find out methods to convince the Hiring Manager to supply you if you never have the experience. An easy solution to demonstrate a potential employer that you’re not just looking for any occupation but will need to specifically do the job to their company will be always to target your resume together with. Even though businesses are occasionally keen instruct them and to engage entry-level operators , the more experience you’ve got, the more better. In case that fork lift Operator resume case was not sufficient to you personally, you’re absolutely totally free to critique many different samples and templates from our site.
Charter schools have no unions. The way that you list your own instruction can be. You have to discover the way to use these sorts of software programs.
Microsoft Office term has been hands down the very best program to make use of if making your resume as it makes it straightforward that you make a beautiful resume and offers all sorts of tools. Protect letters are the exact first record read by means of a manager, it is thus crucial that you employ the area to create a powerful first impression. An region of the document which has to become well prepared to obtain the company’s care may be your work experience department, which indicates which you have really carried outside obligations and the duties of the function. Exactly enjoy the expert Heater operator resume employment cover letter sample that is aforementioned, the first paragraph should comprise a succinct overview of the relevant skills you will talk from the letter along with how people skills make you a ideal match for your own job and business you are employing to. Because most employers search so in order for this to see whether you’ve received the qualities and abilities that may enhance your performance possessing a skills section is vital for the achievement. For warehousing, the skills section is normally more significant than the education department. This section of this resume is easy and ought to be simple.
Be-ing between occupations is not perfect. It’s fast and easy to make use of. As it has to complete together with highlighting exactly what you are capable of, Avoid being timid. Or you will need to operate very difficult at it if it doesn’t arrive normally. Additionally you have to be delighted to perform . You have to have yourself a modest creative. Take a good peek at this operator restart sample to ascertain what success resembles, In case you’re ready to start producing your resume.
Should you need advice, assess out the accompanying writing ideas to acquire comprehension of the writing process. You are guaranteed to own an entire fork-lift operator restart which is sure to stick out from the others if you follow this specific guide! Nevertheless, there are programs and information utilized inside this website that could enable you to show yourself in the optimal/optimally way. Whether you’re an experienced one or a fresher, utilizing a forklift resume as you’re have the surety, template is all but constantly a sensible and shrewd decision you’ve covered all of the crucial points about work experience and your skills. It truly is wise to utilize the driver CV sample, For those who are experienced in it specific approach.
You are definitely going to come across a expert warehouse that is terrific resume example. The only 1 gap is the information. Ensure that your resume destroys that average with a arrangement. | 2019-04-23T02:22:21Z | https://nbta-europe.com/15-allgemeine-empfehlungsschreiben/ |
Documentaries are non-fiction films that explore a person, place, event, or phenomenon using real-life audio, video, and recreations. The goal is to illuminate a subject that most people have never experienced, using pictures and sound to tell the story of something real. There are as many different types of documentaries as there are things in the world, but there are some common threads in every documentary.
Find a captivating, accessible subject. Documentaries are films about real-life subjects, bringing together interviews, documents, footage, and narration to tell the story of a person, place, or event. Is there a story you believe needs to be told? Is there an interesting person in your area with a captivating tale? Since documentaries are grounded in fact, you need to choose a subject that you can get information and interviews on easily. Thus, a filmmaker with limited means will have a hard time filming a documentary about the Revolution in Syria, even though is is a captivating subject.
Keep your subject small -- the best documentaries delve deeply into one topic instead of trying to cover many topics briefly.
The Fog of War, one of the decade's biggest documentaries, is almost completely filled up by an interview with one man, ex-Secretary of State Robert McNamara.
Happy People by famed documentary Werner Herzog explores the daily life of Siberian fur hunters throughout the course of one, "normal" year.
Inequality for All is an accessible but comprehensive look at the 2007 financial crisis as narrated by UC Berkeley Professor Robert Reich.
Supersize Me was shot with one man and one camera, asking what would happen if you ate McDonalds for every meal for a month.
Do as much outside research as you can. Before you pick up a camera, you need to be as much of an expert as humanly possible. Conduct some early interviews for practice and send informal emails asking for advice to relevant professors, spokespeople, or friends of your subject. Go to the library and read as much as you can about your subject. This will help you ask good, informed questions and find the most interesting bits of the story to explore.
Keep a notebook with all your notes in it and make sure you list your sources so that they can be accurately cited in the credits.
Look at both sides of divisive issues, not just the one you agree with the most. You need to understand everyone's opinions to interview well.
Research everything you can when you start out -- your subjects, people you want to interview, the historical background of your site. There are a lot of facts that, when brought together, can tell a story no one has ever heard.
Watch a lot of documentaries, especially those related to your subject. What do they do well? What can you do better? Who do they talk to?
Decide on an "angle" for your documentary. The angle is the way you want to take the story. Who do you want to interview? What do you want to focus on? It is impossible to say everything about a subject in a few hours of film. You need to think about where you focus is going to be as you start filming. This will help you develop questions, write out a script, and choose how to spend your money when you start filming.
This angle may change as you start interviewing people. The documentary Queen of Versailles, for example, was originally about one woman's daily life. But when financial ruin suddenly hit the main "character," filmmaker Lauren Greenfield shifted her angle to focus on the effects of the financial crisis on the billionaire class.
Get a camera, several microphones, and a few lights. The needs of every documentary are different. Though a huge nature chronicle, like Planet Earth, requires helicopters, HD cameras, and thousands of crew members, smaller shoots like Marwencol can get by with one decent camera and several lapel microphones. When in doubt, spend your money on a microphone -- audiences will notice bad sound much faster than bad video.
Lapel mics are small microphones that attach to a shirt or collar and are needed for interviews.
Clamp lights, which are $5-$10 at most hardware stores, are versatile and cheap alternatives professional lights used on many low-budget projects. If you can afford a 3 or 5 piece lighting kit, however, get one.
Be inventive getting your equipment. The doc My Date with Drew was shot for almost nothing on a camera from Circuit City that the director returned after 30 days to get his money back.
Act 1 -- The Problem. Why is this documentary important? What is compelling, interesting, or unique about your subject? What history, facts, or backstory is essential to your documentary?
Act 2 -- The Obstacles: What is getting in the way of success/happiness/resolution. What conflicts or issues have evolved because of The Problem? Is your subject changing, and how does that affect the world around them? Why does this problem exist, and is anyone trying to fix it?
Act 3 -- The Resolution: Does the problem resolve? Is it possible to resolve? What can the audience, narrator, hero, or subject do in the future? How have the subject(s) changed since the beginning of the documentary?
Draft a budget and shooting schedule. Once you know where you need to go, who you need to interview, and how long you have to shoot, it is time to make a plan of action. Contact the people you want to interview and schedule a time that works well for them. Once you know your interviews, budget out the cost of each interview accordingly (any crew members, rental of lights/camera, etc.) and figure out how much money you need and how long you have to shoot.
Set aside money to buy music and film rights.
Shooting recreations, where you get actors to act out historical events, gets expensive quickly. You should expect to drop $5,000 or more for a weekend of shooting, especially if you're paying actors and/or need to rent equipment. Remember, you need to provide some food, work lights, pay actors/crew, and more.
Apply to local grants, ask relatives or friends if they want to help finance the movie, or find ways to shoot your movie on a smaller budget. Documentaries rarely win back the money cost to shoot them. You need to shoot this because you want to, not because you think it will get you rich.
Make sure any people in the documentary sign release forms if they appear on camera. A release form legally allows you to show someone on screen, and forgetting them can lead to costly lawsuits. In addition, most distributors won't show or buy your movie if you do not have this basic legal protection.
When thinking about release forms, it is always better to be safe than sorry. If they say something on camera you need to have a release form, always.
You may also need location release forms for any public locations and release forms for archived documents.
You can download and customize basic release forms online for free.
Prepare your interview set before the person arrives. You do not want your subject sitting around while you fiddle with lights, cameras, and microphones. You and your crew should have everything ready to go in advance so that they can sit down and start talking without a lot of hassle. Make sure the sound is clear and perform a quick microphone check with your subject so that you can adjust them to their speaking volume.
Have a friend do a "practice run" with you, where you light them, set up the microphones and record 3-4 minutes of talking to make sure everything is set properly.
If you are doing the interview, place a camera over your shoulder, roughly centered on the interviewee's face. Place another over their shoulder pointing back at you. The interviewee should, in general, not be looking right at the camera.
Remove distractions from the backgrounds. The focus is on the interview, not the scenery.
Write out a list of questions in advance. Trying to show up and "wing it" is a recipe for disaster. You never know how someone will act in front of the camera, and someone you think is well-spoken and articulate could resort to one-word answers when you record. You need a plan for the interview and have several questions to fall back on if the conversation begins to stall.
Keep your questions short and open-ended whenever possible. "What did you think of that?" is much better than "Walk me through your emotions right after you heard the news?"
Never try and lead people to the "right" answer. "You were feeling really sad, weren't you?" doesn't give your subject any room to tell their side of the story.
Sit and talk with the interviewee before turning the cameras on. You want them to feel comfortable with you, and you want a "dry run" of some of your questions to get a feel for their answers. Unless you are planning a "gotcha" interview it is always best to get someone acclimated to the interview process before recording.
Be pleasant and cordial at first, you don't need to jump right into your topic the minute they arrive. Get to know them a bit to make them feel comfortable talking to you. This will make for a more natural interview on camera, and can lead to more candid answers.
Email, call, or meet the person to give them an outline of the documentary before they arrive so they know what to expect and can prepare accordingly.
Let the film speak for itself, instead of trying to speak for it. A good interviewer actually says very little, instead letting the subject speak their mind. Your job as a documentarian is to expose, illuminate, and call attention to stories that would otherwise fall through the cracks. So let the story tell itself. Don't try and sound smart, force the story in the direction you want it to go, or overpower your subject.
Many documentaries never show the interviewer or director.
Michael Moore, who appears in most of his own documentaries, reportedly has a sign in the editing room labeled, "When in doubt, cut me out." He is not the center of his movies, his subject is.
Find the points of view you disagree with. Go talk to the "villains," the naysayers, and the opposing sides. Challenge yourself to find people who you or your subject don't agree with and let them talk. You'll be surprised what they can illuminate about your subject, and you never know the reasons for their opposition until you ask.
Leave your own personal preferences out of the discussion. Simply begin with "I'm making a documentary about _______ and I would love your opinion on the subject." Make them feel comfortable and respected.
Shoot B-Roll at every location you visit. B-Roll is the footage that plays during transitions or between scenes. It is any shot that is not directly displaying "story" or an interview. Think of any documentary or Hollywood movie and imagine the shots before someone starts talking, often exploring the location or theme of the movie. You will need many hours of B-roll to put together your final movie. Shoot much more than your think you'll need -- it will come in handy.
Leave your camera on before and after the interview, or have a second camera moving around getting interesting shots while you talk.
Try and get B-roll that supports your movie. For example, in the documentary Blackfish the filmmakers use underwater shots of the whales, old SeaWorld commercials, and training videos to give the feel of the park and whales between interviews.
Spend a day or two at every location going out with your camera, shooting everything you can that relates to your subject.
If there is news footage of your subject, call all the local news channels and ask about buying the rights to the footage. Still photos, like those used in Ken Burn's Civil War, can be an effective slide-show underneath a narrator's voice.
Keep any recreations simple and faithful to the source material. Unless you have a killer budget you aren't going to recreate the feeling of the Vietnam War on camera. You are much better off shooting for something simple and elegant -- one "soldier" writing a letter back home, two arguing diplomats, etc. Decorate a small set and keep your costumes simple. Having a ton of okay props and sets doesn't look as good as having 2-3 really nice bits of scenery.
When possible, use actual dialogue from the scene (as recorded in letters, old footage, interviews, etc) instead of writing what you "think" they would say.
Make a backup of your footage shortly after shooting. You never want to lose a great, candid moment just because you lost a hard drive or dripped a camera. As soon as possible, transfer all of your audio and video to a spare hard drive that you do not move or edit off of. This small, inexpensive step can save your 100s of hours if something goes wrong.
Use a non-linear editing system to splice together your footage. Non-linear editing is just a fancy way to describe a computer editing program. For longer movies, you will likely need an industry standard editing program, like Avid, Final Cut Pro X, or Adobe Premier Pro. For smaller documentaries, or those just starting out, a simple program like Windows Movie Maker or iMovie should have enough features to get you started.
If you don't know how to use editing software, there are thousands of free tutorials available online.
You can often hire editors online through Craigslist or EntertainmentJobs.com who will work with you to turn your footage into a film.
Use credits, titles, and text to give your audience the basic information of each scene and interview. Whenever you change locations, a small piece of text giving the location and year is crucial. If you cut to a new interview with someone you need to show their name and title somewhere on the screen, frequently on the bottom right or left corner.
The Academy Award-nominated doc The Square, though exploring the Egyptian Revolution, gains power because it is focused more narrowly on Tahrir Square.
Virunga, though it talks about all the struggles of The Congo, locates itself almost completely in the titular nature park, telling the story of the last mountain gorillas.
Hoop Dreams is a powerful meditation on hope and expectations in high school sports, but it only works because it examines just two basketball families.
Consider adding a narrator. Narrators allow you to get large chunks of information to the audience quickly and efficiently. They can also distract from your subject, over-explain, and simplify your documentary to just one viewpoint. The decision to have a narrator or not is largely artistic. Yet there are definite pros and cons to each.
Narrator: Good narration illuminates subjects quickly and succinctly, still allowing the footage and interviews the majority of the screen time. If your subject has a lot of facts and figures that need explaining, it can be easier to narrate than convince an interviewee to explain everything.
No Narrator: The more common modern approach, this allows the interviews and clips to speak from themselves. The story is more organic, but it can be harder to get cohesive or complicated points across. The "meaning" is often more open-ended.
Watch the movie as you edit it with trusted friends. What was the point, to them? Where was the movie clear, and where did it get confusing? Was it entertaining? Avoid trying to explain things and instead ask their opinions. It is easy to get lost in the movie as you work because you know it better than anyone else. You'll need trusted outside opinions to make sure your documentary tells the story you want it to.
If you hear the same complaints or criticisms over and over, you need to think of ways to address them. Is it an editing issue, or will you need another interview or two?
I'm doing a documentary for my silver award. How many people should I interview?
That depends on the documentary itself. If your documentary has to do with an event and you're trying to gather personal experience from witnesses, then the more the better. Be sure not to interview too many, though. You don't want it to be entirely interviews.
Ask for help. The more help you have, the faster your documentary will get finished.
When in doubt, make sure you get a release form signed. It will save you major headaches later on.
To make a documentary, start by choosing a subject that interests you, making sure it's something you can get footage and interviews on easily. Then, write an outline that covers how you want to present the material to your audience. Next, use the outline to come up with a shooting schedule for your interviews. Once you have all your footage, use a computer program, like Windows Movie Maker or iMovie, to edit and format your documentary. For tips on how to carry out effective interviews, read on!
wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. To create this article, volunteer authors worked to edit and improve it over time. Together, they cited 13 references. This article has also been viewed 7,975 times. | 2019-04-22T13:05:10Z | https://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Documentary |
Till Fellner Interview with Bruce Duffie . . . . . . . . .
In December 2015 Till Fellner will make his debut with the Berlin Philharmonic, under the baton of Bernard Haitink, performing Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 25 in C major. Other highlights of the 2015-16 season include recitals in major halls in Europe and Asia as well as concerts with the NHK Symphony Orchestra/Herbert Blomstedt, Chicago Symphony Orchestra/Bernard Haitink, the Academy of St Martin in the Fields/Sir Neville Marriner, and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra/Manfred Honeck.
Till Fellner has collaborated with Claudio Abbado, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Semyon Bychkov, Christoph von Dohnányi, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Sir Charles Mackerras, Kurt Masur, Kent Nagano, Jonathan Nott, Kirill Petrenko, Claudius Traunfellner, and Hans Zender, among many others.
In the field of chamber music Till Fellner regularly collaborates with the British tenor Mark Padmore, with whom he will give the first performance of a composition by Hans Zender in January 2016. They will also perform lieder recitals in Germany, Tokyo and Seoul. The Belcea Quartet has invited him to celebrate their 20th anniversary in 2015 with performances of Brahms’ Piano Quintet in major cities throughout Europe and a subsequent recording.
Over the past few years he has dedicated himself to two milestones of the piano repertoire: the Well-Tempered Clavier of Johann Sebastian Bach and the 32 piano sonatas of Ludwig van Beethoven. He performed the Beethoven cycle from 2008 to 2010 in New York, Washington, Tokyo, London, Paris and Vienna. Furthermore contemporary music is of great importance to him; he has given the world premieres of works by Kit Armstrong, Harrison Birtwistle, Thomas Larcher, and Alexander Stankovski. In 2012 Till Fellner withdrew from performing for a year to devote himself to the study of new repertoire and to deepen his knowledge of composition, literature and film.
The ECM label, for whom Till Fellner is an exclusive recording artist, has released the First Book of the Well-Tempered Clavier and the Two & Three-Part Inventions of J. S. Bach, Beethoven’s Piano Concertos Nos. 4 & 5 with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra and Kent Nagano and, most recently, a CD of chamber music by Harrison Birtwistle.
Since autumn 2013, Till Fellner has been engaged to teach a small circle of students at the Zurich Hochschule der Künste.
A can be seen in the box at the bottom of this webpage, Till Fellner has a very special and personal connection with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He made his debut with the CSO in April of 1997, and during that visit he sat down with me for a conversation. His English was quite good, but we had a translator to provide more details of some of his complex answers.
Bruce Duffie: You travel around the world, and in every place you come to you get a new piano. How long is it before you make that piano your own?
Till Fellner: Sometimes it’s very short before it becomes that. It’s difficult. It can be very difficult. Here there’s a very good technician. It’s always very important that you work together with the technician to get the piano the way you would like it. It’s no problem here at all.
BD: So you rely on technicians all over the world, then?
BD: Do you have certain general specifications? Do you want a light touch, heavy touch, action moved here, there, or do you just ask for specific things as needed?
TF: No, I don’t have really problems with action, normally. It’s more the voicing. Very often it’s a little bit uneven, that some notes are just louder or too hard. Then you have to do it to get it even. It’s big trouble for technicians. It’s very difficult to do. It’s like art, I think. There are some technicians who are really specialists.
BD: Are you getting to know who the better technicians are?
BD: How much of regulation of the piano is the technician, and how much is your touch?
TF: It’s just the base that you have a very good piano. Then you can work as you like and try to realize your thoughts. For me it’s very important to have equal and very nice piano. I think it’s important.
BD: Do you change that regulation in the voicing at all whether you’re playing a more modern work or an earlier work, such as a Mozart?
TF: No, because you can choose a different kind of piano. Sometimes you have two or three Steinways and then you can say, “That’s for Mozart, and that other’s for Liszt.” But every single piano in itself has to be right and even. You are not dependent on the character on the instrument itself. Then you can see which kind of piano I like, and for which piece.
BD: At your home, can I assume that you have just the one instrument and you have to practice all of the different works on it?
BD: Is that frustrating at all?
TF: No, it isn’t, because I’ve got a very nice Steinway E piano. If it’s a really brilliant piano, then you can play everything on it.
BD: Does it take a really brilliant pianist to play everything on it?
TF: Well! [Laughs] That’s up to you.
BD: [Laughs] Is this something that you’re striving for, to expand your repertoire to both older and newer works?
TF: I try to, yes. For about one year I have played a lot of Bach, which is new for me. I am absolutely fascinated by his music.
BD: Always on a Steinway? Never on a harpsichord?
TF: Only a Steinway, yes, and just two weeks ago I played a piece by Messiaen.
BD: Is there is a connection between Bach and Messiaen?
TF: Yes. I played them together, Bach and Messiaen.
BD: From the huge array of piano music that has been written over 400 years, how do you decide which pieces you are going to work on and spend time learning, and which pieces you will set aside?
TF: I’ve decided to play mostly the so-called German repertoire, so that’s Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert. I also play Schumann quite a lot and also Liszt.
TF: It’s the kind of music that is most important for me, and if I may say, I think it’s just the best music that’s been written.
BD: Is it the best music for you, or is it the best music for the piano?
TF: I can only say for me it’s the best music and the most important music. There are other pianists who can play the French music and Russian music, which I adore, but I don’t feel so comfortable with this kind of music.
BD: You’re still very young, so you may add those to your repertoire later.
BD: What is it about Schumann, Liszt, and Bach that grabs you?
TF: Well, everything. Of course, there’s the form of the pieces. Everything is very well constructed, but nevertheless there is a lot of passion and feelings in the pieces itself.
BD: How much of this passion is in the music, and how much of it do you bring to the music?
TF: It’s in the music, and you have to find it in the music.
BD: So it’s always a sense of discovery?
BD: Do you put nothing of yourself into it?
TF: No, I don’t want to. I just try to find out what’s the meaning of the piece, and what the composer wants to say. Then, of course, you have to have your own feelings because otherwise you can’t play it. But it’s not that I say, “I played the piece and it’s just my feelings which I’ve put in this.” I wouldn’t say that. I want to stay in the background, to honor the composer. I don’t want to say that I can only play the things which I also somehow experience in terms of feelings, and will then put those feelings into this piece. But I try never to be too much in front, in the center of everything. That’s what I actually never do. I am always devoting myself to the music.
BD: When you’re looking at a piece, is this something you can understand just by reading the piece, or do you have to play it and also hear it before you know if you want to delve into it?
TF: It can be both. I used to practice quite a lot without playing. I liked to study the score.
BD: On a silent keyboard, or just reading it with your eyes?
TF: Reading. You can see a lot of things when you’re not playing and having troubles. That’s very interesting.
BD: Do you feel that you’re part of a line, a lineage, of pianists dating back to the composers themselves?
TF: That’s difficult to say, but there is quite a big influence from Alfred Brendel, who is my teacher and has been for five or six years. We work not only on technique, but also with the repertoire. I wouldn’t say there’s a line, because I find it too much to say this, but I’m just very impressed by him. He is a big image for me.
BD: And obviously, he wouldn’t continue working with you if he were not impressed with you!
BD: Are you conscious of the public that is to your right when you are playing?
TF: Yes. You have to be because you tell the people what you are doing. It’s not like in a studio, or at home. The message has to go out to the public, and I can feel the public if they are quiet or are concentrating more. It’s a communication.
BD: So it’s the composer and then you, and then the public to complete the circle?
BD: When you’re working on a piece and rehearsing it, do you get it so that it’s exactly right and then present a duplicate to the public, or do you wait for a little inspiration on the performance night?
TF: Sometimes the public can be an inspiration, but just the music is an inspiration. You work on a piece for months, and for me almost every day it’s a new experience. Maybe it’s just a detail, but it’s not the same twice. That’s, of course, very exciting.
TF: Well, not for me. [Laughs] Not yet!
BD: You’ve made some recordings. Are those recordings perfect?
TF: No. It’s the same with concerts. I think it’s always a moment, like a flash of, like some picture you shoot. It’s really just this moment on which I will work even when recording three or four days. I try my best, but it always develops from me. So if I listen to a recording I made two years ago I say, “It’s fine, but today I would play it a little different.” Otherwise, I would stop.
BD: Would you stop playing entirely, or just stop playing that piece?
TF: Well, at least that piece.
BD: Do you play the same for the microphone as you do for the public?
TF: I try to, yes. I try to play it like in a concert. I always prefer to play the whole piece, instead of little portions, but sometimes you have to play little sections. But in general I just play through it like in a concert.
BD: So you get the whole piece down, and then maybe correct the tiny details?
BD: Do you find that the public is expecting the same kind of note perfection in the concert that they hear on your records?
TF: I don’t think so. Maybe somebody is, but if it’s an exciting performance, it’s no problem if there are a few notes wrong. It’s fine. I don’t care. Of course, I don’t like it, but if it happens and I think it’s okay.
BD: You’re going for the bigger picture?
TF: Yes, and very often it’s just a coincidence if you make a mistake. But if you miss the character of a piece, then that’s a bad mistake.
BD: How do you divide your career between solo recitals, chamber music, and concertos?
TF: I would say recitals are the most important for me.
TF: I feel it’s the most difficult thing because you are alone onstage. You have to present a whole program, not just one piano concerto, and you have to also be quite creative about your programs. It is important how you build up your recital programs, and also for the repertoire. So that’s the most important thing for me. Then I play a lot of orchestra concerts and a little chamber music. I play in a trio with Thomas Zehetmair and Heinrich Schiff, for example.
BD: Is it satisfying to play in a trio?
TF: Yes, very much. As a pianist you normally work alone, so it’s very nice to share with other musicians. It’s great fun.
BD: Is that what music should be — fun?
TF: Yes, I think so. It is not only fun. Sometimes it’s not very fun when we work together, but it can be, yes.
BD: Even when bumping heads with the other two?
BD: But eventually you do arrive at a consensus?
TF: Yes. If you meet in a chamber music formation, however, then there has to be the right chemistry between the people. Then you can talk about details, and one persuades the others, and so on. But there has to be a general feeling about it.
BD: You play many concert dates during the year. Are you careful to leave enough time for yourself, and to practice, and also for a personal life?
TF: I try to, yes. For example, last year in November and December I didn’t play one concert. I had eight weeks off just to study new pieces and to try to think about it a little bit.
BD: Do you ever get completely away from the piano for a day or two?
TF: Yes. I can, yes.
BD: Is that a good feeling, or do you miss it?
TF: No, I don’t miss it. If it’s just one day, it’s fine. If it would be one week, I don’t know... maybe I would miss it then.
BD: Coming back to the solo recital, when you’re building a program does the location, the city or the hall have any bearing on what pieces you will play?
TF: Normally not, but sometimes you just have to be careful what to play. If it’s a good program, then you can play it everywhere.
BD: Do you take the same program around to various places?
BD: No adjustments for this house or that house?
BD: Does the size of the house make any difference — if you’re in a very small, intimate hall, or a great big barn?
TF: I don’t have any problems with big halls. Sometimes it’s the opposite. It’s difficult to play in a very small place and I don’t know why. But I play Bach in big halls. It’s fine; you can do it.
BD: It doesn’t change your approach to the piano, or your technique, or your tempo or anything else?
TF: It has an influence, maybe, on your behavior. If it’s a very big hall, then you have to exaggerate a little bit because the people are also just behind you and they have to understand what you mean. In a very small hall, maybe you need little movements. So that’s maybe a difference.
BD: You can be more subtle?
TF: Yes, but I think you can be subtle in big halls, too, if it’s a good acoustic, of course.
BD: That’s the main thing, the acoustic?
BD: Let me ask a very easy question. What’s the purpose of music?
BD: [With a gentle nudge] Oh, ruminate a little for me! It must be more than just playing the concerts and getting the music out, is it not?
TF: Of course it is, yes. I feel very happy most of the time when I am playing the piano practicing and also during the concert. Mostly I really enjoy it.
BD: When you play concerto, you and the conductor have to agree on everything. Do you always agree on everything, or are there times when you have to pull the conductor a little bit?
TF: Of course, and sometimes the conductor has to pull. It’s a discussion, and you have to find compromise. It’s similar to chamber music. If it’s a good mood between conductor and soloist, it’s not a problem to change little details. Sometimes there are two completely different persons and it won’t work, so you will not try it again.
BD: You make a note in your diary not to work with that conductor again?
BD: I assume, though, that most performances are successful?
TF: Yes. Somehow, it works most of the times, but there are conductors where you are very happy. For example, I played a Mozart Concerto with Heinz Holliger just a couple of weeks ago in Birmingham, and I felt very close to him. It was just great, sort of a highlight.
BD: Is there a secret to playing Mozart?
TF: If I would know it, I’d tell you. For me, it’s very difficult. I played an all-Mozart recital about two years ago, and this required tough weeks for me to prepare this. It’s really difficult. It’s not many notes, but a lot between the notes.
BD: You didn’t regret agreeing to do an all-Mozart recital, did you?
TF: No. I just tell you it’s very hard!
BD: You’ve won a number of competitions.
TF: Yes. Just last week was a big competition.
BD: Is that really the way to go, to win competitions? It seems like such an awkward way to judge one pianist from a number of pianists.
TF: It is. I was interested in the repertoire of this competition because it’s just my repertoire. It’s a lot of Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert. You then have to play Mozart and Beethoven piano concertos at the final. Also it’s a very nice competition because it’s in public; it’s with audience, so for me it felt like playing concerts. Fortunately I won the competition, but it was not like playing in an empty room with just seven or eight gray men as the jury. It was more like playing concerts.
BD: Is that the way competitions should be?
TF: For me, yes, absolutely.
TF: I’m quite young, too, but I have tried not to play too many concerts. I still try just to practice and build up a repertoire very slowly and continuously, but not like a rising star, not very fast. I always feel it will be a profession for me for my whole life, so it’s not so interesting if you have ten CDs at the age of thirty instead of just two.
BD: It’s the concerts and the entire career that are of interest to you?
TF: Yes. I think it’s important to take time, not to be too quick.
BD: When you play Mozart or Beethoven or any of these composers, where is the balance between the art and the entertainment?
TF: I think it’s both at the same time, in Mozart. There is a famous letter that Mozart wrote where he mentions that it’s at the same time for the big audience and for the connoisseurs. I feel that very often with Mozart, especially with this C major concerto. It’s an incredible piece for all composers and musicians, but at the same time it’s a great pleasure to listen.
BD: Will you eventually do all twenty-seven of the Mozart concerti?
TF: I doubt it, but I don’t know.
BD: Is that just simply too much?
TF: It’s too much, I think, yes. If I can manage to play ten or fifteen of the really important concertos, then I will be quite happy. I play all the Beethoven, but it’s just five. It’s easy. But all 27 Mozarts? Maybe.
BD: What about the sonatas? Will you do cycles of them?
TF: Beethoven, definitely yes. I will play Mozart a lot, but I don’t know if it has to be all the sonatas.
BD: So with the Beethoven, thirty-two is not a terrible number?
TF: It is! It is a terrible number, but as Von Bülow said, it’s The New Testament, and the Well-Tempered Clavier is The Old Testament.
BD: When you come to a new piece of music, a new sonata, perhaps, or something that you haven’t played yet, do you know how long it will take before it’s ready to be presented to the public?
BD: Do you play any new music?
TF: No, but I hope I will. As you know, the repertoire is very big and it’s very difficult. Last year I started with Kurtág, the Hungarian composer who is also a great teacher. I think I will play some of his music in the future, and Messiaen whom I mentioned, but it’s not new anymore. I try really to play twentieth century music in every recital program. For example, I’m going to play a Schubert cycle in autumn, but it will be combined with the Second Viennese School — Schoenberg, Berg, and Webern, so at least our century.
BD: You feel you have to bring that music to everyone?
BD: Is the music that you play really for everyone?
TF: [Pauses to think a moment] I think so, yes. It’s hard to say, but I think there is an educated public just in the big towns — like here, for example — which is used to going to concerts, and which is educated from a very early age to classical music. They understand music and listen to music in another way than the soccer player who has never thought about music or heard a classical concert. So I think there’s a difference. I’m glad if young people and everybody comes to concerts and starts to listen, but definitely there’s a difference in education.
BD: Should you try to bring the music to more people — younger audiences and more diverse audiences?
BD: How can we do that?
TF: That’s the big question today. I met a conductor last year who has conducted the Camerata Academica Salzburg quite a lot of times, and they invited school classes just to join the rehearsals. It was just public rehearsals, and he is very good in working with the orchestra and talking to them. They got a lot of young people who now regularly come and join the concerts. That’s maybe just one way to bring people to the concerts.
BD: So you should make it part of your mission to play for young people regularly?
BD: Do you have any advice for composers who want to write music for the piano?
TF: No, because I don’t compose myself. That’s not a question for me. I can’t answer it.
TF: Yes. If I still have enough time, then I just take it. [Laughs] Yes, I’m quite happy, very confident. You have to plan it, just to say, “In October, no concerts, just practicing.” You have to think all the time about which pieces I will play in two years and when will I study them and so on. So you have to be quite organized. But you learn it.
This conversation was recorded in Chicago on April 11, 1997. Portions were broadcast on WNIB the following year, and again in 1999. This transcription was made in 2016, and posted on this website at that time. | 2019-04-22T04:12:37Z | http://www.bruceduffie.com/fellner.html |
Arabidopsis, like most plant species, accumulates free proline (Pro) to high concentration in response to salt and drought stress. The physiological function of Pro is subject to controversial debate, and Arabidopsis plants with a reduced capacity to accumulate Pro showed only a moderate decrease or no change in stress tolerance [1–3]. Pro is suggested to act as a compatible osmolyte, a stabilising agent for macromolecules, a radical scavenger or as a nitrogen and energy store for the recovery phase [4, 5]. Other hypotheses attribute the beneficial function to the process of Pro metabolism rather than the mere accumulation of Pro. Along this line, energy transfer between cellular compartments, regeneration of electron acceptors or signalling functions have been proposed [6, 7].
The biochemistry of Pro biosynthesis and degradation has been intensively studied and most of the participating proteins and the genes encoding for these enzymes were characterised with respect to temporal and spatial expression patterns and enzymatic properties (Fig. 1; ). The first step of Pro synthesis is catalysed by Pyrroline-5-carboxylate synthetase (P5CS), which uses glutamate, NADPH and ATP to generate glutamate-γ-semialdehyde (GSA). GSA is in spontaneous equilibrium with the cyclic pyrroline-5-carboxylate (P5C), which is converted to Pro by P5C reductase (P5CR), again consuming NADPH. Arabidopsis contains two isoforms of P5CS that are differentially regulated. P5CS2 (At3g55610) expression was consistent with a housekeeping function, and the P5CS2 protein was found to be localised in the cytosol under normal conditions while being partially re-located to plastids during stress [3, 8, 9]. Pro accumulation under stress conditions is primarily contingent upon induction of P5CS1 (At2g39800) expression. Also P5CS1 was observed in the cytosol, partly as presumably inactive aggregates, and re-localised to plastids during stress . P5CR seems to be predominantly localised in the cytosol, while some activity was also associated with plastid preparations [10, 11]. However, direct investigations of the localisation and enzymatic properties of Arabidopsis P5CR (At5g14800) are still pending. A second pathway for Pro synthesis from ornithine had also been postulated, but characterisation of Ornithine-δ-aminotransferase indicated that ornithine is degraded to glutamate inside the mitochondria prior to its conversion to Pro by the standard pathway [12, 13]. Loss or gain of function mutants provided valuable evidence for the physiological role of Pro accumulation, although the interpretation of the mutant phenotypes was always hampered by the primary function of Pro in protein biosynthesis .
For degradation, Pro is imported into the mitochondria, where it is converted back to glutamate by the tightly coupled activities of Pro dehydrogenase (ProDH) and P5C dehydrogenase (P5CDH [14, 15]). In Arabidopsis, one ProDH (ProDH1; At3g30775) and one P5CDH (At5g62530) have been characterised at the molecular level. ProDH1 and P5CDH expression is repressed by osmotic stress and upregulated by Pro, with the changes being more pronounced for ProDH1 . Also in flowers, strong expression of ProDH1 was observed in the stigma and in pollen, while P5CDH is only upregulated in pollen [16, 17]. Mutants with defects in Pro degradation grew without obvious phenotypic differences under greenhouse conditions, only a slight decrease in seed quality was noted for p5cdh mutants [16, 18–20]. Common to the p5cdh mutants and the ProDH1 mutant pdh1-1 were an enhanced and prolonged accumulation of Pro during stress and an unexpected hypersensitivity to external Pro supply in the absence of stress. In wildtype plants, external application of harmful amounts of Pro caused the loss of mitochondrial and plastid integrity . Hare et al. (2002) hypothesised that excess Pro degradation would cause misdirection of electrons to O2 in mitochondria and plastids due to electron overflow or acceptor limitation, respectively. Recent results confirmed the Pro-dependent production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in mitochondria, an effect that was more pronounced in ProDH overexpressing or p5cdh mutant plants .
The only obvious gap in the molecular characterisation of Pro metabolism in Arabidopsis remains a second isoform of ProDH (ProDH2, At5g38710), which has been identified as an expressed gene with high homology to ProDH1 [1, 23]. The predicted pre-proteins of ProDH1 and ProDH2 share 75% identical amino acids (aa). Hanson et al. (2008) demonstrated a direct induction of ProDH2 by the sucrose-repressed transcription factor bZIP11 . However, until now the enzymatic functionality of ProDH2 had not been addressed. Here, we demonstrate that ProDH2 expressed in yeast can mediate Pro degradation equal to ProDH1. Overexpression of a ProDH2-GFP construct in Arabidopsis was able to rescue the Pro-hypersensitive phenotype of the pdh1-1 knockout mutant. We detected ProDH2-GFP in the mitochondria and analysis of GUS expression under control of the ProDH2 promoter demonstrated specific expression in the vascular tissue and in the abscission zone of petals, sepals and stamina. In striking contrast to ProDH1, ProDH2 expression was induced by salt stress and was absent in reproductive tissues.
Reports on successful determination of ProDH activity from plant mitochondrial membranes are very rare. A variety of papers ascribe a soluble activity of Pro dependent NAD+ reduction at pH 10.3 to ProDH, but this is more likely to be the reverse reaction of P5CR (Giuseppe Forlani, unpublished results). Therefore we choose to test the enzymatic function of the putative ProDH2 (At5g38710) by heterologous expression in yeast. To obtain a suitable test system, we generated a mutant yeast strain in which the Put1 gene, encoding the single ProDH, was replaced by a kanamycin and geneticin resistance cassette by homologous recombination. The resulting geneticin resistant strain Δput1 was unable to catabolise Pro as a source of nitrogen for growth (Fig. 2). Transformation of the Δput1 strain with a plasmid harbouring the full-length cDNA of At5g38710 did not enable the cells to metabolise Pro. A similar observation for ProDH1 has been described by Kiyosue et al. (1996) and was confirmed by our results . Exchange of the predicted mitochondrial transit peptide (mTP) of the putative ProDH2 (aa 1-29) against the mTP of the flavoprotein subunit of yeast succinate dehydrogenase (ScSdh1) lead to the expression of a protein that rescued the Pro metabolism defect of the Δput1 strain. Also an exchange of the first 39 amino acid residues of ProDH1 against the ScSdh1-mTP enabled the expression of a functional protein. The ScSdh1-mTP was chosen because it is unlikely to interfere with the functionality test for the Arabidopsis ProDHs. From these results we concluded that the name ProDH2 was justified for At5g38710. Under non-inducing conditions, with glucose instead of galactose as carbon source, none of the ProDH1 or ProDH2 expression constructs enabled the Δput1 strain to catabolise Pro (data not shown). Expression of the full-length ProDH2 cDNA in wildtype yeast did not alter the growth properties and western blot analysis of cells expressing a ProDH2 protein with 6×His-tag confirmed the presence of the recombinant protein (Fig. 2 and data not shown). These findings indicate that the native ProDH2 protein is not harmful to yeast, but does not have sufficient ProDH activity to enable utilisation of Pro as nitrogen source.
ProDH2 expression complements a yeast Δ put1 mutant. Yeast wildtype or Δput1 mutant with various ProDH expression constructs were grown for 4 d on minimal medium with 2% (w/v) galactose (Gal) as inducing carbon source and 10 mM Pro (upper plate) or 10 mM urea (lower plate) as the sole nitrogen source. Expression of ScPut1 confers wildtype growth to the Δput1 mutant. Native AtProDH pre-proteins do not complement the Pro utilisation deficiency of the Δput1 mutant. Replacement of the predicted Arabidopsis mTPs by the mTP of the yeast Sdh1 gene confers functional expression and the capability to metabolise external Pro as N-source (mTP-AtProDH1 and mTP-AtProDH2).
The presence of two ProDH genes in the Arabidopsis genome, which both encode functional ProDHs, raised the question of the specific function of ProDH2. Expression analysis of ProDH1 indicated ubiquitous expression in all organs, with the highest expression levels detected in pollen grains and in the stigma of the carpel . To compare the expression of ProDH1 and ProDH2, we fused 1500 bp of upstream sequence of the ProDH2 gene to a β-glucuronidase (GUS) gene. Bioinformatic analysis of 3000 bp of genomic sequence upstream of the start codon of ProDH2 with the Athena analysis tool did not reveal any potential transcription factor binding sites that were more abundant than the expectations for random distribution would predict [26, 27]. However, consensus motifs for an abscisic acid responsive element and a drought responsive element were identified at -880 and -1395 bp, respectively. Most of the putative binding motifs that were found between -1500 and -3000 bp were also present in the region between -1 and -1500 bp. Therefore we chose to include only the region up to -1500 bp in the GUS-construct. Transgenic plants harbouring this construct expressed GUS activity exclusively in the vascular tissue (Fig. 3A-C). Of the 30 analysed primary transformants, all showed a very similar expression pattern, albeit the amount of GUS activity detected by X-Gluc staining varied considerably (Data not shown). Staining was generally weak in the youngest leaves and strongest in the older leaves. For further analysis, plants with intermediate activity in mature leaves were chosen. In inflorescences, the ProDH2-promoter induced GUS expression only in the abscission zone immediately below the pistils or siliques. This high expression persisted through silique maturation, demonstrating a partial spatial separation of ProDH1 and ProDH2 expression in flowers. Northern blot analysis of RNA isolated from various tissues of soil grown Arabidopsis wildtype plants confirmed that the expression of ProDH2 is stronger in floral organs (Fig. 3D). In young (less than 7 mm long) and mature leaves (more that 3 cm long), no ProDH2 transcripts were detected, presumably due to the low relative content of vascular tissue, whereas a strong signal in senescent leaves (showing anthocyanin accumulation and visible reduction in chlorophyll content) confirmed age-dependent regulation of ProDH2 expression. In petioles from mature leaves, no ProDH2 expression was detected by northern blot although this part of the leaf should be enriched in vascular tissue. Also in roots and leaf-derived cell cultures, a strong expression of ProDH2 was detected. In contrast, ProDH1 was expressed also in a root-derived cell culture and was only slightly induced in senescent leaves. In the inflorescence, ProDH1 expression reached its peak before ProDH2. P5CDH was detected in all organs analysed. However, a surprisingly low transcript level of P5CDH was observed in roots, where both ProDH isoforms were strongly expressed.
Since the variation of GUS activity between different transgenic lines was high, we used northern blot analysis to investigate the regulation of ProDH2 expression. Hanson et al. (2008) identified ProDH2 as a direct target of the transcription factor bZIP11 . In agreement with these findings, ProDH2 transcript levels were higher when plants were incubated in medium without sucrose compared to treatment with 30 or 100 mM sucrose (Fig. 4). Also incubation for 6 h in medium containing 20 mM Pro or 200 mM NaCl in addition to 30 mM sucrose enhanced ProDH2 expression slightly. These concentrations were found to be sub-lethal during the period of the treatment and effective in triggering changes in Pro metabolism. Induction of ProDH2 by salt stress was surprising, since ProDH1 is repressed under these conditions. Induction of P5CS1 expression by 200 mM NaCl demonstrated that the treatment was efficient in triggering Pro accumulation. In general, the signals obtained for ProDH2 were near the detection limit, while ProDH1 detection yielded much stronger signals. This observation was confirmed by analysis of publicly available microarray data, in which ProDH2 expression is frequently not clearly detected (data not shown [28, 29]). For example, in the AtGenExpress stress series, the maximal signal intensity for ProDH1 is 7.7-fold higher than for ProDH2. In the same dataset, the ProDH1 expression pattern was more similar to P5CDH than to ProDH2. Pathogen challenge and drought stress were among the rare cases, in which microarray analyses detected a stronger expression of ProDH2 than of ProDH1.
We also analysed potential compensatory changes of ProDH2 expression in the ProDH1 knockout mutant pdh1-1 . Basal levels and sugar-dependent regulation of ProDH2 were only mildly affected in the pdh1-1 mutant. Induction of ProDH2 by Pro was slightly enhanced, presumably by the higher intracellular Pro content caused by lack of the ProDH1 isoform, which seems to be predominant in most tissues of wildtype plants. P5CS1 transcript levels were the same in wildtype and pdh1-1 mutant plants, while ProDH1 transcripts were mostly undetectable in the mutant. Under conditions of ProDH1 induction, some aberrant transcripts were also detected in pdh1-1.
The low and spatially limited expression of ProDH2 posed the question of whether the ProDH2 protein can make a significant contribution to Pro metabolism. Therefore we directly compared the Pro sensitivity of pdh1-1, pdh1-4 (see below) and p5cdh-2 mutants, reasoning that Pro degradation is completely blocked in p5cdh-2 mutants, while pdh1 mutants still contain the active ProDH2 isoform. As described earlier, neither of these mutants was able to use 5 mM Pro as the sole source of nitrogen (Fig. 5A). Seedlings of both mutant genotypes did not expand properly and stayed etiolated, while wildtype seedlings turned green and developed true leaves. Compared to Col-8, the Ler ecotype showed a decreased ability to de-etiolate and grow with Pro as the only nitrogen source. A transposon insertion mutant devoid of ProDH2 (pdh2-1; see below) did not show increased sensitivity compared to the parental Ler ecotype.
When pdh1 and p5cdh mutants were assayed for Pro sensitivity in the presence of mineral nitrogen, only p5cdh-2 mutants showed a dose dependent inhibitory effect of Pro on hypocotyl elongation (cell elongation) and fresh weight accumulation (cell growth) that was different from the wildtype (Fig 5B and data not shown). These findings indicate that expression of ProDH2 is not sufficient to compensate fully for the lack of ProDH1, but may still be able to confer limited Pro tolerance in the presence of mineral nitrogen. Contrary to the loss of ProDH1 or P5CDH expression, loss of ProDH2 did not result in Pro hypersensitivity.
To enable a direct comparison of mutants completely devoid of ProDH activity to the p5cdh-2 mutant, we screened the public T-DNA insertion lines for pdh2 mutants. Several lines (SALK_108179, GABI_918D08, SAIL_90_G05, GABI_187C05) with T-DNA insertions immediately upstream or downstream of the ProDH2 coding sequence had little or no effect on transcript abundance (data not shown). Two lines were identified with a T-DNA or a transposon in the first intron of ProDH2 (GABI_328G05 and GT1788, respectively). By northern blot and RT-PCR analysis we were unable to detect native transcripts in homozygous GT1788 plants, while both aberrant and a small amount of native transcripts were present in GABI_328G05 (Fig. 6 and data not shown). Therefore we termed these two insertion-lines pdh2-1 and pdh2-2, respectively. Histochemical analysis revealed no detectable GUS activity in pdh2-1 plants, indicating that the GUS gene of gene-trap construct contained in the transposon is not in frame with the first ProDH2 exon after potential splicing events (data not shown). A similar analysis of ProDH1 insertion lines confirmed the absence of native transcripts in pdh1-1, SALK_081276 (pdh1-2) and GABI_308F08 (pdh1-3). In line SALK_119334 (pdh1-4), which carries an inverted tandem repeat of the T-DNA in the first intron of ProDH1, a mixture of aberrant and native transcripts was detected, similar to the pdh2-2 insertion line. When grown under greenhouse conditions, all ProDH1 or ProDH2 insertion lines showed no phenotypic differences to the corresponding wildtypes (data not shown). The production of useful pdh1/pdh2 double mutants is impeded by the fact that the insertion line pdh2-1 is in Ler background, in which stress-responsive Pro accumulation and Pro sensitivity differs from Col-8 (Fig. 5A and data not shown). Therefore, double mutants will have to be compared to multiple families of Col-8/Ler hybrids or crossed several times to one of the parental ecotypes.
The reason for the inability of ProDH1 mutants to utilise Pro as nitrogen source, despite a functional ProDH2 copy, could be that ProDH2 is not in the correct subcellular localisation to support Pro degradation. Prediction programs clearly indicated a mitochondrial localisation, which we analysed with the help of transgenic plants expressing a ProDH2-GFP fusion protein. The GFP signals obtained from such plants were much weaker compared to ProDH1-GFP expression driven by the same promoter, but both ProDH2-GFP and ProDH1-GFP were clearly localised in mitochondria (Fig. 7 and Additional File 1). Subcellular localisation and enzymatic functionality of ProDH2 indicated that the low expression level and/or the tissue specificity were responsible for the inability of pdh1-1 mutants to utilise Pro as nitrogen source.
To test the functional equivalence of ProDH2 and ProDH1, also the pdh1-1 mutant was transformed with the constructs for the 35S-driven expression of ProDH1-GFP and ProDH2-GFP. Overexpression of ProDH2-GFP or ProDH1-GFP restored the capability of pdh1-1 mutants to use Pro as the sole source of nitrogen (Fig. 8). These findings indicate that tissue specificity and expression levels are the main determinants of the different functionality of the two ProDH isoforms in Arabidopsis.
In the initial characterisation of ProDH1, two groups reported conflicting results concerning the expression of a functional protein from the native Arabidopsis gene in yeast. The contra group circumvented the problem by using the mTP of the yeast ProDH gene Put1, which might in itself interfere with the functionality test . The data provided by the pro group lack proper positive and negative controls, for which it is impossible to tell if there is some strain specificity in the use of non-native mTPs . Both studies suffer from the use of tryptophan auxotrophic strains, which necessitated the addition of low amounts of tryptophan, a potential nitrogen source. We circumvented these limitations by generating a Δput1 deletion strain in the 23344c background, which is wildtype except for the ura3 mutation that served as a selection marker for the expression plasmids. In this background, the native cDNAs of either ProDH gene from Arabidopsis did not confer sufficient ProDH activity to enable Pro utilisation. Exchange of the predicted mTPs for the N-terminus of a metabolically unrelated mitochondrial protein from yeast allowed the expression of functional ProDHs as evidenced by complementation of the Pro utilisation defect of the Δput1 strain. From this we concluded that both ProDH genes from Arabidopsis encode proteins that mediate Pro catabolism to P5C/GSA. Functional expression of the hybrid genes in yeast indicated that protein folding and co-factor insertion of the Arabidopsis proteins worked correctly in the heterologous system. Mitochondrial localisation of ProDH1-GFP and ProDH2-GFP fusion proteins in Arabidopsis demonstrated functionality of the ProDH-mTPs in the native organism. Complementation of the Pro hypersensitive phenotype of Arabidopsis pdh1-1 mutant by overexpression of ProDH1-GFP or ProDH2-GFP provided further evidence that both proteins have the same enzymatic activity. It remains to be investigated, why the native Arabidopsis ProDH genes do not enable the expression of sufficient amounts of active and correctly targeted protein, whereas the Arabidopsis P5CDH gene produced a functional protein with its native mTP .
Analysis of the tissue specificity of ProDH2 expression by promoter-Gus fusion demonstrated that ProDH2 expression is restricted to the vascular tissue. This finding is in agreement with regulation of ProDH2 expression by the transcription factor bZIP11, which is also spatially confined to the vasculature [24, 31]. Translation of bZIP11 is repressed by sucrose, which resulted in reduced transcript levels of ProDH2 in the presence of high sucrose concentrations. High sucrose concentrations (3%) might also be the reason for the absence of ProDH2 transcripts in the root-derived heterotrophic cell culture. The medium of the mixotrophic leaf-derived cell culture contained 1% sucrose (roughly corresponding to 30 mM), which is not sufficient to switch off ProDH2 expression. ProDH2-promoter driven Gus expression increased with leaf age and was strongest in the abscission zone of the floral organs, indicating that developmental signals also play a role in ProDH2 regulation. ProDH1, which had also enhanced promoter activity in the abscission zone, was additionally strongly expressed in pollen, in the stigma and in developing embryos, where no ProDH2 expression was detected . In roots, both ProDH1 and ProDH2 were strongly detected, while P5CDH was only weakly expressed. Potentially, arginine catabolism, which is the second task of P5CDH, is less prominent in roots. Alternatively, the strong ProDH expression could result from the preparation of the roots by extensive washing in (hypotonic) tap water. Expression changes of ProDH1 are reportedly very fast, while regulation of P5CDH was slower [25, 32]. Increased ProDH2 expression in old leaves was confirmed by northern blot analysis and evaluation of publicly available microarray data [28, 29]. The spatial expression pattern was the most striking difference between ProDH1 and ProDH2 expression but also NaCl treatment caused down-regulation only of ProDH1. Similarly, Ribarits et al. (2007) found a differential regulation of two ProDH isoforms during dehydration in tobacco, while under these conditions the Arabidopsis ProDHs were co-regulated . Over the broad range of different treatments documented in the microarray data collection, co-regulation of ProDH1 and ProDH2 is only sparsely observed, supporting our findings that the two ProDH isoforms fulfil at least partially different physiological functions. Up-regulation of ProDH2 expression during salt or drought stress might indicate a special need for proline degradation in the vasculature, while down-regulation of ProDH1 occurs in the remaining tissues and enables proline accumulation. These findings imply that proline accumulation might not be favourable in the vascular tissue and the continued degradation of proline may provide energy and glutamate for other metabolic pathways or for long distance transport.
Loss-of-function mutants of ProDH1 were identified and characterised as sensitive to external Pro supply and heat treatment [20, 33]. The existence and potential activity of ProDH2 was neglected in these studies. Mutants in P5CDH, which is a single copy gene in Arabidopsis, were completely unable to degrade Pro . In a direct comparison of pdh1, pdh2 and p5cdh mutants, we observed that pdh1 and p5cdh mutants were unable to utilise Pro as the sole nitrogen source, whereas pdh2 mutants grew equally well as the corresponding wildtype. When pdh1-1, pdh1-4 and p5cdh-2 mutants were grown on medium containing mineral nitrogen, only p5cdh-2 was more sensitive to growth-inhibition by external Pro than the wildtype. Preliminary characterisation of the pdh2-1 mutant showed a slightly enhanced Pro accumulation in response to salt stress but not after external Pro application (data not shown). Pro sensitivity and stress induced Pro accumulation differed between the Col-8 and Ler wildtypes, confirming that a useful double mutant can only be produced after extensive backcrossing. From these data we conclude that the slightly enhanced ProDH2 expression in Pro treated pdh1 mutants could not fully compensate the loss of ProDH1, while it may be able to diminish the toxic effects of Pro. Alternatively, the toxic effects of Pro supply might result from P5C, which is only expected to accumulate in the p5cdh-2 mutant. Recent results presented by Miller et al. (2009) suggest that ROS production by ProDH rather than P5C accumulation is the cause of the toxic effects of Pro application . Unfortunately, Miller et al. (2009) did not analyse ProDH mutants and from the data presented it is not possible to determine, whether ROS production is the cause or a consequence of the loss of mitochondrial integrity that was observed in earlier studies . Our identification of pdh2 mutants and the possibility to generate double mutants completely devoid of ProDH activity opens new possibilities to dissect the contribution of Pro degradation to Pro toxicity and stress tolerance. The detailed characterisation of the pdh2 mutants will also help to identify the specific physiological function of ProDH2 in the vascular tissue.
Despite numerous biochemical and molecular approaches, the protective mechanism of Pro accumulation remains unclear. Each new piece of experimental evidence added to our picture of Pro metabolism in plants requires careful re-interpretation of previous results. Only by a thorough analysis of all components and also non-obvious side effects it will become possible to understand the seemingly dual nature of Pro as a protective and toxic compound. The functional characterisation of ProDH2 opens up a whole new set of experimental approaches to understand the function of Pro in the stress tolerance of plants.
Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. ecotype Col-8 or Ler) and T-DNA or transposon insertion lines were obtained from the NASC (SALK_108179, GABI_918D08, SAIL_90_G05, GABI_328G05 (pdh2-2), GT1788 (pdh2-1), SALK_081276 (pdh1-2), GABI_308F08 (pdh1-3), SALK_119334 (pdh1-4) and Salk_018453 (p5cdh-2)), from Bernd Weisshaar (GABI_187C05; GABI-Kat program, Cologne, Germany , or from the KAZUSA research institute, Kisarazu, Japan (pdh1-1). Presence of the T-DNA and allelic status were verified by PCR and sequencing of the T-DNA flanking sequences. Gene and T-DNA-specific primers are listed in Table 1. All physiological experiments with pdh1 and p5cdh mutants were performed with homozygous progeny of plants backcrossed three times to Col-8. For the pdh2-1 mutant (in Ler background), segregation analysis demonstrated the presence of a single transposon. Plants were cultivated axenically in 9 cm Petri dishes on commercial MS medium (Duchefa, Haarlem, Netherlands) or self-made MS medium, in which KNO3 and NH4NO3 were replaced by 20 mM KCl . Media were supplemented with sucrose and nitrogen containing compounds as indicated for each experiment and solidified with 8 g/l purified agar (BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA, USA) when appropriate. Seeds were surface sterilised by sequential treatment with 70% (v/v) EtOH and 1% (w/v) NaOCl/0,01% (v/v) Triton-X-100 and vernalised for 24 h at 4°C in 0.1% (w/v) agarose. Plants were cultivated in a climatised room with short day (9 h) light period and a light intensity of 110 μmol photons*s-1 *m-2 from mixed fluorescence tubes (Biolux and Fluora, Osram, Munich, Germany) at a constant temperature of 23°C. For induction experiments, axenically grown seedlings were transferred to liquid medium and incubated in the light with agitation at 100 rpm for 6 h. Induction in liquid medium was chosen because wildtype plants metabolised proline very quickly when it was provided via the solid culture medium and only marginal increases in proline content were observed in the leaves. For seed production, plants were kept in a greenhouse with a light period of at least 16 h. A heterotrophic (white) culture was obtained from Giuseppe Forlani, Ferrara, Italy and maintained in liquid MS medium supplemented with 3% (w/v) sucrose, 1× Gamborg's vitamin mix, 0.5 mg/l 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid, 0.5 mg/l benzylaminopurine and 0,2% (v/v) Plant Preservative Medium (Plant Cell Technology, Washington, DC, USA) under constant agitation in dim light. A mixotrophic, green cell culture was obtained from Silke Robatzek (Cologne, Germany and maintained in liquid MS medium supplemented with 1% (w/v) sucrose, 4× Gamborg's vitamin mix, 0,5 mg/l 2-(1-naphthyl)acetic acid and 0,1 mg/l kinetin at 110 μmol photons*s-1 *m-2.
1 Letters in brackets refer to the abbreviations in Figure 6; 2 capital letters indicate the translation start codon; 3 capital letters indicate the nucleotides specific for the resistance cassette, lower case letters correspond to Put1 5' and 3' sequences; 4 capital letters correspond to the 3' sequence of the SDH-MTP, lower case letters correspond to the nucleotides encoding the N-terminus of the predicted mature Arabidopsis ProDH proteins.
A 1500 bp promoter fragment including the native start codon of ProDH2 was amplified from Arabidopsis genomic DNA with primers introducing BamHI restriction sites (Tab. 1). The PCR-product was subcloned into pCR-blunt and sequenced. The promoter fragment was excised with BamHI and inserted into pCB308 . Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain GV3101 was used for floral dip transformation of Arabidopsis [37, 38]. Transformants were selected by spraying soil grown seedlings with 50 mg/l BASTA or by addition of 10 mg/l BASTA to the culture medium. Histochemical GUS staining was performed according to .
Total RNA was extracted from snap-frozen material with phenol/guanidine thiocyanate reagent according to each manufacturer's recommendations. Per lane, 15 μg of total RNA was separated by denaturing agarose gel electrophoresis and transferred to a positively charged nylon membrane by capillary transfer. ProDH1, ProDH2, P5CS1 and P5CDH transcripts were detected by hybridisation with digoxigenin-labelled PCR products obtained with primers listed in Tab. 1, followed by detection with alkaline phosphatase coupled anti-DIG antibodies and the chemiluminescent substrate CDP-star (Roche, Basel, Switzerland). Densitometric quantification was performed with the ImageJ software. For RT-PCR, 4 μg of total RNA was converted to cDNA using random hexamer primers and the Transcriptor cDNA synthesis Kit (Roche). One μl of the cDNA preparation was used as a template for endpoint RT-PCR. Public microarray data collection were evaluated with the Expression Browser of the Bio-Array Resource and Genvestigator v3 [28, 29, 40, 41].
The open reading frames of ProDH1 and ProDH2 without the stop codon were amplified by PCR from EST clones 38H5 and full-length ORF clone U66465, respectively (ABRC, Columbus, OH, USA). Sequences of PCR primers are given in Tab. 1. The resulting PCR fragments were purified and integrated into pENTR by directional TOPO cloning (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, CA, USA). Subsequently, the ProDH1 and ProDH2 cDNAs were transferred from pENTR to pEarleyGate103 (CD3-685, ABRC) or pGWB5 by LR-recombination (Invitrogen). Both plant transformation vectors yielded the same results. Sequencing of the resulting constructs demonstrated in-frame fusion of the ProDH cDNAs to the GFP gene and revealed that EST 38H5 is not derived from Col-0 but most likely from C24 ecotype, which carries 12 silent or conservative single nucleotide polymorphisms in the ProDH1 coding sequence. These nucleotide exchanges are present in a number of Arabidopsis wildtype accessions. Transgenic plants were produced as described above except for selection of plants that carried pGWB5 derived constructs, which was performed in axenic culture.
Protoplasts from transformed leaves were obtained by overnight incubation with cellulase and macerase (Serva, Heidelberg, Germany), stained with MitoTracker Orange (Invitrogen) and viewed under an Olympus BX51 epifluorescence microscope equipped with a Nikon DXM1200 digital camera system (Olympus Europe, Hamburg, Germany). Chlorophyll autofluorescence, MitoTracker and GFP fluorescence of the cells were dissected using the filter sets U-MWSG2 (Olympus), 41007 and 41020 (Chroma Technology Corp, Rockingham, VT, USA), respectively. False colouring and overlay of images was performed using AxioVision software (Zeiss, Oberkochen, Germany).
Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain 23344c (Matα ura3; ) was received from Giuseppe Forlani, Ferrara, Italy. For the deletion of the Put1 gene, the kanamycin resistance cassette from pFA6a-KanMX6 was amplified with primers adding 40 bp of Put1 5' and 3' sequences (Tab. 1, ). After transformation of 23344c with the PCR product, geneticin resistant colonies were selected and tested for their ability to utilise Pro or urea as the sole source of nitrogen. Replacement of the Put1 coding sequence by the resistance cassette was verified by PCR. The Put1 coding sequence and the Sdh1-mTP (bases 1-156 of the coding sequence) were amplified with the primers listed in Tab. 1 from genomic DNA isolated from 23344c. The reverse primers for the Sdh1-mTP introduce overlaps to the coding sequences of ProDH1 and ProDH2 that were used to fuse the coding sequences by PCR. All final PCR products were introduced into pENTR as described above and the coding sequences were transferred to pYES-Dest52 by LR-recombination (Invitrogen). Plasmids were introduced into yeast by the LiAc/PEG method and transformants were selected on synthetic medium with 20 g/l glucose and 5 g/l NH4SO4 supplemented with a mixture of amino acids but no uracil (BD biosciences). For growth tests on organic nitrogen sources, yeast strains were washed once in sterile water, resuspended in 0.1% agarose and streaked on plates containing synthetic minimal medium, 20 g/l galactose and no other additives except the indicated nitrogen sources.
We would like to thank Giuseppe Forlani, University of Ferrara, Italy, for communicating unpublished results, for the 23344c yeast strain, for the white Arabidopsis cell culture and for helpful comments on the manuscript. Marc Erhardt, University of Konstanz, is acknowledged for the pFA6a-KanMX6 plasmid and for helpful advice on the construction of the Δput1 knockout strain. We are also thankful to Tsuyoshi Nakagawa, Shimane University, Japan, for the pGWB5 vector. Regina Grimm, Silvia Kuhn, Roswitha Miller-Sulger and the gardeners of the University of Konstanz are acknowledged for technical assistance in the lab and for excellent plant care, respectively. We are indebted to Iwona Adamska for providing a functional working environment and for critical reading of the manuscript. Additional thanks to Helen Gunter, who made helpful suggestions concerning the use of the English language. The University of Konstanz provided financial support for this study and GM is grateful for a fellowship by the Stiftung der deutschen Wirtschaft.
GM analysed the expression pattern of ProDH2. SE generated the yeast expression constructs. DF designed the study, performed the other experiments and compiled the manuscript. All authors contributed to and approved the final manuscript. | 2019-04-18T15:23:44Z | https://bmcplantbiol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-2229-10-70 |
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This is the ultimate step by step guide to installing Python, SQL, R and Bash and starting to learn coding for data science. It takes no more than 60 minutes and it’s 100% understandable for non-developers, too!
If you want to be a data scientist, a data analyst or just simply want to analyze the data of your business, sooner or later you will have to learn coding.
Here, on the Data36 blog, I provide many articles about coding for data science. However, as a foundation of every further conversation on this topic, you need to have Python, R, SQL and bash on your computer. Once you have them set up, you will be able to practice by yourself (and later build your own data projects too), as well as follow, practice and learn via my tutorial articles and videos.
I will show you the exact same tools that are used in real life data science projects.
All these tools are completely free!
Yes, the funny thing is that most of the super-scientific stuff that you can read about in different data science articles are made using open-source data tools. How cool is that?
Anyway: first things first – let’s go and install Python, SQL, R and bash on your computer!
Note 1: The article was last updated on 20 September 2018.
Note 2: This article is more enjoyable if you do the steps and the coding part with me. If you are reading this on your mobile, I suggest saving the article for later (e.g. send it to yourself in e-mail) and coming back here when you have ~60 minutes and are on your Desktop computer or notebook.
Note 3: To have your data infrastructure correctly set up, you simply need to follow my instructions down here step by step — most of the time just copy-paste my code. So don’t be afraid to work on Terminal and writing code. It’s easy, even if you are not a programmer (yet). The article is long, though, because I tried to explain each step as much as I could.
I use all my data tools (Python, R, SQL) on Ubuntu – which is a Linux operating system – and I suggest you do the same. My personal computer is a Mac, but you can have a PC too. In this case it doesn’t really matter, because we won’t install Ubuntu on our computer, but access it via the internet.
What we will do here is to connect to a remote server – type commands and make the remote server do the data analyses instead of our local computer.
Working with a remote server.
Access your data infrastructure from any computer with a login-name and a password (even if you lose or break your personal notebook). Don’t worry, nobody else will able to access your data on your remote server – it is completely private.
Scale your computing power. You won’t be limited to your own computer’s capacity. Renting a few more processors or more memory is just one click away if you are using a remote server.
Use Ubuntu without installing it on your computer.
The only downside of going with a remote server is that it costs money. Fortunately these prices are very low (starting at $5 per month).
I’ve been creating all my coding for data science tutorials (videos and articles) using the exact same data stack that I’ll describe in this article. So if you want to follow me, it will be much easier for you if you go through this article step by step and set up everything like I do. To make everything work properly, please make sure that you don’t miss any of the steps and you do them in the same order as it’s written here! The most important parts of course are the code snippets. All the snippets are marked: like this.
Step 1: Get your remote server!
The next step is to find a hosting service to create your first remote server. I used many services and so far I’ve found DigitalOcean to be the best. You can rent here a server for $5/month (this will be perfect for us for now).
Disclaimer: the link above is a special invitation link – if you use that, you’ll get $100 free credit for two months (and I’ll get $25 free credit). If you don’t want to use my link, you can simply click here instead. Note that in this case you won’t get the $100 credit.
If you are done with that, you are just one step away from creating your first remote server. You will see the “Droplets” screen. Click “Create Droplet” (big green button, top right corner).
This will be more than enough for now. If needed, you will be able to scale it up in the future. As you can see you’ll pay on hourly basis. This means that if you are using the server for 4 hours only, then delete it, you will pay $0.02. This is a very good deal.
“Add block storage:” You don’t need this.
“Choose a datacenter region:” Choose the one that is the closest to you. E.g. if you are in San Diego, choose San Francisco and if you are in India, choose Bangalore. I’ll choose Frankfurt as I’m in Stockholm at the moment.
“Select additional options:” You don’t need this.
“Add your SSH keys:” You don’t need this.
Your server will be ready in ~60 secs.
CONGRATS! You have your first remote server, where you can install Python, R, SQL and bash and then practice coding for data science.
Step 2: Access your remote server!
Make sure you save this email, because you will use this information in the future (especially the IP Address).
Depending on which operating system you use on your computer, you can access your in server different ways.
Open “Terminal” (on Mac I suggest downloading iTerm2 and useing that instead of Terminal).
[IP Address] is the IP Address from the email.
First download and install a program called PuTTy from here.
Click “Open” and you are in. It will ask for your username (“login as:”). You can find this in the email as well. Type: root .
Nice, you SSH-d (logged in) into your remote Ubuntu server. From this point, when you are on the terminal window, until you are disconnected to your remote server, you are going to be using Ubuntu 18.04. It also means that any changes you make here won’t affect your personal computer!
Let’s finalize things before we start setting up your data infrastructure!
Then it will return some messages to you and ask you to change your password. First, type (copy-paste) the old password again, then type the new one (whatever you want).
And done! You can start to install the data tools!
You will use bash for every basic server operation – like moving files between folders, creating/deleting files, installing new programs (eg. Python, R or SQL, too), giving permissions to users, etc.
It’s great for creating automations.
You will have “Hello, World!” printed on your screen.
If you hit enter, you will have some text on your terminal screen, then you need to add a new password for this user, some more text, then the name (your name preferably) and you can leave the rest empty.
We have just created a new user!
This was needed for further steps: so far your username was “root” – and by default “root” user is not allowed to do a few important installation steps that we want to do.
Now you are logged in as a normal user. And you can continue by setting up Python3.
Step 4: Install Python 3 and Jupyter!
Note: previously this article was written for Python 2 – but I have decided to upgrade it to Python 3. Python 2 won’t be supported after 2020. And Python 3 has been around since 2008. So if you are new to Python, it is definitely worth much more to learn the new Python 3 and not the old Python 2.
Notice that you get the same effect as it was with the “echo” command on bash. “Print” and “echo” are pretty much the same, but “Print” will work on Python and “echo” will work on Bash.
This will stop Python and you will be back to Bash.
To use Python more efficiently in the future, you’ll need to install some add-ons.
The command line will ask for your password! Remember: it is not the one from the email anymore, but the one you set when you created the new user! Anytime it asks for your password, just type that one.
Mc – that you have just installed – is an advanced text editor. We will use it soon.
Again if it asks for your password, type it – if it’s asks if continue, say yes.
These commands installed pip and python-dev on your server, which will help you to download Python-specific packages.
This command upgraded pip to the latest version.
This will create a config file for Jupyter on your server.
These will add two lines to the newly created config file that will make you able to use your Jupyter notebook from a browser window (like Chrome or Firefox).
46.101.128.25:8888. Well, it’s not a real website. It connects me to the interface of my Jupyter notebook.
On this surface you can try again printing the “Hello, World!” string. Once you have typed it, you can execute this command by hitting SHIFT+ENTER.
And done! You have installed Python 3 and Jupyter Notebook — and you can come back and use them any time.
Step 5: Install SQL and pgadmin4!
If you are not, just double-check that you haven’t missed anything above… Or just hit CTRL+C several times (that’s the hotkey to skip every running process on your terminal screen).
Done! You have postgreSQL just like that. Let’s try to access it!
You are in! You can type SQL commands!
First thing first, let’s generate a new user, so you can access your database in the future with your normal user too (which is the preferred way).
The first line generates a new table called “test.” The 2nd and the 3rd load some test data in it. The 4th prints all the values to the screen from the “test” table!
You can learn about SQL from my SQL for Data Analysis tutorial series!
It’s time to set up pgadmin! This is a desktop application for postgreSQL that you can use to access your SQL database from your personal computer (without connecting to your remote server in terminal) and write queries much more easily. You will find this program very useful when you start writing complex queries.
Then download pgadmin4 from here: pgadmin4.
Select your OS, then download, install and run it!
Click the Add New Server Icon!
Click save and BOOM! You are connected to your database!
At first sight, it’s not really straightforward, but you can discover the different folders on the left side. If you right click on the name of the server (on my screenshot: “Data36 Test Server”), you can disconnect from your server. Or connect the same way, when you want to get back.
Step 6: Install R and RStudio!
R is the easiest tool to set up! That’s why I left it to the end.
The syntax is a bit different than it was on Python and much different than it was in Bash.
There is an application for R as well to make your coding life easier. It’s called RStudio and you can set it up using these 3 lines of code (copy-paste them one by one)!
You can login with your username (e.g. dataguy) and password. (The same, you were using to access your remote server so far.) And try “Hello, World!” here as well.
You have installed R and RStudio too! Congrats!
You have created your own remote data server and you have installed Python, SQL, R and bash on it! This is a fantastic first step for you towards becoming a Data Scientist!
*shout-out to Johann for finding, reporting and solving the issue!
Nice summary, though I think you should really put more emphasis on the security aspects (eg. disabling root access, setting up ufw, etc. but I’m not an expert at all). Nevertheless it gave me ideas how to move forward with these tools (been playing around with Python for only 6 months).
– Is there any particular reason why you use Python 2.7 and not 3.x?
– Maybe Miniconda could make managing Python stuff even easier. I think it comes with Jupyter by default, and also the conda package manager, replacing pip. What do you think?
thanks, nice questions and suggestions!
I’ll go ahead and answer them one by one!
2. Is there any particular reason why you use Python 2.7 and not 3.x?
UPDATE: I’ve eventually updated the whole article to Python 3.x.
No… I use Python 2.7, because most of the data scientists are using it. It means that all the commonly used data science packages (numpy, scikit, pandas) are supported on that version “better” (not just development, but learning materials). But I’ve friends who are using 3.x without any trouble.
UPDATE: Also if you go to a workplace, there is a very high chance, that you have to use 2.7, not 3.x.
3. What do you think of using MongoDB in a similar setup instead of SQL?
4. Does this way of using Jupyter work from behind nginx?
5. Maybe Miniconda could make managing Python stuff even easier.
Unfortunately Miniconda doesn’t come with Jupyter (afaik at least), so I left it out for now, because it would have been an extra unnecessary step. But I’ll cover it later too!
6. Also you might want to add some kind of a process manager to restart your dbase in case the server reboots for some reason.
Thanks for the suggestions again! I’ll will use them!
Most people starting new projects are not in fact using 2.7. Metrics vary from here and there, but any of the (informal) polling done in /r/datascience have shown that hands down 3 is the standard. You’ll see a lot of metrics passed around saying downloads from pip show 2.7 is still more popular, but I suspect that these are skewed with automated dependencies, and also not including new distributions with new methods of install – like Anaconda.
Which brings me to my next point – if you’re going to give people info on how to get started with Python, I’d suggest something like Anaconda. Installing binary dependencies can quickly become a nightmare without it, and since you’re using your sys python you’re also looking for trouble there. Anaconda makes using virtual (conda) environments a breeze – leaving the sys python to do what it’s meant to do.
Also – for Andras. The goal with learning SQL for data science is because the majority of your data is likely to come from legacy systems, these are for the most part RDBMS, and not NoSQL. No doubt in the future the mix will tilt, but I’d focus on traditional SQL/csv data manipulations first, and then mix in some Mongo later. Also note – Mongo is better at OLTP (transactional) than OLAP (analytical), and often times with analysis you’re going to be working with OLAP (aggregates, crosstabs, etc).
Thank you for your 2 cents! Very useful opinions and suggestions.
1. The majority of the workplaces started to use 2.7 and they are still doing it, so if you start to work somewhere, you can expect 2.7 more than 3.x.
And thank you for the comments on Mongo!
Thanks! The mongo hacks are really nasty, though only instances with lousy security setup are affected I think (a trap a beginner could definitely fall into…). But I’m not a promoter of mongo. You need to know SQL anyway if you’re to work with data, your setup is just perfect for this.
Jupyter is not included in Miniconda indeed, my bad. Anaconda does include it, but it felt like a huge overshoot for me when I tried it.
Very important question: Am I still able to follow your guide if I use Ubuntu 16.04.1 x64 instead of 14.04.5 x64? I’ve noticed that the command ‘python’ didn’t install it for me, rather I had to sudo apt install python to have it install python2.7 for me, also saying ‘After this operation, 16.6 MB of additional disk space will be used.’ -> I thought I’m working in the cloud?
Sorry for the noob questions. Really want to get started with Data Science, but not screw up anything with my personal device.
It will need disk space from your remote server (“cloud computer”).
So just say “yes” and python will be installed on your remote server.
But note that there will be minor differences in the usage compared to Python2.7… Not very big things, but if you want to follow my tutorials in the future (or most of the online tutorials around Python, that’s available online), then it will be easier, if you go with python2.7.
Hope, I answered all your questions and good luck on your path to become a Data Scientist!!
hey John, glad you like it!
Congratulations! I’ve started a nannodegree on Udacity and i think that your article will help me.
* Maybe you can make available the articles in pdf.
thank you, glad you liked it! And good luck with the nanodegree!
One quick question: Can I follow your bash tutorial using bash in my laptop (Mac) ? or is there any benefits for using bash in DigitalOcean server instead of from my laptop ?
yes, absolutely – you have 2 major ways to do that.
A) You can set up a Linux – Ubuntu 14.04 to your Mac as a second op system (I’d suggest this one)… that’s more or less the same infrastructure, that the DigitalOcean servers have.
Sorry, it is probably something obvious but I wanted to run through the SQL tutorial.
Based on the info, you’ve provided, it’s a bit hard to tell the exact issue.
If it’s so, you should have got an error message or something.
Hopefully this will fix the issue!
I found the information that I needed.
I really enjoyed setting up my own server on AWS and following your tutorials. I am currently on Ep3. Do you have a way of accepting donations?
Thanks a lot and glad to hear!
Plus, I appreciate your intention regarding donations but it’s really not necessary.
Hi , thanks for all the effort you’ve put in.
Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately :-)) I haven’t used pgAdmin5 yet.
Very good post and good reading. Thanks for your efforts.
What I’ll suggest is to use docker images for directly start using Python, SQL, R and Bash (for non-devs). It’s free, you’ll have full control on it (destroy when it’s corrupted and launch a new one).
Also, you’ll able to get the latest updates on the software while persisting the data and code you’ve been working on.
Basically I run the commands below after having docker set up on my windows PC.
Then I hit http://localhost:5050 in my browser.
Then I hit http://localhost:8888 in my browser.
Use the token printed on your console to login.
Thanks Haluk for the very detailed comment!
TBH, I’ve not used docker… yet! Will check out and if it works out well, I’ll put this into the original article!
Update! Now docker approach with just one command.
I get an error: [sudo:restart:command not found] and I’m unable to access R Studio from my browser. Have you seen this before? Any suggestion? Thanks.
I think I found the answer to your problem.
Sometimes the R install commands are aborting after the “Do you want to install the software package? [y/N]” or after the “Do you want to continue? [y/N]” questions – even if you type “y”.
This is a hick-up in their install package and the best workaround is to simply re-run the command if you see that it has aborted after typing “y”.
it seems that you are still in bash – make sure you are not missing any of the steps in the article.
This time it’s the step where you login to your SQL database with psql.
Just a comment, I recomend Pycharm as Python Editor.
Thanks Marisa! Pycharm is awesome indeed!
In the step below of installing Jupyter, I’m getting this weird message: No such file or directory.
This will add one line to the newly created config file that will make you able to use your Jupyter notebook from a browser window (like Chrome or Firefox).
Try it with the username you created at the beginning of the tutorial. If it’s still not working, let me know!
I’m an idiot, Tomi lol. It’s a little embarrassing, but if you can’t tell already, I’m very new at this.
However, I just purchased your program on Data 36 on how to install SQL and the other programs and your video on this section did the trick.
Just got started via the $10 starter. Absolutely new to data science or coding. So I’d need some help with the project goals bit.
My guess is to go to the MySQL in DEV TOOLS and forget every other item.
I guess you missed the previous step when you gave sudo rights to your freshly created user.
(As root user) usermod -aG sudo fufu.
Any idea why that’s happening?
I think the issue is with the type of the apostrophe you use.
Now, I don’t know that on you computer which one is which button — but there is a slight difference on how they look, so you can experiment with them by yourself. You typed in the 3rd one, but you will need the 2nd one instead.
Yep, that’s what it was! Thanks!
hi can i just simply install python, r and bash in my windows laptop? would i be able to follow your articles/intsructions if i do this?
In practice, there might be minor differences, so I can’t guarantee anything.
But it’s worth give it a go and you can change to the server set up anytime by coming back to this article!
The Jupiter notebook is running but I can’t acces it from browser.
What can be the problem? I am at my workplace but so far I could do all the instructions written in the article. I don’t think that it is a firewall issue.
I assume this one solved as well, right?
all the problems are solved I wrote about.
great – thanks for the followup! | 2019-04-21T09:17:07Z | https://data36.com/data-coding-101-install-python-sql-r-bash/ |
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