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MagnetoSpeed Chronograph
by SSUSA Staff - Friday, August 7, 2015
Here at NRA, we're fortunate to have a dedicated test range and Oehler chronograph. On the occasion when we need to cart a portable chrony to the field, we do it the same as everyone else: Set-up the screens; deal with a wobbly tripod; hope the light is adequate and try not to shoot a screen.
At 30K frames per second, the image is blurred, but illustrates the unique concept of a chronograph designed around magnetic sensors.
The folks at MagnetoSpeed (MS) in Austin, TX, have built a better mousetrap. As shown above, there are no screens, tripods or even light required because the unit is measuring magnetic pulses rather than shadows cast with lights and measured with optical sensors. Our first question was: "How to avoid shooting the sensor?" That was easily solved with the included ¼ inch alignment rod and spacers that ensure proper clearances. Thanks to an intuitive design, there's not much of a learning curve with the MS chronograph. The display has been logically programmed to list high and low velocities; mean, extreme spread and deviation values. The battery-powered display runs for 30-100 hours depending on use of the backlight. The archived results can be reviewed on the display or transported to a laptop with the included microSD card. After a review of the one-page quick-start guide, we were able to toggle between easy-to-understand screens that automatically "wake-up" when the retractable data cable is inserted.
This technology requires choosing a bullet type and density. MS makes this easy by using plain-English descriptions such as the default setting of "Copper+Lead (.223 - .458 CAL.)" or ".22/Shot/Slug (Lead or thin copper plating)." We tested the MS concurrently with our Oehler Model 36 chronograph while shooting Atlanta Arms & Ammo match .223/77grain groups from an NM Armalite M15A2 and found the results to be very close. The MS consistently clocked the Sierra boat tail at an average 24.3 FPS faster, which makes sense since the measurements are taken right at the muzzle instead of 15 feet down range as with the Oehler.
The current configuration won't work with a bow or semi-auto pistols that tip the barrel each cycle. Otherwise, our V2 model (the V1 was released in 2011) worked flawlessly. The new V3 model was released just after our test and includes an improved, smaller display with a 9-volt or two CR123 batteries instead of four AAAs, updatable firmware, a rapid-fire mode and enhanced operation for airguns and shotguns, for an MSRP of $399 through MidwayUSA and others. V3 components are backwardly compatible with V1 and V2 models, and all units come with a 2-year warranty. Units purchased directly from the manufacturer also carry a 30-day money-back guarantee. Watch for a $200 Sporter model (small, simple display) this summer. For more information, go to: www.magnetospeed.com.
Oehler chronograph MagnetoSpeed Chronograph MagnetoSpeed
Electronics for Match Preparation and Load Development


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Russian and Syrian warplanes strike ISIS-held Tabqa airbase in Raqqa
The bombing has prompted a mass exodus of locals from the town to safer areas.
Earlier this month, Syrian troops started an offensive aimed at cutting off Raqqa from the Turkish border.
Troops and militia members, backed by Syrian and Russian warplanes, pushed east from the government outpost of Ithriya, closing in on Tabqa.
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), backed by US air strikes, is also pushing towards Tabqa, located near Syria's largest dam, at the southern end of Lake Assad on the Euphrates.
The SDF, an alliance of Kurds and Arabs, seeks to retake the northern Syrian town of Manbij from ISIL, also known as ISIS, as part of their offensive in Raqqa province.
Manbij is strategically important as it controls a supply route from the Turkish border to Raqqa.
Clashes between SDF forces, backed by a US-led air power, and ISIL fighters raged on Sunday on the outskirts of Minbij, the SOHR said. No casualties were reported. Manbij has been under ISIL control since 2014.
For: Russian and Syrian warplanes strike ISIS-held Tabqa airbase in Raqqa

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


This is the last card that I made using the Big Top Birthday DSP and Under the Big Top stamp set. I love the sentiment on this card. The DSP looks yummy and fun all at the same time. I used the Apothecary Accents Framelits to cut out the image and added detail with the Essentials Paper-Piercing Pack.


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Astronomers Claim: Two Other Dwarf Planets May Exist Beyond Pluto
January 17, 2015 By Marlene R. Litten
A new study proposes that two more unknown dwarf planets are lurking near Pluto. These planets are relatively larger than the size of the Earth.
A group of astronomers from Complutense University of Madrid and the University of Cambridge analyzed the objects present beyond the Neptune. Generally, these objects fly randomly near the elliptical paths.
It is essential for ETNO to fulfill certain conditions. For instance, these ETNO orbits must contain semi-major axis or they should maintain an average distance of 150 AU from sun.
Astonishingly, scientists observed an alteration in the usual characterizes of ETNO. They discovered a group of objects which are located at a distance of 525 AU in the region of ETNO. In comparison, the Earth is nearly one astronomical unit away from the sun.
Hence, astronomers are trying to figure out the exact number of these objects. Thus far, they confirmed the presence of two new planets.
Carlos de la Fuente Marcos, the lead author of the study states that the unexpected orbital parameters indicate the presence of two planets. The parameter revealed that some kind of force is changing the distribution of the orbital components of ETNO.
Earlier, scientists are aware of the fact that the Pluto's region of the solar system is filled with nearly 1500 minute, cold worlds. Recently they uncovered that there are still numerous other worlds that are not yet explored.
Filed Under: Science Tagged With: Dwarf planet, ETNO, new planets, Planet X, pluto, Solar System, University of Cambridge
NASA's Dawn Spaceship Entered Its Approach Stage Toward Dwarf Planet, Ceres
January 1, 2015 By Carol Harper
NASA's Dawn spaceship has formally entered its approach stage toward the dwarf planet, Ceres. The spaceship should be able to give some new insights into the Texas-sized planet that is never been visited previously.
NASA's Dawn liftoff in 2007 and is now planned to enter Ceres' orbit in March 2015. The spaceship itself just lately comes out from solar conjunction, in which the spaceship was on the inverse side of the sun and which, as a result, restricted communication with antennas on Earth. Presently, mission controllers have modified the moves fundamental for the next phase of the meeting.
Christopher Russell, principal investigator for the Dawn mission, said in a news release, "Ceres is nearly a complete puzzle to us. Ceres, in contrast to Vesta, has no meteorites connected to it to help uncover its mysteries. All we can forecast with certainty is that we will be astonished."
Ceres has an average diameter of 590 miles, which makes it the biggest body in the asteroid belt. This band of earth's planetary group land is situated in the middle of Mars and Jupiter. On the contrary, Vesta has an average diameter of 326 miles and is the 2nd most gigantic body in the belt.
Dawn uses particle drive to cross space much more proficiently than chemical compulsion. By now, its' completed 5 years of amassed push time, which is significantly more than any other spaceship.
Through the next couple of months, Dawn will offer constantly enhancing perspectives of Ceres preceding its landing. Before the end of January, Dawn will give the best pictures and information ever taken of the dwarf planet. And its final landing in March will proclaim new revelations and new data about this mystifying body situated in the asteroid belt.
Filed Under: Science Tagged With: asteroid belt, Ceres, Christopher Russell, Dwarf planet, March 2015, NASA's Dawn spaceship, Texas-sized planet
Dawn Spacecraft: All Set to Reach Ceres in Mars On 2k15
December 31, 2014 By June Harris
NASA's Dawn spacecraft came out all safe and sound from the opposite side of the sun. The spacecraft is near to reach the dwarf planet, Ceres which is its next destination.
Presently, the spacecraft is around 400,000 miles far away from Ceres. It is considered as the biggest object present on the asteroid belt. It lies between the orbit of Mars and Jupiter. The Dawn spacecraft would be the first one to send images of Ceres to the Earth.
Christopher Russell, the chief investigator of Dawn mission states that the spacecraft is all set to resolve the mystery of Ceres. Thus far, no meteorites unveiled any significant information regarding its secrets. Hence, the scientists are eagerly looking forward towards the event.
Ceres is an extremely essential object to understand the formation of planetary bodies. NASA and JPL utilized ion technology for this lengthy mission. Dawn moves towards its destination with the help of electrically charged particles.
The Dawn spacecraft was launched in the month of September of 2007. The chief objectives of the spacecraft are to examine the Vesta and Cesta. Both of them are one of the huge objects located on the asteroid belt. Since then, the spacecraft accomplished several minor missions such as distant space exploration.
NASA was not wrong when it claimed that 2014 would be a remarkable year in the arena of science. The government space agency tried its best to make it the most memorable year.
Filed Under: Science Tagged With: asteroid belt, Ceres, date, Dawn Spacecraft, Dwarf planet, Jupiter, mars, nasa
NASA's Pluto-Bound New Horizon Spacecraft Woke Up From 18th Hibernation
December 7, 2014 By Carol Harper
According to the recent reports revealed, on Saturday night, NASA's Pluto-bound New Horizons probe turned off its snooze alarm for the last time to get prepared for a long-anticipated exploration of the dwarf planet and its Kuiper Belt neighbors.
Ground control groups at the John Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Maryland got a radio transmission around 9:30 pm. EST that the probe woke up from electronic snooze, its eighteenth hibernation period since its 3-billion-mile journey started in January 2006.
New Horizons Spies Pluto's Tiny Moon Hydra
"This is truly an epic expedition," lead scientist Alan Stern told reporters at the American Astronomical Society conference a month ago.
Alice Bowman, mission operations manager, said New Horizons used up a sum of 1,873 days in hibernation, with periods ranging from 36 to 202 days.
Pluto Getting Bigger in New Horizons Probe's Window
The downtime left the rocket allowed to gather dust particles and run science tests without having a pricey flight control group or expecting to utilize NASA's profound space communications system.
New Horizons prearranged wake-up call now gives the group around 6-weeks to adjust the spaceship tools, load software, plan recorders and check different frameworks before the primary science mission starts 15th Jan. The shuttle will make its closest approach to Pluto on 14th July.
Could We Call Pluto and Charon a 'Binary Planet' so far?
Pluto, which was still viewed as a planet when New Horizons launched, is currently known as a dwarf planet, one of thousands spotted past Neptune's orbit in the unexplored Kuiper Belt section of the earth's planetary group.
Researchers think Kuiper Belt-type items were the building blocks of planets. New Horizons will be the first shuttle to study Pluto.
"Our insight of Pluto is truly scanty … regardless of the walk of innovation on the ground, even with the Hubble Space Telescope," Stern said. "New Horizons will compose a workbook on the Pluto framework and the Kuiper Belt."
Filed Under: Science Tagged With: Alan Stern, Alice Bowman, Binary Planet, Dwarf planet, Hibernation, Hubble Space Telescope, Jan 2006, John Hopkins University, Kuiper Belt, nasa, pluto, Pluto-bound New Horizons probe


"What Kind of Love brings you true happpiness?"
have come to love God and their fellow man.
lovers of pleasures rather than lovers of God. "
ourselves,we cannot live our neighbors.
are interested only in receiving.
Riches in heaven or Riches on earth?
held it up and proudly said, "This is my god!"
it,they will bring in themselves "many pains"
Seeking God or Seeking Pleasure?
many people today are lovers of pleasure.
are"carried away by pleasure of this life.
we merely suspect may deplease him.
life,such people can never be truly happy.
God will be joyful forever!
Love, Misdirected, Characterized, Lovers Of Themselves, Alienated, Lovers Of Money, Lovers Of Pleasure, Selfishness, Responsibility, Happiness, True Happiness, Fruitage Of The Spirit.


Runes of Magic one of the most popular online role-playing game title updated has gone line. Developer has release the update for the game 3.0.4 "The Mystery of the Temple".
The new update to the game will give gamers access to all new content as it will open the doors of Raksha Temple which will be full of challenges and new features like Juice festival.
The main objective of the gamers is to explore the sanctuary so that anger of the god calm down which is threating to Northern Janost Forest. For first time a total of six player group can select from 3 difficulty level easy, normal and hard with the most difficulty level of gameplay to be implemented for the next update, and no price for guessing the harder the level of gameplay, the better the reward receive by gamers.
Many other interesting features and mini games has also been added with this update to the game.


Joseph Benavidez feels he's next in line for a shot at the UFC flyweight title, and when he steps into the Octagon on January 19th in Brooklyn, a win against Dustin Ortiz may lock it in.
Benavidez had a nine-fight win streak cut at UFC 225 when he fell to Sergio Pettis via decision. Before that he had wins over Ortiz in 2014 and current flyweight champion Cejudo in 2016.
After having his fight against Deiveson Figueiredo moved from the postponed UFC 233 to the UFC's debut on ESPN+ then Figueiredo pulling out, Benavidez is just excited to be on the card.
Holding that prior win over Cejudo, coupled with the loss of Demetrious Johnson to ONE Championship, Benavidez shoule be the top contender for the belt. Even though Benavidez is confident that he'll finish Ortiz on Saturday night, he may have to contend with T.J. Dillashaw, who moved down from bantamweight in hopes to "kill" the 125-pound division.
Discussing the comments made by Dillashaw leading up to fight night, Benavidez stood up for his division. "I hate the comments, I think it's rude and super egotistical," the San Antonio native said to FIGHT SPORTS.
While Dillashaw's intentions may not be good for the division, Benavidez does point to the bantamweight title holder moving down as a sign that rumors of the flyweight division's death have been greatly exaggerated.
Benavidez-Ortiz is a flyweight featured fight on UFC On ESPN+ 1 beginning at 10pm et on ESPN+, with the prelims beginning at 8pm on ESPN.


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Email [email protected]il.com
For the first time since 1990, the Assam government issued orders declaring the State a "disturbed area", imposing the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) for six months.
Such orders were earlier issued by the Union Home Ministry, which recently gave up its power and asked the State government to decide on continuing the enforcement of the AFSPA in the State.
Under Section 3 of the Act, it can be invoked in places "where the use of armed forces in aid of the civil power is necessary".
Except in the case of Tripura and Manipur, the Centre had been issuing such notifications for Assam, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya.
The decision comes a year after the BJP came to power in Assam in 2016.
Huge powers
The AFSPA gives powers to the Army and Central forces deployed in "disturbed areas" to kill anyone acting in contravention of the law, arrest and search any premises without a warrant, and provide cover to the Armed Forces from prosecution and legal suits without the Centre's sanction.
An official explained that the Assam government's notification will not affect the operation of Central forces or the Army deployed in the State.
On August 4, the Home Ministry extended the AFSPA in Assam for 27 days, which expired on August 31.


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Raduň
Zámek Raduň About History
HISTORY CHATEAU
The original fortified house was mentioned in written sources in 1475, when Václav of Tvorkov bought it from the Opava Duke Viktorin. By 1586 it was rebuilt into a Renaissance country house, most likely by Jiří Tvorkovský of Tvorkov, and later remodelled, although by 1780 it was in a bad state. From 1816–26 Johann Larisch-Mönnich (and later his widow Anna Marie, neé Mönnich) had it radically rebuilt in Neo-Classical style to the designs of
Johann Anton Englisch, regional engineer for the Opava region.
The lengthy reconstruction was led by the Opava builder Anton Onderka. At this time a narrow gallery with a ground-floor winter garden and upper terrace was added to the three-winged corps-de-logis of the house. From the 1820s–40s a collection of other Empire buildings appeared in the complex: administration buildings (1823), orangery (1824–5) and sheepfold (1841), as well as a large landscape park with several ponds. Gebhart
Bernard Blücher von Wahlstatt, who received the house in 1832 through his marriage to Maria Nepomucena Larisch-Mönnich, had an imitation medieval two-story fortification wall with terraces constructed. Additional reconstructions in a Romantic and Historicist spirit took place in 1903–11 under his grandson Gebhard Lebrecht, among other things, this modified both the Renaissance towers in the courtyard and the northern and southern
attic gables, followed by a total reconstruction of the roof. The interiors were also adapted and modernised. During the liberation struggles in 1945, the castle was damaged. The local estate was confiscated in 1947, but the Blüchers von Wahlstatt only left Raduň two years later. Apprentice schools and apartments were placed in the castle. In 1963 it was adapted for the needs of local primary and nursery schools, in time it came to house
municipal offices, a cinema, health center, library etc. All this affected both the exteriors and interiors, and only 42 objects have been preserved from the original furnishings. The other buildings in the complex were similarly affected. The District National Committee in Opava took over the complex in 1978, and decided to include it among the historical monuments with
installations accessible to the public. Thus the house was gradually repaired. Since July 1984 there has beena free-flow visitors route, now dedicated to the restored public salons and the private rooms of the gentry and servants. The furnishings mostly stem from their own collections, after many years of acquisition activity, and are supplemented by loans from the depositary of the National Heritage Institute, which has been managing
Raduň since 2002. The orangery and ornamental garden with a large assortment of citrus trees and exotic plants were opened to the public in 2004 after complete renovation, and in 2011 the reconstruction of the roof was finished, including the restoration of original residential attic. From 2011–2 the granary underwent a total adaptation and a new visitor centre opened here in 2013. The 15-hectare park is also subject to a complex
revitalisation.
what can be interesting


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A brush with success
Victoria Hawkins
Published: 11:51 AM April 4, 2008
WATERCOLOURIST Richard Taylor is a prolific author of books on how to paint and draw. He's also gone down a storm in Japan. In fact artist and art tutor Richard Taylor from Essex has an entire shelf of books to his credit.
WATERCOLOURIST Richard Taylor is a prolific author of books on how to paint and draw. He's also gone down a storm in Japan. In fact artist and art tutor Richard Taylor from Essex has an entire shelf of books to his credit. To date he's had 15 published from the first, Drawing Traditional Buildings, which was published in black and white, right through to full-colour step-by-step instructional volumes on everything from Learn to Paint Buildings in Watercolour and Painting the Great Outdoors.
And, since the first moment he first stepped off the train at Clacton-on-Sea as a teenager, East Anglia has became his adopted home and an inspiration for much of his work.
He arrived here in the 70s from Enfield where he was brought up, armed with O-levels and place to study to be an art teacher at the former St Osyth training college.
"In London, places that had once felt safe to walk in just didn't any more. When I first arrived in Clacton it was a very dull, grey February morning and I walked from the station to the seafront and there wasn't a soul in sight apart from a monk in a brown habit with bare feet walking along the seafront!
"There was no-one else around nor a car on the road. The wind was screaming off the North Sea, it was dull and it was wet and I looked at the main building and thought whoa, I just love this building. It was such a change. I thought, this is calm, this is quiet and it was a period to really concentrate on the art. There were no distractions, nothing was going on."
Nothing much has distracted him since. Today he lives with his wife, Debbie, and their son Edward, 18, in the same little house just off the seafront in Clacton, where they have lived happily since Ed was born.
While his books have taken up a great chunk of his time, he also teaches amateurs at weekend workshops and helps train teachers throughout Essex, passing on his myriad skills.
"I have worked with the OU supporting their trainee teachers, and with Anglia Ruskin University, again, just keeping an eye on their art trainees and offering my experience where appropriate."
And while the books he's published over the years have brought their financial rewards, Richard has never lost his own passion for paint - mostly watercolour - nor the art of drawing and teaching others how to draw and paint. Having started his art career as a teacher at Brightlingsea Secondary Modern (now the Colne Community School and College), 30-odd years later he is now running a series of weekend courses for adults at the Watershed Studio in St Osyth, five miles away from his home.
The studio is a haven for keen amateurs who come to what was once a cowshed and is now a light and airy space, nestling in a rolling landscape with gardens and a lake beyond and wonderful things to paint all around - such as a rusty old tractor. "We'll go out and paint in the gardens here, all of this stuff has been planted on purpose."
Was he classically trained? "No I sort of made it up as I went along, my actual qualifications are History and Art and Art History but painting came along as a sideline. I cannot pinpoint one place where it all started. I drew and painted at junior school and was aware in the 1950s that there were people who wore floppy jumpers which had paint on them. I can remember I was just intrigued by that whole concept and started to try and pick up what I saw and felt was going on with creative people.
"I went to a traditional grammar school where art was very much something you did if you couldn't do anything else. You were shoved off in a corner somewhere but I was really quite happy because it meant I could really concentrate on my drawing and painting and I just drew and drew and drew."
After training college he became an art master before he started writing (and drawing and painting) his books. His first one, Drawing Traditional Buildings, came about by chance when he was leafing through one of the artists' magazines that were around at the time.
"I thought, hold on I can do this, but how do you break into the industry? So I just took some photos of my pictures and sent them in and said, look I am qualified as a teacher, can I write something. They said okay then, let's have an article on how to draw buildings."
He had an instinctive knack and affinity with drawing buildings. "During my early days in Suffolk, through a friend in Woolpit, I discovered Bill Wyman's house and sent some examples of my work and was commissioned within a few weeks to produce a large pencil drawing of his home. He was very appreciative of the work and the sensitivity shown to something that clearly really matters to him.
Buoyed up by his first article appearing in print, he simply photocopied it and touted it round to some publishers. "By pure luck it ended up on the desk of someone who said they were interested in doing a book. At the time I was an art teacher in my late twenties and since then I have done 15 books. My best seller, which only went out of print about three years ago had a life of 15/16 years."
Each book has taken from about nine months to a year to complete. "In terms of painting I aim to do the equivalent of a double page spread in a day. I just got into what I think was a really lucky circle from then on. I'd sent it in purely on spec. It was just being in the right place at the right time. Oil painting was on its way out, there was a huge sea change movement from oils to watercolour, small scale stuff was on its way and I just happened to be in on it."
While his early books were black and white, colour commissions started to come up. "That called for slightly different approach. There are some people who will write a book like this first and clarify the teaching points they want to make. I know the points I want to make so I start off with the pictures. That's the exciting part for me."
Basically he'd deconstruct each picture, demonstrating how it built up in layers from blank paper to the finished work - which he achieved by literally photocopying them at stages as he did the painting. "This was of course before digital applications came along, you could do a basic line drawing and put it on photocopier and run watercolour paper through it.
"You used to have to make sure the content was national so you had to have Scotland, Wales and Ireland represented. Then we had another very clear mandate - it had to sell in America, no question whatsoever. It's the biggest market but I always made sure we were well represented, by which I mean East Anglia. It appears in every one of my books!"
From the Market Square in Bury St Edmunds, to the Water Pump at Westleton he's drawn and painted them all. "Woolpit was always a favourite place of mine, so that has done rather well, as has Lavenham."
By this time, the amateur art market was in full flow as was the publication of Richard's books.
"I couldn't really do enough, I was working with three different publishers at one time but that's changed now. We are coming to the end of that style though something else will come along but I am not sure what yet. Fortunately I did have my time.
"My main income is from the books still and from teaching courses. The other thing I have done is consultancy work and the Art Course magazine with de Agostini, who do the bit part magazines. The Art Course one bordered on being one of their best sellers.
"When they launched that they didn't have anyone in-house who knew the amateur art world and who had the skills and knowledge about constructing courses and teaching. So, again through various contacts, I got a phone call and did that for about three years.
"I did issues number 1 to 99 and to go with that were videos because it went international. It was quite big in Germany and massive in Japan, they loved it, so yes, I am probably very well known in Japan, I have got the dubbed videos to prove it and they are comical! Some of videos were shot in this region too. They would come here to film a lot of the outdoor shots and we filmed at Dedham and on Walton beach."
Richard said that during the 80s and 90s: "People couldn't get enough of watercolour and this type of amateur art was such a big thing, for me it was a matter of being in the right place at the right time."
He was beetling all over the country running courses at art centres and various workshops, which included Heatherley's School of Art in Chelsea, but it was all getting a bit wearing. "It wasn't quite where I wanted to be and then Alison Bond, whose family farm in St Osyth, wanted to diversify a bit as farming is in decline and decided to convert a redundant cow shed into a teaching studio.
"So about two years ago, I came over to meet her. It was again another very dull, dark February day and when I came back a few months later the shell of this building was here." And so he became one of the founding tutors and is teaching at Watershed Studio five weekends this year.
When he met Debbie (with whom he is about to celebrate his 21st wedding anniversary) at a friend's wedding, she was lecturing in law at Essex University. "Seemingly we had no common ground whatsoever - I was a probably quite underpaid and maybe over-adventurous artist and she was a highly academically qualified law graduate.
"We instantly formed a remarkable working partnership with the books. I would paint the pictures, get them all laid out and start to write and she could read through and pick me up on things like 'on p73 you said use Burnt Umber and here you are saying use Burnt Siena' - I would have missed it completely. So she took on an editorial role for me with publishers. She's very good at proofreading and she also does all the admin for all the courses I do. It is almost like having a manager."
His last book to date was Painting the Great Outdoors, which was aimed firmly at the US market. "Luckily I had been there and had enough references because I've spent time in Denver in the Rocky Mountains - I once thought about the possibility of living there but I decided it was not for me."
Leafing through this book, Richard has moved a million miles away from the buildings he used to draw. "It had to feature woodlands, boulders and mountains but this is actually Elveden Forest," he said pointing to one spread. "So though it was aimed at the American market, they got Elveden! The grey wolf I painted is actually at Colchester Zoo."
Another recent book of his is Learn to Draw in a Weekend, "I didn't really want to call it that though. Being realistic it should say weekends with an 's' - I was always reluctant to dive headlong into 'I can show you how to paint in a weekend' because I never really believed you could but there are things you can learn in a weekend and it builds up."
If you follow the step-by-step instructions and practise you should be able to master drawing, perspective, shading, colour as well as master distortions through glass. He makes it look very easy! "Everything comes full circle. I started off teaching children to draw with silly little things like showing them how to draw a circle but we try and do something a little more adult and step by step it takes you through that. I genuinely believe it can be done if you follow this book."
Of his weekend courses he said: "People come here to work with me to learn. I only have one style of painting and that's very simple. It's just that it takes an awful lot of confidence, washing a lot of water on paper, putting a lot of paint on and never letting it dry and then putting on more paint and then more paint.
"With this picture of irises I started with a green wash, then I then dropped more paint on and started to build up. The tones are created almost by throwing really wet paint on and letting it make its own way across the paper. Only when it is dry will I then start to clarify the shapes."
He learnt his technique by pure experimentation. "I knew watercolour was what I wanted to do. I trained in oils but I couldn't get it to do what I wanted it to do, I couldn't get the texture.
"And I still paint for pleasure not just as a means to an end. Funnily enough I am going to paint this week and it's going to be in oils again after 20 odd years.
"My teacher said as I left college, all of your work will go round in circles and you will end up where you first started but each time you will expand a little bit and take it a bit further.
"I love my adopted home here. Debbie and I have a good circle of friends, we live near the sea and I can quite happily walk into the fish merchant down the road and say I want a couple of fish heads please. He'll say 'for another painting?' and I'll say 'yup' or I'll ask for an attractive looking lobster. They know me.
"This is very much my painting now, fish and iris! The fish are straight out of the North Sea and that's the subject of my this year's Royal Academy entry for the summer show. We will see what happens!"
Richard's telephone number is 01255 221511 and his website is www.richardtaylor.co.art
Watershed Studio has over 60 art courses arranged this year. To contact them ring Allison Bond on 01255 820466 or see www.watershedstudio.co.uk
Turn to this week's Gallery on p30 to see an example of his work.


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Austria's AT&S reports 16 pct jump in core profit
VIENNA, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Austrian maker of printed circuit boards AT&S on Wednesday reported a 16 percent increase in its nine-month core profit helped by a diversified product mix, cost savings and currency effects.
Earnings before interest, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) came in at 220.5 million euros ($251.7 million) after 190.3 million last year, the group said.
Revenue in the period increased 3 percent to 790.1 million euros.
The group lowered its outlook for its 2018/19 business year earlier this month, blaming weak demand from smartphone makers and the automotive industry and following on the heels of Samsung, Apple and Huawei.
It now forecasts revenue to rise by about 3 percent and a full-year margin on earnings before interest, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of 24-26 percent. ($1 = 0.8760 euros) (Reporting by Kirsti Knolle; Editing by Elaine Hardcastle)


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Links and Back Issues
German State Governments Move vs. Energy Price Increases
Mannesmann Case Sparks Debate in Germany on Common Good
Neo-Cons Launch Budget Terror Campaign Against France
Italians Investigating U.S. Marine in Calipari Death
World War II British Torture/Interrogation Prisons Exposed
Stone-Age Observatory Reopened—After 2,800 Years
Blair Was Warned of Coming Subway Terror Attack
From Volume 4, Issue Number 52 of EIR Online, Published Dec. 27, 2005
The widespread public outcry in Germany after the collapse three weeks ago of the power supplier in the Muensterland region (the "German Enron"), and the prospect that electricity prices will undergo a new round of increases starting Jan. 1, have created a favorable political environment for calls for re-regulation. For example, over the Dec. 17-18 weekend, Hesse State Economics Minister Alois Riehl decreed that none of the 51 utilities planning to increase prices by 5-8% in the state's urban areas, will get the permits. Instead, all are to report to him in detail the reasons for the increases, and how they are justified. Riehl has the backing of Hesse Gov. Roland Koch, a Christian Democratic Union (CDU) neo-con.
With the exception of the grand coalition government in the state of Schleswig-Holstein, none of the other state governments is willing to follow Hessen. Dietrich Austermann (CDU), economics minister of Schleswig-Holstein, said on DLR radio that if (as is the case) power firms are making good profits with increased energy prices, they also have an obligation to share some of those profits with the consumer, along the common good principle that "property obliges."
All state governments are under heavy, increasing public pressure to act. Saxony, Saxe-Anhalt, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bavaria, Lower Saxony, and North-Rhine Westphalia have okayed most of the price increases, but are withholding permits to several utilities, on the basis of doubts that their increases are justified.
A court ruled Dec. 21 to reopen the trial of Mannesmann management, making invalid an earlier ruling by the regional court in Duesseldorf, which had ruled for an acquittal of the accused—Josef Ackermann, CEO of Deutsche Bank; Klaus Esser, former CEO of Mannesmann; Klaus Zwickel, former chairman of German Metal Workers Union; and three other members of the Mannesmann advisory board. The six were charged with insider arrangements and fraud in the takeover of Mannesmann by Vodafone in 2000, which provided them with exorbitantly high premium payments. For lack of clear evidence about the fraudulent insider arrangements, the Duesseldorf court ruled for acquittal in July 2004; however, in a rather unusual procedure, the presiding judge stated her deep dissatisfaction with the ruling.
All that is now on the table again, and the new ruling has sparked broad debate in Germany on the Common Good, and management culture in general. Going beyond the many calls from politicians and institutions that Josef Ackermann resign as CEO of Deutsche Bank, there has been reference in many of these statements to the Common Good principle of the German Constitution.
Notably, Wolfgang Thierse, past chief speaker of the Bundestag (parliament) and Susanne Kastner, present vice speaker, have insisted that, short of specific legislation to determine limits to management conduct, there is urgent need for a broad and intense debate on the question, "What kind of management culture complies with the German tradition of social market economy?" The Common Good principle, both said, obliges a manager to see himself as the "good administrator of a firm that is not his personal property," that is, to operate on the basis of a "social consensus."
This principle evidently was violated in the Mannesmann case by top managers like Josef Ackermann, who thereby lost the qualification for a highly responsible job as CEO of a leading German bank, Kastner said.
On Dec. 15, Michel Pebereau, president of the board of directors of France's largest bank, BNP-Paribas, published a report on the French debt which Economics and Finance Minister Thierry Breton had commissioned last July. The appearance of the report was the start of a brutal propaganda campaign to convince the French that for 25 years, the country has lived above its means, and that the accumulated debt is so high that the country is on a short road to self-destruction. The report got dramatic headlines for two days in Le Figaro, the daily owned by military-airplane producer Serge Dassault, a right-winger fully backing the Presidential campaign of neo-conservative Nicolas Sarkozy.
The report, which mixes truth and falsehood, is black propaganda aimed at forcing France to adopt shock therapy, and abandon the remains of its traditional social model. In typically synarchist fashion, the authors lay the blame on the democratic system, its large number of elected officials—500,000 in France—as limiting the possibility of consensus, and its frequent elections, which frequency raises the electoral penalty for politicians who want to introduce reforms.
Note that on Nov. 17, Standard & Poor's rating agency threatened to downgrade France's AAA rating if it didn't reduce its deficit and indebtedness. At the same time, the European Central Bank, furious at the refusal by the major Europeans countries, France and Germany in particular, to impose deep austerity cuts to meet the Maastricht criteria, had taken on itself to launch a campaign to force them to do so. It announced a month ago that it would be using Standard & Poor's criteria to downgrade the financial rating of European member states, and get them back into line.
An Italian prosecutor has confirmed that he is investigating a U.S. Marine in connection with the death of Italian secret service officer Nicola Calipari, and has considered charging the Marine with murder. The prosecutor would not discuss details of the investigation into the March 4 shooting death of Calipari, the agent who was killed by U.S. gunfire at a checkpoint in Iraq, while rescuing Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena, who had been kidnapped by insurgents.
On the basis of just-declassified 60-year-old British Army records, the London Guardian Dec. 18 published a detailed account of secret British torture/interrogation centers in postwar occupied Germany. The article identified the Combined Services Detailed Interrogation Center (CSDIC) as the agency that ran a string of secret torture/interrogation centers, including a particularly vicious one at Bad Nenndorf, near Hannover, and the London Cage, a center in an exclusive London neighborhood. The initial prisoners were German Nazi officials and industrialists who profiteered under Hitler, but later, the facilities targetted suspected Soviet spies. The Guardian story appears in the context of wide international circulation of the Frank Olson story in EIR (see "It Didn't Start With Abu Ghraib; Dick Cheney: Vice President for Torture and War," by Jeffrey Steinberg, EIR Online, Nov. 8, vol. 4, no. 45).
The Stone-Age observatory at Goseck, Saxe-Anhalt in Germany, which was discovered by aerial archaeography in 1991, has been reconstructed to its original form. The two main rings of palisades, the gates of which point exactly to the sunrise at solstice, form what is known to date, as the oldest observatory on Earth. The ancient structures were dated as older than 6,800 years (about 4800 B.C.), which makes them older than Stonehenge in England (3000 B.C.), and the pyramids in Egypt (ca. 3200 B.C.).
The original site may have been in use until 800 B.C., which means that its reopening Dec. 21, with a winter solstice ceremony, occurs after an interruption of almost 3,000 years. The entire site is surrounded by numerous larger settlements dating from the Stone Age, as well as by other structures that indicate rather developed astronomical practices, several thousand years ago. Not far away from Goseck, a Bronze-Age plate depicting a section of the sky along with two curves believed to portray the movement of the Sun between the two solstices, was found in 1997.
British intelligence organs MI5, MI6, AND GCHQ warned Prime Minister Tony Blair before the July 7 bombings that al-Qaeda planned a "high-priority" attack on London's subway, says a four-page report by the Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC), leaked to the London Sunday Times Dec. 18. JIC oversees all intelligence-gathering. The document, it says, "will fuel suspicions that Mr. Blair decided to rule out a public inquiry into the bombings last week because it could expose intelligence failings at the highest level.... [T]he leaked document, dated April 2003, will be seized on by critics to show that ministers failed to disclose that they knew al-Qaeda was targetting the Tube [the subway]." The document, marked "Top Secret," and signed off by the heads of all the above agencies, was based partly on the interrogation of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, al-Qaeda's operations chief. It stated: "The UK and its interests remain high in Al-Qaeda's priorities.... Plans have been considered to attack Heathrow, the London Underground and other targets."
Ministers and senior security officials have insisted that there was no warning of an imminent attack ahead of the July 7 bombings, in which 56 people died. Officers judged that Siddique Khan, who was to be the leader of the four bombers, was not an immediate threat to national security and decided to stop monitoring him. Blair ruled out a public inquiry on the grounds that it would detract from the investigation.


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text:
The Profit - The Simple Greek Lawsuit
This is somewhat old news as this lawsuit was filed in December 2016, but I figured I would do a post about it as I didn't have anything on the site about it.
Mike Ference and Kathleen Kamouyerou-Ference, owners of My Big Fat Greek Gyro from season 2 of The Profit have filed a lawsuit against Marcus Lemonis and ML Foods. During the episode, the business was renamed to The Simple Greek and the concept of The Simple Greek began selling franchises. It appears that Mike and Kathleen claim they were frozen out of their business and haven't received the 45% promised.
The full lawsuit can be read here, but some of the highlights are below:
"On the show, Defendant Lemonis handed a Three Hundred Fifty Thousand and 00/100 Dollars ($350,000.00) check to the Plaintiffs, but after the filming of this segment, a producer asked for the check back. The Plaintiffs were directed to return the check to Defendant Lemonis, and were advised it was a only "prop."
"Lemonis, or an entity controlled by Lemonis, did provide funding to remodel and restructure three locations, including Mt. Lebanon, McMurray and Market Square, and also opened a new franchise in Highland Park, Illinois. The Plaintiffs were told by Lemonis that the $350,000.00 was invested in the rebranding and redesigning of the existing locations. The Plaintiffs did not receive any money from this investment."
"Defendants, Lemonis and ML Foods, LLC caused the formation of The Simple Greek, LLC in Delaware on January 21, 2015. However, Defendants Lemonis and ML Foods, LLC organized and operated The Simple Greek, LLC as a business owned wholly by ML Foods, LLC, an entity either wholly owned or controlled by Defendant Lemonis. Defendant Lemonis apparently appointed Sam Lundy to be its President. The Plaintiffs were not included in this organization, which was unknown to them at that time."
"In early January of 2016, an update and second episode of "The Profit" show was filmed featuring the Plaintiffs and Lemonis at Simple Greek restaurants in both Pittsburgh and Highland Park, Illinois. That show aired on CNBC on January 26, 2016. During the filming of the second show, which was not aired, Defendant Lemonis handed the Plaintiffs a typed document titled "Memorandum of Understanding" (the "MOU"). The Memorandum of Understanding stated that it "clarifies the compensation for Kathleen and Michael Ference who holds [sic] Forty-Five (45%) percent interest in The Simple Greek, LLC." The document was dated January 7, 2016, and was signed by Marcus Lemonis, "President." Plaintiffs also signed the document. A true and correct copy is attached hereto, incorporated herewith and is marked as Plaintiffs' Exhibit A."
"During the filming of the second episode in Chicago, Defendant Lemonis suddenly offered to "buy out" the Plaintiffs' interest in The Simple Greek, LLC, but the Plaintiffs declined the offer."
"After the filming of the second episode, the relationship between the Plaintiffs and Defendants began to deteriorate. Sam Lundy had assumed the general management and operations of The Simple Greek, LLC and began to exclude the Plaintiffs from involvement in the business. This also included withholding information about the business operations from the Plaintiffs."
"Defendant Lemonis reported that there were more than One Hundred Fifty (150) new franchises sold and opening soon. Plaintiffs believe and aver that there now are more than Two Hundred Fifty (250) franchises of The Simple Greek, LLC that are under contract and in the developmental stages throughout the country. Defendant The Simple Greek, LLC is and has been operating numerous franchises across the country without providing an accounting or any financial information to the Plaintiffs and without acknowledging, but denying the Plaintiffs' ownership interest in The Simple Greek. Plaintiffs believe and aver that The Simple Greek is transacting millions of dollars in business while denying Plaintiffs' involvement in the business and failing to account to the Plaintiff."
"Finally, on August 16, 2016, Defendant The Simple Greek, LLC sent correspondence to the Plaintiffs unilaterally terminating Plaintiffs' rights to royalties from the franchises. A true and correct copy of this correspondence is attached hereto, incorporated herewith and marked Exhibit F."
"The Defendants purported to terminate Plaintiffs, have wrongfully withheld royalties from the Plaintiffs, and have excluded them from the operations of the business with the purpose and intent of having them relinquish their ownership rights in The Simple Greek."
"Finally, on August 16, 2016, Defendant The Simple Greek, LLC sent correspondence to the Plaintiffs unilaterally terminating Plaintiffs' rights to royalties from the franchises. A true and correct copy of this correspondence is attached hereto, incorporated herewith and marked Exhibit F. 49. The Defendants purported to terminate Plaintiffs, have wrongfully withheld royalties from the Plaintiffs, and have excluded them from the operations of the business with the purpose and intent of having them relinquish their ownership rights in The Simple Greek."
"Defendants established The Simple Greek using Plaintiffs' established business, recipes, know-how and experience, Defendants instituted a plan to freeze Plaintiffs out of their interests."
When Marcus Lemonis got word of the lawsuit, he tweeted to his followers that he will not be bullied and The Simple Greek will thrive.
According to Courthouse News, Marcus Lemonis disputed the allegations in a phone interview saying, "he paid more than $150,000 to renovate the Mount Lebanon, Pa., restaurant, which still operates under the name My Big Fat Greek Gyro, but that the Ferences refused to fork over any royalty fees."
Marcus also said, "Let me be clear: The Simple Greek is a brand new concept that I created. I'm not Santa Claus. I don't just create a concept and then just hand it over to people for doing nothing. They thought that they were just going to get a free gift. They put no money in; they haven't done any work; and yes, I definitely committed to giving them a piece of the equity … but I also did that under the presupposition that they would not withhold money from me."
Finally, Marcus said that this legal battle could appear on an episode of The Profit as the Ferences have a contract with the network that requires them to participate. So stay tuned....
Franchises have continued to open since the lawsuit was filed and the Ferences are still on The Simple Greek website. I am not sure if there have been any updates since January 2017 regarding the lawsuit, but will update this post if anything happens.
Labels: Marcus Lemonis, Marcus Lemonis Lawsuit, Simple Greek Lawsuit, The Profit, The Profit Simple Greek Lawsuit, The Profit Updates, The Simple Greek, The Simple Greek The Profit


text:
Becoming One
Join the Circle of Friends
Charism and Spirituality
GC 2022 Calls
Institute Leadership team
Loreto Archives
Mary Ward
The Cause for Mary Ward's Canonization
The Painted Life
Teresa Ball
MARY WARD INTERNATIONAL
Social and Ecological Issues
Justice, Peace, Integrity of Creation
IBVM/CJ at the United Nations
Ministries in Health Care
Retreats and Spiritual Accompaniment
Past Students / Alumnae
Associates / Friends of Mary Ward
Becoming a Member – Vocations to the IBVM
CJ Romania
The first Mary Ward sisters came to Romania from Bavaria in the mid-19th century. Up until the advent of communism they ran large schools for girls in Bucharest, Brăila, Craiova and Turnu Severin.
Shortly after the installation of the Stalinist communist regime in Romania the sisters of German and other nationalities, and the Romanian sisters as well were expelled, and some sisters, mostly Romanians were imprisoned for refusing to hand over confidential information to the authorities.
From 1984, with the support of the Archbishop of Bucharest young women seeking religious life worked 'underground' in parishes and in factories making church vestments.
With the downfall of communism in 1989 the CJ were able to build on a strong foundation and the number of young women wanting to enter the CJ increased rapidly. This has enabled several new foundations and new educational works, especially Kindergartens, to be established. Besides education ministry, there are sisters working in health care; social projects; pastoral ministry; and spiritual outreach. There are Romanian sisters in mission in Italy, Austria, Cuba and Spain.
On 1 January 2021 the Latin European Province (LEP) was established as a result of the merger of the Province of Romania and the Province of Italy.
To know more, you can visit the Congregatio JESU Romania – facebook page.
When we visit sisters around the world in our work, I am touched to see that Mary Ward's extraordinary spirit and charism still lives on. There are people who work in the most extraordinary places in the world facing incredible difficulties and challenges, yet these people have the strength of Mary Ward and the ability to maintain her charism
Noelle Corscadden IBVM Institute Leader
Divine love is like a fire which
will not let itself be shut up
for it is impossible to love God
and not to labour to extend God's honour.
Mary Ward (1585-1645)
We must not control the Spirit of God, which breathes where and when it will.
Teresa Ball IBVM (1794-1861)
Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary
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Via Massaua 3
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Copyright ©IBVM. All rights reserved. Developed by Root Solutions


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text:
Enforce a convention of not using namespace (a.k.a. "wildcard" `*`) imports.

+(fixable) The `--fix` option on the [command line] automatically fixes problems reported by this rule, provided that the namespace object is only used for direct member access, e.g. `namespace.a`.
The `--fix` functionality for this rule requires ESLint 5 or newer.

## Rule Details

Valid:

```js
import defaultExport from './foo'
import { a, b }  from './bar'
import defaultExport, { a, b }  from './foobar'
```

Invalid:

```js
import * as foo from 'foo';
```

```js
import defaultExport, * as foo from 'foo';
```

## When Not To Use It

If you want to use namespaces, you don't want to use this rule.


text:
Tag: CCHIT
Health IT Newser
Nov 3, 2014 • 6
By MICHELLE RONAN NOTEBOOM
HHS Clarification:
DeSalvo Will Retain Leadership of ONC
Five days after announcing that National Coordinator Karen DeSalvo's appointment as Acting Assistant Secretary of Health, the ONC clarified that DeSalvo would still be the leader of the ONC; she would also continue to chair the HIT Policy Committee, lead the development and finalization of the Interoperability Roadmap, and remain involved in MU policymaking.
HHS said that when DeSalvo's new appointment was originally announced, DeSalvo's bio had mistakenly indicated that she had "previously" held the role of National Coordinator.
HIT NEWSER'S TAKE: Did HHS simply do a poor job communicating or did someone recognize a little too late that DeSalvo's removal might heighten concerns about the ongoing turnover among ONC leadership?
No More CCHIT
The Certification Commission for Health Information Technology (CCHIT) announced it was shutting down its operations November 14. CCHIT was created in 2004 to provide certification services for HIT products and to educate providers and IT developers; in January CCHIT announced it would no longer provide testing and certification services for the MU program. In a press release CCHIT Executive Director Alisa Ray said that "the slowing of the pace of ONC 2014 Edition certification and the unreliable timing of future federal health IT program requirements made program and business planning for new services uncertain."
HIT NEWSER'S TAKE: Coupled with the recent turmoil at the ONC (leadership changes, underwhelming Stage 2 MU attestations numbers), one can't help but wonder what it all means for long-term viability of the MU program and whether the industry remains committed to its objectives.
EHR Mythology 101
Sep 13, 2010 • 25
By MARGALIT GUR-ARIE
Healthcare IT is bustling with activity these days. There are big changes in the air and, only time will tell, but we may be witnessing a defining moment in HIT. Naturally, everybody involved has an opinion and some folks, yours truly included, have more than one.
Below are some of the more popular opinions amongst physicians and a considerable portion of industry analysts.
The current EHRs on the market are outdated legacy systems
This is the battle cry of every new entrant to the market. First the ASP, or web based, vendors referred to the existing client/server vendors as legacy systems. This is about to change once the iPhone EHR vendors start calling the web EHRs legacy systems. One common thing that new vendors tend to gloss over is the fact that the existing vendors did not stop writing software in 1995. Most incumbents are releasing updates and major new versions on a regular basis, and by now most Visual Basic code has been replaced by .NET and the latest Java technologies. True, here and there, you can still find MUMPS platforms, but even the VA's VistA is in the process of getting a major upgrade towards generic web based capabilities, not to mention the futuristic bombshell veteran EHR vendor e-MDs is about to toss into the mix.Continue reading…
Not So Meaningful EHR Certification
Jul 26, 2010 • 0
Can you buy an ONC Certified EHR, or EHR module, and discover to your chagrin that no matter how hard you try, Meaningful Use is not within reach?
While the spotlights were shining brightly on CMS and ONC as the final definitions of Meaningful Use (MU) and EHR certification criteria were being released, NIST quietly posted its (almost) final definition of EHR testing procedures for certification. The procedures still need ONC's stamp of final approval, but it seems that this is just a formality. In the past I expressed misgivings regarding the "lightness" of the draft version of the NIST testing procedures, so naturally I was curious to see the final documents. Although some problematic procedures were simply removed from the final version, others still remain.
Thus the answer to the opening question above is a resounding Yes.
In an attempt to part ways with the heavy handed CCHIT certification model, NIST adopted a simplistic, narrowly defined set of testing procedures. Vendors, particularly small ones who never underwent CCHIT certification, will likely be happy with the latitude afforded by NIST. However, the lack of specificity may very well place unsuspecting physician buyers in a bad situation, and here is how.
§170.302(h) – Incorporate laboratory test results: The final ONC certification rule does not require a particular standard to be used by the EHR for receiving structured lab results. All comments submitted to ONC requesting standard specification have been rejected in the interest of flexibility. Adhering to the ONC ruling, NIST allows the EHR vendor to select any format they desire for certification purposes. A comma or pipe delimited text file will do.National reference labs, like Quest and LabCorp, as well as smaller regional labs and hospital labs, are all standardized on some minor version of the HL7 2.X standard for transmission of lab results. An EHR, or EHR module, passing ONC certification with anything but the industry accepted HL7 standards will be unable to connect to any laboratories. The "older" EHRs, which have submitted to CCHIT certification in the past, all have working HL7 lab interfaces. The concern is with brand new products, certifying for the first time.
Assuming the EHR, or EHR module, has HL7 capabilities for lab results, there is still a major hurdle to overcome. National reference labs have long implementation queues and stringent testing and certification processes of their own. It may take 6 months or so, for a new EHR vendor to establish the first live interface with a reference lab. Any subsequent interfaces must also undergo testing and could also take months to create, depending on both vendor and lab availability of resources.
For a physician contemplating the purchase of a particular EHR this translates into a need to obtain documented proof from both the EHR vendor and the Lab(s) that operational interfaces exist for the Laboratories used by the practice. It also requires that you factor in the additional time it will take to create your particular interface(s).
§170.304(b) – Electronically exchange prescription information: NIST has decided that for certification purposes, only the ability to send out a new prescription will be tested. The entire test procedure consists of generating NEWRX messages according to the SCRIPT standard and sending them to a vendor identified external system. Successful testing is decided based on the correctness of the generated message. An EHR, or EHR module, conforming to this particular test is not guaranteed to be able to satisfy the MU criterion. Not by a long shot.EHRs need to connect to the Surescripts network in order to send prescriptions electronically to pharmacies. Surescripts requires the EHR vendor to go through an arduous testing process prior to being allowed to use the network. The ability to send out new scripts is only a small part of Surescripts testing. The vendor must have the ability to also receive error response messages from Surescripts and the pharmacy, receive and respond to refill requests from the pharmacy and send renewal messages to pharmacies. Surescripts must also be satisfied that the EHR's user interface conforms to Surescripts standards. Surescripts certification is a lengthy process and it is not unusual for it to extend well beyond eight months.
In a nutshell, a physician aiming to become a meaningful user and collect Government incentives must ensure that the ONC certified EHR about to be purchased is also Surescripts certified. ONC certification for this core MU requirement is meaningless.
§170.302(d) – Maintain active medication list: The minimalistic NIST test procedure for this criterion will not affect Meaningful Use or stimulus incentives. It may, however, adversely affect patient care. This test procedure actually presumes that each time a prescription is modified, such as changing dosage or frequency, any and all previous history of said prescription is erased. For example, if a few weeks ago you prescribed Celexa 20mg and today you and the patient decide to increase the dose to 40mg, the medical record will show that the patient was started on Celexa today, and the dose is 40mg. There will be no visible trace of the 20mg regimen in the EHR.Again, "older" EHRs, having gone through CCHIT certification at some point, will probably retain correct medication histories. New EHRs and EHR modules, written to the NIST testing specifications, may not. Unlike lab interfaces and electronic prescriptions, there is no obvious third party verification to look for when shopping for an EHR. This type of problem will not be discovered by a prospective buyer until the EHR has been purchased, installed and used for some time. At that point, with histories lost, the only recourse would be to request the vendor to provide an enhancement to certified functionality.
These are just the most obvious problems. Generally speaking, the test procedures are so narrowly defined that recording such things as who modifies allergies, vital signs, medications or problem lists, or when these were modified, or why, are not a requirement for passing the tests. Presumably, these are all recorded in the audit logs, but there is no specific inspection of the logs and anyway clinicians are not going to consult audit logs on a routine basis. Many other test procedures are of similarly superficial nature, suggesting that NIST is not attempting to certify a product as much as it is trying to certify a technology framework which could be ultimately used to build a meaningful product.
Bottom Line: Physicians need to understand, and ONC needs to clarify, that although required by CMS, ONC EHR certification does not guarantee availability of all EHR features and functionalities required to achieve Meaningful Use.
Margalit Gur-Arie blogs frequently at her website, On Healthcare Technology. She was COO at GenesysMD (Purkinje), an HIT company focusing on web based EHR/PMS and billing services for physicians. Prior to GenesysMD, Margalit was Director of Product Management at Essence/Purkinje and HIT Consultant for SSM Healthcare, a large non-profit hospital organization.
EMR Ratings: How Relevant Is CCHIT Certification In the HITECH Era?
Jun 16, 2010 • 17
By CHRIS THORMAN
For nearly four years, the Certification Commission for Health Information Technology (CCHIT) has been the lone entity recognized by the federal government to certify electronic health record systems. Since being named a recognized certifying body by Health and Human Services (HHS) in 2006, CCHIT has awarded certifications to nearly 200 EHR software products based on CCHIT's standards of functionality, interoperability, usability and security.
However, CCHIT's role in the EHR market is changing. The Office of the National Coordinator of Health IT (ONC) and the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced in early March 2010 that they would name more than one organization to certify EHR software, countering previous claims that CCHIT would become the sole certifying body. The certification requirements are in accordance with 2009's Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act.
As this news swirled around, one doctor called Software Advice and asked: "Is CCHIT dead?"
Dead? No. But it appears that the organization's influence is waning.
EHR Usability
Jun 4, 2010 • 41
A few days ago, I wrote about Innovation, a term being overused in the EHR industry to the point where it lost all meaning. Here is another such term: Usability
Just like Innovation, Usability is the weapon du jour against the large and/or established EHR vendors. After all, it is common knowledge that these "legacy" products all look like old Windows applications and lack usability to the point of endangering patients' lives. On the other hand, the new and innovative EHRs, anticipated to make their debut any day now, will have so much usability that users will intuitively know how to use them before even laying their eyes on the actual product. With this new generation of EHR technology, users will be up and running their medical practice in 5 minutes and everybody in the office will be able to complete their tasks in a fraction of the time it took with the clunky, legacy EMRs built in the 90s. And all this because the new EHRs have Usability, not functionality, a.k.a. bloat, not analytical business intelligence and definitely not massive integration, a.k.a. monolithic. No, this is the minimalist age of EHR haiku. Less is better, as long as it has Usability.
Usability, according to the Usability Professionals Association, is "the extent to which a product can be used by specified users to achieve specified goals with effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction in a specified context of use [ISO 9241-11]". Based on this definition, it stands to reason that any EHR prospective buyer should want a product with lots of Usability. Everybody wants to be effective, efficient and satisfied. So how does one go about finding such EHR?
Well, as always, CCHIT picked up the glove, and as always, CCHIT will be criticized for doing so. The 2011 Ambulatory EHR Certification includes Usability Ratings from 1 to 5 stars. The ratings are based on a Usability Testing Guide. Jurors are instructed to assess Usability of the product during and after the certification testing based on three criteria: Effectiveness, Efficiency and the subjective Satisfaction, as required by the ISO standard. The tools for this assessment consist of 3 types of questionnaires:
After Scenario Questionnaire (ASQ) –jurors rate perceived efficiency (time and effort), learnability, and confidence after viewing scenarios
4 questions after each scenario –16 overall
Perceived Usability Questionnaire (PERUSE)–jurors rate screen-level design attributes based on reasonably observable characteristics
20 questions divided among each of the scenarios;
System Usability Survey (SUS) –jurors rate the assessment of usability, and satisfaction with the application
10 questions after all four scenarios have been demonstrated
The questions range from general subjective assessments in the ASQ, to very specific inquiries in PERUSE, like whether table headers are clearly indicative of the table columns content. Following the certification testing, results from all jurors are combined and weighted with more weight to specific answers and less to subjective overall impressions. The final result is the star rating, ranging from 1 to 5 Usability stars.
As of this writing, 19 Ambulatory EHRs have obtained CCHIT 2011 certification and all of them have been rated for Usability presumably according to the model described above. Of those, 12 achieved 5 stars, 6 have 4 stars and 1 has 3 stars. Amongst the 5 stars winners, one can find such "legacy" products as Epic, Allscripts and NextGen. The 4 and 3 stars awardees are rather obscure. So what can we learn from these results?
The futuristic EHR movement will probably dismiss these rankings as the usual CCHIT bias towards large vendors. Having gone through a full CCHIT certification process a couple of years ago, I can attest that the only large vendor bias I observed was in the functionality criteria, which seemed tailored to large products. Big problem. However, the testing and the jurors seemed very fair and competent. Looking at the CCHIT Usability Testing Guide, I cannot detect any bias towards any type of software. I would encourage folks to read the guide and form their own unbiased opinions. Are we then to assume that the 5 Stars EHRs have high Usability and therefore will provide satisfaction?
I don't have a clear answer to this question. Obviously these EHRs have all their buttons and labels and text conforming to the Usability industry standards, and obviously a handful of jurors watching a vendor representative go through a bunch of preset tasks on a Webex screen felt comfortable that they understand and could use the system themselves without too much trouble. Many physicians feel the same way during vendor sales demos. However, efficiency and effectiveness can only be measured by repetitive use of the software in real life settings, for long periods of time and by a variety of users. Measuring satisfaction, the third pillar of Usability, is a different story altogether. There isn't much satisfaction about anything in the physician community nowadays and when one is overwhelmed with patients, contemplating pay cuts every 30 days or so and bracing for unwelcome intrusion of regulators into one's business, it's hard to find joy in a piece of software, no matter how well aligned the checkboxes are.
The bottom line for doctors looking for EHRs remains unchanged: caveat emptor. The footnote is that the bigger EHRs are as usable as the Usability standards dictate, just like they are as meaningful as the Meaningful Use standards dictate and when all is said and done it is still up to the individual physician user to pick the best EHR for his/her own Satisfaction.
Margalit Gur-Arie is COO at GenesysMD (Purkinje), an HIT company focusing on web based EHR/PMS and billing services for physicians. Prior to GenesysMD, Margalit was Director of Product Management at Essence/Purkinje and HIT Consultant for SSM Healthcare, a large non-profit hospital organization.
2009: A Year of Surprises and Change for the EHR Technology Market
Dec 6, 2009 • 21
By DAVID C. KIBBE and BRIAN KLEPPER
2009 began with a bang for legacy Electronic Health Record (EHR) vendors, promising strong sales and windfall profits on the heels of stimulus package incentive bonuses initially worth more than $19 billion to doctors and hospitals. But things changed dramatically along the way.
Here ten surprises and notable events that have impacted the EHR market:
Payment for Meaningful Use of EHR technology, not for the software and hardware itself.
The idea that using EHR technologies ought to produce improvements in quality of care, better communication with patients, enhanced safety, and better public health reporting — and that these outcomes ought to be monitored and providers held accountable for their achievement — was itself a surprising innovation in 2009. It has to be counted among the best 10 health care ideas to come out of government in the past generation.Continue reading…
CCHIT's Latest Gambit
Sep 14, 2009 • 2
By GLENN LAFFEL
Many of us have enjoyed a few good minutes of fun having our fortunes told by soothsayers who claim they can predict our future based on patterns of tea leaves in a cup or the playing cards we've pulled from a deck.
We pay a few dollars for the entertainment and if the fortune teller is skilled, we are temporarily impressed by his "insight." But once we leave the carnival, we come back to our senses. Fortune-tellers can't predict the future.
With its latest announcement, the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology (CCHIT) appears to have entered the fortune telling business.
And if information provided on blogs published by its founders is to be believed, some EHR vendors plan to have their fortunes told by the former EHR certification monopolist.
In June, ONC's HIT Policy Committee released a Meaningful Use Matrix and proposed that it should serve as the basis for EHR certification as mandated by ARRA, the economic stimulus program signed into law last winter.
The Matrix consisted of five "Health Outcomes Policy Priorities" and associated Care Goals, Objectives and Measures. The Committee anticipated that the latter would be transformed into EHR certification criteria.
After a 2-month public comment period, the Committee tweaked the Matrix, essentially pushing back time-frames for implementing computerized order entry, and accelerating time-frames for implementing personal health records.
By mid-August, the Committee had approved a final version of the Matrix.
This document includes the very latest information on ARRA-mandated EHR certification criteria. It is in the public domain, there for all to see. ONC is expected to finalize these criteria next spring.
The criteria are not consistent with those used by CCHIT to certify EHRs. They are outcomes-oriented (CCHIT's are feature, structure and process-oriented), and they do not require that any particular technology (such as the client-server applications used by the legacy vendors who sit on the board of CCHIT) be used to achieve the results.
Subsequently, HHS announced that it planned to assume responsibility for deciding which EHR systems qualified for bonus payouts under Medicare, and shortly thereafter, ONC's HIT Policy Committee said that it planned to recommend that several entities should certify EHR systems.
In its announcement, the Committee envisioned the establishment of 10 to 12 such agencies.
The upshot of these moves by the Federal government are that (1)CCHIT no longer decides what criteria will be used to certify EHRs, and (2)its days as the exclusive provider of EHR certification services are numbered.
What has CCHIT decided to do in response to these setbacks?
It's decided to become a fortune-teller!
New Role for CCHIT
Last week, CCHIT announced it will begin offering "streamlined," or "modular" certification options, in which EHR vendors can apply to the agency for approval of distinct EHR modules like e-prescribing or electronic patient registries.
But as mentioned above, ONC won't sign-off on its "meaningful use" criteria until the spring of 2010. In effect, CCHIT is asking EHR vendors to gamble that CCHIT can, like a fortune teller at a carnival, predict what those final recommendations will be.
"Choose the risk you want to take," CCHIT Chairman Mark Leavitt recently challenged vendors. "Go ahead now (with a CCHIT review) and have an extra year to implement, with a small risk that there will be some gap in which EHR systems would have to be updated to receive final certification…" or risk the consequences of sitting on your hands, he presumably would add.
Never mind that the latest information is in the public domain, and that any vendor can compare it against their current capabilities and development plans! Disregard the fact that CCHIT has no track-record in promulgating outcomes-oriented certification criteria or in certifying against them!
What is CCHIT charging for its fortune-telling expertise? According to Government HealthIT, a HIMSS sponsored publication, prices for modular certification begin at $6,000 for up to 2 modules. They rise to $24,000 for up to 20 modules and to $33,000 for more than 20.
As always, fees for CCHIT's comprehensive certification are $37,000 for ambulatory systems and $49,000 for hospital systems. Annual renewal costs are $9,000 for each.
That's chump-change for the legacy vendors whose top executives sit on the board of CCHIT, but it guarantees nothing.
Conclusions and Recommendations
EHR vendors should perform their own analyses against the published HIT Policy Committee criteria and follow the HHS Web site for announcements regarding meaningful use criteria and the process by which EHRs will be certified.
If a vendor insists on having its fortunes told, it should consult with a reader of tea leaves next time the carnival is in town.
Glenn Laffel is a physician with a PhD in Health Policy from MIT and serves as Practice Fusion's Senior VP, Clinical Affairs. He is a frequent writer for EHR Bloggers, where this post first appeared.
An Open Letter to Dr. David Blumenthal
By RICK WEINHAUS, MD
Below is a slightly expanded version of a letter I recently sent to Dr. Blumenthal, the new National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, and the members of the new national HIT Policy Committee.
Dear Dr. Blumenthal:
I am writing to you on the need for user-friendly electronic health record (EHR) software programs. As a practicing physician with first-hand experience with hard-to-use CCHIT-certified EHR software, I would like to share with you a solution to this vital issue.
The CCHIT model for EHR software certification is fatally flawed because it mandates hundreds of required features and functions, which take precedence over good software design. This flawed CCHIT model takes valuable physician time and effort away from patient care and leads to increased potential for errors, omissions, and mistakes.
As a clinician, I have had first-hand experience with a top-tier CCHIT-certified EHR. Despite being computer literate and being highly motivated, after a year and a half of concerted effort, I still cannot effectively use this CCHIT-certified program. The poorly designed software constantly intrudes on my clinical thought process and interferes with my ability to focus on the needs of my patients.
Just this year the National Research Council report on health care IT came to a similar conclusion. The report found that currently implemented health care IT programs often
provide little support for the cognitive tasks of the clinicians or the workflow of the people who must actually use the system. Moreover, these applications do not take advantage of human-computer interaction [HCI] principles, leading to poor designs that can increase the chance of error, add to rather than reduce work, and compound the frustrations of executing required tasks.
Our health care system needs user-friendly EHR software, firmly grounded on what we have learned about how the human brain takes in, organizes, and processes information.
As an example of software based on usability principles, I would like to share with you a new design, the EHR TimeBar, which is one example of user-friendly EHR software design that can dramatically improve patient care. Please see attached figure and description at the end of this letter.
I have no financial interest in this software design. My goal is to promote the emergence of user-friendly EHR technology that will improve the day-to-day lives of my colleagues and help us take better care of our patients.
We absolutely need standards for data, data transmission, interoperability, and privacy. There is no need, however, to specify the internal workings of EHR software. To do so will stifle innovative software designs that could improve our health care system. If CCHIT is allowed to mandate the meaning of the term "certified-EHR," the $17 billion allocated for EHR adoption and use will largely be wasted.
The solution is to keep EHR certification rules simple to encourage an open market model. An open market will foster a competitive environment, leading to the emergence of user-friendly EHR software that is simple, helpful, efficient, and inexpensive – software that will improve both patient care and the day-to-day lives of our clinicians.
I appreciate your work and the work of the HIT Policy Committee members in crafting our new national health care IT plan.
Richard Weinhaus, M.D.
Raising Legitimate Questions and Concerns About Health IT Certification, Without Getting Personal
May 27, 2009 • 30
By DAVID C. KIBBE
In a recent blog post on THCB, Mark Leavitt wrote this about me: "[Dr. Kibbe's] repeated use of falsehoods and innuendo to attack CCHIT have found an audience in the national media, reaching a level that can no longer be ignored. By implication, he demeans the integrity of everyone who has contributed to that work – and I must rise to their defense."
The truth is that I respect both Dr. Leavitt and, equally important, the many fine people who have contributed to CCHIT work. I regret that he has made me the target of his anger about investigative reporting in the Washington Post, which I certainly did not initiate.
To clarify what I actually said, after a brief interview, quoted in the second of two articles in the Washington Post by Robert O'Harrow, Jr, a Pulitzer Prize finalist :
"One has to question whether or not a vendor-founded, -funded and -driven organization should have the exclusive right to determine what software will be bought by federal taxpayer dollars," Kibbe said. "It's important that the people who determine how this money is spent are disinterested and unbiased . . . Even the appearance of a conflict of interest could poison the whole process."
Raising questions and concerns like these does not reach the level of "falsehoods and innuendo." In my opinion, it is entirely appropriate to ask tough questions about whose interests are being served when $36 Billion of tax payers' money is involved, and the future of health IT in the U.S. will be the result of certification."
I am not the only one with these concerns. Many other health care and health IT professionals have raised legitimate questions about CCHIT and its practices, its relationship with HIMSS, and yet to date these have not been resolved. A response that attacks me personally and labels me a liar is far from adequate, and so the questions will remain.
The stakes are too high to simply look the other way.
David C. Kibbe MD MBA is a Family Physician and Senior Advisor to the American Academy of Family Physicians who consults on healthcare professional and consumer technologies.


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"The poems of Dave Evans are lithe and athletic, and have a sense of earned urgency rare in contemporary literature. I always read him with delight, and follow where he takes me: to good regions, full of health and muscle."
– Famed American poet and novelist James Dickey on David Allan Evans' poetry
For publishing information and other inquiries, email Dave Evans or call him at 605-988-4486.
David Allan Evans, Author
South Dakota Poet, Author, Storyteller
David Allan Evans is a broadly published poet and storyteller. Professor Emeritus at South Dakota State University, he was South Dakota Poet Laureate for 12 years.
David Allan Evans: Sioux City Native, Athlete
Born in Sioux City, Iowa in 1940, Evans went to college on a football scholarship, and by the time he graduated, he was writing poems and short stories. He has degrees from Morningside College in Sioux City, the University of Iowa, and the University of Arkansas, where he got his MFA in creative writing.
Evans was a professor of English and Writer in Residence at South Dakota State University from 1968-2006. He is the author of five books of poetry, and the author or editor of seven other books.
In 1974, he was the first South Dakotan to receive a National Endowment for the Arts grant. He also has writing grants from the Bush Artist foundation in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the South Dakota Arts Council. His poems, short stories, and essays have been published in many magazines and journals and in over 80 anthologies, including Best Poems of 1969 (The Borestone Awards), Heartland II: Poets of the Midwest, The Norton Book of Sports, The Sporting Life, Imaging Home, Poetspeak, Motion: American Sports Poems, and Fathers.
A number of his poems have been re-printed frequently in well-known sports literature anthologies as well as K-12 textbooks. He has been a Fulbright Scholar to China twice, once in Nanjing, China and once in Guangzhou. He has done residencies for the South Dakota Arts Council, Iowa Arts Council, and Wyoming Arts Council for over 25 years. He is listed in Contemporary Authors, International Authors and Writers Who's Who, and Who's Whos in America.
Books by David Allan Evans
the Carnival, the Life
Settlement House Press, 2013
After the Swan Dive (chapbook)
Finishing Line Press, 2009
This Water. These Rocks.
San Francisco Bay Press, 2009
Each Day you're Gone (chapbook)
Red Dragonfly Press, 2008
The Bull Rider's Advice
Center for Western Studies, 2003
Decent Dangers
Mellen Poetry Press, 2000
Hanging Out With the Crows
Bk Mk Press, University of Missouri-Kansas City, 1991
Real and False Alarms
Bk Mk Press, 1985
Train Windows
Ohio University Press, 1976
Among Athletes (chapbook)
Folder Editions, 1970
Other Books by David Allan Evans
Shortcut and other Stories (chapbook)
Sandhills Press, 2000
Remembering the Soos (memoir)
Plains Press, 1980
What the Tallgrass Says (Writer and General Editor)
Double Happiness: Two Lives in China (journals, with Jan Evans)
University of South Dakota Press, 1995
New Voices in American Poetry (editor)
Buy David Allan Evans' Latest Book
David Allan Evans' vision is virtually limitless. Born of the great expanse of South Dakota and touching locales as distant as Mexico, China and the Isle of Man, Evans' expression of that vision is as subtle as it is encompassing. THE CARNIVAL, THE LIFE (Settlement House Books, 2013) is a meditation on a life well lived.
Please click below to purchase. You can purchase other work by Evans here.
Send inquiries to David Allan Evans by email, phone or mail.
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jashs
Supplementary Irrigation and Mulch Benefit the Establishment of `Heritage' Primocane-fruiting Raspberry
in Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Science
Authors: David C. Percival 1 , J.T.A. Proctor 1 and J.A. Sullivan 1
1 Department of Horticultural Science, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, N1G 2W1, Canada
https://doi.org/10.21273/JASHS.123.4.518
Volume 123: Issue 4
Field experiments including supplementary trickle irrigation (IR), IRT-76 plastic film (PF), and straw mulch (STR) treatments were conducted during 1993 and 1994 to determine the influence of root-zone temperature and soil moisture status on carbon assimilation and dry mass distribution, and soil and plant nutrient content, during the establishment of Rubus idaeus L. `Heritage' primocane-fruiting raspberries. The IR, PF, and STR treatments were reapplied after the 1993 establishment year to examine their effects on an established, hedgerow planting. Physical environment, vegetative and reproductive data were collected. PF increased root and shoot mass, total flower number, and total berries harvested. Maximum leaf net photosynthetic (Pn) rates were observed under cool air temperatures and root-zone temperature of 25 °C. Field Pn measurements indicated that there was no seasonal decline in Pn. Mulch treatments however, were not beneficial to the established (i.e., 2-year-old) hedgerow planting. The root system of the 2-year-old planting was largely confined to an area within the foliage wall and also at a greater depth from the mulch treatments. Therefore, beneficial effects of mulch management on the growth and development of raspberries may be limited to the establishment year.
Volume 123 (1998): Issue 4 (Jul 1998)
© American Society for Horticultural Science 1998
autumn-bearing; carbon assimilation; dry matter accumulation; fall-bearing; microclimate; photosynthesis; physical environment; soil and plant nutrition
Article by David C. Percival
Article by J.T.A. Proctor
Article by J.A. Sullivan
© 2019 American Society for Horticultural Science
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Home » New Landscape Products for Summer 2019
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New Landscape Products for Summer 2019
Los Angeles–based Rios Clementi Hale Studios has created six new modules to round out its existing Rio System of outdoor benches designed in 2015 for JANUS et Cie. Made of aluminum and treated with the manufacturer's proprietary sealant, a new planter, table attachment, and connection module can all be linked to the original convex and concave benches with stainless-steel hardware, and screwed in place with optional mounting hardware. Freestanding cocktail and side tables and a trash receptacle are also available. According to Sebastian Salvadó, one of the architecture firm's creative directors, "Landscape architecture, interior design, architecture, and graphic-design thinking all influenced the final form, construction, and placemaking character of the furniture."
janusetcie.com
Made to illuminate but also blend into stairs, ramps, and terraces, WE-EF's Recessed LED Wall luminaires feature a slim and highly impact-resistant rectangular frame that's practical for installation near the ground. The horizontal and vertical series (STL134 and SVL134) filter light through louvers; the STO134 (shown) provides a diffusing lens, and the STI134 uses an integrated reflector to channel light forward and down, preventing glare. All versions measure about 11" x 3" with 5"-deep housing and are available in cast aluminum or stainless steel.
we-ef.com
Series Sesto Exterior Pavers
These authentic terrazzo pavers are made in Wisconsin by Tectura Design, a Wausau Tile brand originally founded by a terrazzo installer. Available in 2"–4"-thick rectangular units that range in length from 12"–48" or in tiles measuring anywhere from 12"–42"-square, the units can handle a commercial-friendly 7,000 pounds per square inch. Custom sizes are also available.
wausautile.com
Loc Lock
Formed from concrete, with a proprietary etched-concrete finish, the Loc Lock bike rack by MD3 is installed in paving like a bollard, with a simple integrated screw embedded in its base. The roughly 2¼"-thick eye hook, which stands 29½" high and 18½" wide, animates streetscapes and provides secure storage for cyclists. Available in six colors.
md3contract.com
Among new outdoor-seating collections that Italian manufacturer Pedrali is releasing in the U.S., Tribeca, a stackable line of chairs and barstools, features powder-coated tubular steel construction, a seat and backrest made of easy-to-clean woven polyvinyl chloride (PVC), and a '60s-era patio-chair design that's suitable for hospitality settings. The collection is available in white, pink, red, terra-cotta, brown, blue, sage, and green.
pedrali.it
Torche Solar Path Light
French solar-lighting company Les Jardins Lighting has launched a contract division for its sustainable sun-powered luminaires. Among the offerings recommended for hospitality settings, Torche is a bollard-style path light that provides LED illumination without the labor and cost of wiring. Like all Les Jardins products, Torche uses the company's Autonomous Solar Bulb.
lesjardins.solar
Three years of research led to the fast-drying, fluorocarbon-free design of Patio by Karina Nielsen Rios. The Trevira fabric collection—the first for outdoor use from manufacturer Kvadrat—is recommended for high-humidity areas such as spas and indoor pools, and for umbrellas and screens as well as upholstery. The line features a softer-than-average texture compared with conventional weatherproof fabrics but offers the same durability. Twenty-four colorways are available.
kvadrat.dk
Kelly Beamon
These site furnishings, pavers, and luminaries add convenience and visual interest to public spaces. Click through the slideshow above to read more.
Recent Articles by Kelly Beamon
New Metal Cladding for Spring 2020
New Concrete and Masonry Products for Spring 2020
Michael Chen's Tiny House Hack for Häfele
Kelly Beamon was the products editor for Architectural Record and managed the monthly products newsletter Material World. Before joining the staff of RECORD, she worked as a senior editor for This Old House and Interior Design, and as the managing editor of Surface. As the executive editor of HD magazine, she moderated talks on design trends for HDExpo, an annual hospitality design conference held in Las Vegas. She has also been quoted on design by the New York Times, ABC News, and USA Today and has written columns on American house styles and kitchen and bath trends. She has a B.A. in English from Chatham University in Pittsburgh and 18 years of architecture and design writing to her credit. She resides in Brooklyn with two children, two guinea pigs, and threadbare period original furnishings by George Nelson, Kazuhide Takahama, Charles and Ray Eames, and Gustav Stickley.
New Decorative Lighting Products for Summer 2019
New Health Care Products for Summer 2019
New Paints & Finishes for Summer 2019
Hospitality Design Fair


The budget crisis in Oklahoma is quickly turning into a healthcare crisis.
Doctors, hospitals and nursing homes are warning the 25% cut in Medicaid provider payments set to go into effect June 1 will sharply curtail their ability to deliver care with rural and elderly Oklahomans hit hardest in a state already ranked as worst in the country for healthcare access.
In a statement, Oklahoma Health Care Authority CEO Nico Gomez said the agency does not take the cuts lightly but has no other options.
Lawmakers in Oklahoma City are expecting a $1.3 billion hole for the fiscal year 2017 budget, brought about by a struggling energy sector and a series of tax cuts enacted in recent years.
The Oklahoma State Medical Association is advising its doctors to consider dropping out of Medicaid, which would be paying providers only about 65% of the Medicare rate.
The Oklahoma Association of Health Care Providers said the cuts would likely leave more than 90% of the state's nursing homes operating at a loss and in danger of closing. Four out of five hospitals would be forced to stop delivering babies, according to the Oklahoma Hospital Association.
The Oklahoma Health Department warns it will eliminate a child abuse prevention program, close five to seven county health departments and zero out the fund that finances community health centers.
The state's Republican governor has steadfastly refused to expand Medicaid eligibility under the Affordable Care Act. State officials recently developed a plan for expansion that would avert the rate cut.
It would shift thousands of people from Medicaid to private insurance and provide private, subsidized coverage for the uninsured earning less than 133% of the federal poverty level. It would need federal approval, however, and relies on the maintenance of effort requirement of the Children's Health Insurance Program expiring in 2019 as scheduled.


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