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Q: Describing failing assert statements in imported functions with pytest Pytest nicely prints the values of variables in failing assert statement (e.g. example here).
However, this does not work for assert failures in imported functions,
example.py
def func():
    b = 1
    assert b == 0

test_func.py
from example import func

def test_func():
    func()

running pytest test_example.py will yield,
    def test_func():
>       func()

test_example.py:4:
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

    def func():
        b = 1
>       assert b == 0
E       AssertionError

example.py:4: AssertionError

in other words it will not print debug information about why that assertion failed (namely that the value of b is 1).
Is there a way around this? Should I open a Github issue in the Pytest repo?
Note: if I put the function definition in the same test_example.py I do get the expected result,
    def func():
        b = 1
>       assert b == 0
E       assert 1 == 0

test_example.py:3: AssertionError

but in many use cases one can't do that (e.g. assert fails in some package), hence my question...

A: You can use the pytest.register_assert_rewrite function, to enable this functionality for your modules.
You must call register_assert_rewrite before you import your function from the module, so you can place it conftest.py for example.
conftest.py
import pytest
pytest.register_assert_rewrite("example")

Link to original solution: https://github.com/pytest-dev/pytest/issues/4671

A: In basic way you need to ask for verbose output:
py.test -vvvv
Additionally you can specify the level of verbosity:
logging.WARN,    # -v
logging.INFO,    # -vv
logging.DEBUG,   # -vvv
logging.TRACE,   # -vvvv
logging.GARBAGE  # -vvvvv

For even more custom logging you can check pytest docs

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Britney Spears Vs. Christina Aguilera. Who's Better? Who Cares
Contributed anonymously:
I've been checking out some of the Brit vs. Christina posts on here, and I'm shocked at what you people are saying. Half the posts are throws at the whichever one they don't like, bashing them. I've seen posts like "Britney can't sing!" or "Christina's a wh*re!". How incredibly immature.
I admit, I've done it in the past, but I've learned from my mistakes. It's petty, immature, and babyish. People have opinions, but they don't usually express them in a nice, mature way. Sure, if you're a Christina Aguilera fan like me, you'll get defensive if a Britney Spears fan disses Chris, but you should do it in a mature matter, not going "Well Britney is a fake b!tch!" Just be the better person, ignore it, and move on. The same thing for Britney fans.
We all have opinions, but it doesn't make it right. Some people think Christina's "better", and some people think Britney's "better". Those are all opinions. I prefer Chrissy, but that doesn't mean that I think she's "better" than anyone. Sure, she has an awesome voice, but so do Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston. And Brit is an amazing dancer.
Bottom line is, both Britney and Christina are ENTERTAINERS, each doing their own thing. As in they're two completely different people. Neither of them are "better" than the other, in fact I think they're on the same level as far as different talents go.
Now I'm gonna watch all the hate comments come in, but I'm gonna be mature and ignore them. I just had to vent about it. Sorry.
January 24, 2004 Jeff C Opinion 4 Comments Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera
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4 thoughts on "Britney Spears Vs. Christina Aguilera. Who's Better? Who Cares"
notAhater says:
FIRST OFF I would like 2 say that BRITNEY SPEARS will always be more popular,richer,happier,talented,beautiful,respected as a artist *OrInGaL*pop queen than Christina! Xtina is always tryin 2 bring Britney down and well Britney laughs it off! CHRISTINA IS A HATER!! how sad that she uses Britney for attention :( !!! BRITNEY WILL ALWAYS B THE BEST
REALLY ? hmm who's known more around the world? who has sold more records? who copys who? Who got all the publicty of the modonna kiss? WHOS always on the news?? Sure as hell NOT CHRISTINA hahaha shes one ugly girl that uses BEAUTIFUL Britney for attention!!! …AND u know whats sad is that PREGNAT Britney STILL looks better than Xtina! :) GO 2 askmen.com and see who guys perfer* ask me who girls like more and look up 2 AND GUESS WHAT ITS BRITNEY ITS ALWAY BRITNEY CUZ SHE THE BEST AND THE ORGIUNAL POP QUEEN!
lindsay mays says:
Britney Spears is THE pop princess of today, no one can argue with that! she is the Madonna of this era, she's sexy, got stage presence, is a phenomenal performer, and she appeals to the masses. Christina Aguilera has a beautiful voice but she will ALWAYS be second to Britney.
Twin says:
Why do people always compare Britney to Christina? This is as retarded as Britney is in her own head. But anyways, Britney and Christina are not in the same league. We are comparing one who can't sing with one who's "probably the best vocalist in the world" to quote Celine Dion. We're comparing one who's following the steps of a panty-throwing Madonna with one who's in the league of Streisand, Franklin and Knight. We're comparing a commercial product to an artist. We're comparing one who can only be distinguished from her dancers because she has a tiny head mike with someone who captures all attention on stage. So where are the common points that make it possible to compare the two?
maya .y. says:
I hate both of them. I saw what happen when they were performing "Hollywood" with Madonna.They are both lesbian. I was shocked at Britney. Even Justin Timberlake was too. I hope Britney listen clear to the lyric of Rihanna's best hit singe "DISTURBIA"? the lyric said "YOU BETTER THINK TWICE" I hope that's what she did before KISSING MADONNA & CHRISTINA? do she wanna be lesbian because of money or leave her life the same when god brought her on earth?

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


On Monday, I had a story run in the American-Statesman about getting good tech support/customer service, which is an issue that seems to hit critical mass a day or two after Christmas after the dust and eggnog have settled. There's some good resources in the piece and, knock on wood, I haven't had to use any of them yet this year. Enjoy!
I'm on vacation right now and trying to do as little as possible that doesn't involve pajamas, television or ice cream. So far, I've been wildly successful.


Supreme Court justices often grouse about the political polarization and gridlock across the street in Congress. Now they have a chance to make it worse. The high court will hear a case Monday that could give partisan state legislatures sole authority to draw congressional districts, a task voters in several states have transferred to independent commissions. The case comes from Arizona, where Republican lawmakers want to take back the power to draw the district lines. If the court sides with them after agreeing to hear their appeal, the ruling would affect similar commissions in California and a handful of other states. Such a ruling "would consign states to the dysfunctionality of a system where politicians choose their voters rather than voters choosing their politicians," says a brief filed by three national experts on redistricting.
Full Article: Supreme Court to decide who can draw maps for Congress.
Democrats have came out in support of a constitutional amendment guaranteeing the right to vote. The proposed amendment has no realistic shot at passing for the foreseeable future. But the move points to an intensifying Democratic response to the wave of conservative efforts to restrict voting, and lays down a clear marker for the party's long-term goal. "We have been having an expanding of the franchise in America. That's the trajectory of history," Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.), who, with Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wisc.) has introduced legislation in Congress for a right-vote amendment, told msnbc in an interview. "But in recent years, folks who don't want everybody to vote have been very busy, and they're trying to peel back the trajectory of opportunity to vote and participate in our society." At its winter meeting Saturday in Florida, the Democratic National Committee unanimously passed a resolution that supports "amending the United States Constitution to explicitly guarantee an individual's right to vote." The DNC also said it would urge state parties to push for statewide referenda backing the idea, and pledged to create a "Right to Vote Task Force" to offer ideas on how to protect voting rights. The resolution was submitted by Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the chair of the DNC, as well as Donna Brazile, a vice chair and prominent figure in the party.
Full Article: Democrats want to add right to vote to the Constitution | MSNBC.
Full Article: Wisconsin County Successfully Debuts ExpressVote and DS200 | Election Systems & Software.
When hundreds of Californians got together to roll up their sleeves and talk about elections last week, they were joined by a looming, unwanted problem. "And that voter turnout. That's really the elephant in the room, isn't it?" said California Secretary of State Alex Padilla. "November 2014. June 2014. We can and must do better. And there is no magic wand to get more and more Californians to vote." The room was filled for the Future of California Elections (FOCE) annual conference in Sacramento. The theme of the conference was building a more inclusive democracy, taking up issues of elections funding, language and disability access, election data and other nuts-and-bolts. But, the low voter turnout and what to do about it dominated several of the discussions.
Full Article: California Elections Officials, Voting Advocates Tackle Low Voter Turnout | PublicCEO.
Twice in the last three election cycles, snafus in Connecticut elections have made national news. In 2010 it was when Bridgeport ran out of ballots. In 2014 it was when Hartford couldn't get polling places open on time. But these aren't the only communities that had election difficulties in this period. Fairfield, Naugatuck, West Hartford and other towns had issues as well. "Enough is enough," Secretary of the State Denise Merrill said Wednesday as she announced a radical-for-Connecticut plan to reform the administration of elections. She is submitting a bill to the General Assembly that would do away with the system of two (or three) elected registrars of voters in each town and replace them with a single appointed, nonpartisan registrar, who likely would be on the town clerk's staff.
Full Article: It's time for Connecticut to change its outdated registrar of voters system. - Hartford Courant.
A bill allowing Iowans who don't have a drivers license or state-issued I.D. to register to vote online is moving to the Iowa Senate floor for a vote, after the Senate State Government Committee approved it Wednesday. Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate is currently working on allowing online voter registration for Iowans with an I.D., but Senator Jeff Danielson (D-Cedar Falls) says that would leave out about seven percent of the state's population. Given modern technology and security standards, he says it's safe and possible to allow Iowans without an I.D. to still register to vote online.
An old issue has come back in Augusta: voter ID. A bill sponsored by Sen. Ron Collins (R-Wells) would require Maine voters to show an ID before casting a ballot. The issue has been debated in the Legislature before. Republican staffers say it was proposed in 2011, but did not end up being passed into law at that time. Instead it was passed as a Legislative resolve. That was the same year the Republican majority passed a law eliminating same day voter registration, a law that was ultimately overturned by Maine voters in referendum.
Full Article: Voter ID brought back to the Leguislature.
The North Dakota Senate voted down a bill Wednesday that would have allowed voters without an approved form of identification to cast a provisional ballot. Senate Bill 2353, sponsored by Sen. Mac Schneider, D-Grand Forks, failed 18-29 Wednesday. Provisional ballots wouldn't count until the voter could prove their eligibility with a postcard mailed by the county auditor after the election.
Full Article: North Dakota Senate votes down provisional ballots | Grand Forks Herald.
The Senate Rules Committee has advanced three proposals introduced by Sen. David Holt, R-Oklahoma City, to modernize Oklahoma's election system and increase rapidly declining voter participation. In 1992, over 70 percent of eligible Oklahomans participated in the presidential election, but by 2012, that percentage had plunged to only 52 percent, third-worst in the nation. In 2014, less than 30 percent of eligible voters participated in the statewide general election. A third of eligible Oklahomans are not even registered. There were fewer registered voters in 2014 than there were in 1988, even though the state's population has grown 22 percent.
Full Article: Election legislation advances - Norman Transcript: Oklahoma.
A broad alliance of civil rights groups representing voters most affected by Wisconsin's photo ID law pressed the U.S. Supreme Court to hear a challenge to the measure enacted during Gov. Scott Walker's first term. The Wisconsin Department of Justice, meanwhile, are asking the high court to reject the appeal. The case, Frank v. Walker, is pending before the Supreme Court, on appeal filed after the U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the statute last October. After the appellate ruling, challengers secured from the Supreme Court a temporary hold that kept the law from being implemented for the 2014 midterm election. However, the high court has not indicated whether it will hear the case on merit.
Full Article: Civil rights alliance weighs in with high court on voter ID | Wisconsin | Wisconsin Gazette - Smart, independent and revealing. News, opinion and entertainment coverage.
Nigeria's Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has reassured prospective voters that the elections now scheduled for March 28 will proceed as planned despite concerns the vote could be postponed again for security reasons. The general election, originally set for February 14, was postponed by the INEC, which cited security challenges in parts of the country's north, where Boko Haram militants often attack civilians. Nick Dazang, INEC's deputy director for public affairs, said the electoral body is using the postponement period to strengthen systems to ensure a transparent, credible, free and fair election. Dazang spoke after opposition groups including the All Progressives Congress led by retired General Muhammadu Buhari said they will not accept another "unconstitutional" postponement of the election.
Full Article: Nigeria Electoral Body Reassures Public Over March Election.
From Pope Francis and President Obama to the kid down the block, we have, for better or worse, become a world full of selfie-takers. But as ubiquitous as they are, there are some places where selfies remain controversial — like the voting booth. The legal battle rages over so-called "ballot selfies" in the state that holds the first presidential primary. This may be a fight of the digital age, but according to New Hampshire Secretary of State Bill Gardner, it involves a very old American ideal — the sanctity of the secret ballot. "If somebody wants to go out and say that they voted for this person or that person they can do it. They can do it, but that ballot is sacred," he says. Gardner has been the state's top election official since 1976. To say he views ballot selfies with suspicion would be an understatement. He backed a change in law last year that made New Hampshire the first state to ban them explicitly.
Full Article: 'Ballot Selfies' Clash With The Sanctity Of Secret Polling : All Tech Considered : NPR.
At its first meeting on Tuesday, the new quorum of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) took an important, much-awaited step toward making the work of election officials easier and improving the voter experience around the country. For four years, the lack of a quorum of Commissioners blocked the accreditation of new voting system test laboratories, which meant only two facilities in the country were able to review the quality and accessibility of voting systems. Yesterday's accreditation of a third test laboratory promises to help alleviate the looming risk of major voting machine problems that have worried many smart observers. Federally accredited labs commonly test products we use everyday, from toasters to children's toys, to ensure they are safe. Similarly, to protect the legitimacy of our elections, the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) requires the EAC to put voting machines through rigorous testing and certification.
Full Article: Restaffed EAC Advances Voting Systems in First Meeting: Democracy Fund.
Secretary of the State Denise Merrill Wednesday proposed scrapping the state's system of having two elected registrars, a Democrat and a Republican, run elections in each of the state's 169 municipalities, saying she would replace them with a single registrar appointed by officials in each city or town. "Connecticut is the only state in the country that leaves election administration to two partisan locally elected officials," Merrill, the state's chief elections official, said at a Capitol press conference at which she proposed that legislators pass a bill to reform the system.
Full Article: Connecticut Secretary of the State Denise Merrill Proposes Reforms In Registrars' System. Critic Says She Should Clean Up Her Office First - Hartford Courant.
A Wake County judge has refused to dismiss a challenge to North Carolina's voter ID law, saying in a ruling issued Friday that most of the claims in the lawsuit are strong enough to take to trial. Judge Mike Morgan dismissed two of six claims made by the League of Women Voters of North Carolina, the A. Philip Randolph Institute and five female voters who contend that requiring voters to show photo ID at the polls violates the North Carolina State Constitution. Attorneys for the legislators behind the 2013 elections-law overhaul argued three weeks ago to Morgan that the case should be dismissed outright and that no one would be prohibited from voting if they did not have one of the acceptable forms of ID. The attorneys for the lawmakers contended that because an ID will not be necessary to cast a mail-in absentee ballot, that the challengers' arguments have no merits.
Full Article: RALEIGH: Wake judge allows case on voter ID law to proceed to trial | Politics & Government | NewsObserver.com.
A pair of House Democrats announced Thursday a plan to change how Ohio draws its congressional districts, but a similar plan lacked support last year in the Republican-led legislature. The proposal, introduced by Reps. Kathleen Clyde of Kent and Mike Curtin of Marble Cliff, resembles one that the Republican-led General Assembly approved last year for drawing Statehouse districts. That plan goes before voters in November. … Clyde and Curtin's plan has no Republican co-sponsors. Currently, congressional lines are drawn every 10 years by a committee of lawmakers and approved by the General Assembly. The setup allows the party in power — Republicans in 2011 — to draw lines and approve maps without minority-party input. Republicans hold 12 of Ohio's 16 congressional seats yet only won 55 percent of the votes in recent congressional elections statewide.
Full Article: Redistricting reform for Ohio congressional maps proposed by House Democrats | cleveland.com.


text:
Highlight · Politics
Cox to testify in discrimination suit against nonprofit, Gateway Ice Center
Alex Tavlian October 10, 2019, 10:35 pm October 10, 2019 Comments Off on Cox to testify in discrimination suit against nonprofit, Gateway Ice Center
Freshman Rep. TJ Cox (D–Fresno) will be compelled to testify in a Federal discrimination case involving his former nonprofit when it goes to trial in March.
Cox was, until recently, the Chief Financial Officer of the Central Valley Community Sports Foundation.
Last March, two minors – 16-year-old amputee Megan McKeon and 7-year-old Laila Neal, who has cerebral palsy – filed a lawsuit against the Foundation, its executive director, and Gateway Ice Center for violating the Americans with Disabilities Act and California's Jesse M. Unruh Civil Rights Act by barring them from using the ice skating facility during different birthday parties in 2016 and 2017.
Both were told they would have to use the facility during specific times when wheelchairs were allowed on the ice.
Ahead of Cox's Tuesday night town hall meeting in Sanger, a process server served a subpoena on the Congressman, compelling him to testify in the lawsuit.
Trial is scheduled to start March 10 at the Robert E. Coyle Federal Courthouse, one week after California's March Primary election.
Rachelle Golden, the attorney for Neal and McKeon, said she has already questioned Cox in two separate depositions related to the suit.
Shortly after filing the lawsuit in March, Golden attempted to have Cox personally added as a defendant to the lawsuit, making him personally liable in the event of an award for McKeon and Neal.
She also attempted to add Cox's primary business, Central Valley New Market Tax Credits LLC, as a party alleging that the business provided federal funds (Treasury-issued New Market Tax Credit proceeds) to a business violating the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Cox left his post as Chief Financial Officer of Central Valley Community Sports Foundation in March.
Cox also divested from Central Valley NMTC and its affiliates. According to filings with California's Secretary of State, former Fresno City Councilman Oliver Baines assumed management of Central Valley NMTC and its affiliates in July.
Alex Tavlian
Alex Tavlian is the Executive Editor of The San Joaquin Valley Sun and Executive Director of Valley Future Foundation. You can reach Alex at alex.tavlian@sjvsun.com.
Newsom unveils $222bil budget for 2020-21


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On Aug. 25, the S&P 500 index closed above 2,000 for the first time — finishing at 2,000.24. It had taken the index more than 16 years to double from its first close above 1,000 on Feb. 2, 1998, when it finished at 1,001.27. That 16-year span is more than five times as long as it took for the index to double from its first close above 500 on March 24, 1995, when it finished at 500.97.
On its way to 2,000, the S&P 500 had to endure two major bear markets. It fell from its high of 1,576.74 on Oct. 11, 2007, all the way to its low of 666.79 on March 6, 2009. That means the index has risen more than 1,330 points from its bottom five years ago.
From March 2009 through July 2014, the S&P 500 returned just over 22 percent per year, providing a total return of 195 percent — quite an impressive performance for the period. This year alone, it has defied many so-called experts and risen from 1,848 to 2,000, a price-only gain of more than 8 percent.
Now, imagine you had a clear crystal ball and were able to foresee each and every event that has occurred so far this year, with the exception that you cannot see stock prices.
You might think that would give you a huge advantage in terms of investment decisions. You would know whether the economic and political news was positive or negative. You might even think you could then anticipate how that news would affect the markets.
Now consider all the negative news we have had over the first eight months of 2014. Here's just a short list:
U.S. growth turned negative in the first quarter. Real GDP fell 2.1 percent in the Jan.-March period before recovering in the second quarter.
The economies of most other developed markets slowed. Some, like Italy, experienced an outright recession. Others, like Germany, experienced periods of negative growth.
The economic growth rate in China, India, Brazil and other major emerging markets has also slowed significantly.
Argentina defaulted on its debt.
The end of quantitative easing and the start of the Federal Reserve's "tapering" process — which will be completed in October — is threatening to raise the low interest rates that have helped boost stock prices.
The geopolitical situation has been anything but supportive. Russia first invaded and eventually annexed Crimea. Now a widening war is unfolding in Ukraine. We've had one crisis after another in the Middle East, any one of which could lead to a disruption in oil supplies. No resolution to the nuclear situation in Iran has materialized, and the civil war in Syria continues. ISIS threatens to disrupt the Middle East's entire geopolitical situation. Israel and Hamas have waged another war in Gaza. We've even seen some Chinese saber rattling in the Pacific.
In addition to all this, investors have been bombarded by regular warnings about the market being overvalued. The so-called Shiller CAPE 10 has been well above its historical average for years, and currently stands at more than 26.
Let's review some of the dire warnings investors have been hearing.
On Feb. 6, 2013, with the S&P 500 at about 1,500, Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co.'s highly regarded and often quoted investment strategist Jeremy Grantham warned that assets are "brutally overpriced." And he noted this was true around the globe as well.
John Hussman, founder of the Hussman family of funds, has been offering similar warnings for a long time. Since late 2009, he has been calling for another financial crisis due to bad policy choices from the U.S. government.
His market commentary of Jan. 14, 2013, when the S&P was at about 1,465, stated: "Present overvalued, overbought, overbullish, rising-yield conditions fall within a tiny percentage of market history that is associated with dismal market outcomes, on average. It's true that we've observed extreme conditions since about March 2012 with little resolution aside from short-term declines. But the S&P 500 remains only a few percent from its March 2012 high, and if history is any guide, the extension of these unfavorable conditions is not likely to reduce the depth of the market loss that can be expected to resolve them."
On Dec. 19, 2013, with the S&P 500 at about 1,800, Marc Faber, publisher of the Gloom, Boom and Doom Report and a frequent guest on CNBC, offered this forecast: "The market will continue to decline from its November high of 1,813." And on May 8, 2014, with the S&P 500 at about 1,870, Faber warned about a coming crisis bigger than the one we had in 2008.
The stock market has been ignoring such warnings and bad news, defying many so-called experts, for years. Just think about all the bad news the market has studiously ignored since it reached bottom in March 2009. Here's another brief list of some major problems the market has had to deal with over the last five years.
The eurozone debt crisis.
The U.S. almost defaulting on its debt and the eventual loss of its AAA credit rating from Standard & Poor's.
A do-nothing Congress that has failed to address America's long-term budget crisis.
The sequestration process, which many warned would have a significant negative impact on the economy.
And, of course, all the geopolitical dangers mentioned earlier.
Investors who paid attention to such warnings, and reacted accordingly, have missed out on one of the greatest rallies ever. And we can say the same thing about the bond market, which has defied all forecasts of trouble from rising interest rates. It has ignored experts, such as the "Bond King" Bill Gross, for six years now.
Investors who were scared off by the loud and dire warnings, and who opted to stay with very short maturities, failed to earn the large term premium that has generally existed over the past six years. The yield curve has generally been quite steep. These investors also incurred reinvestment risk because rates not only stayed down, but generally moved lower.
The lesson I hope you take from all this is not only that you should ignore the headlines when making investment decisions, but also that you should ignore all market forecasters. There are simply no good ones. One reason for the inability of anyone to forecast markets well is because, as you have just seen, even a perfectly clear crystal ball that reveals all world events may tell you nothing about where markets are going.
This commentary originally appeared September 3 on CBSNews.com
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The opinions expressed by featured authors are their own and may not accurately reflect those of the BAM ALLIANCE. This article is for general information only and is not intended to serve as specific financial, accounting or tax advice.
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Larry Swedroe is the Chief Research Officer for Buckingham Strategic Wealth. He has authored or co-authored more than a dozen books and is regularly published on ETF.com and Advisor Perspectives. He has made appearances on national television shows airing on NBC, CNBC, CNN and Bloomberg Personal Finance. Larry holds an MBA in finance and investment from New York University, and a bachelor's degree in finance from Baruch College in New York.
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The professor who taught the first political science class I took spent much of the semester on his pet theory about how people will tolerate a surprising amount of oppression, but there is a limit and once you get past it, boom.
This was a long time ago, so he used examples like the Iranian revolution, where the Shah created such a corrupt, horrific regime that finally the people had enough and went full medieval, instituting a theocracy that's been a thorn in the west's side ever since.
I've been thinking back to those lectures by that funny little man in his bow tie over the last few years—the Occupy movement, the Tea Party, Black Lives Matter, and the rise of Trump and Sanders seem powered by anger and frustration.
People are angry. Inequality is at the level of the robber barons, the middle class is under siege, rural America is wilting on the vine, and people of color are still dying at the hands of law enforcement.
At this point the anger is mostly constrained inside the political system, though it's starting to leak out, like with the Bundy Ranch standoff and the Ferguson riots.
Obviously, the Occupy movement and the Bundy Ranch crew place the blame for their anger in different places, but both points of view feel in their bones that they are getting shafted. Shafted hard.
And it's not getting better—the trend lines point to inequality increasing, for the downward spiral for rural people and the middle class to continue to accelerate.
And I think back to my old poli-sci professor and wonder where the limit is, at what point the levee breaks.


text:
Australian World Speedway Champ Ready for Grand Prix of Latvia
Jason Crump is after is third World Speedway Grand Prix Championship. The Australian is preparing for round six of the 11 round World Championship series at Latvijas Spidveja Centrs Stadium in Daugavpils, Latvia.
Double World Speedway Grand Prix Champion Jason Crump is half-way to his Third World Championship
Crump is sitting at the top of the table with a 31 point lead over his nearest rival and knows what he needs to do if he is to win his third world crown. "Jason needs to maintain the consistency he has shown in the first half of the season," said Roy Stone, Crump's Media Relations Manager. "He won at Latvia last year and is very familiar with the track. Jason is also the hot favorite to take out this year's event."
Australian Jason Crump has a 31- point lead over his nearest rival Russian Emil Sayfutdinov in the World Speedway Grand Prix Championship chase
"We are only at the halfway mark and there is a lot of hard work to do," said Crump. "The strategy is simple, but putting it into practice is the hard part." Crump plans to remain consistent and have his machinery working right and hopes to stay injury free.
"The pressure is on, but K&N products give me one less thing to worry about," he said. "Mechanically I can count on K&N products. K&N makes the best motorcycle air filter on the market and keeps the dirt out of my engines. I can also depend on extra filtration during extreme track conditions."
After five rounds the points total is as follows:
Australian Jason Crump 98 points
Russian Emil Sayfutdinv 67 points
Poland's Tomasz Gollob 53 points
Denmark's Nicki Pedersen 52 points
Sweden's Andreas Jonsson 51 points
Round 6 of the World Speedway Grand Prix resumes August 1.


text:
Year: 2011 Vol. 15 Num. 3 - Jul/Set - (9º)
DOI: 10.1590/S1809-48722011000300009 Print:
Section: Original Article
PDF Português English PDF Text in Portuguese
Correlation between hearing loss and the results of the following questionnaires: Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Adults - Screening Version HHIA-S and Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly - Screening Version - HHIE-S
Menegotto IH, Soldera CLC, Anderle P, Anhaia TC. Correlation between hearing loss and the results of the following questionnaires: Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Adults - Screening Version HHIA-S and Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly - Screening Version - HHIE-S. Int. Arch. Otorhinolaryngol. 2011;15(3):319-326
Isabela Hoffmeister Menegotto1, Cristina Loureiro Chaves Soldera2, Paula Anderle3, Tanise Cristaldo Anhaia4.
questionnaires, sensitivity and specificity, hearing loss, aging.
Introduction: The self-assessment questionnaires are useful to measure the emotional and social/transient consequences resulting from hearing loss, and they can be used in a wide range of situations in the clinical routine, such as auditory screening. Objective: Check the sensitivity and specificities of HHIA-S and HHIE-S questionnaires to identify a hearing loss and their usages in auditory screenings, as well as analyze the ability of these questionnaires to detect different degrees of hearing impairments in the studied people. Method: Retrospective study with 51 individuals aged between 18 and 88, who filled out the Hearing Handicap Inventory for Adults Screening Version - HHIA-S and Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly Screening Version - HHIE-S questionnaires at the waiting room of the Brazilian Unified Health System (SUS)'s otorhinolaryngology infirmary. Results: The instruments showed a low sensitivity (47%), not identifying individuals with a hearing loss; however, they showed a high specificity (75%), accurately identifying individuals with no hearing disorder. Moreover, no significant association between the degree of hearing loss and the constraint degree for participation was found. Conclusion: the aforementioned questionnaires revealed a low sensitivity and a high specificity, proving to be ineffective for auditory screenings in a group with previous hearing complaints in addition to being unable to detect different types and degrees of hearing impairment.
According to WHO's data, in Brazil, around 2,250,000 inhabitants have a hearing deficit, corresponding to 1.5% of population (1). To serve this population, the Unified Health System (SUS) launched the Auditory Health Service comprising a screening and monitoring newborn's hearing and that of children in kindergarten and at school; a diagnosis of hearing loss in 3-year-old children or older, teenagers and adults (workers and elderly), meeting the requirements for each of these conditions (2).
Hearing loss can be considered one of the most devastating losses regarding the individual's social living. In adults, the impact of this type of auditory alteration can be associated with the cognitive decline, depression and a reduction of the functional state, mainly for those having loss but who were not evaluated or treated (3).
Accordingly, surveying the individuals with a hearing difficulty in a community, their location and the study of their social conditions are extremely important to fine-tune the measurements of public health in the several levels of prevention (4). For this purpose, it is fundamental to have methods of auditory screening with a sensibility to detect a hearing loss in individuals who do not suspect about having any hearing difficulty and, thus, do not pursue a treatment.
By definition, the screening is applied in a large population, its swiftness and simplicity in its application, and it must identify the individuals having a high likelihood of showing a disorder that is being tested (5). The auditory screening, in turn, must have a high sensitivity and specificity to identify the presence of an auditory alteration when there is really any, as well as have a low cost (6).
The golden test for hearing loss, pure-tone threshold audiometry, requires qualified personnel, acoustic cabin and specific equipment, making it difficult to be performed on a large scale basis. On the other hand, the use of questionnaires with a high sensitivity to indicate hearing loss and that are quickly and cheaply managed, can be a feasible option to screen hearing in large populations (7).
The self-evaluation questionnaires are useful to measure the emotional and social/situational consequences seen as a result of hearing loss, and they can be used in a wide range of situations in the clinical routine, such as auditory screening, first interview, advice, qualification, evaluation, individual's use and satisfaction with the sound amplification equipment and evaluation of the effectiveness of auditory rehabilitation programs (8). The Abbreviated Profile of Hearing Aid Benefit - APHAB, The Nursing Home Hearing Handicap - NHHI, The Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly Screening Version - HHIE-S, The Hearing Handicap Inventory for Adults - HHIA, among others, are questionnaires used for this purpose (9).
Specifically among these questionnaires, the Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Adults Screening Version - HHIA-S and the Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly Screening Version - HHIE-S, which are smaller versions, respectively, of the do Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Adult - HHIA and the Screening Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly - HHIE, are rapidly applied and easily understood, what enables elderly individuals to use them. That is the very reason why the HHIE-S questionnaire is recommended by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) as an auditory screening tool (8, 10).
Studies performed abroad by STEWART and cooperators in 2002 (10), and by CHANG, HO and CHOU in 2009 (11), researched the validity of the HHIE-S and HHIA-S questionnaires with respect to the perception of hearing loss in the elderly and adults. This study demonstrated that the questionnaires are highly sensitive and specific in the detection of hearing loss in this population.
In Brazil, there are currently some studies (8, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18) showing the usefulness of participation-restricting questionnaires to identify individuals with hearing loss and, in Rio Grande do Sul, the HHIE-S questionnaire was used to evaluate the subjective impact of an auditory rehabilitation program in the elderly (19). On the other hand, there are studies verifying the association between the complaint and the presence of hearing loss in the elderly (20) and showing the prognostic value, sensitivity and specificity of the simple inquiry about the presence of hearing loss (21) in the State of Rio Grande do Sul.
In the first study, individuals answered a demographic questionnaire, in which there was a list of health problems including hearing loss. Out of the 50 participants, both sexes, it was noticed that only 12 (24%) had a specific complaint of hearing loss, although 33 (66%) showed light, moderate, severe and deep hearing loss, and no association between the complaint and the hearing loss was evident. In the second one, with a sample of 795 individuals, both sexes and all age groups, 525 (66%) patients complained about hearing loss, 68 (8.6%) had other auditory complaints, and 202 (25.4%) had no auditory complaint. The results clearly showed that the complaint about hearing loss had a sensitivity of 80.9%, specificity of 69.6%, positive prognostic value of 86.5%, and negative prognostic value of 60.4%.
Nonetheless, the use of more comprehensive participation-restricting questionnaires allows the individual's auditory conditions to be better understood than the mere inquiry about their auditory condition in both adults and elderly.
The present work, thus, had the objective to verify the sensitivity and specificity of the HHIA-S and HHIE-S questionnaires to detect a hearing loss and their applicability in elderly and adult patients' auditory screening based on a sample of individuals served by SUS at the Audiology Department of Hospital Santa Clara's Otorhinolaryngology Ambulatory - Santa Casa de Porto Alegre Hospital Complex. Furthermore, as a secondary objective, the present work attempted to analyze the capacity of the aforementioned questionnaires to detect different degrees of the studied population's hearing impairment.
This work was approved by Irmandade da Santa Casa de Misericórdia de Porto Alegre (ISCMPA)'s Ethical Committee in Research under a record number 3292/10, dated of May 10, 2010.
Data collection was performed in a period between May and September 2010, three times a week, in the afternoon, and it was a transverse section study. The convenience sample was composed by individuals waiting to perform audiological exams at Hospital Santa Clara's SUS's Otorhinolaryngology Ambulatory - Complexo Hospitalar Santa Casa de Porto Alegre.
To be a part of the sample, participants complied with the following inclusion criteria: be able to read and write, declare to be able and interested in participating in the research and be 18 years old or older. Firstly, patients signed a Free and Clarified Agreement Term, authorizing the data collected in this study to be used, in accordance with the rules established by ISCMPA's Ethical Committee. After signing the term, the individuals above 60 years of age, i.e., considered elderly by the Ministry of Health (20), answered the HHIE-S questionnaire, and the subjects under 60 years of age answered the HHIA-S questionnaire.
The questionnaire Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly Screening Version - HHIE-S was developed by VENTRY and WEINSTEIN (1982) and customized into Portuguese by Wieselberg (1997), and the Hearing Handicap Inventory for Adults Screening Version - HHIA-S questionnaire was translated and customized into Portuguese by Almeida (1998). These tools are comprised of ten questions divided into five items related to social/situation scale and other five corresponding to the emotional scale. These tools are reduced customizations of Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly - HHIE and Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Adult - HHIA, hence they are the only equivalent records to be applied to different populations according to their age group (16). Accordingly, the questionnaires were grouped for data analysis.
The technique chosen to apply the questionnaire was "paper-pencil", i.e., the individual was taught how to read and answer the questionnaire by him/herself. However, it was not possible to use this type of technique with some participants in the sample, thus the "face-to-face" technique was used, i.e., the oral application of the questionnaire by the interview only by reading the items, without further explanations or preparations about them. This was requested or chosen by the individual him/herself in conformity with what was more convenient to him/her at the time of application, usually due to visual or reading difficulties. The participants who answered the "paper-pencil" and "face-to-face" questionnaires were initially analyzed in a separate way.
The likelihood of answers and their score in HHIA-S are identical to those in HHIE-S. Users were asked to answer "yes" (4 points), "sometimes" (2 points) or "no" (no point) for each question according to what they deemed to be more appropriate to their case or situation. The possibility of scores in both questionnaires ranges between 0 (no participation-restricting perception) and 40 (maximum participation restriction). Just like what was proposed by ROSIS, SOUZA and IÓRIO (12), individuals were grouped into three categories: 0-8 points (no participation restriction); 10-23 points (light to moderate restriction) and 24-40 points (significant participation restriction).
Audiometry collection was performed by filling out a questionnaire with the thresholds of frequencies of 250, 500, 1000, 2000, 3000, 4000, 6000 and 8000 Hz for airways, and 500, 1000, 2000 and 4000 Hz for bone pathways, in both ears. The audiometric exam was collected in each patient's record, after it has been performed in accordance with the usual procedure of the internship of the Phonoaudiology Degree at UFCSPA at the aforementioned Ambulatory. The equipment used to perform audiometry was Interacoustics AD 227 or Sibelmed AC 50-D.
As to the type of hearing loss, SILMAN e SILVERMAN (22)'s classification about the types of hearing losses as conductive, sensorineural and mixed was used. According to the degree of loss, individuals were classified by taking into consideration the ear with a better hearing, as proposed by LIMA, AIELLO and FERRARI (23), and COSTA, SAMPAIO and OLIVEIRA (24). The best ear was used, because the worst ear tends to be compensated by the function of best size in the subjective perception (7). This classification met BIAP (Bureau Internacional d´Audio Phonologie, 1997) (22)'s requirements, which uses the arithmetic average of answers in audiometric frequencies of 500, 1000, 2000 and 4000Hz and classifies the degrees of hearing loss as: light (21-40dBNA); moderate with a degree I (41-55dBNA); moderate with a degree II (56-70dBNA); severe with a degree I (71-80dBNA); severe with a degree II (81-90dBNA); very I (91-100dBNA); very severe with a degree II (101-110dBNA); very severe with a degree III (111-119dBNA) and total hearing loss/cophosis (above de 120dBNA).
The comparison of the results achieved between the two forms to apply the questionnaires (paper-pencil and face-to-face) was performed by Student's T Test. To verify the association between the variants, the statistical Chi-Square and Fisher's Exact tests were used, the latter of which was used as an alternative to Chi-Square, in case the sample is small in some cells of the crossed table.
For all the aforementioned tests, the maximum assumed significance level was 5% (p<0,05) and the software used for statistical analysis was SPSS version 10.0.
Sample was comprised of 51 individuals out of whom 49% (n=25) were female and 51% (n=26) were male. Out of the total of study participants, 31,3% (n=16) were aged between 18-39, 29,4% (n=15) were aged between 40-59, and 39.3% (n=20) were 60 years old or older. The observed average age was 52 with a 16.6-year range (standard deviation).
As to questionnaires, 60,7% (n=31) of individuals answered HHIA-S and 39,3% (n=20) answered HHIE-S. When comparing both questionnaires, no statistically significant difference was found between their results (t = 0,22), showing that these records, even in distinct age groups, can be applied for the same purpose.
In relation to the method of questionnaire application, 55% (n=28) of individuals answered in paper-pencil method and 45% (n=23) answered in the face-to-face method. There was no statistically significant difference when comparing the methods of questionnaire application
(t =0,16), so the application methods were grouped for analysis.
When it relates to the type of hearing loss, as SILMAN and SILVERMAN (21)'s classification, 45% (n=23) of the sample showed a sensorineural hearing loss, 11.7% (n=6) conductive hearing loss; 11.7% (n=6), mixed hearing loss, and 31.3% (n=16) showed normal hearing thresholds.
In Table 1, the frequency of the different degrees of hearing loss is introduced, taking into consideration the degree of the best ear, i.e., the one showing the best audiometric score in accordance with the standards suggested by BIAP (21). Accordingly, it was observed that most individuals had a normal hearing (31.3%) and a light hearing loss (29.4%).
When it relates to the answers achieved in the questionnaires, the sample individuals were classified as proposed by ROSIS, SOUZA and IÓRIO (11), and the following results were obtained: 29.4% (n=15) no participation restriction perceived, 29.4% (n=15) light to moderate participation restriction and 41.1% (n=21) significant participation restriction perceived.
The daily audiological evaluation determined the degree and type of hearing loss; applied questionnaires evaluated the degree of participation restriction, i.e., the social and emotional disadvantages as a result of hearing loss in the studied sample. Based on this, the results of the applicability of HHIA-S e HHIE-S tools were surveyed with regard to detecting adults and elderly's hearing loss, as well as their ability to detect different types and degrees of hearing impairment.
In Table 2, an association between the type of hearing loss and the degree of participation restriction is shown. We observed, in this Table, that there was no significant association (p= 0.701) between any kind of hearing loss and the presence of any degree of participation restriction, proving that these questionnaires do not seem to be valid tools to detect different types of hearing loss.
In Table 3, an association between the degree of hearing loss and the degree of participation restriction in the studied sample is shown, as per BIAP's classification (22). Based on the result of Fisher's Exact Test, it is once again observed in this table that there is no significant association between the degree of hearing loss and the degree of participation restriction.
In Graphic 1, the percentage in individuals with and without hearing loss and with and without a participation restriction is indicated. In this graphic, it is possible to observe that 53.3% of the individuals with a hearing disorder and 46.7% of the individuals having no hearing disorder showed no participation restriction; on the other hand, 75% of the individuals with hearing loss and 25% of the individuals without a hearing loss showed a participation restriction. By using Chi Square test, it was possible to observe that there was no significant association between the presence or absence of hearing loss at any degree and the presence or absence of participation restriction
(p= 0.118).
To analyze the validity of HHIE-S and HHIA-S questionnaires regarding their sensitivity and specificity to detect hearing losses and their applicability to screen hearing, it was investigated how many individuals were properly detected with a hearing disorder, considering that the accuracy of a test to properly detect positive patients, i.e., with a disorder, it is called sensitivity and its accuracy to properly detect the negative patients is called specificity (12).
In the studied sample, it was possible to observe that out of the individuals with a normal hearing, 9 had and 7 did not have a participation restriction as a result of hearing disorders that out of the 35 hearing loss participants, 27 showed a participation restriction and 8 showed none. Accordingly, the tools revealed a low sensitivity (47%), i.e., individuals with a hearing loss were not identified; however, they showed a high specificity (75%) by properly identifying the individuals having no hearing disorder.
* No classification found in BIAP (1997)'s suggestion: indicates a presence of average hearing within normal degrees, but the presence of exclusive hearing loss at high frequencies.
The results achieved in the present study demonstrated the presence of a virtually equivalent number of men and women and a higher percentage of adult individuals (60.7%) than elderly (39.3%) in the analyzed sample. It is necessary to emphasize that this sample was conveniently composed by individuals showing previous hearing complaints; hence they had been submitted to an audiological evaluation. Therefore, it is assumed that elderly individuals are served in audiological reference centers other than the ambulatory where the research was performed, since a higher prevalence of hearing loss in the senior years is expected (25).
When comparing the questionnaires, there was no significant difference between their results (t = 0.22). This data was expected, because FREITAS and COSTA (16) claim that these are the only records that are equivalent for application in different populations, in accordance with age groups. When it relates to the application of the aforesaid tools, no difference was evident in both types of application, and such a result was expected because, in another recent research, the application method did not impact the score achieved in a self-evaluation hearing-related questionnaire (26).
As it was verified, sensorineural hearing loss was very prevalent in the studied sample. This result was foreseen because of the number of elderly individuals composing the sample, given that in this population the occurrence of presbycusis is prevalent (25). This finding is also compatible with JARDIM et al's study (27), who equally verified a prevalence of this type of hearing loss in adult and elderly individuals served in the private department of a Brazilian audiological diagnostic center.
The frequency of the different degrees of hearing loss shown in Table 1 revealed a higher number of normal hearing individuals, although some of them have a unilateral hearing loss. It is noticeable that the higher the hearing loss the lower the number of people; such a fact can be explained by progressive losses characterized by presbycusis (25) shown by the elderly individuals in the studied sample.
With regard to the questionnaire answers, most individuals showed a significant participation restriction. This was expected because the population involved in the sample showed previous auditory complaints; hence they mentioned difficulties in accomplishing daily tasks. Another study performed in São Paulo, also in an audiology ambulatory, found similar results in percentages (12).
In Table 2, no statistically significant correlation between any kind of hearing loss and the degree of participation restriction was observed. Still in this Table, it is possible to observe that 23.1% and 26.4% of the individuals with normal auditory thresholds respectively showed a light to moderate perception and a significant participation- restricting perception degree. This finding could be explained by alterations in the auditory processing, because some patients showing audiometry within the normality standards report auditory complaints about speech clearness as a result of the auditory processing disorder (APD), what can place a significant effect over the self-evaluation of the participation-restricting perception (26, 28, 29). Hence, there was a hypothesis that these individuals had no peripheral hearing loss but complaining about social and emotional changes due to hearing disorders would possibly have APD.
Table 3 shows there was no significant association between the degree of hearing loss and the degree of participation restriction (p= 0,705). This finding corroborates with the literature in the works developed by ARAÚJO et al. (30) and ROSIS, SOUZA and IÓRIO (12) who also observed no association, implying that the perception of the hearing disorder was not associated with the degree of the hearing loss.
Besides, the tables shown in Table 2 indicate that individuals with light hearing loss show a higher degree of participation-restricting perception, hence revealing that the degree of hearing loss is not sufficient to prove a restriction in daily tasks because individuals with light, moderate degree I, severe degree I hearing loss and at high frequencies can have different degrees of participation-restricting perception. This result also confirms CORREA and RUSSO (8)'s findings, since, in their research, they verified individuals with light or moderated hearing loss with a higher degree of participation-restricting perception than individuals with higher hearing losses.
In Graphic 1, it is possible to observe that 75% of individuals with a participation-restricting perception showed a hearing loss, and 53.3% of the individuals who did not recognize this restriction also had hearing losses. This may have happened because many individuals answered the questionnaire with the adaptations already in practice in their daily tasks, as mentioned by themselves to researchers during interview. For example, with reference to question 8 of HHIA-S ("Do you have any difficulty in listening to TV or radio because of a hearing disorder?"), some people interviewed answered they had none provided that they would turn up the sound of the equipment.
This study showed that there was no significant association between the presence or absence of any degree of hearing loss and the presence or absence of a participation-restricting perception (p= 0.118). This finding matches that of another study (12), in which there was no statistically significant association between the result found in the audiometry and the perception of participation restriction in the individuals served in the Federal University of São Paulo's Audiology Ambulatory (UNIFESP).
With respect to the sensitivity and specificity to use HHIA-S and HHIE-S questionnaires to detect hearing loss and their applicability on a screening with adults and elderly showing hearing disorders, the study implied that these tools do not seem to be good to detect hearing alterations or screen individuals in audiology services, at which the patients have hearing-related complaints at arrival, resulting in a low sensitivity (47%) and a high specificity (75%). This finding confirms another research(12), in which HHIE-S questionnaire was also applied, found low values for sensitivity (23%) and high values for specificity (73.7%), in the group served in an audiology care center. In this same study (12), for a group served in a non-specific audiology disorder-related center, a high sensitivity (94,7%) and a high specificity (75%) were found, showing that HHIE-S questionnaire can be valid in this type of population as a screening tool. The findings hereof are equally supported by the work performed abroad by GATES et al. (31), who observed such results as 35% and 94 % for sensitivity and specificity, respectively, by using HHIE-S in an elderly population.
Graphic 1. Percentage of individuals with and without a participation restriction, in accordance with the presence or absence of hearing loss in the studied sample (Chi Square; p=0.118).
In the studied population, the HHIA-S and HHIE-S questionnaires showed a low sensitivity and a high specificity, proving they are not effective tools to screen individuals with previous hearing complaints.
Additionally, in this research, these questionnaires did not show they are efficient to detect different types and degrees of hearing impairment, indicating that the hearing impairment is not necessarily associated with the type or degree of hearing loss.
1. Silva LPA, Queiros F, Lima I. Fatores etiológicos da deficiência auditiva em crianças e adolescentes de um centro de referência APADA em Salvador - BA. Rev Bras Otorrinolaringol. 2006, 72: 33-6.
2. Brasil. Ministério da Saúde. Secretaria de Atenção à Saúde. Portaria SAS/MS 587 de 7 de outubro de 2004 - Determina a organização e a implantação de Redes Estaduais de Atenção à Saúde Auditiva. Brasília (DF): Ministério da Saúde; 2004.
3. Mulrow CD, Aguilar C, Endicott JE, Velez R, Tuley MR, Charlip WS, et al. Association between hearing impairment and the quality of life of elderly individuals. J. Am. Geriatr. Soc. 1990, 38:45-50.
4. Cruz SM, Oliveira LR, Carandina L, Lima MCP, César CLG, Barros MBA et al. Prevalência de deficiência auditiva referida e causas atribuídas: um estudo de base populacional. Cad Saúde Pública. 2009, 25:1123-31.
5. Freitas KC, Calviti K, Pereira LD. Sensibilidade, Especificidade e Valores Preditivos Positivos da Queixa Auditiva Comparados com Diferentes Médias Audiométricas. Rev Bras Otorrinolaringol. 2001, 75:794-800.
6. Freitas CG. A Importância da Imitanciometria na Triagem Auditiva Pré-Escolar. Rio de Janeiro, 1999, p.22 (Monografia de Especialização em Audiologia Clínica .Centro de Especialização em Fonoaudiologia Clínica - CEFAC).
7. Rosalino CV, Rozenfeld S. Triagem auditiva em idosos: comparação entre auto-relato e audiometria. Rev Bras Otorrinolaringol. 2005, 71:193-200.
8. Correa GF, Russo IC. Autopercepção do Handicap em Deficientes Auditivos Adultos e Idosos. Rev CEFAC. 1999, 1:54-63.
9. Macedo LS, Pupo C, Balieiro, CR. Aplicabilidade dos Questionários de Auto-avaliação em Adultos e Idosos com Deficiência Auditiva. Rev Dist Comum. 2006, 18:19-25.
10. Stewart M, Pankiw R, Lehman ME, Simpson TH Hearing Loss and Hearing Handicap in Users of Recreational Firearms. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2002, 13:160-8.
11. Chang HP, Ho CY, Chou P. The Factors Associated with a Self-Perceived Hearing Handicap im Elderly People with Hearing Impairment - Results from a Comunity - Based Study. Ear Hear. 2009, 30:576-583.
12. Rosis AC, Souza MR, Iório MC. Questionário Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly - Screening Version (HHIE-S): estudo da sensibilidade e especificidade. Rev Soc Bras Fonoaudiol. 2009, 14:339-45.
13. Santiago LM, Novaes CD. Auto-Avaliação da Audição em Idosos. Rev CEFAC 2009, 11:98-105.
14. Calviti KCFK, Pereira LD. Sensibilidade, especificidade e valores preditivos da queixa auditiva comparados com diferentes médias audiométricas. Rev Bras Otorrinolaringol. 2009, 75:794-800.
15. Carvalho RD, Iório MC. Eficácia da Aplicação do Questionário de Handicap em Idosos Deficientes Auditivos. Rev Disturb Comum. 2007, 19:163-72.
16. Freitas CD, Costa MJ . Processo de Adaptação de Próteses Auditivas em Usuários Atendidos em uma Instituição Pública Federal - Parte II: resultados dos questionários de auto-avaliação. Rev Bras Otorrinolaringol. 2007, 73:660-70.
17. Lautenschlager L, Tochetto T, Gonçalves MS, Barreto DCM, Moro MP, Bolzan GP. Percepção de Idosos Socialmente Ativos quanto às Desvantagens Causadas pela Dificuldade Auditiva. Rev Einstein. 2008, 6:155-58.
18. Teixeira AR, Freitas CLRF, Millão LF, Gonçalves AK, Junior BB, Santos AMPV, et al. Relação entre a Queixa e a Presença de Perda Auditiva entre Idosos. Arq Int Otorrinolaringol. 2009, 13:78-82.
19. Angeli RD, Jotz GP, Barba MC, Demeneghi PGM, Mello CHP. Efetividade de um Programa de Protetização Auditiva em Idosos Através da Aplicação do Questionário HHIE-S. Arq Int Otorrinolaringol. 2009, 13:277-80.
20. Marini ALS, Halpern R, Aerts D. Sensibilidade, Especificidade e Valor Preditivo da Queixa Auditiva. Rev Saúde Pública. 2005, 39:982-84.
21. Lei N. 8.842, de 4 de Janeiro de 1994. Ministério da Saúde.
22. Conselhos Federal e Regional de Fonoaudiologia. Orientações dos Conselhos de Fonoaudiologia para o Laudo Audiológico. 2009, 8-11.
23. Lima II, Aiello CP, Ferrari DV. Correlações Audiométricas do Questionário de Handicap Auditivo para Adultos. Rev CEFAC. 2010, 12:1-1.
24. Costa MHO, Sampaio ALL, Oliveira CACP. Avaliação do Benefício da Prótese Auditiva Digital e da Percepção da Desvantagem Auditiva ou "Handicap" em Idosos não Institucionalizados. Arq Int Otorrinolaringol. 2007, 11:159-68.
25. Nóbrega JD, Câmara MFS, Borges ACC. Audição do Idoso: Análise da Percepção do Prejuízo Auditivo, Perfil Audiológico e suas Correlações. Rev Bras Prom Saúde. 2008, 21:39-46.
26. Marotta RMB, Quintero, SM, Marone SAM. Avaliação do processamento auditivo por meio do teste de reconhecimento de dissílabos em tarefa dicótica SSW em indivíduos com audição normal e ausência do reflexo acústico contralateral. Rev Bras Otorrinolaringol. 2002, 68:254-61.
27. Jardim IS, Iwahashi JH, Paula VC. Estudo do Perfil Audiológico de Indivíduos Atendidos em um Serviço de Diagnóstico Brasileiro. Arq Int Otorrinolaringol. 2010, 14: 32-37.
28. Quintero SM, Marotta RMB, Marone SAM. Avaliação do processamento auditivo em idosos com e sem presbiacusia por meio do teste de reconhecimento de dissílabos em tarefa dicótica - SSW. Rev Bras Otorrinolaringol. 2002, 68(1):28-33.
29. Fire KM, Lesner SA, Newman C. Hearing handicap as a function of central auditory abilities in the elderly. Am J Otol. 1991, 12:105-08.
30. Araújo P G V, Mondelli MFCG, Lauris JRP, Richiéri AC, Feniman MR. Avaliação do handicap auditivo do adulto com deficiência auditiva unilateral. Braz J Otorhinolaryngol. 2010, 6:370-83.
31. Gates G A, Murphy M, Rees TS, Fraher A. Screening for handicapping hearing loss in the elderly. J F Pract. 2003, 52:56-62.
1) Doctor in Human Communication Disorders from the Federal University of São Paulo. Professora at UFCSPA's Phonoaudiology Department.
2) Taking Doctorate Degree in Biomedical Gerontology (PUCRS). Professora at UFCSPA's Phonoaudiology Department.
3) Taking Specialization Degree in Orofacial Motricity at CEFAC-RS. Clinical Phonoaudiologist.
4) Taking Master Degree in Rehabilitation Sciecnce at UFCSPA's PPG. Taking Master Degree in Rehabilitation Sciecnce at UFCSPA's PPG.
Institution: Federal University of Health Sciences in Porto Alegre. Porto Alegre / RS - Brazil. Mailing address: Tanise Cristaldo Anhaia - Rua Duque de Caxias, 203/22 - Porto Alegre / RS - Brazil - ZIP Code: 90010-282 - Telephone: (+55 51) 9287-4589 - Email: tanise.anhaia@bol.com.br
Article received on March 25, 2011. Article approved on April 19, 2011.


How can you tell a great reading? Is it when your Psychic can tell you your past? Or is it when your reader identifies current people in your life by name? In retrospect a great psychic reading can be identified, provided you paid close attention and/or took notes. Psychics generally give timelines that are not too far reaching, sometimes they offer longer term waiting, but the important thing is you keep the dates or approximate times in mind. One of my creative projects I have been working on for at least one year, is supposed to be finished by this July, according to Psychic Violet and the reading she gave me back in September of 2008.
I don't know if she would remember the prediction, but quite honestly back in September I did not think the project would take this long to wrap up. As it stands now, by the end of July I should see finality with this project and some may say I manifested this timeline, after it was predicted, maybe I stretched it out, procrastinated, etc. The truth of the matter is other people are involved in this project and some things were beyond my control. Did Psychic Violet know the course would be cluttered with minor setbacks? Does she know post-production costs and logistics? I don't think so, I think this is a case of timing.
Join the club. Did you ever get a reply? I find most of the psychics' timeline predictions are way off so don't get your hopes up. It will happen when it will happen. In the meantime keep busy, and don't hold your breath!
I agree with you totally, that is , in essence, the way it works for me too…..great advice,Lori, that the clients all need to keep in mind.
I meant to say, the (lost) art of / for patience!
Timing and the art of (lost) patience.
We live in such a fast paced world…emails, cell phones, instant messaging… We are expected to deliver instant results; are judged by our "performance" and in turn, demand instant gratification. I would argue that patience no longer is a quality we relate to (unfortunately!).
However, if we take a close look at Nature, we would see that it has a much slower time-line (although as the recent events have proven, it can strike so rapidly – tornados, storms, etc). We need to slow down and let things take their course.
I think that the waiting process would be much easier if we could have some reassurance about the end result happening so that we don't have the impression we are hoping in vain for an outcome.
As Gina Rose once said to me, "It's not a question of if, but of when".
I really try to make the most of my time with my daughter. Humor is what gets me through any situation, I love to laugh and I'm a very positive person. I always see the glass full and I always look at the brighter side of things. I will read Abigal's new post. Thanks!
I hope you're feeling stronger today!
I first like to say that you are truely a great psychic! I really enjoy your readings and you always put me at ease. I love it!
I really like the way you put it it's so cool. I can picture myself manually opening that rosebud a getting disappointed because it's broken and damaged.
Certainly that's not what I want. I will relax and envision the rosebud opening up naturally.
I really feel that I'm going to be more patient and just finally let it be!
Thanks a bunch for your cool words!
Of course, I read all of the blogs, and I am always happy to see you contribute and be involved. The blogs are really going well. I thank you so much for supporting this wonderful line, and all of the sweet remarks…I hope you make it a great day! Stay in touch!
There is a time and place for everything in the universe….relax, and envision a rosebud, slowly unfolding its petals and opening up.
( You wouldn't try to manually open up the petals on a rosebud, because you would bend and break the petals, right)????????
Let this unfold naturally, according to the Karmic universal time line.
I've trained and certified psychics for their abilities for 20 plus years…. Violet is a very accurate clairvoyant with excellent remote viewing skills. ( Having worked and taught in this field for over 43 years… I don't hand out compliments lightly).
Violet is a d friend of mine as well……we both share an interest in animals and shelters.
I'm glad you liked your reading with her.Violet is a "straight-shooter" and tells it like it is.
I'm glad to here that you're dating. I'm trying to date too.
Wow! 9 to 10 months must be the time to "give up", but of course think positive for the outcome. I feel the same way you do, only you're a few weeks ahead of me. I'm just starting to feel I should focus on my life and my daughter and trying to feel strong to just let it be.
It is very funny how most of us are waiting for the same prediction. It will also be exciting to hear when everyone is happy because their predictions came to fruition! Can't wait…ok maybe I will!
Woohoo Miss Krystal, I saw today that you got promoted. Congratulations. You deserve it. I am so enjoying this article also that Anthony put together. And have made another friend or two here and on another post too. I love communicating with everyone. And I also just got off the phone with Violet who is the star of this particular post. Good news from her for me just as I got from you. And I also want to add that the timeline she gave me is the same as the others I have gotten lately. It is all centering around this summer sometime. From the end of June to the end of August for contact to be made.Several have specified July. I hope you read my entries here and at "Never Wait to Say I Love You" and see the progress I have made with myself. I am happy today and not sitting waiting for a text or checking my email all the time like I did for a while. Thank you all for your time and patience with me. No matter what it has cost me in the past 10 months, it has been good theray for me to talk and also to hear the good things that I have been told.
Congratulations to you again Miss Krystal and may you always be blessed.
Hi Cubes, I will surely keep you in my thoughts and keep my fingers crossed for you. Ive been waiting about 10 months now and have just in the past couple of weeks calmed myself down and am concentrating more on me and not him so much. Even though he is still on my mind at least a little every day. But I am not so focused on his return as I used to be. Kind of giving up I guess but still somewhat hopeful that the predictions are correct. But I am keeping my options open as I have been told to do and I am dating again. In fact, I have several nice gentlemen wanting to spend a little time with me right now. Have never experienced anything like this in my life. Funny how so many of us are waiting for almost the same prediction to come true isnt it? If they all come to fruition there will be a lot of reconciliations going on.
I really know what you mean. I feel I'm on the same boat you are. I'm also hoping my prediction comes to fruition with the person I ask about. We're also supposed to end up together. It is hard to just let it happen without trying to manipulate and rush things. I've been waiting for the last 9 months now. I'm really trying to focus on other parts of my life and let this happen as it was predicted.
Thank you Maryanne. I feel that I have come a long way. I did some things in the past few months that really changed events that I think were starting to happen just the way it was predicted. But the readings I have gotten lately still have the same outcome. Its just been pushed farther into the future. But I also have come to the realization that with the person I ask about all the time, it is very difficult and Red said this the very first time she read for me which was in the last part of 2008. She said "He is a difficult one" and she laughed. If I am not mistaken you read for me once also. And you too said you saw us together in the future. I guess I just wanted it to happen now and I tried to manipulate things and really messed it all up. It may never come about as I had hoped and that is why I am now putting it aside and living for me. I hope that others that read this blog will know that when they get predictions of a desired outcome, please please dont do anything to try to rush it. Just let it happen. But to everyone here that kind of knows me, keep your fingers crossed and your good thoughts in my favor for this to come to fruition as soon as possible. At least the beginning of it all.
I definitely agree that timing is more about the ebb and flow of events than the day and hour. In working with timing with clients, I always emphasize that timing is delicate–something as simple as someone having a flat tire can throw timing off. Browneyes, you have evolved beautifully to understand that not trying to rush things is difficult for most callers, and I suspect, difficult for most of us in our personal lives as well. I firmly believe that trying to rush things actually can delay events that we want to happen, so very best congratulations on having evolved past that point!
Sounds like we have a lot in common girl. I too dont pay much attention to the short term things of contact in a couple of weeks cause usually it doesnt happen. I used to almost sit by the phone or check my email endlessly for that contact but not anymore. I too am letting go but not losing hope for the final outcome. I think I am just more relaxed and accepting of this wait I have to go through. And getting out and about as Randall told me back in the winter is helping so much. I stay involved with my volunteer work as a firefighter and training regularly. Spending time with friends and dating some. I have stopped focusing on the timeline cause I do still feel in my heart that this person I ask about will be back in my life. But with the timelines that are given for a real reconciliation being so far away, I cant just sit and wait around for this to happen. He may not choose to follow his heart and will continue to think about things in his head too much as he does now. So, I am living my life and finding enjoyment in other things even though I know I will always love him. I have to be open to other things and keep my options open at this time as I have been told by some of the best psychics here. I see you mentioned Liam, I have talked with him several times and he is very confident of my outcome as are several others. Keep the faith girl and I hope to hear from you here with updates on your situation.
I think Red explains timing so well. I would give a psychic a lot of credit if something they predicted came true, period..Thank You, Anthony, for taking the time to put this very nice article together!
Thanks Gina, the last bit about Life Karmic lessons affecting timing is interesting…I will help spread that knowledge. I have many projects that have finished up quicker, this time around I may not have applied the lessons I learned prior, Maybe I just took for granted the swiftness of other projects concluding on time, and knew before that obstacles could drop right in, but I guess I've been lucky.. I just figured if I operate just like before, all should fall in place. what is it they say about hindsight? LOL!
Love this article! Like browneyes I love reading of successful timelines and predictions.
I have found through readings with my 'circle of advisors' (Randall, Angel mostly with Liam and a couple of others like Teva & Jeannie occasionally), that they've all seen the same outcome for my relationship with the same general timeline. This summer for more consistent, fun and time together, and in the next couple of months totally together. I'm excited for the outcome and it keeps me going on those days when it seems far away. Short term timelines (like will he call this week) seem to be highly undpredictable sometimes, because there are so many external factors.
Randall told me one time to stop focusing on the timeline, especially short term and to stay focused to unconditional love and the outcome is ensured. I'm learning that letting go of the control of timing, while still staying focused on positive outcome is hugely powerful. Letting go is not the same as giving up, which is something that I'm just now getting.
Good luck Anthony with your project (love your name, same as my brothers!).
Very well said….timing will vary from client to client for a wide variety of reasons……….how are you doing by the way ?
Red has such a wonderful way with words!
And I agree, I don't believe that Psychic Violet actually saw all of the setbacks as much as she just understood that they would be there, and would have some effect on your project and its completion.
Yes….I think Red put it very well…..many , many things come into play when it comes to timing…..that's WHY when I read I ask my Guides for a final outcome from the get-go.
Violet is an excellent psychic !!!! and a friend of mine.
She and I share a love for animals and shelter work…..she " shoots straight from the hip ", while being compassionate, when reading, as I do also…..
Her clairvoyance/remote viewing skills are exceptional…..she is a remarkable person and gifted psychic.
Timing varies according to MANY factors….
Speaking personally,as timing goes,( out of 100%) I'd say 30% I'm early, 40% I'm dead on, and the other 30% I'm late…..
…What I'm known for IS THE END RESULT coming true, ….because my Guides give me a yes or no in the first few minutes of the reading…..
has " some " control over.
Thank you Anthony for this post. This is what I really enjoy reading about. Predictions coming to fruition. I think for me a good reading is having unique things identified that only I know or unique personality traits identified of people I ask about. I have been getting readings here for the past 10 months. Some of them were very disappointing and I just didnt feel that anything said was true, it just didnt feel right to me. But others mesmerized me, I was amazed at the information given. Timelines are another issue. Some things have happened in the given timelines but some have not. I also agree that if we look back on our notes from a reading, we may find little things that did occur as predicted but maybe not in the way we had expected. Nunu has been right on with several things and I just love talking to her. I had a wonderful reading with her yesterday and I feel that it was one of the most honest and descriptive readings I have received. I ask her for the total truth and she laid it on the line. She told me of phases that I and the person in question would have to go through and that it was going to be a very hard road if I chose to follow it. This is where free will comes in. But the outcome she predicted is the one that I have been hoping for but will be years down the line as Gina Rose predicted. But the beginning of the process is in the same timeline as others have said. It has taken me a long time to understand how this whole thing works but am beginning to now I think. It is not 100% but if we take the advice given it is probable that things will progress as predicted. Not interfering and trying to rush things is the hard part. I hope to hear from you again here about the outcome of your project and if it comes about as predicted.


We've listed on Air BNB for some time now and we've had great successes with it. We're a superhost on the site and have a constant stream of fantastic visitors coming to stay.
The question is: how do you optimise an Airbnb listing so you get loads of people staying in your property?
Apparently, Airbnb's algorithm favours those who regularly update their calendar – it's often touted as the most important thing you can do. I say apparently because I don't seem to have seen much difference in enquiries no matter how much I've updated the listing.
Respond to every enquiry – fast!
I think this is one of the most important factors, you need to respond as soon as the enquiries come in as Airbnb shows your average response time and you'll make your potential guest feel more secure if you respond rapidly.
Airbnb rewards those hosts who reply to guests within an hour, which as long as you've got your account connected to your mobile phone isn't really a massive problem.
I love the guidebook functionality, it lets you add as many useful and interesting local (and not so local) sights, interests, towns etc and this is your opportunity to really reach new audiences. Choose popular tourist attractions and areas because people will often choose to search for interesting tourist destinations and if your account lists them it's likely you'll have a chance of showing up for them (especially if you get everything else right!).
You might be a little reticent at first about enabling instant booking, but this really is the best way to get more people to book. Many people will still contact you, although some people will be happier just to book like they would on a hotel website – as long as you're hot on your calendar you shouldn't have any problems.
Our listing's title is "Double Bedroom in Old Farmhouse", this is used as the title tag for the listing's page as well as the H1 tag. I'd suggest you need to get something appealing in here to get people clicking whilst also getting some interesting keywords, we went for double bedroom and farmhouse, however we're about to split test a second listing using the title "Double Room in Old Farmhouse B&B". I think this will perform better for a couple of reasons, the first is Airbnb adds "in [city]" after the listing, so as we're in Bacup we'll get some optimisation for the keyword B&B in Bacup, which must help. I'll probably write up a followup on this one when I'm confident my hunch is right, however we'll need more data over the summer for that.
Get as much information as possible on your listing, there is loads of details about your house and the stay your potential B&B guests can expect so make sure you've included it all – good and bad! We've found including the negative aspects of our property to the listing is a good way to prepare guests for when they arrive (for example we're still renovating various parts of the house).
We had so so photos in the beginning, fortunately various guests have taken some great photos of our house which we've used and when we achieved SuperHost status Airbnb was nice enough to send round a professional photographer who managed to work a minor miracle and make our house look like it should be in a lifestyle magazine!
You've got to work out how much your property is worth and what your market is. When you start off you're going to need to list your property cheaply, we started at £15. We came up with that figure by looking at the pricing of properties listed within 10 miles from us, then we undercut them. After a number of reservations and great feedback we increased the price we charged but crucially we kept our price below that of many of the properties within 10 miles.
Remember to lower your price in the low season – and you may want to lower your prices on certain periods in the week – for example you might not get any enquiries for Monday night – so reduce the price on Mondays and see if you get any more enquiries for them, if you do you can always increase them. I'm constantly playing with prices to see what people are interested in.
You can get more information from the Air Hosts Forum where you'll find like minded folk doing their best to be successful on Airbnb.
Just to add, on the point about replying to enquiries quickly; it's fine as long as they come from people in the same time zone as you, or similar, but I've had messages come in to my phone in the middle of the night (usually from people in America, Australia or Asia) when I'm obviously asleep. Naturally, I have responded to these as soon as I've woken up but several hours have usually elapsed by then. AirBnB does give you a time limit of 24 hours to respond but replies within the first hour do get a much higher reward, meaning we have sometimes been marked down for a slow response when, in reality, we have responded as quickly as we can. Perhaps AirBnB may need to take time zones into account when rewarding rankings???
Should you focus on SEO?


Custom built home with upgraded trim, high ceilings, hardwood, tile, granite, huge bonus room and panoramic views of surrounding countryside. 4 Bedrooms on main floor. 2 car garage & large crawl space for storage. Don;t miss this one!
I-40 East, exit 239 towards Watertown, After Twin Forks Market turn right onto Neal Rd, Turn right onto Fite, Home is at the end of the road on the right.


For a delightful dinner for two, head to Bonefish Grill in Hyde Park. They have a wide selection of entrees guaranteed to please the most discriminating palate. This certificate expires on September 30, 2019 but does not include alcohol, tax or gratuity.