This is the first of the beatitudes. And rightly so. It sets the tone for the other beatitudes.
What does it mean to be poor in spirit. If we look at the definition of the word poor, we see that it means a condition where there is a lack in possession. The word spirit is defined in scripture as that which is the deepest part of a person. So to be poor in spirit is to have no possession in the deepest part of our person. What does this mean then. If being poor materially means that there is an absence of material things, then being poor in the spirit means an absence of things in our deepest person.
This is only possible if we detach ourselves from anything that is not God - even our desire to know him! We empty ourselves of everything so that we can be nothing. And when this is done, God fills us with himself.
This process of emptying ourselves is a grace from God. We cannot achieve this on our own. Instead, it is the work of God, it is his grace that moves us to desire to empty ourselves. It is his grace that moves us to empty ourselves and it is also his grace that comes and fills our hearts with him.
One of the dangers of the Charismatic Renewal is that because the Spirit moves mightily in these prayer meetings, people become content with the emotional highs and physical manifestations they experience in these meetings. There is a danger of forgetting about true worship of the Lord - in Spirit and Truth. Spiritual worship goes deeper than just praising the Lord. If we look at Scripture we see Jesus going to lonely places to pray. This gives us an idea of what true prayer is. It is not only praising. It is not only the actions we do during worship (dancing, singing, prophesying, etc.). Prayer is communion with God. It is being silent before the Lord - waiting for him, responding to him in love - uniting with him in Spirit and truth.
It is quite sad that some people have the idea that once they have repented and resolved to follow Jesus, everything will be just fine. But on the contrary, when we accept Jesus as Lord, things change in our lives. He begins to work in us, taking away things that hinder us from knowing him. This is often a very painful experience to us but if we hold still and continue to be silent before the Lord, we will eventually see God's purpose for us.
I am the vine and my Father is the vine dresser. Every branch in me that bears no fruit he cuts away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes to make it bear even more.
The more we follow Jesus, the more we will be pruned - not as a test to see how strong our faith is - but as a test (purification) so that we will be stronger. In the words of the Lord, so that we will bear more fruit. This process of pruning leads us to empty ourselves of all that is not God. And once we have emptied ourselves, the Lord himself will fill the empty space so that we can continue to grow in him.
When we grow in faith, we can then say that God reigns over us. When he reigns over us, he is the one who now controls everything we are and have. We submit to God all our desires, dreams, ambitions and will - so that in the end, our will is joined with God's. His desires become our desires, his dreams become our dreams. When this happens, God reigns over us and we get a foretaste of his kingdom. When we enter the kingdom of God, we are one in Christ - and his words remain in us. This is the requirement to God giving what we ask for - his words should remain in us.
Another mistake that we often hear is that if we ask the Lord, he will give it to us. This is a misinterpretation of what the Lord really meant. Just think, if we ask the Lord to kill someone, will he do it? Of course not! But Jesus said that, "Ask and you shall receive" so is he lying here or is he contradicting himself? The key to this question is that there is always a pre-condition to the Lord's promise. In the case of our petition, the precondition is that our prayers should be united with his will. Why is it that the Lord does not heal some people from their sickness? This is because the Lord has other plans for those he does not heal physically.
True, praying for someone's healing is good - but will it be the best for the other person? Do we really know what is best for the other person? Who would know what is best for someone? God of course! If we persist in believing and 'claiming' that something will happen because the Lord said so, or because we persist in our prayers, then there is something wrong with our belief in God. Does God have to do something just because we say so? Does God have to do something just because you hold his word to his face? God is supreme and he does whatever he wants.
Being poor in the spirit is emptying our entire selves from everything. This includes most importantly, our idea of who God is. In the Book of Judges, we read that Gideon asked the angel for his name, the angel said, "Why do you ask my name, it is a mystery." This can be paraphrased as, "Don't think that you can know me completely, You cannot fully know me." Indeed, God never changes but we do. The way we see God years ago is different from how we see him now (If it is the same, then we have to worry about our spiritual growth). This is because God continually reveals himself to us. And this revelation takes more than a life time - it takes an eternity. And if we empty ourselves of everything while we are alive, then we shall have the whole of eternity to know God and see him face to face.
Blessed are those who empty themselves of everything that is not God - because they will be filled with God.


PolyCrystalLine was founded in 2005 as a business idea developed in an academic context. The company was born out of the Molecular Crystalline Engineering (MCE) group of research coordinated by Professor Dario Braga in the Department of Chemistry "G. Ciamician" of the University of Bologna.
The MCE group has been working for many years in the field of crystal polymorphism and is one of the most specialised in Italy. In decades of collaboration with the pharmaceutical industry, the MCE group has developed its own techniques to induce and check the formation of polymorphic or solvate (generally hydrated) crystal forms.
In 2007 PolyCrystalLine moved its activities out of the Department of Chemistry, transferring its university know-how into a dedicated site in the suburbs of Bologna.
In September 2009 PCL moved premises into larger custom-built laboratories and offices in Medicina.
PolyCrystalLine is a young dynamic company which has established itself as a leader in research and characterisation of solid-state compounds, especially in the pharmaceutical sector.
We have developed a university background into a business venture; blending academic know-how with business-like agility and flexibility. By working closely with the academic world, we are able to apply an innovative and avant-garde approach to the solving of scientific, commercial and patenting problems.
Our extensive experience in the characterisation of solid-state compounds and the study of polymorphism has led to the development of specific and flexible research protocols. These can be adapted to meet the needs of the pharmaceutical industry. We are able to satisfy the most varied research needs and budget requirements, ranging from in-depth analysis of APIs and compounds/solvates to quick low-cost screening and studies involving patent issues.
In our laboratory we are able to produce amorphous materials using several techniques such as spray drying, quench cooling, desolvation, etc.
PolyCrystalLine has its own research laboratory equipped with the most up-to-date advanced technology. The laboratory operates according to the Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) directives.
The water vapour or sorption properties of pharmaceutical materials such as excipients, drug formulations and packaging films are recognised as critical factors in determining their storage, stability, processing and application performance. Moisture sorption properties are routinely determined for pharmaceutical materials and have traditionally been evaluated by storing samples over saturated salt solutions of established relative humidities and then regularly weighing until equilibrium is reached.
PolyCrystalLine provides custom synthesis using a modular approach ranging from milligrams to half kilogram scale; PCL offers its know-how to optimise different parameters during the crystallisation processes to obtain a desirable crystal form, particle size, yield, etc.
Polymorphic forms of a drug substance can have different chemical and physical properties, including melting point, chemical reactivity, apparent solubility, dissolution rate, optical and mechanical properties, vapour pressure and density. These properties can have a direct effect on the ability to process and/or manufacture the drug substance and the drug product, as well as on drug product stability, dissolution, and bioavailability.
Thus, polymorphism can affect the quality, safety, and efficiency of the final product.PolyCrystalLine provides customized "hand-made" crystallization experiments for the polymorph quest, such as the choice of solvent, solvent mixture, temperature, support media and slurry interconversion.
Quantization methods are validated in order to quantify specific crystal forms or amorphous content in API mixtures and tablets (formulated compounds).
An in-depth knowledge of the API molecular and crystal structure is of great importance in order to understand crystal properties e.g. density, molecular packing, surface, etc.


This entry was posted on 土曜日, 2月 23rd, 2019 at 12:11 PM	and is filed under NEWS. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.


With the attention of the investment banks focussed squarely upon the Greek election, European equity rating changes have been thin on the ground Monday.
Exane BNP Paribas has upgraded EDF to outperform from neutral, expecting more reasoned thinking with the pre-election rhetoric surrounding the industry being toned down. The French bank noted that EDF has underperformed the utilities sector by 12% year-to-date, due to fears its profitability may be threatened by less generous electricity tariffs; swift nuclear closure; threats on nuclear availability with the looming need to implement safety investments; and rising nuclear liabilities.


text:
Deliberative and dialogic process
https://www.involve.org.uk/resources/methods/citizens-jury
http://ncdd.org/rc/item/1479
https://jefferson-center.org/about-us/how-we-work/
newDemocracy Foundation: What is a Citizen's Jury?
Citizens Jury 2018 with the National Data Guardian's Office
Stratified Random Sample
Discussion, Dialogue, or Deliberation
If Voting
Preferential Voting
Citizens' Jury
https://s3.amazonaws.com/participedia.prod/f1d89a8f-3cee-4383-9ec3-eec581ee5bd3_Glyn_Jury.jpg
Citizens Jury exploring local climate impacts, by the Jefferson Center – Credit: Jefferson Center
October 25, 2021 Nina Sartor
June 11, 2020 Jaskiran Gakhal, Participedia Team
November 15, 2019 Jez Hall
June 5, 2019 Annie Pottorff
June 3, 2019 Scott Fletcher Bowlsby
May 30, 2019 Scott Fletcher Bowlsby
August 17, 2018 Scott Fletcher Bowlsby
February 25, 2018 Madifish
May 21, 2010 Madifish
A Citizens' Jury is a small group of randomly selected citizens, representative of the demographics in the area, that come together to reach a collective decision or recommendation on a policy issue through informed deliberation.
A Citizens' Jury is a form of deliberative mini-public where a small group of citizens are randomly selected to deliberate on a given policy issue and provide recommendations to the organizing entity. The jury are usually given a specific question to answer or a clearly defined scope, and provide a report at the end of the process detailing their recommendations.[1]
The purpose of a Citizens' Jury is to bring deliberation and public participation into public policy decisions. A CJ is a small enough group to help ensure genuine and effective deliberation can take place, and utilises a random or stratified sample of the community to try and ensure that the group is sufficiently diverse and representative of the broader affected public.[2] Proponents of the CJ model suggest that decisions made by a representative group of citizens are more likely to be accepted and viewed as legitimate by the broader public, because the jury making the recommendation are everyday citizens as well. [3]
Citizens' Juries are usually used in an advisory capacity, tasked with producing a collective recommendation or verdict.[4] In many cases, decision makers may give some prior commitment as to how they might respond to recommendations from a jury. For example, in South Australia the state government usually commits to presenting all jury recommendations directly to parliament.[5] In some cases, the decision-making authority will agree in advance to accepting and implementing the jury's recommendations.[6]
Citizens' Juries can be used to address a wide range of problems and policy issues. CJs are deliberative processes, which emphasise the importance of deliberation and making collective decisions. Inherent to these processes is the provision of a range of perspectives and information, so that jurors can be fully informed and base their deliberations on solid reasoning. Therefore, CJs are particularly suitable for addressing complex issues such as health policy where deeper understanding is required.[7] They can also be useful for addressing controversial issues or where evidence is contested because the jury will hear from a full range of perspectives rather than receive a one-sided view of the debate.[8] CJs may also be used when the public is distanced from a decision-making process or there is a (perceived or actual) lack of transparency and democracy associated with an issue, with the hope that bringing citizens into the process may also enhance trust or legitimacy.[9]
Citizens' Juries are often deployed alongside other consultative processes, or as one component of a broader participatory processes. In Australia, it has been used as part of participatory budgeting processes, where the jury decides how a city or local council's budget should be spent. Two Citizens' Juries were held in South Australia alongside a statewide public engagement and consultation program on nuclear fuel storage. The first jury had an agenda-setting remit, helping to decide the key issues for the broader engagement and the second jury to deliberate upon. In the U.S., CJs are used to evaluate ballot initiatives as part of the Citizens' Initiative Review.
The Citizens' Jury model came into use in the 1970s. It was introduced in the United States by Ned Crosby of the Jefferson Center, and in Germany by Peter Dienel of the Research Institute for Citizen Participation at the University of Wuppertal.[10,11] Its founder, Ned Crosby, developed the model and it was first used in 1974 on the issue of healthcare.[12] Around 1/3 of the 30+ Citizens' Juries held by the Jefferson Center have been held outside its home state of Minnesota. Issues have included education, low-income housing, welfare reforms, climate change and physician-assisted suicide, as well as locally-relevant issues such as traffic congestion and agricultural practices.[13]
The CJ model was used to evaluate Presidential candidates in the 1976 U.S. election for the first time.[14] The Jefferson Center pursued this theme into the 1990s, experimenting with use of the Citizens' Jury method for evaluating candidates in upcoming elections including examining the major candidates in the gubernatorial race in Minnesota in 1990 and a U.S. Senate race in Pennsylvania in 1992.[15] This application of the method did not involve an evaluation of the candidates per se, but asked jurors to evaluate their stances on various issues. In doing so, this application received a positive response in the media, with the juries stimulating public debate.[16] However, in 1993 the Internal Revenue Service ruled that this activity was inappropriate for a nonprofit organization, and threatened to remove the Center's tax-deductible status.[17] As a result, the Jefferson Center agreed to stop using the Citizens' Jury method in this manner.[18]
In recent years, with early help from the Jefferson Center, the Citizens Jury method has been successfully used by a pair of independent organizations - Healthy Democracy Oregon and the Healthy Democracy Fund - to evaluate statewide ballot initiatives; this adaptation of the method is called a Citizens' Initiative Review. In this process, a CJ is used to evaluate proposed ballot measures.[19] The judgement of the jury provides a reasoned viewpoint on the measure that is useful for informing the broader public and for informing public officials of citizens' views.
Beyond the Jefferson Center and the U.S., the Citizens' Jury method has been adapted for use in Australia, the U.K., and Germany on issues such as health policy, transport and infrastructure, planning issues and local governance.
Participant Selection and Recruitment
Participant numbers in a Citizens' Jury usually range from 12-25 people.[20] The small size is important for the quality of deliberation as it creates an environment "where stable expectations and relations of trust can be fostered between participants, so essential for mutual understanding."[21] However, a number of more recent cases have involved much larger numbers of participants. The first citizens' jury in South Australia was held in 2013 and involved 43 jurors while a second engagement in 2016 had 54. Also in 2016, a 100-member CJ was convened in Victoria, Australia.[22] As of the year 2000, the largest citizens' jury on record was held in Germany and included 500 citizens from all over the country.[23] Whilst the larger number of participants can help enhance perceived legitimacy of the process, it carries with it additional logistical and deliberative challenges.[24]
Central to the model is the use of a randomly selected group of citizens who are representative of the wider community in question. The aim of this is manifold. Firstly, like other deliberative mini-publics, Citizens Juries aim to recreate a microcosm of the public, literally a 'mini-populus' as originally described by Robert Dahl.[25] Secondly, a random sample of everyday people is preferable to the 'usual suspects' that governments usually hear from. These include individuals with a strong political agenda or material stake in the process -- such as industry or interest groups -- who tend to have greater resources and access to policy influencers, generally allowing their voices to be heard above those of the everyday citizen. As the non-profit newDemocracy Foundation puts it, "[g]overnments inevitably hear from the noisiest voices who insist on being heard."[26] Random selection aims to provide a counter to that by selecting a group of randomly selected citizens. The jury should also be ideally representative of the broader community to ensure diversity and enhance the legitimacy of the jury. Participants should act in their capacity as citizens, rather than as representatives of others/interest groups or as experts.[27] The use of random selection and its accompanying claims are not without criticism; this is discussed in the final section of this entry.
Jury participants are recruited through various mechanisms. In Australia, organisers typically use a database from Australia Post to generate a sample of potential participants who are invited by post.[28] Out of those who respond positively, the final sample is stratified.[29] Communication with participants is then carried out by telephone with organisers on a regular basis prior to the event, to answer any questions and try to ensure attendance on the day. Census data is used to match the necessary demographics of the area.[30] Other recruitment methods might involve random dialing and using a market research company.[31] Participants are often offered some kind of compensation or stipend for their time. This can provide an additional incentive for participants who might not usually participate, or whose circumstances could prevent them being able to take part. The use of incentives can be "crucial for successful recruitment and inclusive participation."[32]
Aside from the lay participants, Citizens' Juries will involve a range of experts and stakeholders recruited to present information and evidence to the jury for their consideration.[33] For the most part, witnesses are selected and recruited by the organisers, although in recent years some juries enable jurors to identify perspectives and witnesses they want to hear from during the process.[34] Having a range of experts presenting different viewpoints and aspects of an issue is crucial to the success of the jury, because jurors rely on the information provided - skewed information can prejudice the outcome.[35]
Although the original Jefferson Center Citizens' Jury model has been altered and adapted as it applied in different settings and on different issues,[36] there remain some central elements, described below. The original model proscribes the process as typically lasting 5 days,[37] but many Juries have been convened that are much shorter than this, sometimes less than one day.[38] This can have a negative impact on the quality of deliberation and recommendations, given the time often needed to process information, deliberate and produce recommendations.[39] Juries usually take place on the weekend or over a series of weekends, sometimes spanning months depending on the process. [40]
Prior to the first meeting: question, remit and planning
The process usually begins with a decision-maker deciding to convene a Citizens' Jury in the first place.[41] It is rare for Citizens' Juries to be instigated by civil society. Some processes are initiated as part of academic research projects or by nonstate actors, such as the Citizens' Juries on wind farm development in Scotland or more recently, the People's Policy in South Australia, an adaptation of the CJ method where the public decide on an issue and develop meaningful public policy. For the most part however, a topic is decided on in advance by the government or authority. The precise question and scope delivered to the jury can vary widely, but it must be clearly and carefully worded so that it is easily understandable and neutrally presented.[42] Prior to the jury meeting, the authority will usually give some sort of prior commitment regarding their response to the jury recommendations. As Citizens' Juries are for the most used in an advisory capacity only, this prior commitment is essential so that jurors know what kind of impact their recommendations will have and that their effort is worthwhile.[43]
Following the development of an issue and question for the jury, the authority who convene the jury should have little to no involvement in the actual organisation of the process.[44] This is essential to ensure that the process is independent from the decision-making authority. Therefore, a professional practitioner organisation is sought to organise and deliver the jury. In Australia, a variety of organisations - such as newDemocracy Foundation and DemocracyCo - offer this service which often includes participant recruitment, selection of witnesses, logistical arrangements and facilitation. There are also independent consultants working as professional facilitators who may be recruited by the organisation to ensure further independence.[45] Professional facilitators are essential to the success of Citizens' Juries, helping to ensure quality deliberation where all participants' contributions are included, supporting participants, and maintaining the structure of the process.[46]
Information Phase
The first day the jury meets is dedicated to understanding what is to come, receive a brief overview of the issue, and get comfortable with each other so they feel at ease and relaxed throughout the process.[47]
The first main phase of the Jury meeting is comprised of information provision.[48] Prior to meeting, jurors will usually have been provided with an information pack with background material on the topic. During the first meeting/s, jurors will hear from expert witnesses on the topic at hand and develop a deeper understanding of the various complexities.[49] Information provision can happen in a variety of ways. One of the most common practices is for jurors to hear presentations by experts and be able to question them, or formulate questions together in small groups.[50] Other formats include expert panels, speed dialogue and strategic questioning.[51] The aim of the information phase is to provide jurors with as full a range of information, evidence and perspectives as possible.
Witnesses may include 'neutral' experts who provide background information on the topic, or present technical information.[52] These witnesses can also be helpful when the topic is highly contested or evidence is conflictual.[53] Other witnesses may be stakeholders or those presenting a particular viewpoint on the issue, who should provide reasoning for that viewpoint. During the information phase, jurors should be supported by facilitators to critique and question the evidence presented.[54] Usually, participants are on the receiving end of a large amount of information, often complex or technical, in a short amount of time. This can be confusing, especially if conflicting evidence is presented.[55] To help participants with this, some juries will include activities towards the start of the process focused on critical thinking skills and working together as a group.[56]
Deliberation Phase
Deliberation is at the heart of the Citizens' Jury model. During the deliberation phase, jurors will discuss in-depth the evidence they have heard and work towards developing a set of recommendations or making a collective decision, depending on their remit. Deliberation may take place in small groups (especially if the jury is larger) or all together, or both. [57] Practitioners and facilitators make use of a wide range of tools and techniques that can enhance deliberation and support jurors throughout deliberation. These include activities such as idea boxes, focused conversation, station rounds and six thinking hats.
During the deliberation phase, it may also be necessary to narrow the number of recommendations or issues under consideration.[58] This may be done through a process of consensus, or by incorporating different voting methods such as dotmocracy.
Decisions and Recommendations
Final decisions are made collectively, again either through consensus or through some form of voting after the deliberations.[59] The majority needed for a recommendation to pass may vary; many processes require a supermajority (generally, 70%+), such as with the Geelong citizens' jury in Australia.[60] Some juries also including dissenting voices and minority reports in the final presentation to decision-makers.[61] For example, the CJ of 350 in South Australia presented their final report on nuclear fuel storage with a majority report (with ⅔ of the group opposed to the fuel storage facility completely) and a minority report representing the views of the remaining ⅓ who wanted the discussion on fuel storage to continue further.
A Jury will usually produce a final report detailing their recommendations. The report may be drafted by participants collaboratively on the final day of the jury, or written by a smaller group who volunteer to write it. The final draft is then presented to decision makers, often by jurors themselves, for consideration.
Public Interaction
Some Citizens' Juries allow members of the public or observers to sit in on all or parts of the process. Observers might include academics, interested citizens or interested groups and stakeholders. Observers taking part in this capacity are usually advised that they are not to interrupt or disturb the jurors' deliberations or attempt to prejudice the process in any way.
As Citizens' Juries are often one component of a broader engagement process, public interaction can occur in a number of ways. In South Australia, CJs are usually used alongside other forms of consultation including surveys, social media and dedicated online forums such as YourSay. This can enable the jury to engage with the views of the wider community, as was the case in the CJ on sharing the roads safely.
The next 3 or 4 days is dedicated to hearings that include the expert witnesses. There is time allotted for the jurors to ask question of the witnesses and also time for them to deliberate. After all the hearings have been completed the rest of the time is set aside for the jurors to have final deliberations about the issue as well as answer the crucial charge question or questions.
On the final day there is a public forum held where the jurors present their findings and recommendation. There is also an initial report that is issued that is written by the jurors themselves in a language that they created. About two to three weeks later there is a final report issued that is available to the public.
The final stage to this process includes an evaluation that is filled out by the jurors. The jurors are asked to evaluate the process itself, the staff, and if they believed the process was biased or not. There is a portion for the jurors to add a personal statement, which is another way they can express their opinions. This evaluation is added into the final report that is made available to the public.
Citizens' juries are not usually given a legal mandate to make binding government or policy decisions although their recommendations can be taken up by governing officials and used to inform legislation. Despite being in use for nearly 30 years, the citizen jury process as run by the Jefferson Center had gained little traction among officials by 2002. The organization "saw it was fighting an uphill battle and cut back on the attempt to conduct Citizens Juries unless they were likely to have more impact on the political system."[62] However, the method became more influential in 2008 when it was adapted for using during Oregon's new Citizen Initiative Review process. Since then, other citizens' juries both in the United States and elsewhere, have seen their recommendations taken up by policy makers.[63]
Beyond policy influence, citizens' juries have a variety of other outcomes and effects on participants, government officials, and members of the public. According to the GovLab at NYU the following outcomes have been observed when using the citizens' jury model of mini-public deliberation:[64]
Increased accountability by involving the public in advising on or reviewing decisions and actions;
Creation of an "audience effect", openness, and transparency, which improves accountability and also provides an opportunity for outside insights and input;
Including community members in a participatory process where members of the public are traditionally left out of or distanced from the decision-making process;[65]
Improves representation by engaging a "cross-section of the community;"[66]
Is useful in "moderat[ing] divergence" on issues and increasing transparency of process;[67]
Provide "jurors" (i.e. community members) an opportunity to build and deepen learnings on specific ICANN issues, and to do so collaboratively;[68]
Monitor or gauge community and public sentiment regarding ICANN's work and its execution of commitments in the public interest;[69]
Broker conflict or provide "a transparent and non-aligned viewpoint."[70]
Participant Analysis
Analysis based on juror experience is often collected through satisfaction surveys or some other feedback mechanism at the end of the process. These evaluations are generally available to the public in the final report or in a separate, evaluative publication.
In their research on citizens' juries in Scotland, Roberts and Escobar found that participation in a citizens' jury was correlated to increased support for the mini-public process.[71] While they did not study the effects or opinions of non-participants, their research suggests that support for mini-publics increases parallel to their use by governments or other decision-making bodies. According to the authors, "after experiencing the process, 93% of participants thought that citizens are able to make decisions on complex issues. Participants highlighted three necessary conditions for their trust in the process: diversity of views, quality of evidence and effective facilitation."[72]
Academic Analysis
Citizens' Juries have also been evaluated by academic scholars. In a review of the design and evaluation of public consultation processes, researchers at McMaster University's Centre for Health Economics and Analysis identify the following strengths, weaknesses with the citizens' jury model and recommendations for its use:
creates informed, active, engaged citizenry
promotes "common good" as a societal objective
promotes self-transformation and development
provides opportunities to introduce new perspectives and challenge existing ones
more careful examination of the issue
promotes consensus building
promotes communication between government and governed
brings legitimacy and democratic control to non-elected public bodies
no formal powers; lack of binding decision accountability to act upon decision/recommendation
exclusive - only a few individuals participate
resource intensive time commitment for participants and organizers
potential problems lie in initial stages of preparation (i.e. jury selection, agenda setting, witness selection) - these have to do with representation (who participates?); responsiveness (what is the jury asked to do); and information transfer (how is the jury informed?)
sponsoring organization should be clear about what issues it wants to address, how much it can spend on process, and whether it can follow through on the advice
should be designed for the public and not for special interest groups
better with value questions than technical questions
better for focused questions about concrete issues, than on large scale issues and should be part of a wider public involvement strategy
the development of the agenda should be overseen by an advisory board made up of key stakeholders.[73]
Citizens' Assembly
Citizens' Initiative Review
[1] National Coalition for Dialogue and Deliberation (2008) Citizen Jury. Available at: http://ncdd.org/rc/item/1479
[2] Bussu, S. (2016) Citizens' Jury. Participation compass. Available at: http://participationcompass.org/article/show/480
[3] newDemocracy Foundation (2016) What is a Citizens' Jury? Available at: https://www.newdemocracy.com.au/library/what-is-a-citizens-jury
[4] Oliver Escobar and Stephen Elstub, "Forms of Mini-Publics: An Introduction to Deliberative Innovations in Democratic Practice - NewDemocracy Foundation," NewDemocracy Foundation, May 8, 2017, https://www.newdemocracy.com.au/2017/05/08/forms-of-mini-publics/.
[5] "Creating a Safe and Vibrant Adelaide Nightlife," YourSAy, October 24, 2013, https://yoursay.sa.gov.au/decisions/creating-a-safe-and-vibrant-adelaide-nightlife/outcome.
[6] United States Environmental Protection Agency (2017) Public Participation Guide: Citizen Juries. Available at: https://www.epa.gov/international-cooperation/public-participation-guide-citizen-juries
[7] Gregory, J., Hartz-Karp, J. and Watson, R. Using deliberative techniques to engage the community in policy development. Australia and New Zealand Health Policy. 5(16). DOI: 10.1186/1743-8462-5-16
[8] Bussu, S. (2016).
[9] United States Environmental Protection Agency (2017).
[10] Escobar and Elstub, "Forms of Mini-Publics."
[11] Graham Smith and Corinne Wales, "Citizens' Juries and Deliberative Democracy." Political Studies 48, no. 1 (March 2000): 56, doi:10.1111/1467-9248.00250.
[12] Pottorff, A. (July 1, 2013). "The Jefferson Center's Journey. Jefferson Center. Available at https://jefferson-center.org/2013/07/the-jefferson-centers-journey/
[13] "Bias Evaluation." Jefferson Center. Available at https://jefferson-center.org/bias-evaluation/
[14] Ned Crosby and John C. Hottinger, "The Citizen Jury Process," The Council of State Governments Knowledge Center, July 1, 2011, 322, https://knowledgecenter.csg.org/kc/system/files/Crosby2011.pdf
[15] Crosby and Hottinger, "The Citizens Jury Process," 322.
[21] Smith and Wales, "Citizens' Juries and Deliberative Democracy," 59.
[22] Geelong CJ
[24] Carson, L. (2017) Enhancing Citizen Jurors Critical Thinking Capacity. newDemocracy Foundation. Available at: https://www.newdemocracy.com.au/research/research-notes/390-enhancing-citizen-jurors-critical-thinking-capacity.
[25] Robert A. Dahl, Democracy and Its Critics (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1989), 340.
[26] newDemocracy Foundation (2016).
[27] Ourvoice, Our Voice Citizens' Jury on Shared Decision Making (Published Online: Scottish Health Council, 2019), http://scottishhealthcouncil.org/our_voice/citizens_jury.aspx
[28] "Citizens' Jury on Compulsory Third Party (CTP) Insurance Frequently Asked Questions," (2017) ACT Government, 9, https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/hdp.au.prod.app.act-yoursay.files/5115/0727/3518/CTP_FAQs_FINAL.pdf
[29] "Citizens' Jury on Compulsory Third Party (CTP) Insurance Frequently Asked Questions," (2017) ACT Government, 9.
[32] Jennifer Roberts and Oliver Escobar, Involving communities in deliberation: A study of 3 citizens' juries on onshore wind farms in Scotland (Published online: ClimateXChange, 2015), https://www.climatexchange.org.uk/media/1438/citizens_juries_-_full_report.pdf
[34] Roberts, J. and Lightbody, R. (2017). Experts and Evidence in Public Decision Making. ClimateXchange. Available at: https://www.newdemocracy.com.au/docs/researchpapers/2017/ExpertsAndEvidenceInPublicDecisionMaking_Feb2017.pdf
Escobar and Elstub, "Forms of Mini-Publics."
[35] Roberts, J. and Lightbody, R. (2017).
[36] Ourvoice, Our Voice Citizens' Jury on Shared Decision Making.
[38] Ourvoice, Our Voice Citizens' Jury on Shared Decision Making
[41] "Citizens' Jury," Involve.org. Available at https://www.involve.org.uk/resources/methods/citizens-jury
[44] Bussu, S. (2016).
[45] Lyn Carson, (2003) "Consult your community A handbook A guide to using citizens' juries," Planning NSW, 5, http://www.activedemocracy.net/articles/cj_handbook.pdf
[47] Damien French and Michael Laver, "Participation bias and framing effects in citizens' juries," American Political Science Association, 2005, 10, http://www.nyu.edu/gsas/dept/politics/faculty/laver/Dublin_citizens_jury.pdf
[48] Damien French and Michael Laver, "Participation bias and framing effects in citizens' juries," 10.
[56] Carson, L. (2017). Learnings from South Australia's Nuclear Fuel Cycle Jury. newDemocracy Foundation. Available at: https://www.newdemocracy.com.au/library/what-is-a-citizens-jury
[58] Peter Bryant and Jez Hall (2017) "Citizens Jury Literature Review," Shared Future, 9. Available at https://tinyurl.com/y3w8z9s7
[59] Damien French and Michael Laver, "Participation bias and framing effects in citizens' juries," 5.
[60] The State of Victoria Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (March 2017) "Victorian Government Response to the Geelong Citizens' Jury," 18. Available at https://www.localgovernment.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0027/66087/Victorian_Government_Response_to_the_Geelong_Citizens_Jury.pdf
[62] Crosby and Hottinger, "The Citizes Jury Process," 321.
[63] Annie Pottorff, "Giving Citizens a Voice (Politics in Minnesota) - Jefferson Center," Jefferson Center, July 11, 2012, https://jefferson-center.org/2012/07/giving-citizens-a-voice/.
[64] GovLab. "Proposal 13 for ICANN: Provide an Adjudication Function by Establishing 'Citizen' Juries," The GovLab @ NYU, February 28, 2014. http://thegovlab.org/proposal-13-for-icann-provide-an-adjudication-function-by-establishing-citizen-juries/#fn-8605-16.
[65] Department of Environment and primary Industries, "Citizen Juries," Victoria State Government, Archived at https://web.archive.org/web/20161227021310/http://www.dse.vic.gov.au/effective-engagement/toolkit/tool-citizen-juries
[66] Department of Environment and primary Industries, "Citizen Juries."
[71] Jennifer Roberts and Oliver Escobar, Involving communities in deliberation.
[72] Oliver Escobar and Stephen Elstub, Forms of Mini-publics (Published online: newDemocracy Foundation Research & Development Notes, 2017), 7, https://newdemocracy.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/docs_researchnotes_2017_May_nDF_RN_20170508_FormsOfMiniPublics.pdf
[73] Abelson J, Forest P-G, Eyles J, Smith P, Martin E and Gauvin F-P, "Deliberations about Deliberation: Issues in the Design and Evaluation of Public Consultation Processes," McMaster University Centre for Health Economics and Policy Analysis Research Working Paper 01-04, June 2001, 1. http://www.citizenshandbook.org/compareparticipation.pdf
Involve UK, "Citizens' Jury": https://www.involve.org.uk/resources/methods/citizens-jury
EPA "Public Participation Guide: Citizen Juries": https://www.epa.gov/international-cooperation/public-participation-guide-citizen-juries
Shared Future CIC, "Citizens Jury Literature Review": https://www.sharedfuturecic.org.uk/literature-review-citizen-led-deliberation-processes/
Oliver Escobar and Stephen Elstub, "Forms of Mini-publics": https://newdemocracy.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/docs_researchnotes_2017_May_nDF_RN_20170508_FormsOfMiniPublics.pdf

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Sony's Xperia Z2 Tablet is a slim, light, and powerful Android tablet that's good-looking too. The Xperia Z2 Tablet is the tablet to rival the iPad Air. Find out more in our in-depth Xperia Z2 Tablet review.
Should I buy the Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet?
The Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet is out now, with a starting price of £399 for the 16GB WiFi-only model. This scales up to £449 for the 32GB WiFi only model, and £499 for the 16GB LTE model. There's no 32GB tablet with cellular connectivity.
This is a well-priced device. As we'll discover in our review, the Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet is a high-class Android tablet, most closely comparable to Apple's iPad Air. The starting price is the same as Apple's 16GB Wi-Fi-only iPad, and the 32GB Sony tablet is cheaper by £30. The 16GB LTE Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet costs the same as Apple's equivalent iPad.
Shop around and you can get the Xperia Z2 Tablet cheaper, too. All of which means that the price is right for a premium tablet. But whether you choose to buy will depend on what follows in our Xperia Z2 Tablet review. (For obvious reasons we will be comparing to the iPad Air at various points in this review.) See also the best tablets of 2014.
Straight out of the box we are smitten by the Xperia Z2 Tablet. It is the thinnest and lightest 10in tablet you can buy - noticably thinner and lighter than the iPad Air, which is itself famously easy to hold and carry. The Xperia Z2 Tablet weighs just 426g - or 439g if you opt for the LTE version.
It's exceptionally thin, too, at just 6.4mm. Again, that's thinner than the iPad Air and any other 7in or 10in tablet you can name.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and your views may differ, but we think the Xperia 2 Tablet is a good-looking device, too. It's a simple, stylish device. A slice of black or white tech sharing the same rounded corners and metal frame as the Sony Xperia Z2 smartphone but - to our eyes at least - looking somewhat smarter for larger scale. Our complaint is functional rather than stylistic, in that the bezel is a little larger than we would like. We presume that this is a trade-off in return for the incredible thinness (not a phrase ever used about your author).
That design is of course built around a 10in display. It's the bit you'll be looking at, so let's take a closer look right now. The Xperia Z2 Tablet in fact sports a full HD 10.1in display. This packs a whopping 1920x1200-pixel resolution, giving it a pixel density of 224ppi. That's up there with some pretty decent smartphones, but not quite as sharp as the market-leading iPad Air. It's an IPS display and the aspect ratio is 16:10, so viewing angles are good but there is a little screen space under utilised when watching movies.
As you would expect at the premium end of the market the Xperia Z2 Tablet is blessed with a strong specification. It has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 quad-core processor clocked at 2.3GHz - the same chip as the superfast Xperia Z2 smartphone. This is a Krait 400 CPU with which you get Adreno 320 graphics. It's paired with 3GB RAM.
Other key specs include a massive 6000mAh battery, and a MicroSD slot so you can add up to 64GB of storage. Our 16GB model had 11.2GB available to use out of the box.
It all adds up to a beast of a tablet. Despite the thin and light shell the Xperia Z2 Tablet is a snappy performer. We'll get into synthetic benchmarks in a moment, but the most important thing to say is that you will find the Z2 Tablet fast and responsive. As fast and responsive as any Android device we have used, even when placed under load.
Benchmarks are fun because they give you an idea of where a tablet or smartphone ranks against its rival, but take them with a pinch of salt. They are synthetic test designed to give you a number, not hard-and-fast rankings. None the less, the Xperia Z2 Tablet's benchmark performance backs up our subjective experience of a superfast tablet - mostly.
We ran a GFXBench test to benchmark graphics performance. In the T-Rex (onscreen) test we got our best ever tablet result of 1,530 frames at 27fps (averaged over three runs). The Xperia Z2 Tablet will chew up and spit out even the most demanding Android games, and beats out the iPad Air which averaged 1,187 and 21fps.
And then there is GeekBench 3. This is a somewhat controversial all-round benchmark as some Android manufacturers have been accused of designing their devices to perform abnormally well in this test. (Allegations they almost all deny, by the way.) So make of this what you will, but the Xperia Z2 Tablet smashed GeekBench 3 to bits in our tests. It returned an average single-core result of 967, a more important multi-core score of 2719. That's the fastest multi-core result we've ever got from a 10in tablet, comparing well with the iPad Air's 2703 points in multi-core mode; and 1487 points for a single core.
It also has a pretty good camera, particularly for a tablet. You'll find an 8.1Mp camera around the back. This has autofocus and captures 3264 x 2448 pixel images which look good on the Xperia Z2 Tablet's display. Additional features include Exmor RS for mobile, which is designed to help users take good-looking shots in any light, as well as geo-tagging, touch focus, face- and smile detection, HDR and a panorama. The rear-facing camera captures 1080p video at 30fps.
Up front there is a 2Mp webcam for selfies and video chat. Here are some test images and test video footage, all taken from the rear-facing camera. Click to view at full size. One problem we had was that we found it difficult to see what was on the screen when taking photos in natural daylight.
Connectivity options on the Xperia Z2 Tablet include NFC. There's wireless charging with supported accessories, as well as the more standard and useful charging and connecting to your PC via USB. The LTE version takes a micro-SIM and offers 2G GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900; 3G HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700 / 1900 / 2100 - SGP541, SGP521, SGP551, 4G LTE 700/800/850/900/1700/1800/1900/2100/2600, and LTE 850 / 900 / 1700 / 1800 / 1900 / 2100 / 2600. Obviously the usefulness and availability varies by territory (we tested the Wi-Fi version so couldn't speak to the efficacy of the Xperia Z2 Tablet as a cellular device).
Wireless connects via dual-band 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac. Other features include Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA, and Wi-Fi hotspot. And you get Bluetooth 4.0 with A2DP peer-to-peer connectivity.
As mentioned there is an SD card slot. Sony says that the combination of Digital Noise Cancelling, front-facing stereo speakers with S-Force Front Surround and ClearAudio+ for recording means a significantly enhanced audio experience. We think it sounds okay, but no better than you would expect of a decent tablet with front-facing speakers. There are accelerometer-, gyro- and compass sensors, GPS and an FM radio with RDS. In terms of accessories Sony has released a speaker dock and remote control.
Sony's Xperia Z2 Tablet runs Android 4.4 KitKat, with relatively little customisation. It does have Sony's user interface over the top of vanilla Android. It's a stylish customisation that thankfully doesn't take over the OS in the way that Samsung's and HTC's do.
KitKat is Google's best ever tablet OS. Feature rich, easy to use and good to look at. It offers full access to the Google Play app- and media stores, as well as Sony's own stores and apps.
You can simply mount the Xperia Z2 Tablet as external storage on your PC, but Sony also provides software to make pairing and synching a little easier.
We haven't yet had time to properly test the Xperia Z2 Tablet's battery life and will update this review when we do. Our early experience of using the Z2 Tablet suggest that it won't be a problem, despite the killer power specs. That 6000mAh battery cell should help. And, according to the company, there's also the Battery STAMINA mode, designed to prolong battery life. We'll test it and get back to you. Find out more about which tablet to buy in our tablets buying advice.


text:
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Northern Border Community culture changes as security tightens: NPR
Stocks stumble when the HK bill impedes US-China trade
Home / Business / Europe gets a new technical fight while Naspers spins off Prosus By Investing.com
Europe gets a new technical fight while Naspers spins off Prosus By Investing.com
Business 8 Views
© Reuters.
Investing.com – Europe's stock markets got a new internet giant on Wednesday, and its reception only highlighted how few alternatives regional investors have when it comes to growth stocks.
The biggest company that absolutely no one has ever heard of is called Prosus (AS :). It is a holding company for the international assets of the South African investment company Naspers (JO :).
More than anything else, it's a vehicle for Naspers's 31
% stake in Tencent Holdings (HK :), the Chinese social media and gaming giant, whose value has plunged from $ 31 million in 2001 to $ 130 billion Today. But it also has shares in payments and deliveries of food, especially Delivery Hero (BE 🙂 and Takeaway.com, as well as other social media sites such as Russia's Mail.ru (LON 🙂 and online marketplaces such as the OLX group. [19659004] Last year, it posted a net profit of $ 4.25 billion, mainly due to a $ 1.6 billion gain on the sale of its stake in India's Flipkart to Walmart (NYSE 🙂 Stores. Even after that disposal, the company is easily the largest internet company listed in Europe.
The company estimates that the portfolio companies' products and services are regularly used by around one fifth of the world's population. The listing "will give international tech investors the opportunity to invest directly in an attractive Internet portfolio," Naspers said in a video on its website detailing the transaction.
Naspers issued shares worth approximately 25% in the new company to all its shareholders prior to the listing. Euronext Amsterdam had provided a indicative price of € 58.70 per share, suggesting a market value of € 95.3 billion ($ 105 billion).
However, Reuters reported that the shares jumped to 76 euros at the opening and gave up only a fraction of the gains in subsequent trading. It immediately made it the third largest stock on the Amsterdam Stock Exchange by market value, behind Royal Dutch Shell (LON 🙂 and Unilever (LON :).
The listing came on a day when Europe's markets had made great strides on new hopes from the détente on trade between China and the United States Earlier in the day, China had published a list of products to be exempted from the latest US import duties, which include cancer drugs and lubricant base oil, but not the far more sensitive and economically important agricultural products such as soybeans and pork.
At 05.00 ET (0900), the benchmark portfolio was up 0.7% at 389.08, a six-week high. Germany and the UK both increased 1.0%
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Google hires Palantir CIO Arvind KC as VP of engineering
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text:
Q: How can you specify the FFT length in cv::dft as in Python numpy.fft.rfft I have been successfully do the FFT in python using numpy.fft.rfft(). Now, I want to port this code to C++.
After researching at this topics How can I port code that uses numpy.fft.rfft from python to C++?, I am able to use the cv::dft to do the FFT. However, the problem is that with numpy.fft.rfft(), there is an additional parameters that is the fft length, and I cannot find it in cv.
My Python code is as follow:
window_frame = np.array([1,2,3,4])
fft_length = 10
np.abs(np.fft.rfft(window_frame, int(fft_length)))

The result is:
[10. , 8.16620583 , 4.25325404, 2.51258479 , 2.62865556 , 2.]

The length is (fft_length/2)+1.
In C++, I perform the following code:
std::vector<double> t;
cv::dft(window_frame, t)

The result is:
[10. -2., 2., -2.]

How can I achieve the same result as in Python version?

Updated:
I have tried the following solution:

*

*I resize the the input "window_frame" to the fft_length (padded with zeros)

*Perform the cv::dft on the new input

*Resize the output to (fft_length/2) + 1
std::vector t;
window_frame.resize(fft_length);
cv::dft(window_frame, t);
t.resize((fft_length/2)+1);
The result is:
[10 2.30902 -7.83297 -4.04508 -1.31433 1.19098 2.21238 1.54508 -2.12663 -2]

which is the same as in the Python version when apply np.fft.rfft()
[10 + 0j, 2.309 - 7.832j, -4.045 - 1.3143j, 1.19098 + 2.212j, 1.54508 -2.126j, -2 + 0j]

Now, How can I perform the np.abs on this data? Do the first and the last element have only the real part?

A: When setting the FFT length in your Python code, the input signal is truncated or padded with 0s, to the requested length, before applying the FFT algorithm.
In C++ you could do, for example,
windows_frame.resize(fft_length, 0);
cv::dft(windows_frame, t);

OpenCV has its own unique way of representing the real-valued frequency domain, it is different from what NumPy produces. NumPy outputs N/2+1 complex values (note! this uses integer division). OpenCV outputs N real values. Read the docs to figure out how to interpret the output of cv::dft for real-valued input and output. In short, the first array element corresponds to the zero frequency component (which is always real-valued), and subsequent array elements correspond to the real and imaginary components of the first half of the frequency spectrum. For even-sized arrays, the last array element correspond to the frequency component N/2 (which is always real-valued). For odd-sized arrays, frequency component N/2 is also complex, and both its components are present (though this is not made explicit in the documentation).

*

*Even size: [r0, r1, i1, r2, i2, ... rN/2]

*Odd size: [r0, r1, i1, r2, i2, ... rN/2 iN/2]

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Look, we know Kendall loves Dadeland. And we can see why. At least it's not a strip mall.
But we have to be honest. In spite of being in a maddening state of perpetual construction, home to one of the most annoying movie theaters on the planet and located in a city founded on the principle of giving out red light camera tickets, Aventura Mall wins by a mile. Here's why.
Read more: Do you have what it takes to shop at Bal Harbour Shops?
Both malls have Macy's, the usual Urban Outfitters and – somewhat inexplicably – a Tesla store. Both have packed Apple stores and empty, echo-filled Microsoft stores.
But only Dadeland has an entire wing devoted to waxing and pedicures. That's some real strip mall nonsense, Dadeland. Also, real malls don't have a CVS. Not that we didn't run in and buy some Halloween candy.
At least you can charge your phone as you eat your sad pizza.
Yep. Shake Shack. Also GoGo Fresh, Poke 305, Figs + Mozzarella, My Ceviche, Zuuk Mediterranean Kitchen and more. No sad pizza.
You can gaze up at it as you forlornly eat your uninspiring eggrolls from Mandarin Express.
The skies are always blue when you're shoving a lobster roll from Luke's Lobster in your face.
Both malls have a Cheesecake Factory, as required by law.
But Aventura also has Pubbelly Sushi and Genuine Pizza.
Dadeland's location right off the Palmetto makes for easy entrances and exits. Of course then you have to get on the Palmetto. Aventura Mall requires you to drive in Aventura, also an unpleasant experience and one virtually guaranteed to end in you paying a ticket.
The entire southern end of Aventura Mall is filled with cranes, dirt piles and "Road closed" signs. While we are sure this only means something wonderful is coming, we have to admit that Dadeland is easier to navigate.
Aventura has a cool slide.
Dadeland has a play pit, ala Mall of the Americas.


text:
Matt Gentile, global director of social media for Century 21 Real Estate, explains how the company implements a global social media strategy that has a local feel.Issue 12 // Digital & Social Media
Sara Fagen, partner at FleishmanHillard's specialty brand DDC, explains the importance of data and its impact on smart audience targeting.Issue 12 // Digital & Social Media
Scott Terry, production manager and Instagram director at ad shop DDB Chicago, discusses creating engaging content across platforms – and why there are "certain quirks" to each. All photos/videos courtesy of DDB Chicago.Issue 10 // Strategic Integration & Creativity
Patricia Martin, CEO of marketing firm Litlamp and author of such books as RenGen: Renaissance Generation, weighs in on early adopters and the idea of "innovation fatigue."Issue 9 // Brand & Reputation
Silicon Valley Then and Now: Silicon Valley veteran and Avaya CMO Andy Cunningham compares the Valley of the '80s with the landscape now, including why it hardly costs anything to start a company today.Issue 8 // Digital & Social Media
Alan Brill, senior managing director at Kroll Inc., and Harry Frazier, senior partner at FleishmanHillard, discuss the landscape after Target, Home Depot and JPMorgan Chase.Issue 7 // Data, Analytics & Insights
Forrester's Josh Bernoff discusses his new book, The Mobile Mind Shift, and why companies find this technology even more challenging than the arrival of the Internet.Issue 6 // Digital & Social Media
Jim Stengel, author of Grow and former P&G GMO, talks to TRUE about how ideals and mission are even more critical to corporate performance than when he wrote the book.Issue 5 // Brand & Reputation
Melody Lee, Cadillac's global head of brand and reputation, is on a quest to make Cadillac not just a top luxury automotive brand but a top luxury brand, period. Issue 5 // Brand & Reputation
Visa's Jennifer Kuperman discusses how the company saw its high-tech present and future in an update of a 30-year-old tagline that redefines "everywhere" from a place to an aspiration.Issue 4 // Strategic Integration & Creativity
Jeffrey Rayport, the marketing expert who coined the term 'viral marketing' in the 1990s, sees a future in which CMOs may be czars of the technology spend.Issue 4 // Strategic Integration & Creativity
Big data isn't just for big companies, Annalect's Scott Hagedorn says. You're ready for big data when you have a strategy for how to use it.Issue 3 // Data, Analytics & Insights
Arent Jan Hesselink, head of integrated marketing and communications at Philips Asia Pacific, discusses the company's unique brand-building campaign that relied on crowdsourcing to find out which social problems needed to be tackled next.Issue 2 // Digital & Social Media
John Wallis discusses how corporate marketing is undergoing a metamorphosis as it adapts to the explosion in social media and data, and the development of new technology.Issue 1 // Brand & Reputation


Dr. Alexander Stewart, MD is an Ear, Nose & Throat Doctor in San Diego, CA. Dr. Stewart completed their Medical School at UniforMedical Services University Of The Hlth Sci. Following their education, Dr. Stewart was board certified by the American Board of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery.
Dr. Alexander Stewart, MD has no appointments on Zocdoc right now.


text:
The great gas tax ripoff continues
California State Capitol in Sacramento (File photo: Robert Schlie, Getty Images)
By Jon Coupal |
PUBLISHED: April 18, 2021 at 12:00 p.m. | UPDATED: April 27, 2021 at 11:48 a.m.
"State needs billions to fix highways despite gas tax," was just one headline in reaction to a report issued by Caltrans last week. The response from California taxpayers was, "you've got to be kidding." California has the highest gas tax in the nation and yet, if one believes the bureaucrats, it just isn't enough to fix our roads and highways and $6 billion more is needed annually. But the truth is we have plenty of money to meet the need if the money were spent for its intended purposes.
The claim that billions more are needed was revealed in Caltrans' draft State Highway System Management Plan (SHSMP) for 2021. Luckily, I'm fluent in Bureaucratese and in Taxpayer. Allow me to translate from one to the other:
"The SHSMP presents a fiscally constrained allocation of available funding (translation: not enough money) for the maintenance and rehabilitation of the SHS (translation: for road repair). The 2021 SHSMP identifies a $6.1 billion annual shortfall that imposes a constraint requiring transportation objectives to be prioritized (translation: Give us the money or we'll kill the project in your district)."
The gross misspending, waste and diversion of gas tax revenues into projects having nothing to do with roads or highways. In fact, Caltrans admits that as it tries to focus "available funding on core system assets," it is "simultaneously increasing our investment in bicycle and pedestrian transportation modes to help achieve climate goals and provide more equity in transportation system access."
Where is the "equity" in a regressive gas tax, now the highest in the nation at 62.47 cents per gallon? For average Californians, the ability to drive to work, take kids to school and run errands is not a luxury, but the state's Legislature priced it like a luxury when it raised gas taxes and vehicle registration fees by passing Senate Bill 1 in 2017.
How does California's gas tax compare with the states to which Californians are fleeing in droves? Here's the data from the Tax Foundation: Texas, 20 cents per gallon; Florida, 42.29 cents per gallon; and Nevada, 33.78 cents per gallon. (These three states have no income tax, and their roads are better).
Although SB 1 raised taxes with the promise that the money would be used to repair crumbling roads and bridges, about 30 percent of the revenue raised by the tax hike is designated for other transportation priorities, including public transit, bike lanes and walk paths. And the law includes not one reform to address the well-documented waste at the California Department of Transportation.
The California State Auditor has repeatedly cited Caltrans for a lack of cost controls, leading to waste, fraud and abuse. And in November, the Reason Foundation Annual Highway Report ranked California's highways 43rd in the nation in overall cost-effectiveness and condition.
It's infuriating to hear Caltrans moan that it needs more money for road repair when, in a move that incensed both taxpayers and drivers in the Central Valley, Governor Newsom signed an executive order in 2019 that redirected gas tax money to fund railway systems and other non-road projects. Assemblyman Jim Patterson, R-Fresno, noted that the diverted funds would have increased stretches of Highway 99 from four to six lanes in the Central Valley to alleviate what Caltrans itself called a "bottleneck" along this major freight corridor.
When it comes to highway construction and maintenance, California delivers a low level of service at an inflated cost. We can fix this by directing gas tax revenues to projects that do the most good for the state's driving public and by reducing our transportation bureaucracy.
Jon Coupal is president of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association.
Jon Coupal
No one should be shocked at Supervisor Andrew Do's CalOptima antics
Why California's well-intentioned PAGA labor law needs reform
Keep politics out of CalPERS, reject Senate Bill 252
Remember the great Joseph Schumpeter and heed his warnings about anti-capitalism


text:
How Do We Create Connection?
Doug Scavezze2022-01-03T16:40:03+00:00
Gripping the handles as I hiked along the stair climbing machine, I looked over and noticed the guy next to me sharing this journey to nowhere. I noticed he was wearing a hoodie representing a local university which we both supported. The name of the university isn't important and would distract from the point...
PerceptionRead more...
06Dec December 6, 2021
Activate Humanity – What do these two words mean to you?
"Activate" and "Humanity", two words that mean something different. When put together, what do they mean to you? Activate: Trigger. Stimulate. Start something. Begin a process. Humanity: Humankind. Human race. Kindness. Compassion. For some, it means giving a crap about each other. For others, it means giving a crap about ourselves in order to help others. Two...
What We See vs. What We Know
The Fundamental Attribution Error references a tendency we have as humans to attribute another person's action to their personality, often labeling them in the process, and our own actions are attributed to our external situation or circumstances. For example, we see someone cut in line way up ahead of us to get to the front...
Assumptions Can Kill Connection
Let's face it: We make assumptions about almost everything, including ourselves. How many times have we said, "I got this!" and the result didn't match our assumption? We tell people what we think is happening in the world, based on what we have seen or heard on the news or social media. We give...
What We Believe, We Perceive
kyle@powerful-u.com2020-07-16T16:02:40+00:00
Question: What if the things you wanted most in life were sitting right in front of you and you just couldn't see them? Do you think that's possible? Not only is it possible, it happens all the time. - From the book, Perception: Seeing Is Not Believing As children, we are surrounded by influences and...
We are seekers who find the state of humanity inadequate. We believe the unrealized potential of the individual is both the source and solution to this problem. Our goal is to inspire fellow seekers to tap into their unlimited potential, through a personalized combination of philosophy, science, technology, and community.
Address: 520 N Marketplace Dr #300 Centerville, UT 84014
General Questions:: info@powerful-u.com


text:
Artist Tak Bui hosts exhibit of drawings at The Newfoundlander Tavern in Scarborough
December 14, 2018December 13, 2018
The Newfoundlander Tavern at Birchmount and Danforth roads will host an exhibit of Newfoundland drawings by artist Tak Bui on Dec. 16.
By SHANELL SIMMISTER
Toronto artist, Tak Bui drove his camper across Newfoundland to do pen and ink drawings of the different landscapes.
The trip was organized in the summer of 2017, when Bui made the decision to travel through Newfoundland to capture the province's beautiful scenery.
He started from eastern Ontario making his way to Newfoundland where he stopped at villages, fishing ports and lighthouses.
"I would stop very often and draw what attracts me. Sometimes I'll even take a series of photos and draw from them later," Bui said.
He draws in only black and white. He said that he uses a special kind of ink called "Envy Ink' to work with.
In addition to the work he has created, he said he's really interested in the landscape and the people living in Newfoundland.
"I've known quite a bit about the history of Newfoundland before I travelled there."
Bue said he was aware of the history which led Newfoundland to join Canada in 1949, and also of the impact of the oil industry on the province.
He has also done art work in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.
As an immigrant to Canada, Bui said it is very important to him to get to know the country.
He isn't trying to glorify or be sentimental about Newfoundland, and said he drew what interested him.
When he draws on locations, he sometimes gets annoyed by the weather and other conditions, but fortunately he does not have to spend long hours at site doing a drawing. "My medium is very simple, I just do my work fast," Bui said.
In the past, Bui's drawings always had a political, social angle. Now when he draws, he reflects on the people and how he feels about the landscape.
Bui has worked as a graphic artist for most of his life. He started off doing designs for magazines and newspapers in Toronto such as the Toronto Star and Maclean's magazine. He drew comic strip designs for the Washington Post, and he also taught at Inner City Angels — an arts organization in Toronto.
He will be hosting an exhibition at The Newfoundlander Tavern, 472 Danforth Rd. near Birchmount Road, on Sunday, Dec 16 to showcase 60 of his drawings. There will be Newfoundland- based music played at the event.
After this, he has no specific plan other than to continue travelling and capturing the beauty of places he goes to.
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Drinking Education, Scotch 101, Travel, Whisky
Scotch 101: Understanding Scotch Whisky Regions (Part Two)
In last week's edition, we explored the first three Scotch whisky regions – The Highlands, Speyside and the Islands – and the huge variety of whiskies that those regions produce. This week, we're heading down to the south of Scotland to explore the three remaining regions: Islay, The Lowlands and Campbeltown.
There's a huge variety of whiskies in these regions, as well as some of the most famous distilleries in the world of Scotch. So, without further ado, let's dive in with a whisky region known for its strong flavors: Islay.
Islay:
Number of Distilleries: 8
The Scottish island of Islay (pronounced 'eye-luh') – located to the West of the Scottish mainland – is the country's smallest whisky producing region. But, despite its small size, whisky is synonymous with Islay. It's widely believed that Islay is one of the first places whisky was distilled, and the production of uisge beatha (Gaelic for "Whisky") by monks in the region dates back to the 14th century. Testament to Islay's whisky heritage, the majority of the island's population are involved in its production, through agriculture, distribution or distillation.
Islay is home to eight distilleries, three of which – Ardbeg, Laphroaig and Lagavulin – are world famous. And, the characteristics of the island have a massive impact on Islay whiskies. The most strongly flavoured of all Scotches, Islays are big on strong, peaty notes. This distinctive flavour is informed by the island itself. Islay is heavily composed of peat – so much so that most of the island's water is brown as a result – which accounts for the abundant smokiness.
Then there are the heavy winter gales, that blow sea salt spray far inland, resulting in briny notes atop the peaty, smokiness. Given this, it's not surprising that many drinkers detect hints of seaweed, brine and even kippers in a given bottle.
While "massively peaty" is the term best employed to describe the majority of Islay drams, it's not true for every tipple produced on the island. Bruichladdich and Bunnahabhain are notable for being much lighter on peat than the rest of their Islay brethren, offering a much milder drinking experience as a result.
With their intense, smoky flavors, Islays might not be to everyone's taste, especially if you're new to drinking Scotch. But, their distinctiveness makes them well worth persevering with, and they're incredibly rewarding to a more experienced palette.
Lowlands:
In terms of the area it covers, The Lowlands is the second biggest whisky region in Scotland. At one time, it was one of Scotland's most densely populated areas in terms of distilleries, with 215 distilleries recorded during the late 18th century. Today however, only four exist in the region. Many suspect that the Lowlands' decline was down to successive parliamentary acts that favored English gin production, which effectively curbed the biggest market for Lowland producers at the time.
Lying South of an imaginary line that runs from Greenock on the West coast of Scotland to Dundee in the East, and perching just above England, most of the malts produced in the Lowlands end up as blends.
The reason? Lowlands whiskies are by far the lightest and gentlest tipples produced in Scotland, tripled distilled and with no peatiness whatsoever. Lowland whiskies are typically characterized by notes of grass, honeysuckle, cream, toast and cinnamon.
Given their lighter, floral, "feminine" tones, Lowland malts are sometimes nicknamed the "Lowland Ladies." For this reason, writers such as Charles Maclean have also championed them as a perfect aperitif, and you will find the likes of Auchentoshan, Bladnoch and Glenkinchie frequently recommended as excellent introductory malts for whisky novices.
If you're looking for a light and easy first Scotch, you could do a lot worse than picking a bottle from the Lowlands region.
Photo by Asa Rodger
Campbeltown:
Lastly, we come to Campbeltown. Lying towards the end of the Mull of Kintyre peninsula on the West Coast of Scotland, there used to be over 30 distilleries in the Campbeltown region. These days, however, that number is reduced to just three: Glen Scotia, Glengyle and Springbank.
An area that Whisky historian Alfred Barnett referred to as "Whisky City" in 1885, the number of Campbeltown's distilleries had actually started dwindling during the 1850s (there were just 21 when Barnard visited). The reason? Improved transportation links to rival distilleries in the North had a major impact on business in the region. The onset of the First World War, as well as American Prohibition in the 1920s, led to the further closure of distilleries in this once thriving whisky region.
Yet, in spite of its small number of distilleries, Campbeltown remains a revered whisky making location. Its tipples are full of flavor: robust and complex with just a hint of sea salt and a mild peatiness.
There's plenty of variety across the three spirits as well. Springbank is the smokiest of the three. Glen Scotia is lighter and grassier. Kilkerran, produced by the Glengyle distillery, is sweet, fruity and spiced.
Don't be fooled by the small number of distilleries. Campbeltown spirits offer a wide range of flavors; salt, smoke, fruit, vanilla, toffee and everything in between. In short, the tipples from all three of Campbeltown's distilleries are definitely worth exploring.
So that's it for this edition of Scotch 101. By now, you're fully up to speed on the differences between blends, single-malt and single-cask whiskies, and well versed on the flavors that the different scotch regions have to offer.
But, we're not done yet! While you're now in a strong position to purchase your first bottle of scotch, you still need to know how to drink the thing. And that is a fine art in itself.
Make sure to tune in next time, when we'll be talking about the importance of finding the right glass for your dram, the debate on whether adding ice or water to your whisky is a good idea, and how to drink your whisky to get the most out of its unique flavors.
March 27by Jean-Marc
Scotch 101: Understanding Scotch Whisky Regions (Part One)
In last week's edition of Scotch 101, we covered the key distinctions between Blended, Single Malt, Single Cask and Cask Strength whiskies. Now that you're clued up, you're probably salivating at the chance of sampling a fine dram of your first single malt.
But, oh eager whisky connoisseur, we're not at that stage yet. Chances are, if you've been to your local off-license or liquor store lately, you'll have noticed that there are a lot of different Single Malts on the market. And, that the majority of those Single Malts are labeled by region.
Single Malt whiskies are not dissimilar to fine wines in that they're grouped by region. There are six Scottish whisky-distilling regions; the Highlands, Speyside, the Islands, Islay, Campbeltown and the Lowlands. Key to understanding the flavor distinctions between various Single Malts is knowing those regions, and the kind of whiskies that they produce.
So that's what the next two editions of this series are about. Over the course of them, we'll run down the whisky regions, what you can expect from them, as well as recommending some good bottles to try out.
At this point, we should offer up a disclaimer. While we compared whisky regions to wine regions earlier, whisky regions are not as clear-cut. That's because, with whisky, the flavor is also determined by equipment and methods used to produce each bottle. Understanding regions is still important to understanding what kind of drink you're getting, but this is more of a broad guideline than a set-in-stone rule.
Right, with that out of the way, let's dive into our first three regions: the Highlands, Speyside and the Islands.
Highlands:
Number of Distilleries: over 25
Ranging from north of Glasgow all the way to Thurso, the Highlands is the largest of the Whisky producing regions in Scotland. Unsurprisingly, the Highlands also produces the greatest variety in terms of Whisky flavors, and it's hard to attribute a particular style to the whiskies of this region.
If we were pressed to put a label on them, (though, as per our previous disclaimer, take this with several grains of salt), Highland whiskies are full-bodied, with deeper notes of peat and smoke, than say, their Lowland counterparts. The Highland region is characterized by wild seas and dense moorland, which, as Flaviar notes, "[create] a breeding ground for powerful peaty drams, whilst still leaving room for floral, silky elegance."
Photo by George Hiles
Whiskies from the Northern Highlands can take on a more extreme character, which is heathery and spicy. If that sounds like something that suits your palette, then a bottle of Glenmorangie might not be a bad place to start. Dalmore, meanwhile, is a big flavored, sweet and malty, as well as a tad dry.
The further South you go, and the closer to the Lowlands you get, the lighter and fruitier Highland whiskies tend to become. Tullibardine has a sweetness and subtle nuttiness to it, while Edradour is big on smooth, fruity flavors, sometimes with gentle notes of peat.
Number of distilleries: 84
Stretching from Inverness in the west to the watershed of the river Deveron in the east, Speyside is the most concentrated area for distilleries in Scotland. A whopping 60% of the country's malt whisky distilleries are found here, making it the most densely populated Whisky producing region in the world.
Speyside is a valley of rivers and glens. Due to the location, as well as the low mineral content in the water, Speyside whiskies are very low in peat, if not totally unpeated, meaning that they don't have the intense smokiness of Highland or Islay varieties.
Photo by Philip Swinburn
Given the sheer range of Speyside distilleries, there are plenty of flavor variations between whiskies from this region. One consistent characteristic, though, is their nutty, fruity sweetness. Other than that, Speysides tend to be broken down into two categories. On one side, you've got heavier malts, rich in flavor from the sherry casks that they are distilled in, of which The Macallan is exemplar. On the other, you've got the lighter, grassier, so-called "lunchtime" whiskies such as Glenlivet. And of course, we'd be remiss not to mention Glenfiddich, the world's best-selling Single Malt, known for its creaminess and smooth, mellow finish.
Subtle and smooth, a Speyside is a good choice if you're unsure what you want from your first bottle. As The Whisky Shop notes, they tend to be "a great 'entry level whisky' for those beginning to discover their tastes when it comes to drinking single malts."
The Islands:
Amongst whisky connoisseurs, debate still rages as to whether the islands count as a distinct whisky region in their own right, or as a sub region of the Highlands. We've opted for the former, but don't be surprised if people try to tell you otherwise.
As the name suggests, these whiskies come from Scotland's small islands, such as Arran, Jura and Mull in the West and Orkney in the North. Island whiskies are an eclectic mix. Proximity to the sea has a big impact on flavors, which range from light citrusy notes to full-blown peaty smokiness.
Photo by Danka & Peter
Highland Park, from Orkney, is a malty and smoky, sweet tasting whisky, while Talisker, the largest whisky distillery of the islands, produces a spirit that is powerful, peaty, with citrus sweetness and a sea-water saltiness. Jura, meanwhile, is light and fresh, with nuttiness and hints of spice and sea-salt. Arran provides a rush of vanilla sweetness, with distinctive citrus notes cutting a cinnamon spicy-ness.
Defying generic categorization, Island whiskies are worth exploring for the sheer variety of flavors on offer. Full of maritime notes, and ranging from sweet and herbal to smoking and peaty, if you're looking for a drink that isn't subtle, and Island malt might be for you.
That's it for this edition of Scotch 101, but we've still got plenty more ground to cover. Next time, we'll be covering Islay, Campbeltown and the Lowlands and getting to grips with such legendary names as Auchentoshan, Bowmore, Laphroaig and Glen Scotia.
Drinking Education, Scotch 101, Whisky
Scotch whisky is in the midst of a global renaissance and there's never been a better time to sample a dram (or glass for all you whisky newbies out there).
But where do you start? To the uninitiated, the world of scotch is overwhelming. There are so many varieties out there at so many price points. Picking a first bottle can feel like a lottery, and you don't want to spend a small fortune on a scotch that is ostensibly "good," but you can't bear to drink.
Fear not intrepid whisky adventurer. That's what Scotch 101 is for. In this edition, we're defining the main types of Scotch whisky on the market, as understanding the distinctions between them is key to finding a good first bottle.
If you've ever browsed the scotch isle at your local supermarket or liquor store, chances are you've seen the terms "Blended" and "Single Malt" on the majority of the bottles. If you've frequented a specialist retailer, the terms "single cask" or "cask strength" might also have been bandied about. But what do they all mean?
A blended whisky is, as the name suggests, a blend of several scotch whiskies. Crucially, those whiskies all come from different distilleries.
A single malt whiskey is a whisky that is the product of a single distillery. Many people assume that a single malt whiskey comes from a single batch or barrel of whiskey, but that's not true. The reason whiskies from many barrels are mixed is to provide consistency of flavor, matching a distillery's "house style."
Single cask whiskies, as the name suggests, come from a single cask. This results in a more distinct and less-consistent flavor than what you'd normally expect from the distiller. The casks used in the distilling process for scotch are wooden barrels that were previously used to age other spirits (typically bourbon or sherry, but sometimes port or rum). While the mixing of whiskies in single malt production is meant to diminish the distinctions of an individual cask, single cask bottles are intended to take on the cask's unique flavor.
Finally, cask strength whiskies are distilled in the same manner as single cask whiskies. But, unlike single cask whiskies – and, indeed, every other type of whisky on this list – they're not diluted with water after being drained from the cask. This results in a much stronger flavor, as well as a higher alcohol content. While you'd expect a single malt or single cask whisky to be between 40% and 50% ABV (by law, a scotch whisky is a 40% ABV minimum), a cask strength bottle might be as much as 60% or 70% ABV.
Which is best?
Typically, the order of these whisky types from most expensive to cheapest goes; cask strength, single cask, single malt, blend. With that in mind, it's easy to assume that cask strength whiskies are "the best" on the market, while blended whiskies are "the worst." But in reality, it's more complicated than that.
Blended whiskies have a bad reputation amongst connoisseurs. While blends were the scotch de rigeur across the world for many years, they became unfashionable in the late 1980s thanks to a growing global awareness of single malts. But, there's been some kickback against that in recent times and an increasing recognition of the art involved in creating a great blended scotch. (If you want to know more about that debate, check out this Daily Beast article). Generally, blended whiskies are lighter, sweeter, and generally more accessible than your average single malt, a major factor in their mass popularity.
On the flipside, while cask strength whiskies have boomed in popularity in recent years, and become the gold standard for some whisky purists, there are those who don't buy into the hype. As this opinion piece on Scotch Whisky highlights, while the appeal of cask strength is having total control over how much water you add to your glass, this appeal is misleading. Different mineral waters can color the flavor of your drink and drinking a 64% ABV tipple neat is not necessarily the most pleasant experience.
For our money, the best place to start is in the middle, with a single malt bottle. The advantage with a single malt is that you get the distinctiveness of flavor that's lacking from your average light, sweet blend, but without some of the more extreme characteristics you'd expect from a cask bottle (if you're a whisky newbie, that's something to build up to). A decent single malt isn't going to break the bank, and you're getting a quality whisky to savor and enjoy.
Read the next post: Understanding Scotch Whisky Regions (Part One)
Health, Whisky
5 Savory Health Benefits Of Whiskey You'll Love
Finally, Another Excuse To Drink Whiskey.
Imagine, sitting in your favorite chair, a golden brown whiskey swirling in an old fashioned glass with two perfectly frosted ice cubes, the warmth from the changing of seasons wafting in through the window, the set up for a perfect evening.
But can you imagine this moment to yourself actually contributing to your health in a positive way?
I'm here to tell you the facts behind the mysterious health benefits of whiskey and why you'll be damn excited to pour yourself a drink after reading through this article. As a matter of fact, why not pour yourself a glass right now? Sit back, put your feet up, and relax.
The Basic Nutrition Information
Whiskey is one of the few alcohols that are naturally low in fats, cholesterol, and most of all sodium. With a low index of carbs, you won't pack on any sort of gut either..
Whiskey keeps it simple, it's naturally flavorful with a dynamic that can be altered in the slightest way to bring a whole new palette of flavors. But in the most basic form, it's still something that can get you excited for it's warm flavor.
But not only does this drink stand the test of time with it's classic notes and composition, it is an alcohol that is rich in antioxidants that can boost many health benefits when drinking responsibly.
In this article, I'll be providing you with my research that has proven that the most classic and gentlemanly of drinks can give you health benefits that can motivate, focus, and better your lifestyle in a number of ways. I've listed them below for you to read over and hopefully after reading through this article you'll be able to take something away from this article. You might even be able to show off some of this knowledge while enjoying drinks with friends.
Educating and bonding over drinks, is there anything better?
1. Let's Keep That Weight Off
Look, you shouldn't have a glass of whiskey instead of heading for a morning jog (unless that's how you roll, but we sure don't advise it). But you can feel a bit of reassurance knowing that many studies have shown that whiskey can actually help you maintain a healthy weight and can even encourage weight loss.
Whiskey will help you stave off appetite and you'll end up feeling more full when you have a glass of whiskey, which should keep you out of the fridge at midnight. If you like to enjoy a glass of whiskey occasionally, by making sure you maintain a healthy balance of diet and exercise, you'll have a little bit of extra help from your glass.
2. Sharpen Your Mind At Any Chance
There have been extensive studies focused on the benefits of whiskey and more specifically how whiskey can help you increase your memory capabilities, keeping your mind fresh and alert. There have also been ideas surrounding the benefits of how whiskey can affect those who are starting to experience signs of dementia as well.
With a boost to your cognitive behaviors, you'll decrease your chances of developing diseases such as Alzheimer and general memory loss that can negatively impact your quality of life.
Ellagic acid, which is commonly found in the components of whiskey, posses very powerful memory aids that can help banish free radicals and various toxins within the body. By getting rid of these unhealthy components we take on from our environment, we can help ourselves live a longer and healthier life.
3. Minimize Stress That's Holding You Back
Stress affects us all, it's a plague that seemingly has no end. While there's not one single cure to the weight of stress, it can be alleviated slightly with a glass of whiskey. Calming your nerves and helping aid in relaxation, sometimes it's important to give yourself a moment to enjoy a glass in the evening. Whiskey will help you to take the edge off of that sharp stress that weighs on your shoulders and prevents you from sleeping well or even taking care of yourself.
You deserve a small drink to help cut that stress in half.
4. Want To Live Forever?
Whiskey contains capabilities we've mentioned momentarily above, the increase of longevity. Because of the antioxidants and high concentration of them within whiskey, you'll find that your ability to live a long and healthier life is more in reach than ever before.
Not only will whiskey be able to increase your length of life in many cases, it will also help you prevent some signs of aging visibility. Keeping your skin looking younger and producing a natural glow that really encourages a more confident attitude.
Of course it's not a fountain of youth, but whiskey can help give you that extra push you might need to move forward in life without any sacrifices you might experience without it.
5. Say No To The Flu
Back in the day, when doctors recommended a shot of whiskey to cure basically anything and everything, it was actually (somewhat) true, that it could help prevent some sickness. Whiskey is a natural boost to your immune system, simply because of all the antioxidants that it contains. It will give you more of a boost than a glass of orange juice.
(Maybe don't have a shot before work in the morning though!)
Yes, I know, the health benefits in this article are wonderful, but it's not all fun and games. In all seriousness, these benefits come with a risk as well. It's important to keep your drinking to a moderation that's healthy and balanced.
If you plan on drinking a small amount occasionally, you can benefit from these added bonus health benefits, but you shouldn't ever go out of your way just to benefit from these positive elements of whiskey drinking.
Be aware of how much alcohol you drink, don't overdo it and be aware of the way your tolerance will increase the more often you drink, this should never be seen as an excuse to drink more.
With that said, let me know your thoughts, how do you enjoy your whiskey? I'd love to hear if you've ever benefited from these positive impacts!
Here's to good health, cheers!
March 4by Jean-Marc