text:
NCDOT U-5768: N.C. 49 Widening
U-5768: N.C. 49 Widening
Preliminary Engineering Activities for this project
have resumed.
The N.C. 49 Widening and Back Creek Church Road Realignment project is a joint project between the N.C. Department of Transportation and the City of Charlotte's Department of Transportation. NCDOT is funding the N.C. 49 widening, while the city is paying for the relocation of Back Creek Church Road to form a new intersection at Mallard Creek Church Road.
The project would widen 1.2 miles of N.C. 49 (University City Boulevard) to six lanes between John Kirk Drive and I-485. It also would realign Back Creek Church Road onto new location to tie into the existing N.C. 49 and Mallard Creek Church Road intersection. The existing intersection of N.C. 49 and Back Creek Church Road would be closed, and a cul-de-sac would be constructed on Back Creek Church Road just south of the North Carolina Railroad/Norfolk-Southern tracks, where vehicle traffic backs up. The project would eliminate the railroad crossing on Back Creek Church Road and improve safety.
Vicinity Map:
Purpose and Need:
The primary purposes of the proposed project are to reduce traffic congestion, improve traffic flow, and enhance traffic operations on N.C. 49. The project would improve the safety of drivers and pedestrians who use and cross N.C. 49 by using an innovative design called Reduced Conflict Intersections (explained in next section below). To accommodate the students and bicyclists, a 12-foot multiuse path is proposed to be constructed on both sides of N.C. 49.
Widening N.C. 49 and The Right Way to Turn Left
N.C. 49 would be widened to six lanes from its present four lanes, and a raised median would be constructed along the corridor in the project area. At some locations, the median would be extended through the intersections with traffic signals to redirect drivers from the side street to turn right onto N.C. 49. The median is part of a design known as a Reduced Conflict Intersection (RCI), because it reduces, by more than half, the number of potential locations where vehicles can collide. At other locations, the median would not be extended across the intersections to allow through-traffic to continue across N.C. 49; however, left turns would not be permitted. Left turns at these locations would be accommodated by continuing through the intersection, making a right turn onto a "quadrant roadway" (see explanation below), and making another right turn onto N.C. 49.
A Reduced Conflict Intersection improves the safety for drivers and pedestrians alike and allows drivers to get to their destinations quicker and more easily.
With an RCI, drivers from the side road simply look left, then turn right to easily enter the flow of traffic. If they want to go the other direction or cross the highway, they turn right, then pull into a lane to make a safe U-turn, which is usually no more than 1,000 feet away. Motorists on the main highway, however, may turn left at major intersections using a concrete median design known as a directional crossover.
NCDOT and the City of Charlotte recommend using RCI when widening N.C. 49 for several reasons:
Reduces the risk of crashes, particularly the more serious angle, or T-bone, kind
Improves traffic flow on the main route. By reducing the phasing of the traffic signals and redirecting drivers to turn right, the mainline traffic has more green time and, thus, drivers travel more quickly through the corridor
Creates more places where pedestrians can safely cross the road;
Enhances the roadway's operational capacity by allowing more traffic volume without increased delays
Allows for the city or NCDOT to adjust the speed that drivers will follow to progress through signalized intersections without having to stop.
Here are some statistics about a Reduced Conflict Intersection. The design has shown to have a:
46 percent reduction in crashes at unsignalized RCI's, compared to conventional intersections.
(Source: N.C. State final report to NCDOT in 2010)
15 percent reduction in crashes at signalized RCI's, compared to conventional intersections.
(Source: Federal Highway Administration report, November 2017)
20 percent travel time savings on a signalized RCI corridor, compared to conventional corridors with traffic lights.
Click Here to view a video of the Reduced Conflict Intersection (RCI) on N.C. 49
East Mallard Creek Church Road/Realigned Back Creek Church Road/N.C. 49 Intersection
A modified intersection with quadrant roadways (see explanation below) would be constructed for the realigned Back Creek Church Road/East Mallard Creek Church Road/N.C. 49 intersection. The proposed design would provide an expanded four-way, signalized intersection. Through movements would be allowed on N.C. 49 and right turns from N.C. 49 would be allowed to East Mallard Creek Church Road and realigned Back Creek Church Road. Consistent with the RCI concept, left turns to and from N.C. 49, though, would not be allowed. Two quadrant roadways would be constructed in the northeast and southwest quadrants of the intersection to accommodate left turns from N.C. 49 and left turns from East Mallard Creek Church Road and realigned Back Creek Church Road.
Quadrant Roadways
A quadrant roadway is a short connecting road between two routes to accommodate turning movements that would normally be provided at the main intersection.
The proposed quadrant roadway northeast of the N.C. 49 intersection with East Mallard Creek Church Road/realigned Back Creek Church Road would follow and improve a portion of Thomas Combs Drive, providing a connection between East Mallard Creek Church Road and southbound N.C. 49.
The proposed quadrant roadway southwest of that intersection would follow and improve a portion of Old Concord Road, providing a connection from realigned Back Creek Church Road to northbound N.C. 49. Providing these connections along the two proposed quadrant roadways will reduce delay at the N.C. 49 intersection with East Mallard Creek Church Road and realigned Back Creek Church Road, thereby improving traffic flow.
Back Creek Church Road Realignment
Two alternatives for realigning Back Creek Church Road are being considered:
Alternative 1 (Yellow Option, 1 mile of new alignment) would begin just north of Wyndham Pointe Drive, tying into the existing East Mallard Creek Church Road intersection with N.C. 49.
Alternative 2 (Purple Option, 0.8 mile of new alignment) would begin just north of the bridge over Back Creek and would also tie into the existing East Mallard Creek Church Road intersection with N.C. 49.
Under both alternatives, realigned Back Creek Church Road would travel under the NCRR/NS tracks via the railroad bridge south of N.C. 49 constructed as part of NCDOT Project P-5208 (see additional information below).
Realigned Back Creek Church Road is a portion of CDOT's planned "Eastern Circumferential Road " (see additional information below).
Closure of Existing At-grade Rail Crossing on Existing Back Creek Church Road
Closing the existing Back Creek Church Road at-grade crossing with the NCRR/NS tracks near N.C. 49 is an important safety component of the project. NCDOT STIP Project P-5208 evaluated the closure of this crossing due to the high volume of rail and roadway traffic and the short distance between that crossing and N.C. 49. From 2000 to 2016, there were six crashes involving a vehicle and a train at this crossing. Project P-5208 was designed to provide additional capacity for freight and passenger rail traffic (approximately 80 trains by 2030) and to accommodate higher train speeds (79 mph top speed for passenger and 60 mph for freight). At the same time, roadway traffic on Back Creek Church Road is expected to increase to 20,000 vehicles, or more, per day by 2040. Removing the existing at-grade crossing will eliminate train and vehicle conflicts at this location, thereby improving safety.
Because of the limited road connections in the area, closing the existing crossing was not considered to be reasonable without a nearby connection to N.C. 49. Based on the studies performed for Project P-5208, that project included a new bridge to carry NCRR/NS over the planned Eastern Circumferential Road. The realignment of Back Creek Church Road proposed as part of this project will pass under the railroad bridge that was constructed by Project P-5208, thereby maintaining road network connectivity and enabling vehicular traffic to flow freely under the tracks.
This project will close existing Back Creek Church Road just south of the existing at-grade rail crossing. The removal of the at-grade crossing will eliminate the need for trains to blow their horns as they approach Back Creek Church Road.
City of Charlotte Eastern Circumferential (ECR) Alignment Study
The planned realignment of Back Creek Church Road was recommended by the City in 1989, when CDOT published the "Eastern Circumferential Alignment Study."
The ECR is envisioned as a connection between the UNC-Charlotte/U.S. 29 North area and the U.S. 74 East (Independence Boulevard)/Sardis Road North intersection in Matthews to serve as a lower speed thoroughfare, offering an alternative north-south local connection to the I-485 corridor in east Mecklenburg County.
CRTPO 2045 MTP
Traffic capacity improvements to N.C. 49 from John Kirk Drive to I-485 are included in the Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization's (CRTPO's) 2045 Metropolitan Transportation Plan (MTP) as MTP ID E333.
The MTP also includes the planned Eastern Circumferential Road (ECR), a portion of which will be constructed as part of this project (ID E335) from N.C. 49 to Back Creek Church Road.
Two additional sections of the ECR are included in the MTP directly south of this project, identified as ID 3074 (Rosemallow Drive to Rocky River Road) and ID 3082 (Rocky River Road to Plaza Road Extension).
City of Charlotte Feasibility Study
In 2011, the City of Charlotte conducted a feasibility study to investigate a new connection to N.C. 49 from Back Creek Church Road as part of the planned ECR. That study evaluated four alternative concepts. All four concepts would provide a grade separated crossing of the NCRR/NS track to eliminate conflicts with vehicular traffic and trains and provide a connection to N.C. 49 at the East Mallard Creek Road Intersection. The City's study compared the number of residential and business relocations, impacts to multi-family developments, potential right of way and construction costs, street and driveway closures, temporary track for railroad bridge construction, and ECR reconstruction length. The study recommended "Alternative 3A," which proposed that the ECR be carried under NCRR/NS, with N.C. 49 lowered to provide at-grade intersection opposite East Mallard Creek Church Road. Those recommendations were carried forward during the project development studies for Project P-5208.
Eastern Circumferential Road
NCDOT STIP Project P-5208
Project P-5208 proposed the construction of 12.2 miles of track adjacent to the NCRR/NS mainline between Concord and Charlotte as part of the Southeast High Speed Rail (SEHSR) Project. NCDOT recommends closing at-grade crossings to enhance the overall safety of the SEHSR corridor where there are viable options to do so. Back Creek Church Road was identified as a high traffic volume roadway with a particularly dangerous railroad crossing due to high roadway traffic volumes and the short distance between the at-grade railroad crossing and the N.C. 49 signal. Given that Back Creek Church Road is a major through‑route, it was not considered prudent to close the existing Back Creek Church Road railroad crossing without a nearby connection to N.C. 49.
To achieve that connection to N.C. 49, two alternatives for providing a grade-separated railroad crossing on existing Back Creek Church Road were considered: (1) building a bridge over the railroad and N.C. 49 and (2) building a railroad bridge over Back Creek Church Road. Due to topographic features, access requirements, and potential impacts to numerous residential and business properties, neither of these alternatives was considered prudent, and both were eliminated from further study.
The recommendations from the 2011 City of Charlotte Feasibility Study for the planned ECR were also evaluated (see additional information above). The recommendations from that study (railroad bridge over the planned ECR just south of N.C. 49) were incorporated into the design for Project P-5208. Construction of Project P-5208 was completed in 2017 and included constructing the railroad bridge that will accommodate the construction of the planned ECR and the realignment of Back Creek Church Road proposed under the subject project.
A public meeting was held on April 23, 2019 in Charlotte, NC to obtain stakeholder and public input regarding the project's design.
Public Meeting Maps:
Public Meeting Map: N.C. 49 With Quadrant
Public Meeting Map: Back Creek Church Road - Alternative 1
Final Environmental Document
This is a large document so it has been broken into sections of ease of viewing.
U-5768 SEA/FONSI and Figures
U-5768 SEA/FONSI-Appendix A Agency Correspondence
U-5768 SEA/FONSI-Appendix B Cultural Resources
U-5768 SEA/FONSI-Appendix C Public Involvement
U-5768 SEA/FONSI-Appendix D Merger Process Coordination
Project U-5768 is identified in the NCDOT's State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) and is funded for $41.85 million. The widening of N.C. 49 is programmed to receive State Highway Trust Funds, while local funds (CDOT) will support the realignment of Back Creek Church Road.
Estimated Amount*
Project Development & Design
Property Acquisition
* Estimated costs are subject to change. Based on NCDOT STIP.
Public Meeting 1
Combined State Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact
Project Newsletter
Construction Begins
Construction Completion
Mid 2027
* Future dates are preliminary and subject to change
PROJECT CONTACT INFORMATION
Kristina L. Solberg, PE
Project Management Unit
Keith Bryant, PE
Charlotte Department of Transportation
600 E. Fourth Street
Although the N.C. Department of Transportation works to minimize the number of homes and businesses displaced by a road project, it is inevitable, in many cases, that a certain amount of private property is needed. The following information explains right of way acquisition and answers questions about the process.
Right-of-Way Brochure Single Page Layout Folleto del Proceso de Adquisición de Bienes Raíces
Right-of-Way Frequently Asked Questions
Right of way Acquisition Process Videos
CDOT Eastern Circumferential Alignment Study 1989.pdf Charlotte Design Feasibility Study ECR NC49-NCRR Xing 2011.pdf P-5208 EA 2011.pdf P-5208 FONSI 2012.pdf U-5768 Public Meeting Handout_Final.pdf U-5768 Traffic Analysis Tech Memo Addendum_05-31-19.pdf U-5768_SEA FONSI_Final_signed_docusign copied_11212019.pdf U-5768_SEA_FONSI_and_Figures_2019_11_21.pdf U-5768_SEA_FONSI_Appendix_A_Agency_Correspondence.pdf U-5768_SEA_FONSI_Appendix_B_Cultural_Resources.pdf U-5768_SEA_FONSI_Appendix_C_Public_Involvement.pdf U-5768_SEA_FONSI_Appendix_D_Merger_Process_Coordination.pdf U-5768_TNR_Final.pdf
NCDOT Survey
Would you like to be added to the project email list for updates?
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text:
The New International Encyclopædia/Owens College
< The New International Encyclopædia
The New International Encyclopædia
Owens College
Owens Lake
Edition of 1905. See also Victoria University of Manchester on Wikipedia, and the disclaimer.
1495072The New International Encyclopædia — Owens College
OWENS COLLEGE. A college at Manchester, England. It was founded in 1851 under the will of John Owens, a merchant of that city, who left £100,000 for the instruction of young men "in such branches of science and learning as were then and might be thereafter usually taught in English universities." Handsome new buildings have been erected, and the college has now a staff of about 50 professors and lecturers in the departments of art, science, law, and medicine. There are about 30 scholarships and prizes, and a valuable fellowship. Owens College has been constituted a college of Victoria University, chartered in 1880, a federation of colleges, having its seat in Manchester.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikisource.org/w/index.php?title=The_New_International_Encyclopædia/Owens_College&oldid=10129905"
Universities in England
NIE no volume
NIE template with Wikipedia parameter

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


IBI Group Inc. announced its financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2013.
TORONTO – IBI Group Inc. (the "Company") (TSX: IBG) today announced its financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2013.
Revenue for the first quarter ended March 31, 2013 was $84,599,000, ($87,373,000 to normalize to an average quarter of 63 days) compared to $86,896,000 for the first quarter of 2012. Net earnings for the first quarter of 2013 were $656,000 ($2,856,0000 to normalize to an average quarter of 63 days), compared to $3,733,000 for the first quarter of 2012.
The results for the first quarter of 2013 are based on 61 available working days, which is two days fewer than both the average quarter and the first quarter of 2012, each being 63 days. The impact on the results of an extra two working days would be $2.8 million of revenue, based on the average revenue achieved in the quarter ended March 31, 2013. Operating costs are assumed to remain constant since these are monthly costs not dependent on number of working days.
The recession that commenced in the fourth quarter of 2008 and its impact on the economies of the United States and Europe, impaired IBI Group initially in the housing sector, in which IBI had relatively high exposure, and subsequently in IBI projects in social and transportation infrastructure. Europe continues to contract, recovery in the United States is encouraging but tentative, and a slowdown is being indicated in the Canadian economy.
IBI Group continues to move forward with its recovery program. The recovery plan is a series of actions to enhance profitability and to improve billings and collections, which will lead to a reduction of working capital and debt. The recovery plan was outlined in full in the 2012 year-end reporting.
Aligning staff levels with levels of committed work. At the end of first quarter of 2013 staff members numbered 2,814 compared to 2,852 at the end of 2012 for a decrease of 38 staff members or a 1.3% reduction of staff. This represents a savings of approximately $2.5 million per annum. The process is continuing in the second quarter of 2013 in an orderly fashion, to ensure the firm's ability to perform work for its clients and to achieve higher productivity.
Improved cash generation. Cash used in operations in the first quarter of 2013 was a significant improvement of $6.4 million over the first quarter of 2012. The cash used in operations for the first quarter of 2013 would have been even lower had it not been for the dampening impact of the timing of contract billings (fees collectible at completion of certain events only). Management is committed to sustaining this trend over the ensuing quarters.


July 06, 2017 08:35 ET | Source: Earth Science Tech, Inc.
Hollywood, July 06, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Earth Science Tech, Inc. (OTCPINK: ETST), an innovative biotech company focused on cannabis CBD-based (industrial hemp), cannabinoid research and development, nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, and medical devices enters into a joint venture with Varsity Group, LLC. under KannaBidioid Inc., to synergistically share resources as well as their patent pending Kanna Blend formula.
ETST's management team came across an opportunity to step into the Recreational Vape/Smoke space which is projected to spend $4.77 billion by 2025*. Earth Science Tech discovered Varsity Group, LLC ,a Kanna Blend ingredient based E-liquid company that has a Patented Kanna-Blend formula(Kanna Chill), which is produced in their ISO-9001 cGMP Sunrise, FL lab facility. Earth Science Tech and Varsity Group, LLC have joined forces to formulate KannaBlend-Infused Hemp Derived Naturally occurring cannabidiol (CBD) based E-liquid/Sublingual and Gummy Edibles, hence KannaBidioid, Inc. (KBD). This new exciting First To Market Joint Venture will be a 50/50 partnership, with both revenue and expenses being shared equally. Both parties will be exclusive to each other and work synergistically sharing their resources to be the leading innovative E-liquid/Sublingual and Gummy Edible supplier in this space.
Varsity Group, LLC was co-founded by David Plante, who will be the president overseeing ETST's new subsidiary KannaBidioid, Inc. Varsity Group, LLC sets the example for being a world class manufacture for the best E-liquid available. Their proven quality control methods, attentiveness to industry regulations, superior customer service, and industry trade secrets consistently keeps the Kanna Chill brand at the pinnacle of industry standards. Varsity Vapes, founded in January 2016 and headquartered in the sunny state of south Florida, is manufactured under stringent FDA guidelines in a ISO-9001 and cGMP certified facility. With previous backgrounds in pharmaceutical manufacturing, business development, and engineering the company strives to produce the highest quality e-liquid formulations. Developed over the past four years, Varsity is proud to be the world's first, to introduce a choice to the industry, on whether customers want nicotine or an all natural non-addictive alternative to nicotine. They've explored and rigorously studied the industry listening to what customers want, inspiring Varsity to incorporate an effective alternative to nicotine within our line. When a customer tries Varsity Vapes Kanna Chill, they can start to comprehend the difference between the high quality Varsity Vapes Kanna Chill line and other sub-par e-juice blends. Their consistency with correctly blending and developing their own flavor formulations illustrates their competitive advantage over this vast industry.
ETST continuously plans on updating its shareholders on the above mentioned new subsidiary, joint venture, and sales as further progress and development occurs.
About KannaBidioiD: KannaBidioid, Inc. is wholly owned subsidiary of Earth Science Tech, Inc. (ETST). KannaBidioid, Inc. is focused in the recreational space to manufacture and distribute vapes/e-liquids and gummy edibles in the recreational space formulated by it's unique Kanna Blend and CBD formula. Kanna and CBD synergistically enahnce enhance one another, providing optimal relaxation, an uplifiting uplifting sensation, enahnce increase focus, and help ease with nicotine addiction based on their properties properties.


The special version of WhatsApp, the WhatsApp Plus has got an update, and it's the 4.65 version being rolled out to the users, and if you haven't got it already, below is the download link to install the app by using the APK file. The new version has come with quite a lot of changes, and it is quite a big update from the version 4.61 which was sent just a few days back. With this one thing is clear, that WhatsApp Plus team is trying to keep the quality of the app at its best to replace the original WhatsApp messenger in most of the Android phones.
WhatsApp Plus brings some features to the app which one would try to do with some modifications or additional app support in the normal WhatsApp, such as the hiding of last seen status in WhatsApp, sending full size pictures to the contacts etc.
To download WhatsApp Plus 4.65 version you need to click on the below download link and then transfer the APK file to your smartphone and follow the steps given below to install this new version.
If at all you are already running the WhatsApp Plus app in your Android phone, you can straight away try to install this app, and it might normally install, or you might have to delete the current version and then install this.
If you were using the original whatsapp, then you will have to delete that app and the messages would be backed up. Now install this new Whatsapp plus 4.65 from the APK and it would guide you through the same verification steps, and then ask you whether to restore from the saved backup.
Now Apple provides you with the feature of sharing your Garageband music directly to whatsapp from iOS or installed PC devices.


Currently receives Apple Health (Medicaid) coverage?
Needs assistance but doesn't qualify for Apple Health coverage?
You may be entitled to benefits through the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA).
What benefits and services are available?
What about CHAMPVA or TRICARE?
Are you eligible for benefits with the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA)?
Washington State's Veterans Benefit Enhancement Program (VBEP) works with WDVA to help eligible veterans and their families get assistance through VA health care.
Since 2003, the VBEP has helped qualify over 15,600 Washington veterans and their families for federal benefits.
Currently only 23 percent of veterans eligible for benefits are actually receiving them.
WDVA assists veterans, their family members and survivors in connecting to the benefits they earned through their military service.
Some benefits may also be used by active service members, reservists, and National Guard members as well as eligible spouses, children, and survivors of veterans and service members.
Note: If you have questions about income or compensation as a veteran, review the MAGI income – Noncountable income information in our Apple Health eligibility manual, or call the Washington Healthplanfinder Customer Support Center at 1-855-923-4633.
For a full list of services and benefits you or your family may be eligible for, visit ExploreVA.
Contact the Washington Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) by email at benefits@dva.wa.gov or by phone at 1-800-562-2308 for questions regarding available benefits.
WDVA will, in some cases, refer you to the County Veteran Service Officers (CVSO) to establish what benefits you may be entitled to. Find your local CVSO and a full list of resources.
The CVSOs will confirm you and/or your family's VA eligibility and assist you in applying for the benefits you have earned for your service to the nation.
Are you the spouse or child of a veteran rated totally disabled for a service-connected disability or died from service-connected disability?
You may be eligible for Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA) health insurance.
For more information about CHAMPVA, visit Civilian Health and Medical Program.
To apply, visit VHA Office of Community of Care.
Veteran who died in action?
You may be eligible for TRICARE health care.
For more information about eligibility, visit TRICARE eligibility.
To apply, visit TRICARE enroll or purchase a plan.
In-person: Find a Service Officer in your area.


Posted February 1st, 2019 by Stefano Sala & filed under No categories.
The framework of macro-regional strategies has proven to be a useful platform to debate with other Research Institutions concerning innovation capacity and the research ecosystem in the territory included within the Re-Search Alps' project. The four macro-regional strategies have implemented projects and research in order to improve the innovation capacity of diverse European-regions.
The "Meeting of Macro-Regional Coordinators", organized by Interact in Bucharest (Romania), was a good occasion to disseminate best practices and platforms being developed by Research Institutions and macro-regional strategies (Re-Search Alps sees the support of EUSALP's Action Group 1) in order to improve the Research & Innovation ecosystem in Europe.
Re-Search Alps has been presented as a best practice to be shared within different macro-regional strategies when it comes to "Multilingual web-platforms for SMEs and service providers".


3. thus, causing the tenant/visitor to be assaulted, raped or otherwise injured.
Proving that the apartment complex knew about the other crimes or of any dangerous conditions on the property can be difficult. Eye witnesses, employee statements and crime reports are necessary to prove knowledge and liability. Although some information can be obtained through presuit investigation, a lot of information might not be available until a lawsuit is filed and the parties engage in a process of exchanging information known as discovery.
If knowledge is proven, then the victim still must show that the apartment complex or other property owner did not take measures to secure the premises and if it did, then the crime could have been prevented. Some things that property owners can do to try to prevent crime are put up fencing, hire security personnel, install cameras, and install lighting on the premises.
Because holding property owners liable for crimes in Georgia is difficult, it is normally only economical to bring lawsuits where victims have been severely injured, raped, or killed.
If you have any questions about how to bring a claim against an apartment complex or other property owner for negligent and inadequate security in Georgia, please call Atlanta injury attorney Betty Nguyen Davis at 404-593-2620.


text:
ReviewsDVD Review
Keith Phipps
Filed to:DVD
Twenty years after Thelma & Louise became an unlikely blockbuster and an inescapable conversation topic in summer 1991, the film has lost none of its power. That isn't because it's a groundbreaking movie, one that plugged debate-sparking feminist provocations into a classic road-movie format in which two fugitives enjoy a short taste of freedom while heading toward a bad end. As inseparable as that element is from the film's appeal and reputation, Thelma & Louise works as a film first and a statement second. A gripping, moving buddy movie set against the promise and perils of the American West, it remains a stunning reminder that artists with something to say should first entertain.
And however often it dips into darkness—up to and including the fade to white that ends the movie—Thelma & Louise remains a subversively buoyant piece of entertainment. Working from a script by first-time screenwriter Callie Khouri, stars Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis lovingly depict a friendship strong enough to stand up to a battery of unforeseeable tests. Sarandon plays a sharp-tongued waitress who finally succeeds in luring Davis—the put-upon housewife of a loutish car dealer (Christopher McDonald, never sleazier)—away for a much-needed weekend vacation. Piling into a classic Thunderbird convertible, they find trouble without getting much of a chance to feel the wind in their hair. At a roadhouse, Sarandon rescues Davis from a parking-lot rape, then kills her assailant. Seeing no other options, and expecting no fair shake from the law, the two make a run for Mexico, passing a series of loathsome, disappointing, or dangerous men along the way.
Director Ridley Scott shoots the film at an eerie, effective distance. Davis and Sarandon keep their characters warm and funny—ever more so as the film progresses—but their journey takes place behind an ever-present visual haze accompanied by a foreboding synth-and-blues guitar score from Hans Zimmer, choices that give even the most comedic scenes a tragic undertone. Though those two competing tones occasionally feel misaligned, the same dissonance helps make the movie memorable, and sells its central irony: The deeper the heroines dig into a life of crime, and the further they go past the point of no return, the freer they feel.
That's a firm foundation on which to build a statement. The further Thelma & Louise's protagonists move outside the system, the more it looks like a game rigged against women. The more rules they break, the more they realize how much the rules are designed to keep women in their place. There were strong female protagonists before Thelma & Louise, of course, but Khouri and Scott dared to put them front-and-center and make them simultaneously sympathetic and uncompromising. The floodgates might have opened for the strong heroines of the 1990s and beyond without this film, but that doesn't make it any less a landmark. "Something's crossed over in me, and I can't go back," Davis tells Sarandon as their trip nears its end. Some moments are like that. Some movies, too.
Key features: The 20th-anniversary Blu-ray edition features a pair of commentaries, an extended ending, deleted scenes, and a music video from feminist pioneer Glenn Frey.


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Thank you for putting this up. I've been lingering around the site for a while, but I've not been really sure how to get involved (esp. in the threads. All the interesting topics have already been picked over a few times by the time I get there,) so thank you for this. It's a big help.
I can't wait to start in on these links. I had never heard of psionics...outside of the world of D&D. Thanks for putting this up!
If you're passing by, feel free to give me a click every so often!
Do these lessons cover the entire course by now?
Need to reach 10 posts on Psionics to get Mentor.
Wow, very nice guide on how to do Psionics, thanks for the helpful info.
This unique meditation breathing technique is a key to accessing your subconscious & conscious minds and having them work together as one. This helps you set and achieve goals, change negative programming to positive, transcend "brain chatter" and even the limits of your body. Having them work together as one is important, because if you want to achieve "goal success", you don't want those two aspects pulling in different directions.
The "Conscious Breath" meditation allows you to become aware of your breathing, without controlling it. By practicing it, you will gain both sub-conscious control and conscious mind/subconscious mind integration.
Sit with your spine erect if possible. If not, lay down. Relax and sort of watch your body breathe. Just pay attention to the fact that it's happening without "you" doing anything, and keep your mind focused on the breath going in and out, without interfering with it.
The trick is to let your subconscious mind control your breathing for you (like your body does normally), but pay attention to it. I.e., be CONSCIOUSLY AWARE of your breathing while that is happening.
Don't try and control it. This mediation requires a passive concentration. By doing this, over time you will eventually attain an integration of sub-conscious and conscious, which has many, many benefits (see our links page for a great free online book that explains these in detail, & other helpful items).
At first, until your concentration develops, your mind will wander all over the place. As soon as you realize that your mind has wandered, bring it right back to watching yourself breathe. Don't waste energy reprimanding yourself for not maintaining concentration, that just creates an unnecessary struggle which allows frustration to occur. Frustration is a negative emotion that counteracts your efforts for inner peace and relaxation.
Note: Bringing yourself back to the object of concentration immediately upon recognizing that you've wandered off, applies to all concentration/meditation techniques.
Besides those discussed above, one result of bridging the two minds is that the conscious mind becomes still and quiet. You get more inner peace as you become free from the constant "internal noise" in your brain, while lessening your reaction to the external stimuli that prevents/blocks you from becoming a "reflection" of higher states of awareness & consciousness. This meditation (that has Tibetan roots) is great for that.


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Accepted panels :
Panel on Cognitive Service Engineering
Boualem Benatallah (UNSW Sydney, Australia)
Fabio Casati (University of Trento, Italy and Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia)
Keywords: Web Knowledge, Tagging, Temporal Representation
Alessandro Bozzon (Delft University of Technology , Netherlands)
Xuedong Huang (Microsoft Research, USA)
Hamid Motahari (Ernst & Young Global Innovation, USA)
Amit Sheth (Wright State University, USA)
Cognitive services and conversational digital assistants are emerg- ing as the engine that powers natural interactions between humans, software services, devices and "things" – supported by advances in AI and human computations. Not surprisingly, many large and small tech companies are rushing to occupy this space by providing platforms for building cognitive services and conversational bots. Digital assistants interact in a natural way (through text or voice) with both software and humans to get information and perform actions, from checking the weather to booking a restaurants and a cab ride, managing cloud resources, answering simple scientific questions, and preparing a decaf latte using IoT enabled coffee machines. User requests or tasks are often expressed in natural language, an interaction ensues to clarify the intent and the details, and the answer is sought – or the appropriate service or device is invoked – based on the cognitive service understanding.
While the potential of this new wave of services is exciting, it also brings significant challenges: we are far away from the comfort of developing deterministic software that responds to API calls by invoking other APIs. Now we have to understand, guess, explore options, take decisions based on probabilistic models over a large set of possible intents and services, all while engaging with users. Doing so brings a large set of engineering challenges related to the development, training, tuning and evolution of such services. This panel will discuss such challenges and identify interesting opportunities for research as well as promising trends.
The shifting landscape of Web search and mining: past, present, and future
Davood Rafiei (University of Alberta)
Keywords: Web search, Web mining, Content analysis, Future of Web search
Eugene Agichtein (Emory University)
Ricardo Baeza-Yates (NTENT)
Jon Kleinberg (Cornell University)
Jure Leskovec (Stanford University & Pinterest)
The Web content has been going through major changes, triggered by multiple factors including changes in user demographic and authoring behaviour, a shift in device types that access the Web, and changes in common use cases of the Web. More specifically, the number of mobile internet users has surpassed the desktop users according to different statistics; a considerable portion of Web use cases are in the form of social interactions rather than information seeking; and the authoring behaviour has transformed from compiling a page and linking resources to sharing content with like-minded followers and leaving likes and comments on posts. Those changes have influenced and are expected to shape the way the content is organized, searched, ranked and analyzed. This panel will bring together researchers who have been working in different established areas related to Web search and mining, Web content and social network analysis, and semantics and knowledge harvesting and management. The panel will draw from the experience of panellists, dealing with changes in their respective fields. In the first (role-playing) round, each panellist will strongly take a side on where the changes are heading, arguing that one form of content will dominate in near future. In the second round, the panellists will counter each other and will share their vision on what future holds in terms of research problems and directions.
Structured Knowledge on the Web 7.0
Steffen Staab, Universität Koblenz-Landau (Germany) & University of Southampton (UK)
Lora Aroyo (VU Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
Evgeniy Gabrilovich (Google, USA)
Jens Lehmann (University of Bonn, Germany & Fraunhofer IAIS, Germany)
Ruben Verborgh (Ghent University — imec, Belgium)
"The Semantic Web cannot work." was a widely held belief, which has been proven wrong. Just like the Web of 2018 does not look like anyone might have imagined, when the first web conference was held in 1994, the structured knowledge we find on the Web now is there for slightly other purposes and enriched by other languages than we imagined in the late 90ies for the Semantic Web. Novel opportunities are immediate — as well as new challenges.


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The tool that twins science with sense – Yara N-Sensor – CPM Oct 2017
by Chris Mason | Oct 20, 2017 | News |
Reproduced from the Ocober 2017 edition of the Crop Production Magazine by Tom Allen-Stevens
True agricultural innovation is where data derived from the field is used to make a reliable agronomic decision with no human input. In the fourth of our series on data management pioneers, CPM tells the story of the N-Sensor.
There are two aspects, you could argue, that define the real cutting-edge technological advances in today's agricultural equipment – tools that generate vast arrays of utilisable data, and kit that has the capability to use this information and make decisions in real time that are even better than those made by a skilled operator or agronomist.
But there's one tool that's been combining both these aspects for almost 20 years – Yara's N-Sensor.
"The N-Sensor sets the fundamental benchmark for measuring nitrogen uptake by a crop," says Clive Blacker of Precision Decisions, who's worked with the technology since it first came to the UK. "The primary determinant of the correct amount of N to apply is how much is already in the canopy – if you don't know that, how can you judge how much to put on?"
The N-Sensor first came to the UK in 1999 – a "coffin" shaped box that sat on top of the tractor cab. Its design and capabilities have moved on considerably since then, but the hardware is essentially the same – two sensors scan a 3m strip on either side, sending information on light reflectance from the crop to an on-board computer in the cab.
Here the data's crunched, and this is where the magic happens – light reflectance, measuring specific wavelengths, reveals accurate information on how much N is held by the crop canopy. The software not only generates a point-in-time map of canopy variance across the field, but uses the information to generate fertiliser recommendations in real time. These are transferred to the control terminal of a variable-rate enabled fertiliser spreader or sprayer.
"The hardware is almost irrelevant," comments Yara's Mark Tucker, who joined the company in 2002 to develop the N-Sensor's application. "It's the algorithms within the software that make the N-Sensor what it is.
"The trials work to generate these algorithms in the first place was immense, and the testing we've done since to ground-truth everything has been equally thorough. Yara has almost been too cautious with it, and has insisted everything is so rigorously tested before its commercial release that it's been a bit of constraint, especially in a digital world where technology advances so fast. But the scientific rigour has always paid off in terms of performance and reliability, and it's even given the N-Sensor regulatory clout"
Forefront of technology
By the mid-1990s, Yara was already at the forefront of technology that could accurately measure the N status of a crop and launched the N-Tester in 1995. This hand-held tool operates by measuring the chlorophyll content of the leaf. A year earlier, physicist Dr Stefan Reusch had started a PhD at the University of Kiel in Germany to study optical methods to assess N status.
"There was a group in the scientific community who were keen to address
variability in the field," recalls Stefan.
"The aim was not only to measure both visible and non-visible variation, but react on it"
The concept was in its infancy, however, and the influence of soil conditions and topography, that also vary spatially, make it a complex area. "There was very little applied science addressing in-field variability. Most related to satellite imagery measuring light reflectance from the crop canopy, using instruments within the crop to ground-truth data. The science was good, but I wanted to improve it."
The standard measurement of crop biomass is the Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), which is a measure of the red and near infra-red wavelengths of light reflected by a crop canopy. "I found the index could be optimised by looking at slightly different wavelengths," he notes.
It took a systematic search through millions of indices before he finally figured out the wavelengths and the mathematical relationship that provided the best correlation. "The project ended in 1997, the work was published and I presented it at conferences. Yara had been bringing along the N-Tester at the same time, and I had the opportunity to work with them in the final year."
The first challenge was to develop the hardware to house the sensors. Tractor-mounted was deemed the best solution to gather data as there's no time delay between scanning the crop and receiving data, as there is with satellite imagery.
No more guess work on N applications
With over one million chickens and a large pig unit, J Porter and Son spreads a lot of manure over the 1100ha of the heavy clay soils the business farms, based at Barn Farm, Navenby, Lincs."We have very accurate spreaders and have the manure analysed for nutrient content," points out Graham Porter. "But with the best will in the world, knowing how much N the crop has actually taken up before top dressing in spring is largely guess work."They found that either too little N was being applied to the wheat, barley and oilseed rape they grow or too much. This resulted in some thin patches of crop, and frequent lodging, despite growing short, stiff strawed varieties all crops are grown for feed, used within the business or to supply the quality animal feeds Porters also sell. This was the main prompt for starting to use an N-Sensor.
"We first came across it in around 2007, and the first one on the farm was one of the original models that used ambient light.
We currently have an ALS N-Sensor which does a remarkable job," says Graham. Mounted on a Claas Axion 850 tractor, it operates an Amazone spreader.
"We apply about half the N most people put on. It determines the right rate, but the main benefit is that it takes the inaccuracies out – we achieve a much more even crop."
What's more, it needs no ground-truthing and crops can be scanned on cloudy days when satellites can't scan the earth's surface.
In the UK, the technology struck a chord with Clive Blacker, who was helping develop his family's Yorkshire-based farming and contracting business.
One important milestone was the development of the ALS (Active Light Source) unit. Since the N-Sensor worked on light reflectance, performance was compromised in low-light conditions and it – couldn't operate at night – a serious setback for the large farmers and contractors drawn to the technology.
The first prototype was a front mounted, W-shaped boom. A year later, the second prototype looked more like a sprayer boom. "They worked but they weren't practical," notes Stefan. "We needed a housing that was ruggedised and easy to maintain. So we tried putting the sensors on the roof, angling them so they had an oblique view of the crop. This wasn't straightforward because they're affected by the sun's position."
An irradiance sensor was also fitted to scan ambient light and correct any changes caused by differing levels of sunlight. It was this version that went out into the field for pilot testing in 1999, with a commercial launch the next year.
Tested exhaustively
The algorithms were also tested exhaustively, notes Dr Jorg Jasper, Yara's head of application tools and services R&D. "We needed to be sure the N-Sensor could reliably take account of N uptake throughout the year and across all crops. Over the years, it's been tested thoroughly and works effectively in cereals, oilseed rape, potatoes, maize, cotton and sugar cane, in both winter and spring. And there's now a new grass algorithm. We're talking tens of thousands of datasets and around 60 man years of work."
. "We were farming around 730ha with contracting operations over a further 1600ha. I was an inquisitive young pup wanting to learn what we could do with the technology. We were the first to yield-map
with the Claas system, then started applying P&K variably with front and back-mounted spreaders in 1999. In the same year, Yara introduced the N-Sensor and we said we'd give it a go."
From trialing the first commercial prototype, Clive learnt along with the Yara team how to get the best from the technology and integrate it into the farming system.
In 2004, he set up Precision Decisions, exclusively supplying, fitting and maintaining sensor systems for UK farmers. "One of the things that's always struck me about Yara is the science they put behind it," he notes. "There are a number of devices and systems now that measure NDVI, but none tell you reliably about N uptake, especially late in the season. Yara's vision for the sensor was clear from the start, and in the early days at times it was really frustrating – they want everything perfect before it hits the market. But that gives you the reassurance that Yara has been through all the pain barriers, so when an upgrade reaches the farm it's ready to go."
"In the early 2000s, we started work on an artificial light source," continues Stefan.
We started with a halogen lamp and worked through a number of different systems, finally ending up with a faint red light that pulses on and off ten times a second."
The red light provides just the right spectrum for the wavelengths used by the sensors. The pulse allows the software to eliminate background light, improving the accuracy of the input signal. The ALS N-Sensor was launched in 2006, and the hardware has remained much the same ever since.
One problem that's bugged the N-Sensor, however, is compatibility – an issue throughout precision farming. Any control terminal you have in the cab should be able to operate any spreader, sprayer or implement you attach to it, and run the software to variable-rate apply. The industry standard for this is ISOBUS.
"When Yara first started developing the N-Sensor, they worked with AGCO and Amazone on a system called LBS, that predated ISOBUS," explains Clive.
. "Unfortunately, The first ISO standards didn't cover equipment that inputs information to a control terminal, so only certain terminals that could support third party inputs would work effectively with the N-Sensor.
"The situation is vastly improved today – John Deere and TopCon systems are now fully compatible, for example, and for two years there's been a new ISO standard called peer-to-peer that assures compatibility. There are still issues with certain equipment, but part of the Yara service we supply is to address those, and we always advise growers to speak to us first before investing in the technology."
This is a fundamental backbone to how the N-Sensor is distributed, stresses Jorg. "We have dedicated distributors and service providers in all 38 countries where it's used. There are now 1871 N-Sensors operating worldwide, with 266 in the UK. All users get specialist advice from the outset to ensure compatibility isn't a problem. Back up includes remote diagnostics where a technician can dial into your system and solve a glitch without even having to visit the farm. On top of that, you get the agronomic know-how, to a level no one else provides."
So much work and refinement has been put into this aspect that now the machine can think for itself. Absolute N first appeared for OSR in 2011. "Calibrating the N-Sensor can be quite cumbersome. We wanted a system where you just drive into the crop and the system decides for itself how much N to apply – you don't even have to set an average, max or min rate," he continues. "At first, the concept itself was a huge barrier for us – it took quite a few years and many more trials before we were confident the algorithms were good enough to be given control."
Mark recalls the first time he presented Absolute N to a group of growers at an Agrovista Growcrop Gold trials site. 'The general reaction was 'you gotta be kidding! '
Even today it's a big challenge to trust the tool, and you get growers ringing up who can't believe it's cut down to 50kgN/ha on an area they were going to spread at 140kgN/ha. But you'll generally find the N-Sensor is right."
As well as testing the concept, the many trials have proven the benefits of the N-Sensor he points out, and these fall into four categories:
Yield: Stripe trials in large cereal fields have shown an average yield benefit of 0.26t/ha, where both stripes have received the same overall rate (see chart above).
Quality: In trials carried out by University of Kiel in Germany on high protein wheat, the N-Sensor lifted the average protein content from 14.28% to 14.67% and closed the range from 13.5-15.25% to 14.1-15.2%.
Efficiency: Considerably less lodging and a more even crop. Trials conducted by Feiffer Consult over three very different harvests in Germany showed combine efficiency improved by 12-20% on average.
Environment: Reflectance data can be used to improve targeted use ofchemistry, such as 42% less product used to destroy potato haulm and 15% less PGR used to achieve the same lodging control.
Click here for a PDF of the original magazine version of this article.
First year with the YARA ALS2 N-Sensor – It is fantastic!
5G in rural areas: How next-gen connectivity could transform remote communities
YARA N-Sensor Webinar 01-03-19
Map of Ag, has acquired Precision Decisions Ltd, further expanding its data reach capabilities.
Hands Free Hectare project scoops The Times Higher Education Technology Innovation Award
Precision Decisions
The Old Station Works
Station Lane
Shipton by Beningbrough
York YO30 1BS
info@precisiondecisions.co.uk


When it comes to the high definition format, you should think of the Blu-ray first. But before, there was a big format war waging between HD-DVD and Blu-ray to fight for the dominant media standard for content in high definition.
Actually, apart from the two main high definition systems, there are other competitors, such as Taiwan's FVD (Forward Versatile Disc), China's EOD (Enhanced Video Disc), and so on. But here, we will focus on the Blu-ray vs HD DVD battle to know how Blu-ray win the high-definition format war.
The first high-definition television was released in 1998, but they didn't gain popularity until the 2000s after becoming more affordable. During this time, in response to issues with scaling DVDs into a higher resolution format, there was a desire in the industry to create a new, high-definition, optical disc-based video format.
Afterwards, Sony pioneered the Blu-ray format, and with support from companies like Philips, Apple, Dell, and Panasonic, the format was established by the collective Blu-ray Disc Association. Toshiba pioneered the HD DVD format, which had backing from companies like Microsoft and was established by the DVD Forum. They all hope that their format would become the standard so a war was inevitable.
After years of development and attempts to create a single standard, the format war reached consumers in 2006, when the two formats were released two months apart. And finally, Blu-ray win the war while HD DVD was officially discontinued in 2008.
1. Capacity is the key. Blu-ray had 40% more capacity and PS3 as backer. HD DVD had nothing special to counter with.
2. Gain traction from the big studio like Disney, Fox, MGM, Warner Bros, etc.
3. Wal-Mart supermarket and online rental company Netflix both announced plans to support Blu-ray exclusively, and at the same time, the death of HD DVD format.
Linear PCM, Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby True HD, DTS Digital Surround, DTS-H.
Sony, Pioneer, Dell, HP, Hitachi, LG Electronics, Panasonic, Mitsubishi, Philips, Samsung, Sharp, TDK, Dell and Thomson Multimedia. Disney, Fox, MGM, Warner Bros.
Microsoft, Toshiba, NEC, Sanyo, Memory-Tech, NBC Universal, Viacom (Paramount and Dreamworks).
I think the big difference between Blu-ray and HD DVD is the cost. Usually, the Blu-ray disc is more expensive than HD DVD. In addition, the cost of Blu-ray player is also expensive. But Blu-ray devices have been designed to be backwards compatible with both DVDs and CDs, so there should be no problem playing your old collection of movies and music on Blu-ray player.
After you buying Blu-ray disc from store, have you ever thought about to play your Blu-ray disc on your Windows or Mac computer? If the answer is YES, you can try VideoSolo Blu-ray Player. This program can help you play any Blu-ray disc on computer through a Blu-ray drive. Just connect the Blu-ray drive with your computer, insert your Blu-ray disc to the drive, and then you can load the Blu-ray movie to VideoSolo for watching. Furthermore, VideoSolo Blu-ray Player is also capable of playing Blu-ray ISO files and Blu-ray folder on PC. Download it and have a try now.


text:
package com.koch.ambeth.persistence.jdbc.lob;

import com.koch.ambeth.cache.IParentEntityAware;
import com.koch.ambeth.service.metadata.Member;
import com.koch.ambeth.stream.IInputStream;
import com.koch.ambeth.stream.IUnmodifiedInputSource;
import com.koch.ambeth.stream.binary.IBinaryInputSource;
import com.koch.ambeth.stream.binary.IBinaryInputStream;

public class BlobInputSource
		implements IBinaryInputSource, IParentEntityAware, IUnmodifiedInputSource {
	protected final ILobInputSourceController lobInputSourceController;

	protected Object parentEntity;

	protected Member member;

	public BlobInputSource(ILobInputSourceController lobInputSourceController) {
		this.lobInputSourceController = lobInputSourceController;
	}

	@Override
	public void setParentEntity(Object parentEntity, Member member) {
		this.parentEntity = parentEntity;
		this.member = member;
	}

	@Override
	public IInputStream deriveInputStream() {
		return deriveBinaryInputStream();
	}

	@Override
	public IBinaryInputStream deriveBinaryInputStream() {
		return lobInputSourceController.deriveBinaryInputStream(parentEntity, member);
	}
}


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Let's face it, you have absolutely no lack of tools and knowledge to guide your patients from a poor state of health to the peak of well being.
But where do you turn for help and guidance to the peak of your practice goals?
Where is your guide map to gain control of your business and achieve more growth in 2011?
We can help! As part of your team, we will help you to boom your production and boost your bottom line with actual standardized tools, implementation, administrative training, business coaching and performance accountability.


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'GO!' Is the Argentine 'High School Musical' I Couldn't Stop Watching
Season 2 of the teen musical drama premieres on Netflix this weekend.
By Marie-Rose Sheinerman | [email protected] | June 21, 2019 4:23pm
Photo courtesy of La Nacion
Imagine this: a neon and glitter splattered set of a supposedly run-of-the-mill high school. Our protagonist: a kid with a heart of gold and voice of an angel who just wants to sing on stage – though the folks at home aren't too thrilled. Our antagonist: a sickeningly obnoxious theater girl who not only deludes herself into thinking she runs the school but somehow actually does. A basketball team and cheerleading squad that constantly break into song and hip-hop sequences (including choreographed ball bouncing) upon experiencing any emotion. In short, a musical about high school. I know what you're thinking… it's obviously the 2019 Argentine teen drama, Go! Vive a tu manera.
Well, if you were actually thinking High School Musical, I'm with you. My initial reaction to the first episode was simple: "This is literally High School Musical… but worse."
But here's the thing about cheesy teen dramas – they drag you in. Or maybe that's just me. Either way, by the second episode, I found myself enthralled, fully transported to a dramatized version of the most turbulent yet entertaining time of everyone's lives: high school. A time of letting adolescent love triangles subsume my existence and thinking my (in reality quite mediocre) artistic talents knew no bounds. Suddenly, I was bopping my head along to main character Mía Cáceres' hit "Pase Lo Que Pase," dropping my jaw to revelations about Mía's godmother and the school owner's romantic past, and clenching my teeth in rage as yet another scheme by mean-girl-extraordinaire, Lupe Achával, came to fruition.
It's not for everyone, but I have a feeling that for a lot of us, a musical teen soap opera is the medicine we didn't even know the doctor ordered this winter. So before Season 2 of Sebastián Mellino's web series drops on Netflix this weekend, let's take a look at the cast of characters, shall we?
And… Go!
THE GIRL WHO JUST WON'T STOP BELIEVIN'
Photo courtesy of El Comercio
Look-alike: Gabriella Montez' voice and heart, with the looks of Gossip Girl's Serena van der Woodsen.
Tell me more: Mía Cáceres, portrayed by Pilar Pascual, is the girl we'd all like to imagine our past selves as but definitely were not. She's the absolute sweetheart of the show: talented (AKA the source of all the catchy songs), badass, and kind to the bone. Her dream is to attend St. Mary's, a boarding school with the best performing arts program in the nation. The only problem: Isabel, her godmother and sole parental figure, can't afford the tuition. When Mía slam-dunks the audition for a competitive scholarship, mean-girl Lupe (more on her in a bit) prevents the principal (Lupe's mother) from awarding it to her – all because she caught her boyfriend ogling the emerging star. Still, with a dollop of luck and a lot of blackmail, Mía ends up enrolling in St. Mary's after all, where she befriends the misfits (a wholly original plot twist) and challenges incumbent queen, Lupe (another shocker).
BUT HERE ON THE UPPER EAST SIDE… QUEEN B de la ARGENTINA
Photo courtesy of Cosmopolitan
Look-alike: Think Sharpay Evans, Regina George (Mean Girls), and most of all, Blair Waldorf (Gossip Girl) all rolled into one.
Tell me more: Entitled, manipulative, and drop-dead gorgeous, Lupe Achával is the mean girl we all love to hate. She's surrounded constantly by two dim-witted followers (Gretchen and Karen, step aside, darlings). When the show opens, Lupe (Renata Toscano) has been dealt the perfect hand: she's the principal's daughter, girlfriend of the school's best basketball player (Juanma), and lead of "Go," the music and dance group teens across the country would kill to get into. She'll do anything to keep this status, including taking down any girl (namely Mía) who dares speak to her beau, or worse, undermine her position as the most talented singer and dancer at St. Mary's. Well, that always ends well. What? It doesn't?
THE BOY YOU WANNA BRING HOME TO MAMA
Photo courtesy of RBD Noticias
Look-alike: Perfect mixture of Troy Bolton and Gossip Girl's Nate Archibald.
Tell me more: The show's attractiveness level goes from a solid 10 to really flippin' hot the second José Giménez Zapiola walks onto the set. Álvaro Paz may be wealthy, popular, the basketball team captain, and the son of the school's principal (stop drooling, ladies, seriously it's disgraceful), but that doesn't stop him from looking out for the bullied kids and exuding goodwill everywhere he goes.
The opposite of his sister Lupe, he's the character we love to love. Álvaro falls in love with Mía at first sight, but quickly learns that while she may be in distress for much of the show, treating her like a damsel won't get him very far. (Cough, Troy and Gabriella, cough). To complete the Sensitive Boy trademarked image, he also has his own problems, namely a complicated relationship with his stepfather and owner of the school, Ramiro Achával (played by Gastón Ricaud).
THE GUY WHO TAKES GYM CLASS WAY TOO SERIOUSLY
Photo courtesy of Youtube / Netflix
Look-alike: Run of the mill jock with the character arc of Gossip Girl's Chuck Bass
Tell me more: Juanma Portolesi, portrayed by Santiago Sáez, starts off seeming like a self-centered jock who would shove a scrawny freshman into a locker at the first opportunity. He quits the basketball team after being passed over for captain, and then asks his girlfriend Lupe to use her influence with her father (the school's owner) to get the decision reversed. Gross.
We quickly learn, however, that – drum roll, please – there's more beneath the surface, as he's still struggling to recover from his father's death three year prior. Juanma may not be a bad seed deep down but he still causes much annoyance throughout Season 1. He's Chuck Bass (with his own Queen B, of course) in that he starts off hate-able, but soon enough, emerges from the darkness. I'm most excited to see what he's up to in Season 2.
Our advice? It's Friday, so take tonight to binge Season 1 if you haven't seen it already, and then steamroll ahead on to Season 2 the rest of the weekend. It may not quite evoke the nostalgia of rewatching High School Musical or even Gossip Girl for the tenth time, but hey, you should probably stop doing that anyways.
Marie-Rose Sheinerman
Tags: dance, drama, go vive a tu manera, high school musical, musical, netflix, tv
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Famous Marines: Jonathan Winters
Famous Marines
In the News and Serving Their Community
JONATHAN WINTERS, Comedian
The real Jonathan Winters was born in Dayton, Ohio on November 11, 1925. After attending public school in Springfield, he joined the Marine Corps at the age of seventeen. After serving two-and-a-half years in the South Pacific, he returned to Ohio and attended Kenyon College.
His interest in art led him to Dayton Art Institute where he studied for over two years and met the girl who would become his wife, Eileen.
Eileen encouraged Jonathan to enter a local talent contest in Dayton, which he did, and he won a wrist watch, but the performance led him to a job as an early morning disc-jockey on radio station WING in Dayton (1946).
This job led him to WBNS-TV in Columbus where he worked for three years. In 1953, Jonathan headed for New York for the "big time" with $56.46 in his pocket. As a performer at Manhattan's Blue Angel nightclub, his reputation as a comic began to grow. Gary Moore, who was substituting for Arthur Godfrey on the TV Show "Talent Scouts", presented Jonathan on the show. Then came the Jack Paar Show, The Steve Allen Show, and The Tonight Show, where Jonathan was able to demonstrate his comic genius and he became a top name in American Comedy.
Jonathan and Eileen have two children and five grandchildren. They live in Santa Barbara, where Jonathan paints and writes when he is not performing.


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Hire a Greenville AC repair company today to find out how they can come out and provide you with the services you're in need of. Talking with them more about these issues can provide you with the help that is needed, while also having an idea of what needs to be done. Replacing the system, for older models might also be recommended depending on the severity of the issues you're having. Call them today to find out how they can come out and provide the necessary services needed.


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Home/Entertainment/Outrage after NPR said Declaration of Independence had 'flaws and deeply ingrained hypocrisies'
Outrage after NPR said Declaration of Independence had 'flaws and deeply ingrained hypocrisies'
NPR has sparked outrage on social media by calling the Declaration of Independence 'a document with flaws and deeply ingrained hypocrisies' on July 4.
The broadcaster publishes and reads on air the Declaration every year to mark Independence Day but this year included a warning that also pointed to 'a racial slur' within the document.
In an online article, NPR stated: 'Over the past 32 years, Morning Edition has broadcast a reading of the Declaration of Independence by NPR staff as a way of marking Independence Day.
'But after last summer's protests and our national reckoning on race, the words in the document land differently.'
In reference to the 'flaws and hypocrisies' within the historic document, NPR wrote: 'It famously declares "that all men are created equal" even though women, enslaved people and Indigenous Americans were not held as equal at the time.'
The article went on to discuss the treatment of Native Americans within the document – in which they are described as 'merciless Indian savages' – and share the views of an Ojibwe author on feelings among the U.S. Indigenous community towards the Declaration.
NPR concludes: 'The declaration is a document with flaws and deeply ingrained hypocrisies. It also laid the foundation for our collective aspirations, our hopes for what America could be.'
The article, on air reading and accompanying Twitter thread provoked fierce discussion on social media.
Some users took exception to the broadcaster's analysis of the document, which some in the United States regard as almost sacred due to its role in the creation of the nation.
'I'm sorry NPR – I won't be sending my annual contribution this year. I'm deeply regretful that I ever funded an organization that sees America's Declaration of Independence as 'flawed' or hypocritical. Bye. Now.,' one user wrote.
'This is the greatest document ever created by man. Maybe focus on that a little bit more next time,' another commented.
A third user accused NPR of being 'tone deaf'.
'Maybe the document wasn't flawed, but humans are? The hurt might be that it's a little tone deaf NPR. Read the room. It's a birthday party. We are all a family. We need some good moments to remember we want this to work. Please.'
Some users took exception to the broadcaster's analysis of the Declaration of Independence (pictured), which some in the United States regard as almost sacred due to its role in the creation of the nation
'I used to enjoy listening to NPR on my morning and afternoon commute. The past few years I've found it increasingly difficult to listen to your programming. I think you've lost your way and I cannot in good conscience support your work any longer,' another user wrote.
Some social media users included #DefundNPR in posts to express their displeasure with the broadcaster's message. In response, other users said they would donate to their local radio station.
NPR is partly funded by state and local governments through its member stations. These public radio stations receive government funding, some of which goes to pay NPR for the right to broadcast its content.
Grants from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and federal government make up less than one per cent of NPR's annual operating budget, according to the broadcaster's website.
NPR also receives funding through underwriting by corporate sponsors and individual contributions from listeners.
While NPR's take angered some, others agreed with the final statement that, despite its flaws, the document stands as an aspirational template for the country's future.
'I'm starting to think conservatives actually think the US has never done anything wrong,' one Twitter user wrote.
'I'm starting to think they actually see the founding fathers as some sort of gods that could do no wrong.'
Another shared a GIF asking 'Where's the lie?'.
'I love NPR. It's fine with me– it's ok to criticize things. Yes, it is a hypocritical document. So, in 2021, are we so "woke" that we cannot criticize things? Ridiculous,' a third said.
The controversy is not the first time NPR's annual reading has been met with Twitter backlash. In 2017, Trump supporters mistakenly believed the words of the Declaration referring to English King George III to be aimed at then-President Donald Trump.
Social media users hit out at NPR, accusing the broadcaster of left-wing propaganda, condoning violence and calling for a revolution.
NPR is frequently accused of displaying 'liberal bias' and 'elitism' in its programming, more so during and after the Trump administration.
Some embarrassed Twitter users later apologised for the misunderstanding.
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Nomination of Gerard Huet
The EATCS Award is awarded annually in recognition of a distinguished career in theoretical computer science. The Committee, consisting of Catuscia Palamidessi (Chair), Paul Spirakis and Emo Welzl in charge of evaluating the nominations to the 2009 EATCS Award has come to the decision to propose
Professor Gerard Huet
as the candidate for the 2009 EATCS Award in view of the excellent research contributions to theoretical computer science produced throughout his outstanding scientific career. The Committee unanimously shares the motivations contained in the nomination letter. The proposal has been unanimously approved by the EATCS Council. The Award will be assigned during a ceremony that will take place in Rhodes (Greece) during ICALP2009 (July 5-12, 2009).
Nomination of Prof. Gérard Huet for the EATCS Award 2009 Gérard Huet has made numerous, enduring advances in the foundations of computer science and has been a central figure in several important software systems.
He has also had a remarkably active and successful academic and professional life. His distinguished career in theoretical computer science has exerted considerable influence on not only the field but also the many students and colleagues
that he has directly influenced.
A hallmark of Huet research is his talent for taking highly technical material and providing it with a clear and deep analysis. For example, in his paper on the unification of typed lambda-terms (in the first volume of TCS, 1975), Huet took a difficult topic, reshaped and redefined it, and left a solution so well developed that it took more than 15 years of active research before any one saw a need to extend it. Since that first major result, he has repeated this performance numerous times. Equally characteristic of Huet's research is the intimate connections he maintains between theoretical computer science topics and their eective implementation. He was one of the first computer scientists who was able to move between these two domains and who felt that there was no option to doing so: these two topics were absolutely needed to inform each other.
Huet was a leader in the general areas of logical frameworks and constructive typed theories. Thanks in large part to his achievements and eorts, formal mathematics has taken huge strides and is starting to have an impact on the wider world.
He has worked extensively at disseminating his view of this bold new world of formalized reasoning: for example, he has organized numerous summer schools and given countless invited talks and tutorials. Many researchers in France and
elsewhere count themselves as students of Huet even if they were never formally his PhD advisee. Principal Scientific Contributions
We list and briefly describe some of the many contributions made by Gérard Huet.
In the early 70's, Huet developed both resolution and unification for higherorder logic: these results have became the core of several modern systems that perform deduction in higher-order logic.
Huet has done fundamental research in the areas of rewriting and Knuth- Bendix completion. His writings in this area are extensive and elegant.
Between 1982 and 1989, Huet directed and contributed to the design and implementation of the CAML functional programming language. That language and its descendants have given academics and industries an efficient and well structured programming language.
In the 1990s, Huet and his students designed and built the first version of the Coq proof assistant. Today, Coq is one of the most used and trusted platforms for formalized mathematics and formal methods.
Huet has a broad culture inside and out side of computer science. He has made, for example, important contributions in other areas as well: he is the author of executable lecture notes; he is the designer of the Zipper data structure; and he has built the Zen toolbox for phonological and morphological segmentation and labeling of Sanskrit.
In 1972, Huet received his PhD in Computer Science from Case Western Reserve University, Ohio, USA and in the same year, he started as a researcher at IRIA (which later became INRIA), a position that he has maintained since then. In 1976 he obtained his Thèse d'Etat from University Paris 7. In addition to being a researcher at INRIA, he has been a Professor at the University of Orsay in 1975-76; an Invited Professor at Carnegie Mellon University during 1985-1986; and a Visiting Professor at the Asian Institute of Technology in Bangkok in 1986.
He organized the Institute of Logical Foundations of Functional Programming during the Year of Programming at the University of Texas in Austin in Spring 1987. He organized CEFIPRA workshops at IIT Kanpur in 1990 and 1995, and a series of Winter schools at Institute of Physics in Bhubaneshwar (Orissa) in 1999, 2000, and 2002. He has taught at a number of summer schools, including the Marktoberdorf Summer School, the Toulouse Summer School on Logic and
Informatics, the Ecole du Greco de Programmation, and the ESSLLI Summer School. He was the conference organizer for the 5th International Conference on Automated Deduction (CADE) in Les Arcs in 1980 and for the Logic in Computer Science Symposium (LICS) in Paris in 1994.
He has edited three books and authored more than 80 research papers. He has also directed 19 doctoral thesis (including T. Coquand, G. Dowek, C. Paulin-Mohring, and X. Leroy) and took part to more than 100 thesis committees internationally. Huet was also the coordinator of the ESPRIT European projects Logical
Frameworks and TYPES from 1990 to 1995.
Huet has received a number of honors and awards to date. He has been Directeur de Recherches de Classe Exceptionnelle at INRIA since 1989. He was elected a Member of Academia Europaea in 1989 and a Member of the Academy of Sciences of the Institute of France in 2002. He received the Herbrand Award for his work on Computational Logic in 1998 and received the degree of Doctor of Technology honoris causa from Chalmers University in Göteborg (Sweden) in 2004.
Henk Barendregt Robert Constable
Gilles Dowek
Masami Hagiya
Jean-Pierre Jouannaud
Jean-Jacques Levy
Dale Miller
Robin Milner
Tobias Nipkow
Larry Paulson
Frank Pfenning
Benjamin Pierce


Home > Industry News > 'Appalling violence' or legitimate art form?
'Appalling violence' or legitimate art form?
INDUSTRY figures have slammed the censorship of video games in Australia and say the medium should be considered an art form like film or literature.
The latest title in the popular Silent Hill game series that spawned a feature film in 2006 was refused classification last month after failing to meet the requirements for an MA15+ rating.


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M. Nicole Nazzaro of the Seattle area awaits the start of the 2014 Boston Marathon on Monday.
BOSTON, Mass. – Everything you've heard is true. The 118th running of the Boston Marathon went off yesterday triumphantly, under near-perfect conditions, a year removed from the attacks that left four people dead and a region in shock.
But what you may not have heard is this race wasn't just run over a few hours starting Monday morning. For the 72 hours starting on a warm and sunny Saturday, the Hub was a patchwork quilt of kindness, vigilance, and even an opportunity to outrun an NFL quarterback in the granddaddy of all marathons.
This year's Boston Marathon far more than a one-day road race. The gestures of warmth toward visitors who poured into town to support the race included memorials, lovely Easter services, and even a beautiful knitting project by the Old South Church at the finish line. The Marathon Scarf Project 2014 went viral, resulting in 7,000 marathoners receiving a gift of a homemade blue and yellow scarf (the colors of the Boston Athletic Association, which puts on the marathon), many of which were mailed in from crafters all over the world. When you picked up your scarf at the church, you got a hug and a wish of good luck on race day from a church member.
The streets were full of visitors, especially along the stretch of Boylston Street where the bombs were detonated last year. Police were vigilant and visible, but also appreciative. "Thank you for coming," I heard over and over again from officers guarding the streets where we walked.
All of these gestures preceded the most memorable Boston Marathon in my lifetime.
It started Saturday morning, with one of the sweetest little 5K races I've ever run – and by "little," I mean little only in comparison to the almost 32,000 people who started yesterday's Boston Marathon. The Watertown, Mass., police department held a 5,000-meter (3.1-mile) race on Saturday, April 19, commemorating the events in their town a year ago that led to the capture of the Boston Marathon bombing suspects.
They expected a few hundred folks to show up. They got over 1,600 runners on a gorgeous early-spring day. A deejay spun tunes, like Pharrell Williams' hit "Happy." The first person to crack the bombing case – amputee Jeff Bauman, who identified one suspect from his hospital room last year – exchanged an embrace with the last person to do so, boat owner and Watertown resident Dave Henneberry, who found the second suspect hiding in his dry-docked boat in his backyard during the manhunt. Together, they were the race starters.
After the race, I listened in as my husband, a lifelong boater, exchanged boat tales with Henneberry. Hennberry was given $50,000 by benefactors to replace his bullet-ridden boat after the capture of the second bombing suspect last April. The boat has since been confiscated as evidence in the case. Henneberry decided on a 1987 Rampage fishing boat, list price around $25,000. We heard that he donated the remainder to the One Fund to benefit the bombing victims.
The start of the 2014 Boston Marathon.
It was that kind of week. Generosity, warmth, and kindness all around – and then, one tremendous road race.
Marathon Monday reminded me of another race that I covered for Runner's World magazine, but did not run in myself: the 2001 New York City Marathon, held less than two months after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Then, too, there was a sense of defiance in the city, a feeling that a way of life had been attacked and that a marathon was going to help the citizens of the city glue their community back together. The police presence was very visible – and the race went off without a hitch.
That's what it felt like yesterday as we made our way from the Boston Common, the large park adjacent to the finish line, to the buses that would take us to the starting line to Hopkinton. I have never seen so many law enforcement officers in one place – or so many helicopters flying overhead. But it didn't feel like a war zone.
It felt like we all understood what was at stake. The region had committed all of its resources to ensuring that this event succeeded in reclaiming the race as a day of celebration.
Because I no longer spend Marathon Mondays in the press room, I missed out on American Meb Keflezighi's astonishing win in the men's division, and the course record set by Kenya's Rita Jeptoo in the women's event. Keflezighi is the real deal. I worked for NBC at the 2004 Athens Olympics, when he won a silver medal in the marathon, the first by an American man in that event since 1976. But he was on nobody's top-five dance card before this race – except his own. Fellow American Tatyana McFadden won the women's wheelchair event for the second straight year. Overall, it was a great day for American marathoning.
While Meb gave a rousing speech about this win being for Boston and for America, I was out on the course, negotiating huge crowds of fans. There were the usual gestures of this day (orange slices and ice cubes being handed out by people along the course, in addition to the official Gatorade and water provided by race organizers) and some funny moments, too. A few wise guys were offering beer, donuts and cigarettes to runners in the staging area near the start line. A more virtuous crew across the street was offering Vaseline, sunblock, safety pins – all free of charge.
The early miles were joyous, with larger crowds than I have ever seen in the small towns that make up the first part of the course: Hopkinton, Ashland, Natick and Framingham. Every town had huge crowds at those intersections, extending for many blocks. There were fire trucks and costumes, dance tunes being pumped out from boom boxes, and high-fives from everyone watching the race. I had to stop high-fiving spectators after a while; my arm was getting sore from holding it up so long.
The most challenging aspect of my race turned out to be the weather.
The Boston Marathon course is mostly unshaded asphalt, so a sunny day can feel significantly warmer than the reported temperature. I reached a point around 20 miles where I realized I needed to pay more attention to the water stops, and less attention to my pace. I couldn't tell if the chills I felt were from the mountains of screaming spectators – or the first signs of heat exhaustion.
I gratefully accepted handfuls of ice several times on the course's last few miles, as well as an absolutely perfect (and cold!) slice of orange. I sensed the exact moment where I crossed the spot on the course where I had been stopped last year, just beyond the "1 Mile to Go" sign, and took a breath. The race was still happening.
Mementos of the author's 2014 Boston Marathon.
And finally, in my fastest Boston finish ever, despite the conditions, I ran those last 600 meters down Boylston Street, the race I couldn't finish a year ago, and looked around at the race and the city I knew would come back from the terrible events of April 15, 2013.
Last night I caught up with two of my Seattle running buddies and several friends from the Boston area. We ate chowder and pot pie at a brewhouse near Harvard Square and celebrated a day well run. All around the region, 32,000 people were sharing the same stories of triumph around the family hearth that Boston became this week.
Everything you've read is true. It was a grand, grand day in Boston.


Rob and Jason are joined by Matt Fernandez from Intel Labs to discuss Formal Verification.
Matthew Fernandez is a Research Scientist with Intel Labs. Matt began his programming career building Windows GUI applications and designing databases, before moving into operating system architecture and security. He has a PhD in formal verification of operating systems from the University of New South Wales in Australia, and worked with the Australian research group Data61. In the past, he has worked on compilers, device drivers and hypervisors, and now spends his days exploring new tools and techniques for functional correctness and verification of security properties. On the weekends, you can usually find Matt in a park with a good book, hunting for good coffee or helping a newbie debug their code. He hopes to avoid saying "monad" on this podcast.
Rob and Jason are joined by Gordon Brown to discuss his work on SYCL the OpenCL abstraction layer for C++.
Gordon is a senior software engineer at Codeplay Software in Edinburgh, specialising in designing and implementing heterogeneous programming models for C++. Gordon spends his days working on ComputeCpp; Codeplay's implementation of SYCL and contributing to various standards bodies including the Khronos group and ISO C++. Gordon also co-organises the Edinburgh C++ user group and occasionally blogs about C++. In his spare time, Gordon enjoys dabbling in game development, board games and walking with his two dogs.
CppCon 2017: Gordon Brown "Designing a Unified Interface for Execution"
Rob and Jason are joined by Eberhard Gräther to discuss his work on Sourcetrail, a cross-platform source explorer for C++ code.
Eberhard Gräther is software developer, user experience designer and founder at Coati Software. He started programming C++ during his undergraduate CS degree at Salzburg University of Applied Sciences, majoring in game development. During multiple internships in the Google Chrome Team he worked on tools for rendering performance analysis. He then specialized in Human Computer Interaction and developer tooling during a Master's degree, where he started working on Sourcetrail, a cross-platform source explorer for faster understanding of unfamiliar source code.
Win a free ticket to C++ on Sea!
C++Now 2018: Eberhard Gräther "The Untapped Potential of Software Visualization"
Rob and Jason are joined by Colin Hirsch to discuss his work on The Art of C++ collection of libraries including PEGTL, json and more.
Dr. Colin Hirsch studied Computer Science at the University of Technology in Aachen, Germany in 1993 and later got a PhD in Mathematics from the same university. He worked for two years as a consultant for T-Mobile, developing back-end server applications in C++ and Lua. Later Colin moved to Italy, opened his own business and continued working for T-Mobile (now Deutsche Telekom) as well as working for some other interesting projects like Greenpeace and the Austrian ministry of ecology.
In his free time he enjoys photography, being in nature, science fiction and spending time with his daughter.
Rob and Jason are joined by Simon Brand to discuss his upcoming CppCon talks covering exceptions, value wrappers, debuggers and more.
Simon is a GPGPU toolchain developer at Codeplay Software in Edinburgh. He turns into a metaprogramming fiend every full moon, when he can be found bringing compilers to their knees with template errors and debating undefined behaviour on the C++ Slack channel. He co-organises the Edinburgh C++ user group and contributes to various programming standards bodies.
Outside of programming, he enjoys experimental films, homebrewing, and board games.