text:
Chapter 62: The Feast at Simon's House
This chapter is based on Matt. 26:6-13; Mark 14:3-11;
Luke 7:36-50; John 11:55-57; 12:1-11.
"Let her alone; why trouble ye her?"
Illustration © Review and Herald Publ. Assoc.
Simon of Bethany was accounted a disciple of Jesus. He was one of the few Pharisees who had openly joined Christ's followers. He acknowledged Jesus as a teacher, and hoped that He might be the Messiah, but he had not accepted Him as a Saviour. His character was not transformed; his principles were unchanged. {DA 557.1}
Simon had been healed of the leprosy, and it was this that had drawn him to Jesus. He desired to show his gratitude, and at Christ's last visit to Bethany he made a feast for the Saviour and His disciples. This feast brought together many of the Jews. There was at this time much excitement at Jerusalem. Christ and His mission were attracting greater attention than ever before. Those who had come to the feast closely watched His movements, and some of them with unfriendly eyes. {DA 557.2}
The Saviour had reached Bethany only six days before the Passover, and according to His custom had sought rest at the home of Lazarus. The crowds of travelers who passed on to the city spread the tidings that He was on His way to Jerusalem, and that He would rest over the Sabbath at Bethany. Among the people there was great enthusiasm. Many flocked to Bethany, some out of sympathy with Jesus, and others from curiosity to see one who had been raised from the dead. {DA 557.3}
Many expected to hear from Lazarus a wonderful account of scenes witnessed after death. They were surprised that he told them nothing. [558] He had nothing of this kind to tell. Inspiration declares, "The dead know not anything. . . . Their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished." Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6. But Lazarus did have a wonderful testimony to bear in regard to the work of Christ. He had been raised from the dead for this purpose. With assurance and power he declared that Jesus was the Son of God. {DA 557.4}
The reports carried back to Jerusalem by the visitors to Bethany increased the excitement. The people were eager to see and hear Jesus. There was a general inquiry as to whether Lazarus would accompany Him to Jerusalem, and if the prophet would be crowned king at the Passover. The priests and rulers saw that their hold upon the people was still weakening, and their rage against Jesus grew more bitter. They could hardly wait for the opportunity of removing Him forever from their way. As time passed, they began to fear that after all He might not come to Jerusalem. They remembered how often He had baffled their murderous designs, and they were fearful that He had now read their purposes against Him, and would remain away. They could ill conceal their anxiety, and questioned among themselves, "What think ye, that He will not come to the feast?" {DA 558.1}
A council of the priests and Pharisees was called. Since the raising of Lazarus the sympathies of the people were so fully with Christ that it would be dangerous to seize upon Him openly. So the authorities determined to take Him secretly, and carry on the trial as quietly as possible. They hoped that when His condemnation became known, the fickle tide of public opinion would set in their favor. {DA 558.2}
Thus they proposed to destroy Jesus. But so long as Lazarus lived, the priests and rabbis knew that they were not secure. The very existence of a man who had been four days in the grave, and who had been restored by a word from Jesus, would sooner or later cause a reaction. The people would be avenged on their leaders for taking the life of One who could perform such a miracle. The Sanhedrin therefore decided that Lazarus also must die. To such lengths do envy and prejudice lead their slaves. The hatred and unbelief of the Jewish leaders had increased until they would even take the life of one whom infinite power had rescued from the grave. {DA 558.3}
While this plotting was going on at Jerusalem, Jesus and His friends were invited to Simon's feast. At the table the Saviour sat with Simon, whom He had cured of a loathsome disease, on one side, and Lazarus, whom He had raised from the dead, on the other. Martha served at the table, but Mary was earnestly listening to every word from the lips of [559] Jesus. In His mercy, Jesus had pardoned her sins, He had called forth her beloved brother from the grave, and Mary's heart was filled with gratitude. She had heard Jesus speak of His approaching death, and in her deep love and sorrow she had longed to show Him honor. At great personal sacrifice she had purchased an alabaster box of "ointment of spikenard, very costly," with which to anoint His body. But now many were declaring that He was about to be crowned king. Her grief was turned to joy, and she was eager to be first in honoring her Lord. Breaking her box of ointment, she poured its contents upon the head and feet of Jesus; then, as she knelt weeping, moistening them with her tears, she wiped His feet with her long, flowing hair. {DA 558.4}
She had sought to avoid observation, and her movements might have passed unnoticed, but the ointment filled the room with its fragrance, and published her act to all present. Judas looked upon this act with great displeasure. Instead of waiting to hear what Christ would say of the matter, he began to whisper his complaints to those near him, throwing reproach upon Christ for suffering such waste. Craftily he made suggestions that would be likely to cause disaffection. {DA 559.1}
Judas was treasurer for the disciples, and from their little store he had secretly drawn for his own use, thus narrowing down their resources to a meager pittance. He was eager to put into the bag all that he could obtain. The treasure in the bag was often drawn upon to relieve the poor; and when something that Judas did not think essential was bought, he would say, Why is this waste? why was not the cost of this put into the bag that I carry for the poor? Now the act of Mary was in such marked contrast to his selfishness that he was put to shame; and according to his custom, he sought to assign a worthy motive for his objection to her gift. Turning to the disciples, he asked, "Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor? This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein." Judas had no heart for the poor. Had Mary's ointment been sold, and the proceeds fallen into his possession, the poor would have received no benefit. {DA 559.2}
Judas had a high opinion of his own executive ability. As a financier he thought himself greatly superior to his fellow disciples, and he had led them to regard him in the same light. He had gained their confidence, and had a strong influence over them. His professed sympathy for the poor deceived them, and his artful insinuation caused them to look [560] distrustfully upon Mary's devotion. The murmur passed round the table, "To what purpose is this waste? For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the poor." {DA 559.3}
Mary heard the words of criticism. Her heart trembled within her. She feared that her sister would reproach her for extravagance. The Master, too, might think her improvident. Without apology or excuse she was about to shrink away, when the voice of her Lord was heard, "Let her alone; why trouble ye her?" He saw that she was embarrassed and distressed. He knew that in this act of service she had expressed her gratitude for the forgiveness of her sins, and He brought relief to her mind. Lifting His voice above the murmur of criticism, He said, "She hath wrought a good work on Me. For ye have the poor with you always, and whensoever ye will ye may do them good: but Me ye have not always. She hath done what she could: she is come aforehand to anoint My body to the burying." {DA 560.1}
The fragrant gift which Mary had thought to lavish upon the dead body of the Saviour she poured upon His living form. At the burial its sweetness could only have pervaded the tomb; now it gladdened His heart with the assurance of her faith and love. Joseph of Arimathaea and Nicodemus offered not their gift of love to Jesus in His life. With bitter tears they brought their costly spices for His cold, unconscious form. The women who bore spices to the tomb found their errand in vain, for He had risen. But Mary, pouring out her love upon the Saviour while He was conscious of her devotion, was anointing Him for the burial. And as He went down into the darkness of His great trial, He carried with Him the memory of that deed, an earnest of the love that would be His from His redeemed ones forever. {DA 560.2}
Many there are who bring their precious gifts for the dead. As they stand about the cold, silent form, words of love are freely spoken. Tenderness, appreciation, devotion, all are lavished upon one who sees not nor hears. Had these words been spoken when the weary spirit needed them so much, when the ear could hear and the heart could feel, how precious would have been their fragrance! {DA 560.3}
Mary knew not the full significance of her deed of love. She could not answer her accusers. She could not explain why she had chosen that occasion for anointing Jesus. The Holy Spirit had planned for her, and she had obeyed His promptings. Inspiration stoops to give no reason. An unseen presence, it speaks to mind and soul, and moves the heart to action. It is its own justification. {DA 560.4}
Christ told Mary the meaning of her act, and in this He gave her [563] more than He had received. "In that she hath poured this ointment on My body," He said, "she did it for My burial." As the alabaster box was broken, and filled the whole house with its fragrance, so Christ was to die, His body was to be broken; but He was to rise from the tomb, and the fragrance of His life was to fill the earth. Christ "hath loved us, and hath given Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savor." Ephesians 5:2. {DA 560.5}
"Verily I say unto you," Christ declared, "Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her." Looking into the future, the Saviour spoke with certainty concerning His gospel. It was to be preached throughout the world. And as far as the gospel extended, Mary's gift would shed its fragrance, and hearts would be blessed through her unstudied act. Kingdoms would rise and fall; the names of monarchs and conquerors would be forgotten; but this woman's deed would be immortalized upon the pages of sacred history. Until time should be no more, that broken alabaster box would tell the story of the abundant love of God for a fallen race. {DA 563.1}
Mary's act was in marked contrast with that which Judas was about to do. What a sharp lesson Christ might have given him who had dropped the seed of criticism and evil thinking into the minds of the disciples! How justly the accuser might have been accused! He who reads the motives of every heart, and understands every action, might have opened before those at the feast dark chapters in the experience of Judas. The hollow pretense on which the traitor based his words might have been laid bare; for, instead of sympathizing with the poor, he was robbing them of the money intended for their relief. Indignation might have been excited against him for his oppression of the widow, the orphan, and the hireling. But had Christ unmasked Judas, this would have been urged as a reason for the betrayal. And though charged with being a thief, Judas would have gained sympathy, even among the disciples. The Saviour reproached him not, and thus avoided giving him an excuse for his treachery. {DA 563.2}
But the look which Jesus cast upon Judas convinced him that the Saviour penetrated his hypocrisy, and read his base, contemptible character. And in commending Mary's action, which had been so severely condemned, Christ had rebuked Judas. Prior to this, the Saviour had never given him a direct rebuke. Now the reproof rankled in his heart. He determined to be revenged. From the supper he went directly to [564] the palace of the high priest, where he found the council assembled, and he offered to betray Jesus into their hands. {DA 563.3}
The priests were greatly rejoiced. These leaders of Israel had been given the privilege of receiving Christ as their Saviour, without money and without price. But they refused the precious gift offered them in the most tender spirit of constraining love. They refused to accept that salvation which is of more value than gold, and bought their Lord for thirty pieces of silver. {DA 564.1}
Judas had indulged avarice until it overpowered every good trait of his character. He grudged the offering made to Jesus. His heart burned with envy that the Saviour should be the recipient of a gift suitable for the monarchs of the earth. For a sum far less than the box of ointment cost, he betrayed his Lord. {DA 564.2}
The disciples were not like Judas. They loved the Saviour. But they did not rightly appreciate His exalted character. Had they realized what He had done for them, they would have felt that nothing bestowed upon Him was wasted. The wise men from the East, who knew so little of Jesus, had shown a truer appreciation of the honor due Him. They brought precious gifts to the Saviour, and bowed in homage before Him when He was but a babe, and cradled in a manger. {DA 564.3}
Christ values acts of heartfelt courtesy. When anyone did Him a favor, with heavenly politeness He blessed the actor. He did not refuse the simplest flower plucked by the hand of a child, and offered to Him in love. He accepted the offerings of children, and blessed the givers, inscribing their names in the book of life. In the Scriptures, Mary's anointing of Jesus is mentioned as distinguishing her from the other Marys. Acts of love and reverence for Jesus are an evidence of faith in Him as the Son of God. And the Holy Spirit mentions, as evidences of woman's loyalty to Christ: "If she have washed the saints' feet, if she have relieved the afflicted, if she have diligently followed every good work." 1 Timothy 5:10. {DA 564.4}
Christ delighted in the earnest desire of Mary to do the will of her Lord. He accepted the wealth of pure affection which His disciples did not, would not, understand. The desire that Mary had to do this service for her Lord was of more value to Christ than all the precious ointment in the world, because it expressed her appreciation of the world's Redeemer. It was the love of Christ that constrained her. The matchless excellence of the character of Christ filled her soul. That ointment was a symbol of the heart of the giver. It was the outward demonstration of a love fed by heavenly streams until it overflowed. {DA 564.5}
The work of Mary was just the lesson the disciples needed to show them that the expression of their love for Him would be pleasing to Christ. He had been everything to them, and they did not realize that soon they would be deprived of His presence, that soon they could offer Him no token of their gratitude for His great love. The loneliness of Christ, separated from the heavenly courts, living the life of humanity, was never understood or appreciated by the disciples as it should have been. He was often grieved because His disciples did not give Him that which He should have received from them. He knew that if they were under the influence of the heavenly angels that accompanied Him, they too would think no offering of sufficient value to declare the heart's spiritual affection. {DA 565.1}
Their afterknowledge gave them a true sense of the many things they might have done for Jesus expressive of the love and gratitude of their hearts, while they were near Him. When Jesus was no longer with them, and they felt indeed as sheep without a shepherd, they began to see how they might have shown Him attentions that would have brought gladness to His heart. They no longer cast blame upon Mary, but upon themselves. Oh, if they could have taken back their censuring, their presenting the poor as more worthy of the gift than was Christ! They felt the reproof keenly as they took from the cross the bruised body of their Lord. {DA 565.2}
The same want is evident in our world today. But few appreciate all that Christ is to them. If they did, the great love of Mary would be expressed, the anointing would be freely bestowed. The expensive ointment would not be called a waste. Nothing would be thought too costly to give for Christ, no self-denial or self-sacrifice too great to be endured for His sake. {DA 565.3}
The words spoken in indignation, "To what purpose is this waste?" brought vividly before Christ the greatest sacrifice ever made,—the gift of Himself as the propitiation for a lost world. The Lord would be so bountiful to His human family that it could not be said of Him that He could do more. In the gift of Jesus, God gave all heaven. From a human point of view, such a sacrifice was a wanton waste. To human reasoning the whole plan of salvation is a waste of mercies and resources. Self-denial and wholehearted sacrifice meet us everywhere. Well may the heavenly host look with amazement upon the human family who refuse to be uplifted and enriched with the boundless love expressed in Christ. Well may they exclaim, Why this great waste? {DA 565.4}
But the atonement for a lost world was to be full, abundant, and [566] complete. Christ's offering was exceedingly abundant to reach every soul that God had created. It could not be restricted so as not to exceed the number who would accept the great Gift. All men are not saved; yet the plan of redemption is not a waste because it does not accomplish all that its liberality has provided for. There must be enough and to spare. {DA 565.5}
Simon the host had been influenced by the criticism of Judas upon Mary's gift, and he was surprised at the conduct of Jesus. His Pharisaic pride was offended. He knew that many of his guests were looking upon Christ with distrust and displeasure. Simon said in his heart, "This Man, if He were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth Him: for she is a sinner." {DA 566.1}
By curing Simon of leprosy, Christ had saved him from a living death. But now Simon questioned whether the Saviour were a prophet. Because Christ allowed this woman to approach Him, because He did not indignantly spurn her as one whose sins were too great to be forgiven, because He did not show that He realized she had fallen, Simon was tempted to think that He was not a prophet. Jesus knows nothing of this woman who is so free in her demonstrations, he thought, or He would not allow her to touch Him. {DA 566.2}
But it was Simon's ignorance of God and of Christ that led him to think as he did. He did not realize that God's Son must act in God's way, with compassion, tenderness, and mercy. Simon's way was to take no notice of Mary's penitent service. Her act of kissing Christ's feet and anointing them with ointment was exasperating to his hardheartedness. He thought that if Christ were a prophet, He would recognize sinners and rebuke them. {DA 566.3}
To this unspoken thought the Saviour answered: "Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee. . . . There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell Me therefore, which of them will love him most? Simon answered and said, I suppose that he, to whom he forgave most. And He said unto him, Thou hast rightly judged." {DA 566.4}
As did Nathan with David, Christ concealed His home thrust under the veil of a parable. He threw upon His host the burden of pronouncing sentence upon himself. Simon had led into sin the woman he now despised. She had been deeply wronged by him. By the two debtors of the parable, Simon and the woman were represented. Jesus did not design to teach that different degrees of obligation should be felt by the [567] two persons, for each owed a debt of gratitude that never could be repaid. But Simon felt himself more righteous than Mary, and Jesus desired him to see how great his guilt really was. He would show him that his sin was greater than hers, as much greater as a debt of five hundred pence exceeds a debt of fifty pence. {DA 566.5}
Simon now began to see himself in a new light. He saw how Mary was regarded by One who was more than a prophet. He saw that with keen prophetic eye Christ read her heart of love and devotion. Shame seized upon him, and he realized that he was in the presence of One superior to himself. {DA 567.1}
"I entered into thine house," Christ continued, "thou gavest Me no water for My feet;" but with tears of repentance, prompted by love, Mary hath washed My feet, and wiped them with the hair of her head. "Thou gavest Me no kiss: but this woman," whom you despise, "since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss My feet." Christ recounted the opportunities Simon had had to show his love for his Lord, and his appreciation of what had been done for him. Plainly, yet with delicate politeness, the Saviour assured His disciples that His heart is grieved when His children neglect to show their gratitude to Him by words and deeds of love. {DA 567.2}
The Heart Searcher read the motive that led to Mary's action, and He saw also the spirit that prompted Simon's words. "Seest thou this woman?" He said to him. She is a sinner. "I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little." {DA 567.3}
Simon's coldness and neglect toward the Saviour showed how little he appreciated the mercy he had received. He had thought he honored Jesus by inviting Him to his house. But he now saw himself as he really was. While he thought himself reading his Guest, his Guest had been reading him. He saw how true Christ's judgment of him was. His religion had been a robe of Pharisaism. He had despised the compassion of Jesus. He had not recognized Him as the representative of God. While Mary was a sinner pardoned, he was a sinner unpardoned. The rigid rule of justice he had desired to enforce against her condemned him. {DA 567.4}
Simon was touched by the kindness of Jesus in not openly rebuking him before the guests. He had not been treated as he desired Mary to be treated. He saw that Jesus did not wish to expose his guilt to others, but sought by a true statement of the case to convince his mind, and by pitying kindness to subdue his heart. Stern denunciation would have hardened Simon against repentance, but patient admonition convinced [568] him of his error. He saw the magnitude of the debt which he owed his Lord. His pride was humbled, he repented, and the proud Pharisee became a lowly, self-sacrificing disciple. {DA 567.5}
Mary had been looked upon as a great sinner, but Christ knew the circumstances that had shaped her life. He might have extinguished every spark of hope in her soul, but He did not. It was He who had lifted her from despair and ruin. Seven times she had heard His rebuke of the demons that controlled her heart and mind. She had heard His strong cries to the Father in her behalf. She knew how offensive is sin to His unsullied purity, and in His strength she had overcome. {DA 568.1}
When to human eyes her case appeared hopeless, Christ saw in Mary capabilities for good. He saw the better traits of her character. The plan of redemption has invested humanity with great possibilities, and in Mary these possibilities were to be realized. Through His grace she became a partaker of the divine nature. The one who had fallen, and whose mind had been a habitation of demons, was brought very near to the Saviour in fellowship and ministry. It was Mary who sat at His feet and learned of Him. It was Mary who poured upon His head the precious anointing oil, and bathed His feet with her tears. Mary stood beside the cross, and followed Him to the sepulcher. Mary was first at the tomb after His resurrection. It was Mary who first proclaimed a risen Saviour. {DA 568.2}
Jesus knows the circumstances of every soul. You may say, I am sinful, very sinful. You may be; but the worse you are, the more you need Jesus. He turns no weeping, contrite one away. He does not tell to any all that He might reveal, but He bids every trembling soul take courage. Freely will He pardon all who come to Him for forgiveness and restoration. {DA 568.3}
Christ might commission the angels of heaven to pour out the vials of His wrath on our world, to destroy those who are filled with hatred of God. He might wipe this dark spot from His universe. But He does not do this. He is today standing at the altar of incense, presenting before God the prayers of those who desire His help. {DA 568.4}
The souls that turn to Him for refuge, Jesus lifts above the accusing and the strife of tongues. No man or evil angel can impeach these souls. Christ unites them to His own divine-human nature. They stand beside the great Sin Bearer, in the light proceeding from the throne of God. "Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us." Romans 8:33, 34. {DA 568.5}
Click here to read the next chapter: "Thy King Cometh"


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This entry was posted in Marketing 101 and tagged Blog Marketing on January 13, 2015 by Sherry Stone.
What is the first thing everyone does in the New Year? Make resolutions of course! Get in shape, quit smoking, spend less time online. We've all made (and sometime broken) resolutions for our personal lives. What about for your business? Have you set goals and made plans for how to improve your business in 2015? Now is the time! Statistics show that when you declare a New Year's resolution, you are ten times more likely to reach the goals you have set. This is true for your personal growth, and for that of your business. The calendar may show mid January already, but it's not too late to get started on a path to resolution success!
It is no coincidence that synonyms for the word resolution include: decision, intention, plan, and commitment. Declaring a resolution may seem easy, but in order for it to be a success, there is work involved. Here are some tips for setting New Year's Resolutions for your business.
Move forward by looking back.
How did you do in 2014? What worked, what didn't, what do you wish you did more of? Use your statistics from 2014 as benchmarks for what you want to improve in the New Year.
Remember, resolutions are a choice that you make and ensuring success starts with your mindset. Set goals that you truly want to meet or exceed. Don't worry about what others say you should or shouldn't do. Be mentally prepared for the work and challenges ahead.
Outline all of the steps that will be necessary to reach each of your stated goals. Each step should include details such as frequency, time frame, deadlines, and clear measurements to help track your success.
It has been said that it takes up to 66 days to make a new personal habit and working towards a business resolution is no different. Resolutions are hard work. There will be times where your motivation wanes, you backslide into old habits and you are ready to give up. Don't! Review your plan, learn a lesson, find your motivation and get back on that horse! Persistence pays off.
Share your goals with others in your business and friends and mentors who support you. Enlist their help in achieving the goals where appropriate and their support and encouragement when the going gets tough.
Celebrate. Repeat.Be sure to acknowledge the milestones along the way. Once you are successful in accomplishing your resolution, celebrate, but don't stop! Continued success will depend on how well you follow through with your new habits, hard work, and dedication. Need new motivation to keep going? Declare new resolutions! Who says you must wait for January 1st to set new resolutions for success?
The New Year offers a time for review and the opportunity to improve yourself and your business. Setting goals (resolutions) allows you to develop strong plans for the coming year, keep you focused on what is important, and make your business successful.
It's a New Year! If your resolution is to increase business, we can help. Contact us today to find out how.
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Along with a historic kiss, the morning parade saw the likes of the Grinch, Frozen's Olaf, Tom Turkey, clowns, marching bands, a lot of security, Goku, Lady Liberty herself, SpongeBob SquarePants and the Red Mighty Morphin Power Ranger all heading down Sixth Avenue in front of the crowds and cameras.
Only up 2% from 2017, the parade was still a showstopper for the Comcast-owned net with a 12.8 in metered market results. Excluding sports, that's the best any show or special has performed in the early metrics on the Big 4 since the Academy Awards in March. It is also the third best metered markets result that the annual Manhattan march has achieved in the past 13 years, with only the 13.5 rating of 2013 and 2015 doing better.
Speaking of sports, it was a busy day of NFL match-ups up and down the dial with the Dallas Cowboys beating the Washington Redskins 31-23 on Fox and the New Orleans Saints thrashing the Atlanta Falcons 31-17 on NBC in primetime.
Both big holiday games were up double-digits over 2017 with the Fox game scoring a 14.1 in metered markets and the NBC face-off delivering an 11.4 rating. That's a 10% rise for the Rupert Murdoch-own broadcaster over last year's Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions game.
On NBC, the blowout of sorts was up a hefty 18% over the truly terrible Redskins vs. New York Giants game of November 23, 2017, which also saw more of the player protests that seemingly hobbled the league last year.
That Thursday Night Football battle of last year ended up with 16.9 million viewers and a 5.1/20 rating among adults 18-49. Currently in fast affiliates and certain to change in the final numbers, last night's game, which was the 10th win in a row for the surging Saints, is pulling in an audience of 18.34 million with a 5.5/24 rating in the key demo.
Needless to say, NBC easily won the Thanksgiving primetime.
Amidst mainly repeats on CBS, the net's only original was a holiday themed Murphy Brown (0.8/3) that was down a tenth from last week. In the absence of its usual TNF, Fox was all MasterChef Junior: Celebrity Showdown (1.9/8) last night as Gordon Ramsey brought home the second highest rated show of the night plus 6 million viewers.
ABC also went unscripted too with a 20/20 (0.4/2) and a special and not very well watched Meghan's New Life: The Real Princess Diaries (0.3/1). With 2.7 million views, the latter profile of the former Suits star was the second least watched show of the night, just ahead of the 2.03 million who tuned in for the I'm Coming Home (0.3/1) special at 10 PM, also on ABC.
Have fun with those leftovers.


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text:
The Spectator in miniature: being a collection of the principle ..., Volumen1
Por Spectator The
absent man with a great deal of humour, which he has to be pushed to an agreeable extravagance; with the heads of it I shall conclude my present paper.
" Menalcas (says that excellent author) comes down in a morning, opens his door to go out, but shats it again, because he perceives that he has his night-cap als uitha on; and examining himself forther, finds that he is but half-shaved, that he has stuck his sword on his right side, that his stockings are about his heels, and that his shirt is over bis breeches. When he is dressed he goes to court, comes into the drawing-room, and walking bolt-upright under a branch of candlesticks, his wig is caught up by one of them, and hangs dangling in the air. All the courtiers fall a laughing, bat Menalcas laughs louder than any of them, and looks about for the person that is the jest of the company. Coming down to the court gate be finds a coach
, which, taking for his own, he whips into it; and the coachman drives off, not doubting bat he carries bis master. As soon as he stops, Menalca: throws bimself out of the coach, crosses the court, ascends the staircase, and runs through all the chambers with the greatest familiarity; reposes himself on a couch, and fancies himself at home. The master of the house at last comes in; Menalcas rises to receive him, and de sires him to sit down; he talks, muses, and then talks again. The gentleman of the house is tired and amazed: Menalcas is no less so, but is every moment in hopes that his impertinent guest will at last end his tedious visit. Night comes on, when Menalcas is hardly undeceived.
" When he is playing at backgammon, he calls for a full glass of wine and water; it is his turn to throw; he has the box in one hand, and his glass in the other ; and being extremely dry, and unwilling to lose time, he swallows down both the dice, and at the same time throws his wine into the tables. He writes a letter
, and flings the sand into the ink bottle; be writes a second, and mistakes the superscription. A noblemas
receives one of them, and upon opening it reads as follows:- I would have you, honest Jack, immediately upon the receipt of this, take in hay enough to serve me the winter.' His farmer receives the other, and is amazed to see in it, . My Lord, I received your Grace commands, with an entire submission to'-If he is at an entertaioment, you may see the pieces of bread continually multiplying round his plate. It is true the rest of the company want it, as well as their knives and forks, which Menalcas does not let them keep long. Sometimes in a morning he puts his whole family in a hurry, and at last goes out without being able to stay for his coach or dinner; and for that day, yon may see him in every part of the town except the very place where he had appointed to be upon a business of importance. You would often take him for every thing that he is not; for a fellow quite stupid, for be hears nothing; for a fool, for he talks to himself, and has an hundred grimaces and motions in his head, which are altogether involuntary; for a proud man, for he looks full upon you, and takes no notice of your saluting him. The truth of it is, his eyes are open, but he makes no use of them, and neither sees you, nor any man, nor any thing else. He came once from his country house, and his own footmen under. took to rob him, and succeeded. They held a flam. beau to his throat, and bid him deliver his purse; he did so, and coming home told his friends he had been robbed; they desired to know the particulars ; ' ask my servants,' says Menalcas, · for they were with me'."
HISTORY OF INKLE AND YARICO.
Thomas Inkle, of London, aged twenty years
, embarked in the Downs, in the good ship called the Achilles, bound for the West Indies, on the 16th of June, 1647, in order to improve bis fortune by trade and merchandise. Our adventurer was the third son of an eminent citizen, who had taken particular care to instil into his mind an early love of gain, by making him a perfect master of numbers, and consequently giving him a quick view of loss and advantage, and preventing the vatural impulses of his passions, by prepossession towards his interests. With a mind thus turned, young Inkle had a person every way agreeable, a ruddy vigour in his countenance, strength in his limbs, with ringlets of fair hair loosely flowing on his shoulders. It happened, in the course of the voyage, that the Achilles, in some distress, pat into a creek on the main of America, in search of provisions: the youth, who is the hero of my story, among others, went ashore on this occasion. From their first landing they were observed by a party Indians, who hid themselves in the woods for that purpose. The English unadvisedly marched a great distance from the shore into the country, and were intercepted by the natives, who slew the greatest nam ber of them. Our adventurer escaped among by flying into a forest. Upon bis coming into a remote and pathless part of the wood, he threw himself, tired and breathless, on a little billock, when an Indian maid rashed from a thicket beluind him. After the first surprise, they appeared mutually agreeable to each other. If the European was highly charmed with the limbs, features, and wild graces of the vaked American; the American was no less taken with the dress, complexion, and shape of an European, covered from head to foot. The Indian grew immediately enamoured
others, of him, and consequently solicitous for his preserva. tion: she therefore conveyed him to a cave, where she gave him a delicious repast of fruits, and led him to a stream to slake his thirst. In the midst of these good offices, she would sometimes play with his hair, and delight in the opposition of its colour to that of her fingers; then open his bosom, then laugh at bim for covering it. She was, it seems, a person of distinction, for she every day came to him in a different dress, of the most beautiful shells, bugles, and bredes. She likewise bronght bim a great many spoils, which ber other lovers had presented to her; so that his cave was richly adorned with all the spotted skins of beasts, and most party.coloured feathers of fowls, wbich that world afforded. To make his confinement more toler. able, she would carry him in the dusk of the evening, or by the favour of moon.light, to unfrequented groves and solitudes, and show him where to lie down in safety, and sleep amidst the falls of waters, and melody of nightingales. Her part was to watch and hold him awake in her arms, for fear of her countrymen, and wake him on occasion to consult his safety. In this manner did the lovers pass away their time, till they had learned a language of their own, in which the voyager communicated to his mistress, how happy he should be to have her in bis country, where she should be clothed in such silks as bis waistcoat was made of, and be carried in honses drawn loy horses, without be. ing exposed to wind or weather. All this he promised her the enjoyment of, withont such fears and alarms as they were there tormented with. In this tender correspondence these lovers lived for several months, when Yarico, instructed by her lover, discovered á
vessel on the coast, to which she made signals; and in - the night, with the utmost joy and satisfaction, accom.
panied him to a ship's-crew of his countrymen, bound for Barbadoes. When a vessel from the main arrives in that island, it seems the planters come down to the sbore, where there is an immediate market of the
Indians and other slaves, as with us of horses and
To be short, Mr. Thomas Inkle, now coming into English territories, began seriously to reflect upon his loss of time, and to weigh with himself how many days' interest of his money he had lost during his stay with Yarico. This thought made the young man very pensive, and careful what account he should be able to give his friends of his voyage. Upon which consider. ations, the prudent and frugal young man sold Yarico to a Barbadian merchant; notwithstanding that the poor girl, to incliue him to commiserate her condition, told him that she was with child by him ; but he only made use of that information to rise in his demands upon the purchaser.
DREAMS, TOKENS OF THE GRANDEUR OF THE SOUL.
Cum prostrata sopore
Urget membra quies et mens sine pondere ludit.
PETR.
While sleep oppresses the tir'd limbs, the mind
Plays without weight, and wantons unconfin'd.
THOUGH there are many authors who have written
on dreams, they have generally considered them only as revelations of what has already happened in distant parts of the world, or as presages of wbat is to happen in future periods of time.
I shall consider this subject in another light, as dreams may give us some idea of the great excellency of an human soul, and some intimation of its independence on matter.
In the first place, our dreams are great instances of that activity which is natural to the human soul, and which it is not in the power of sleep to deaden of

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
<?php

class ScProject
{
    // ========================================================================
    /* Class: ScProject
     * The project.
     *
     * Description:
     *   This is a sub-singleton of class [[Scribe]], and is initialized on
     *   it's constructor. It may be accessed through the main singleton (the
     *   `$Sc` global variable) using something like the example below:
     *
     *      global $Sc;
     *      echo "The project's name is:" . $Sc->Project->getName();
     *
     * [Filed under "API reference"]
     */

    function ScProject(&$Sc)
    {
        /* Function: ScProject()
         * The constructor.
         *
         * Usage:
         *     Don't
         *
         * Description:
         *   This ctor is responsible for checking project configuration and
         *   inspecting the source paths.
         *
         *   This will not call [[build()]]. It is issued separately by the
         *   bootstrapper.
         *
         * References:
         *   This is called on startup via [[Scribe::Scribe()]].
         *
         * [Grouped under "Constructor", internal]
         */

        $this->Sc =& $Sc;
        $this->cwd = $Sc->cwd;
        $Sc->Config->load();
        $this->options =& $Sc->Config->options;
    }

    /* Functions
     * ====================================================================== */

    function build()
    {
        /* Function: build()
         * Builds the project.
         *
         * Description:
         *   This is the main function that builds the documentation. This is
         *   called when the user types `ss build` in the command line (or just
         *   plain `ss` as it's the default action). It does the things below:
         *
         *   1. The source path is scanned for files recursively, and it'll
         *      delegate each file to it's respective `reader` to be read.
         *
         *   2. These readers will parse out the files and call [[register()]]
         *      when it finds a block.
         *
         *   3. It checks the outputs to be made (defined in the configuration
         *      file) and delegates to each output driver the task of producing
         *      the documentation files.
         *
         *
         * References:
         *   This is called by the default action of [[class Scribe]],
         *   namely [[Scribe::do_build()]]. Being the default action, this fires
         *   up when the user types `ss` in the command line.
         */

        ScStatus::status('Starting build process:');
        // Scan the files
        ScStatus::updateStart("Scanning files");
        $file_count = 0;
        $options = array('recursive' => 1, 'mask' => '/./', 'fullpath' => 1);

        // Take the exclusions list into consideration
        if (isset($this->options['exclude']))
        {
            $options['exclude'] = array();
            foreach ($this->options['exclude'] as $ex)
                { $options['exclude'][] = ':' . $ex . ':'; /* Regex, you see */ }
        }

        // For each source path...
        foreach ((array) $this->options['src_path'] as $path)
        {
            // Parse each of the files
            $files = aeScandir($path, $options);
            foreach ($files as $file)
            {
                // Find out which reader it's assigned to
                foreach ($this->options['include']
                         as $spec => $reader_name)
                {
                    if (preg_match("~$spec~", $file) == 0) { continue; }

                    // Show status of what file we're reading
                    $file_min = substr(realpath($file),
                        1 + strlen(realpath($this->cwd)));
                    ScStatus::update("[$reader_name] $file_min");
                    $file_count++;

                    // And read it
                    $this->registerStart();
                    $reader = $this->Sc->Readers[$reader_name];
                    $blocks = $reader->parse($file, $this);
                    break;
                }
            }
        }
        ScStatus::updateDone("$file_count files scanned.");

        $this->_doPostBuild();
        $this->_loadOutputDrivers();

        // Spit out the outputs.
        // Do this for every output defined...
        foreach ($this->options['output'] as $id => $output_options)
        {

            // Make sure we have an output driver
            if (!isset($output_options['driver']))
                { return ScStatus::error("No driver defined for output $id"); }

            // Load it and make sure it exists
            $driver =& $this->Sc->loadOutputDriver($output_options['driver'],
                       $this, $options);

            $driver =& $this->outputs[$id];
            if (!$driver) { continue; }

            // Initialize
            ScStatus::updateStart('Writing ' . $output_options['driver'] . ' output');
            $path   = $output_options['path'];

            // Mkdir the path
            $path = ($this->cwd . DS . $path);
            $result = @mkdir($path, 0744, true);
            if (!is_dir($path))
                { return $this->Sc->error("Can't create folder for $driver output."); }

            // Run
            $driver->run($path);
            ScStatus::updateDone('Done.');
        }

        ScStatus::status('Build complete.');
        $output = serialize($this->Sc);
    }

    function& lookup($raw_keyword, $reference = NULL)
    {
        /* Function: lookup()
         * Looks up a keyword and returns the matching blocks.
         *
         * Usage:
         *     $this->lookup($keyword, $reference)
         *
         * Returns:
         *   Unspecified.
         */

        // Split keywords (e.g., Scribe::lookup() will be [scribe,lookup])
        preg_match_all('~([A-Za-z0-9-_\. ]+)~s', $raw_keyword, $m);
        $keyword_array = $m[1];

        // No keywords? No result
        if (count($keyword_array) == 0)
            { return array(); }

        // Lookup the last keyword (e.g., 'lookup' in ['scribe','lookup'])
        $keyword = $this->_distill($keyword_array[count($keyword_array)-1]);
        $parent_keyword = (count($keyword_array) >= 2) ? ($keyword_array[count($keyword_array)-2]) : NULL;
        $parents = $this->lookup($parent_keyword, $reference);

        // Construct a list of results with priorities.
        // $results = [ {priority: 0, block: ScBlock()}, ... ]
        $results = array();
        foreach ($this->data['blocks'] as $id => &$block)
        {
            $priority = $block->getTypeData('priority');

            if (strtolower($block->getID()) == strtolower($raw_keyword))
            {
                // ID Match! The game is over and we found our winner!
                $results = array();
                $results[] =& $this->data['blocks'][$id];
                return $results;
            }

            // Check if the last search keyword matches that of the block's
            // (If last keyword is a match, and the parent keyword is a match too if it applies)
            $title = $this->_distill($block->getKeyword());
            if (($title == $keyword) &&
                ((is_null($parent_keyword)) || (in_array($block->getParent(), $parents)))
               )
            {
                if ((!is_null($reference)) && (is_callable(array($reference, 'hasParent'))))
                {
                    // Not really working
                    // Child bonus (reference is the parent of the block)
                    if (($block->hasParent()) && ($block->getParent() == $reference))
                        { $priority += 256; }

                    // Not really working
                    // Sibling bonus (the block and the reference share same parent)
                    if (($block->hasParent()) &&
                        ($reference->hasParent()) &&
                        ($block->getParent() == $reference->getParent()))
                        { $priority += 128; }
                }

                $results[] = array(
                    'block' => &$this->data['blocks'][$id],
                    'priority' => $priority);
            }
        }

        // Sort by priorities
        usort($results, array(&$this, '_sortResults'));

        // Return just the blocks
        $return = array();
        foreach ($results as &$result)
            { $return[] =& $result['block']; }

        return $return;
    }

    function _sortResults($a, $b)
    {
        // $a and $b are in the form: { priority: 512, block: ScBlock() }
        if ($a == $b) { return 0; }
        $ap = (int) $a['priority'];
        $bp = (int) $b['priority'];
        return ($ap > $bp) ? -1 : 1;
    }

    function _distill($str)
    {
        preg_match_all('~[a-zA-Z0-9]~', $str, $m);
        return strtolower(implode('', (array) $m[0]));
    }

    function register($blockData)
    {
        /* Function: register()
         * Registers a block.
         *
         * Description:
         *   This is called by readers.
         *
         *   Sample input would be something like below.
         *
         *     "Function: test()\nDescription.\n\nEtc etc"
         */

        global $Sc;
        $block =& ScBlock::factory($blockData, $this);

        // Die if not valid
        if (!$block->valid) { return; }

        // Register to where?
        $parent = NULL;

        $id = count($this->data['blocks']);

        // Register to all blocks
        $this->data['blocks'][$id] = &$block;

        // Register as home page if needed
        if ($block->isHomePage())
        {
            $this->data['home'] =& $this->data['blocks'][$id];
            $this->__ancestry = array();
        }
        elseif (!is_null($block->_supposed_parent))
        {
            // If there's a supposed parent, assume all previous ancestry
            // is broken and we'll be the thing
            $this->__ancestry = array();
        }
        else
        {
            // Find the ancestor.
            for ($i=0; $i < count($this->__ancestry); ++$i)
            {
                $ancestor =& $this->__ancestry[$i];
                $childtypes = $ancestor->getTypeData('starts_group_for');
                if (in_array($block->type, (array) $childtypes))
                {
                    $ancestor->registerChild($block);
                    break;
                }
            }

            // Remove the vestegial ancestors
            // [e,d,c,b,a], 0, 2 => [c,b,a]
            array_splice($this->__ancestry, 0, $i);

        }

        // Add us
        // [b,c,d], a => [a,b,c,d]
        array_unshift($this->__ancestry, &$this->data['blocks'][$id]);

        // Is it alone?
        if (count($this->__ancestry) <= 1)
            { $this->data['tree'][] =& $this->data['blocks'][$id]; }
    }

    function registerStart()
    {
        $this->__ancestry = array();
    }

    function getName()
    {
        /* Function: getName()
         * Returns the name of the project.
         *
         * Usage:
         *      $this->getName()
         *
         * Returns:
         *   The name of the project as defined in the configuration file.
         */

        // This should never have to be done; 'name' is a required field
        return isset($this->options['name']) ? $this->options['name'] : 'Manual';
    }

    /* Private functions
     * ====================================================================== */

    function _loadOutputDrivers()
    {
    /* Function: _loadOutputDrivers()
     * Loads the output drivers. Used in the build process.
     * [Grouped under "Private functions"]
     */
        if (count($this->outputs) > 0)
            { return; }

        foreach ($this->options['output'] as $id => $output_options)
        {
            $this->outputs[$id] =&
                $this->Sc->loadOutputDriver($output_options['driver'],
                $this, $options);

            if (!$this->outputs[$id]) {
                $this->Sc->notice('No output driver for ' . $driver . '.');
                continue;
            }
        }
    }

    function _doPostBuild()
    {
        /* Function: _doPostBuild()
         * Does post-build actions like modifying the homepage.
         * [Private, grouped under "Private functions"]
         */

        ScStatus::updateStart("Post build");
        // If there's no homepage,
        // Make one!
        if (is_null($this->data['home']))
        {
            $this->register("Page: " . $this->getName());
        }

        // Finalize everything
        $block_count = 0;
        foreach ($this->data['blocks'] as &$block)
        {
            $block->preFinalize();
            if (++$block_count % 5 == 0)
                { ScStatus::update($block_count); }
        }

        // Remove blocks that are in the "exclude_tags" list
        while (TRUE) {
            foreach ($this->data['blocks'] as &$block)
                if (0 < count(array_intersect_i(
                            (array) $block->_tags,
                            (array) $this->options['exclude_tags'])))
                        { $block->unregister(); continue 2; }
            break;
        }

        // [1] If there's a home, [2] each of the tree firstlevels
        // [3] that isn't the homepage [4] will be the child of the homepage.
        if (!is_null($this->data['home']))
            foreach ($this->data['tree'] as $i => &$block)
                if ($block->getID() != 'index')
                    { $this->data['home']->registerChild($this->data['tree'][$i]); }

        // Finalize everything
        $block_count = 0;
        foreach ($this->data['blocks'] as &$block)
        {
            $block->finalize();
            if (++$block_count % 5 == 0)
                { ScStatus::update($block_count); }
        }

        ScStatus::updateDone("$block_count blocks.");
    }

    /* Properties
     * ====================================================================== */

    /* Property: $Sc
     * Reference to the [[Scribe]] singleton.
     */
    var $Sc;

    /* Property: $cwd
     * The current working directory of the project (i.e., where the config is).
     */
    var $cwd;

    /* Property: $outputs
     * Array of output drivers ([[ScOutput]] instances).
     */
    var $outputs = array();

    /* Data properties
     * ====================================================================== */

    /* Property: $data['blocks']
     * All the blocks.
     *
     * Description:
     *   This is an array of [[ScBlock]]s. It lists all the blocks in
     *   the project.
     *
     *   This is a read-only property. To add blocks, use [[register()]].
     *
     * Sample data:
     *     array( ScBlock, ScBlock, ScBlock, ... )
     *
     * [Read-only, grouped under "Data properties"]
     */

    /* Property: $data['home']
     * The home page.
     *
     * Description:
     *   This is an [[ScBlock]] instance reference to the main root node,
     *   the home page.
     *
     *   This is a read-only property. To add blocks, use [[register()]].
     *
     * [Read-only, grouped under "Data properties"]
     */

    /* Property: $data['tree']
     * The list of second-level blocks.
     *
     * Description:
     *   This lists all blocks that are children of the home page. Synonymous
     *   to `$data['home']->getChildren()`.
     *
     *   This is a read-only property. To add blocks, use [[register()]].
     *
     * Sample data:
     *     array( ScBlock, ScBlock, ScBlock, ... )
     *
     * [Read-only, grouped under "Data properties"]
     */

    var $data = array
    (
        'blocks' => array(),
        'tree'   => array(),
        'home'   => NULL
    );

    /* ======================================================================
     * Options properties
     * ====================================================================== */

    /* Property: $options['type_keywords']
     * To be documented. Auto-generated and not taken from config
     *
     * [Grouped under "Options"]
     */

    /* Property: $options['block_types']
     * To be documented.
     *
     * [Grouped under "Options"]
     */

    /* Property: $options['include']
     * To be documented.
     *
     * [Grouped under "Options"]
     */

    /* Property: $options['tags']
     * Project-wide tags.
     *
     * [Grouped under "Options"]
     */

    /* Property: $options['tag_synonyms']
     * Associative array tag thesaurus.
     *
     * [Grouped under "Options"]
     */

    /* Property: $options['name']
     * To be documented.
     *
     * [Grouped under "Options"]
     */

    /* Property: $options['output']
     * The output drivers.
     *
     * Description:
     *   These are not the [[ScOutput]] instances, but rather this is the
     *   information needed to load those. If you're looking for the actual
     *   output drivers, see [[$outputs]].
     *
     * [Grouped under "Options"]
     */

    /* Property: $options['src_path']
     * To be documented.
     *
     * [Grouped under "Options"]
     */

    /* Property: $options['exclude']
     * File exclusion list.
     *
     * Description:
     *   This is an array of regex strings that will be excluded from the
     *   file search.
     *
     * Example:
     *   This example will exclude all `.php3` files, and everything in the
     *   `.git` folder.
     *
     *     array('\.php3', '\.git/')
     *
     * [Grouped under "Options"]
     */
    var $options = array
    (
        'name' => 'My manual',
        'src_path' => '.',
    );

    /* ======================================================================
     * Misc properties
     * ====================================================================== */

    /*
     * Property: $__ancestry
     * Temporary property.
     *
     * Description:
     *   This is a temporary property used by [[register()]].
     *
     * [Grouped under "Private properties"]
     */

    var $__ancestry = array();
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


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text:
Journalists are rightly suspicious of ad tech. They also depend on it.
By Elizabeth Anne Watkins
a Follow
Photo: Adobe Stock
Imagine a young woman named Molly, working as an events coordinator in Chicago. During the planning of a daylong workshop, she and her colleagues have a good-natured groan about the post-lunch slowdown that always plagues these types of events. To jazz up the flow of conversation Molly decides to stock the room with candy. She uses her personal laptop to go onto the retail website Amazon.com and buy several packets of candy. The next day, Molly sees that Amazon is suggesting more types of candy for her to browse. Soon, however, she notices that her digital life has been transformed into a candy land. Peppermint patties and lollipops parade across her screen on nearly every website she visits. That night, looking for information about a serious presidential announcement, she visits several reputable news sites and is surprised to find that even the most serious articles are wallpapered with saltwater taffy and gummy bears.
Advertising undergirds the economy of the internet. "Advertising technology," the subject of my new report for the Tow Center for Digital Journalism, is an umbrella term for the system of software programs, data servers, marketing agencies, and data markets which facilitate the sale of user data and the display of advertising messages to users of the internet, including search engines and social-media sites and apps. The vast majority of websites and social media platforms are supported by ad tech.
News publishing is no exception.
Troublingly, in journalism schools little attention is paid to the political economy of advertising on news sites. The user experience across devices, the loss of control over what's displayed on publisher sites, and how this loss may impact brand reputation have all gone understudied by professional journalism curricula. This is a worrisome trend, as ad tech may influence the production, distribution, and perception of journalism in both obvious and subtle ways.
Social media, in particular, has disrupted the control that publishers once had over information and advertising, and a multi-device environment has upended the command those publishers long enjoyed over readers' attention. Experimentation in ad formats has blurred the once-bright dividing line between the business and editorial departments within news outlets. Ambiguity is now the rule of the day. Jill Abramson, the former executive editor of The New York Times, tellingly reflected on her values in the past tense, with a sense of nostalgia: "Maybe I was too hard-line, but I believed in the wall [between the business and news sides of the newspaper]."1
This "Guide to Advertising Technology" is intended to explain how all this happened and what it means for practicing journalism today by offering a usable education in the history and political economy of digital advertising technologies. It begins with a short history of modern advertising in news and a review of the fundamentals of marketing. What follows are technical descriptions of how digital display advertising works, the contours of the ad tech space, and the material impact ad tech has on the user experience. The report then looks at the resulting patterns of news and ad consumption, how consumers and market forces reacted against digital display advertising, and how the marketing industry responded by investing heavily in social platforms and search engines.
We also cover how ad tech creates incentive structures, which may shape how reporters and editors alike think about news production, and how advertising technologies risks to the relationship between publishers and readers, including news brand and reputation. That journalistic institutions, which have decreed a commitment to informing citizens in a free democracy, willingly participate in advertising's technical stack—which has reportedly violated reader privacy—is a serious ethical quandary. Technology and society are embedded in and construct each other, and journalists need a grip on both to do the storytelling that our democracy demands.
Finally, it's worth noting that this report is a library case, meaning that its primary sources, rather than interviews, are general and industry press pieces, academic literature from the fields of marketing and journalism studies, marketing industry handbooks, and business-school cases.
Advertising technology is a rapidly developing field, so we caution that material details may be subject to change. The political and philosophical lessons, however, will remain salient.
Advertising was fundamental to the development of the modern newspaper and objective reporting. Today's advertising messages, delivered via an interconnected system of software programs, data servers, marketing agencies, and data markets, still support most news production yet are understudied in professional journalism training.
News publishers' dependence on ad tech facilitates the harvesting and movement of reader data through opaque systems, which may threaten readers' trust in news.
Ad tech and its metrics have been found to alter the internal production of news, which may be at odds with classic journalistic commitments to objective coverage.
The hyperefficient market for programmatic display ads has driven down their prices, reducing revenue for publishers.
Ad tech is plagued with fraud in the form of bot viewing, causing many marketers to shift their ad spending to social media and search, further reducing revenue for publisher sites.
Ad tech's damaging effects on the user experience (distracting visuals, slow loading times, and expensive burden on users' data plans) may drive readers (and the revenue derived from their attention) away from news websites and towards private apps and social-media platforms.
Social media's relationship with news publishers represents an asymmetrical power dynamic and has been found to effect publishers attempting to reach audiences, especially local publishers.
Platforms' control over the display of news items has pushed some publishers towards the use of influencers, which in turn may hasten the growth of service firms providing both tailored content and algorithmically produced websites to influencers. Platforms have begun to write policies against influencer distribution, but these may be tough to enforce.
Social media's advertising mechanisms, specifically hyper-targeting, are prone to weaponization by malicious actors.
All journalists, from reporters to editors, need to keep informed about the changing markets for, and consumption of, news and information.
Elizabeth Anne Watkins is a PhD student in Communications at Columbia University and a contributing researcher at the Tow Center for Digital Journalism.


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You are here: Home / News / Highlights / More Erasmus+ funds for academic mobility with non-European countries
More Erasmus+ funds for academic mobility with non-European countries
5 November, 2019 /in Highlights, What's new /by Olga Belova
Alianza 4 Universidades (A4U) has secured 247.050,00 Euros of Erasmus+ funding in 2019. These funds will help continue student and staff exchange between 4 universities members of A4U (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid and Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona) and 27 partner universities in 4 countries: Russia, South Africa, Iran and Indonesia, and Vietnam*.
Since 2015 A4U was awarded a total of 1.302.093,00 Euros of Erasmus+ funds, which enabled the exchange of 328 staff and students from A4U and its partner universities, with 17 more being planned for 2020-2021 academic year.
As a result of the exchange, students improve their language and inter-cultural skills, increase their confidence and gain international experience that counts towards their qualification. A research stay abroad can help doctoral students jumpstart their career.
Viktoriia Khodyreva, a Bachelor student in Applied Mathematics and Informatics at Higher School of Economics spent a semester studying at Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. She says: "Erasmus definitely helped me to become more confident academically. I had an opportunity to study in a different environment, to try new courses and to experience life abroad. What is more, I made good contacts useful in my career and while travelling: I have friends all over the world".
Staff also benefit from exchange as they learn and share best practice and have a chance to have a first-hand experience of a different educational system.
Dr Maxim Anikeev, a Lecturer in Computer Security at Southern Federal University in Rostov-on-Don who visited Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, says: "Delivering classes abroad is a great experience. I would totally recommend it to all university teachers. This is a chance to bring your teaching materials to an audience with an unfamiliar background. This is also a great insight into the higher education system of another country. I established contacts with several colleagues from UAB and hope we will have a chance to submit a joint grant proposal."
Through participation in Erasmus+ programme, universities have opportunities to forge cooperation in teaching and research, attract talent and increase the number of international students and staff, which in turn contributes to their diversity and internationalisation.
Check more Erasmus+ stories of exchange participants on http://alliance4universities.eu/en/erasmus-stories/
*Universities that take part in A4U Erasmus+ programme
Russia: Lomonosov Moscow State University, Higher School of Economics, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), Moscow Power Engineering Institute, Russian State University for the Humanities, North-West Institute of Management branch of RANEPA (St. Petersburg), St. Petersburg State Polytechnic University, Southern Federal University.
South Africa: University of Pretoria, University of the Witwatersrand, Stellenbosch University, University of Cape Town, University of the Western Cape, and University of the Free State.
Iran: University of Tehran, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Amirkabir University of Technology.
Indonesia: Universitas Indonesia, Institute of Technology of Bandung, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Universitas Airlangga, BINUS University, Telkom University, Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta.
Vietnam: Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam National University in Hanoi, and Hanoi University of Science and Technology.
http://alliance4universities.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/erasmus_en.png 776 1734 Olga Belova http://alliance4universities.eu/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/logo-a4u.jpg Olga Belova2019-11-05 11:11:382019-11-29 11:16:28More Erasmus+ funds for academic mobility with non-European countries
Institutional mission to Namibia and Botswana A4U takes part in exchange of good practice in Erasmus+ ICM


text:
Q: understanding of spring bean scopes in a web application As per springsource documentation a singleton scoped bean is instantiated only once per
container. For example I have a singleton scoped UserDetails bean which contains information
about a user.
In my main() method:
ApplicationContext context = new ClassPathXmlApplicationContext(new String[] {"Spring-Customer.xml"});
UserDetails ud1 = (UserDetails)context.getBean("userDetails");
custA.setAddress("Address set by ud1");
System.out.println("Address : " + ud1.getAddress());

UserDetails ud2 = (UserDetails)context.getBean("userDetails");
System.out.println("Address : " + ud2.getAddress());

The output will be
Address set by ud1
Address set by ud1

Because of userDetails is a singleton bean, the second retrieval by ud2 will give the same result as that of ud1.
NOW here is my problem:
For my web application I have the following UserDetails bean in my dispatcher-servlet.xml.
<bean id="userDetails" class="com.mukund.DTO.UserDetails" />

first question: is singleton scope is the default for a web application too ?
IF YES:
This bean is autowired into AccountService and CustomerService classes.
If a client say clientA has set the first name of the user to "UserA" in CustomerService class and after some time it retrieves the first name from AccountService class,
second question: does it get the same instance of UserDetails with "UserA" as the first name ?
third question: In the mean time if another client say clientB tries to get the first name in AccountService class will it get "UserA" ?
fourth question: will the same UserDetails instance be shared by clientA, clientB and others ? If yes: what scope to choose prototype, request or session.
I hope you understand my point. Please explain me spring bean scopes with regards to a web application.
THANKS

A: Yes singleton is the default scope for web applications. So you get the same instance of UserDetails in all your services (and for all your users).
What scope is the right one for you depends on what you exactly want. Do you really want to inject a data transfer object into services? How long should the object exist?

*

*Prototype scope: Each service gets its own UserDetails object

*Request scope: You get same instance for the time of the request

*Session scope: You get the same instance as long as you are in the same session.

A: By Default the scope of spring beans is singleton that means one instance per container.
But that doesn't mean that the same instance is used by all requests.
It works like this.
Client A requests for bean A, the container will look for the instance of that bean A, if the instance is not available it will create an instance and then will give it to client A.
But if bean A is being used by another Client B then Client A has to wait till Client B releases  the bean A.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Are your missing teeth holding you back?
At Casa Dental we offer a number of viable treatment options to replace missing teeth . As a leader in cosmetic dentistry, we use modern advances in technology to replace missing teeth that will meet your dental needs and desires.
Tooth decay affects patients young and old. Decay is an erosion of your teeth starting from the enamel on the outside of the tooth which slowly breaks down more and more of the tooth structure. The more severe the decay, the more painful this can be as it can start affecting the inner pulp of the tooth or lead to structural damage including cracks and fractures.
If tooth decay is present in your mouth, the dental professionals at Casa Dental will remove the decay and fill it with a tooth-colored material such as a composite resin or stronger porcelain material.
Movement in teeth may cause sensitivity to the teeth adjacent to the missing tooth due to their exposed roots when they drift into the gap.
Having missing a tooth or teeth may make you look older. Loss of teeth from the back of the mouth may cause sunken cheeks and loss of teeth towards the front may lead to a sunken lip appearance as well.
Your bite may also change and pose a problem for you by possibly causing headaches, migraines and pain in the jaw, neck or shoulder pain originating from pain in the jaw joint.
To replace a missing tooth/ teeth, there are multiple options available. To understand your circumstances, we will need to conduct an assessment. During this consultation, we will listen to what you want and need before we offer possible treatment options.
If you have a missing tooth or teeth, the space left by the missing teeth can cause the remaining teeth to fall into it, or the opposing tooth may grow upwards or downwards into the empty space.
Porcelain Dental Bridges are also another option to replace missing teeth. To ensure the bridge is placed correctly at the site of the missing tooth, the two teeth either side of the gap will need to be correctly prepared for support.
Dentures have been the industry standard for replacing missing teeth for hundreds of years before bridges or implants were available. Dentures may prove to be a good, removable choice for some patients. With recent technology and working together with leading dental laboratories, we are able to create lifelike prosthetic teeth that are aesthetically pleasing and functional. However, dentures may still have the tendency to move around while eating and talking, to fall out when you sneeze or laugh too hard and food trapping under the denture.
Varying time between 3 days and 3 months.
Generally 2-3 weeks start to finish.
Varying time between a few days to a few weeks.
Patient comfort is our top priority. To ensure our patients are relaxed and comfortable during any treatment we offer sedation options to calm nerves or for lengthy treatments so you can wake up to your new smile without feeling a thing!
For All On 4 treatment, we generally carry out this treatment option under sleep dentistry. To reduce discomfort after surgery, we provide our patients with medication required, follow up calls and a review at the clinic a few days after the procedure.


Recently I have been looking into Google AdSense. I signed up for an account many years ago but never used it. Now I have come to look into it a bit more, I find myself unable to login and stuck in what appears to be a "login loop". Every time I put my email and password in Google just reloads the login page again and I am still unable to login.
After searching around on the internet for this issue I found a few posts about this from back in 2009 time.
After going through and trying everything that has been said in those posts nothing has worked!
This problem is really starting to drive me nuts!
If anyone has a fix or know what could be causing this please comment below and I will add it to this post for other people suffering from the same problem.
Doing some more research today I found a post with a form to submit to Google if you are having trouble loggin into your account.
It does say it may take up-to 24 – 48 hours for them to reply. I will update once I hear from Google.


Hundreds of Indiana's least-populated townships face forced mergers with their neighbors.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Hundreds of Indiana's least-populated townships face forced mergers with their neighbors in what would be the most significant overhaul of the local governments since a gubernatorial commission called for their elimination a decade ago.
A bill backed by Indiana House Republican leaders would require the consolidation of townships with fewer than 1,200 residents. The House is expected to vote Monday on whether to endorse the plan and send it on the Senate for consideration.
Advocates of township consolidation say it will lead to cost savings and better services in areas with few residents.
Township supporters argue that it is the level of government closest to the people and the most responsive. Some question whether focusing only on the smallest townships would result in much savings.


text:
MVP Tech wins Project of the Year 2022, Eastern Gulf, for Burj Khalifa
MVP Tech received an award for Project of the Year 2022 – Eastern Gulf for Burj Khalifa project from Axis Communications during their 10th Annual Partner awards.
This award is a testament to our long-standing partnership for over a decade with Axis Communications and our commitment to providing our customers with cutting-edge security solutions deployed on some of the most iconic projects in the region.
The aim of the Axis Communications partner Awards is to celebrate success, recognize achievement, and honour innovative companies that have excelled in developing their partnerships with Axis Communications. We were recognized for Project of the Year 2022, Eastern Gulf, for Burj Khalifa – one of the many iconic projects we have worked on since becoming gold partners with Axis in 2009.
Our successful work on this project exemplifies our expertise in combining cutting-edge technology and innovation to increase efficiency and productivity.
With technology advancing rapidly, it can be hard to keep up. Our partnership with Axis emphasizes our mutual interest in bringing innovative security solutions for the benefit of our customers through the latest advancements in the surveillance market. We are confident that this will lead to more successful projects and even greater growth for both companies as well as for our customers.
At MVP Tech, we are committed to providing our customers with high-quality services that meet their needs and exceed expectations. It is an honour to receive this recognition from Axis Communications, and we look forward to continuing our successful collaboration in the future. As always, we strive for excellence and are dedicated to pushing boundaries and creating innovative solutions for our customers across the region.
About Axis Communications
Axis enables a smarter and safer world by creating solutions for improving security and business performance. As a network technology company and industry leader, Axis offers solutions in video surveillance, access control, intercom, and audio systems. They are enhanced by intelligent analytics applications and supported by high-quality training. Axis has around 4,000 dedicated employees in over 50 countries and collaborates with technology and system integration partners worldwide to deliver customer solutions. Axis was founded in 1984, and its headquarters are in Lund, Sweden. Website: www.axis.com.
About Burj Khalifa
Burj Khalifa is the tallest building in the world, with a height of 828 m / 2,717 ft and 163 floors. Burj Khalifa has redefined what is possible in the design and engineering of supertall buildings. By combining cutting-edge technologies and cultural influences, the building serves as a global icon that is both a model for future urban centers and speaks to the global movement towards compact, liveable urban areas.
Tags : Awards and Recognition Partner Update News and Events
Celebrating two million man-hours without LTI


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Sirloin rump corned beef, ham fatback short loin chicken frankfurter tail. Fatback bacon filet mignon andouille, beef pork belly corned beef venison. Fatback pork loin shank doner leberkas, beef pastrami. Biltong fatback kevin tenderloin pork, ham hock kielbasa ribeye pork chop meatball strip steak bresaola sirloin sausage.
Chicken pork loin shankle, short loin corned beef venison pastrami andouille ball tip brisket t-bone kevin spare ribs. Jowl frankfurter pork loin salami. Hamburger bresaola t-bone kevin, tongue salami ham turkey strip steak.There are many variations of passages.


text:
This is your brain on art
The classic Led Zeppelin track Stairway to Heaven, FM dial well-worn as it is, still elicits the desire to turn up the volume, particularly just before guitarist Jimmy Page's signature solo. The listener lets Page's effortless plucking wash over him, eyes instinctively close to concentrate on the notes. The sudden urge to air drum or […]
Egyptian art arrives from Eton College
A renowned collection of Egyptian decorative art from Eton College in Windsor, England, has arrived at The Johns Hopkins University for long-term research and display in the university's Archaeological Museum. Glazed blue ceramic vessels, ritual amulets and a gilded mummy mask are among the approximately 1,900 pieces of small-scale artifacts on loan for 15 years from […]
Wanted: Minorities to study reproductive health
Scientists from Johns Hopkins Children's Center and Morgan State University have received a $3.2 million National Institutes of Health grant designed to promote racial, ethnic and socioeconomic diversity in reproductive science research. The grant to five investigators—Sally Radovick and Andrew Wolfe of Johns Hopkins, and Gloria Hoffman, Michael Koban and Wei Wei Le of Morgan […]
Bloomberg School of Public Health receives $38.6 mill for orthopedic trauma research
The Center for Injury Research and Policy at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health has been awarded $38.6 million by the Peer Reviewed Orthopaedic Research Program of the U.S. Department of Defense to expand its Major Extremity Trauma Research Consortium. METRC, which was established in September 2009 with a Defense Department award of […]
Kellogg adds support to New Frontiers of Philanthropy Project
The Johns Hopkins Center for Civil Society Studies has announced that the W.K. Kellogg Foundation has joined a broad coalition of foundations, venture philanthropists and public agencies in supporting the center's New Frontiers of Philanthropy Project. The Kellogg Foundation's $150,000 gift will significantly advance this project's objective to open a new era in financing solutions […]
Free concert opens season for Hopkins Symphony Orchestra
The Hopkins Symphony Orchestra opens its 2010–2011 season with two musical depictions of Scotland by composers who weren't Scottish. HSO music director Jed Gaylin conducts Felix Mendelssohn's at turns snappy and mystical "Scottish" Symphony and excerpts from Gaetano Donizetti's melodramatic opera Lucia di Lammermoor in a collaboration with Opera Vivente. The free concert is offered […]
Urban policy competition seeks solutions for Baltimore
Baltimore-area students with an interest in solving urban problems have an opportunity to test their ideas, be recognized by city decision-makers and win up to $5,000 by entering the 2011 Abell Award in Urban Policy competition. Co-sponsored by the Abell Foundation and the Johns Hopkins University Institute for Policy Studies, the award is given annually […]
CIGNA CEO David Cordani to speak in Carey School series
David M. Cordani, president and chief executive officer of CIGNA Corp., will be the featured speaker at the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School's Leaders + Legends lecture series to be held from 8 to 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 14, at the Legg Mason Tower in Harbor East. Cordani was appointed to his current position […]
Christopher Saudek, 68, implantable insulin pump pioneer
Christopher Dyer Saudek, founder and director of the Johns Hopkins Comprehensive Diabetes Center, a pioneer in the development of implantable insulin pumps and a tireless physician who was ever available to his patients, died Oct. 6 after a battle with metastatic melanoma. He was 68. A member of the Johns Hopkins faculty for 30 years, […]
Lea Ybarra to step down at the Center for Talented Youth
After nearly 14 years as executive director of Johns Hopkins' Center for Talented Youth, Lea Ybarra has announced she will step down from her post next spring. "Under Lea's leadership, CTY has played an important role in identifying and developing the academic talent of young students across the country and around the world," said Lloyd […]


text:
Game Thread: 11/20, Panthers at Rangers
The Rangers look to get back to winning hockey games in their first game back at the Garden after a long road trip.
By Mike Murphy@DigDeepBSB Nov 20, 2016, 6:30pm EST
Share All sharing options for: Game Thread: 11/20, Panthers at Rangers
John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
Tonight the Rangers host the Florida Panthers at the Garden after their road trip came to a frustrating and disappointing end in Ohio.
Michael Grabner's 11th goal of the season and Mika Zibanejad's first goal in five games were not enough to get the Rangers a win in a game against their former head coach's team. Does anyone know who or what the Blue Jackets are this season?
The Panthers played last night in Ottawa, so they should have some tired legs.
Right now the most dangerous player on Florida's roster is former member of the Hartford Wolf Pack Connecticut Whale Jonathan Marchessault . In his first 17 games of the season Marchessault had 8 goals and 5 points on the power play.
But the Panthers are a team with some real problems on special teams. Tonight might be a night when the Rangers' new-look power play makes a big difference.
The Rangers will host the Panthers again on March 17th. That game just might be the last time we see Jaromir Jagr play at Madison Square Garden. But who am I kidding? Jagr is timeless. Just like the handlebar mustache.


text:
September 23, 2009 News & Features » News and Features
Heroin Heroine
Richmond prosecutor wins rare sentence for heroin dealer: 30 years.
By Chris Dovi
Perhaps it was something Assistant Richmond Commonwealth's Attorney Ann Cabell Baskervill said in her summary arguments last week in Richmond Circuit Court.
Or perhaps it was simply that Edward Baker, the defendant she was prosecuting on heroin distribution charges, had been standing outside of Martin Luther King Middle School on Feb. 29 — right about the time the afternoon dismissal bell was ringing — waving his hands and openly offering his wares.
Whatever the reasons, Baskervill's closing statement netted what may well be the longest prison sentence in recent memory for a drug conviction. The jury in the case returned with a 30-year term for Baker after deliberating for just 15 minutes.
Hygiene also may have played a part in sentencing. When police stopped Baker, who was "flagging down cars looking for customers," Baskervill says, they initially found no drugs. After a drug dog got a positive hit, they searched him and discovered he took wardrobe tips from Heidi — layering pants, a pair of bike shorts, three pairs of boxers and a pair of briefs.
"A lot of drug dealers hide their drugs behind their testicles," Baskervill says, unflappable as she recounts Baker's undignified undoing. It was there that police found a handball-sized package-full with 38 hits of heroin individually wrapped in tin foil. "There really wasn't any question of if he was in possession of it," she says.
Baker also had $190. At $10 to $20 a hit, his stock was worth anywhere from $380 to $760, Baskervill says. Baker allegedly told police he'd been selling hits "for $5 or whatever they offered," Baskervill says. "There are a lot of places you can't buy dinner for $5."
"I'm the first one to be generous with someone at sentencing if it's their first offense," says Baskervill, a former social-work student at Virginia Commonwealth University. This was not Baker's first conviction, though his priors were small-time possession convictions and one for intent to distribute. "A lot of people are trying to get their lives together and a lot of times that felony offense is the thing to inspire that."
In Baker's case, he'll have ample time to find inspiration. At 28, he'll be eligible for AARP membership when he's released.
Tags: News and Features
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Congratulations to Dr Alan Richardson and the occupational team (Associate Professor Peter Watt, Dr. Mark Hayes and Emily Watkins) of the Environmental Extremes Lab (EEL) who recently secured funding to support their research investigating firefighter and instructor health.
The Fire Brigades Union will support Alan and his team with a £4,000 grant to create an educational package on health and wellbeing of firefighters, while Alan, Peter and Emily have also had a £47,000 grant accepted by the Fire Service Research & Training Trust to investigate the physiological responses and contamination of UK fire fighters over a 6 month study.
The team have recently had two papers published on firefighting, one looking at pre-cooling methods prior to severe heat exposure, the second is a national survey of firefighters and instructors on health and heat exposure workloads. All this work is contributing to national working practices and is great evidence of the impact from this research activity. Emily and Alan have also presented to various national Fire groups over the last few months, including the national leads for fire research to keep pushing the message of health and wellbeing amongst fire instructors and firefighters.
Well done to the occupational arm of EEL!
This entry was posted in Health, Heat, Occupational, PhD Student News, Research, Safety, Staff News by Neil Maxwell. Bookmark the permalink.