Semiconductor Engineering - Going Vertical? Semiconductor Engineering - Going Vertical?
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Scaling and packaging emerge as key discussion points across the semiconductor industry.
The topic of transistor scaling has been traditionally covered at SEMICON West in its own right. This year's event, however, will also explore scaling in 3D, as well as using packaging to accomplish similar objectives. Along with traditional transistor scaling, speakers will tackle design and metrology considerations for scaling the package, and address the economic decisions that inform density scaling strategies at a SEMICON West 2017 TechXPOT session on the topic ("The Economics of Density Scaling" on Thursday, July 13, 2:00pm-4:00pm).
As greater numbers of known good dies (KGDs) are used in more advanced packaging methodologies, Singh explained that new process control steps with tighter tolerances have been added to deal with the increased concern about the economic implications of yield loss. He cited the addition of kerf control check after saw (see Figure 1).
6) RDL metrology (width, height), bump height and coplanarity.
Looking beyond 5nm, Singh observed that while a few key players will drive traditional scaling, there will be a shift to scaling of the package. "Package scaling will help address the need for lower power, lower latency, and lower cost with high performance, which will be difficult to achieve through CMOS scaling," said Singh. "The industry will combine components and technologies from the smartphone ecosystem to create a virtually limitless variety of next-generation devices." He expects advanced packaging to play a key role by leveraging both homogenous and inhomogeneous integration.
Along with contemplating the technical challenges in going from 7nm to 5nm, Jamil Kawa, a Fellow at Synopsys, told SEMI that the dominant factors in determining whether a new node is adopted or not are still more or less the same: power, performance, area, readiness, cost, and yield. "Designers have to see in the new node an advantage they cannot attain today with an existing node/design," observed Kawa. "Otherwise, a designer will be taking an unnecessary risk." He explained that, from an EDA perspective, the deployment of EUV for critical layers will be the main differentiating feature. "EUV deployment reduces the number of masks and improves the design window (i.e., tighter tolerances), and that is a big thing, which also leads to smaller area and to better yield through reduced misalignment-driven variability." While he allows that performance will always be important, it is no longer the main driving factor in the decision to adopt those nodes.
He cited FLASH technology at 45nm and 65nm as an example. He went on to note that 3D integration has matured significantly in the last 8 years. "Therefore, 3D, or more accurately, 2D/2.5D integration with various kinds of interposers (passive vs. organic vs. silicon) is the way to go and it enables heterogeneous integration utilizing the best of all worlds." He also believes that 2.5D integration can have an added advantage in achieving lower power and enabling the integration of HBM memory solutions.
Relative to the EDA challenges that lie ahead, a concern of An Steegen, EVP of Semiconductor Technology and Systems, at Imec, is being able to do place and route efficiently given the difficulty in continuing track scaling. "The need for an effective, truly "3D" EDA design flow is required to support the designers of future electronic systems to move from the traditional 2D-SoC homogeneous technology design flow approach to an effective 3D-SoC heterogeneous design flow," explained Steegen.
While acknowledging that the semiconductor industry has long since left any type of predictable roadmap, Bohr observed that each new generation struggles with difficult density/cost/performance/power tradeoffs. "In the future, we will see more examples of heterogeneous integration techniques where different process technologies are combined in some integrated way to meet the sometimes divergent needs of compute/communication/memory circuits," said Bohr.
To hear these speakers and more at SEMICON West 2017, attend the TechXPOT session "The Economics of Density Scaling" on Thursday, July 13, 2:00pm-4:00pm. Click here for a complete list of speakers and the full agenda for the session.
To register for SEMICON West 2017, click here.
Debra Vogler is the president of Instant Insight Inc. and a regular contributor at SEMI.


Enjoy an unmatched sound experience with the Switch Portable Bluetooth Speaker by Native Union. You can use it as a speaker, conference call unit or even as a mobile phone charger if required. It will pair wirelessly to any of your devices via Bluetooth. The speaker has been powered by three high-performance drivers which include a subwoofer that provides ultimate sound quality through an amazing frequency and volume range. It will be perfect to play any genre of music, from classical to hip-hop. The full-Duplex microphone system will make it an amazing professional conference call solution so that you can hear multiple participants at once. To top it all up, the 1800 mAh battery will serve as a portable phone charger while you're on the go.


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Deze lijst van voetbalinterlands is een overzicht van alle officiële voetbalwedstrijden tussen de nationale teams van Litouwen en Montenegro. De landen speelden tot op heden twee keer tegen elkaar. De eerste ontmoeting, een groepswedstrijd tijdens de UEFA Nations League 2018/19, werd gespeeld in Podgorica op 10 september 2018. Het laatste duel, de returnwedstrijd in dezelfde competitie, vond plaats op 14 oktober 2018 in Vilnius.

Wedstrijden

Samenvatting

Montenegro
Litouwen

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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'Have You Acted Against Lawyers for Indiscipline, Strikes': SC Seeks Report from Bar Council of India
The court was hearing a contempt petition, argued by advocate Prashant Bhushan, who contended that BCI has failed miserably in performing its duty as the regulatory body to upkeep the sanctity of the profession and of the professionals.
Utkarsh Anand | CNN-News18
Updated:July 11, 2019, 8:24 AM IST
(Image: Network18 Creatives)
New Delhi: The Bar Council of India (BCI) has been called upon by the Supreme Court to submit a list of lawyers who have been acted against throughout the country for unruly behaviour and for striking work in courts.
A bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra also directed the BCI to collate data from all state bar councils and inform how many cases of disciplinary actions are pending against the lawyers across the country and for how long.
The top court asked the apex regulatory body of the lawyers to adduce statistics on number of lawyers' strikes that have taken place in the recent past. BCI has to further submit list of resolutions it has issued till date on the pertinent issues and the mechanism of their implementation.
Bhushan said that BCI was engaged only in the lip service of issuing resolutions without caring one bit about their implementations on ground. He cited instances of frequent strikes by lawyers, much to the harassment of the litigants and also in the teeth of the top court's caution.
At this, the bench decided to seek a detailed report from the BCI on these relevant points, and directed it to gather the information.
"Let BCI file entire data showing what it has done for implementation of its resolutions as well as disciplinary matters pending throughout the country with various disciplinary committees of the various State Bar Councils and how many matters on disciplinary side are pending before the BCI and for how long," directed the court.
Its order added: "Let data of all the State Bar Councils be furnished on an affidavit and also the data with respect to the periodic strikes and cease work which are taking place in the country and reasons thereof."
The affidavit by BCI also needs to elaborate on "whether the State Bar Councils have initiated any disciplinary action against the lawyers for indulging into the strikes which are not permissible and contrary to the resolution(s) of the Bar Council of India and the judgment(s) of this Court".
The BCI has been given time till September 20 to collect all the information and file its affidavit. The bench will take up the matter next in the last week of September.
Lawyers strike
prashant bhushan

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Looking for fantastic gift ideas that don't cost the earth? We've got a fantastic selection of Christmas gifts under £10 for everyone you know and love! Have a look at our round-up to find those last-minute presents and Secret Santa gifts that they'll love.
Make Christmas super merry for all your friends and family with our top Christmas gifts for under £10. We've got something for everyone you need to buy for, meaning you can make sure everyone has something lovely waiting for them under the tree on Christmas morning.
With fantastic ideas for Secret Santa gifts under £10 for him and for her; affordable presents in stock at our UK stores that are good to go; and a great selection of personalised gifts available online, you don't need to spend loads to give something meaningful.
You could create a photo calendar with your own images from only £5.99, making a great Xmas gift for any family. Add photos for every month by uploading from your device, Facebook or Instagram and create your calendar in minutes.
We also have brilliant personalised wine glasses from only £9.99, which can have a name or message engraved to create a special gift.
You could even finish your Christmas decorations by creating personalised bone china baubles to hang on your tree. Our range of designs allows you to put names, messages and even photos on a bauble that will add a special touch to your Christmas for years to come.
Whatever gift or finishing touch you need ready for Christmas Day, we've got a great selection that won't cost you a fortune, as well as some inspiration to help you really spoil people!


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Wohlsdorf is an Ortschaft (municipal division) of the town of Bernburg in Salzlandkreis, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany.

History
Wohlsdorf was first mentioned as a village  east of Bernburg in 986. It later became a municipality in the Salzlandkreis district and, in 2005, the community belonged to the historic collective municipality of Nienburg. When Nienburg was disbanded on 1 January 2010, it was incorporated into Bernburg, along with the communities of Baalberge, Biendorf, Gröna, Peißen, Poley, and Preußlitz.

Geography
Included in Wohlsdorf is the village of Crüchern, which was also formerly a separate district. Much of the surrounding area is gently rolling farmland, broken up only by about  of woods dividing Crüchern from Wohlsdorf. The river Ziethe forms a border between the Wohlsdorf subdistrict and the village of Mölz, a sub-district of Kleinpaschleben. The Ziethe flows first southwest then southeast along the border of the woods that stretch alongside Crüchern, forming a border between farmland and village of Wohlsdorf. It bends again southeasterly and around the western edge of Biendorf, another village-sub-district of Bradenburg on the southern border of Wohlsdorf.

Transportation
 north of the village of Crüchern, Landesstraße 149 (L149) meets and becomes the continuation of federal road Bundesstraße 185 (B185) as it meets Bundesstraße 6n (B6n). Both highways run east towards Köthen, but B185 runs through Kleinpaschleben, Trinum, Großpaschleben, and Köthen while B6n runs parallel to B185, avoiding cities and towns by cutting through farmland and curving south around the city of Köthen to merge into north-south B183.

West of L149, B185 continues for  towards Bernburg, passing the Latdorf/Dröbel landfill between Latdorf and Dröbel until it meets international European route E49 and becomes B6.

Much of the traffic in Wohlsdorf is by car, but outside the subdistrict to the south in Biendorf are train and bus stations.

Demography

References

Former municipalities in Saxony-Anhalt
Bernburg


The current active one-make Series, the Vios Challenge embarks on the second half of the season, heading to the southern State of Johor for round three.
With plenty of points still up for grabs and no runaway leader in sight, the challenge is going to be epic when the flag drops on 19-20 January at the new urban township circuit provided by venue partner Medini City, Iskandar Puteri.
By nature of its street racing format where each circuit layout is completely new to every driver and the fact that each Toyota Vios racing car is built equal, drivers have only their skills and derring-do to depend on as they try to out pace their fellow competitors. This formula has been an overwhelming success as witnessed in two opening rounds held in Batu Kawan and MAEPS Serdang where there were plenty of heart-stopping moments and nail-biting finishes.
While the early races in the Promotional Class were dominated by beatboxer Shawn Lee, a rare mistake in the last race in MAEPS saw him spin out on the opening lap. Shukri Yahaya who was well-placed to capitalize, pounced on the opportunity to seize a popular victory. The brilliant win moved Shukri just five points behind Shawn while heartthrob Danny Koo holds third a mere 14 points adrift. All these drivers have the mathematical chance to emerge as the champion as does Diana Danielle, the first lady to stand on the Vios Challenge podium who is poised in 4th position.
In the Sporting Class, the action was no less hotter as the race in the capital city saw new faces on the top step of the podium for both the heats. Newcomer Brendan Anthony enjoyed a dream debut by putting his Dream Chaser team car on pole and taking it to its maiden win. In the second heat, it was Patrick Tam of Team Nanoplus who turned the tables on the youngster by taking his first win in the series.
With consistent finishes in Batu Kawan and MAEPS, Brandon Lim of Tedco Racing now leads the series with 57 points and holds a ten-point advantage over Ken Foo who struggled to find pace in KL. Tam is a further point behind with Kenneth Koh, Brendan Anthony and Jackson Tan all within striking distance should any of the top runners falter.
In the premier Super Sporting Category, the field is even tighter with seven drivers separated by a 20-point gap. Tengku Djan still enjoys the lead in the championship despite claiming just nine points from the Serdang race but the pack made up of Mitchell Cheah, William Ho, Mark Darwin, Shafiq Ali, Boy Wong and Ser Ming Hui have a mathematical chance of dethroning the Prince of Drift particularly on the faster and wider circuit in Medini City.
As rain is again expected, the conditions will remain tricky and challenging and promises to bring even more excitement to the event. As always, entrance to the Toyota Racing Festival remains free and activities begin from early till evening.


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Bon Entendeur est un collectif musical d'electro français, formé en 2012 par Arnaud Bonet. Le collectif est géré par trois amis, Nicolas Boisseleau, Arnaud Bonet et Pierre Della Monica. Bon Entendeur est devenu connu en partageant gratuitement sur les sites de partage en ligne des collages de voix mythiques de la francophonie sur des remix de musiques contemporaines. Le collectif a lancé son propre label de musique indépendant BE Records en 2020.

Historique

Lancement
En 2012, Arnaud Bonet lance le projet Bon Entendeur. Vite rejoint par son ami d'enfance Pierre Della Monica, les deux Aixois créent un premier site internet et une page Facebook où ils partagent des mixtapes mensuelles éclectiques de musiques électroniques.

En septembre 2013, ils publient sur SoundCloud la mixtape Rendez-Vous qui superpose une interview de Dominique Strauss-Kahn avec des beats electro/hip-hop. Celle-ci cumule plusieurs centaines de milliers d'écoutes et motive les deux amis à se concentrer sur ce format musical. Nicolas Boisseleau intègre par la suite le collectif.

Développement et concerts
En décembre 2013, après la publication de quatre mixtapes, le groupe constate que son audience commence à croître de manière exponentielle. Le mois suivant, en janvier 2014, le groupe adopte une charte graphique et renforce sa présence sur les réseaux sociaux. Les trois amis produisent une nouvelle mixtape tous les mois, chacune durant une heure environ et se focalisant chaque fois sur une personnalité française différente : Charles de Gaulle, Reda Kateb, Audrey Tautou, Omar Sy, Catherine Deneuve, Jean Dujardin, Nathalie Baye, Jean Reno...  Bon Entendeur commence à se produire en live lors de DJ sets et de festivals de musique (Big Festival, La Clairière, Calvi On The Rocks, ...). La même année, le groupe réalise son premier concert au Bataclan lors de la soirée Nuit Sauvage.

Devant le succès du Rendez-vous ( écoutes), le trio multiplie les mixtapes mettant à l'honneur des personnalités francophones devenues depuis leur signature. Les mixtapes comme L'Amour, Cluzet (1,2 million d'écoutes sur SoundCloud) ou encore Une aventure, Jean Dujardin renforcent la notoriété du groupe.

À partir de 2015, Bon Entendeur effectue ses propres enregistrements vocaux au lieu d'aller piocher dans les archives. En 2016, Bon Entendeur organise sa première tournée estivale. Le groupe sort Le Temps est bon, son premier morceau qui ne contient pas de voix apposée sur des remixes, et dont le clip vidéo est réalisé par Alice Kong. Fin 2019, le groupe se produit à l'Olympia. Le , il se produit au festival Solidays à Paris. La même année, il participe notamment au festival Panoramas à Morlaix, au Printemps de Bourges, à Calvi on the Rocks en Corse et au festival la Magnifique Society à Reims. En 2020, Bon Entendeur lance son propre label musical, BE Records, qui sort la compilation 001. La même année, le groupe est à l'affiche au Zénith de Paris et organise une tournée en Amérique du Nord. Selon le collectif, l'été 2022 représente la plus importante tournée du groupe avec plus d'une cinquantaine de dates pour la saison. Le groupe prévoit plusieurs dates durant l'année 2023 en Amérique du Nord et en Europe.

Albums
En avril 2018, Bon Entendeur signe avec Columbia/Sony Music France, puis en juin 2019, le trio sort son premier album, Aller-retour, dans lequel sont remixés de nombreux titres musicaux des années 1960 et 1970. En 2020, Bon Entendeur travaille avec Bigflo et Oli. Ils sortent le single Coup de blues / Soleil chez Golden Child/Polydor. En , les mixtapes du groupe cumulent 120 millions d'écoutes. En 2021, Bon Entendeur sort son deuxième album, Minuit, dans lequel le groupe élargit sa sélection à quelques morceaux de musique internationaux, et organise une tournée de 40 dates dans toute la France.

Polémique autour du morceau Le Temps est bon
En 2017, le trio produit ses propres remix de chansons issues du patrimoine francophone. Leur remix d'Isabelle Pierre de 2018, Le Temps est bon, ainsi les millions d'écoutes. Cependant, ce succès remet aussi en lumière un remix plus ancien de Degiheugi que le collectif connaissait avant la sortie du leur. Sony, le label du collectif, rachète alors les droits à Isabelle Pierre, obligeant Degiheugi à retirer son morceau des plateformes musicales. La presse spécialisée évoque alors un possible plagiat entre l'artiste et le collectif, ce que dément Nicolas Boisseau en précisant n'avoir voulu que se réapproprier le morceau de l'artiste québécoise et décidé de faire les « choses dans les règles ».

Style musical
Le style musical du groupe est qualifié d'électro-chill et agrémenté de beats disco, funk et hip-hop. La signature de Bon Entendeur réside dans le collage de voix mythiques de la francophonie sur des remixes de musiques contemporaines, des « voyages musicaux qui dépoussièrent le patrimoine sonore français en le raccordant à des codes modernes ».

Le groupe déniche les extraits vocaux sur INA, Youtube et Radioscopie, ou les enregistre directement lors de rencontres avec ces personnalités (MC Solaar, Oxmo Puccino, Richard Bohringer, Frédéric Beigbeder, Pierre Niney. Tous les membres du groupe sont mis à contribution pour dégoter les extraits vocaux et voter sur les extraits qui seront utilisés. Pierre Della Monica est ensuite en charge du montage. Si un chanteur est sélectionné pour un morceau, le groupe écoute toute sa discographie. Si c'est un acteur, le groupe visionne sa filmographie dans son intégralité. Pour l'élaboration du titre Le Temps de L'Amour, Françoise Hardy a directement contribué à la direction artistique. Le morceau Entrevue Optimiste avec Patrick Poivre d'Arvor a été retiré des plateformes d'écoute après les accusations d'agression sexuelle contre ce dernier.

Depuis la sortie du morceau Le temps est bon, Bon Entendeur remixe aussi des morceaux de musique sans forcément y ajouter des voix. Le groupe dispose également de BE Records, son label de musique indépendant, sur lequel sort deux compilations (001, 002). Ces dernières se distinguent par le fait que les titres sont produits directement par d'autres artistes.

En concert, le groupe est composé d'Arnaud Bonet et Pierre Della Monica :

Discographie

Albums studio
 2019 : Aller-retour (certifié platine par la SNEP en 2022)
 2021 : Minuit

Compilations
 001, BE Records, 2020
 002, BE Records, 2021

Mixtapes
Sources

Note : les titres accompagné de « IOA » correspondent aux mixtapes basées sur une interview originale de l'artiste, réalisées par le collectif.

 Le Rendez-vous, Dominique Strauss-Kahn,
 La Vie, Gérard Depardieu,
 Le Miracle, Luchini,
 L'Honneur des Français, De Gaulle,
 Pour Paris, Romy,
 Une Aventure, Dujardin,
 Le Génie, Gainsbourg,
 Le Prestige, Tautou,
 Le Combattant, Cantona,
 L'Attitude, Cassel,
 L'Amour, Cluzet, Été 2014
 Le Hasard, Tellier,
 La Jeunesse, Balavoine,
 La Fierté, Chirac,
 Charlie, Hiver 2014
 Le Père, Reno,
 Chez Vous, Poelvoorde,
 L'Épouillage,
 La Rencontre, Marceau,
 La Fidélité, Lanvin, Été 2015
 L'Optimisme, PPDA,  (IOA)
 La République, Badinter,
 Dernier Métro, Deneuve, Hiver 2015
 La Colère, Aznavour,
 L'Acteur, Delon, Printemps 2016
 Le Succès, Bardot,
 L'Ouverture, Lindon, Été 2016
 L'Anticonformisme, Astier,  (IOA)
 L'Ancien, Puccino, Automne 2016* (IOA)
 La Nuit, Bohringer, Hiver 2017 (IOA)
 L'Envie, Brel,
 La Conscience, Rabhi, Printemps 2017
 Ensemble, Sy, Été 2017
 La Passion, Moreau,
 Le Culot, Coluche, Automne 2017
 L'Humilité, Brassens,
 La Volonté, Veil, Printemps 2018
 L'Experience, Beigbeder,  (IOA)
 L'humour, Damiens,
 Le rire, Fary,,  (IOA)
 La Séduction, Pierre Niney,  (IOA)
 Le Comédien, Rochefort, Printemps 2019
 Le Plaisir, Baye, Été 2019 (IOA)
 La Surprise, Belmondo,,
 L'Indépendante, Gardin,  (IOA)
 Les Valeurs, Darmon,  (IOA)
 Le Voyage, Horn, Printemps 2020 (IOA)
 La Gentillesse, Kateb,  (IOA)
 L'Original, Baer, Été 2020 (IOA)
 L'Idéalisme, Fleurot,  (IOA)
 Une Epoque, MC Solaar,
 Les Rencontres, Cottin, Printemps 2021

Singles

Notes et références

Liens externes

 Site officiel

Groupe d'electro
Label d'electro
Groupe français de musique électronique
Groupe musical formé en 2012
Trio musical français
Groupe musical français des années 2010
Groupe musical français des années 2020


Taking you back to the year 2000. This album changed contemporary music in Naija, and made many have hope for a Nigerian Music industry. During these years i had to literally beg people to listen to Nigerian music, and they would think they were "too cool" to do so. EVEN some Naija artists (which i found hilarious). This is the Body & Soul album from the Plantashun Boiz trio of Faze, Blackface & Tuface. Everlasting goodness. This album as produced by Nelson Brown. See it!
Plantashun boyz you guys were the bomb and lord 2 baba I fall for ground for u .
I love this old sch songs….


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HomeSportsBuffalo Bills return opening kick for emotional touchdown
Buffalo Bills return opening kick for emotional touchdown
We're all familiar with the cliche that is always brought out during special sports moments. It's some form of, "you couldn't write this script." That thought surely went through the heads of the many millions of people who watched the opening kickoff of the Buffalo Bills and New England Patriots' Week 18 matchup, and that includes the NFL social media team after Nyheim Hines took the opening kickoff back for a touchdown. The Bills' first play after their Monday Night Football matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals was suspended after Damar Hamlin went into cardiac arrest on the field.
Not only are variations of that sentence overused, it's also not true. Real live events are changed all the time so that a scripted product can elicit the maximum emotional response from the audience. Unlike in the memorable Disney film Remember the Titans, T.C. Williams High School did not win the State Championship by scoring a touchdown on a double reverse with the quarterback as the lead blocker. They won that game 26-0, and also played against a completely different team than the one in the movie.
So in reality, a scene like the one on Sunday in Buffalo is absolutely one that could be typed into a Final Draft document. After a rousing national anthem performance by Janae Longo, the Bills were set to receive the game's opening kickoff. The players all had No. 3 patches on their jerseys to honor Damar Hamlin. Bill Belichick wore a t-shirt in Hamlin's honor when he first got to the stadium. Hamlin has received many prayers, well wishes, donations to his toy drive, and even a call from the President of the United States.
When the game kicked off, Hamlin got to experience a joy unique to the unscripted world of professional sports as Hines scooted up the sideline, and then eaped into the warm embrace of Bills mafia with several other teammates.
I am not with Hamlin so I cannot tell you exactly how that moment made him feel. However, I do know that a smile appeared on my face as Hines raced into the endzone, and judging from Hamlin's tweet, that score put him in a happy place as well. Yes, that moment could very easily be written into a script, but to watch that happen in real time is truly unforgettable.
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Q: entityManager.flush() will clear the second level cache? A bit confused with the entityManger.flush();
Hibernate doc for batching
https://docs.jboss.org/hibernate/orm/5.0/userguide/html_single/chapters/batch/Batching.html
"When you make new objects persistent, employ methods flush() and clear() to the session regularly, to control the size of the first-level cache."
I am working on spring boot data jpa.
The first doubt is for Restful applications first level cache is enabled or not?
Can the entityManager.flush() clears the second level cache?
Is entityManger.flush() is similar to System.gc();

A: 1) First level cache is created per started transaction, so its always there for each transactional method.
2) entityManager.flush(), does not clear the second level cache. It also does not clear the first level cache, it enforces any changes done in the current transaction to be pushed into the physical database.
3) Is entityManger.flush() is similar to System.gc()? No, all the objects are still on the heap and are even still managed by the current persistence context.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Mount Zion believes in making it easy to do ministry. These forms are designed to effectively provide service and assistance to ministries, the community and those in administration. If there is a form that you are looking for that is not located here, please feel free to email Demetria Wade [email protected] for assistance.
This form should be used to request development of any new marketing communications materials, such as those identified in this form, as well as updating any existing materials. All fields on this form should be completed as fully as possible. This will help the Office of Marketing Communication determine the level of support and type of communication needed for your project as well as the priority your project requires along with others in production.
For facility request please enter all necessary information for the type of activity being requested. Note: This request must be submitted by a ministry leader or designee. For meetings, deadline for room requests is the Monday that occurs two weeks prior to the requested meeting date. For event requests, submit 90 days prior to your event.
Are you ready to use your God-given gifts to serve others? Whether you serve for an hour or make a commitment over many months, your serving time is appreciated; as are you. There are a variety of ways you can get involved, and any needed training is provided. To get started, we need to know a little more about you. Submit the form, and we will contact you to discuss the opportunities available in your area that best match your unique gifts and meet the needs of our mission. Thank you for wanting to be a Dream Teamer!
Thank you for your interest in becoming a new member! First of all, we as a church want to extend our warmest welcome to you and say we are immensely glad that you are considering becoming a member of Mount Zion! We hope that you find us to be a believing, warm-hearted, and caring community who wants to genuinely follow God's Word. We hope the upcoming class will help you understand what Mount Zion is really all about, and will show you how much we are eager to have you as part of our church body. Enjoy!
"When you came to Christ, you were "circumcised," but not by a physical procedure. It was a spiritual procedure–the cutting away of your sinful nature. For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to a new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead." Colossians 2:11-12 (NLT)If baptism is your next step to identification with Christ, click the icon above to register for the baptism.
To get more connected, join the church mailing list to receive our periodic updates along with special announcements and other news not related to an event. We have your email address, but we promise not to share it with anyone else.


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Грб Бутана је званични хералдички симбол државе Краљевина Бутан. Грб садржи многе симболе из будизма, али и неке елементе са националне заставе.

Амблем са састоји од круга унутар којег се налазе многи будистички симболи попут лотоса, драгог камења и златних змајева. Стилизоване муње у амблему симбол су хармоније између световне и религијске снаге, лотос је симбол чистоће, драги камен представља снагу и моћ владара. Присутне боје у амблему су златна, црвена и ружичаста.

Види још
 Застава Бутана

Референце

Спољашње везе

Бутан
Бутан
Грбови Азије


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Category: Games for design
Posted on April 5, 2011 June 2, 2015 by Dave Gray
By its very nature, knowledge work can be a head-heavy, deeply analytical activity. Even when the results of the work are sensory, the process of getting there is often the opposite: we think our way to solutions and filter out the five senses as irrelevant or frivolous. Through Synesthesia role play, participants examine a topic through a sensory lens, and let this inform their decisions and designs.
Participants may choose to examine an existing topic or explore a new idea. It may be something as simple as "the interface for our new site" or as complex as "the user experience."
Participants choose or are randomly assigned one of the five senses: see, hear, taste, smell, and touch. Also consider including as choices temperature, position, and motion.
Participants are given a few moments to interpret a topic from the perspective of their sense and to move on to the other senses as they see fit. They then describe to the group what they perceived. For example:
"The interface is warm to the touch. And it tastes like oranges."
"When the app launches, it's as if I can hear an orchestra tuning up to perform. But I can't see anything; I'd like to see what they're doing."
"The user experience stinks. It smells like a stack of dusty papers, and there is no motion. I wanted to move forward but kept getting slowed down."
The Synesthesia exercise gives participants a chance to describe in visceral, memorable terms how they feel about an object or how they imagine it to be. It can uncover overlooked aspects of an idea or product or lead to new ones.
The source of the Synesthesia game is unknown.
Categories: Games for design, Games for fresh thinking and ideas
Staple Yourself To Something
The goal of this game is to explore or clarify a process by following an object through its flow. Through this exercise, a group will create a memorable, visual story of their core process. After it is completed, this artifact can be used to identify opportunities to improve or educate others involved in the process. The notion of "stapling yourself to an order" comes from process improvement, but can be useful in a variety of scenarios. A group with no documented process, or an overly complex one, will benefit from the exercise. If the process is taking too long, or if no one seems to know how the work gets done, it's time to staple yourself to something and see where it goes.
The group must have an idea of what their object is, the "bouncing ball" that they will follow through the process. It's best to decide on this in advance. Some example objects could be a product, a trouble ticket, or an idea. A familiar example of this type of flow is "How a bill becomes a law."
Introduce the exercise by drawing the object. The goal is to focus on telling the story of this one object from point A to point B. Write these commonly understood starting and ending points on the wall.
Ask participants to brainstorm a list of the big steps in the process and record them on the wall. If needed, ask them to prioritize them into a desired and workable number of steps. For a high-level story, look to capture seven steps.
Before you start to follow the object, work out with the group the vital information you are looking to capture in the story. Ask: in each step of the process, what do we need to know? This may be the people involved, the action they're taking, or the amount of time a step takes.
Now it's time to draw. The group will tell the story of the object as it moves from step to step. As much as possible, capture the information visually, as though you were taking a picture of what they are describing. Some useful tools here include stick figures, arrows, and quality questions. Questions that produce an active voice in the answer, as in "Who does what here?" will be more concrete and visual. Other good questions include "What's next?" and "What's important?"
Be aware that the story will want to branch, loop, and link to other processes, like a river trying to break its banks. Your job is to navigate the flow with the group and keep things moving toward the end.
Use the object as a focusing device. Any activity that is not directly related to the forward motion of the object can be noted and then tied off.
If possible, add a ticking clock to the story to help pace the flow. If the object needs to get to the end by a certain time, use this to your advantage by introducing it up front and referencing it as needed to keep up the momentum and interest of the story.
One trap to be aware of is that participants may move between the way things are and the way they want them to be. Be clear with the group about what state in time—today or the desired future—you are capturing.
Does the process have an owner? If someone is responsible for the process, you can use this person's expertise, but be cautious not to let her tell the entire story. This can be a learning experience for her as well, if she listens to the participants describe "their version" of the story.
There are many ways of conducting a "day in the life" type of visualization. This version of the game is credited to James Macanufo.
Categories: Games for design, Games for planning, Games for problem-solving
Posted on April 5, 2011 June 2, 2015 by Dave Gray — 1 Comment
Post The Path
The object of this game is to quickly diagnose a group's level of understanding of the steps in a process.
Often, there is a sense of confusion about who does what and when. The team is using different terms to describe their process. The group has no documented process. Things seem to be happening in an ad hoc fashion, invisibly, or by chance.
Through this exercise, the group will define an existing process at a high level and uncover areas of confusion or misunderstanding. In most cases, this can flow naturally into a discussion of what to do about those unclear areas. This exercise will not generally result in a new or better process but rather a better understanding of the current one.
Introduce the exercise by framing the objective: "This is a group activity, where we will create a picture of how we create [x]." X in this case is the output of the process; it maybe a document, a product, an agreement, or the like. Write or draw the output of the process on the wall.
Establish a common starting point of the process with the group. This could sound like "the beginning of the day" or "the start of a quarter" or "after we finished the last one." This is the trigger or triggers that kick off the process. If you believe the group will have a hard time with this simple step, decide it for them in advance and present it as a best guess. Write this step on a sticky note, put it on the wall, and then proceed with the exercise.
Instruct participants to think about the process from beginning to end. Then give them the task: write down the steps in the process. They can use as many notes as they like, but each step must be a separate note.
After the participants have brainstormed their version of the steps, ask them to come up to the wall and post them to compare. The group should place their steps above and below one another's so that they can compare their versions of steps 1, 2, and so on.
Prompt the group to find points of agreement and confusion. Look for terminology problems, where participants may be using different words to describe the same step. Points of confusion may surface where "something magical happens" or no one is really clear on a step.
The group will draw their own conclusions about what the different versions of the process mean and what they can or should do about it.
For a larger group, you may want to avoid individual readouts and instead have people post up simultaneously.
If you sense in advance that the group will get caught up in the details, ask them to produce a limited number of steps—try 10.
The Post the Path game is credited to James Macanufo.
Categories: Games for design, Games for planning, Games for presenting, Games for team-building and alignment, Games for update or review meetings, Games for vision and strategy meetings
Product Pinocchio
Quite naturally, most of us don't think of products or services as being alive and animate. But there are a lot of benefits to imagining a product as a friend rather than an instrument. By pretending that a product has come to life, we can personalize and evolve its features in a way that is not accessible to us when we think of it as inanimate. Product Pinocchio is a game designed to establish, refine, and evolve the features of a product or service so that it becomes more valuable to the end user. By personifying it, we can better relate to it and better craft it into a "friend" that a consumer might want to take home.
1. For this game, a "scene" is any simple situation in which the character (the product or service) is required to make a decision or take action. Scene examples might be "someone attempts to steal an old lady's purse" or "a driver encounters a hitchhiker on the way to a party". Before the meeting, invent four scenes and write them on index cards, one scene per card.
2. Also before the meeting, write each of the following five questions on the tops of flip-chart paper, one question per sheet:
What am I like?
What are my values?
What is my community?
What makes me different?
What is my fight?
3. Starting with "What am I like?" draw a picture of the product/service in the middle of the sheet of paper with arms, legs, and a head. (This character should be used throughout the exercise, but in different poses.)
4. Ask the group to imagine that the product or service has come to life and is now a fully developed character that they know well. Ask them to call out adjectives and phrases that describe that character and write their responses around the picture. During this step, you can also ask players who the product/service would be if it were a cartoon character or a celebrity and write down those responses as well.
5. When you have enough information to adequately describe the character, ask the players to dot vote next to the three to five adjectives that best describe the character. Circle or highlight the information that got the most votes and make a note of it with the group.
6. Move to the "What are my values?" flip chart and draw a picture of the character. Divide the group into four small groups and give each group an index card describing a scene (or work with all four scenes as one group if you have seven or less players). Ask the players to read their scene quietly and discuss in their groups what the character would say or do in that situation.
7. Bring the groups back together and give each one an opportunity to share what they agreed their character would do. Write each response down and then ask the group as a whole what the behaviors suggest about the character's underlying values. Add their responses to the flip chart.
8. Move to the "What is my community?" flip chart and draw another picture of the character in the middle of the sheet. Ask the group who the character spends her time with. What groups does she belong to? Where does she volunteer? Who needs her the most? What do her friends have in common? What are the qualities of her community? Write down the responses.
9. Move to the "What makes me different?" flip chart and draw a picture of the character in the middle of the sheet. Ask the group how this character is different from other characters in her community. What makes her stand out? What are her strengths? What could she do better? Why would someone want her on a team? Write down the responses.
10. Move to the "What is my fight?" flip chart and draw a picture of the character in the middle of the sheet. Find out the character's mission in life. What motivates her? What keeps her up at night? What does she do for people? What is she trying to prove? What obstacles are in her way? Write these responses down.
Optional activity: Ask people to toast the character as though they were at her wedding. Alternatively, ask them to give a eulogy to a competing product or service as though they were at its funeral. Or ask the players to share a true story from the character's life, something that happened to her that makes her who she is.
11. Summarize the overall findings with the group and reflect on the personality and identity of the character the group created. Discuss the implications of the character traits, values, and behaviors on the features—current or potential—of the related product or service.
This game works best when the players suspend disbelief and jump into the idea that a product has a personality, a value system, and a life. For some players it will be a hard leap to make, which is why the picture you draw is important, as are the questions you ask: they both force responses as though the "it" were a "he" or "she." Be receptive even to character names suggested during the group's interactions. Calling it "Cameron" makes it easier to imagine the product or service as a person rather than an object or a process. Encourage storytelling during this game to flesh out the character's identity based on the scenes you concocted; for example, "What would Cameron do?" Don't discourage the group from creating outlandish characters or personality traits, because the actions taken by a zany character may lead to an innovation in the way people perceive of the use of a product or service. Let the players go as far out as they want; if need be, you can move them toward consensus on a more believable character as the game closes. Just be sure to discuss with the group the parallels between the character traits they created and the benefits those traits may have on the next version of the product or service.
The source of the Product Pinocchio is unknown.
Categories: Games for design, Games for fresh thinking and ideas, Games for presenting, Games for team-building and alignment, Games for vision and strategy meetings
Posted on April 5, 2011 November 3, 2019 by Dave Gray — 2 Comments
Pain-Gain Map
The object of this game is to develop an understanding of motivations and decisions.
Many decisions often boil down to one's basic choices between benefit and harm. By capturing these specifics for a key person, your group may uncover the most relevant points to bring up in presenting or influencing the key person's decision. This key person may be the ultimate user of a product or may be the leader of an organization whose approval is sought. Start by writing the key person's name or creating a quick sketch of him on a wall. Ask about this person's pains first by prompting the group to step inside his mind and think and feel as he does. You can then discover which oil is best for him to achieve the maximum pain relief, say the experts at HMHB.org in their guide. Capture the answers on one side of the person:
What does a bad day look like for him?
What is he afraid of?
What keeps him awake at night?
What is he responsible for?
What obstacles stand in his way?
A persona's gains can be the inversion of the pain situation—or can go beyond. Capture these on the opposite side by asking:
What does this person want and aspire to?
How does he measure success?
Given the subject at hand, how could this person benefit?
What can we offer this person?
Summarize and prioritize the top pains and gains from the exercise. Use them when developing presentations, value propositions, or any other instance where you are trying to influence a decision.
The Pain-Gain Map game is credited to Dave Gray.
Categories: Games for design, Games for fresh thinking and ideas, Games for planning, Games for presenting, Games for team-building and alignment, Games for vision and strategy meetings
To identify and think through challenges, problems and potential pitfalls in a product, service or strategy.
Works best with small groups of 5-10
Divide each group into two teams. One team, the "solution team" silently brainstorms features and strengths of the product or solution. The other team, the "challenge team" silently brainstorms potential problems or challenges and writes them on index cards, one problem or challenge per card.
When play commences, the two teams work together to tell a collaborative story. The challenge team picks a card from the deck and plays it on the table, describing a scene or event where the issue might realistically arise. The solution team must then pick a card from their deck that addresses the challenge. If they have a solution they get a point, and if they don't have a solution the challenge team gets a point. The teams then work together to design a card that addresses that challenge. Play continues in this fashion, challenge followed by solution followed by challenge, and so on, until the story or scenario reaches a conclusion.
The goal of this game is to improve a product or strategy by thinking through various scenarios and alternatives. By turning the exercise into a competition as well as a storytelling game, players are more likely to get engaged and immerse themselves in the scenarios. Keeping it lighthearted and fun will increase the energy. It shouldn't feel like work.
Michelle Ide-Smith wrote a great blog post called Playing with Challenge Cards where she shares some insights into how to use this game to generate ideas and insights.
This game emerged spontaneously during a Gamestorming workshop in London in 2010.
Customer, Employee, Shareholder
The object of this game is to imagine possible futures from multiple perspectives.
Divide your group into three roles: Customers, Employees, and Shareholders.
Ask the players to step into their roles and imagine their business five years from now. What will they value? What will their experience be like? What events or trends emerge? What specific, tangible things are different?
Have the players draw their visions of the future and share them.
Ask the group to identify themes and new possibilities. Capture them and consult the group on next steps.
In this exercise, the group is given a chance to relate intuitive knowledge about the business that may not surface otherwise. If possible, allow the group to cycle through multiple roles by reshuffling the roles and repeating the exercise.
The Customer, Employee, Shareholder game is based on the Stakeholder Framework developed by Max Clarkson in "A Stakeholder Framework for Analyzing and Evaluating Corporate Social Performance" in the Academy of Management Review (1995).
Categories: Games for design, Games for fresh thinking and ideas, Games for team-building and alignment, Games for vision and strategy meetings
Virtuous Cycle
The goal of this game is to discover opportunities to transform an existing, linear process into a more valuable and growing process by taking a different viewpoint. This is useful in examining processes that are deemed "worth repeating," such as the customer experience.
It might be a good time to play through this exercise if the current process is transactional,compartmentalized, or wasteful. Other indications are a group that is "navel gazing" and focused primarily on its internal process, or when there is a sense that after the process is complete, no one knows what happens next.
Possible outcomes include that the group may uncover new growth and improvement opportunities in an existing process by "bending it back into itself."
You will need a high-level understanding or documentation of the current state of things. Any existing, linear process will work.
Introduce the exercise by "black boxing" the current process. This means that during the course of the exercise the group's focus will be on what's outside the process,not the fine detail of what's going on inside the box.
To make this visual, give each step in the process a box on the wall (medium-sized sticky notes work well) and connect them with arrows in a linear fashion.
To start the exercise, ask the group to think about, to the best of their knowledge, what happens before the process: Who or what is involved? What is going on? Repeat this for the end of the process: What comes after the process? What are the possible outcomes?
You may ask them to capture their thoughts on sticky notes and post them before and after the process.
Next, draw a loop from the end of the linear process back to its starting point. By doing this you are turning a linear process into a life cycle. Ask: "To get from here,and back again, what needs to happen? What's missing from the picture?"
The group is ready to explore possibilities and opportunities. Again, sticky notes work well for capturing ideas. Have the players capture their thoughts along the line and discuss.
Summarize or close the exercise by generating a list of questions and areas to explore. This may include looking at the internal, defined process for improvement ideas.
Pick the right process to do this with. A process that warrants repeating, such as the customer experience, works well. Knowledge creation and capture, as well as strategic planning, are also candidates.
Get the right people in the room. Some awareness of what happens outside the process is needed, but can also hamper the experience. One of the biggest potential outcomes is a visceral change in perspective on the participants' part: from internal focus to external focus.
This game is credited to James Macanufo.
Categories: Games for design, Games for fresh thinking and ideas, Games for planning, Games for problem-solving, Games for team-building and alignment, Games for update or review meetings, Games for vision and strategy meetings
Often, a change in a problem or situation comes simply from a change in our perspectives. Flip It! is a quick game designed to show players that perspectives are made, not born. We can choose to see the glass as either half full or half empty, but often when we perceive it as half full, we get better results. This game is at its best when players begin to see challenges as opportunities and to make doable suggestions around solving problems rather than just rehashing them.
Before the meeting, hang four to eight sheets of flip-chart paper on a wall (as shown in the following figure), and on any sheet in the top row, write the name of the game.
On the bottom-left sheet write the word "FEAR". If you'd like, spend time drawing a representation of fear on the sheets beforehand or cut out an image from a magazine that embodies it. Tell the group that Flip It is about the future—of their department, their organization, their product/service, whatever topic you have agreed on beforehand.
Ask the players to quietly spend 5–10 minutes writing concerns, issues, and fears about the topic on sticky notes. Remind them to be honest about their fears because this game gives them an opportunity to reframe their fears. Collect and post the sticky notes on the FEAR sheets, which are all the sheets along the bottom row. Discuss the content with the group and ask for volunteers to elaborate on their contributions.
On the top-left sheet write the word "HOPE". Ask the players to survey the content in the FEAR row and try to "flip" the perspectives by reframing in terms of hope.Give them 10–15 minutes to generate sticky notes that respond to the fears.
With the group, collect and post the second set of sticky notes on the HOPE sheets along the top row.
Discuss the content with the group and ask for volunteers to elaborate on their contributions. Ask the players to dot vote next to the hopes they can take practical action on. With the group, observe the hopes that won the most votes.
Write the word "TRACTION" on another sheet of flip-chart paper. Rewrite (or remove and restick) the hopes that won the most votes on the TRACTION sheet. Ask the players to brainstorm aloud any actionable items related to each hope. Write them down and discuss.
Because Flip It starts with FEARS, as the meeting leader you'll need to reassure folks early on that they're not going to wallow in their fears. They just need to spend sometime generating fears in order to gather information and get the game moving. You can model the flip-it behavior by opening the game with an example of a situation you chose to perceive one way or the other. Once the group writes down their fears and posts them on the wall, let them air any related thoughts and then spend the majority of the time flipping the fears into positive outcomes. You want the group to see concerns (even if it's a momentary view) as a chance to be hopeful and get motivated around action.
If you're working with a larger group or if the group generates an abundant amount of sticky notes, use the sorting and clustering technique and generate representative categories for each cluster. Then ask the group to vote on those categories and use them during the TRACTION activity. Unless directed otherwise, the issues provided by the group will likely focus on both internal and external factors. If you don't want the play to be that all-encompassing, establish a boundary going in.
Optional activity: Ask for volunteers to write their initials next to the practical actions they could support. Tell them it's not an intractable commitment, just an indication of where their interest lies.
The source of the Flip It game is unknown.
Categories: Games for design, Games for fresh thinking and ideas, Games for problem-solving
In this role-play exercise, two people prototype a machine–human interaction. The user talks to another who is "behind the curtain," playing the role of the machine. They may use a script to uncover breaking points in an existing design, or improvise to work out a completely new idea.
2, plus observers
If a group is testing an existing design, they should prepare a script that outlines the responses and actions that the machine can take. The "wizard" will use this—and only this—to react to the user. For example, a group that is designing an ATM interface would write a script of information presented to the user and the responses that it understands in return.
If a group is improvising, they can just get started. To open the exercise, the two players should be visually separated from each other. This is the "curtain" that keeps them from inadvertently passing cues or other information to each other. They may be separated by a piece of cardboard, or they may simply turn their backs to each other.
The easiest way to play through the exercise is for the user to initiate some task that she wants to accomplish. As the two players play through the experience, they should look for problems, frustration points, or opportunities to do the unexpected. Essentially, the user should challenge the machine, and the machine should stick to what it knows.
This technique's application has grown beyond voice control, as the "curtain" simultaneously eliminates assumptions about the machine and surfaces what the user wants to do and how she wants to do it.
The technique was pioneered in the 1970s, in the early design and testing of the now-common airport kiosk, and in IBM's development of the "listening typewriter." In these cases, the technique is taken even further: the person playing the machine would interpret voice commands from a user and manipulate a prototype of the system accordingly, like the invisible "wizard" in The Wizard of Oz.


By Steve Contorno on Wednesday, October 8th, 2014 at 2:52 p.m.
Alison Lundergan Grimes, the Democrat in Kentucky's Senate race, fights back against charges she's anti-coal and goes on the offensive.
Not everyone agrees there's a war on coal, as Republicans often charge, but there's no question there's a war over the war on coal in Kentucky's high-profile Senate race.
For months, Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes and Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell have lobbed accusations at each other, saying their opponent is too weak in supporting the state's abundant fossil fuel.
The latest salvo comes from Grimes, who has sustained accusations by McConnell that she wouldn't fight back against the Environmental Protection Agency's new proposal for regulating carbon emissions. In a recent ad — which begins with her "approving" the ad while appearing in a mine, helmet and all — she parries McConnell's claim by launching her own coal-themed attack.
"What Mitch McConnell doesn't want you to know is that he and his wife personally took $600,000 from anti-coal groups, including New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's anti-coal foundation," Grimes said. "The only candidate pocketing big money from people who want to destroy coal is Mitch McConnell."
We'll assess two parts of this claim. First, is McConnell "pocketing big money from people who want to destroy coal"? And second, is he the "only candidate" taking money from anti-coal activists?
When we asked Grimes for evidence that McConnell has received $600,000 from those who oppose coal, a Grimes spokeswoman said that McConnell's wife, former Labor Secretary Elaine Chao, sits on the board of directors of Bloomberg Philanthropies, a charitable organization founded by the former New York City mayor and billionaire founder of the Bloomberg media conglomerate.
In 2011, Bloomberg Philanthropies promised $50 million over four years to the Sierra Club's Beyond Coal Initiative. The recipient had a decidedly anti-coal agenda, including an effort to close coal plants in many parts of the country. According to Yahoo! News, Bloomberg said, "Ending coal power production is the right thing to do, because while it may seem to be an inexpensive energy source the impact on our environment and the impact on public health is significant."
However, Chao didn't join the board until 2012. Bloomberg Philanthropies spokeswoman Meghan Womack told PolitiFact, "The decision to provide funding to Sierra Club's Beyond Coal initiative took place before Elaine Chao joined the Bloomberg Philanthropies board. Bloomberg Philanthropies' board members do not vote on individual initiatives or program spends."
But the claim really goes off the rails when the ad says McConnell and Chao took $600,000 from anti-coal groups. Chao made far less than that — $9,400 — for serving on the board of Bloomberg Philanthropies, according to the organization's latest annual filing in 2012.
So how does the Grimes campaign get to $600,000?
They also count the $684,186 in fees, stock options and other compensation that Chao made while serving on the board of directors for Wells Fargo.
How can a bank be anti-coal?
According to Yahoo! News, in 2013, Wells Fargo announced it would stop investing in companies that engage in mountaintop removal, a practice that involves extracting coal more or less by blowing up mountain summits.
"We recognize the significant concerns associated with this practice and we also acknowledge the significant investments made by our coal customers in their mine operations, which were entered into in good faith and in accordance with applicable regulations," Wells Fargo wrote in a report titled Environmental and Social Risk Management. "As a result of our deliberate approach and the broader movement of the industry toward other mining methods, our involvement with the practice of (mountaintop removal) is limited and declining. Wells Fargo will not extend credit to individual MTR mining projects or to a coal producer that receives a majority of its production from MTR mining."
That's not an insignificant development, but as the Washington Post Fact Checker noted in its own analysis of the ad, that only tells part of the story.
For instance, Wells Fargo told the Washington Post, "Given that we still finance coal companies, we would certainly not characterize ourselves as 'anti-coal.' "
Environmental groups, too, don't agree that Wells Fargo is out to destroy coal. On the contrary, in 2012, Rainforest Action Network, Sierra Club, and BankTrack named Wells Fargo one of the top five worst banks on coal due to "their relationship to and control over these dirty dinosaurs."
An updated report card from the groups released in 2014 gave Wells Fargo a "B" for its mountain-top removal investments, but the bank still scored a "D" for its ties to coal-fired power plants.
There are certainly banks with a cozier relationship with coal and energy companies. But even though Wells Fargo says it does "not finance coal-power plants on a stand-alone basis," Wells Fargo remains a bank that "provided $1.9 billion in financing as a lead arranger or lead manager in transactions with coal-fired power companies," according to the environmental report.
How about the other side of the equation — that McConnell is the only candidate "pocketing big money" from anti-coal groups?
As it happens, Grimes' campaign has benefited some from groups and individuals that are critical of coal use.
For starters, her campaign reported a $1,000 donation from Frances Beinecke, the president of the Natural Resource Defense Council. The NRDC was instrumental in helping the Obama administration develop the new carbon regulations on existing power plants.
In October 2011, Susie Tompkins Buell, the founder of the women's clothing line Esprit and a noted climate change activist, held a fundraiser for Grimes at her California home.
Grimes' campaign points out the McConnell has also accepted money from some donors with anti-coal ties. For example, McConnell received $2,000 in campaign contributions from David Litman, a Texas businessman who started Texas Business for Clean Air to oppose new coal plants there.
Meanwhile, Grimes' campaign has also benefited indirectly from outside groups that have helped in the ongoing ad wars in Kentucky without officially coordinating with her campaign.
CREDO, a progressive organization with a campaign focused on fighting "dirty coal," has spent $35,000 to air anti-McConnell ads so far, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a campaign finance watchdog.
Meanwhile, the Senate Majority PAC, a political arm of Senate Democrats, has put $4.3 million into the race. The PAC has received significant funding — about $5 million so far — from billionaire environmental activist Tom Steyer.
That's not to say that Grimes' campaign is bankrolled or heavily influenced by anti-coal organizations. Indeed, environmental groups have not jumped into the Kentucky Senate race to back Grimes with the same intensity as they have to help Democrats in states like Colorado and Michigan.
But there's enough financial support from anti-coal entities that Grimes' claim of entirely clean hands is significantly misleading.
A Grimes ad claimed that "the only candidate pocketing big money from people who want to destroy coal is Mitch McConnell."
The assertion is that McConnell and his wife took $600,000 from anti-coal organizations. But the overwhelming bulk of that was earned by Chao from sitting on the board of directors for Wells Fargo, a bank that, despite some steps to curb its support of mountain-top removal mining, still maintains $1.8 billion in coal investments, environmental groups say.
Meanwhile, Grimes' campaign has directly and indirectly benefited from money and ads from environmental groups and activists critical of coal.
Published: Wednesday, October 8th, 2014 at 2:52 p.m.


text:
The Staff Alumni John Magruder
John Magruder
John Magruder's RARB Bio
I was born in Miami, Florida back in '69. After a few months, I moved to Downers Grove, Illinois because the winter in Miami was not cold enough. My parents reluctantly followed.
I discovered the wonders of singing a few years later when I got bored with reading everything I saw. In grade school, I sang in special local choirs and in every school function I was allowed to attend. I performed in a few musicals while in school, and in high school I sang with every special singing group that I could. I sang madrigals, I sang pop, I sang jazz. Secular, sacred, you name it, I sang it. I was in high school to sing — not to get an education.
After high school I joined the US Air Force. For the next four years I was a Bombing and Navigation Systems Specialist. This meant I troubleshot and repaired the Radar, Computer, Camera, and Navigation Systems on B-52 Stratofortress Bombers. I served in Desert Shield and Desert Storm, stationed at a (then) secret base in Saudi Arabia.
During my time in the Air Force, I did not sing much... except for in the shower. I also found that I did not want to be in the military for life, and wanted to pursue massage therapy instead. Go figure.
When I got out of the military, I started school at the University of Illinois. Shortly thereafter, a new friend of mine asked me to go with him to an audition for a new a cappella group on campus. He knew I used to sing a lot and wanted some moral support. At the audition, the people in charge asked me if I wanted to try out too. I wasn't too interested, but they eventually talked me into it. When I sang my solo, the group members started harmonizing with me spontaneously, and it was great. Less than a week later, they asked me (but not my friend — oops!) to join their group, and I said yes.
That group was the Xtension Chords.
Four years and two albums later, I found myself a very different man. While at the U of I, I grew my hair out and even got an earring. I discovered the wonderful world of the World Wide Web. I was there when Mosaic (remember that?) was the newest and most curious of programs and Mark Andreessen was just another unknown CS major. I was an HTML coder for the now defunct online humor magazine MELVIN, and later a webmaster for an Internet Service Provider new to the Champaign-Urbana area. I even worked as a massage therapist for a while, too. After I moved back to the Chicagoland area, I sang briefly with a semi-pro a cappella group that later broke up.
I am now living in Berwyn. I work in my hometown of Downers Grove where I am again a Webmaster. I am also married to a wonderful woman... one of the founding members of the Rip Chords — a women's ensemble that started at the same time as the XChords. What can I say? A Cappella brought us together.
OK, time to summarize:
singer-turned-war veteran-turned-massage therapist-turned-singer-turned-Web designer
Now you know more about me than you probably even wanted to know.
Reviews by John Magruder
52 total reviews including 10 reviews from before May 1998, which predate our database and are not listed here.
Voices Only Christmas
SoCal VoCals University of Southern California
This 2 Shall Rock
Straight No Chaser Indiana University
Live at Alumni Hall
Best of Vocal Bands
Naturally Seven
Cantus Angelicus Choral Society
Cantus Angelicus - In Concert
Up the Octave Brandeis University
m-pact
The Carol Commission
The Moscow State University Academic Choir
Moscow State University Academic Choir
Five O'Clock Shadow
Misfit Toys
The Nylons
The Boston Common
The Boston Common Collective Works
The Spirit of America
The Beelzebubs Tufts University
The Gift of...Lullabyes, Lollipops & Love
Spur of the Moment Brandeis University
Two Flights Up
Un-Plugged Holiday Music
Christmas A Cappella Music, Volume One
Holiday A Cappella Music For Children
The Williams Ephlats Williams College
Live from the Spa City Diner
Ac-Rock
Acappellago
UR What UR
Mosaic Whispers Washington University in St. Louis
Don't Tell My Parents
Schrödinger's Cat
Big Beat A Cappella
The Euphorics
Standing Up For Love
A Cappella Worship: The Highest Glory
The Amateurs Washington University in St. Louis
The Little Blue CD
The Binghamton Crosbys Binghamton University, SUNY
Super Bos
YellowJackets University of Rochester
Wilson Boulevard
Street Elite
Akafist - The Russian Male Chamber Choir
Masterpieces of Orthodox Spirituality II
A Cappella Gershwin
The A Cappella Project III
Artists in Resonance University of California, Berkeley
Western Wind Vocal Ensemble
My Funny Valentine: Classic American Love Songs, 1920-1990
The Bostonians Boston College
Gotta Get Up Now
Pieces of 8
Hook, Line & Sinker
Higher Keys Brown University
Yellacappella