text:
This segment is part of the The State Of Science spotlight
How COVID-19 Reveals Existing Biases Against The Disability Community
Ingrid Tischer and her husband Ken Stein. Credit: Christopher Egusa
This segment is part of The State of Science, a series featuring science stories from public radio stations across the United States. This story was reported by Christopher Egusa on KALW.
In early July, I visit Ingrid Tischer at the Berkeley apartment she's shared with her husband, Ken, for the past 10 years. When I arrive, she's already sitting outside at the top of a gently sloping ramp that leads up to the door.
We're both vaccinated, but we're still taking precautions: masks, outdoors, and social distancing. That's because Ingrid has a severe disability.
"I have muscular dystrophy," she tells me, "which is a neuromuscular disorder that I've had my entire life because it's genetic."
Muscular dystrophy is a progressive muscle wasting disease. It impacts her mobility, including her ability to walk unassisted. Ingrid says she's most impacted by having a weak respiratory system and uses an oxygen device called a biPap to help her breathe.
Earlier in the pandemic, her doctor told her that if she got COVID, it would likely be a death sentence. "I'd never heard my situation put in such stark, certain terms," she says.
Ingrid Tischer. Credit: Christopher Egusa
Ingrid is in her mid 50s, with graying brown hair and bright blue eyes. She leads fundraising for DREDF, a disability rights and legal advocacy organization. She's also a writer — she's written a draft of a novel and has a blog called "Tales From the Crip." In addition to a brilliant title, the blog is full of her personal reflections about navigating a world in which the needs and feelings of people with disabilities go mostly unseen and ignored.
When COVID hit in the spring of 2020, Ingrid was terrified. Because of the risk of infection and smoke from the wildfires that summer, she stopped leaving her house entirely, developed severe anxiety and depression, and began noticing a host of new health issues.
Her feet and legs began swelling and breathing became even more difficult than usual. Her doctor worried she might be developing congestive heart failure, but told her to stay home rather than come in for tests and risk infection. It's a common story. A recent survey by the disability advocacy group #NoBodyIsDisposable found that many disabled people have delayed medical care for over a year due to concerns about COVID-19.
The Lion's Den Of The Lion's Den
It all came to a head one morning in January of this year when Ingrid fell trying to get to the bathroom. She wasn't hurt physically, but it left her shaken. She and Ken decided she had to go to the emergency room, the last place she wanted to be.
"We didn't know if what we were doing was going into a situation where we would never see each other again." – Ingrid Tischer
For a disabled person, going into a medical setting can feel like going into battle. A recent study published in the journal Health Affairs found that over 80% of physicians believe that people with disabilities have a lower quality of life.
"Nobody's about to blame doctors and nurses after what they've been doing and what they've been through over the last year," says Jessica Lehman, Executive Director of the advocacy group Senior Disability Action. "But, it's the nuance of thinking that this person's life is not going to have as much quality, that this person isn't going to have as much as much joy and experience, and adventure and success, in whatever way all of that is defined as somebody without a disability. And so, when you're thinking that way, that's subconsciously going to come into those split second decisions."
Including decisions about medical care.
Ingrid has received her medical care from Kaiser since the mid 90s. "The providers, the doctors, the nurses, everybody else, for the most part is quite good. And pretty enlightened around disability," she says.
During the first part of her six day hospital stay, that continued to be true. She was admitted to an acute floor for neurological conditions. There, she was diagnosed with pneumonia, placed on antibiotics and a diuretic for the swelling, and hooked up to a breathing machine. Her physical needs were being met, but her emotional state was still crumbling.
Then she had an experience that completely threw her for a loop.
As her discharge date got closer, Ingrid worried about her life at home after having lost so much function. She'd heard about a special in-patient rehab program that sounded perfect.
Ingrid Tischer recovering after returning from her hospital stay. Credit: Ken Stein
There was just one problem: they don't usually take patients with progressive conditions like Ingrid's. She asked to talk about it with the neurologist who'd been assigned to her.
"I said it really sounds exclusionary," she says. "I didn't say discriminatory, but I said exclusionary."
She and her husband, Ken, say that the neurologist's demeanor suddenly changed and his tone got sharper. She was also in an extremely vulnerable state: lying in bed, suffering from pneumonia, wearing an oxygen mask, and still in acute emotional distress.
"It's all been documented in the chart," she says. "And he said to me, 'Well, look,' and he gestured to my body. And he said, 'Well, look at you. You've always known this was coming.'"
Ken wrote the exchange down directly after the experience. He says the neurologist continued, "'This has been coming for a long time. And you know, there's nothing we can really do about it.' That was in quotes."
Ingrid says she felt like she'd been punched in the gut. And, she interpreted what he said even more darkly.
"He, I thought, was saying, 'Look, you're like, you're past the point of no return. You know, why do you expect us to do anything? You're not worth the resources.' Basically, there's no point."
The exchange sent her spiraling. The next night she had a panic attack, which she'd never experienced before.
Ken visited her the next day. "She was shaking when I went in there," he says. "She was shaking and quivering. And she was sitting up in bed. And she said, 'Ken, I want you to promise me one thing.' And I said, 'What?' And she said, 'that I can come home to die. You'll have me at home to die.'"
She believed she was at the end of the road.
"So this, if you'll excuse the expression," Ingrid says, "this guy's f***ed with my head at a moment when I was extremely vulnerable, even though he probably didn't mean to. I could believe that. But he's a neurologist. He's gotta know."
She was successfully discharged and, with the proper support and exercise regimen, Ken says her condition has completely turned around. "Oh, 180 degrees," he says. "He didn't know what he was talking about."
Many studies have shown that doctors tend to be overconfident in their own diagnostic abilities.
And Ingrid says this experience is far too familiar.
"This was, by far, not even close to the only time I've had an encounter like this with a medical doctor."
The difference, she says, is that this time she was in the midst of a psychiatric emergency.
Devaluing Disabled Lives
Nearly every disabled person I've talked with has their own stories of pain and discrimination. The dismissal and invisibility are common experiences.
"I think in the COVID pandemic we saw the most horrible manifestation of ableism and ageism that I've ever seen." – Jessica Lehman
Jessica Lehman explains that this same bias was playing out across a series of battlegrounds throughout the pandemic.
"I think in the COVID pandemic we saw the most horrible manifestation of ableism and ageism that I've ever seen," she says.
The first of these battlegrounds was the state's Crisis Standards of Care, a document directing hospitals and doctors on how to ration scarce medical care. It attempts to answer the question: who gets treatment and who doesn't?
You may have heard about medical care rationing early in the pandemic, from countries like Italy. As medical supplies ran low, doctors were faced with excruciating choices about who to put on lifesaving treatment.
Across the U.S., ICU beds and ventilators started running low, prompting many states, including California, to review their emergency plans and update their Crisis Standards of Care.
California's guidelines left the door open for elderly and disabled people to be denied care in favor of someone younger or able-bodied. It sent alarm bells through the disability community, and beyond.
Jessica Lehman also lives with a neuromuscular condition. "I remember thinking, 'Oh, my goodness, so I could get COVID and I could go to the hospital,'" she says. "And they might say, 'We don't have enough ICU beds or ventilators and because you have a disability, you don't get one.' And that would be a death sentence."
"It was like seeing everything that I was aware of—the general societal perceptions and prejudices—seeing it in writing and seeing it legitimized and sanctioned." – Jessica Lehman
People in the disability community shared news reports from Oregon and other states where a few doctors denied care to people with disabilities. In California, Santa Clara county began taking inventory of ventilators people had at home. Many disabled people feared they might have their equipment taken away and redistributed.
"It was like seeing everything that I was aware of — the general societal perceptions and prejudices — seeing it in writing and seeing it legitimized and sanctioned," Jessica says. "It was just like, 'Oh my gosh, I don't know when we have faced a threat like this. And what are we going to do?'"
The disability community jumped into action. Within a few weeks, 30 organizations had formed the California Care Rationing Coalition.
And it wasn't just disabled folks. Brandie Sendziak is an attorney with the Independent Living Resource Center San Francisco and cofounder of the online movement #NoBodyIsDisposable.
"It was, you know, the higher weight community, the disabled community, the aging community, all working together from the beginning," she says. "And, and I really think it helped make a big difference that probably wouldn't have happened if only one of the communities had stepped up."
It was kind of like the avengers of advocacy — they had policy groups, legal advocates, and community organizers all working on this one issue: trying to convince the state to revise this document. And the surprising thing is it actually worked.
After many rounds of negotiation and numerous revisions, California's new Crisis Standards of Care now include an entire section that outlines what factors cannot be used to determine healthcare decisions, including disability.
And because of this intersectional coalition they'd developed, they were prepared for the next battleground.
Who Gets The Vaccine?
It didn't take long. In late 2020, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced plans for the state to begin distributing the vaccine based on a tiered priority list.
Ingrid figured she'd be among the first eligible for the vaccine. She reached out to her doctor, but was told the system wouldn't let him schedule her. She didn't qualify, despite her extreme risk. She says she felt invisible and silenced.
She says it was, "the old feeling of like, I'm screaming on a public street and nobody's noticing. I have, like, a really fragile, super fragile, respiratory system."
So why wasn't she being contacted for a vaccine? From the outset of the vaccine rollout, disabled people were placed behind front line workers, caregivers, teachers, older adults, and many others. Jessica Lehman participated in public meetings of the state-run California Vaccine Advisory Committee.
She remembers one slide in a presentation that state officials had put together, which brought everything into stark relief.
"It actually laid out like, what is the goal?" she recalls. "And on the one side, it said, if the goal is reducing fatalities, then we need to vaccinate seniors and people with disabilities because those are the groups more likely to die, right? Or, if the goal is getting the economy functioning again, then we vaccinate workers so that they can go back to work and open stores and restaurants again."
She says it was like the two groups were pitted against each other.
"It just brought to my head everything about seniors and people with disabilities being seen as a drain on society."
Then, in January 2021 Governor Newsom made an announcement that shocked the disabled community: vaccines would be distributed by age only. Disabled folks would have to wait to get vaccinated with the general public.
Once again, the "disability advocacy avengers" fought back. And once again, the state relented, opening up vaccination for people with certain disabilities and chronic conditions in mid-March.
But, as with many wins for this community, the victory felt incomplete. The list of qualifying conditions was limited. Most people with disabilities would need to get approval from their doctor.
Jessica says that's inherently inequitable.
"We know that white people and people with money are far more likely to have a doctor who they trust and who trusts them and to have access to medical care to be able to make that happen," she says. "And so this felt like a moment where it wasn't okay to celebrate that. Like, if it's not all of us, then it's none of us."
Now, most people who want to get vaccinated are able to. But, the spread of the delta variant is bringing up equity issues again. Hospitals in low-vaccination states like Idaho, Alabama, and Texas are talking care rationing again.
In California, advocates are staying vigilant, holding the state to the less-biased guidelines. Jessica, however, still has doubts. "Do hospitals follow them? It's not really binding and it's really hard to know," she says.
"After 55 years of disability, I don't think I've ever felt more profoundly let down by the health care system." – Ingrid Tischer
Ingrid and Ken celebrated their first outing after being vaccinated by visiting Shake Shack for burgers and fries. Credit: Ken Stein
For Ingrid, the last 18 months have left her with little faith. "After 55 years of disability, I don't think I've ever felt more profoundly let down by the health care system," she says.
She's once again been left off the list for the CDC-recommended booster vaccine for at-risk people and that feels like deja vu.
But despite the new fears, she's been improving both physically and mentally. She and her husband went out for the first time in July. They got burgers and sat outside. And she's back to working remotely at the disability rights organization — once again fighting for equity. And for the right of disabled folks to be seen, acknowledged, and valued.
Christopher Egusa reported this series while participating in the USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism's 2021 California Fellowship.
Audio Piece Credits
Engineering: James Rowlands
Editing: Lisa Morehouse
Editing Assistance: Abukar Adan
Read the original story, via KALW.
Ingrid Tischer
Ingrid Tischer is Director of Development at the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF) in Berkeley, California.
Ken Stein
Ken Stein is retired in Berkeley, California.
Jessica Lehman
Jessica Lehman is Executive Director of Senior Disability Action in San Francisco, California.
Brandie Sendziak
Brandie Sendziak is a staff attorney at the Independent Living Resource Center of San Francisco in San Francisco, California.
IRA FLATOW: This is Science Friday. I'm Ira Flatow, and now, it's time to check in on the state of science.
SPEAKER 1: This is KERE–
SPEAKER 4: KKBB New–
SPEAKER 5: Iowa Public Radio News.
IRA FLATOW: Local science stories of national significance. We've been following the stories of how the COVID 19 pandemic has overburdened hospitals and impacted care for those suffering from non-COVID related illnesses. We've also seen how these last few years have shown many of the cracks in our health care system and revealed longstanding disparities.
Reporter Chris Egusa has been examining the impact on the disabled community in California for station KALW in San Francisco. He introduces us to a woman who recounts her harrowing experience in the hospital as a disabled person. And we'll meet the disability advocates fighting the bias they found infused throughout the state's pandemic response. Here's Chris.
KEN TISHER: Hi, Ingrid. Here's your guys.
CHRIS EGUSA: Oh, hi, Ingrid. Yes.
KEN TISHER: I'm getting them some water and a TV tray.
INGRID TISHER: Oh, very nice.
CHRIS EGUSA: Should I set up right over here?
INGRID TISHER: Wherever you'd like.
CHRIS EGUSA: OK.
Ingrid Tisher has lived in this Berkeley apartment with her husband, Ken, for the past 10 years. When I arrive, she's already sitting outside at the top of a gently sloping ramp that leads up to the door.
I mean, if you're OK with it, I think maybe up there would be good for the audio.
INGRID TISHER: Yeah, especially since we're wearing masks.
CHRIS EGUSA: Yeah, yeah.
We're both vaccinated, but we're still taking precautions. Masks, outdoors, social distancing. That's because Ingrid has a severe disability.
INGRID TISHER: I have muscular dystrophy, which is a neuromuscular disorder that I've had my entire life, because it's genetic.
CHRIS EGUSA: It's a progressive muscle wasting disease, which impacts her mobility, including her ability to walk unassisted. Her respiratory system is weak, so she uses an oxygen device called a BiPAP to help her breathe. Earlier in the pandemic, her doctor told her that if she got COVID, it would likely be a death sentence.
INGRID TISHER: I'd never heard my situation put in such stark, certain terms.
CHRIS EGUSA: Ingrid is in her mid-50s, with graying brown hair and bright blue eyes. She leads fundraising for a disability rights organization, and she's a writer. When COVID hit in the spring of 2020, Ingrid was terrified. Because of the risk of infection, and smoke from the wildfires that summer, she stopped leaving her house entirely. She developed anxiety and depression and a host of new health issues. Her feet and legs began swelling. Breathing became more difficult. Her doctor was worried she might be developing congestive heart failure, but because of the risk, told her to stay home rather than come in for tests.
And that's not uncommon. A recent survey by a local advocacy group found that many disabled people have delayed medical care for over a year. It all came to a head one morning in January of this year, when Ingrid had a fall trying to get to the bathroom. She wasn't hurt physically, but it left her shaken. She and Ken decided she had to go to the emergency room, the last place she wanted to be.
INGRID TISHER: We didn't know if what we were doing was going into a situation where we would never see each other again.
CHRIS EGUSA: When Ingrid entered Kaiser's emergency room in Oakland–
INGRID TISHER: It was like being wheeled into the lion's den of the lion's den.
CHRIS EGUSA: For a disabled person, going into a medical setting can feel like going into battle. A recent study from the journal, Health Affairs, found that over 80% of physicians believe that people with disabilities have a lower quality of life.
JESSICA LEHMAN: Like, nobody's about to blame doctors and nurses after what they've been doing and what they've been through over the last year.
CHRIS EGUSA: Jessica Lehman is the Executive Director of the advocacy group Senior Disability Action.
JESSICA LEHMAN: But it's the nuance of thinking that this person's life is not going to have as much quality, that this person isn't going to have as much joy and experience and adventure and success in whatever way all of that is defined as somebody without a disability. And so, when you're thinking that way, that's subconsciously going to come into those split second decisions.
CHRIS EGUSA: Decisions about medical care. Now Ingrid says she's been with Kaiser since the mid-90s, and has found that–
INGRID TISHER: The providers, the doctors, the nurses, everybody else for the most part is quite good, and pretty– at least, recently– pretty enlightened around disability.
CHRIS EGUSA: And for the first part of her six day hospital stay, that was also true. The staff quickly diagnosed her with pneumonia, and began treating her physical needs. But her emotional state was still crumbling. Then, she had an experience that completely threw her for a loop. As her discharge date got closer, Ingrid worried about her life at home after having lost so much function. She'd heard about a special inpatient rehab program that sounded perfect. There was just one problem, they don't usually take patients with progressive conditions, like Ingrid's. So she asked to talk about it with the neurologist who'd been assigned to her.
INGRID TISHER: And then, I said, well, it really it sounds exclusionary. I didn't say discriminatory, but I said, exclusionary.
CHRIS EGUSA: She, and her husband, Ken, say that the neurologist's demeanor suddenly changed, and his tone got sharper. Keep in mind, at this point, she's as vulnerable as it gets. Lying in bed, oxygen mask, pneumonia, and still in acute emotional distress.
INGRID TISHER: It's all been documented in the track. And he said to me, well, look. And he gestured to my body, and he said, you've always known this was coming.
KEN TISHER: "This has been coming for a long time. And you know there's nothing we can really do about it." That was in quotes.
CHRIS EGUSA: Ingrid says she felt like she'd been punched in the gut, and she interpreted what he said even more darkly.
INGRID TISHER: He– I thought was saying, look, you're past the point of no return. Why do you expect us to do anything? You're not worth the resources, basically. There's no point.
CHRIS EGUSA: The exchange sent her spiraling. The next night she had a panic attack, which she'd never experienced before. Ken says when he visited her,
KEN TISHER: She was shaking when I went in there. This is hard to talk about. She was shaking and quivering, and she was sitting up in bed. And she said, Ken, I want you to promise me one thing. And I said, what? And she said, that I can come home to die. That you'll have me at home to die.
CHRIS EGUSA: She believed she was at the end of the road.
INGRID TISHER: So this– if you'll excuse the expression, this guy's [BLEEP] with my head at a moment when I was extremely vulnerable. Even though, probably didn't mean to. I could believe that. But, he's a neurologist. He's got to know.
CHRIS EGUSA: She was successfully discharged, and with the proper supports and exercise regimen, Ken says her condition has completely turned around.
KEN TISHER: Oh, 180 degrees. He didn't know what he was talking about. He didn't know what he was talking about.
CHRIS EGUSA: Many studies have shown that doctors tend to be overconfident in their own diagnostic abilities. And, here's the thing. Ingrid says that this experience, it's–
INGRID TISHER: By far, not even close to the only time I've had an encounter like this with a medical doctor.
CHRIS EGUSA: It's just that this time, she was in the midst of a psychiatric emergency. Nearly every disabled person I've talked with has their own stories of pain and discrimination. The dismissal, the invisibility, it's common. Advocate Jessica Lehman explains that this same bias was playing out across a series of battlegrounds throughout the pandemic.
JESSICA LEHMAN: We saw the most horrible manifestation of ableism and ageism that I've ever seen.
CHRIS EGUSA: The first of these battlegrounds was the state's Crisis Standards of Care, a document directing hospitals and doctors on how to ration scarce medical care– who gets treatment, and who doesn't. You may have heard about medical care rationing early in the pandemic from countries like Italy.
SPEAKER 6: Medical supplies and resources are stretched thin, so doctors in Italy are facing unthinkable choices about who gets access to things like beds and respirators, and who does not.
CHRIS EGUSA: Across the US, ICU beds and ventilators started running low.
SPEAKER 7: –rationed care. The state's top health officials say, Southern California's COVID numbers are so extreme they're urging hospitals to review emergency plans, in case they have to limit not only supplies and therapies, but how many people receive life saving care.
CHRIS EGUSA: California's guidelines, they left the door open for elderly or disabled people to be denied care in favor of someone younger or able-bodied. It sent alarm bells through the disabled community and beyond. Jessica Lehman, the activist, also lives with a neuromuscular condition.
JESSICA LEHMAN: I remember thinking, oh my goodness, I could get COVID and I could go to the hospital, and they might say, we don't have enough ICU beds or ventilators, and because you have a disability, you don't get one. And that would be a death sentence.
CHRIS EGUSA: They shared news reports from Oregon and other states where a few doctors denied care to people with disabilities. Here, Santa Clara County began taking inventory of ventilators people had at home. Many disabled people feared they might have their equipment taken away and redistributed.
JESSICA LEHMAN: It was like seeing everything that I was aware of, the general societal perceptions and prejudices, seeing it in writing, and seeing it legitimized and sanctioned. It was just like, oh my gosh, I don't know when we have faced a threat like this. And, what are we going to do?
CHRIS EGUSA: What they did was jump into action. Within a few weeks, nearly 30 organizations had formed the California Care Rationing Coalition. And it wasn't just disabled folks. Brandi Senziak is an attorney and co-founder of the online movement Nobody Is Disposable.
BRANDI SENZIAK: It was the higher weight community, the disabled community, the aging community, all working together from the beginning. And I really think it helped make a big difference that probably wouldn't have happened if only one of the communities would have stepped up.
CHRIS EGUSA: It was kind of like, the avengers of advocacy. They had policy groups, legal advocates and community organizers all working on this one issue– trying to convince the state to revise this document. And the thing is, it worked. California's Crisis Standards of Care now include an entire section that outlines what factors cannot be used to determine health care decisions, including disability.
IRA FLATOW: You're listening to the Special Report about disability and the COVID pandemic. This is Science Friday from WNYC Studios. Reporter Chris Egusa has been following the story of disability advocates in California as they fight against bias in the medical system. Chris tells us that this group worked to change the state's Crisis Standards of Care to make sure disabled people were not discriminated against during the pandemic.
CHRIS EGUSA: And because of this intersectional coalition they developed, they were prepared for the next battleground. It didn't take long.
SPEAKER 8: Good evening. We begin tonight with Governor Gain Newsom rolling out a new COVID 19 vaccine distribution plan for the state.
CHRIS EGUSA: Ingrid figured she'd be among the first eligible for the vaccine. She reached out to her doctor, but–
INGRID TISHER: He said the system wouldn't let him. And he just said, I don't know what to tell you.
CHRIS EGUSA: She says she felt invisible and silenced.
INGRID TISHER: The whole feeling of like, I'm screaming on a public street, and nobody's noticing. I have, like, a really fragile, super fragile, respiratory system.
CHRIS EGUSA: So why wasn't she being contacted for a vaccine? Well, from the outset of the vaccine rollout, people with disabilities and chronic illness were placed behind frontline workers, caregivers, teachers, older adults and many others. Jessica Lehman participated in public meetings of the state run California Vaccine Advisory Committee. She remembers this one slide in a presentation that state officials had put together, which brought everything into stark relief.
JESSICA LEHMAN: It actually laid out what is the goal. And on the one side it said, if the goal is reducing fatalities, then we need to vaccinate seniors and people with disabilities, because those are the groups more likely to die, right. Or, if the goal is getting the economy functioning again, then we vaccinate workers, so that they can go back to work and open stores and restaurants again.
CHRIS EGUSA: It was like the two groups were being pitted against each other.
JESSICA LEHMAN: It just brought to my head everything about seniors and people with disabilities being seen as a drain on society.
CHRIS EGUSA: Then, in January 2021, Governor Newsom made an announcement that shocked the disabled community– vaccines would be distributed by age only. Disabled folks would have to wait to get vaccinated with the general public. Once again, the disability advocacy avengers fought back. And once again, the state relented, opening up vaccination for people with certain disabilities and chronic conditions in mid-March. But, as with many wins for this community, the victory felt incomplete. The list of qualifying conditions was limited. Most people with disabilities would need to get approval from their doctor.
JESSICA LEHMAN: And we know that white people and people with money are far more likely to have a doctor who they trust, and who trusts them, and to have access to medical care to be able to make that happen. And so, this felt like a moment where it wasn't OK to celebrate that. If it's not all of us, then it's none of us.
CHRIS EGUSA: Now, most people who want to get vaccinated, can. But the spread of the Delta variant is resurfacing questions about equity. And hospitals in low vaccination states like Idaho, Alabama, and Texas are talking care rationing again. In California, advocates are staying vigilant, holding the state to the less biased guidelines.
JESSICA LEHMAN: But, do hospitals follow them? It's not really binding, and it's really hard to know.
CHRIS EGUSA: For Ingrid, the last 18 months have left her with little faith.
INGRID TISHER: You know, after 55 years of disability, I don't think I've ever felt more profoundly let down by the health care system.
CHRIS EGUSA: She says she's once again been left off the list for the CDC recommended booster vaccine for at risk people, and that feels like deja vu. But, despite the new fears, she's been improving, both physically and mentally. She and Ken went out for the first time in July. They got burgers and sat outside. And she's back to working remotely at the Disability Rights Organization, once again, fighting for equity, for the right of disabled folks to be seen, acknowledged, and valued. For Science Friday, I'm Chris Egusa.
IRA FLATOW: Thank you, Chris. His story originally aired on KALW in San Francisco, and was produced as a project for the USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism's 2021 California fellowship. Abukar Adan provided editorial assistance. The engineer was James Rowland.
About Christie Taylor
@ctaylsaurus
Christie Taylor is a producer for Science Friday. Her day involves diligent research, too many phone calls for an introvert, and asking scientists if they have any audio of that narwhal heartbeat.
John Dankosky
About John Dankosky
@johndankosky
John Dankosky works with the radio team to create our weekly show, and is helping to build our State of Science Reporting Network. He's also been a long-time guest host on Science Friday. He and his wife have four cats, thousands of bees, and a yoga studio in the sleepy Northwest hills of Connecticut.
Christopher Egusa
About Christopher Egusa
Christopher Egusa is a reporter and an Audio Engineering Fellow at KALW Public Radio.
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text:
The Niagara County Law Enforcement Academy graduated its 65th class during a ceremony held today at Niagara University's Castellani Art Museum.
Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of New York James P. Kennedy Jr. was the ceremony's keynote speaker. Kennedy, who has served in his current position since last October, is a recipient of the United States Attorney General's John Marshall Award, the highest award given to Department of Justice employees for excellence in litigation. He has also received numerous other awards and previously traveled to the Republic of Georgia to serve as a trial technique instructor as part of a DOJ program designed to teach foreign prosecutors in emerging democracies how to prosecute criminal cases.
"By choosing to become police officers, each of you has begun to reveal that you have a heart that says, 'I want to protect, I want to serve,'" Kennedy said to the NCLEA class. "Only if you follow through and put your whole heart into it will you find true happiness, success and fulfillment.
"Remember, from this day forward, your life's message will, for better or for worse, flow from your heart through the badge that covers it. Wear that badge proudly. Wear that badge honorably."
NCLEA co-directors Lt. Shawn Grapes and Detective John Faso then presented diplomas to the following graduates:
Matthew Bower, Niagara Falls Police Department
Ryan Bradt, Pre-Employment
Stephen Cappotelli, Village of LeRoy Police Department
Matthew Dispenza, City of Batavia Police Department
Steven Kerfoot Jr., Niagara Falls Police Department
Yanni Malamas, Pre-Employment
Louis Oswald, Town of Tonawanda Police Department
Richard Rotolo, Pre-Employment
Anthony Sorrentino, Village of Kenmore Police Department
Austin Steinbrenner, Village of LeRoy Police Department
Andrew Thompson, Town of Tonawanda Police Department
Jeremy Wyse, Town of Tonawanda Police Department
Award recipients:
Academic Award: Steven Kerfoot Jr.
Physical Fitness Award: Austin Steinbrenner
Sgt. Jeff Juron Defensive Tactics Award: Louis Oswald
Top Gun Award: Louis Oswald
Jeffrey A. Incardona Memorial Award: Steven Kerfoot Jr.
Joseph E. Steblein Memorial Award: Steven Kerfoot Jr.
Niagara University is the only four-year, private college in New York to host a full-time police academy.
Coordination of the program on Niagara's campus is undertaken by the university's Office of Continuing Education and criminal justice department.
For more information about the Niagara County Law Enforcement Academy, please call 716.286.8759 or email nclea@niagara.edu.
NCLEA
Princeton Review: Niagara Ranks Among the "Best in the Northeast"
Preps underway for Interfaith Service for Mental Illness Recovery and Understanding

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Located inside the Radisson Quad City Plaza, this popular restaurant offers Salads, Sandwiches, Pizza and More. Fresh food, great service and an inviting atmosphere make Café One Eleven your choice for Downtown Davenport dining. Dine in or Carry out available.


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Man steals date's car, uses it to take victim's godsister on a date
Plenty of people have stories to tell about terrible dates, but one Memphis woman has a doozy.
She says her date stole her car and later picked up her godsister for a date in the stolen vehicle.
The woman says she knew the man in high school and he reached out and suggested dinner. They took her car to dinner but when he couldn't make up his mind where to eat they ended up at a gas station.
He asked her to go into the gas station to get something form him, then stole her car.
In a shocking plot twist, he later asked her godsister out to the movies. The godsister told the victim about the date, which led to the victim and police locating the man at a drive-in movie theater. That is where police arrested the suspect.


Father's Day is celebrated on the third Sunday of June every year and offers the chance to celebrate the sweetest, funniest, smartest, hardest working and most caring Dad. And although most of the fathers will say you that they don't need anything, we think it is crucial to recognize the men who have made a significant impression on our lives. In order to help to honor these marvelous guys, Bloom2U would like to provide a few fun facts that you may find very interesting. Sonora Smart Dodd was encouraged to establish Father's Day in the honor of her father, William Smart. Smart was a single dad who raised six children on his own, and daughter Sonora believed he – and other men like him – deserved a day similar to Mother's Day to honor them.
This entry was posted in Father's Day, Flowers and tagged Best online florist in Malaysia, Fathers day, flower delivery, online flower delivery.
This entry was posted in Flowers, Mother's Day, Mother's Day Flowers and tagged Flowers for Mother's Day, Flowers Online, Mother's Day, Mother's Day Flowers, Mother's Day Flowers Online Malaysia.
Nature is full of beauties which includes EARTH covered with dense green forests, beautiful hills, high mountain peaks. Beautiful SKY is full of Sunshine, countless stars, glittery Moon, lovely rains and endless blessings from GOD. Nature is incomplete without FLOWERS. Flowers are the most adorable and pleasant gift from nature. Flowers are beautiful, delicate, colorful, refreshing, charming and most alluring and fill up our soul with joy, fragrance and love.
This entry was posted in Flowers and tagged Best online florist in Malaysia, Bloom2u, Flower bouquet, flower delivery, flower delivery KL, Flower delivery malaysia, Flowers & Hampers, Flowers Online, gift hamper, Online Florist Malaysia.
Sending bouquet on a special occasion has always been a popular social convention. Whether it's New Year, Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Weddings, or any other occasion, flowers can change the feel of any moment. Well, there is always a reason to give flowers to someone you like and you do not always have to wait for a special occasion. Flowers make a difference in all modes and make your loved ones smile. It's the perfect gift for yourself and for anyone who is special for you.
Why Should You Choose Flowers for Every Occasion?
The beautiful and delicate blooms have amazing hidden magical powers that can vanish even the massive of negativity into thin air. The green stems and colorful flowers and can add a 'feel-good' spell to you. A beautiful floral arrangement produces restful vibe and enhances the environment without overwhelming the fresh decor.
This entry was posted in Flower Etiquettes, Flowers and tagged Best online florist in Malaysia, Flower Etiquettes, Flowers Online, How to Choose Flowers, Online Florist Malaysia, online flower gift baskets in Malaysia.


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Q: Emacs - Using perform-replace with counter I'm trying to write a command in elisp to automatically renumber unit tests in a given file.  In order to help me easily locate failing tests, I generally use the following syntax (using GoogleTest):
TEST(testCaseName, T0XX_Test_Description)
I've been able to write a working command using a while loop with re-search-forward / replace-match:
(defun renumber-tests-auto(&optional num)
 "Automatically renumber the tests from the current location in
 the active buffer. Optional argument sets the current test
 number (instead of 1).  This function automatically updates
 all test numbers from the current location until the end of
 the buffer without querying the user for each test."

  (interactive "NStarting test number: ")
  (save-excursion
  (setq num (or num 1 ))
  (while (re-search-forward ", +T0[0-9]+" nil t )
    (replace-match
      (concat ", T" (format "%03d" num )))
    (setq num (+ 1 num))
    )
  )
)

However, I'd also really like to have an interactive version of this function, using perform-replace to interactively query the user for each test.  I could, of course, simply handle the querying behaviour manually in my code, however, given that this functionality is already present, I don't really want to have to re-implement this.  Furthermore, I'd like to ensure that this command has the same interface as the other built-in query-replace functions.
My latest failed attempt follows:
(defun renumber-tests(&optional num)
  (interactive "NStarting test number: ")
  (save-excursion
    (setq num (or num 1 ))
    (perform-replace ", +T0[0-9]+"
                 (concat ", T" (format "%03d" (+ 1 num )
                                   ))
                 t t nil)
  )
)

However, this does not update the value of num each time it is run (I also tried (setq num (+ 1 num) ) and got the same result.
I'd greatly appreciate some help from those more experienced in elisp - if there's any way to make it work the way I am intending.

A: You are calling perform-replacewith a stringas replacement text. You must supply a replacement function to do dynamic replacement. Quote from documentation:

REPLACEMENTS is either a string, a list of strings, or a cons cell
  containing a function and its first argument.  The function is called
  to generate each replacement like this:   (funcall (car replacements)
  (cdr replacements) replace-count) It must return a string.

This way you can also get rid of mutation:
(defun renumber-tests(&optional num)
  (interactive "NStarting test number: ")
  (save-excursion
    (perform-replace ", +T0[0-9]+"
             (list (lambda (replacement replace-count)
                 (concat ", T" (format "%03d" (+ replace-count (or num 1))))))
             t t nil)))

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
import { NgModule, Component, Input, ElementRef, ContentChild, ChangeDetectionStrategy, ViewEncapsulation, TemplateRef, AfterContentInit, ContentChildren, QueryList } from '@angular/core';
import { CommonModule } from '@angular/common';
import { SharedModule, Header, Footer, PrimeTemplate } from 'primeng/api';
import { BlockableUI } from 'primeng/api';

@Component({
    selector: 'p-card',
    template: `

                <ng-content select="p-header"></ng-content>
                <ng-container *ngTemplateOutlet="headerTemplate"></ng-container>

                    {{ header }}
                    <ng-container *ngTemplateOutlet="titleTemplate"></ng-container>

                    {{ subheader }}
                    <ng-container *ngTemplateOutlet="subtitleTemplate"></ng-container>

                    <ng-content></ng-content>
                    <ng-container *ngTemplateOutlet="contentTemplate"></ng-container>

                    <ng-content select="p-footer"></ng-content>
                    <ng-container *ngTemplateOutlet="footerTemplate"></ng-container>

    `,
    changeDetection: ChangeDetectionStrategy.OnPush,
    encapsulation: ViewEncapsulation.None,
    styleUrls: ['./card.css'],
    host: {
        class: 'p-element'
    }
})
export class Card implements AfterContentInit, BlockableUI {
    @Input() header: string;

    @Input() subheader: string;

    @Input() style: any;

    @Input() styleClass: string;

    @ContentChild(Header) headerFacet;

    @ContentChild(Footer) footerFacet;

    @ContentChildren(PrimeTemplate) templates: QueryList<any>;

    headerTemplate: TemplateRef<any>;

    titleTemplate: TemplateRef<any>;

    subtitleTemplate: TemplateRef<any>;

    contentTemplate: TemplateRef<any>;

    footerTemplate: TemplateRef<any>;

    constructor(private el: ElementRef) {}

    ngAfterContentInit() {
        this.templates.forEach((item) => {
            switch (item.getType()) {
                case 'header':
                    this.headerTemplate = item.template;
                    break;

                case 'title':
                    this.titleTemplate = item.template;
                    break;

                case 'subtitle':
                    this.subtitleTemplate = item.template;
                    break;

                case 'content':
                    this.contentTemplate = item.template;
                    break;

                case 'footer':
                    this.footerTemplate = item.template;
                    break;

                default:
                    this.contentTemplate = item.template;
                    break;
            }
        });
    }

    getBlockableElement(): HTMLElement {
        return this.el.nativeElement.children[0];
    }
}

@NgModule({
    imports: [CommonModule],
    exports: [Card, SharedModule],
    declarations: [Card]
})
export class CardModule {}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Please try Tubular Strip Lamps for alternative products.
current strip lights or designing your lighting layout from scratch.
The 7W strip lights are the equivalent of a 60W standard strip lamp and are virtually maintenance free.
kitchens and clear types are often used in picture lighting.


text:
Challenge: Traveling with Kids
Cultivating Curiosity in the Galapagos Islands
Published by Lisa Niver on January 20, 2020
How can you increase curiosity in your family? While it is an human innate trait, we can inspire more of it. We wonder, we ask questions and we explore our surroundings. Taking your family to the place which was designated as the first World Heritage Site by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) in 1978 is definitely on the right path.
Nearly 200 years ago, Charles Darwin began his five-year voyage circumnavigating the globe as ship's naturalist on the H.M.S Beagle. He was only 22 years old when he left in 1831 and he observed and collected in every location from fossils, to birds and especially rocks.
In 1835, he reached the Galapagos Islands and noticed the "differences between the inhabitants of the different islands." Darwin was very curious and Sir Kenneth Robinson, who speaks often about creativity and the lack of it in schools, says that: "Curiosity is the engine of achievement."
Blue Footed Booby on North Seymour Island, Galapagos, Photo by Lisa Niver
There is great value in exploration and seeing new sights. I have wanted to see the Blue Footed Boobies since I was a twelve year old girl. When I went off to summer camp, my mom packed Darwin's book, On the Origin of Species, in my luggage and ever since then, I have always wanted to go.
Last month, I had the opportunity to sail like Darwin in the Galapagos Islands with Origin & Theory by Ecoventura, on their newest mega-yacht, Theory. With fifteen other passengers who soon became fast friends (the yachts host a maximum of 20 passengers), each day we were delighted to discover new species (well, new to us!). We observed, we took photos, we asked questions and we were immersed in learning.
Nazca Boobies on Punta Suarez, Espanola, Galapagos Islands, Photo by Lisa Niver
We saw not only the blue footed booby I was waiting for, but I learned that there is also a red footed booby and the Nazca booby! I saw sea lions suckling, giant tortoise mating and penguins danced around us when we were snorkeling in the deep waters.
Sea lion and her baby at Gardner bay, Espanola, Galapagos Islands, Photo by Lisa Niver
It was truly one of the most magical bucket-list journeys I have been on. The two amazing naturalists answered all of our questions and shared our excitement at seeing marine iguanas swimming, yellow land iguanas eating prickly pear cactus, and red tropic birds flying over the cliff at South Plazas Island.
Yellow land iguana on South Plaza, Galapagos Islands, Photo by Lisa Niver
They also have special itineraries designed for teen guests with longer hikes with a faster pace and even more kayaking and snorkeling opportunities. There are opportunities for cultural exchange with local Galapagueño students through Ecology Project International. I participated in Pack with a Purpose and brought stationary supplies that Captain Jhon brought to a local school.
I was entranced by our seven day South and Central Islands itinerary and would return again to visit the North and West Islands. I loved the kayaking, hiking and snorkeling but I hope to return and go scuba diving at Wolf and Darwin Islands someday.
Want to inspire your family to wonder about our world? Take them somewhere where the memories will last a lifetime.
Sunset at Bartolomé Island in the Galapagos, Photo by Lisa Niver
Lisa Niver
Lisa Ellen Niver, M.A. Education, is a science teacher and an award-winning travel expert who has explored 101 countries and six continents. Her website, We Said Go Travel, was read in 235 countries in 2020. Find her talking travel on KTLA TV and her YouTube videos with over one million two hundred thousand views. Lisa has written for AARP, American Airways, Jewish Journal, Ms. Magazine, Smithsonian, TODAY.com, USA Today 10best and Wharton Magazine. She is writing a book, "Brave Rebel: 50 Adventures Before 50," about her most recent travels and challenges. Look for her underwater SCUBA diving, in her art studio making ceramics or helping people find their next dream trip.
We All Need to Unplug!
Ready for a SuperHero Summer? Capes Included
These Destinations Will Give You and Your Family the Adventure of a Lifetime


text:
Kentucky Women's Basketball
#24 UK WBB hosts Texas A&M: Preview and Gamethread
Can the Cats extend their SEC win streak to 2 straight games?
By jords@jords9599 Jan 8, 2017, 12:15pm EST
Share All sharing options for: #24 UK WBB hosts Texas A&M: Preview and Gamethread
Knoxville News Sentinel-USA TODAY NETWORK
After a rough end to 2016, the Cats have bounced back nicely and reassumed their winning ways with Thursday night's win over Mizzou. (Click HERE for a post-game recap by Warren Taylor.) Can they continue to assert their will on the SEC and walk out of Memorial today with a W over Texas A&M?
The answer is complicated. Let's do a quick SWOT analysis of A&M to see how they compare to our Cats.
TAMU is currently 1-1 in SEC play, and 11-4 overall. Kentucky will be the first ranked team they've faced this season. Their RPI is currently ranked at 41st in the country to Kentucky's 12th. In the SEC, they're in a three way tie for 1st with 17 average assists per game, 3rd in free throw shooting (74.9%), fourth in overall shooting percentage (45.1%) and middle to bottom of the pack in everything else.
In looking at the Aggies' overall stats, they are a very good shooting club (45.1% to UK's 42.6%), to include FT shooting (74.9% to our 73.3%). They are aggressive on defense, averaging 8.3 steals per game to our 6.6% and rebound the ball well, averaging 41 per game to our 38.
The Aggie roster doesn't have a ton of height, but they do have three players who are averaging double figures a game in Danni Williams, Khaalia Hillsman, and Anriel Howard. They also have one of the most experiences coaches in the country in Gary Blair, a Hall of Fame Coach who led the Aggies to a National title in 2011, and has taken three different schools to the Women's Final Four. (Never, ever discount a coach with that much experience. It's as much of a tool as anything in the game.)
Fortunately for us, the game is in Lexington, and BBN likes to show up for the big games. This one definitely qualifies.
How can Kentucky win today?
A&M is going to press. We can't let them succeed at it. The Cats will need to force TAMU to play their game AND they're going to have to shake things off quickly if mistakes are made. One thing I really love about this squad is how much they care about winning. It can be a double edged sword though, if mistakes start messing with their heads.
Shot selection, shot selection, shot selection! It's always important but especially critical against a full court press who's trying to harass you into making dumb shots. Zen is key.
FREE THROWS. They make them. We need to as well.
Khaalia Hillsman is not only 6'5", she's a ridiculously good shooter at 62%, and leads TAMU in blocks. Our goal with her is simple: deny her the ball, both offensively and defensively.
Our best players have to be present and on their game from tip to final horn.
I don't anticipate this to be anything other than a grind it out game, which won't be pretty to watch but will be packed with drama...in other words, a classic SEC battle. Happily for us, it's televised on the SEC Network.
Tipoff is at 2 PM EST. Until then, Cats fans...Go Big Blue!!!
Calipari on why Oscar's PnR defense improved and how Collins lost 16 pounds after the passing of his father It's been a very challenging season for Daimion Collins, but Tuesday was a rare bright spot.


The smallest of three brothers, Keenan Mowat had a priceless talent: he loved the sea and the sea loved him right back.
Anja Uhren is a storyteller – working with images as well as words to deliver narratives. Originally from Germany she now lives and works in the UK as a freelance illustrator, after graduating from the Arts University Bournemouth in summer 2015. Anja loves drawing, travelling and comics and nothing better than combining all three. On her journeys, big and small, she always carries one or two sketchbooks to record observations and impressions which later inform and inspire her illustration practice.


text:
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Never in 15-plus years of MMO gaming have I been so bewildered when it comes to picking a main class and character. The other part of it stems from the fact that ESO has an absurd amount of build customizability. Think of the classes as a baseline or an archetype, and then feel free to go wild experimenting with skill builds as radical or as vanilla as you'd like. You basically have access to six actives at any given time, five of which are ordinary skills and one of which is a super-spiffy "ultimate" skill. If you've played earlier Elder Scrolls titles, you'll recognize the familiar skill up messages underscored by subtle drum beats every time you advance one of your lines.
Whatever you're wearing and using will level up, and as you progress through various skill trees, you'll unlock new abilities, higher-powered versions of existing ones, and the ability to "morph" certain skills and supplement them with extra effects.
The weapon and armor skills form the backbone of ESO's foray outside the traditional themepark progression box, as they make it possible to roll a Sorcerer who also wields a greatsword and a bow or a Nightblade who can pick up a magical staff and sling some spells -- or heals -- on occasion. Finally, crafting has dedicated skills lines as well, but I'll save that for another article.
In terms of my day two activity recap, I completed all of the newbie quests in Stros M'Kai after finally settling on my Nightblade and am now firmly entrenched in the Betnikh line. At the risk of going all buzzword on you, Elder Scrolls Online feels much more immersive than your average MMO themepark. Houses are buildings with sleeping accommodations and containers that are safe for storing items. Containers in an owned house do not reset, so items may be stored inside any of its chests, wardrobes, cupboards, dressers, and others. Hjerim, Proudspire Manor, and Vlindrel Hall have enough combined bookshelf space between them to hold every available book in Skyrim. Completing "Blood on the Ice" and either "The Battle for Fort Sungard" or the Imperial Legion questline. Completing "The Man Who Cried Wolf" and a miscellaneous quest named "Elisif's Tribute" for the Jarl.
With the addition of Hearthfire, plots of land can be bought for 5000 in order to build a Homestead. Breezehome, in Whiterun, is inexpensive and easily acquired early in the game, but it is the only home that lacks an enchanting table.
Hjerim, in Windhelm, contains both an Arcane Enchanter and an Alchemy Lab (once upgraded), and is close to Smithing amenities, a Smelter, and the Windhelm fence, all of which are closely grouped with zero transitions. Severin Manor, in Raven Rock, is a sizable Dunmer home given to the Dragonborn by completing the quest Served Cold.
Hjerim can only be acquired upon progressing to a certain point in the Civil War questline while Vlindrel Hall cannot be acquired until at least level 20 and Proudspire Manor is prohibitively expensive for most low-level players. The chest and barrel in Kodlak's Quarters in Jorrvaskr in Whiterun can reset, thus permanently deleting all items placed within them after a certain period of time. The Master Bedroom upgrade costs 3000 gold, purchased from Delvin Mallory, as part of a total of 19,000 gold upgrade of the sanctuary. The following is a list of all the possible spouses who own property and the conditions required to marry them.
What this "Point-and-Click Renaissance," we'll call it, did was open the door for hundreds, if not thousands of indie developers to make the same types of titles. Last month I had the opportunity to preview Technobabylon, a point-and-click style adventure game from Wadjet Eye Games (Gemini Rue, The Blackwell Epiphany). The story that I encountered was setting up what could only be a gloriously tangled web of choice, consequence, and the world left behind.
How Max, Charlie, and Latha will intersect remains a mystery, but the suggestion that Latha might be a future Mindjacker target is enough to assume that their intersection will be wrought with peril.
I'm glad it has only four classes instead of six or eight because six or eight would probably send me over the decisional paralysis edge and into some sort of fugue state.
To acquire skills you must acquire skill points to spend, which can be done by leveling up (one skill point per character level ding), collecting particular shinies called skyshards (one skill point per every three skyshards), and completing story quests and dungeons. If you're a newb, what it boils down to is that you level up, say, your two-hander skill, your medium armor skill, and your class specialization skills (of which there are three lines per class) alongside your overall character level as you're out doing whatever you'd like to do. You've got health, magicka, and stamina pools, and the general rules of thumb for fantasy games apply: health for tanks, magicka for casters, etc. I've played mostly solo thus far and have yet to join a guild or sample the game's PvP, which opens up at level 10. It runs well, ZeniMax has clearly planned ahead for the player load (at least during this early release period), and the visual palette has grown on me even since yesterday.
Part of that is probably the IP and my history with it, but it's also the UI, the ability to do what you want with your character, and the little things like rewarding exploration, disguising your character for certain quests (and getting to keep the disguise to wear later), and the way your avatar stops and reads a scroll when you're menu-diving or otherwise disconnected from the hustle and bustle of the virtual world around you. That's why we bring you first impressions, previews, hands-on experiences, and even follow-up impressions for nearly every game we stumble across. A house is available for purchase within many of the larger cities in Skyrim; however, permission must be obtained from the city's Jarl before their purchase. The Dragonborn can ask spouses to move into a house or choose to move into the spouse's house. If the Dragonborn sleeps in a house where their spouse also lives, they will receive the bonus Lover's Comfort.
This does not include diaries, journals, notes, letters, documents, recipes, or spell tomes. Unlike Breezehome, it can be equipped with an enchanting table.Additionally, the Thieves Guild fence, Tonilia, is located in the Ragged Flagon, which requires a significant trip with three transitions to reach from the home.
Niranye, the Windhelm fence, is located outside in a market stall, whereas every other fence (except for Endon in Markarth, sometimes), requires at least one additional transition to reach. Solitude itself offers an average selection of shops, however they are located some distance away from the manor. It is acquired fully furnished, and contains an Arcane Enchanter, Alchemy Lab, and Forge, as well as a large storage space, allowing you to unload some unwanted gear without having to leave the island. Breezehome and Honeyside are smaller, and each less convenient in some ways, but can be obtained much earlier in the game for the majority of players. Spouses cannot live with the Dragonborn at these locations unless the spouse is also a member, for instance Aela the Huntress and Onmund being members of the Companions and the College of Winterhold respectively. Telltale's Walking Dead started the fire with its compelling storytelling and consequence driven gameplay.
Titles that, while graphically (and developmentally) less tenacious (without sounding rash) than major AAA titles like The Elder Scrolls or Mass Effect, had the opportunity to do what so many games today fail to do: Tell a truly enveloping story in an enthrallingly stylistic visual manor.
Trance, a virtual domain love-child born from likes of Surrogates, Inception, and Tron's Grid, is a cyberspace in which people can enter and do anything that their heart desires.
And in world where people can effortlessly link themselves to anything with an interface, Technobabylon also warns of an environment we may find ourselves a part of in the not-so-distant future. So I'm drinking from the information firehose in terms of game mechanics while simultaneously trying to keep up with friends.
I think for the purposes of this launch week diary -- and my own sanity -- I'm just going to stick with my Redguard Nightblade and forge ahead. After you level it up a bit, you can choose to morph it into either Funnel Health or Swallow Soul, the former of which adds an ally heal and the latter of which increases the self-heal.
Exploration is one of ESO's strong points, and you may run across other skill lines for your toolbox as I did when I happened upon a Daggerfall NPC guild called the Undaunted that opened up an entirely new advancement path once I agreed to join.
I plan on doing both in the next couple of days, and I'm also hoping to get a look at dungeons and crafting before the week ends, so keep an eye out for those reports. It helps that I left the dreariness of Daggerfall behind in favor of the lush greenery of Betnikh and the sands of Stros M'Kai. However, under the effects of the Lycanthropy affliction or having the Lover Stone active, the Dragonborn cannot gain either of these bonuses. In order to access an Arcane Enchanter in Whiterun, the Dragonborn must exit Breezehome, then head to Dragonsreach on the opposite end of the city. The fence in Markarth is located nearby, but moves around and sometimes requires a transition to reach.
Lack of storage space is a concern, as is the very poor lighting in the hidden room containing the Alchemy and Enchanting areas (dropping torches strategically may fix this).
Therefore, which house is most advantageous will likely depend upon playstyle and personal preference. They swiftly followed that up with the Wolf Among Us, another episodic title based on a comic series, this time Bill Willingham's Fables.
Immediately it was clear that the game drew heavily from sci-fi influences, especially those of the great Philip K. I say roughly because ESO's skill lines are really the game's meat and potatoes, as it's entirely possible to build a plate-wearing Wizard, a Ranger with self-heals, and so on and so forth.
If -- like me -- you feel a bit overwhelmed, you can always look at what others are building. If the Dragonborn is a member of the Thieves Guild, the fence in Whiterun is located outside of the city entirely, at Honningbrew Meadery, making it one of the more inconvenient fences to reach. Vlindrel Hall has the disadvantage of having fewer armor storage mannequins than the other "higher-end" homes, having only one.
Hjerim also takes some of the most work to acquire, as the quest "Blood on the Ice" and part of the Civil War questline must be finished before purchasing the house. One must buy this property to complete the quest No Stone Unturned legitimately as one of the Stones of Barenziah is in the bedroom area unless they are using the double Stones of Bareniziah glitch.
After those two titanic hits, Telltale blew up and is now making Game of Thrones, Borderlands, and Minecraft adventures in the same vein. Dick, author of Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep and We Can Remember It For You Wholesale (inspiration for classic sci-fi films Bladerunner and Total Recall, respectively).
All aesthetics that lend themselves to a story that, in my playthrough of the preview, weighs heavily on dichotomy. Breezehome is conveniently close to the town's smelter, blacksmith, alchemist, general goods store, and both taverns. Vlindrel Hall is a good choice for book collectors as it provides the most book storage (162 books), thanks to three large bookshelves conveniently located next to each other instead of scattered smaller shelves such as in Hjerim. And here we have our triumvirate of ordinary characters, thrust into unsettlingly extraordinary situations.
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Make your own fluffy Easter Bunny from items around the house! This is a great craft for younger children because the cotton balls are something different to use in a craft and they add a great texture!
Cut out two ears from the white poster board that are each about 5" tall and 2" wide.
Cut out two smaller ears from the pink construction paper.
Glue the smaller ears inside the larger ears, or color the inside of the larger ears pink.
With the paper plate right side up, glue the ears to the top of the plate so the pink part is facing the table.
Turn the paper plate over.
Cover the plate with glue (tip: using your finger or a paint brush works well to smooth the glue out).
Use the cotton balls to cover the plate.
Glue the googly eyes, pompom (nose) and pipe cleaners on to construct the face of the Easter Bunny.
Bend the pink pipe cleaner into the shape of the bunny's mouth and glue under nose.


text:
Home Shares magazine 18 Apr 2019 The Short Cut To Diversification
The short cut to diversification
Create a portfolio at the click of a button with ETFs
Thursday 18 Apr 2019 Author: Holly Black
Low cost, instant to trade and easy to understand – it's no wonder that exchange-traded funds are becoming increasingly popular with investors.
Also known as ETFs or trackers, these low-cost investments are designed to mimic the performance of a given stock market or sector. But as ETFs have grown in popularity and assets under management have swelled, so too has the array of different things you can do with them.
They can be an ideal solution as building blocks of a diversified portfolio, allowing you to gain exposure to hundreds of underlying investments at the click of a button.
Once known almost entirely as being a simple way to track a popular index such as the FTSE 100 or the S&P 500, investors can now use ETFs to tap into specific industries, niche themes or particular trends such as value or momentum. But, just as with any other investment, it is important to do your homework first.
BROAD AND BASIC
ETFs have a number of appealing characteristics for investors. First and foremost, they are cheap and prices have fallen further in recent years as competition in the market has increased and technology has enabled fund groups to create new products more easily.
It is now possible to invest in an ETF for less than 0.05% - or under 50p on a £1,000 investment. That compares with a typical fee of around 0.75% for an actively managed fund.
ETFs are listed on an exchange and bought and sold like company shares; that means investors don't have to wait until dealing at the end of the day to buy or sell their investment, it happens at any point throughout the day.
ETFs are perhaps best known for their ability to track particular stock markets. Investors can choose funds that mirror the performance of the FTSE 100, S&P 500 or MSCI Emerging Markets index and enjoy exposure to the entire stock market or region through one product.
Among the cheapest ETFs tracking the UK market is Lyxor Core Morningstar UK (LCUK) which charges just 0.04%. It is designed to track a basket of large and mid-cap London-listed firms representing 97% of the total value of the UK market. ETFs track an index either by buying shares in all of the companies on that market or by investing in a representative sample of them if the universe is particularly big. Investors don't have to just track a country or region either; ETFs can track entire sectors such as technology or consumer staples.
Using ETFs to access these markets has been a popular strategy with investors in recent years because they are broad and contain hundreds of stocks. The alternative of cherry-picking individual stocks within these markets can be both risky and expensive, and outperforming the index can be difficult to achieve even for professional investors, particularly at a time when stock markets are generally rising.
James Norton, senior investment planner at Vanguard, says: 'Investing should be about the market at a broad level and not trying to single out the best funds or stocks because the chances are you won't be able to. Outperforming in a particular market is difficult so it is often better to be as broad as you can, for example investing in the entire Emerging Markets index rather than just China or India.'
ETFs that tap into specific themes can look very exciting; they allow investors to narrow down trends they believe will do well over the long term and hone in on businesses in potentially very niche industries or those which look best placed to benefit from a structural change in the world.
But there is a danger here that investors can end up putting their money in a tracker whose focus is so niche that it becomes risky.
Rob Powell, lead strategist at iShares Thematic Investing, says: 'A thematic approach allows investors to take a different view of the world, drawing together companies based upon trends that we can see around us and the impact they're likely to have in the future.'
Some of the themes that iShares has identified include technological breakthroughs, rapid urbanisation and the rise of electric cars.
The number of thematic ETFs has grown rapidly in recent years and investors can now choose to back specific trends from timber to water and robotics to renewable energy. There are funds which only invest in firms with good gender equality standards and even ones which focus solely on pet care businesses.
The issue is that some of these themes have a limited number of investable listed businesses within them, meaning that these funds can end up being concentrated into just a handful of stocks, which can make performance volatile.
ETFs tracking smaller markets or specific themes can also be more expensive. The Ossiam ESG Low Carbon Shiller ETF (5HED), for example, has an ongoing charge of 0.85%. It tracks companies with a lower carbon footprint and good economic, social and governance (ESG) practices.
Adam Laird, head of ETF Strategy at Lyxor, says: 'There are some areas which have the potential for outperformance but you need to be careful. In technology, for example, many of the ETFs will be dominated by the same tech giants and a lot of the most exciting companies are unlisted so can't be bought by a fund.'
As a result, with specific themes it may be better to gain access through a specialist fund where the manager has proven expertise in finding investment opportunities within the industry and may have the ability to invest in unquoted businesses.
Norton says: 'We don't particularly believe in ETFs which focus on these micro-sectors. It comes back to diversification; doing well in a specific sector is hard and it is usually better to be as broad as possible in your exposure when investing.'
He adds: 'That said, I think as long as the core of your portfolio is well-allocated then having exposure to specific areas around the edges doesn't matter as long as you do your research and know what you are investing in. Flavour of the month products can be expensive and prone to large fall when they fall out of favour.'
ETFs can be used for tracking more than just equities. A number of these funds allow investors to focus on specific asset classes such as bonds or property.
It is also possible to track commodities using exchange-traded funds – one example being iShares Diversified Commodity Swap (ICOM) which offers exposure to a portfolio of commodity contracts from seven different sectors for an ongoing charge of 0.19%.
Products which track individual commodities are not strictly speaking ETFs as they do not meet diversification requirements and instead are exchange-traded products (sometimes called exchange-traded commodities).
Among the most popular assets for investors to track are gold and oil, because getting direct exposure to the price of these commodities is otherwise difficult. The downside of tracking the spot price of assets such as these is that they can be volatile. Some funds will also use derivatives to track the asset, because they can't physically hold oil, for example, which can be complicated and add to the cost.
Another nuance to watch out for is which currency the index is being tracked in as often these commodities are priced in dollars rather than sterling, which means your returns can be influenced by the exchange rate between currencies.
With asset-based ETFs it is important to understand what the fund is actually buying. With bonds, for example, a fund will likely invest in a sample rather than all of the bonds in a given index simply because there are so many to choose from. In this case, paying close attention to the credit-quality and durations of the bonds being chosen will be an important indicator of the yield you can expect to receive.
The bond market is so vast that investors can either take a very broad approach with, for example, the Xtrackers II Global Government Bond ETF (XG75), which holds bonds across the US, France and Japan among other countries, or be very specific through funds such as the iShares Italy Government Bond ETF (IITB), which focuses on just one country and one type of debt.
Property ETFs, meanwhile, are unlikely to invest in actual bricks and mortar but may instead give access to either housebuilders and construction companies or to real estate investment trusts. The iShares UK Property ETF (IUKP) holds the shares of British property groups Segro (SGRO), British Land (BLND) and Land Securities (LAND) while the SPDR Dow Jones Global Real Estate ETF (GBRE) invests in the likes of US mall operator Simon Property Group and warehouse and logistics property group Prologis.
The benefit to investing in real estate investment trusts in this way is that you can get low cost exposure to a number of different vehicles, but the downside is that they can be quite closely correlated and performance can be volatile, such as after the EU referendum in 2016 when the share prices of property trusts fell as much as 70% in some cases.
RULE-BASED ETFS
As the technology underpinning them becomes more sophisticated, ETFs have been able to offer more complicated strategies to investors. While these funds have typically been known for passively following a particular index or stock market, rule-based or smart beta ETFs have more specific criteria. Laird explains: 'Once upon a time, if you wanted income shares or to focus on value companies you had to choose an active manager, but now ETFs can do the same job and often at a fraction of the cost.'
Rules-based ETFs offer options to invest in high-yielding companies, momentum stocks or value investments. When choosing these it is important to look at how exactly the fund selects its holdings and how these are monitored – momentum stocks, for example, change frequently so need to be closely tracked – as well as assessing the track record of the fund and its parent company's experience in the sector.
The SPDR UK Dividend Aristocrats ETF (UKDV), for example, focuses on the 40 highest-yielding UK companies within a broader index, including BT (BT.A), Greene King (GNK) and Tate & Lyle (TATE). It yields around 4.1%. Meanwhile, the iShares MSCI World Quality Dividend ETF (WQDV) holds quality income-paying firms across the globe including Exxon Mobil and Nestle in Europe and Verizon and Cisco Systems in the US. It yields 3%.
Other ETFs use leverage – meaning they borrow money – with the aim of maximising gains, but the risk here is that the leverage will also magnify any losses. Meanwhile, inverse ETFs use derivatives to take short positions, betting against the market, which may appeal to those who believe the stock market is due a correction but returns will suffer in a rising market.
Costs can be higher in these areas too because the investments are more complicated to create and may require more oversight than other ETFs.
A key measure to watch out for is the spread – this is the difference between the price you buy at and sell at, and if there is a wide gap between the two could signal that the investment could be more difficult to sell when you want to. Larger funds, with more assets under management, may be more liquid and therefore have tighter spreads.
Norton adds: 'Smart ETFs are a really interesting area but some of these funds, which use leverage or swaps, may be potentially dangerous and are more akin to gambling than investing.'
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These articles are provided by Shares magazine which is published by AJ Bell Media, a part of AJ Bell. Shares is not written by AJ Bell Youinvest.
Shares is provided for your general information and use and is not a personal recommendation to invest. It is not intended to be relied upon by you in making or not making any investment decisions. The investments referred to in these articles will not be suitable for all investors. If in doubt please seek appropriate independent financial advice.
Investors acting on the information in these articles do so at their own risk and AJ Bell Media and its staff do not accept liability for losses suffered by investors as a result of their investment decisions.
The Shares team
Issue contents
Ask Tom
'What tax charge will I face at 75 in relation to the lifetime allowance?'
Why Bunzl's growth shock matters to investors
The 'big data' you need to watch on the UK economy
Why you should NOT hitch a lift with the Uber IPO
JD Sports, IWG, Galliford Try and other news
Rightmove reports property price recovery – but what about its own prospects?
The bestseller from Fundsmith's boss still packs a punch
What a blockbuster US deal can tell us about the oil price
The benefits of an ethical approach
This small cap is profiting from McDonald's waste
Potential for 7% dividend yield from Gulf Keystone
Great Ideas Update
National Grid payout looks safe for now
Alpha FMC on track for revenue and earnings growth
Private equity firms eye WPP's Kantar unit
Why Hollywood Bowl is on a roll
Baillie Gifford UK Growth brushes off portfolio disappointments
AEW UK Long Lease hit by tenant collapse
BlackRock Latin American eyes spicier strategy
Hipgnosis is striking a chord
Profit by giving your investments a spring clean
Higher or lower: how to play the volatile pound
Behind the screen with Ocean Outdoor


text:
Q: Can i store my app's content (reagent components) in the re-frame db? Here is my app's structure:
(reg-event-db
  :app-surface-add-layer!
  (fn [db [_ layer-content & [layer-params]]]
      (assoc db :app-surface-layers
             (conj (:app-surface-layers db)
                   {:layer-content layer-content
                    :layer-params layer-params}))))

(reg-sub
  :app-surface-get-layers
  (fn [db _]
      (:app-surface-layers db)))

(defn x-app []
  (let [app-surface-layers (subscribe [:app-surface-get-layers])]
    (fn []
      [:div#app
       [:div#app-topbar "Menu-1, Menu-2, etc."]
       [:div#app-sidebar "Menu-3, Menu-4, etc."]
       [:div#app-surface
        (reduce
          (fn [app-surface layer-data]
              (conj app-surface
                    [(:layer-content layer-data) (:layer-params layer-data)]))
          [:div#app-surface-layers]
          @app-surface-layers)]])))

(defn calendar [params]
  [:div#calendar
   "Calendar"])

; Put the calendar component to the re-frame db
(dispatch [:app-surface-add-layer! #'calendar ["Param-1"]])

My question is, can i store my app's content component (like calendar in the example) in the re-frame db?
What do you think about this solution's performace?

A: Can you? Absolutely, it's all just vectors in the end, and it certainly won't interfere with performance. Readability is a bit rough, I think it'd be clearer to have a case or similar to make it easier to tell in which situations calendar will be rendered vs a different component when trying to read the code, but a lot of that is going to depend on the specifics of what your doing.


The protein structures of strains of the H7N9 virus (transmission electron micrograph shown) still appear to be better adapted to attaching to bird cells instead of human cells, suggesting that an immediate global pandemic is less likely than previously thought.
Even though the H7N9 bird flu killed 44 people in China in 2013, the virus still appears to be better adapted to infecting birds.
Researchers studied the structure of proteins from one strain of the H7N9 virus that caused the outbreak and tested how strongly one of the proteins bound to molecules on the surfaces of bird and human cells. The structure of the virus appears to be better adapted and to attach more strongly to the bird molecules compared with human molecules, the team reports December 6 in Science.
The results suggest that the current H7N9 virus does not yet have the needed mutations to cause an immediate global pandemic.


www.PrayerAndBibleCenter.com website verifies that each person or ministry participating in the International Prayer & Bible Center World Outreach Network, has been accepted as a member based on the general IPBC membership requirements. However, IPBC do not assumes responsibility for research or inquiry that would validate any missions work, missionary, or project. Each IPBC member is responsible for researching any potential project, missionary, or church they desire to support or partner with. Therefore, IPBC do not endorse any agreements or financial transactions between any parties.


1. What hormone directly opposes the actions of natriuretic hormones?
2. Which of these is a vasoconstrictor?
3. What signal causes the heart to secrete atrial natriuretic hormone?
4. Critical Thinking: What organs produce which hormones or enzymes in the renin–angiotensin system?
5. Critical Thinking: PTH affects absorption and reabsorption of what?


1. Title page of a journal kept by Klaus Peter (later Pierre) Feigl, an Austrian/German Jewish refugee child living in France during World War II.
2. One page of a journal kept by Klaus Peter (later Pierre) Feigl, an Austrian/German Jewish refugee child living in France during World War II.
3. Identity card portrait of Klaus Peter Feigl, an Austrian/German Jewish refugee child living in France during World War II under the assumed name of Pierre Fesson.


text:
Hopes to resurrect troubled Thetford Enterprise Park as council look to kickstart £6m infrastructure scheme
Andrew Fitchett
The land in between Brunel Way and the A11 in Theteford which is earmarked for development into Thetford Enterprise Park.
Archant Norfolk Photographic © 2016
An employment site which has been through a 30-year 'on/off' saga could be set for a new lease of life as a council considers allocating £489,000 to reignite its development.
Key questions on the TEP
The EDP put four key questions to Breckland Council on the TEP's future:
1. The recommendation is for a multi-agency package to pay for the £6m infrastructure investment in the TEP. Who does the council envision the multi-agency partners to be?
Ideally a combination of both public and private, drawing in investment from landowners, district council, county council, and national allocations via the New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership.
2. Even with the Moving Thetford Forward money and Business Rates Pool Grant, there's still a shortfall of more than £5m to fund the infrastrucutre – where will this come from?
Securing the full funding has to start somewhere and the paper sets out the first contribution. No single agency has the £6m required, so any solution will be one that involves collaboration and a mix of funding sources – this is known as 'blended finance'.
3. How will Breckland ensure the types of jobs created on the site are suitable? i.e. quality, skilled jobs.
Breckland's Economic Development team will work alongside landowners to agree a strategy for the site, which will clearly set out of the type of businesses we will be seeking to attract. Marketing and promotion of the site will be a priority, as will securing a flagship anchor tenant.
4. When is the earliest the TEP could be up and running?
This is a complex multi-agency project – but any public sector investment is driven by clear delivery targets. We currently expect that the infrastructure required to open up the site will be delivered by around the end of 2018.
The Thetford Enterprise Park (TEP) was first mooted 30 years ago and has since fallen through on at least two occasions.
Plans for the 44-acre site, located on land between Mundford Road and the A11 in Thetford, promise the creation of up to 2,500 jobs and an infrastructure investment of at least £6m.
Breckland Council's Cabinet is now set to discuss kickstarting the project again by dedicating the last £489,000 of money from the Moving Thetford Forward (MTF) programme to get much-needed infrastructure installed - with a lack of electricity supply the primary concern.
It meets on Tuesday, with councillors and local business groups urging it to back officers' recommendations to fund the project once and for all.
A report to members recommends that the council use £450,000 from the recently secured Norfolk Business Rates Pool Grant, and create a "multi-agency package" to cover the remaining shortfall.
If the recommendation is approved, the council would have the green light to negotiate with partner agencies to source the funding and deliver the TEP.
Mike Brown, from Thetford Business Forum, has been involved in the TEP project since it was first given the go ahead in 2008.
He said it was vital to the area's growth, but only if it was designated as employment land for industries including engineering and manufacturing.
"It is long overdue and should have been completed at the time as it would have transformed Thetford.
"But we have to make sure it's all employment land, that's the key thing, otherwise it's a waste.
"With higher rates in Norwich and Cambridge, there could be an opportunity here," he said.
Terry Jermy, Labour councillor at Breckland, said he would back the TEP, despite what he called its "chequered past".
"I will support it because it's probably the single biggest opportunity to create jobs on that scale in Thetford," he said.
He added: "I didn't support Morrisons going in there as it was retail and we need to get manufacturing and engineering jobs in that location."
The meeting will also discuss how a number of groups in Thetford which applied for the last of the MTF money will be able to source alternative funding.
What do you think about the plans? Email andrew.fitchett@archant.co.uk


Long considered one of rock's premier guitarists, Allen Collins served as heart to Ronnie VanZant's soul in Lynyrd Skynyrd. Allen's unique, firey guitar playing and powerful songwriting helped insure Lynyrd Skynyrd's place in rock and roll history.
Born at St. Lukes Hospital in Jacksonville, Florida on July 19, 1952, Allen (delivered by Doctor Owens) weighed in at 7 pounds, 14 ounces. Allen's mother, Eva remembers her son as full of energy and enthusiasm -- even before Allen could walk he moved constantly. From his earliest days Allen loved cars -- especially race cars -- and his favorite summer activity was going to Jacksonville Raceway every Saturday night to watch Leroy Yarborough race. The Collins family first started attending the races when Allen was eight years old and Allen, sitting as high in the stands as possible, would laugh and holler as he pretended to be racing his own car. This early fascination lasted throughout Allen's life -- he later collected an entire fleet of collectible and performance cars that was one of his proudest possessions.
In 1963, Allen lived in Jacksonville's Cedar Hills area when an older friend received a guitar for his birthday. Allen was hooked. Allen's parents had recently divorced and times were tough for Allen, his sister and mother. His mother, already working all day at the cigar factory, took a second job at Woolworths in the evenings. As soon as she had saved enough money, she surprised Allen by taking him down to Sears and ordered his first Silvertone guitar and amplifier. Despite no training aside from a few tips from his step-mother and friend, Allen picked up the guitar easily and quickly formed his first band -- The Mods.
Together with singer Ronnie VanZant and guitarist Gary Rossington, Allen Collins formed the nucleus of Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1964 by learning what they could from each other and listening to the radio. This early band, first called My Backyard, then the Noble Five also included drummer Bob Burns and bassist Larry Junstrum. Finding a place to practice proved difficult and the choices were limited to the carport at Bob's house, Ronnie's backyard, where they were sure to get a full meal or Allen's living room which usually included Eva's famous cakes and candies. After several years of practicing, performing and personnel changes, Skynyrd, like any decent group of fledgling rock stars, started gigging the notorious one-nighters.
In 1970, Allen married Kathy Johns. Allen included his band mates in his wedding party, but Kathy worried that their long haired appearance would disturb her parents. Solving the problem required everyone tucking their rock and roll image under wigs for the wedding ceremony. The wedding reception played host to a piece of rock and roll history -- one of the first public performances of "Freebird" complete with the trademark extended guitar jam at the end. Allen's family grew with the birth of his daughter Amie followed quickly by Allison. Times were very difficult since Allen's musical career barely brought in enough to support the young family. Despite coming close several times, Lynyrd Skynyrd just kept missing that elusive big break.
In 1973, however, things finally started coming together for Lynyrd Skynyrd. During a week-long stint at Funochio's in Atlanta, the band was discovered by the renown Al Kooper. After signing a record deal with MCA subsidiary Sounds of the South, Skynyrd entered the studio with Kooper producing. The result -- Pronounced Leh-nerd Skin-nerd -- started the band on its rise to fame with standards like 'Gimme Three Steps', 'Simple Man', and the incendiary, guitar-driven classic, 'Freebird'.
Gold and platinum albums followed a string of hit songs like 'Sweet Home Alabama', 'Saturday Night Special', 'Gimme Back My Bullets', 'What's Your Name?', and 'That Smell'. Over the four years Skynyrd recorded, the memories gradually turned into legends. Opening the Who tour. "Skynning" Europe alive. 1975's Torture Tour. Steve Gaines. One More From The Road. The Knebworth Fair '76.
By October 20, 1977, Skynyrd's songs had become radio staples. Their latest album, Street Survivors, had just been released to critical and popular acclaim. Their ambitious new tour, just days underway, saw sellout crowds. Then it all fell away at 6000 feet above a Mississippi swamp.
At 6:42 PM, the pilot of Lynyrd Skynyrd's chartered Convair 240 airplane radioed that the craft was dangerously low on fuel. Less than ten minutes later, the plane crashed into a densely wooded thicket in the middle of a swamp. The crash, which killed Ronnie VanZant, guitarist Steve Gaines, vocalist Cassie Gaines, road manager Dean Kilpatrick and seriously injured the rest of the band and crew, shattered Skynyrd's fast rising star as it cut a 500 foot path through the swamp. Lynyrd Skynyrd had met a sudden, tragic end.
After several years of recovery, the crash survivors felt the time was right for another try. Gary Rossington and Allen Collins had performed at a few special jams, and slowly began planning a new band. Over the next few weeks they signed on Skynyrd survivors Billy Powell and Leon Wilkeson and other local musicians, although the choice of a lead vocalist for the new band remained a perplexing one. Realizing any singer would be faced with inevitable comparisons with Ronnie VanZant, Allen and Gary chose Dale Krantz, a gutsy, whiskey-voiced female backup singer from .38 Special. This change set the Rossington Collins band apart as they entered the 1980s.
The Rossington-Collins Band debuted in June 1980 with the Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere album. Kicked by such songs as 'Getaway" and 'Don't Misunderstand Me' the album sold more than a million copies and the band toured to enthusiastic, sellout crowds. However the band's 1981 follow-up effort stumbled in the marketplace despite being well-received critically.
Tragedy struck Allen's life again just as the Rossington Collins Band started. During the first days of the stressful debut concert tour, Allen's wife Kathy passed away forcing the tour's cancellation. Coupled with the lingering effects of losing his friends in the plane crash, Kathy's death devastated Allen. However, the pull of creating music was too strong for Allen to walk away from. Even when Gary Rossington and Dale Krantz quit the Rossington Collins Band, Allen continued on forming the Allen Collins Band in 1983. Allen originally wanted the name Horsepower for his band, but shortly after completing the new album's artwork they learned that name was already used. Their one release, Here, There and Back, met with considerable fan approval, but little support from MCA Records which dropped the band shortly after the album's release.
Once again tragedy struck Allen in 1986. Driving near his home in Jacksonville, Allen crashed his car in an accident which killed his girlfriend and left him permanently paralyzed from the waist down. The injuries also limited the use of his upper body and arms. He later plead no contest to DUI manslaughter.
During the 1987 Lynyrd Skynyrd Tribute tour Allen served as musical director -- selecting the set lists, arranging the songs and setting the stage. However, remaining on the sidelines while his band took center stage proved painful for the guitarist. Part of Allen's sentence from his car wreck, called for him to use his fame and influence to warn kids of the dangers of drunk driving. Allen used the Tribute tour to go on stage and let his fans know the reason why he couldn't play with Skynyrd -- a powerful, sobering message few fans will forget.
In 1989, Allen developed pneumonia as a result of decreased lung capacity from the paralyzation. He entered the hospital in September where he passed away on January 23, 1990.