text:
Marvin D. Sterling
Associate Professor, Anthropology
mdsterli@indiana.edu
Student Building 114
Ph.D., University of California at Los Angeles, 2002
M.A., Cultural Anthropology, University of California at Los Angeles, 1996
B.S., Communications Studies, New York University , 1991
My research centers on the popularity of a range of Jamaican cultural forms in Japan, mainly roots reggae, dancehall reggae, and Rastafari. I approach this research from several theoretical perspectives. I use performance studies, for instance, to ethnographically explore the issues of social power—particularly those surrounding life in recessionary Japan—that inform Japanese performative engagement with these cultural forms. Japanese practitioners of profoundly Afrocentric Rastafari afford analysis of how ideas of race and particularly blackness have been constructed and re-imagined around the globe. In a more recent line of research, I have shifted geographical perspectives from Japan to explore the Japanese community in Jamaica, one primarily centered on an interest in learning Jamaican culture at its source. In a second, new line of research, I trace the development of human rights discourse in Jamaica, particularly on the grassroots level.


text:
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


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BIM & Scan Ltd. develops products and services that are focused on quality Open BIM solutions to solve real engineering and construction problems in new innovative and objective ways.
BIM & Scan Ltd. develops products and services that are focused on quality open BIM solutions to real engineering and construction management problems.
We use Open BIM standards to deliver software independent solutions that work with any software that supports those same open BIM standard solutions.
BIM & Scan® AutoCorr™ is a tool developed for automatic model validation with scan data. BIM & Scan® AutoCorr™ automatically highlights any variations between a point cloud and model using a specified tolerance. The output is a colour-coded point cloud which highlights all variations within the specified tolerance.
A single field clash can run to many thousands in cost, not to mention delay. Field clashes occur even where there is a "clash free" model. Field clashes can occur when construction does not match the model, often only becoming apparent in the next or several tasks after the offending error. Field clashes can be avoided by construction monitoring and validation, provided you have an efficient and effective way of comparing as-built with the design model. BIM & Scan® AutoCorr™ provides a fast efficient and objective comparison, providing in minutes the necessary construction validation against the design model.
We have found that having a phased plan of construction validation using BIM & Scan® AutoCorr™ delivers cost effective clash and delay risk avoidance. For example, on completion of plinths validate as-built plinth locations against the design model prior to committing final steel or pipework manufacture; validate steelwork and facia ties prior to delivery of pre-fabricated facia.
Inaccurate as-built models can cause numerous field clash errors where they are relied upon for retrofit work. These inaccuracies only become obvious when the design no longer fits or clashes with items missed in the modelling process. BIM & Scan® AutoCorr™ provides certainty for the design team and its client that all items have been captured.
Overlaying point cloud scans on the model and then visually inspecting is a very expensive and subjective alternative that is often tried but will cost many multiple hours more effort and will still fail to find all the impacting issues. This takes hours or days of skilled workers time rather than the minutes to complete a BIM & Scan® AutoCorr™ analysis which gives accountability for every design element.
BIM & Scan® AutoCorr™ is a tool developed for automatic model validation with scan data. BIM & Scan® AutoCorr™ automatically highlights any variations between a point cloud and model using a specified tolerance. The output is a colour-coded point cloud which highlights all variations within the specified tolerance, along with an automatically created BCF viewpoint of each design element and a listing of each design element and whether it was found or not.
Through testing we have found that BIM & Scan AutoCorr can deliver in minutes an accurate and detailed report of differences that would otherwise take many hours or days of a skilled designer.
Using BIM & Scan AutoCorr™ provides an immediate productivity, quality and risk mitigation pay-back that translates into many thousands of dollars saved on any given project.


Easy to use, top-loading time clock with Biometric fingerprint authentication to prevent buddy punching. Two-color ribbon indicates early/late punches. Fast and accurate design accommodates weekly and monthly pay periods. Built-in musical chime and signal output to external bell. Time Clock Type: Electronic; Number of Employees: Unlimited; Imprint Style: Date; Month; Time; Year; Minute Increments: Minutes; Hours.
Easy to use time clock with two-color printing and large digital display. Displays time in 12 or 24 hour clock. Time Clock Type: Electronic; Imprint Style: Date; Month; Time; Year; Minute Increments: 1; Display Type(s): Digital.
Time cards for model ATR240 and ATR360 top loading time clocks. Can be used for weekly or biweekly pay. Size: 3 1/2 x 7 1/4; Time Period: Bi-Weekly; Weekly; Printing Sides: Two Sides; Card Quantity: 250.
For use with for Acroprint ATR120r clock. Consistent, crisp character output. Long-lasting. Device Types: Time Clock; Color(s): Black/Red; OEM/Compatible: OEM; Material(s): Plastic; Polyester.


Nestled in the heart of Sacramento, the Land Park/Curtis Park Office serves clients buying or selling real estate in our 4-county region. Our office is built on a foundation of highly productive and professional agents who understand their marketplace, are skilled in the negotiating process, and are committed to helping clients reach their preferred goals. We understand that our job is to serve our clients at the highest level. We have the best mobile, web and technology platform in the industry, a necessity today because the internet drives our business, and our clients have come to expect it.
Land Park and Curtis Park are two of Sacramento's signature neighborhoods, and are among the city's oldest, most historic, and simply delightful areas to live. Many of the homes in the Land Park/Curtis Park areas have been passed down from generation to generation. Built in the early 1900s, these neighborhoods are characterized by California Bungalow architecture, full of charm and character. The homes are classic and elegant, and vary in style, ranging from Spanish revival and storybook to Tudor and craftsman. Both areas are lush with towering trees and rich foliage. No two homes are alike.


Wearing morganite is believed to help bring love to your life and maintain that love as it continues to grow, making it a perfect alternative to a diamond engagement ring. We simply adore this unusual 9ct rose gold ring with a beautiful morganite centre piece, surrounded with a halo glittering diamonds.
These elegant morganite & diamond stud earrings would go great with this season's pastel trend. However, if you want to go for a more statement and glamorous look, team these with fresh whites or monochrome style.
The stunning luster and brilliance of this feminine morganite & diamond pendant would make a beautiful addition to your everyday style or even your wedding jewellery.
Visit Ernest Jones to explore our full collection of morganite jewellery.


A state court panel Tuesday ordered the Pennsylvania State Police to honor a Centre County woman's request to hand over video taken by the dashboard cameras of two cruisers at a traffic accident scene.
Despite state police arguments to the contrary, those videos are not exempt from public disclosure under the state's Right to Know Law, the Commonwealth Court judges concluded.
However, in an opinion by Senior Judge James Gardner Colins, the court ruled that only the video taken by the cruiser cameras must be surrendered to Michelle Grove of Spring Mills. The audio must be redacted from the copy of one of the dash cams before it is handed over, Colins wrote.
The court's decision stems from a right to know request Grove lodged with state police in March 2014 seeking video two troopers recorded after responding to a two-vehicle crash on Route 144 in Potter Township.
The state police appealed to Commonwealth Court after the state Office of Open Records ruled in June 2014 that both videos were public records that had to be provided intact to Grove. State police argued that the videos were exempt from public disclosure under a Right to Know Law provision that shields records of police investigations.
Although the cruisers of both troopers who responded to the crash had dash cams, only one of the cams recorded audio as well as video. According to Colins, the soundless video shows a trooper speaking with the drivers involved in the wreck and directing one of them to move his vehicle. The second video includes audio recordings of interviews with the drivers and bystanders.
As Colins noted, the dash cams are activated when a trooper turns on the cruiser's emergency lights or siren. State police protocol requires the cams to be on to document investigative work and traffic and criminal stops, pursuits and other actions troopers "deems appropriate while acting in the performance of their official duties."
In rejecting the police argument that the videos are entirely exempt from disclosure, Colins wrote that "the mere fact that a record has some connection to a criminal proceeding does not automatically exempt it."
"Indeed," the judge found, "as documentation of law enforcement officers' conduct in carrying out their duties (dash cams) are records at the core of the Right to Know Law's purpose of enabling the public to 'scrutinize the actions of public officials, and make public officials accountable for their actions'."
Only the audio of the driver and bystander interviews qualifies as investigative information under the Right to Know Law, so it must be removed from the video copy provided to Grove, he concluded in overturning that part of the open records office ruling.


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Democrats Announce Early Primary State Debate
Democrats will hold four primary debates in each of the early primary states as voting gets underway next year, with some of the debates scheduled for just days before voters head to the polls, the Democratic National Committee announced in an email to campaigns Thursday.
The first primary debate of the new year will be Jan. 14 in Des Moines, Iowa, about three weeks before Democrats make their first primary preferences known in the state's caucuses.
The next debate is scheduled for Feb. 7 in Manchester, New Hampshire, just four days before voters head to the polls in that state's primary.
Democrats will debate in Las Vegas on Feb. 19, three days before the caucuses there, and they'll meet for a debate in Charleston, South Carolina, on Feb. 25, four days before that state's Democratic primary.
The upcoming debates include a few new partnerships beyond the traditional media outlets. The Congressional Black Caucus will co-host the Charleston debate, and Twitter will also be a partner there. Apple News will be a co-host for the New Hampshire debate.
The DNC will announce qualification criteria for the debates later.
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Arab News – Oil prices rallied on Monday by up to five percent after Saudi Arabia and Russia vowed to stabilize the market.
Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources Minister Khalid Al-Falih and his Russian counterpart Alexander Novak declared they had agreed to "act together" to steady the market, on the sidelines of a G20 meeting in China.
In reaction, Brent North Sea crude leapt as high as $49.40 a barrel. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) soared to $46.53, AFP reported.
Prices later pulled back as Saudi Arabia ruled out the need to trim back production. Saudi Arabia and Russia "noted the particular importance of constructive dialogue and close cooperation between the largest oil-producing countries with the goal of supporting the stability of the oil market," the ministers said in a joint statement.
"To this end the ministers agreed to act together or in cooperation with other oil producers," the statement said, adding they had agreed to set up a "joint monitoring group" to offer recommendations aimed at preventing price fluctuations.
Novak described the announcement as marking a "new era" in cooperation between Russia and Saudi Arabia and insisted that it would have a "critical significance" for oil markets, Interfax reported.


text:
Landscaping Rock Placement: Do-It-Yourself Tips
A border keeps rocks in place.
Image Source/Photodisc/Getty Images
1 Make a Rock Garden on a Sunny Slope
2 Remove Landscaping Rocks Out of Beds
3 Make a Rock Lawn
4 Landscape Around Porches With Rocks
You don't need a professional landscaper to install a durable rock area in your yard. Placing a mix of boulders, river rocks, gravel and other rock types is a DIY project you can probably handle in a weekend. The mix of rock styles creates a natural look for the rock landscape. With a lot of muscle and basic landscape design principles in mind, you can place your own rocks in a low-maintenance landscape that fits yours needs.
It's just as true in landscaping as it is in real estate. Rock can increase the heat in the immediate area on hot days. Any plants in the area need to be able to tolerate the higher temperatures and may need more watering. If you use rocks on or near a seating or entertainment area, expect your guests to feel the heat. Rocks can sometimes become dangerously hot in extreme temperatures. The location is also a factor when you install the rock. A rocky area in a far corner or in a part of the yard that is difficult to reach creates more work for you when moving the heavy rock.
Think Natural
If you plan to use larger boulders or rocks as focal points, the arrangement should replicate rocks in nature. You won't see a lot of perfectly lined up boulders in their natural state. For a natural look, arrange a group of larger boulders made from the same type of rock but in different shapes and sizes. An odd number of boulders tends to look most natural, advises Landscaping Network. Smaller rocks around the larger focal points provide ground cover for the area.
Sink It Down
A large rock plunked down on top of the soil is a dangerous landscaping practice. Partially burying the larger rocks prevents them from tipping, should someone sit or stand on them. The rocks also look more natural because larger rocks in nature tend to sit partially underground. If you're only using small rocks, such as river rocks or pea gravel, digging down before you place the rocks allows you to have a thicker layer while keeping the rocks level with the surrounding ground. A border helps keep smaller rocks from moving into the lawn. The border prevents a lawn mower from catching and throwing any rocks along the edge.
Don't Strain
Landscaping rock -- even small types -- take a lot of effort to move because they're so heavy. When doing your own rock project, have the rocks delivered as close to the work area as possible to minimize the work. If you're bringing the rock home yourself in a truck, back up the vehicle next to the area where you're landscaping. A wheelbarrow can help when you're moving smaller rocks. Don't overload the wheelbarrow, because it will be too difficult to push and steer if it's too heavy. If you're using boulders, you may need to rent a skid loader.
Southern Mulch: DIY -- Landscaping With Rocks
Landscaping Network: Selecting & Placing Boulders and Rocks
Based in the Midwest, Shelley Frost has been writing parenting and education articles since 2007. Her experience comes from teaching, tutoring and managing educational after school programs. Frost worked in insurance and software testing before becoming a writer. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in elementary education with a reading endorsement.
Frost, Shelley. "Landscaping Rock Placement: Do-It-Yourself Tips." Home Guides | SF Gate, http://homeguides.sfgate.com/landscaping-rock-placement-doityourself-tips-101291.html. Accessed 20 January 2020.
Frost, Shelley. (n.d.). Landscaping Rock Placement: Do-It-Yourself Tips. Home Guides | SF Gate. Retrieved from http://homeguides.sfgate.com/landscaping-rock-placement-doityourself-tips-101291.html
Frost, Shelley. "Landscaping Rock Placement: Do-It-Yourself Tips" accessed January 20, 2020. http://homeguides.sfgate.com/landscaping-rock-placement-doityourself-tips-101291.html
Landscape With Decorative Rock Mounds
Dispose of Landscaping Rocks
Boulder Planting Ideas
Equipment for Removing Rock From a Yard
Keep Small Rocks in a Flowerbed from Moving
What Kind of Crushed Rocks Do You Use for Artificial Grass?
Cover a Grass Yard With Rock
Break Up Rock for a Wall
Landscape With Artificial Rocks
Should All Landscape Rock Borders Be Made With Same Kind of Rocks?
What Type of Gravel Is for a Koi Pond?
What Happens if a Lawn Mower Hits a Rock?


Bathroom Cabinets Denver Interior Bathroom Furniture Bathroom Vanity Store Vanity Woody Ikea Kohler Bathtub Faucet Corner Sink Nexpeditor Small With Wall Lamps Over Wooden Framed Mirror Attach White Bathroom Vanity Denver Ba 1138x1517. Bathroom Cabinets Denver Bathroom Antique Walnut Single Bathroom Vanity With Classy Baltic Brown Granite Tops And White Ceramic Undermount Sink And 6 Self Closing Drawers Also 1 Inside Drawer Magnificent Bathroom Vanities Den. Bathroom Cabinets Denver Custom Bathroom Vanities Denver.


text:
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namespace PhpParser\Node\Scalar\MagicConst;

use PhpParser\Node\Scalar\MagicConst;

class Line extends MagicConst
{
    public function getName() : string {
        return '__LINE__';
    }

    public function getType() : string {
        return 'Scalar_MagicConst_Line';
    }
}


Cooling - Quality Air Systems, Inc.
Are You Equipped For Comfort This Summer?
You deserve to live comfortably in your own home without having to worry or dust off your old oscillating fan. At Quality Air Systems Inc., we have years of experience installing effective, intuitive central air conditioning in homes and properties of all types. Our expert team works efficiently, ensuring that your system is designed specifically for your home's needs and installed properly. We also work hard to make it an unobtrusive process and limiting disruption.
Apart from our skilled design and expert installation, we install central air systems with quality and efficiency in mind. We only recommend and use the best materials and pro to craft a high-performance system that'll keep your investment secure and your costs reasonable. We also encourage environmentally friendly resources, so you can have peace of mind knowing that you're reducing your footprint. If you're interested in installing a quality air conditioning system, contact us today for an estimate.
Need An Indoor Air Quality System?


text:
How to draw a Hot Rod by Dwayne Vance
Car Blueprint Setup in Photoshop/Maya by Millergo
Retrofuturism: J Mays Talks About Automotive Design by Gary S. Vasilash
Tag: Infiniti
Infiniti Q30 Concept revealed
The first image of the Infiniti Q30 Concept, the compact design study that mixes elements of a coupe, a hatch and a crossover with a sculpted surface treatment.
Infiniti appoints Simon Cox as Director of its London Studio
Infiniti has appointed Simon Cox Design Director, Infiniti Design London studio. In this role, Cox will be based in the new bespoke Infiniti design studio in London, planned to open in October.
Infiniti Q30 Concept preview
Infiniti has revealed a sketch that previews the Q30 Concept, a design study of a future compact premium model that will debut at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show.
Alfonso Albaisa appointed Infiniti Executive Design Director
Infiniti has officially announced the appointment of Alfonso Albaisa as Executive Design Director. He be leading the global Infiniti Design team from the company's Design center in Atsugi, Japan.
Alfonso Albaisa on Infiniti's future plans
A video interview taken at the 2013 Shanghai Auto Show with Infiniti's new executive design director Alfonso Albaisa, who shares his plans for the premium brand.
Replacing the G sedan model, the all-new Infiniti Q50 features increased dimensions and an aerodynamic design influenced by the Essence Concept.
Infiniti Q50: video teaser
Infiniti has released a short clip that previews the new Q50, the new sedan model expected to debut at the upcoming Detroit Motor Show.
Infiniti 'Curved Visions' Digital Art Competition
Infiniti has launched a digital art contest that asks participants to create a digital interpretation of the curves that define the brand's model line-up. The deadline is July 10, 2012.
Infiniti LE Concept
At the 2012 New York Auto Show Infiniti has revealed the LE Concept, a near-production prototype that previews an upcoming zero emission luxury sedan model.
Infiniti Emerg-E Concept: design sketches
A gallery of design sketches, exterior and interior renderings of the Emerg-E Concept, the electric concept car presented by Infiniti at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show.
Infiniti previews new concept ahead of 2012 Geneva Show
Infiniti has revealed the first preview sketches of a design study of a luxury high performance, low-emission car that will evolve the brand's design language.
Infiniti electric sedan: new sketch
Infiniti has released a new design sketch that previews an upcoming electric sedan, based on the Nissan Leaf technology and expected for 2014.
Infiniti QX56-Powered Boat Concept
Infiniti is developing a one-off boat powered by the 5.6-liter V8 engine of the QX56 Luxury SUV. The project was started in partnership with the Tennessee Technical Center-Nashville and Nashville State Community College.
Infiniti JX: new images
Infiniti has released new images that preview the upcoming JX model, a three-row luxury crossover that will go on sale in spring 2012.
Infiniti Digital Art Competition
Infiniti in partnership with designboom have launched a Digital Art competition that invites to create original and innovative digital artworks to be used for interior display and exterior projections.
Infiniti JX Concept: preview sketch
At the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance Infiniti will unveil the JX, a luxury crossover with a design inspired by nature. It is expected to go on sale in 2012 as a 2013 model.
Infiniti Etherea Concept preview
The Etherea Concept is a design study of a compact premium model that gives some hints on a possible future entry-level model. The design features an original treatment of the surfaces.
Infiniti previews new Concept ahead of Geneva Motor Show
At the 2011 Geneva Motor Show Infiniti will unveil a new concept car that could mark a new direction for the brand and that could be positioned below the current G model.
Random Tutorials
Modeling a Braun HL70 desk fan in Blender
Concept Car Sketching Video
Drawing Cars on Newsprint Paper #2


text:
Tradition holds that kebabs were first created in the Middle Ages by Turkish soldiers in the Ottoman Empire who skewered meat on their swords and grilled it over open campfires, but the practice of cooking meat on a stick or skewer likely dates to prehistoric times, possibly as long as a million years ago, when early humans began cooking over fire.
Shish kebab remains a Turkish specialty; shish is the Turkish word for skewer, and kebab comes from the Persian word for grilling. As Muslim influence spread world wide it was accompanied by skewered food. Skashlik is the term used for kebabs in the Caucases and Russia, and satays arrived in Indonesia with Persian traders from India. Greek souvlaki is said to have resulted from the population exchange between Greece and Turkey in the 1920s and French brochettes, Italian spiedini and Japanese yakitori are further examples of the geographic reach of kebabs. Persian and Moghul influence is evident in the kebabs of Afghanistan and Pakistan, and in the tikkas of India. (According to the Oxford Companion to Food, chicken tikka masala, an Anglo Indian kebab dish served with a mildly spiced, creamy tomato-based sauce, has become so popular in Britain that it qualifies as a national dish. Legend suggests it was created by a Bangladeshi cook who responded to a diner's request for "gravy" with his tandoori chicken by spicing up a can of creamed tomato soup.)
In Turkey not every kebab is skewered. Ground meat is sometimes pressed around a skewer and grilled (keftka kebabs), and sometimes it is formed into burger-like patties and cooked directly on a grill, baked in an oven or combined in a stew. Doner kebab, literally "rotating kebab" in Turkish, is thinly sliced lamb, beef or chicken, tightly packed and slowly roasted on a vertical rotating spit. Middle Eastern shawarma, Mexican tacos al pastor and Greek gyros all are derived from the Turkish doner kebab. Mutton is the traditional kebab meat but, depending on local preferences and religious prohibitions, other meats used globally may include beef, chicken, goat, fish, pork or shrimp.
While in the West vegetables (tomatoes,mushrooms, bell peppers, onions) are often interspersed with meat in kebabs, some experts argue that vegetables should be skewered separately to accommodate different cooking times and assure that the meat is properly seared.
CHICKEN LIVERS EN BROCHETTE
COQUILLES SAINT JACQUES EN BROCHETTE
KEFTA KEBABS
MOORISH SPICED PORK KEBABS
PORK SATAYS WITH PEANUT SAUCE
SOUVLAKIA HIRINA
SPIEDINI ALL'UCCELLETTO
SWORDFISH KEBABS
TUNISIAN CHICKEN KEBABS
TURKISH LAMB KEBABS
YANGROU CHUAN


text:
require Rails.root.join('lib/service_instance_manager')

class ServiceBinding < BaseModel
  attr_accessor :id, :service_instance

  # Returns a given binding, if the MySQL user exists.
  #
  # NOTE: This method cannot currently check for the true existence of
  # the binding. A binding is the association of a MySQL user with a
  # database. We use the binding id to identify a user and the instance
  # id to identify a database. As such, we really need both ids to be
  # sure the binding exists. This problem is resolvable by persisting
  # both ids and their relationship in a separate management database.

  def self.find_by_id(id)
    binding = new(id: id)

    begin
      connection.execute("SHOW GRANTS FOR #{connection.quote(binding.username)}")
      binding
    rescue ActiveRecord::StatementInvalid => e
      raise unless e.message =~ /no such grant/
    end
  end

  # Returns a given binding, if it exists.
  #
  # NOTE: This method is only necessary because of the current
  # shortcomings of +find_by_id+. And because it requires both
  # the binding id and the instance guid, it cannot currently be
  # used by the binding controller.

  def self.find_by_id_and_service_instance_guid(id, instance_guid)
    binding = new(id: id)

    begin
      grants = connection.select_values("SHOW GRANTS FOR #{connection.quote(binding.username)}")

      database_name = ServiceInstanceManager.database_name_from_service_instance_guid(instance_guid)
      # Can we do this more elegantly, i.e., without checking for a
      # particular raw GRANT statement?
      if grants.include?("GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON #{connection.quote_table_name(database_name)}.* TO #{connection.quote(binding.username)}@'%'")
        binding
      end
    rescue ActiveRecord::StatementInvalid => e
      raise unless e.message =~ /no such grant/
    end
  end

  # Checks to see if the given binding exists.
  #
  # NOTE: This method uses +find_by_id_and_service_instance_guid+ to
  # verify true existence, and thus cannot currently be used by the
  # binding controller.

  def self.exists?(conditions)
    id = conditions.fetch(:id)
    instance_guid = conditions.fetch(:service_instance_guid)

    find_by_id_and_service_instance_guid(id, instance_guid).present?
  end

  def self.count
    cnt = connection.execute("SELECT COUNT(DISTINCT USER) FROM mysql.user").first[0]
    cnt ? cnt : 0
  end

  def host
    connection_config.fetch('host')
  end

  def port
    connection_config.fetch('port')
  end

  def database_name
    ServiceInstanceManager.database_name_from_service_instance_guid(service_instance.guid)
  end

  def username
    Digest::MD5.base64digest(id).gsub(/[^a-zA-Z0-9]+/, '')[0...16]
  end

  def password
    @password ||= SecureRandom.base64(20).gsub(/[^a-zA-Z0-9]+/, '')[0...16]
  end

  def save
    raise "Service instance '#{service_instance.guid}' database does not exist" unless Database.exists?(database_name)

    connection.execute("CREATE USER #{connection.quote(username)} IDENTIFIED BY #{connection.quote(password)}")

    ServiceBinding.update_connection_quota_for_user(username, service_instance)
  end

  def self.update_connection_quota_for_user(username, service_instance)
    max_user_connections = Catalog.connection_quota_for_plan_guid(service_instance.plan_guid)
    grant_sql = "GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON #{connection.quote_table_name(service_instance.db_name)}.* TO #{connection.quote(username)}@'%'"
    grant_sql = grant_sql +  " WITH MAX_USER_CONNECTIONS #{max_user_connections}" if max_user_connections
    connection.execute(grant_sql)
    # Some MySQL installations, e.g., Travis, seem to need privileges
    # to be flushed even when using the appropriate account management
    # statements, despite what the MySQL documentation says:
    # http://dev.mysql.com/doc/refman/5.6/en/privilege-changes.html
    connection.execute('FLUSH PRIVILEGES')
  end

  def destroy
    begin
      connection.execute("DROP USER #{connection.quote(username)}")
    rescue ActiveRecord::StatementInvalid => e
      raise unless e.message =~ /DROP USER failed/
    else
      # Some MySQL installations, e.g., Travis, seem to need privileges
      # to be flushed even when using the appropriate account management
      # statements, despite what the MySQL documentation says:
      # http://dev.mysql.com/doc/refman/5.6/en/privilege-changes.html
      connection.execute('FLUSH PRIVILEGES')
    end
  end

  def to_json(*)
    {
      'credentials' => {
        'hostname' => host,
        'port' => port,
        'name' => database_name,
        'username' => username,
        'password' => password,
        'uri' => uri,
        'jdbcUrl' => jdbc_url
      }
    }.to_json
  end

  private

  def connection_config
    Rails.configuration.database_configuration[Rails.env]
  end

  def uri
    "mysql://#{username}:#{password}@#{host}:#{port}/#{database_name}?reconnect=true"
  end

  def jdbc_url
    "jdbc:mysql://#{host}:#{port}/#{database_name}?user=#{username}&password=#{password}"
  end
end


text:
CAMP | Portfolio Categories Science
archive,tax-portfolio_category,term-science,term-113,ajax_fade,page_not_loaded,,qode-theme-ver-3.4,wpb-js-composer js-comp-ver-6.4.0,vc_responsive
Sands Fish
Sands is an artist, designer, engineer, and musician. He currently lives in the United States in Boston, Massachusetts, where he runs a small design studio and works with fellow researchers at the MIT Media Lab's Space Exploration Initiative, building an inclusive, sci-fi future and culture in space.
In the past decade, he has designed information architecture and data mining systems for the MIT Libraries, joined Harvard's Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society as a fellow, and completed a Master's Degree in Media Arts and Sciences at the MIT Media Lab. In his spare time, he rebuilds motorcycles and makes music under the name Living Loop. He is perhaps a bit too excited that he was able to get the domain name http://sands.fish.
Nadieh Bremer
Nadieh is a graduated astronomer, turned data scientist, turned data visualization designer, based near Amsterdam. After working for a consultancy & fintech company where she discovered her passion for the visualization of data, she's been working as a freelancing data visualization designer under the name "Visual Cinnamon" since 2017.
As 2017's "Best Individual" in the Information is Beautiful Awards, she focuses on uniquely crafted (interactive) data visualizations that both engage and enlighten its audience. Ranging from companies as extensive as Google News Lab and UNESCO to small start-ups. From printed magazines such as Scientific American to an interactive experience for the Guardian to more promotionally focused artful visualizations for press releases, data-driven reports, and data art for in the office, as long as there's data that has a story to reveal.
The Consulate General of the Netherlands aims to strengthen the link between Canada and the Netherlands. At CAMP, the Consulate hopes to foster interdisciplinary collaborations in the field of creative technology, art and design. The Consulate General is always proud to support Dutch talent. Nadieh Bremer is a prime example of this, and her lecture at CAMP will undoubtedly encourage and motivate further creative international collaboration.
Dhairya Dand
Dhairya is an award winning inventor and artist who runs ODD Industries a futurist factory+lab in NYC. His work investigates the human body as a medium for computation, new materials as a tool to embody interactions and design as a vehicle for mindfulness. Past inventions include: bio reactive architecture, elastic computer screens, shape changing gadgets, shoes that tickle and guide, alcohol aware ice cubes, synthetic muscles, programmable hair, emotionally intelligent flowers, sensory apparatus for music learning and educational toys from eWaste, optically invisible fiber-optics among others. Recent exhibitions at the V&A, Tokyo Design Week, MIT Museum, recognized in the 2015 and 2016 Forbes '30 Under 30' list, WIRED Innovation Fellow, INK Fellow, FoST Fellow, ELLE's 'Names to Know in 2015', VOGUE's 'Cool People' list, Globe's 'Top 25 Innovators' list. Previously a researcher at MIT Media Lab, amateur geologist in Saudi, toy designer in Singapore, sensory researcher in Tokyo, political activist in Bombay, MIT Media Lab alumnus.
Anastasia Victor
Anastasia is an artist / creative technologist, based in San Francisco, who creates immersive art to explore the social impacts of emerging technologies (and sometimes to make experiential/ nice things). Her practice combines the mediums of spatial computing (augmented, virtual and mixed reality), interaction design, generative design and physical installation. She holds a Master of Architecture from the University of California, Berkeley and has been using 3D design tools and computation to generate art and architecture since 2009.
Anastasia is a former resident of Mozilla XR Studio and is currently a resident at the Gray Area Foundation where she is developing projects that combine AR/VR with experiences in the physical world. In early 2019 she co-founded PLACE, a non-profit that researches the socio-spatial implications of XR through art, design and education. She is also a product designer at Oculus, where she is working on experience, interface and interaction design for VR.
Dr. Ryan Todd
Dr. Ryan Todd is the CEO of headversity, a company that measures, tracks, and trains resilience in the workplace. As a psychiatrist, Ryan had a continually burgeoning waitlist which he realized would never change throughout the course of his career. Discouraged by his inability to put a dent in his waitlist as a clinician, he started headversity to help people think, feel, and be better by bringing resilience training to the workplace. Headversity continues to develop world leading technology and methodology in measuring, tracking, and training resilience, working with some of Canada's premiere organizations.
Neil Mendoza
Neil's work uses digital and mechanical technologies to bring inanimate objects and spaces to life. Using this medium, he explores the absurd, the humorous, the futile and the surreal. His artwork has been exhibited internationally and he has created installations and digital artworks for a wide range of clients. He was born and raised in the UK and is currently based in California. He has an MA in math and computer science from Oxford University and an MFA in design media art from UCLA.
Mateusz Marpi Marcinowski is a San Francisco based technical director / digital artist currently working at Obscura Digital. His experience spans thirteen years in the industry, including 11 years in digital production environments. Marpi has migrated between different technologies and media, in both the commercial and art worlds; he has been lucky to work with and lead the most passionate and talented people in the industry.
Marpi's creative work revolves around building 3D worlds, creating immersive virtual reality experiences, interactive art events, and storytelling in style and difference, for clients including Magic Leap, Google, Microsoft, Salvador Dalí Museum, Qatar Foundation, Li Ka-shing, Disney, Adobe, Nintendo, MTV, Puma, MGM and CNN.
His work has been publicly and professionally recognized, receiving nominations and winning several awards including Webby, One Show, Pixel Awards, SXSW Interactive, The FWA (x24), Golden Lions and .NET Magazine site of the year. He has worked on 4 continents, visited 44 countries. So far.
Procedural Evolution
All of Marpi's projects are generally the same thing, over and over again, building and expanding on top of each other.
Making planets, generating plants, creating creatures; procedural, generative worlds. He's really found his space with interactive installations. His pieces are fully connected using phone, VR, controllers, Kinect; whatever it is, it allows people to create something and make it their own. Shifting the ownership (and credit) from himself, to them.
Making sense of the never ending project.
Krys has been designing interfaces for twenty years. Most of her career was spent in the Silicon Valley, designing e-commerce experiences for companies ranging from startups to Fortune 500 corporations. She is both a researcher and a designer and specializes in helping companies adopt a user centered approach. She's now designing the future of deep space operations for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA.
Calling Voyager: Interface Design for NASA's Deep Space Network
NASA's Deep Space Network (DSN) is one of its oldest and longest running projects. Without the DSN, we can't talk to the legendary Voyager Spacecraft, or even Curiosity on Mars. The DSN is monitored and controlled by a steadfast group of unsung heroes who face situational awareness and vigilance challenges every day, and for whom change always introduces risk. Krys will talk about the DSN itself, and describe how the JPL Human Interface Group is using participatory and ethnographically inspired methodology to approach the challenges of innovation in a risk-averse, well-established culture.
This talk will introduce you to the Deep Space Network and its operators, and share techniques NASA JPL is using for user centred design, as well as design for change-resistant users.
Robyn Larsen is a former nuclear engineer turned front-end developer, entrepreneur, and speaker. Robyn is also an active community member who advises numerous startups across multiple industries and frequently mentors women in tech and STEM. She is a member of the Technical Advisory Group (TAG) with Microsoft and serves on multiple nonprofit boards. Her tools of choice are product strategy, responsive design, HTML5, CSS3, SVGs and JavaScript. You can find her flying between San Francisco, Toronto, Revelstoke and Alberta for client work and surfing waves in Central America during her spare time.
Remote: Hacking the World's Genius
You're the average of the people you spend the most time with, so why not spend time with the brightest people from – not only your city, but – the entire world? Working remotely is not a new concept but it can be incredibly difficult to shift your team and culture towards a distributed working environment. Everyone thinks remote workers sit in their boxers and watch Netflix all day. Truth is remote working is becoming the new norm as it gives access to the best talent, creates a culture of ownership, and optimizes for productivity. Why not start exploring what that looks like for you and your team?
Learn from real case studies of what it takes to shift a 50+ member team into a distributed model. Robyn will discuss key steps you can start experimenting with, employee requirements, policy changes, and what it takes to understand if your team/culture has the ability to adopt a remote lifestyle.
Learn key steps you can use to start experimenting with remote working on your team, employee requirements, policy changes, and what it takes to understand if your team/culture has the ability to adopt a remote lifestyle.


I was fortunate enough to spend a day with my life-long friend, Mick Condy. He now owns and runs a Safari company called Mike Condy Tours and Safaris. Mick invited me to spend a day with him in the Pilansberg Game Reserve next to Sun City in the North West province of South Africa. We had an early start and were up and out on the road at 5h00 to get to the Bakubung gate at the Pilansberg Game Reserve by 7h00, just as the sun was rising.
Being life long friends there was much to talk about for the two hour drive to the park. We have shared a love of the bush all our lives and it is only as we have got older that we could be afford the time and money to spend more time in the bush. One of the wonderful aspects about growing older with life long friends it that time spent together is used to share insights we have found out about life. It is both interesting and inspiring.
Prior to its proclamation as a reserve in 1979, the Pilanesberg National Park Complex was degraded of indigenous game populations due to intense settlement by commercial farmers. At considerable expense, the land was developed during the first 15 years after 1979. This development was the largest and most expensive game stocking and land rehabilitation project ever undertaken in any African game reserve at that time. The objective being to restock the park with wildlife and facilitate the regrowth after the degradation from human settlement. More than 6,000 head of game were introduced during the Operation Genesis game trans-location programme, which received worldwide acclaim.
This area is unique from a geological perspective. Its structure, termed the "Pilanesberg National Park Alkaline Ring Complex" was formed by volcanic eruptions some 1 200 million years ago. This extinct volcano is old even in the context of a geological time scale and is the best example of an alkaline ring complex. There are only two other alkaline volcanoes in the world, in Russia and in Greenland. Neither are as clearly defined as Pilansberg National Park.
Near the centre of the park in Mankwe dam. It is surrounded by rocky outcrops, open grasslands, wooded valleys and thickets which provide a varied natural environment for the wildlife. This is typical of the 'Bushveld' which occurs in the transition zone between the dry Kalahari and wetter Lowveld vegetation. There is much to do in and around this park but we preferred to get away from the maddening crowd and see nature in her element.
Still early in the morning around 8h00 we found two young males which had left the pride and were on their own, nomads. They were very playful with each other.
Two young nomads who see to have formed a coalition. Their manes had still to fully develop. They were playful, cavorting around in the waterways at the head of the Mankwe dam.
Mick and I went down to the Mankwe dam hide to see what was going on. It was busy, people wise, so not much happening from a nature point of view. Nevertheless we were graced by our avian friends. It was an overcast day and quite chilly early in the morning so this lesser-striped swallow had puffed itself out to keep warm.
The air was still and cool so this probably kept these lesser-striped swallows on their perch as the insect activity must have been quite subdued.
This lesser egret was busy hunting in the shallows around the Mankwe dam hide. It seemed to be successful in its hunting efforts catching several little fish.
In the car park, there were a few Crested francolins pecking in the sand looking for seed. This character came running towards us habitually expecting food.
A little later we wandered our way up toward Makorwane dam, west of Mankwe. On the way we were told there was a leopard sighting next to the road a few hundred metres ahead.
This was handsome male leopard which seemed unfazed by the vehicles and remained focused on the bush around him.
After spending a while watching the male leopard, he wandered off into the bush so we carried on up the road. A little further on from our leopard sighting we found a pair of Black-capped wheatears. They were foraging in some burnt grass for insects.
Winter can be a magical time for fora in the bush. Winter can bring out some spectacular colours in the bushes and trees.
We found a small family of wathogs browsing in a burnt area of bush. They use their snouts to dig into the the earth and uncover succulent roots and tubers.
We travelled east to Ratihogo hide which has provided many extraordinary sightings in the past, but it was very quiet this time but for a brown-headed kingfisher hunting for insects from its perch in the trees overhanging the dam.
From the Ratihogo hide we wandered along the Korwe drive down to twin dams which, being winter, had dried up, We were rewarded by a sighting of two large bull white rhinos basking in the warm winter sun.
There is a wide variety of habitat to see in the Pilansberg reserve and in winter the bush offers a vivid palette of colours.
We found numerous small herds of blue wildebeest. They had huddled together due to the wind. The wildlife adapts to the wind because it disrupts two key senses, smell and hearing. It was good to see many youngsters in the herds.
A small family herd of zebra grazing at the foot of a range of hills along Mankwe way.
In the afternoon we returned to Makorwane dam and on the way we found a large breeding herd of elephant next to the road. Two teenage bull elephants came onto the road to "play fight" and push each other around trying to assert their dominance. the two were evenly matched so there was no winner.
On our way back to the Kubu road, after having seen the leopard, we found this unlikely pair warming themselves on a road next to the bridge. A Water monitor lizard and a terrapin. Not long after this image was taken, others saw the leopard had wandered down to the bridge and found and killed the Water monitor lizard. Leopards are not fussy predators.
There were no sighting highlights as it was special to see all the wildlife, big and small, animal and bird. The leopard was surprisingly relaxed which gave us a unique opportunity to spend some time watching this normally secretive feline.
Unfortunately last weekend, the Pilansberg National Park was ravaged by fire. Park authorities said it began in the north of the park' and burnt through the park on Sunday, fanned by the wind blowing south. The park has a number of hides favoured by many to watch the bird and animal life come down to the dams to drink. The largest hide overlooking Mankwe dam was destroyed by the fire.
Explore, seek to understand, marvel at its inter-connectedness and let it be.
Thank you for this wonderful trip down memory lane. When we lived in (the then) Bophuthatswana we were regular visitors to Pilanesberg from before its official proclamation, so it holds a special place in my heart. I am so sorry to learn of the fire and hope that, given the end of winter, it will recover before long.
Love how you put it together Mike. Its a wonderful read. Beautiful photos and majestic Leopard. Look forward to start the Friday with this!
So sad to read about the fire. We spent a few great days in Pilansberg in July and thoroughly enjoyed it. The landscape is magnificent as is the wildlife. Wonderful memories. Thank you Mike.
Love your story telling Howie. Our 60 year old friendship just gets better & better. What a great privilege it is to spend the whole public holiday with such a respected buddy. Love you Howie.
Thank you Loee – you are dead right. A life long gift in the making and treasured!!


text:
\section{Introduction}

\label{sec:intro}

Birdsong is a subject of intensive research. Richness and variety of birdsong has intrigued basic research into the communicative function of birdsong. Besides ecology, birdsong has raised interest within the signal processing and machine learning communities too. This includes tasks such as species recognition \cite{Somervuo2006-parametric-bird} and locating active bird segments (akin to speech activity detection) \cite{Stowell2016-bird}.

While a number of recognition, segmentation and labeling approaches has been proposed, \emph{generation} of birdsong has received less attention. There are, however, many potential applications ranging from games, movies and virtual reality to education and robotics where flexible generation of birdsong (and other animal vocalizations) could be useful.

Most prior work considers specialized physical models (e.g. \cite{Moore16-mammalian-synthesizer,Amador2021-synthetic}) or adapts speech vocoders to birdsong (e.g. \cite{OReilly2016-YIN-Bird}). A limited number of studies also use \emph{text-to-speech} (TTS) techniques to synthesize birdsong \cite{Bonada2016-HMM-synthesis,Gutscher2019-budgerigar}.
An obvious difficulty is that, even if birdsong and speech both serve a communicative function, `bird language' lacks a commonly-agreed, standard written form (ortography). Human language exists both in written and spoken forms and the statistical association between the two enable tasks such as TTS or automatic speech recognition. In the limited number of `bird TTS' studies, the problem has been addressed using acoustic units learnt using unsupervised techniques. Similar approaches have recently been addressed by the speech community \cite{dunbar2019zero,tjandra2019vqvae}.

We address birdsong generation using \textbf{neural waveform models}.  Traditional TTS methods use fixed (signal processing based) operations to represent speech waveforms using a small number of parameters --- such as spectral envelope, fundamental frequency and aperiodicity. A major breakthrough was brought in 2016 by the introduction of \emph{WaveNet}  \cite{VandenOord2016-wavenet}, an approach to model raw waveform samples directly. WaveNet and other neural waveform models have provided excellent results in modeling other acoustic signals beyond speech --- such as music. However, unlike physical models and traditional vocoders, the neural models require (often time-consuming) training and, similar to any machine learning task, can be sensitive to choice of training data, architectures and control parameters.

As far as the authors are aware, our work is the first to address birdsong generation using neural waveform models.
We purposefully limit our focus to the \textbf{vocoder} part only, which is a key component of complete synthesizers. Given limited work in this domain, we feel the selected focus is justified. To this end, we have chosen three modern vocoders --- WORLD \cite{Morise2016-WORLD}, WaveNet Autoencoder \cite{engel2017neural} and Parallel WaveGAN \cite{yamamoto2020parallel}. We compare them through analysis-resynthesis experiments, including objective and subjective evaluation.

\section{Selected Vocoders}
\label{sec:pagestyle}

Our aim is to compare traditional and neural vocoders in their ability to re-synthesize birdsong. We consider three popular vocoders using architectures and parameter settings from the original code repositories (\href{https://github.com/JeremyCCHsu/Python-Wrapper-for-World-Vocoder}{WORLD}, \href{https://github.com/magenta/magenta/tree/master/magenta/models/nsynth}{WaveNet AE}, \href{https://github.com/kan-bayashi/ParallelWaveGAN} {Parallel WaveGAN}). The neural vocoders are retrained on birdsong (detailed below) without further parameter tuning. While the main reason is computational, we also want to find out how well the architectures designed for speech cope with birdsong `off-the-shelf'.

\textbf{WORLD} \cite{Morise2016-WORLD} is a signal processing based vocoder without trainable components. It decomposes a waveform into fundamental frequency (F0), spectral envelope, and aperiodicity parameters. Being an alternative to classic vocoders such as STRAIGHT \cite{Kawahara1999-STRAIGHT} and TANDEM-STRAIGHT \cite{Kawahara2008-tandem-STRAIGHT}, WORLD is adopted in many text-to-speech and voice conversion studies. We use D4C edition \cite{morise2016d4c} of WORLD.

\textbf{WaveNet autoencoder} \cite{engel2017neural} is a data-driven model that learns temporal hidden codes from training data and models long-term information using an \emph{encoder-decoder} structure. The encoder infers hidden embeddings distributed in time which the decoder uses to reconstruct the input. The temporal encoder has the same dilation block as WaveNet but uses \emph{non-causal} convolutions by considering the entire input context. The model consists of 30 convolutional layers followed by an average pooling layer to create a temporal embedding of $16$ dimensions every $512$ samples. The vanilla WaveNet decoder with $30$ layers (each layer being $1 \times 1$ convolution along with a bias) is used to upsample the embedding back to the original time resolution. The model is trained for $100$k iterations with a batch size of $32$.

\textbf{Parallel WaveGAN} \cite{yamamoto2020parallel} is a small footprint waveform generation method based on \emph{generative adversarial network} (GAN) \cite{Goodfellow2014-GAN}. It is trained jointly on multi resolution short-time Fourier transform loss and waveform domain adverserial loss. The model consists of $30$ convolutionally dilated layers with exponentially increasing $3$ dilation cycles with $64$ residual and skip channels and filter size of $3$. The discriminator consists of $10$ non-causal dilated 1-D convolutions with leaky ReLU activation.
Linearly increasing dilations in the range of one to eight along with the stride of $1$ are applied for the 1D convolutions apart from the first and the last layer. Weight normalization is applied to all the convolutional layers for both the generator and the discriminator \cite{salimans2016weight}. The model is trained for 100k steps using RAdam optimizer. The discriminator was fixed for first 50k steps after which both the models were trained jointly. The minibatch size was set to eight along with the 24k timesamples audioclip i.e. length of each audio clip was 1.0 second. The initial learning rate for generator is 0.0001 and for discriminator 0.00005.

\section{Experimental Set-up}

\subsection{Dataset}
We use a subset of \emph{xccoverbl} dataset \cite{stowell2014automatic} in our experiments. It contains vocalizations of 88 bird species commonly observed in the UK, gathered from the large \emph{Xeno Canto} collection \cite{web:xenocanto}.The sampling rate is $44.1$kHz. For all the 88 species, 3 audio files (each 30 seconds of total audio) are used for training and 2 other files (each 20 seconds) are held out for testing purposes. Our experiments include both objective and subjective evaluation. Given the time-consuming nature of the latter, we limit the experiments reported to 10 bird species in total, selected randomly out from the 88.

\subsection{Objective Evaluation}
We use \emph{root mean square error} (RMSE) to measure distance of the mel cepstra of the original and resynthesized birdsong as our objective quality measure. The lower the RMSE, the higher the (objective) quality \cite{haque2018conditional}. The MFCCs used in RMSE computation are calculated using the speech signal processing tool kit (SPTK) \cite{imai2009speech}.

\subsection{Subjective evaluation - species discrimination (ABX)}

Our subjective experiments serve to address two questions: how much vocoding influences (1) bird species discrimination; and (2) preservation of bird-related traits. We adopt an ABX test and a quality rating experiment to address these questions, respectively. In practice, we gather the responses to both simultaneously.

For the ABX test, each listener is provided with triplets (trials) of audio files. A and B correspond to natural audio of two different species, and X represents either a natural or a resynthesized sample of one one of the species. The listeners are asked to choose whether X resembles more A or B. We prepare a total of 10 trials (ABX triplets) per each of the three vocoders. Along with the additional case of natural audio (no vocoding) this yields a total of 40 ABX trials per subject.

The A and B samples in a given trial are selected from the training set of the vocoders. X is always selected from a \emph{different} audio file corresponding to species of either A or B; this way, the subject cannot do trivial `content-matched' comparison of original-vs-resynthesized file, but will have to pay attention to the general properties of the two species. We summarize the results of the ABX test as percent-correct identification rate (from pooled listener responses) broken down according to the vocoder.

In preparing the listening test, the order of the trials is randomized, with different order for each subject. The duration of each of the 40 samples was fixed to $10$ seconds (of total audio). All files prepared for the subjective test were additionally normalized using \texttt{ffmpeg-normalize} tool \cite{web:ffmpeg}.

\subsection{Subjective evaluation - bird-related cues (MOS)}

Evaluation of bird-related cues, in turn, is based on 5-point mean opinion (MOS) score ratings. The subject is asked to rate the X sample in each of the ABX trials in an ordinal scale $[1\dots5]$, where $1$ means that X does not resemble bird sounds at all while $5$ means X resembles perfectly bird sound.

The samples were presented through a PHP-based web-forms. The subjects were free to listen to the samples as many times as needed with their own pace. The subjects took part voluntarily and were informed about the study aims, with standard consent forms provided by the authors' institution in place. No compensations were provided.

We recruited an initial pool of $17$ subjects. We excluded afterwards two subjects who obtained, respectively, only 2 and 3 correct responses in the ABX test on the 10 natural samples. The results summarized below correspond to the responses of the remaining 15 subjects, all who obtained at least 5/10 correct on the natural samples.

\section{Experimental Results}

\subsection{Objective Evaluation Results}

The RMSE results shown in Table \ref{tab:rmse} are computed from the same audio files presented to the listeners in the next subsection (10 audio files per method). The results indicate the lowest and highest values for WORLD and WaveNet autoencoder, respectively, with parallel WaveGAN between the two. The higher RMSE values for the two neural approaches suggest issues in generalization from training set to the test data.

\begin{table}[ht]
\caption{Average root mean square error (RMSE) along with 95\% confidence range from standard error of mean (SEM).}
\center
\begin{tabular}{|c| c|}
 \hline
 Model & RMSE \\
 \hline\hline
 WORLD & $0.6879 \pm 0.41$\\
 \hline
 WaveNet Autoencoder & $3.2047 \pm 1.20$  \\
 \hline
 Parallel WaveGAN & $1.82647 \pm 0.67$ \\
 \hline
\end{tabular}\label{tab:rmse}
\end{table}

\subsection{Subjective results: species discrimination (ABX)}

The ABX results summarized in Fig. \ref{fig:accuracy-summary} indicate the following:
    \begin{itemize}
        \item results for all the four cases exceed 50\%;
        \item there are no significant differences between the three vocoders, or between natural vs. vocoded samples.
    \end{itemize}
The first result suggests that naive listeners are able to identify X more accurately than by guessing, on average. The average values suggest that natural samples might be classified more accurately (73.53\%) than any of the re-synthesized samples. Due to limited sample size, however, this effect cannot be firmly confirmed.

\begin{figure}[t]
  \centering
  \includegraphics[width=\linewidth]{ABX_graph.pdf}
  \caption{Summary of ABX (species recognition) results.}
  \label{fig:accuracy-summary}
\end{figure}

The overall species discrimination is obviously far from perfect. There are a number of possible reasons. First, most of our subjects are non-experts who might not be exposed to birdsong on a regular basis; they may not know to which cues to pay attention to. Second, the audio samples are short. Third, originating from field recordings, some of the samples are noisy (including sounds of other birds in background).

A look at listener-specific accuracies (not shown due to lack of space) revealed that
the individually most accurate listener had 38 (out of 40) correct cases overall. This was the only subject who obtained perfect result on \emph{two} vocoders --- parallel WaveGAN and wavenet autoencoder. For the rest of the subjects,
there were always at least one classification error on the vocoder samples.

\subsection{Subjective results: bird-related cues (MOS)}
\begin{figure}[t]
  \centering
  \includegraphics[width=\linewidth]{MOS_graph.pdf}
  \caption{Summary of bird-related cue evaluation using 5-point mean opinion score (MOS) rating.}
  \label{fig:mos-summary}
\end{figure}
The results from our second experiment are summarized in Fig. \ref{fig:mos-summary}. We observe the following:
    \begin{itemize}
        \item natural samples and WORLD vocoder yield the highest MOS values with the overall range around $4.12 \sim 4.44$;

        \item the two neural vocoders yield lower MOS, WaveNet autoencoder samples being rated least `bird-like'.
    \end{itemize}

The WORLD vocoder was deemed to retaining bird-related acoustic cues better than the two neural vocoders. The relative order of the mean responses aligns with the broad order given by the objective results (Table \ref{tab:rmse}). For completeness, RMSE vs. MOS scatterplot for individual files is displayed in Fig. \ref{fig:mosrmse-summary}. The subjective and objective measures are only weakly correlated. There is generally less RMSE variation for WORLD samples.

\section{Discussion}
\begin{figure}[!t]
  \centering
  \includegraphics[width=0.95\linewidth]{xc58571rep.png}
  \caption{Natural birdcall (bottom) along with its resynthesized versions with WORLD, Wavenet AE and Parallel WaveGAN.}
  \label{fig:curious-file}
\end{figure}
Informal listening reveals strong artifacts or noisy  quality in many of the re-synthesized samples. Thus, we looked further into the individually most challenging ABX trials and lowest-rated files. For the former, we simply count the percentage of subjects who responded correctly. What constitutes a difficult trial was found to depend on the vocoder. The species pairs in the hardest trials, per vocoder, are
    \begin{itemize}
        \item Natural (60\% correct): \emph{Red-throated loon} vs. \emph{European herring gull}, \textbf{and} \emph{Eurasian blackcap} vs. \emph{Marsh warbler}
        \item WORLD (60\% correct): \emph{European goldfinch} vs. \emph{Western yellow wagtail}
        \item WaveNet Autoencoder (53\% correct): \emph{European goldfinch} vs. \emph{Western yellow wagtail}
        \item Parallel WaveGAN (53\% correct): \emph{Eurasian reed warbler} vs. \emph{European golden plover}, \textbf{and} \emph{European goldfinch} vs \emph{Western yellow wagtail}
    \end{itemize}
One particular case ---  \emph{European goldfinch} vs \emph{western yellow wagtail} --- is shared across the three vocoders. The authors believe that the difficulty does not actually relate to the species in question but to general audio properties: one of the reference samples (A or B) in these trials has very little active bird audio (but instead contains a loud splash of water, which may confuse listeners). Additionally, for all the vocoders in their respective hardest trials we noted systematic problems in reproducing voicing: the vocoders appeared to replace clear F0 trajectories in the original audio with broadband noise.
\begin{figure}[!t]
  \centering
  \includegraphics[width=\linewidth]{acc.png}
  \caption{Scatter plot of 5-point mean opinion score (MOS) rating and root mean squared error (RMSE).}
  \label{fig:mosrmse-summary}
\end{figure}

Concerning the species pairs in \emph{easiest} cases per vocoder, two are common to all the vocoders (accuracy $\ge$ 80\% correct) ---   \emph{European nightjar} vs \emph{redwing}, \textbf{and} \emph{common moorhen} vs \emph{willow tit}.
These cases might be easy because there is a continuous birdsong in the audio and the pairs have easily distinguishable characterstics. Additionally, some of the easy trials  contain common species that might be  \emph{familiar} even to naive listeners. For instance, $86.7 \%$ on all trials containing \emph{northern raven} were responded correctly.

As for MOS, the lowest-rated (least bird-like) sample is curiously the same for all the methods (including natural sample). The species in the said sample is \emph{red-throated loon}, with a peculiar finding: it sounds there are \emph{two} birds singing in unison but with different pitch values. The spectrograms are displayed in Fig. \ref{fig:curious-file}. For the birdsong generated by wavenet autoencoder there is silence for approximately initial $3$ seconds. Comparing each of the vocoders with the natural vocalization, WaveNet AE fails to generate harmonics. Even if WORLD and parallel WaveGAN may look better on spectrograms, listening reveals noisy and inharmonic characteristics.

\section{Conclusions}

We presented an initial study on bird vocalization resynthesis using neural vocoders. The subjective evaluation --- the main part of our study --- reveals that cues relevant for species identification are retained similarly by the three vocoders. The traditional WORLD vocoder samples, however, were rated as retaining bird-like qualities better than the two neural approaches. This finding should \emph{not} be categorically interpreted to suggest one should adopt non-neural vocoders. Since our study includes only three vocoders and one dataset, the findings should indeed be considered `initial' as suggested by the title. Future work should therefore expand the battery of vocoders and datasets.

It should be emphasized that our aim was \emph{not} to optimize a state-of-the-art birdsong resynthesis results but, rather, to carry out an out-of-the-box evaluation of existing vocoder models. Apart from retraining the deep models on bird audio, we did not consider architectural modifications, data cleaning or control parameter tuning. We expect better results to be obtained with higher-quality --- and larger amounts of --- training data. We also expect noise suppression pre-processing and different treatment of bird-present and bird-absent regions to be helpful. Overall, synthesis of acoustic wildlife data represents new challenges that are lacking from clean datasets used typically in speech synthesis and voice conversion research. The above data-engineering related questions requires detailed investigation.

For the most part, the resynthesized samples retain the important audio qualities. But it is also apparent that in a number of cases the selected vocoders struggled in reproducing correct pitch and voicing information. Apart from the challenges related to processing technically low-quality audio data, it must be kept in mind that birdsong is not the same as human voice. Thus, rather than enforcing existing \emph{voice} coders to handle bird vocalizations, in the long term it might be more beneficial to address combinations of physics-inspired and learnable models.

\section{Acknowledgment}
The work was partially sponsored by Academy of Finland. The authors express their gratitude to the subjects and to Dr. Rosa Gonz\'alez Hautamäki for her help with the PHP-forms.

\bibliographystyle{IEEEtran}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaArXiv


text:
Email Sells Ice Cream
Digital marketing has emerged as the preferred tool of forward‑looking brands — especially those looking for a way to reach new audiences.
Social media is changing the way we talk to customers, and ad-blocking software has disrupted the paid digital advertising landscape.
Through it all, email has emerged as the preferred marketing tool of forward-looking brands — especially those looking for a way to reach new audiences.
Brands like Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams.
Over the past 14 years, Jeni's has grown from an upstart scoop shop based in Columbus, Ohio, into a national brand that has earned rave reviews from Food & Wine and Bon Appétit magazines. What's the recipe to Jeni's success? Exquisitely delicious ice cream, for starters. But savvy email marketing has been a pretty crucial ingredient, too.
Turning a classic on its head
If you spend any time in your supermarket's frozen aisle, you've seen the change. Classic ice cream staples like Rocky Road and Pralines & Cream are giving way to exotic flavors like Honey Lavender and Maple Bourbon Pecan.
According to Jeni's Experience Leader Ryan Morgan, his company's founder started the trend. "Jeni created a whole new category in the frozen dessert space," Morgan says, "and sparked the artisan ice cream movement more than a decade before it would become a top food trend."
Jeni Britton Bauer first started concocting unorthodox ice cream flavors in her home kitchen in 1996. In 2002, she opened her first scoop shop in Columbus' North Market, where she worked 12-hour days making and selling all of the ice cream herself. Jeni's idiosyncratic take on ice cream attracted customers from every corner of town. And it quickly became clear that she was onto something big.
Delicious — and sustainable
Jeni's deliciously offbeat flavors comprise just half of her brand's story. The other half is Jeni's unyielding commitment to social responsibility. Jeni's partnerships with the best growers, makers, producers, and suppliers and use of direct trade ingredients is a major part of the brand's appeal.
But mostly, people love Jeni's because the ice cream tastes really, really good. So good, in fact, that Jeni's started opening new scoop shops all over Columbus. By 2004, Jeni's and her growing team focused on figuring out how to bring Jeni's ice cream to a national audience.
Taking any regional brand national has its challenges, especially when you're headquartered far away from coastal influencers. Jeni's wanted to reach as many customers as possible, so it opened an e-commerce business and started shipping pints packed in dry ice to all 50 states.
The shipping business helped Jeni's build a robust email database of customers from all over the country. "Email was instrumental in getting us in front of national tastemakers," Morgan says. "And it helped us build a national network of fans who would do or pay anything to get our ice cream."
Today there are 23 Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream scoop shops throughout the nation, spanning from Charleston to Los Angeles. And Jeni's product line — which includes sauces and ice cream sandwiches — is a mainstay in high-end grocery stores everywhere.
Email is the engine that's driven Jeni's growth strategy. Social media, display advertising, and paid search have also played important roles, but email brings in the most website traffic and results in the most sales.
"Email is critical for us," Morgan says. "With social media, we realized we were essentially renting access to customers on terms over which we had no control. So we decided to invest more in the most valuable piece of online real estate that we actually own — our website — while at the same time doubling down on growing our email database and evolving our strategy for the channel. Social is still a key part of the mix, but we recalibrated our efforts to favor owned media first."
Email helped Jeni's go from a scrappy boutique brand to a national force. But it wasn't as easy as flipping a switch.
Jeni's approached email marketing with strategy and intention, and the results speak for themselves.


Today... Mostly sunny early in the morning then becoming partly cloudy. Isolated showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs in the mid 70s. Northeast winds 10 to 15 mph shifting to the south in the afternoon.
Tonight... Partly cloudy. Isolated showers and thunderstorms in the evening, then scattered showers and thunderstorms after midnight. Lows in the upper 40s. Southwest winds 15 to 20 mph shifting to the northeast after midnight.
Tuesday... Breezy. Partly cloudy with scattered showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the upper 60s. East winds 15 to 25 mph. Gusts up to 35 mph in the afternoon.
Tuesday Night... Partly cloudy. Scattered showers and thunderstorms in the evening. Lows in the mid 40s. Northeast winds 15 to 20 mph in the evening.
Wednesday... Partly cloudy. Slight chance of showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs in the mid 70s.
Veguita, NM Weather Forecast - Find local 87062 Veguita, New Mexico weather forecasts and current conditions. Continually striving to be your best resource for Local Veguita, New Mexico Weather!


> of a constant string.
attribute value template in the separator attribute.
explicit in other places, for example the AVTs on xsl:sort.
I think the intention is the latter?
Next message: Jeni Tennison: "xsl:message in xsl:function"
Previous message: DPawson@rnib.org.uk: "FW: xslt 2,issue65"


text:
The Christian National Front (, KNF) was a political party in Hungary during the 1930s.

History
The party won a single seat in the 1935 elections, They did not contest any further elections.

References

Defunct political parties in Hungary

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
The Gillette Company v. Provost, et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 12-071-17)
SUFFOLK, ss. SUPERIOR COURT.
1584CV00149-BLS2
THE GILLETTE COMPANY
CRAIG PROVOST, JOHN GRIFFIN, WILLIAM TUCKER, DOUGLAS KOHRING, and SHAVELOGIC, INC.
MEMORANDUM AND ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF'S MOTION TO REPORT SUMMARY JUDGMENT DECISION PURSUANT TO RULE 64
In prior rulings, the Court dismissed or granted partial summary judgment against all of The Gillette Company's claims. Most recently the Court decided that the remaining Defendants are entitled to summary judgment on Gillette's claims that four of its former employees helped ShaveLogic, Inc., develop a new disposable cartridge shaving razor using Gillette's confidential information. The only remaining claims to be decided are ShaveLogic's counterclaims that Gillette intentionally interfered with prospective business relations and violated c. 93A, by threatening to bring and then filing baseless legal claims in an attempt to keep ShaveLogic from entering the market for so-called wet-shaving products.
When the Court granted partial summary judgment in Defendants' favor on Gillette's "confidential information" claims, it did not enter separate and final judgment under Mass. R. Civ. P. 54(b) because doing so would be inconsistent with the appellate courts' strong policy against piecemeal appeals.1 Gillette therefore has no right to appeal the Court's interlocutory decision granting partial summary judgment in Defendants' favor on what had been Gillette's remaining claims.2
Gillette has now asked the Court to report its summary judgment decision for interlocutory appellate review under Mass. R. Civ. P. 64(a). The Court will DENY this request for the reasons discussed below.
1 See Long v. Wichett, 50 Mass. App. Ct. 380, 388-404 (2000) (separate judgment held inconsistent with "bedrock policy against premature and piecemeal appeals").
2 See Morrissey v. New England Deaconess Ass'n—Abundant Life Communities, Inc., 458 Mass. 580, 594 (2010) (in absence of separate and final judgment, "no appeal can be taken from a trial judge's partial 'judgment' on a claim prior to entry of a final judgment disposing of all claims against all parties to the action").
Rule 64(a) authorizes a trial court to report an interlocutory order to the appeals court for immediate review. However, "[s]uch a report should be reserved for novel and difficult issues, the appellate decision of which may expedite resolution of the case." Morrison v. Lennett, 415 Mass. 857, 859 (1993). "Interlocutory matters should be reported only where it appears that they present serious questions likely to be material in the ultimate decision, and that subsequent proceedings in the trial court will be substantially facilitated by so doing." Globe Newspaper Co. v. Massachusetts Bay Transp. Auth. Ret. Bd., 412 Mass. 770, 772 (1992), quoting John Gilbert Jr. Co. v. C.M. Fauci Co., 309 Mass. 271, 273 (1941).
Gillette argues that the summary judgment decision in this case turned on the resolution of two unsettled questions of law that should be reviewed by the Appeals Court before ShaveLogic's counterclaims go to trial. The Court is not convinced.
1. Third-Party Patent Disclosures. Gillette believes that the Court erred in ruling that disclosure of a design concept by a third-party in a patent establishes that the concept is not confidential. Although Gillette concedes that a third-party patent disclosure defeats any claim of confidentiality if the disclosure is well known to others, it argues that information can still be protected as confidential if it is disclosed in an obscure third-party patent that is not generally known in the relevant field.
This issue does not warrant an interlocutory report and review for two reasons.
To begin with, the principle that a business cannot seek to protect as confidential any information that is known by someone outside the business, even if it is not generally known in the industry, is well established under Massachusetts law. See, e.g., Augat, Inc. v. Aegis, Inc., 409 Mass. 165, 170 (1991) (sales volume "known outside the business" by several securities analysts was not confidential). For example, an employee is free to carry away his or her memory of customers' names, needs, and habits and to use that information to solicit business from those very customers. Such "remembered information" is not confidential because the information itself, as distinguished from an employer's compilation of such information into a list or database, is known to the customers and thus not kept secret by the employer. American Window Cleaning Co. of Springfield, Mass. v. Cohen, 343 Mass. 195, 199 (1961) ("Remembered information as to the plaintiff's prices, the
frequency of service, and the specific needs and business habits of particular customers was not confidential."); accord Woolley's Laundry v. Silva, 304 Mass. 383, 391-392 (1939); May v. Angoff, 272 Mass. 317, 320 (1930). There is no good reason why the sharing of information with a few securities analysts as in Augat, or between one customer and one service provider as in American Window, would destroy any claim of confidentiality but disclosure of information in a public patent would not.
In any case, the legal question flagged by Gillette regarding third-party patent disclosures is immaterial because Gillette concedes that the general concepts of designing razors using a front-loading engagement, a magnetic attachment, or an elastomeric pivot are not confidential to Gillette. In its prior decision, the Court noted that Gillette had made this concession during the summary judgment oral argument. It nonetheless went on to explain why the undisputed summary judgment record was consistent with Gillette's concession. The Court discussed third-party patent disclosures only as part of its explanation of why it made sense for Gillette to concede that these three general design concepts were not confidential. Those parts of the Court's decision played no other role in its analysis. More recently, during oral argument on Gillette's motion for a report under Rule 64, Gillette expressly reiterated its concession that these general design concepts are not confidential as a matter of fact. It therefore does not matter whether the Court's prior discussion of third-party patent disclosures was correct or incorrect as a matter of law.
As the Court explained in its prior summary judgment ruling, the ShaveLogic defendants were entitled to judgment in their favor as a matter of law because Gillette could not muster any evidence any evidence that ShaveLogic used any Gillette confidential information in developing any product. That prior ruling did not turn on any novel and difficult issue of law. It turned Gillette's inability to any present evidence to support its claims.
Gillette reiterates its prior argument that the expert opinion of its expert witness, that misuse of Gillette confidential information gave ShaveLogic a head start in designing its razor, creates a triable jury question. That argument is still incorrect for the reasons that the Court discussed in its prior decision. Although Gillette's expert opined that Defendants must have used Gillette confidential
information to design ShaveLogic's razors, he reached that conclusion based on his mistaken assumption that the general design concepts of front-loading engagements, magnetic attachments, and an elastomeric pivot or loop are confidential information that belong to Gillette. That assumption was incorrect, as Gillette again conceded during oral argument on its Rule 64 motion for a report.
In sum, since Gillette's arguments regarding the legal significance of third-party patent disclosures are completely immaterial—in light of Gillette's repeated concession that the concepts of front-loading engagements, magnetic attachments, and elastomeric pivots are not confidential—they provide no reason to report the summary judgment decision for interlocutory appellate review. See Globe Newspaper Co., 412 Mass. at 772-773 (discharging report because appeal from interlocutory decision would not dispose of central issue material to ultimate decision).
2. Obvious Combination of Disclosed Razor Design Features. The second issue that Gillette believes merits interlocutory appellate review concerns the Court's prior ruling that, given the evidence that the ideas of designing a razor using a front-loading engagement with the razor cartridge or of attaching the cartridge to the handle at a single point were both well-known in the industry, it would have been obvious to anyone skilled in the art that one could combine the two concepts and design a front-end loading razor that attaches to the cartridge at a single point.
Gillette contends that the Court made an error of law because obviousness plays no part in whether information is confidential under Massachusetts law. It also contends that the Court made an error of fact because no record evidence demonstrated that such a combination was obvious. Neither of these contentions justifies interlocutory review of the summary judgment decision.
With respect to the first point, the principle that obvious concepts are not confidential does not raise any novel or difficult question of law that would merit interlocutory review. Obvious engineering or design concepts are not confidential information. See Dynamics Research Corp. v. Analytic Sciences Corp., 9 Mass. App. Ct. 254, 267 (1980) (concepts that would be obvious to an inertial guidance engineer were not protectable as trade secrets). Since obvious concepts are not confidential, obvious combinations of them are not confidential either. See Strategic Directions
Grp., Inc. v. Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., 293 F.3d 1062, 1065 (8th Cir. 2002) (obvious combination of known elements not a trade secret); Julie Research Labs., Inc. v. Select Photographic Eng'g, Inc., 998 F.2d 65, 67 (2d Cir. 1993) (particular combination of design choices not a trade secret if "obvious, widely known, easy for others to discover legitimately, or disclosed" publicly by manufacturer).
With respect to the second point, the Court's prior opinion was not as clear and precise as it should have been. The issue before the court was not whether the summary judgment record demonstrated that combining front-loading engagements and a single point of attachment was an obvious design option. Rather, the issue was whether Gillette could present any evidence that such a combination was not obvious.
This is not a patent infringement case, in which a defendant charged with infringement would have the burden of proving that a particular patent claim was obvious and thus not patentable. Instead, Gillette had the burden of proving its claims that Defendants misused Gillette's confidential information, which includes the burden of proving that any concepts reflected in ShaveLogic's razor designs would not have been obvious to someone skilled in the art.
As a result, Gillette's failure to muster any evidence that a combination of the well-known concepts of front-loading engagements and single points of attachment was not obvious means that Defendants were entitled to summary judgment on that aspect of Gillette's claims. See Kourouvacilis v. General Motors Corp., 410 Mass. 706, 715 (1991) ("If the nonmoving party cannot muster sufficient evidence to make out its claim, a trial would be useless and the moving party is entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law." (quoting Celotex Corp. v. Catret, 477 U.S. 317, 328 (1986) (White, J., concurring)).
Plaintiff's motion to report the recent summary judgment decision under Mass. R. Civ. P. 64 is DENIED.
Kenneth W. Salinger
Justice of the Superior Court
Posted by Massachusetts Legal Resources - June 16, 2017 at 4:21 am
Categories: News Tags: 1207117, Company, Gillette, Lawyers, Provost, Weekly


text:
Q: How to use template data type inside main function in C++? #include <iostream>

using namespace std;

template <class U>
U add (U a, U b)
{
    U c = 0 ;
    c = a + b;
    return c;
}

int main()
{
    int first = 2;
    int second = 2;

    U result = 0;

    result = add(first, second);

    cout <<  result << endl;

    return 0;
}

I want to declare the data type of result variable using the template data type so that my addition program is generic but the compiler is giving me this error "result was not declared in this scope."

A: What you are trying to do is not possible. You can only use U within your add function.
However, you can do this instead
auto result = add(first, second);

Or
decltype(auto) result = add(first, second);

In your case both will do the same. However, they are quite different. To make it short, decltype(auto) will always get you the exact type returned by add, while auto may not.
Quick example:
const int& test()
{
    static int c = 0;
    return c;
}

// result type: int
auto result = test();

// result type: const int&
decltype(auto) result = test();

If you want to know more about auto, Scott Meyers explains it perfectly:
CppCon 2014: Scott Meyers "Type Deduction and Why You Care"

A: An alternative to José's excellent proposal, which would allow you to split the declaration and "initialisation" (which would then only be an assignment, as in your question), is:
decltype(add(first, second)) result = 0;
result = add(first, second);

But, obviously, yuck.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Q: JavaFX: Gif и пауза Идея такая:
есть скрытая GIF'ка. при нажатии на кнопку, она становится видимой, пауза в пару секунд, GIF'ка опять становится невидимой и происходит изменения в окне.
Пытался это сделать - во время паузы не работает гиф (не видно, что она появляется и исчезает).
решил сделать через поток след образом:
    shar_img_gif.setVisible(true);
    Thread s1 = new Thread(new Runnable(){
        public void run(){
            try {
                Thread.sleep(1000);
                shar_img_gif.setVisible(false);
                int i = (int)(Math.random()*o.x);
                shar_otv1.setText(o.otv[i]);
                shar_vopros.setText(shar_text.getText()+"?");
                shar_text.setText(null);
            } catch (InterruptedException e) {
                e.printStackTrace();
            }
        }
    });
    s1.start();

но начинает ругаться на 2 эти строки:
shar_otv1.setText(o.otv[i]);
shar_vopros.setText(shar_text.getText()+"?");

если вынести их за пределы потока - все будет работать, но не так как надо (выполняется сразу, а надо чтобы этот кусок работал после паузы, когда GIF'ка исчезнет).
эти 2 строки не хотят работать просто в потоке.
как это исправить? и почему так происходит?

A: Используйте Timer:
shar_img_gif.setVisible(true);
javax.swing.Timer timer = new javax.swing.Timer(1000/*Time in millis*/,e->
{
    Platform.runLater(()->
    {
        shar_img_gif.setVisible(false);
        int i = (int)(Math.random()*o.x);
        shar_otv1.setText(o.otv[i]);
        shar_vopros.setText(shar_text.getText()+"?");
        shar_text.setText(null);
    }/*Runnable*/);
}/*ActionListener*/);
timer.setRepeats(false);
timer.start();

Исключение появляется так, как работа с JavaFX должна проиводиться в JavaFX потоке, для этого нужно использовать
Platform.runLater(()->
{
    //Your code there
});

()->{} - это лямбда выражение, добавленное в java 8, оно заменяет new Runnable(){}