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About PACCA
Membership Center
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T.E.A.C.H. Scholarship
T.E.A.C.H. Background & History
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Contact T.E.A.C.H.
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Teaching Strategies, LLC Gold®
PACCA News
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The Business of Early Care & Education
Pennsylvania's Early Childhood Workforce
Standards of Quality
Early Care & Education Research
Join PACCA Donate
PACCA: The power of community!
T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® PENNSYLVANIA Scholarship Program
Join Us and Start Strong PA
Who are PACCA members?
To recognize the contributions made by members and individuals to the child care profession, PACCA has instituted three award programs:
Educator of the Year - Center-based & Home-based
Life Time Achievement
Nominators are encouraged to submit letters from colleagues, families, and children in order to provide the committee a well-rounded understanding of the unique qualities of each nominee.
Nominations can be made online.
The winners receive:
A $500 award stipend;
Complimentary registration for the virtual Early Childhood Education Summit, October 18-20, 2021;
Honored during the official awards (TBD);
An engraved award recognizing their achievement; and
Recognition in PACCA's newsletter, website and Facebook page.
2022 Nominations deadline TBA
The Educator of the Year
Honors outstanding service and accomplishments in the delivery of services to children. It is given to an individual who has contributed significantly to the direct care and education of young children.
This award is presented to a child care teacher or staff person who works directly with children and who is an excellent example for other caregivers to follow. Both center-based and home-based educators are eligible.
This person creates and models a cooperative, caring environment;
Plans and implements a curriculum to enhance, support and assess development and learning;
Establishes relationships with each family to support the success of all children.
Individuals must be employed by a PACCA member and it is suggested that the person:
Has been a teacher for at least three years;
Provides for the health and safety of young children;
Fosters the positive growth of children in relation to others, themselves and their environment;
Strives to stimulate wonderment, curiosity, and love of learning.
The Award of Excellence
Honors outstanding service and accomplishments in the field of administration. The award is presented to a member of PACCA who has demonstrated qualities of vision (ability to see possibilities for making things happen and communicating this vision to others), teamwork (ability to work with support others) and leadership (willingness to reach out to benefit the child care community).
This award is presented to the owner, executive director, director or administrator who demonstrates qualities of:
Vision - Believes that all children have the right to a safe, healthy and developmentally stimulating early care and education experience.
Teamwork - Strives to meet the needs of families, teachers, and support staff as they serve children from all income levels, abilities, and cultures.
Leadership - Contributes to their community and promotes the value of early care and education to the general public as well as advocating that all families have access to stable, affordable, quality early care and education for their children.
Specifically, this person should have:
Been a PACCA member in good standing for at least five years;
Served the association through participation in leadership positions on committees, board or task forces;
In addition, this person may have:
authored articles for publication for PACCA or other child care associations
been a presenter at provider training or a presenter for the Associations' educational offerings
been a child care advocate and supporter of PACCA's programs and services
The first Life Time Achievement Award was instituted in 1996 and has been conveyed to three individuals. The intent of the award is to recognize a member or non-member who has on a large scale influenced others in the community or influenced public policy in the area of child care. This person will have made significant advancements or contributions to the field of child care.
Selection & Criteria
The individual selected by the leadership will be presented to the Board of Directors for approval. Specifically, this person:
may or may not be a member of PACCA
have served in leadership positions in government, non-profit organizations, universities and/or community organizations
have championed the interests of child care and early education to the public at large
demonstrated their leadership in the child care community with a tangible outcome
Award of Excellence/Educator of the Year (combined)
Denise Cressman, Denise K. Cressman Family Child Care Home (2018)
Yolanda Hegerman, Kiddie Prep (2021, Center-based)
Nicole Belski, Duck Hollow Discovery Learning Center (2019, Center-Based)
Karen Corrigan, Karen Corrigan's Preschool (2019, Home-based)
Bridget Heinl, Bridget Heinl Family Child Care (2017, Home-based)
Joanne Woodburn, Summit Children's Program (2017, Center-based)
Elisa Brown, Kinder Academy Warminster (2016)
Chantelle Yamrick, JB's Bright Beginnings (2015)
Cheryl Williams, The Goddard School - State College (2014)
Lindsay Stevens, Tiny Town Early Learning Center (2013)
Donna Walter, Snyder, Union and Mifflin Child Development, Inc. (2012)
Junko Wright, Jun's Day Care (2011)
JoAnn Marsh, Montessori Children's House (2010)
Pennsylvania's Early Childhood Workforce (2009)
Amy Cooper, Danville Child Development Center and Angela Bayer, Angela's Child Development (2008)
Melissa Readman, Steps to Success, Inc. (2007)
Maryann Makusi, YMCA of Greater Erie (2006)
Dolores Gray, Lancaster Day Care Center (2005)
Suzanne Druckman, Terri Lynne Lokoff Early Learning Center (2004)
Pam Darrell, The Caring Heart Child Care Center (2003)
Cherie Sears, Village of FPC & the Rutledge Institute (2021)
Becky Flaherty, Shady Lane (2019)
Betty Lisowski, Riverview Children's Center (2017)
Judith Cooper, Play & Learn (2016)
Michele McElroy, The Cuddle Zone Learning Center (2015)
Leslie Spina, Kinder Academy (2014)
Christine Dragan, Warwick Child Care Center, Inc. (2013)
Judith Witmer, Hildebrandt Learning Centers LLC (2012)
Kelly Gable-LaBelle, Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh (2011)
Rebecca Belski, Duck Hollow Discovery Learning Center (2010)
Tina Carter, YMCA of Greater Erie and Jocelyn Krieg, Sunshine and Rainbows Daycare Center (2008)
Marni Sweet, The Parent Infant Center (2007)
Janet Soos, Lehigh Valley Child Care (2006)
Jane Flanagan, Flanagan's Preschool (2005)
Debi Mathias, Snyder, Union, Mifflin Child Development, Inc. (2004)
Diana Dixon, Danville Child Development Center (2003)
Quality Child Care Coalition of Bucks County (2007)
Nancy Kalista, United Way of Erie Success by Six and Early Connections (2006)
Luann Genovas, R.E.E.C.H.E. (Recognizing Excellence in Early Childhood Education) (2005)
Beacon Award
Governor Edward G. Rendell (2004)
© 2023 Pennsylvania Child Care Association


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Brief Reports
HbA1c Levels Are Significantly Lower in Early and Late Pregnancy
Lene R. Nielsen, MD1,
Pia Ekbom, MD, PHD1,
Peter Damm, MD, DMSC2,
Charlotte Glümer, MD3,
Merete M. Frandsen3,
Dorte M. Jensen, MD, PHD4 and
Elisabeth R. Mathiesen, MD, DMSC1
1Department of Endocrinology, Rigshospitalet, University Hospital of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
2Department of Obstetrics, Rigshospitalet, University Hospital of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
3Steno Diabetes Center, Copenhagen, Denmark
4Department of Endocrinology, Odense University Hospital, Odense, Denmark
Address correspondence and reprint requests to Elisabeth Mathiesen, Department of Endocrinology, Rigshospitalet, University Hospital of Copenhagen, Blegdamsvej 9, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark. E-mail: em{at}rh.dk
Diabetes Care 2004 May; 27(5): 1200-1201. https://doi.org/10.2337/diacare.27.5.1200
HbA1c in normal, early, and late pregnancy compared with age-matched nonpregnant women without diabetes
Nonpregnant
Late pregnancy
n 145 100 98
Age (years) 30.0 ± 0 30.8 ± 5 29.2 ± 3
BMI (kg/m2) 24.5 ± 4.6 23.0 ± 3.6 22.3 ± 2.8*
HbA1c (%) 5.5 ± 0.4 5.1 ± 0.3† 5.0 ± 0.3†
Data are means ± SD.
↵* Trend test P < 0.009.
↵† Trend test P < 0.0001; nonpregnant vs. early pregnancy, P < 0.001; early vs. late pregnancy, P < 0.05; nonpregnant vs. late pregnancy, P < 0.001.
May 2004, 27(5)
You are going to email the following HbA1c Levels Are Significantly Lower in Early and Late Pregnancy
Lene R. Nielsen, Pia Ekbom, Peter Damm, Charlotte Glümer, Merete M. Frandsen, Dorte M. Jensen, Elisabeth R. Mathiesen
Diabetes Care May 2004, 27 (5) 1200-1201; DOI: 10.2337/diacare.27.5.1200
Combination Therapy With Fenofibrate and Rosiglitazone Paradoxically Lowers Serum HDL Cholesterol
β-Cell Transplantation Restores Metabolic Control and Quality of Life in a Patient With Subcutaneous Insulin Resistance
Hematocrit and the Incidence of Type 2 Diabetes in the Pima Indians
Show more Brief Reports

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Comedy Central brings you even more exciting new territory exclusives this February with the critically acclaimed series Louie! Written and directed by stand up comedian and Emmy award winner Louis CK.
The series is loosely based on Louie's life, showing him as a comic on-stage, and depicting his life off-stage as a newly divorced father of two girls. Finding humor by mixing the mundane elements of life e.g. taking care of his kids or going to the doctor with his unique and almost surreal sense of humor.
This is like a modern day Seinfield, with a mix of sitcom and stand-up, but it's darker, more modern and will be one of the best comedy programmes you'll discover this summer.


Zach runs Legal at Gradient Ventures.
In this role, Zach manages all legal and regulatory affairs on behalf of Gradient, including deal execution, fund formation and general operations. Prior to joining Gradient, Zach acted as corporate counsel to Google's hardware division and as lead commercial counsel for Advanced Technology and Projects (ATAP), Google's skunkworks team and in-house mobile technology incubator.
Prior to Google, Zach was an associate at Davis Polk & Wardwell and Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, where he represented public and startup companies on investments, mergers and acquisitions, and general corporate, governance and disclosure practices.
Zach holds a JD from New York University School of Law and a BA from the University of Oregon.


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Police: Four York City armed robberies could be related
York City Police are looking into the possibility that four robberies on Aug. 15 could be related.
Police: Four York City armed robberies could be related York City Police are looking into the possibility that four robberies on Aug. 15 could be related. Check out this story on yorkdispatch.com: https://www.yorkdispatch.com/story/news/crime/2019/08/29/police-four-york-city-armed-robberies-could-related/2150808001/
Christopher Dornblaser, York Dispatch Published 1:36 p.m. ET Aug. 29, 2019 | Updated 5:58 p.m. ET Sept. 2, 2019
. (Photo: The York Dispatch)
York City Police are looking into four robberies over a roughly two-hour period on Aug. 15.
Police believe the robberies could be related, officials said.
Officer Derek Hartman, the department's spokesman, said the four robberies, two that happened on a street and two that happened at convenience stores on Aug. 15, could be related because of their general time frame and the description of those who committed the crimes.
The first robbery happened in the area of Hamilton Avenue and North Pershing Avenue about 1 a.m. Aug. 15.
Two men, both armed and dressed in black, stole a phone from 28-year-old Michael Diaz, of York City, according to police.
Hartman said down the street another man, Riel Towles, 37, also of York City, heard commotion from the first robbery and tried to walk away.
York City Police said the Sunoco A-Plus convenience store at 260 N. Sherman St. was robbed at gunpoint by this man about 1:30 a.m. Aug. 15. Photo courtesy of York City Police. (Photo: Submitted)
The two robbers found him and hit him in the head with a gun before taking his phone, according to police.
Police said the Sunoco A-Plus convenience store at 260 N. Sherman St. was robbed at gunpoint about 1:30 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 15.
The man entered the store, took an undisclosed amount of money, then fired a gun into the floor, according to the release.
Police said he was wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt, sweatpants and a mask.
Then about 2:20 a.m. a man robbed the Turkey Hill at 1242 E. Market St., according to the release.
A man walked into the store with a gun and fired it into the ceiling, police said.
He took an undisclosed amount of money and fled on foot.
Police said he was wearing a sweatshirt, sweatpants and a bandanna over his face.
Hartman said it is not known if the four robberies are connected to recent home invasions or shootings.
No arrests have been made as of Thursday, Aug. 29.
On Monday, Aug. 26, York City Police said in a news release that investigators are seeking any information related to the home invasions, robberies and shootings.
A cash reward is being offered to those who provide information, and tipsters can be anonymous, according to the release.
Anyone with information on the robberies is asked to call York City Police at 717-846-1234 or anonymously text "Yorktips" and the information to 847-411. People can also leave tips anonymously by calling the city's crime tip line, 717-849-2204.
— Reach Christopher Dornblaser at cdornblaser@yorkdispatch.com or on Twitter at @YDDornblaser.
Read or Share this story: https://www.yorkdispatch.com/story/news/crime/2019/08/29/police-four-york-city-armed-robberies-could-related/2150808001/
Murder charge dropped against man linked to Regal shooting
Scott Wagner's Penn Waste sold to company with Canada, Texas ties
Police: Drunken Manchester Twp. mom dropped baby on floor
Do you know them? Police seek suspects in theft of $3K worth of video games from Shrewsbury Walmart
Police: Lack of dental care for West York-area boys leads to charges for mother


Electroceuticals is recently coined term for an old therapeutic modality, which broadly encompass all the bioelectric medicine. It includes any type of electrical stimulation, which affects and modify functions of the body and neural implants such as cochlear implants, retinal implants or spinal cord stimulators, cardiac pacemakers, and implantable defibrillators. Over a period of time, electroceutical expanded their applicability to include deep brain stimulation and the electrical stimulation of the vagus nerve. Electroceuticals are also called as bioelectronics, which encompass tiny electronic implants, which are capable to treat wide range of chronic diseases such as chronic pain, heart ailments, ophthalmic disease, neurological diseases, hearing disorders and gastrointestinal diseases.
Bioelectric medicine is an innovative approach to diagnose and treat injuries and diseases, as all major organs of the body are connected to the nerves, which allows the brain to monitor and regulate the functions of the organs. Bioelectric medicine refers to the usage of a device to modulate and read the electrical activity within the body's nervous systems. Nerve blocking devices or nerve stimulating devices that are held against the skin or implanted on a nerve have the potential to regulate specific nerve activity, make specific changes in organ function, and also restore health without side effects of pharmaceutical agents. Bioelectric medicine technology is used to record, block, and stimulate neural signals, which can be used to the change the way diseases and injuries are treated. Biogenetic medicine are also used for the treatment of conditions such as cancer, paralysis, rheumatoid arthritis, and diabetes.
The global electroceutical devices market size was valued at US$ 16,141.8 Mn in 2017, and is expected to witness a CAGR of 6.8% over the forecast period (2018 – 2026).
Collaborations, advancements in technology, innovations in the field of bioelectric medicines such as non-invasive devices are the major factors driving growth of the bioelectric medicine market. For instance, in October 2016, the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced US$ 20 million funding for the treatment of disease with electrical stimulation, which aims to improve maps of the peripheral nervous system—the body's electrical wiring—and generate sophisticated systems that can hack into its codes. Moreover, the funding is part of a US$ 248 million, seven-year program, which the NIH Common Fund announced in 2014.
Furthermore, in 2016, GlaxoSmithKline Plc. (GSK) merged with Google's parent company Alphabet to set up a new bioelectric company called Galvani Bioelectronics, which will benefit over 2 billion people suffering from chronic diseases. GSK invested around US$ 615 million for the development of Galvani Bioelectronics.
Other factors boosting growth of the bioelectric medicine market include increasing number of diseases in geriatric population such as cardiac arrhythmias, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, epilepsy, and depression, and rise in chronic diseases such as neurological and cardiac disorders. For instance, according to a study conducted by Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care in 2017, four major chronic diseases including cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and chronic respiratory diseases were the major cause for 82% deaths in India. According to a study conducted by World Health Organization (WHO), in 2017, non-communicable diseases are expected to contribute to death of 52 million people by 2030 globally.
According to the Data published in Current Pharmaceutical Design Journal in 2017, ion channel and neurotransmitter modulators can act as electroceutical approaches to control the cancer. Furthermore, in March 2014, Cancer-Code Corporation (C3) announced issuance of patent which entitles: Method and System for Processing Cancer Cell Electrical Signals for Medical Therapy, which covers an innovative approach to eradicate cancer in humans and animals. Moreover, high prevalence of cancer and increasing awareness regarding early detection and treatment of cancer is further expected to drive growth of the global electroceutical devices market. For instance, in 2012, according to American Cancer Society data findings, North America accounted for high incidence rate of cancer in children as compared to any other region worldwide. Moreover, according to the same source, in 2012, North America accounted for 13.1% of total estimated cases of cancer worldwide.
Furthermore, increasing incidence of diabetes mellitus worldwide is expected to drive growth of the market. For instance, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), 2016, an estimated 422 million adults are suffering from diabetes. The major spike in incidence of type 2 diabetes over the last decade (2006-2016) is mainly attributed to high prevalence of obesity.
Moreover, electrical stimulation and electroceutical treatment effectively restores injury, expediting normal healing and reducing chronic inflammation, biofilms, infection and associated symptoms, such as pain and high exudate. Electroceutical therapy for wound management uses a small, targeted, electrical current to create a physiological change that recompense the impaired biological functions in the wound, starting the healing process in the wound. Synapse electroceutical Ltd.: a medical technology company from U.K. offers AccelHeal: a small disposable class IIa portable medical device. Accel-Heal uses the patented Synapse Sequence programmed technology to promote healing in leg ulcers through the use of electroceutical energy.
Moreover, high prevalence of wound and ulcers among the global population is expected to augment growth of the electroceutical devices market. For instance, according to National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel, 2017 data findings, 2.5 million patients develop pressure ulcer annually, in U.S. Furthermore, pressure ulcer shows national incidence rate of 2.5% in hospitals.
Key players operating in electroceutical devices market include Medtronic plc, Abbott Laboratories, Cochlear Ltd. Sonova Holding AG, Advanced Bionics AG, Boston Scientific Corporation, electroCore, Inc., Biotronik, ReShape Lifesciences, Inc., and LivaNova, PLC.
Electroceuticals are the new category of therapeutic agents which act by targeting the neural circuits of organs. Moreover, electroceuticals involves mapping of neural circuitry and delivering neural impulses to the specific targets. This impulse is administered via an implantable device. In cardiology besides pacemaker, defibrillation and resynchronization applications; Electroceuticals used in heart failure, atrial fibrillation, coronary artery disease, myocarditis, resistant hypertension, atrial and ventricular tachyarrhythmias, pulseless electrical activity, and refractory angina.
Electroceutical devices market is expected to witness lucrative growth opportunities during forecast period owing to the advancements in electroceutical technology, strategic collaboration, mergers and acquisitions among key players in these market. Furthermore, other potential factors contributing to the growth of electroceutical devices market include rising number of disease among geriatric population such as cardiac arrhythmias, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, epilepsy, and depression, and increases in chronic diseases such as neurological, and cardiac disorders. For instance, according to the American College of Cardiology, cardiovascular disease represents great burden for the elderly population, their caregivers and the health system.
Key companies covered as a part of this study include Medtronic plc, Abbott Laboratories, Cochlear Ltd. Sonova Holding AG, Advanced Bionics AG, Boston Scientific Corporation, electroCore, Inc., Biotronik, ReShape Lifesciences, Inc., and LivaNova, PLC.
Stakeholders would have ease in decision making through the various strategy matrices used in analyzing the electroceutical devices market.
*Browse 32 market data tables and 36 figures on "Electroceutical Devices Market - Global forecast to 2026".


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HomepageIsraelNews
Jerusalem 'Suburb' from Time of Jesus Revealed
Julie Stahl
DF_JST55_Hasmonean_Village_in_Jerusalem_HD1080_0_172.48
Credit: Israel Antiquities Authority
New building construction in Israel often yields ancient treasures. That's the case in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Sharafat.
Israeli archaeologists uncovered a Jewish village from the around the time of Jesus in this Jerusalem Arab neighborhood as part of what's called a salvage excavation – an excavation conducted while preparing the site for a new elementary school.
"The most spectacular find here is a grand burial estate," said archaeologist Ya'akov Billig, who is leading the excavations at the site for the Israel Antiquities Authority.
Today, the area is inside Jerusalem. Two thousand years ago it would have been like a suburb of Jerusalem.
"The burial estate starts from a stepped, long corridor going under a bridge like an overpass into a courtyard with a bench on one side and a bench on another side," Billig explained to CBN News. "Then, from there upwards there was a covered barrel entrance to the burial cave and from there on inwards is the underground burial cave."
Billig said the burial estate tells a lot about its owners.
"The whole plan here belongs to some very important and/or rich person with his family, possibly even for several generations," he said.
They've also identified a Jewish ritual bath and much more.
"One of the agricultural products that was grown here and produced, there were probably grape vineyards. We have evidence of the winepress with a very large treading floor where they placed the grapes, said Billig.
"We also have an olive press. Between the wine and the olive oil they probably had quite a high living standard here," he said.
The best of the harvest was likely delivered to the Temple– just an hour's walk away.
In addition to the large olive press, there's a smaller one where the real virgin olive oil was made.
"It's the first squeeze, which was probably the real top quality. I assume when the Temple existed not far away that went as a dedication to the Temple – thank you God for giving me the abundance of what I have now," Billig said.
The excavated area was only part of the settlement and was likely the industrial zone. There was also a dovecote there for raising doves and pigeons.
Billig said discoveries like this tell us much more about the people from that time.
"They had probably a lot of interaction with the population of the city – maybe even with the pilgrims who made pilgrimage to the city," Billig said.
"We can't forget that Jerusalem had to be supplied by produce, of agriculture products and here we have evidence of growing grapes, producing wine, growing olives, producing olive oil, growing pigeons, supplying the population with poultry, with eggs, also sacrifices for the Temple," he added.
As for what's ahead, a school is planned on the actual excavation site. Pottery fragments and other discoveries like a rare heart-shaped capital will be preserved offsite. Billig said he hopes things that can't be moved like the burial cave and olive press will be preserved and protected as they are.
Towson Prof Rejects Students' Pro-Life Project: 'Tell Your Friends to Run to Planned Parenthood'»
«85-Year-Old Pro-Life Advocate Violently Attacked Outside Planned Parenthood Clinic


Travelling North for the first time, the Selvedge Fair is beautifully curated by the team behind Selvedge magazine and features some of the best in contemporary textiles and crafts. A collection of 26 makers and merchants will come together to showcase their work. Free workshops will be offered throughout the day, led by Textile Designer, Priscilla Jones and Kate Whitehead, and the fair will host a demonstration from milliner, Chrissie King.
There will also be a drop in workshop from Graduate, Lisa Scarlet with a minimum payment of £3.50 for making a brooch. Lisa's work is displayed at Gawthorpe as part of the Fabrications Festival happening all of September.
Book your tickets via the Selvedge website and use the code SVF17 when purchasing 2 tickets at checkout.


Free local delivery and installation is available in the London, Manchester, Hull and Chester areas on orders over £250+vat and subject to availability.
In accordance with normal transport practices all goods will be delivered to the goods inwards department or reception on the ground floor and off-loading facilities must be provided by the customer. If further transfer or installation is required, particularly for large and heavy items, this must be requested at the time of ordering and an/or additional charge will be levied. Please note that a signed consignment note constitutes delivery of goods. Please check that the number of boxes received, corresponds with the delivery note before signing. 48 hour express delivery anywhere in UK is based on orders placed before 12pm – Mainland UK only.
Times quoted are so quoted in good faith but shall be non-binding. To facilitate a prompt delivery all dispatches will be made direct from either the point of manufacture or distribution. The Seller shall not be liable for any losses incurred by the Buyer or any other person as a result of any delay in the delivery of the goods or any part of the order for any reason whatsoever. The due performance of the contract is subject to cancellation or such variation as the Seller may find necessary as the result of instructions or lack of instructions from the Buyer, or as a result of industrial dispute or of any cause whatsoever beyond the Seller's reasonable control. The Seller reserves the right to make partial deliveries.


text:
'Fallout 4' Dev Releases Patch to Stop Console Players from 'Stealing' PC Mods
A bitter controversy rages on.
by Leif Johnson
June 20, 2016, 10:00am
Image: Razed's Enhanced Wasteland Preset
Last month, Bethesda Softworks helped tear down one of the great barriers in video gaming by making player-made mods for the PC version of its acclaimed roleplaying game Fallout 4 available for players of Xbox One version. Last week the studio released another patch announcing coming mod support for the PlayStation 4, but it came with a brief, almost seemingly throwaway notice: Anyone making mods available for console play on Bethesda.net would now have to have a version of the game linked to their accounts through Steam, the popular PC digital distribution platform. It addresses a bitter controversy in the game's community, which, like so many other controversies in gaming these days, sparked from good intentions on the part of the developers.
Mods, user-designed additions and "modifications," can greatly extend and enrich the life of a game. Examples include mods that (appropriately enough) improve the experience of Fallout 4 or mods that breathe new life into decades-old games like Doom. When such mods became available for consoles, it seemed as though we were on the edge of a new era in gaming, one in which console players and PC players didn't view themselves in opposition to each other, as they often do on forums and social media. But of course, reality rarely works out so beautifully. When mod support first hit the Xbox One on May 31, many console players felt the designers of the most popular mods—chiefly available through the third-party site Nexus Mods—were taking too long to upload them to Bethesda.net. Still, many others believed PC mod creators were simply withholding mods from console players out of belief that console players are "inferior" and shouldn't have access to such thing. And so the offended console players started uploading popular PC mods to Bethesda.net on their own without giving credit to the true creators, leading to rancor on both sides.
Take "GamerAim," who claimed in a now-deleted post that he uploaded a "stolen" mod compilation because the original creator was a "PC elitist … and it is a statement against his classism and elitist mindset." "He's a troll and garbage person who makes good content, so in retaliation, I shared it with the console gamers he hates so much," GamerAim said. "This was always about supporting my fellow console gamers, never about taking credit for something that was mine."
Bethesda initially addressed the issue on June 6 by encouraging PC modders who found their mods stolen to file a takedown request through the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Yet the flood of stolen mods continued, and the fear of further, future grievances spread after Bethesda announced last week at E3 that it would allow PC mods on consoles for the upcoming remaster of its wildly popular 2011 RPG Skyrim. All of this led Robin Scott, owner of Nexus Mods, to type out an epic 5,100-word blog post on Friday calling out Bethesda for what he saw as its negligence to protecting the rights of the site's mod creators. He also, however, had strong words for the very "elitists" Gamer Aim condemned.
"You need to separate your thinking between 'mods on consoles are bad for whatever reason', which is stupid, and 'mods on console are bad due to how it's affecting the PC modding community', which can be justified," he said. "If you argue the former, then you, sir, are a douche. If you argue the latter, cohesively and without any reference to PC superiority, you're doing it right."
It's difficult to tell if yesterday's patch notes from Bethesda had anything to do with Scott's letter. As Scott himself says, Bethesda's been awfully quiet at all phases of the controversy. More likely, Bethesda had been planning to require users to have PC versions of the game before posting mods for weeks or days now. For that matter, it's also difficult to determine how much of an effect Bethesda's action will have on the tide of thefts, particularly if some of the thieves are so committed that they buy both editions. And then there are the people—like me, incidentally—who have the game for both console and PC.
It's a small but ultimately welcome step. As for a patch's power to heal a rift in the gaming community, well, does anyone truly believe that's possible for anything there anymore?
Tagged:CultureModspc gamingSteamFallout 4PlayStation 4Bethesdamotherboard showconsolesnexus modsTechMotherboard
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A black swan is a high-impact event that is hard to predict (but not necessarily of low probability). Also, an event that is not accounted for in a model, and therefore causes the model to break down when it occurs.
Considering some event a black swan doesn't give a leave to not assign any probabilities, since making decisions depending on the plausibility of such event is still equivalent to assigning probabilities that make the expected utility calculation give those decisions.
This page was last modified on 17 March 2012, at 22:51.


Enjoy a more natural hearing experience.
Signia Nx uses the latest technology to help you enjoy a more natural hearing experience. The aids sit comfortably and discreetly behind the ear and boasts state-of-the-art technology to bring the highest quality hearing performance, for even the most active wearers.
Signia Nx combines the natural sound of your own voice along with all surrounding sounds, giving you a more natural hearing experience.
The myControl App works together with the Signia hearing aids, giving you control over your hearing aid settings. You can use the app to set up pre-programmed settings, change the volume, and manage a range of streaming devices. It is available for iPhone and Android users.
The miniPocket is the ideal solution if you want something that is discreet. It is small enough to attach to a keychain and still perform and utilise all the features for your Signia hearing aid.
What are the benefits of Signia Nx?
"My new hearing aids are much smaller and are more comfortable. I can now hear the TV and have turned down the volume considerably. I also don't have the closed captions on anymore."
"The first thing I noticed since wearing my new hearing aids was that I did not have to concentrate to hear as intently. I don't have to strain at work anymore to hear what people are saying. I was really impressed with the benefits and the difference the aids have made."
I have seen the most improvement watching TV. Without the sound bar, I really struggled to hear the TV with my last pair of hearing aids. The new ones are definitely worth the investment."
1. A StreamLine TV transmitter is required to stream audio from your television. Call us to find out more.
2. 2017 First Fit Study conducted at Hörzentrum Oldenburg. Visit www.signia-pro.com/first-fit-study for details.


During the sea voyage of 86 days, every passenger would be surveyed with a strong gaze, like a searchlight sweeping on top of a haunted lighthouse. This ever-present invisible companion makes the passengers act more cautiously, hold themselves with more elegance, and speak with the sparkling wisdom of rhetoricians. The night passes through the Panama Canal, a stand up comedian tells the crowd about how he gazed into a pair of elliptical eyes during an afternoon nap, and saw through the entire story of his life. But he induces no laughter at all.
"The Grand Voyage" was a long term creative project founded by GUO Xi and ZHANG Jianling, and supported by Imagination Lab in Hangzhou. In 2014, the artist duo released 12 prophecies from sea, and set off on their 86 days global voyage in 2015 to witness the prophecies. They brought back evidences and stories they collected from their journey, and produced a narrative maze with a star cluster of texts, images, and objects.


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Home | Best Practice | Article
Our broken assessment system: How schools are leading change
Written by: Elena Wilson | Published: 29 June 2021
A four-year upper secondary phase, a baccalaureate-style award, a stage not age approach – now is the time to rethink our assessment system says Elena Wilson. She sets out her case and considers some examples that schools can build on...
Last year's assessment fiasco and the cancellation of exams for the second year in a row has thrown our assessment system under the public spotlight in a way that has not happened since the Tomlinson Review in the mid-2000s.
If ever there was a time to look again at fundamental reform, surely it must be now.
At the Edge Foundation, we believe that a broad and balanced education and assessment system should equip young people with the skills and knowledge they need to reach their full potential.
But up to now, exams have dominated our entire education system, influencing what is taught and how it is taught. Even before the pandemic, many young people found the exam system increasingly stressful and not a true reflection of what they can do.
More and more, we are hearing from a range of voices that we urgently need to change the way the system works (Edge, 2021).
Employers have told us that they value a mix of academic and technical qualifications, with many prioritising skills such as problem-solving, communication, self-management, team-working, creativity, numeracy and digital skills. This was evident in the Employer Skills Survey 2019 (DfE, 2020).
We know that teachers and school leaders are experiencing a significant workload crisis, stretched to meet administrative and compliance measures and spending hours preparing students for high-stakes exams.
Our recent YouGov polling with teachers found overwhelming support for reform: 92 per cent agreed that the assessment system needs to recognise the full range of a young person's strengths and skills, through more than written exams and 96 per cent felt that schools should be judged on the quality and range of the education they offer, beyond exam results.
Not only this, but young people are also telling us that the assessment system is not fit-for-purpose. As part of our Young Lives, Young Futures project, our panel of young people told us that: "The current obsession with grades is not sustainable. It fails to treat young people as individuals with unique strengths and dreams."
For a strong student perspective, see the excellent blog from Bohunt Sixth Form which offers their reflections on why we need to rethink GCSEs (2021).
Go big and go bold
We need to equip our young people with the knowledge and skills to flourish in their broader lives and we need new ways to evidence and recognise this. In the long term, we need to go big and go bold, with whole-system change.
We believe young people would be better served by a relatively open upper secondary phase that spans four years, but allows five if need be. It would finish with a graduation or baccalaureate-style award that combines study and experience at different levels and spans the full general-vocational range.
It could include academic qualifications, technical skills, employer interaction and extra-curricular activities such as outdoor pursuits, creative and cultural activities.
We are already seeing examples where innovative change is taking place. For example, School 21 in London interweaves three pedagogies into its curriculum – wellbeing, oracy, and project-based learning – to support students to find their voice, develop deep knowledge and create beautiful work that has real value beyond the classroom (Minero, 2016).
Meanwhile, South Eastern Regional College in Northern Ireland offers each student a career-enhancing experience through an enterprise-driven curriculum where students work on live projects, solving problems for real businesses.
Since all learners learn differently, and at different stages, we also advocate moving from "age" to "stage" so that young people undergo assessments when they are ready. Assessments becomes less linear, and more of a progress check rather than a make or break point.
Teachers should also be given the time and space to work with staff across departments and with employers to create exciting cross-curricular lessons. For example, our Edge teacher externships offer a model for teachers to engage with local employers and integrate what they learn into their curriculum (see further information).
We know that sustainable change will require careful collaboration between teachers, schools, government, parents, students and employers.
At Edge, we support the Rethinking Assessment movement, a coalition of state and independent schools, multi academy trusts, further education colleges, academics, universities, employers and researchers, who are working together to develop new and better ways of evidencing the full breadth of young people's strengths, building upon what is already happening elsewhere in the world.
Change starts now
While we continue to push for large-scale change to assessment as a future goal in England, foundations are already being laid. In the short term, here are some examples that schools can build on.
Building a common language around skills: The Skills Builder Partnership is a consortium of education and employer organisations that has defined essential skills for young people, alongside progression frameworks for achieving them. More than 500 schools have already adopted this framework to evaluate and certify their pupils (see further information for this an subsequent links).
Embedding skills into the curriculum: Skills and competencies can also be developed in schools in a variety of settings, from classroom work to extra-curricular activities. Our Edge Future Learning initiative focuses on three key ingredients that help bring learning to life – community-connected learning, project-based learning, and real-world learning. Schools and colleges can access our on-demand training and events to learn how they can integrate these approaches into their current curriculum.
Closer interaction with employers: Rather than setting employer interaction and employability skills apart from the curriculum, XP School in Doncaster is designed around expeditionary, highly interactive learning. Students work on real-world projects with employers in their local community and then present their portfolio of work at the end of each project. These include books that have become best-sellers in the local Waterstones to documentaries shown to the public in local cinemas. This style takes a much more holistic view and through this students develop a range of life-skills such as risk-management, presentation delivery and critical thinking.
Embracing digital: The Mastery Transcript Consortium, a coalition of schools in the US, uses digital high school transcripts as a form of certified school records. These capture students' holistic learning experiences, unique strengths, abilities, interests and personal histories on a specially designed software platform. The platform tracks everything from academic outcomes to leadership skills. Since credits are defined and certified by individual schools, the system is far from one-size-fits-all. The transcripts are also recognised by university admissions, much like UCAS here in the UK.
Access more examples: Rethinking Assessment's recent publication Rethinking assessment in education: The case for change (Lucas, 2021) articulates a clear case for changing assessment and includes a rich palette of examples and promising practice.
How can schools support the movement
We want to involve everyone with an interest in changing assessment, and we look forward to working with teachers, parents, students, employers, policy-makers to open up a space for this complex debate.
We are holding a discussion with Kate Green MP, the shadow secretary of state for education, in July and everyone is welcome to join in the discussion. This follows on from a discussion we held in January with Robert Halfon MP, chair of the Education Select Committee, who outlined his vision for a reformed education and assessment system (see further information).
You can also sign up to the Rethinking Assessment newsletter, get involved in Rethinking Assessment's community challenges, or find out more about supporting workable pilots of new assessment approaches.
We are also supporting the National Education Union's call for a fair and equitable reform of our exam system and will be responding to the National Baccalaureate Trust's open consultation (2021).
Elena Wilson is Policy Manager for The Edge Foundation, which is an independent foundation working to give all young people the knowledge, skills and behaviours they need to flourish in their future life and work. Visit www.edge.co.uk
Further information & resources
Bohunt Sixth Form: For (doing) goodness' sake, please rethink GCSEs! Rethinking Assessment, May 2021: https://bit.ly/3i0qdOJ
DfE: Employer Skills Survey 2019, October 2020: https://bit.ly/3fZCoZt
Edge: Skills shortages in the UK economy, January 2021: https://bit.ly/3fxcCwE
Edge: An Introduction to Teacher Externships: https://bit.ly/3c4oiEN
Edge: Future Learning: www.edge.co.uk/edge-future-learning/efl-training/
Edge: For details of the webinar with Kate Green MP, which is due to take place on July 6, see https://bit.ly/3vDmWsm and to watch the January webinar with Robert Halfon MP, go to https://bit.ly/3yMJucd
Lucas: Rethinking assessment in education: The case for change, Rethinking Assessment, 2021: https://rethinkingassessment.com/our-findings/
Mastery Transcript Consortium: https://mastery.org/what-we-do/mastery-transcript/
Minero: How three interlocking pedagogies can change the world, Edutopia, September 2016: https://edut.to/3c58QZg
National Baccalaureate Trust: Towards A National Baccalaureate for England (consultation closes October 15), April 2021: https://bit.ly/3zvVY8x
NEU: For details of the National Education Union's secondary assessment campaign, visit https://neu.org.uk/campaigns/assessment
Rethinking Assessment: For details on the Rethinking Assessment campaign, including its newsletter and community challenges, email. by emailing rosie.clayton@rethinkingassessment.com or visit https://rethinkingassessment.com/
Skills Builder Partnership: www.skillsbuilder.org
Young Lives, Young Futures: King's College London & Edge Foundation: www.ylyf.co.uk
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Away | Movie review
Zoe Tamara
We've seen just about every variation of a drama revolving around a pair of unlikely friends done over a thousand times. Their relationship develops over the course of the film, usually much to one's chagrin: they take on the world together for a brief time, they proclaim their love, they fight, and then they make up right before the movie concludes with one of their deaths. It's a classic setup that, when done well, can be timeless. Away is yet another feature part of this kindred spirits subgenre, but one that unfortunately fails to make a lasting impression.
Our rough-around-the-edges female protagonist, Ria (Juno Temple), runs away from her abusive boyfriend/pimp, Dex (Matt Ryan) – after stealing a large amount of drugs and cash – to Blackpool, the "Las Vegas of the North", and the city in the off-season provides the eerie abandoned-carnival backdrop for the unfolding drama. Her relationship to Joseph, a misanthropic middle-aged man in the throes of a deep depression (Timothy Spall) remains unclear for the first half of the film, despite the intense nature of their shared moments. We eventually come to learn through a series of flashbacks that he inadvertently helped Ria in her escape from Dex, and supposedly this is the foundation of their friendship. The pair somehow end up in Blackpool together and in a very manic pixie dream girl-esque fashion, Ria pesters Joseph to lighten up and let go until real life catches up with them in the form of a very angry Dex.
Where this film succeeds is in the visually stunning locations and spectacular lighting. Director David Blair captures perfectly the strangely titillating yet perverse world that is the essence of an empty amusement park. There's a beautiful juxtaposition of the carnival, a place that should be full of life and excitement, and the actual reality of the situation. Unfortunately, the impressive visual composition of Away is not enough to make up for where it lacks in plot and character development.
Despite sincere performances from both actors, one can't help but feel uninspired by the relationship between Ria and Joseph. It's difficult to understand why exactly Ria insists on staying with Joseph in Blackpool and being his friend, particularly because he so aggressively pushes her away. Without establishing this crucial point, the film becomes a tired amalgamation of all the slightly melodramatic expository plot points. Regrettably, Away lacks the kind of engaging, exciting, and understandable central relationship that is so vital for a movie that depends on the characters and their interactions to captivate the audience.
Away is released nationwide on 12th May 2017.
Watch the trailer for Away here:
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Thanks to our friend Donia who posted her kale chips recipe on Facebook and got us started making these.
Grease a large roasting pan (spray oil like Pam works great).
Dump kale into roasting pan.
Squirt with a little oil.
Toss till leaves are lightly coated with the oil.
Stir every 2 or 3 minutes.
Roast until it's starting to get crispy. Approximately 10 minutes. Be careful not to let it burn. It will get a little crispier as it cools. Each time we make it we get a little bit better about judging the timing.


Here's a jolt. You don't have to run a marathon in order for your body to get exercise benefits. LISS or "low intensity sustained state" training is low intensity cardio exercising performed for a pro-longed period of time, usually anywhere from 30 to 60 minutes. It's about maintaining your heart rate to about 50% of max heart rate during the exercise period. Consider it the antithesis of HIIT or "high intensity interval training" which focuses on quick bursts of cardio followed by a rest period. This type of cardio raises your heart rate fast from 75 to 90% of max heart rate and can cause an "after-burn effect", where your body continues to burn fat even after you have stopped exercising. The problem with high intensity workouts is that they cannot be maintained for long periods of time. LISS provides the opportunity to exercise at lower intensity as an offset. LISS exercises include walking, bicycling and basically almost every activity that you can sustain for 30 to 60 minutes. Consider walking your dog for 30 minutes a LISS exercise.
Although the extra time spent in a LISS workout does burn calories, experts agree that it is not the best way to burn fat and lose weight. However, LISS does have valid benefits that should make it a part of any workout regimen.
For those with high intensity exercise schedules, LISS provides for an active rest or recovery day that keeps the heart and limbs working to assist in maintaining heart rate and regenerating and conditioning damaged muscles. As in a cool down, these activities reduce post workout stiffness. LISS can also be performed after a workout, as a long, pleasant cool down.
For non-conditioned newcomers to exercise LISS is a great way to step into an exercise regime without being intimidated. Waking on the treadmill or swimming is much easier to engage in compared with the idea of a tough TRX class, and over time will build up muscle and stamina for more intense workouts with minimal injury risk. Consequently, promoting the format should result in more people getting into an exercise regime. Something is better than nothing and going hard in a psycho spin class is not for everyone. Also, the simplicity of engaging in these types of exercises makes it easier to maintain over time. Per a 2015 study in published in Sports Medicine – Open, low-intensity exercise led to better exercise adherence.
LISS workouts can provide a relaxing alternative and distraction to stressful situations.
So here is the upshot of all this, you don't have to go hard and you don't have to go home when it comes to exercising. LISS provides an opportunity for everyone to get into the exercise game and reap the benefits.


Will Modicare Work for India?
Dubbed "Modicare" by the media, the NHPM is estimated to be the biggest government-funded health insurance program globally. More than 100 million of India's poorest families – that's some 500 million people and about 40% of the population — will get free health coverage of Rs. 500,000 ($6,893) a year for secondary and tertiary hospitalization. The insurance will cover more than 1,350 procedures including cancer treatments, coronary bypass, angioplasty and knee replacements. It will also include charges for pre-and post-hospitalization, diagnostics, medicines, etc.
The NHPM is part of Ayushman Bharat (Healthy India), a two-pronged initiative of the Modi government. The other component focuses on setting up 150,000 health and wellness centers across the country. These will provide comprehensive primary health care including free essential drugs and diagnostic services. Modi launched the first center in April 2018. The government has allocated Rs. 1,200 crore ($165 million) to establish the centers.
The government expects the NHPM to cost around Rs. 10,000 crore to Rs. 12,000 crore ($1.3 billion to $1.6 billion) a year as of now. This will be paid for by the central and the state governments (and union territories) in 60:40 ratio. So far, 31 of the 36 state governments and union territories have signed up for it. They can choose to implement the scheme through an insurance company or directly through a trust/society or use an integrated model. The beneficiaries, who will be identified on the basis of deprivation and occupational criteria using the 2011 socio-economic caste census, will be able to access the services anywhere in the country in government hospitals and in participating private hospitals (provided that their states have signed up). What's more, it will be a paperless and cashless transaction for them.
There is also no doubt that this is a much needed move for India. A report by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) on the NHPM notes that more than 80% of India's population does not have any significant health insurance coverage. Some two-thirds of health care spending is out-of- pocket, and every year more than 60 million Indians are pushed into poverty because of medical expenses. A strong health care program is imperative to power a country's economic development, but India has so far under-invested in it. The government's health care expenditure, at 1.25% of the GDP, is among the lowest in the world.
For Indu Bhushan, CEO of the NHPM, the biggest target is to "significantly reduce the impoverishing impact" of health care expenditures on the poor, along with expanding health care access and improving the quality of care in tier 2 and tier 3 cities and rural areas. "We hope that the program will revolutionize health care in the country," says Bhushan.
Take the current health care infrastructure in the country. According to industry estimates, there is less than one doctor and around 1.3 beds per thousand people. Some 70% of health care services are provided by the private sector (which is many times more expensive than the government services), and the majority of the quality health care infrastructure is in the top 20 cities. This basically means that to service the population that the NHPM is targeting, the bulk of which is at present underserved and in rural areas, will require a huge expansion in the delivery system. Also, since the majority of the in-patient beds for tertiary care is from the private sector, it is imperative that the government gets the private sector on board for this scheme.
"It's not clear where the money is going to come from. And that, I think, is going to be a critical element that will have to be addressed because, health care being a state subject in India, the central government has heretofore played a minimal role in financing it," says Burns. Pointing to the Rs. 2,000 crore ($275 million) that has been allocated by the government so far to the NHMP for financial year 2018-2019, Shailender Kumar Hooda, associate professor at the Institute for Studies in Industrial Development (ISID), a New Delhi-based policy research organization, says: "The proposed budget amount will fall short to make the scheme functional, effectively." Hooda adds that estimates from the National Sample Survey 2014 indicate that the medical bill of the population that is expected to be covered under the NHPM was over Rs. 18,000 crore ($2.4 billion) at current price (i.e., after adjusting for inflation).
Girdhar Gyani, director-general of the Association of Healthcare Providers (India), thinks that the government has not done its homework adequately. He points out that "because of the low premium, many insurance companies have not come forward," and that the rates of many of the medical procedures listed in the NHPM are "not only low, but completely unviable." Rana Mehta, partner and leader of the health care practice at PwC, feels that given the low rates, very few service providers would be willing to join in with their existing facilities, let alone build new infrastructure to service the scheme. H. Sudarshan Ballal, nephrologist and chairman of Manipal Health Enterprises, a leading private-sector health care provider, says there is need for "serious dialogue," and that "reasonable" reimbursement rates need to be worked out.
Bhushan is quick to counter these criticisms, some of which he thinks are "blown out of proportion." The biggest challenge for him, he says, is the supply-side constraint — how to expand the capacity and improve the quality of services to meet the demand that is going to be created through this scheme. Bhushan concedes that "there is no quick fix," for this. It will have to be through public-private partnerships, incentivizing the private sector to expand its services and improving the public-sector services. But funding, he insists, is "absolutely not a problem and will largely come from the government's own resources." According to Bhushan, the current allocation for the program is notional. It's a placeholder. He points out that this is the usual practice whenever there is a new scheme. "There is no cap on funding for this project, and we will go back to the ministry for more resources as and when required." For this year, Bhushan has already asked for an additional Rs. 4,000 crore ($551 million).
Bhushan's 35-year career, prior to the NHPM, included being director-general, East Asia Department, at the Asian Development Bank, senior economist with the World Bank Group, and an officer of the Indian Administrative Service. He has a doctorate in health economics and a post-graduate degree in health sciences from Johns Hopkins University. Bhushan is believed to have been handpicked by Modi for the job — which is perhaps why he has the confidence that he will get the resources and the support he needs for seeing it through.
Bhushan now needs to walk his talk. Or else, as Ravi Aron, professor at the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School, cautions, the low rates fixed by the government could result in "adverse selection" of both hospitals that agree to be empaneled in the scheme and doctors that work in these hospitals. "As a result of this twin adverse selection, the quality of care offered to patients under the NHPM may well be much lower than care obtained by patients that pay out-of-pocket," says Aron.
Gupta observes that experience from earlier health care programs in India suggests that there will be "substantial heterogeneity" across states in "enthusiasm for a central initiative, as well as progress in implementation." India's track record in implementing large social/welfare schemes also doesn't inspire confidence. Recent large initiatives such as demonetization, Adhaar (unique identification) and the goods and services tax have been embroiled in glitches and controversy. "In my view, they should push the portability and other such complicated benefits of the NHPM to a later stage and try to make this work at the state level first," says Gupta. Burns suggests that India might be better off piloting this program in a couple of states, one wealthy and one not so wealthy, learn from that and modify the program before rolling it out nationwide.
Aron agrees. The NHPM, he says, is likely to be "bedeviled by crippling shortages in the short term." Nonetheless, "it is the right way to go. The real benefits of the scheme may come in a time frame of 10 years or more, when health care systems become much more efficient, frugal care delivery mechanisms based on ICT innovations emerge, and the supply of trained clinicians increases." Hooda believes that the most important aspect of NHPM is its future implications — how will it transform the Indian health care system, and in which direction will it move?
It's over to Team Modi now.
Despite critics' misgivings about demonetization, election results in five Indian states point to a Narendra Modi win at the national level in 2019.
Will India's 2018 Budget Spur Growth — and Modi's Re-election?
India's economy is poised to rebound. But realizing the potential requires a smoother absorption of big structural reforms, revived private investment and stable oil prices, say experts.
Ayushman Bharat is National Health Protection Scheme has its origin from Aarogyasri Introduced in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana Governments.
Aarogyasri (Rajiv Aarogyasri) was a flagship healthcare program of the Government of Andhra Pradesh before the AP Re-organisation in 2014. After split of state in to Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, Aarogyasri became flagship healthcare scheme of Govt of Telangana and is administered by Aarogyasri Health Care Trust. The new Government of Andhra Pradesh after the state split renamed the scheme in 2014 to Dr NTR Vaidya Seva and is administered by Dr NTR Vaidya Seva Trust. It covers those below the poverty line. The government issues an Aarogyasri card and the beneficiary can use it at government and private hospitals to obtain services free of cost.
Aarogyasri Scheme is the flagship scheme of all health initiatives of the State Government with a mission to provide quality healthcare for the poor. The aim of the Government is to achieve "Health for All". In order to facilitate the effective implementation of the scheme, the State Government set up the Aarogyasri Health Care Trust under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister. The trust is administered by a Chief Executive Officer, an IAS Officer. The trust runs the scheme, in consultation with specialists in the field of healthcare.
The beneficiaries of the scheme, the members of Below Poverty Line (BPL) families, as enumerated and photographed in BPL Ration Card and available in Civil Supplies Department database.
The benefit to the family is on a floater basis i.e. the total reimbursement of Rs.1.50 lakhs can be availed individually or collectively by members of the family. An additional sum of Rs 50,000 is provided as a buffer to take care of expenses if it exceeds the original sum i.e. Rs 1.50 lakhs per family. Excepting cost for cochlear implant surgery with auditory-verbal therapyis reimbursed by the trust up to a maximum of Rs.6.50 lakhs per case.
All transactions are cashless for covered procedures. A BPL beneficiary can go to any hospital either public or private and come out without making any payment to the hospital for the procedures covered under the scheme. The same is the case for diagnostics, if eventually the patient does not end up in undergoing the surgery or therapy.
Hospitals are mandated to conduct free health camp, thereby taking advanced evaluation at the doorstep of patient.
All the Primary Health Centers (PHCs) which are the first contact point, area/district hospitals and network hospitals, are provided with help desks manned by AAROGYA MITHRAs to facilitate the illiterate patients. The Aarogyamithras were selected by the Zilla Samakhyas and Mandal Samakhyas under Indira Kranti Patham (Self Help Groups).
The diseases specifically excluded from the list are high end diseases such as hip and knee replacement, bone morrow, cardiac and liver transplantations, gamma-knife procedures in neuro surgery, assisted devices for cardiac failures etc; and diseases covered by national programmes viz., TB, HIV/AIDS, leprosy, infectious diseases,malaria, filaria, gastroenteritis, jaundice etc.
To the extended RAS covers the treatments, it would no longer be permissible for the BPL holders to apply for relief for medical purposes under Chief Minister Relief Fund (CMRF).
•	Ayushman Bharat – National Health Protection Mission will have a defined benefit cover of Rs. 5 lakh per family per year.
•	Benefits of the scheme are portable across the country and a beneficiary covered under the scheme will be allowed to take cashless benefits from any public/private empanelled hospitals across the country.
•	Ayushman Bharat – National Health Protection Mission will be an entitlement based scheme with entitlement decided on the basis of deprivation criteria in the SECC database.
•	The beneficiaries can avail benefits in both public and empanelled private facilities.
•	To control costs, the payments for treatment will be done on package rate (to be defined by the Government in advance) basis.
•	One of the core principles of Ayushman Bharat – National Health Protection Mission is to co-operative federalism and flexibility to states.
•	For giving policy directions and fostering coordination between Centre and States, it is proposed to set up Ayushman Bharat National Health Protection Mission Council (AB-NHPMC) at apex level Chaired by Union Health and Family Welfare Minister.
•	States would need to have State Health Agency (SHA) to implement the scheme.
•	To ensure that the funds reach SHA on time, the transfer of funds from Central Government through Ayushman Bharat – National Health Protection Mission to State Health Agencies may be done through an escrow account directly.
•	A Strong Network of 1.5 Lakhs Health and Wellness Centers across the Country would constitute Foundation of India's new Healthcare Systems.
•	It will cover more than 10 Crore Poor and Vulnerable Families of the Society.
•	The Support from Trained Nurses and Health Workers increase the Availability near Home in Rural Areas.
•	Vulnerable Sections of the Society would have access to Healthcare to almost all medical and Surgical Conditions that can occur in Lifetime.
•	Package Rates decided by Government for Private Hospitals would help in keeping the cost low.
•	It will generate Employment Especially for Women would help in Economic Empowerment of Women.
•	Major Challenge would be Implementation and Governance of the Scheme.
•	The private hospitals are based on profitability motives and fixing rates of procedures would increase chances of hospitals neglecting poor Patients. The Healthcare is a goal under SDG 2030 Goal-3 of good health. The scheme would ensure proper healthcare facilities for most vulnerable sections of the society.
•	By preventive disease at early stage can make a change.For example, early detection of diabetes at the age of 35 can avoid the kidney failure at age of 50.Also schemes exclude outpatient health care that is responsible for 70% of health expenditure.
•	Budget allocation of 2000 crore scheme doesn't serve the purpose.Amount is meager as compared to scope of the scheme.
•	The schemes is far from universal health coverage as it exclude 80 crore (60%) of the population.


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Four Years After Smoking Blunt, Elon Musk Buys Twitter
June 20, 2022 Posted in Business, Hightimes
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Billionaire and self-described free speech champion Elon Musk will acquire Twitter, Inc. according to an April 25 press release. The move will make Twitter private and set off a firestorm of speculation—ranging from whether or not Musk will allow Donald J. Trump to return, to the possibility of an edit button.
Twitter, Inc. entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by an entity wholly owned by Musk, for $54.20 per share in cash in a transaction valued at approximately $44 billion.
Musk is the world's richest person, according to Forbes and most other lists. Bloomberg estimates he has $3 billion in cash, give or take. Musk described $13 billion in bank financing secured by Twitter and the $12.5 billion backed by a pledge of Tesla stake, but it's not clear how he's going to come up with the remaining $21 billion to complete the transaction.
The billionaire is citing the move as a victory for free speech, while others disagree on the ethics of the deal and its implications for the future of social media.
"Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated," said Musk. "I also want to make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spam bots, and authenticating all humans. Twitter has tremendous potential—I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it."
Yesss!!! pic.twitter.com/0T9HzUHuh6
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 25, 2022
With 85.2 million followers and counting, Musk ranks number 8 in the list of the Top 10 Most Followed Twitter Accounts, trailing people like Justin Bieber and former president Barack Obama. He's gained millions of followers just in the past week or so. But his use of the micro-blogging social media app has been scrutinized and analyzed. The Guardian criticized Musk's use of Twitter, calling the relationship "chaotic and crass."
Per the agreement, Twitter stockholders will receive $54.20 in cash for each share of Twitter common stock that they own upon closing of the proposed transaction. The purchase price represents a 38% premium to Twitter's latest closing stock price.
"The Twitter Board conducted a thoughtful and comprehensive process to assess Elon's proposal with a deliberate focus on value, certainty, and financing," Bret Taylor, Twitter's Independent Board Chair said. The proposed transaction will deliver a substantial cash premium, and we believe it is the best path forward for Twitter's stockholders."
Parag Agrawal, Twitter's CEO said, "Twitter has a purpose and relevance that impacts the entire world. Deeply proud of our teams and inspired by the work that has never been more important."
Elon Musk and Cannabis
Does the 420 in the share value sound familiar? On August 7, 2018, Musk tweeted he was mulling over taking Tesla private, quoting a price of $420 per share for the buyout.
Am considering taking Tesla private at $420. Funding secured.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 7, 2018
He told the New York Times that he's aware of how popular weed is, but he's not sure how it could help productivity, to be candid. "It seemed like better karma at $420 than at $419," Musk said. "But I was not on weed, to be clear." That all changed a month later on a podcast appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience.
On September 6, 2018, Musk smoked a blunt on episode #1169 of The Joe Rogan Experience. Rogan himself became embroiled in the topic of free speech due to his Spotify fiasco, over concerns the podcaster was sharing information that wasn't medically sound.
Due to the fallout of Musk's many investments because of the blunt stunt, Jimi Devine asked for High Times, "Did Elon Musk smoke the most expensive blunt of all time?" Even Musk's NASA-associated security clearances came into question.
With the power of Twitter at his fingertips, a lot could change in the world of social media, and inevitably, politics and free speech will intersect.
The transaction, which was approved by the Twitter Board of Directors, is expected to close in 2022, pending the approval of Twitter stockholders.
The post Four Years After Smoking Blunt, Elon Musk Buys Twitter appeared first on High Times.
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Ingredients: Rice, ocean white fish meal, barley, potato protein, olive oil, whole linseed, fish oil, vegetable gravy, peas, alfalfa, sodium chloride, natural seaweed, chicory extract, lysine, calcium carbonate, DL-methionine, yucca extract, threonine, JWB special ingredients.
Contains: Min 23% fish, min 28% rice, min 10% barley.
TYPICAL ANALYSIS: Protein 30%, oil 15%, fibre 3%, ash 8%, omega-3 fatty acids 2.8%, omega-6 fatty acids 1.6%.


text:
Slain Staten Island mom was service member naturalized by Obama
By Larry Celona and Joe Marino
June 22, 2019 | 9:37pm | Updated June 23, 2019 | 2:46pm
US service members outside Alla Ausheva's home; Alla Ausheva G.N. Miller (main)
Power outages hit Staten Island after fire at Con Ed substation
AG Barr made decision to not bring charges against Eric Garner cop: official
How 1969 Mets made Vietnam feel like home for one soldier
Staten Island man drowns in Delaware River during rafting trip
Her American dream — for herself and her two toddlers — ended in a grisly nightmare.
A Russian-born Air National Guard member was bludgeoned to death, and her young children were drowned, in their Staten Island home Saturday morning — seven years, nearly to the day, after she took her citizenship oath in a star-spangled White House ceremony.
The father, Shane Walker, 36, who is also in the Air Force, was seen on surveillance video stumbling out of the family's brick two-story home and into his car, apparently drunk, soon after the massacre, law-enforcement sources said.
He is now suspected of killing his girlfriend, Alla Ausheva, 37, and their children, Ivan, 2, and Elia, 3. No charges had been filed by Saturday evening.
Ausheva was found face-down on a bed; she had suffered severe face and head trauma, the sources said.
The children appeared to have been drowned in the bathtub, the sources said.
The couple was stationed at Brooklyn's Fort Hamilton, they said.
Walker had been charged with misdemeanor assault in an earlier incident at the home on Palisade Street near Lily Pond Road, officials said.
"She was a beautiful person," said a distraught pal, a woman who was one of a dozen emotional friends and colleagues, some in military fatigues, who visited the home throughout the day Saturday.
Ausheva was often seen in the neighborhood, waiting for an express bus, sometimes in uniform, neighbors said.
Mourners joined in a prayer circle as Medical Examiner's Office staff began removing the bagged bodies Saturday evening.
The first signs of trouble had come just after 7:30 a.m., when Walker drove away from the home and over the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, rear-ending a box truck just over the Brooklyn side on the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, police sources said.
Cops picked up the distraught man as he walked along the expressway, and took him to Maimonides Medical Center for evaluation.
Three hours later, one of Ausheva's supervisor's went to the home to check on her, and found the front door open and smoke filling the house, a law-enforcement source told The Post.
Inside, she found the bodies.
"I received a call from work," the still-emotional supervisor told The Post when reached by phone Saturday night. "Someone called me to go there and check on her," she said.
"I'm sorry," she added, requesting that her name not be used. "It's just a tragedy. She didn't deserve it. Honestly, there are no words."
Cops and firefighters arrived at 10:45 a.m., and the victims were declared dead at the scene, NYPD Assistant Chief Kenneth Corey told reporters there.
Ausheva had come to the United States from Russia in 2011 after winning a green-card lottery.
Barack Obama and Alla AushevaRon Sachs/CNP
Within three months, flush with patriotism for her new home, she had joined the New York Army National Guard, working her first military job as a maintenance technician.
"I always wanted to live here," she told The Post a year later.
"This is really a country where you can pursue your dream and do what you want to do."
On Independence Day 2012, she joined two dozen other foreign-born US military members in a naturalization ceremony presided over by then-President Barack Obama.
"All of you did something profound: You chose to serve," he told them. "You put on the uniform of a country that was not yet fully your own. You displayed the values that we celebrate every Fourth of July — duty, responsibility and patriotism."
The experience was unreal, Ausheva said afterward.
"I still cannot believe that I saw the president, and he said he is proud of me," she said.
"It's incredible."
Additional reporting by Stephanie Pagones, Khristina Narizhnaya and Laura Italiano
Filed under air force , murders , staten island
Student busted brazenly cheating during test at elite Bron...


text:
Q: Uncaught (in promise): TypeError: on(...).subscribe is not a function in InAppBrowser's event ionic 2 I want to use InAppBrowser for oauth2 in my app .
I created a service for this target.
import { Injectable } from '@angular/core';
import { Platform, NavController } from 'ionic-angular';
import { InAppBrowser, InAppBrowserEvent, InAppBrowserObject } from '@ionic-native/in-app-browser';
import { AppSettings } from './appSettings';
import { Observable } from 'rxjs';
import 'rxjs/add/operator/map';
import 'rxjs/add/operator/catch';

@Injectable()
export class LoginService {

constructor( private platform: Platform, private iab: InAppBrowser ) {
}

login() {
    this.platform.ready().then(() => {
        const url = AppSettings.OAUTH.ACCESS_TOKEN_URI + '?client_id=' + AppSettings.OAUTH.CLIENT_ID + '&client_secret=' + AppSettings.OAUTH.CLIENT_SECRET + '&redirect_uri=http://localhost/callback&response_type=token&scope=' + AppSettings.OAUTH.SCOPE;
        let browser: InAppBrowserObject = this.iab.create( url, '_blank', 'location=yes' );

        browser.on( 'loadstart' ).subscribe(( event: InAppBrowserEvent ) => {
            console.log( event.url );
            if ( event.url.startsWith( "http://localhost/callback" ) ) {
                browser.on( "exit" ).subscribe(( event ) => { } );
                browser.close();
                var requestToken = ( event.url ).split( "code=" )[1];
                return requestToken;
            }
        }, err => console.log( err ) )

    } );
}
}

but on fire loadstart event get error:
   Error: Uncaught (in promise): TypeError: browser.on(...).subscribe is not a function

why throw this error ?

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Officer accused of making up crime
Kate Scotter
Published: 12:00 PM May 18, 2010 Updated: 6:15 PM October 10, 2020
Kate ScotterThe ex-girlfriend of a Norfolk police officer told a jury how her former partner pretended his Audi TT was stolen to make a false insurance claim.Kate Scotter
The ex-girlfriend of a Norfolk police officer told a jury how her former partner pretended his Audi TT was stolen to make a false insurance claim.
Yarmouth officer Simon Hood, 43, went on trial at Norwich Crown Court yesterday charged with fraud.
It is alleged that from March 12 and May 31 last year, he made a false representation to the Royal Bank of Scotland acting on behalf of Tesco Insurance to make a gain by lying about the theft of the car.
The court heard how it is he allegedly concocted the plan with Peter Marsh, 41, of Tillett Close, Ormesby, near Yarmouth, who is also on trial. Both men deny the charge.
During the first day of the trial, jurors heard evidence from Hood's former girlfriend Suzanne Coates who claimed he confessed everything to her in a bid to rebuild their relationship.
She then went on to tell her sister, a police sergeant, her mum, a prison officer, and her best friend, a police officer, who then reported Hood to the police, sparking an investigation.
Ambulance service worker Ms Coates said: "His daughter rang me on the day it had been stolen and I spoke to Simon about it. He said he was gutted.
"A few days later I jokingly said to him that I thought he had done it himself. Straightaway I thought it was suspicious. He had pointed it out earlier in the day to one of his work colleagues and he didn't want to look for it, he said it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack, which I thought was a bit strange.
"A few days or a week later, he had been speaking to me about getting back together. I said he would have to be honest with me and would have to tell me the truth about what happened to the car.
"He said he did it but I couldn't tell anyone. He said he did it with Peter. Peter had a key and took the car away and it was going to be taken to bits and got rid of so it was never found."
It is claimed that Hood had wanted to sell his Audi TT, which he bought in 2008, but had been disappointed when it "took a dive in value".
He then "entered into an arrangement" with Marsh, who runs a motor trading business where cars can be scrapped.
Cross examining Ms Coates, Michael Clare, defending Hood, said: "My client says you are not telling the truth. He says that it's not true that he ever said to you that his car had not been stolen. He never said to you that he agreed with Mr Marsh to make a fraudulent insurance claim."
Ms Coates said: "I'm not lying. I'm telling the truth about what he told me."
It is alleged the car was stolen from outside Gorleston police station on March 13 last year. Hood is alleged to have been on duty at the time and had pointed the car out to a colleague earlier in the day. This was denied.


A growing trend in the asthma market is the development of child-friendly nebulizers. These are standard nebulizers on the inside, but on the outside they are shaped to appeal to young children. Two manufacturers leading this trend are Medquip and Graham-Fields's John Bunn line of products.
As all the industry knows, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced changes to oxygen payments last Nov. 1, 2006. Within the ruling are provisions for the repair and maintenance of equipment. However, there is a gray area concerning what happens after a beneficiary owns the equipment. If transfer of ownership occurs after three years, but the provider is still responsible for equipment maintenance for five years, what happens in between?
As the New Year begins, it is worthwhile to review your operations to incorporate new compliance requirements into your business and to anticipate changes that lie ahead. The new requirements include new supplier standards and the accreditation requirement, and changes to oxygen and capped rental equipment reimbursement under the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA). The Office of Inspector General (OIG) also issued several Advisory Opinions in 2006 that are directly applicable to suppliers. Finally, of course, all suppliers are waiting with some consternation for the final rule on competitive bidding, which remained unpublished as of press time.
Do You Really Expect Me to Pay for This?
If you ask any person who has to collect accounts receivables whether they would rather collect from an insurance company versus a patient or family member, odds are they will choose the insurance company every time. Collecting for medical expenses is tough. Products and services provided by those in the HME industry are not something generally found on a Christmas or birthday wish list.
Even If It's Wearable, It May Not Be the Right Fit!


text:
Take a stroll through Busey Woods and reconsider a few things
Seth Fein April 13, 2020 - 6:00am January 24, 2022 - 12:36pm
My children have become fairly obsessed with the movie Onward since we first saw it in theaters, before the pandemic crippled our collective way of life. Now that it's available to stream, they can recite the lines, and pretend that magic spells do exist, and have the power to make things, and themselves, very different. I am not sad about this at all; it is a movie that speaks to me in big ways, having two boys of my own. They now both have very special magic staffs that they found in Busey Woods in Urbana recently. Our oldest son, Ellis, recently told me that he was working on a brand new spell, a spell that will cast off the coronavirus from everyone, "except a few people." When I asked him which people he was referring to he said "I am not going to tell you, but trust me, we don't want them around."
I feel that, kid.
The simple history of Busey Woods goes something like this: It is a preserved patch of what was once known as the "Big Grove." In this area, flattened by the Wisconsin glaciation, it was an anomaly amidst the prairie. Huge oak trees dominated the forest. It was a small but substantial patch of what is now North Urbana, estimated to be about ten square miles. As settlers developed the area, the trees were used as lumber primarily, but large tracts of it were cleared to make way for railways and manufacturing facilities.
Indeed, the name Busey is from the same Busey family that prominently settled Urbana. The woods' final private owner was Catherine Klassen, the great great granddaughter of Samuel T. Busey, a lieutenant colonel in the Civil War. He was also a State Representative who unseated Representative Joseph Cannon from Danville in 1891, a decade before Cannon would go on to become one of the most powerful Speakers of the House in Congress. But I digress. A different article, perhaps, for a different day.
When Klassen put the land up for sale to become an industrial park in the 1970s, a group of environmentalists formed an organization called The Committee for the Preservation of Busey Woods. It was led by a man named Donald Hansen, and they found a way to turn it into a nature preserve. It was then donated to the University of Illinois Foundation, who then leased it to Urbana Park District. Fast forward to 1979, the Anita Purves Nature Center was built on the east end of the preserve off Broadway Avenue and dedicated in honor of Ms. Purves, an activist who worked at Leal Elementary School teaching nature study in an enrichment program.
Photo by Seth Fein.
Today, it remains a local treasure. The Center has been expanded upon, and there have been other additions worthy of reverence over its 40 years of existence. As a kid growing up in Urbana, it was a place you went to on field trips, and if you had the sort of parents who believed in the importance of this kind of engagement, with your family too. It sits next to Crystal Lake Pool, so oftentimes, my Mom would force a small hike before we hit the water to work up a sweat. It was a place I loved as a child. I have such fond memories of creating my own dimensions inside of its towering canopy, dreaming up new identities for myself, and nemeses to go to battle with.
Then, I grew older, and I stopped going, almost entirely. I never stopped dreaming, that's for sure, but I stopped finding places like this to dream.
I am not much of a "nature person", by and large. I enjoy nature, but I do not seek out trails and hikes or climbing and exploration of any kind. If I am being honest, I've been too caught up in the modern moment to spend time doing nothing more than just walking around with no real intention outside of just appreciating what is in front of me, daydreaming about what might be or what once was. It's just who I am, I suppose. I like going to parks, and spending time with friends, drinking wine on the sly in Hessel with friends to chat with, or having a picnic lunch with my family, after playing a sport of some kind. But walking around into the abyss with no intention never appealed to me, not ever, as an adult.
That's all changed now.
If you haven't ever been to Busey Woods, you should absolutely go. It's sort of hard to process that it even exists here in Urbana, since we're one of the most topographically challenged areas in the entire country. There's a majesty to both the little boardwalk — which is just one third of a mile long — and to the foot trails that have been paved by literally decades of people doing nothing more than walking around just to breathe in the air and catch a bluejay or two, maybe some deer sipping water from the creek. When you enter, you cross a wooden bridge that makes you feel like you are truly about to enter some place else. It is so bucolic that I sometimes feel my knees start to buckle a bit.
Photo from LocalWiki.
In Busey Woods, our family has come to find a new understanding about what is important about being together, and about appreciating where we live. They've indeed found magic staffs, and Phoenix gems to activate them, as it were. They have been manufacturing plots of good vs. evil, nature vs. machine, COVID vs. the chance to just play with some friends.
In Busey Woods, I've found my own sort of magic, too. I no longer care what is in my email while I am there. I do not wish to check Twitter or even care the slightest bit about which local politico typed a diatribe on Facebook about something I probably agree with but would have presented differently. I simply do not care at the moment, and it feels glorious.
I have a newfound appreciation for what Busey Woods is to this community, and why it is so valuable to who we are as a culture. I've heard people in the past say it's too small, that it's nothing special. I might have even nodded in agreement, allowing my ignorance to take precedence above my past knowledge and memories of the place. On the contrary, I think it is reflective of what makes us special: its size, its history, and its utility.
Indeed, there is magic in those woods, if you are willing to look for it. I am certainly glad I did.
CultureUrbana
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text:
John Bannon and Stacey Neumann receive "Lawyer of the Year" recognition from Best Lawyers
John Bannon and Stacey Neumann have been named Portland "Lawyer of the Year" in their respective practice areas by Best Lawyers for 2022.
These recognitions are awarded to individual lawyers with the highest overall peer-feedback for a specific practice area and geographic region. Only one lawyer is recognized as the "Lawyer of the Year" for each specialty and location.
John Bannon was named the Best Lawyers 2022 Litigation – Land Use and Zoning "Lawyer of the Year" in Portland. Bannon was also selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2022 in the fields of Land Use and Zoning Law and Litigation – Land Use and Zoning. Bannon is a Partner of Murray Plumb & Murray and Chair of Land Use & Environmental Law Practice Group. He is a resident of West Cumberland.
Stacey Neumann was named the Best Lawyers 2022 Criminal Defense: White-Collar "Lawyer of the Year" in Portland. Neumann was also selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2022 in the fields of Criminal Defense: General Practice and Criminal Defense: White-Collar. Neumann is Partner and Chair of Criminal/White Collar Defense and Employment Practice Groups at Murray Plumb & Murray. She is a resident of Scarborough.
Six attorneys from Murray Plumb & Murray recognized by Best Lawyers for 2022
Estate planning documents every college student should have in place


MOLECOR TECHNOLOGY YIELDS RENTABILITY TO THE WATER INDUSTRY WITH ITS NEW TECHNOLOGY FOR PVC-O PIPES.
cost reduction and lower CO2 emissions. PVC-O pipes are today perhaps the solution that better fits this difficult equation. Molecular Orientation is a physical process that modifies plastic's molecular structure, where amorphous PVC-U structure is reorganized into a layered structure that confers outstanding mechanical properties to plastic pipes: impact resistance, fatigue resistance, flexibility, etc.
PVC-O pipes are an environmentally and friendly solution for water transportation according to the "Estimation of energy consumption and CO2 emissions due to production, usage, and final usage of PVC, HDPE, PP and CAST IRON" of the Department of Engineering Projects, UNIVERSITAT POLITECNICA DE CATALUNYA (Barcelona, December 2005). This report shows the CO2 emissions and energy consumption during the whole LCA (pipe's life cycle) which includes raw material production, pipe manufacturing, and usage life of pipes for water transportation comparing PVC-O, PVC-U, PE and CAST IRON pipes. The report concludes that PVC-O pipes are the best choice for water transportation.
Molecor Tech has developed an air based technology in which no water is involved, which makes a safer, cleaner, more efficient and more profitable process. It is a very flexible system able to work continuously with an extrusion line, or to do it with batches.
The considerable enhancement of the mechanical properties results in less consumption of raw material for the same performance, and this is obviously very positive for all the players in the water industry. Less material means less oil consumption, but at the same time, more hydraulic capacity within the pipe, and more efficiency for pipe installers.
The range of products manufactured by Molecor' Technology goes from DN 4'' to 30'' and up to 365 psi, opening the way to new and very profitable markets for plastic pipes, which were up to now closed.
Molecor' last generation of PVC-O technology allows simple transformations of standard PVC-U lines into PVC-O lines, bringing extreme savings for pipe manufacturers, and great benefits for potential pipe customers and end users that will welcome this high class and environmentally friendly solution in this global challenging situation.