Is Storytelling a Part of Your Learning Design?
Aboard a recent flight from New York to San Francisco, I watched the new United Airlines safety video. Yes, I watched it because it was not only a smooth piece of marketing for the airline, but it was also an improved means of teaching or reminding passengers about airline safety. The video was a well-crafted piece of storytelling and held my interest as I heard each of the characters tell their part of the story. Storytelling has proved its value as a teaching tool time and time again, but just how much of a place does storytelling have in today's learning culture? How do we define storytelling nowadays? How do we adapt best practices to meet the needs of the millennial learner-employee?
Expert stories are used in a number of ways in the development of training and performance support content.
An expert story might provide the basis for the learning design, as a foundation from which objectives are extrapolated and around which the training content is presented. This is frequently the way most training design begins. Sometimes this is referred to as the "brain dump" in situations where the expert shares what s/he knows and the learning designer "takes it from there," building a learning design around those objectives in a series of presentational screens or PowerPoint slides. Interactivity may be introduced at varying levels to make the experience more engaging.
In other situations, an expert story may become a part of the training itself, either in the form of video clips integrated within the learning design itself, or as the main component of a course or learning module, around which activities such as assessments and discussions may be designed.
"The expert clip" (those video clips of varying lengths) can also be included as part of a more extensive knowledge base, tagged and categorized as appropriate for maximum findability to be accessed by learners and employees on an as-needed basis in order to complete training or on-the-job tasks.
All of the above examples use stories to illustrate effective decisions made and lessons learned. There is a more learner-centric use of stories, and that is the participation of your learners in the story in order to actually practice effective decision-making, perhaps fail, and receive remediation and feedback as part of the skills-building process.
While "illustrative storytelling" can support learners and employees engaged in specific tasks, it's the "immersive storytelling" that is going to place them within a task for the sole purpose of actually simulating the doing of that task in a safe environment. And while immersed in that practice task, your virtual characters are still going to need the support of an expert to guide them safely to goal.
So it's not an either-or situation but rather a matter of how safe and appropriate it is to let your learners loose on the specific tasks at hand.
Today everyone can be an expert and contribute their stories to the knowledge base whether as part of small group interactions in the classroom, online discussions as part of a synchronous learning experience, or within the workplace in the form of content shared within a company portal.
When we consider today's learners and our audience within the workplace, we know we need to provide learning content in appealing doses and formats. While a talking head may not be enough to sustain a 10-week college course, it might be just the right thing for a salesperson looking for quick advice on how to meet a specific type of customer objection, for example. And if that salesperson is a new hire, it might just be appropriate to immerse him in a 30-minute scenario where he can practice meeting different objections and fail safely within the confines of the learning experience.
Stories come in many different formats and serve different purposes. What they all have in common is that they can play an integral role in increasing understanding and driving performance across the educational continuum.
Stay tuned for more stories from Designs2Learn. And if you'd like to see more about that new airline safety video, Forbes has a nice piece on it, including the video itself here.
This entry was posted in 70:20:10, Corporate Learning, K-12 Education, Learning Design, Storytelling on September 25, 2014 by Sheri Handel.
This week we're kicking off Designs2Learn's series of interviews with social edupreneurs whose work we respect for how it uses technology and learning design for social impact goals. Our first interview is with Naina Boveja, founder and CEO of e-collaborate. Naina and e-collaborate are doing some great work in using technology to bring kids together globally and introduce kids to the concept of service and hands-on education.
Designs2Learn: Can you provide a quick snapshot of e-collaborate for our audience?
Naina Boveja: e-collaborate started in 2010 with the idea of connecting classrooms and communities globally. We developed programs in clean drinking water for the K-12 audience. Since then, we have spent a lot of time working on a Virtual Internship Program that connects high school students to non-profits across the globe for the purposes of learning empathy, career readiness skills and social entrepreneurship.
How did you get into the world of edupreneurism? What initially inspired you?
I had always been involved in the non-profit world as an intern or volunteer, but never really thought I could start one on my own. Since I had no idea what I wanted to do after I graduated from college, I thought it would be valuable to offer programs to teens that could help them make that difficult decision and help them choose a path.
What were some of your initial challenges? How did you overcome them?
Since I was new to the education space, I learned a lot about the "system" and the way things are done in schools. I also realized that we need to provide dynamic and engaging programs that students can do on their own, instead of requiring a teacher to spend class time to try our programs. Teachers have so many things on their plates and our intention was to help provide programs that would be meaningful and add to a student's life, not burden a teacher's. We have started reaching out to other avenues, including PTAs, career centers, global studies programs, private schools, and schools with a focus on global education for a better fit.
Can you tell us about the Virtual Internship program you are currently working on?
The Virtual Internship program (http://vip.e-collaborate.org), as I mentioned above, connects students to NGOs across the globe for a "virtual internship experience." They fill out an application based on their interests and are matched to one of our partnered NGOs. We introduce a Mentor/ Teacher component to help support students and provide feedback. Teachers can chose to fulfill the mentor role by having a class of students who are virtual interns, and they can follow their students and give meaningful feedback before the work is submitted to the NGOs..
The platform is engaging and dynamic with videos, interviews, presentations, and activities for the students to complete. We are also introducing the idea of a "social resume" to the program, where students can highlight the work they are proud of, keep track of their volunteer hours, and share the link in their resumes, cover letters, and college applications.
What type of responses are you getting from your current participants?
Current participants and people in general are impressed with the platform and the idea. We are trying to strike the right balance between interactions with the non-profits, and provide a meaningful experience for the students. The virtual internship program is being launched this year, and we are still looking for students to sign up to get more feedback.
What are your plans for growing the program?
Currently, we are reaching out to schools and teachers within our network. I have also recently started my M.A. at Georgetown University, and am working to spread the word through that community and reaching out to different groups. I am already impressed with the resources Georgetown has, such as the Center for Public and Non-Profit Leadership, Hoya Entrepreneurs, and the Beeck Center for Social Impact & Innovation. I plan to utilize as many resources so I can continue to help spread the word.
What are some projects on your roadmap?
Right now, we are focusing on getting more students signed up for the Virtual Internship Program. In the future, I hope to continue to provide programs that help young adults learn valuable skills that they can carry with them throughout their lives.
What advice do you have for others who are interested in focusing on educational projects for social impact?
I think ideas are best realized in a supportive, collaborative environment. I always feel talking to people about my ideas and getting their feedback helps create a better project. I can't stress how important feedback is, because sometimes you have an idea about something and it could be so much better when you take into consideration different perspectives.
Stay tuned for updates on learning design for social impact and more from Designs2Learn.
This entry was posted in Educational Technology, Experiential learning, Internships, K-12 Education, Learning Design, Service, Social Impact on September 23, 2014 by Sheri Handel.
As we continue to explore the appropriate blend of learning across the educational continuum, the recurring themes that arise include the need for more individualized instruction, the importance of project-based learning, and the role that mentors can play in the development of our students and employees. Today, we're going to look briefly at the world of unschooling and examine how some s best practices arising from one system may be applied to the other.
John Holt, the teacher and writer is credited with coining the phrase "unschooling" to refer quite simply to "learning without going to school." Holt's many works detail his belief that children should learn according to their own curiosity and interests, that they spend more time out of school, and that they learn from a larger circle of teachers, including from their own peers. Holt had six years' experience teaching in the fifth grade before he "dropped out" in the late 60s to focus on writing, lecturing, and consulting with school systems across the country.
What Lessons Can We Derive?
Today everyone is encouraged to be an innovator, and more and more, we look throughout the entire chain of command to ensure the success of the organization. The sense of individual responsibility that is required for such success within large corporations and self-owned businesses is something that has to be nurtured early on. When we look at the hallmarks of the unschooling movement, we can see some of the qualities that help to foster such self-directed and innovative practices.
This begs that question as to whether unschooling is the only means by which to nurture independent thinking, to increase the sense of individual responsibility and to make better use of peer engagement and outside experts in the learning process. No, but it does encourage us to examine the current blend of learning, the role of test-driven curricula, and the potential to a move toward an increased ratio of project-based learning, DIY or maker-driven blended learning and even "e-learning days," those days off from the brick and mortar complex to individualized projects completed at home and which still contribute to students' completion of their graduation requirements.
The introduction of blended learning programs in the schools addresses at least the issue of more support for individualized learning, and there is growing evidence of more successful collaborations between the public and private sectors through which an increased number of outside experts are engaging with our students in the schools. Two groups that I've enjoyed following are iMentor and Tools at Schools.
Unschooling has provided a reasonable alternative for many families for whom traditional education was not an option. By looking at the benefits extolled by its own practitioners and the evidence of their successes beyond the K-12 arena, we may derive some additional best practices for preparing our next generation for adulthood and a 70:20:10 workplace.
This entry was posted in 70:20:10, Experiential learning, K-12 Education, Learn by doing, Learning Design on September 18, 2014 by Sheri Handel.
This powerful image, called "At School," first appeared in a series called "France in the Year 2000," postcards created for the 1900 World Exhibition in Paris. In this prescient series, artists imagined what life would be like in the year 2000. The series is posted to The Public Domain Review, and I first saw it via a link from the innovative folks at Rise Out.
What is so interesting about the series is how insightful some of the concepts were in envisioning how technology would impact on people's lives in all aspects ranging from daily chores such as housekeeping to agricultural practices and warfare. What remains so interesting today is how these images can help us reflect on where we are today and where we would like to be in terms of how to use technology to improve our lives.
As we see more and more applications of technology-assisted instruction and the principles of blended learning enter the discussion over best educational practices, we realize that 70:20:10 has already made an appearance in classrooms, although it may not always be referred to as such. It's only fitting to consider how "the blend" will evolve over time.
Content that needed to reach the greatest number of employees.
Courses covered infrequently at remote locations.
Content considered pre-work to other training activities.
Content that changed so frequently that it's difficult to keep the audience up-to-date.
Content that put the learner in harm's way (use of simulations covered this).
Content requiring significant drill and practice to master.
Content linked to regulatory compliance or certification.
While some of these still hold true as reasons for determining the nature of delivery, decisions go beyond how to deliver a course, but how to drive performance on a regular basis.
As online learning has become more of the standard mix in the corporate environment, conversations have evolved and become more focused on informal learning and how that can best be applied within the workplace. So, the blend" is now less about combining online with face-to-face but more about the degree of formality in the mix. The 10% (or more, percentages do not have to be exact) of formal learning most likely includes both face-to-face instruction and online learning components.
The larger concern is how to best provide the tools and management over the other 90%. How can organizations best provide the informational resources and expertise to increase employee engagement and improve employee performance? Technology in the form of performance management and individualized learning plans can support the formal part of the equation while online coaching and mentoring tools, personalization features and capabilities around user-generated content all contribute to making more robust informal and social learning.
What is Driving Blended Learning in K-12?
In a lot of classrooms nowadays, "blended" in many cases has come to mean a blended modality within the classroom itself. Teachers are utilizing technology-assisted instruction to better enable them to carry out individualized instruction, assigning online activities to individual students and groups while working one-on-one (or in small groups) with others.
It's no secret that a great deal of blended learning in K-12, and the attendant technology offerings, can be tracked to Common Core and concerns around meeting the standards. We're not going to enter that debate here, but to see this blend occur in this manner is interesting and has a lot of implications for the future of learning.
Project-based learning, DIY Learning and the Maker Movement are trends that reflect the growing confidence in experiential learning and how we can strengthen the bond between how you learn in school and how you learn on the job.
As we've discussed previously, we see all manner of learning moving in the direction of a model much like that of 70:20:10. While the percentages may differ, and where the bulk of learning activity along the continuum may reside within a more formal environment for some and less formal for others remains to be seen.
As online learning enters the K-12 environment and teachers are provided tools to address individual learning styles more efficiently and more effectively, students also become better equipped to manage or direct their own learning.
And as these students mature, and utilize more of the tools at their disposal to support their learning, they enter the workplace with even more skills to address the problem solving required of them.
This entry was posted in 70:20:10, Corporate Learning, Experiential learning, K-12 Education, Learn by doing on September 16, 2014 by Sheri Handel.
As corporations and educational institutions either exult in or struggle with the evolution of learning, debates continue to rage over the myriad of technologies available to achieving success. According to Bersin by Deloitte, annual spends on learning are back to pre-2008 levels. Brandon Hall is reminding us to connect learning to organizational goals. Watch your KPIs! There is much to sort through. At the end of the day, one change in perspective is going to make all the difference: We simply must stop considering learning to be a one-time event and to approach learner success with a continuous learning strategy in mind. Here are the top five things you need to consider when mapping out a continuous learning plan for your organization.
1. Can you provide a continuous learning environment for your employees?
Despite the non-stop discussions over the appropriate selection of learning management systems, and despite the fact that 42% of organizations are looking for a new LMS, an LMS alone is not the solution. These discussions miss the point. Yes, you need a high quality LMS to track learning, manage learning plans and competencies, and depending on the nature of your business, be able to provide a rich set of data to see how learning is supporting your organization's business strategy. But in the absence of the easy access to resources, company communications, and access to experts and peers, the LMS itself is not going to get you to where you need to be. Let's break it down further.
2. What kind of support can you offer for completing everyday tasks?
Learning happens every day on the job, and part of the way to help your employees perform better is access to the resources they need to get the job done. Whether it's a library of best practices, sales presentations, product specifications, case studies, etc., how easy is it for your teams to find the information they need to meet the needs of your customers?
3. Where are your experts hiding?
How easy is it for employees at any level of the organization to get help when training and resources don't provide them with what they need to know? What is the mechanism for requesting help? It should not be phone or email. And reverse the roles and ask yourself, how easy is it for experts to keep up with the requests? Mentoring is key to a solid continuous learning strategy, and you should be providing the tools and processes to make this happen.
4. How engaging is the actual training you provide?
None of this is meant to diminish the importance of well-designed and professionally executed training. There's a YouTube video out there for nearly everything, and we love Khan Academy and the fantastic resources that are out there today that can and should be available to help drive learning and performance. But when you target the 10% of formal learning you need to provide today, don't forget to bring along your instructional design team and make it worth your learner's while.
5. How connected are your employees to the successes and failures of your organization?
Another vital component of your continuous learning environment should be regular communications from senior leadership as to how your company is doing. An environment in which your CEO can report by blog, video post, etc. about recent wins and even losses makes for a cohesive ecosystem in which everyone understands the part they play. Lessons learned through this type of communications strategy are no less important than those in a 5-minute video or one-hour training module.
Continuous learning is a key strategy for success in the workplace. Promoting continuous learning is something we should start doing in kindergarten and throughout one's formal education. And once people get to the workplace, we should have the tools to support continuous learning and company success.
This entry was posted in Corporate Learning, Educational Technology, Higher Education, K-12 Education, Learning Design on September 10, 2014 by Sheri Handel.
Last spring, I took a road trip with my then sixteen-year-old as we visited five colleges in six days. We drove a huge loop, traveling nearly 800 miles in total, heading northwest from New York City, where we live, stopping in Ithaca, Syracuse, Benington, Boston, and western Connecticut. It's an annual rite of passage for thousands of families, and for someone in my line of work, one that brought into very sharp focus much of what I have been treating as somewhat . . . academic . . . these past few years: the value of a four-year, brick and mortar college experience in preparing people for adulthood and the workplace.
1. You can't get a job without a college degree, but what's the likelihood of getting a job with a college degree?
According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), in 2013, only 29.3% of graduates had found jobs prior to graduation. A follow-up of recent grads revealed that 59% had found jobs 6-8 months after graduation.
What combination of skills, luck, and extra-curricular activity did it take for those 59%, and how much of a role did their alma mater play in their landing that job?
The colleges we visited ranged from enrollments just over 21,000 to just over 700. Dormitories ranged from concrete boxes to cozy cottages. The curricula we were exploring went from highly prescribed to incredibly open. The opportunities for study abroad varied somewhat, particularly when looking at specialized curricula, but most of the colleges provided a good amount of support for making that happen. All of these factors come onto play in terms of learning to function in a larger social group, to make yourself heard, to plan ahead and make decisions for yourself, and to experience other cultures.
What stood out most to me in terms of preparedness were the opportunities for internships available at the different institutions and how integral a part they played each college's overall curriculum.
Without the opportunity to actually put into practice what you've been learning in the classroom, the chances for being prepared for the working world decrease substantially. Or without the exposure to the potential range of career options and job roles within those for any given career, the less prepared a graduate is and the more unrealistic the scenario of one's education becomes.
I cut my instructional design teeth on the development of complex, scenario-based learning programs. In these programs, we placed our learners in different roles in which they were required to either make decisions for themselves or advise others. While our learners were provided with tools with which to make decisions, we expected them to fail, and when they did, they had access to knowledge building and better decision making.
So, at the end of the day (or at the end of a nearly 800-mile journey), the great value of a four-year, brick-and-mortar college education is the series of scenarios one engages in on the road to adulthood and employment. How safe or how realistic those scenarios need to be really depends on the student and the selected program of study. But it is the blend of formal and informal learning, the academic and experiential learning that is going to help prepare people for the workplace and drive their success once they arrive.
This entry was posted in Experiential learning, Higher Education, Internships, Learn by doing on September 8, 2014 by Sheri Handel.
A recent conversation with a respected educator friend prompted me to add Tracy Kidder's "Mountains Beyond Mountains" to my end-of-summer reading list. Her recommendation coincided with plans for launching Designs2Learn and provided some unique perspective on the concept of service.
Many of you are already familiar with Tracy Kidder's work through "Among Schoolchildren," and many may know of Paul Farmer through either Kidder's work or Farmer's own writings. Kidder is a world-class storyteller, and Farmer a medical practitioner and anthropologist whose quest for social justice is nearly impossible to replicate, but whose example is inspiration to at least try.
Farmer is an out-of-the-box kind of guy not only because he spent part of his childhood living in a school bus, but also, and more importantly, because of how he has approached problem-solving some of the most challenging health and social issues of our day.
There are quite a few lessons to be drawn from Farmer's story for educators, designers, and managers of learning experiences in terms of the impact we can make on people's lives through the work we do.
Farmer's work often goes against the status quo of those in his own and related fields. Whether it is the time spent visiting patients in the far flung villages of Haiti or prisoners in Russia, or the amount of money spent per patient, or the range of services rendered, his work is seen by some as not only exceeding expectations but contradictory to accepted practices.
In the case of his beloved Haiti, as well as in Peru and Russia as well, it is not only the relief of pain and suffering from TB and AIDS, but the eradication of the conditions that caused the development and spreading of these illnesses that he has fought for.
In our own work as teachers, designers, and managers of learning, we all have the capacity for enormous change.
Farmer read the works of Rudolf Virchow while a student at Duke, and the medical anthropologist's perspectives on service to the community had a huge impact on him. Virchow himself had led a campaign for compulsory meat inspection and designed a sewage system for his native Germany while also being the first to propose that the study of disease should be focused on changes in the cell.
In Virchow, Farmer saw a model for social medicine.
In Farmer's work, we can see a model for social impact within our respective fields.
When Farmer was working in Peru to treat a relatively small number of MDR (Multiple Drug Resistant TB) patients, the prevailing argument was that MDR was not as pervasive as drug-susceptible disease and that it was simply too expensive and difficult to treat in these areas. Most people felt that as a clinician, Farmer was too focused on the treatment of individual patients to see the big picture required for successful public health initiatives and that efforts should continue to center on drug-susceptible disease under the current set of practices.
Not only did Farmer believe that every patient deserved to be treated, he knew the data proved that the then current course would lead to the spread of MDR and increasingly resistant strains of the disease.
He saw both the big picture and the individual impact that was required to get the disease under control.
With new technology being continually developed for educational purposes, it makes sense to not only share but focus some of this development with and on the disenfranchised or underserved.
This was Farmer's response to the mother of a three-year-old patient who was thanking him for helping to save her son from MDR. In his diagnosis of the case and ensuing recommendations for treatment, Farmer drew on his vast understanding of infectious disease, but he also needed to help his fellow doctors in Peru go beyond established, approved procedures to treat this particular type of TB.
When his efforts began to prove successful, as in the case of this young child, Farmer not only provided a cure for the individual patient but enacted considerable social change as well in reducing the costs of treatment and incidences of the disease globally.
As teachers, designers and managers of learning, we share the responsibility and privilege inherent in being able to make an impact on individual lives as well as the potential for social change that comes with education.
Stay tuned in the coming weeks for more from Design2Learn on how people in the field of education are using their skills and resources for social impact.
This entry was posted in Service, Social Impact on September 4, 2014 by Sheri Handel.
Dialoging (a polite term here at best) with my 17-year-old about her approach to one of her summer homework assignments, she turned what was going to be my argument on its heels. Instead, she reinforced much of what I've been advocating for professionally, and she illustrated more than ever the need for a more pragmatic approach to learning at all stages across the educational continuum.
My initial query into her approach centered on how closely she had read the assigned material for a particular class. The assignment consisted of reading the assigned book and locating at least five sources to substantiate responses to a number of questions on key points of the book. Some potential resources were recommended for the outside sources but not much else in the way of methodology or support for completing the assignment.
I then asked her about the outside sources she selected, whether they were ones of her own choosing or ones that had been shared by friends. Some were provided by friends (there is much ad hoc team work that goes on that one wonders why team-based projects still create so much angst) and others she found herself, several simply in the process of trying to understand the content of the assigned source itself.
"You of all people should understand why I work like that," she declared, and I knew that she was paving her own way through the process of learning, albeit with some peer support and some increasingly adept, self-taught research skills.
Two articles from August's issue of T&D highlight the need to develop more independent learners from a corporate perspective. In "Teaching Learners to Fish," Allyce Barron outlines an approach for placing "learners in an active role inside the training room, and out on the job after the training session is over." In "Partnering to Improve Time to Competency and Efficiency," Emily Dunn and Adam Krob provide an overview of and case for Knowledge Management and Knowledge-Centered Support in the workplace. Both pieces extol the long-term benefits for companies of teaching employees how to more effectively control their own learning and to become more efficient seekers of knowledge.
This is something we can and should start teaching earlier on. Just as corporations and universities are including the role of "curator" into their learning teams to help learners sift through the noise of available resources, so should K-12 schools support their student performance through the carefully guided acquisition of knowledge management skills and practices.
This entry was posted in Corporate Learning, Higher Education, K-12 Education, Learn by doing, Learning Design on September 2, 2014 by Sheri Handel.


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I hope your visit will help you understand the opportunities and potential rewards that are available when you take a proactive approach to your personal financial situation. I created this website to help you gain a better understanding of the financial concepts behind investing, insurance, retirement, estate planning, and wealth preservation. Most importantly, I hope you see the value of working with skilled professionals to pursue your financial goals.


text:
Cathy Boom
Creative Director, Editor & Entrepeneur, Apartment, Kreuzberg, Berlin
6 6 Mar 2013
Interviews > Cathy Boom
Swiss-born Cathy Boom has lived intermittently in Berlin for almost a quater of a decade. Fourteen years ago she settled down with her boyfriend, artist JayBo, and their daughter in a fantastic apartment overlooking Hasenheide in Kreuzberg. She appreciates the German capital for it's unconventional, raw and incomplete character.
Together with music editor, Christian Tjaben, and JayBo Monk, this skilled fashion editor founded the magazine "Style and the Family Tunes" in 1993. Contrary to the contemporary nineties techno scene in Berlin Mitte, Cathy established a magazine inspired by hip hop, acid jazz, fashion and pop culture in the wild east of the city.
After publishing the final issue of the magazine in 2011, Cathy continues to stay true in her approach to present imagery and elements from her surrounding environment. In cooperation with her brother Patrick Andrist in 2012 she went on to found the fashion project "I Wish U Sun". With the sale of every item, this project supports a charity in Bangladesh to provide eye operations for the blind.
This portrait is part of our ongoing collaboration with ZEIT Online who presents a special curation of our pictures on their site.
What is so fascinating about Berlin?
Berlin is a city that conquers metropoles like New York, Paris, or London in regards to quality of life and laissez-faire. Berlin is unconventional, not status-oriented, and still wonderfully unfinished.
In summer 2011, #130 and with this, the very last issue of style, was published. What happened afterwards?
After 'Style and the Family Tunes' discontinued as a print format – Stylemag still exists as a digital format, – I realized that I needed to use my energy for something truly meaningful. That's when 'I WISH U SUN' came into existence. The project is about giving something back. IWISHUSUN is a concept that goes against greed. We want to work with fashion and launch good project that are high-end, contemporary, and of course wanted. But its sale provides a good cause. This would mean to finance an eye operation in Bangladesh and safe someone's eyesight – with every sold product! If one combines the fundamental idea of business with fashion and social responsibility, one ends up with a win-win situation.
Instead of saying with a wagging finger, 'This is what all of you should do, everybody in Europe is so privileged,' I wanted to offer a concept which enables one to take social responsibility and simultaneously is getting a desired product. It is something satisfactory for the self. I think that this concept defines the future and is able to do a lot more in the upcoming years. My heart gets overwhelmed when I work, as I can see the money going directly to the hospital in Bangladesh and doing something good.
It is not about places like Bangladesh, Vietnam, Africa, or Marzahn, where children are being brought breakfast sandwiches because they don't have anything to eat before school. It is about doing something. Everybody must find their own theme. Mine is about eyes, because I work with them and am very visual. Without eyes I could not work as a creative director, nor be the publisher of a magazine. Eyes are something really beautiful as they are the mirror of the soul. This is why 'I WISH U SUN' is all about eyes.
Can you talk a little about the first product's principal and its realization?
The first product was a light down jacket. My brother Patrick Andrist is a textile manufacturer in Hong Kong and produces daily many editions for fabrics. He gets a good price for small quantities as a good client. Through this margin, which is established through the sale on the internet, we are able to give back most of profit. I am convinced that the basic concept is great. IWISHUSUN also is of substance. It naturally is also about talking to interesting people and ask them questions that are concerned with visions, eyesight, and perception.
Yesterday a friend told me that he gave someone shoes who never owned a pair before. I was impressed. Everybody should do something with their abilities.
Instead of standing ten hours in Mauerpark one could give the clothes to someone that actually needed it.
Exactly. I really have to clear out my wardrobe. I visited nuns in Wrangelstraße the last time. There are many homeless people. It is also okay to bring in some things to second hand stores. It is not about giving away your last shirt, but it is about giving something back. Personally, I feel well not only being concerned about everything looking beautiful and having a certain design aspect, but also taking responsibility.
What product is currently in planning?
I want to produce silk scarfs next. Foulards out of silk and wool with prints. Afterwards we shall see – t-shirts, jackets, bags, everything is possible. It is about making cool and good products that, without thinking about collections, convince the client. When they are then produced in terms of high-quality and emerge out of a collaboration with photographers or designers, there is not much else to ask for.
Let's go back to the 90s: When did the first issue come out of 'Style and the Family Tunes' and what was the overall concept?
The first issue came out in 1994. It would appear quarterly in black-white with the central theme of music. When fashion became an interest, the pages were printed in color. Since summer 2000 we published the magazine every month until 2011. The print magazine existed for sixteen years. When one does something for that long, the desire for change essentially arrives. The world constantly transforms, therefore Style could never stay the exact same. The medial world became much more digital and I am personally tired of magazines. That entire concept just bores me.
Style was the very first pop-cultural lifestyle magazine in Germany. All other magazines began to rise afterwards. The type of photography, visual language, graphic and editing of articles was ahead of its time. Looking through past issues, I can still see things that have relevance to this point in time. Style also deserved a book, as it is a document of time for a certain period. I would like to work on this in the next few months. That is if time permits.
Regardless of the digital evolution, there never have been so many magazines founded, published, and printed like last year. How do you explain this?
That has to do with the fact that all the people that worked for the big publishing houses are unemployed now. No one is really paid anymore for the content. It is quite mundane that everybody wants the same and therefore 150 magazines with similar content are printed.
Magazine shops like Do You Read Me?! make it possible to find a magazine for every sort of niche.
I am not interested in magazines anymore. I would much rather buy a nice book.
Magazines like for craftsmanship serve like books.
That sort of niche will always live on as it obviously has a justification. I would never asked for it to be stopped. Essentially I can only talk about the segment of fashion. That is what Style was about the last years: mainly a fashion magazine that was combined with art and also had musical input.
We originally came from music, then we combined it with fashion in order to reach art milieus concerned with key subjects of fashion, art, and music. Style gradually changed over the past many years. I am bored by fashion magazines, because photography hasn't really altered. They are just all too familiar quotations of things. Of course there are magazines that are an exception and are always worth a look. But then they are so many that want exactly that but are unable to do so – and for that I don't have time.
Do You Read Me?! provides the client with the possibility to collect magazines for a price they determine beforehand. Magazines are selected by them according to the criteria of the customer.
Of course it is amazing when shops like Do You Read Me?! have a selection that meets your interests. I had something similar with a guy who always managed to get me the English and American magazine subscriptions. It is a great service that magazines are being edited for you. I would only be interested in fashion, as that is something I work with. But I ask myself, 'How many people actually read those magazines?' For example 032c is a very good magazine and Jörg Koch does a great job. But the magazine is very intellectual and with all the hipsters running around screaming how much they like 032c, I wonder which article they have actually read.
Sometimes one has to set high goals…
Yes, of course. But the questions is always, ' how do you want to reach?' Due to its high standard many people began to take interest in Style and I am booked nowadays as an expert. It has to be said that this is the only way it works. By now I am doing freelance for many different clients. But regardless, one has to stay true to the self. A reason why I stopped Style and the Family Tunes after its 130th issue. I prefer to shut my mouth and not have the same thing happen to me like Vice buying i-D.
I decided that I didn't want that. It is like with Twen, which also just one day vanished. Twen was a groundbreaking magazine during the 70s with an incredible layout and a modern, new image. It was the best during its time, but some day it just stopped going into print. This is how you can be part of a cult and declare that you took care of it until the very end. I can go through every single issue of Style and say, 'Yes, I did that.' This is the only way one can make sure the concept doesn't dilute.
Thank you for your time and the detailed insight. Find out more about Cathy's project 'I WISH YOU SUN' here.
This portrait is part of our ongoing collaboration with ZEIT Online who presents a special curation of our pictures on their site. Have a look here.
Photography: Ailine Liefeld
Text: Meltem Toprak

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Grafield, S, (2010) Just My Type: a book about fonts, London, Profile Books Ltd.
Ramachandran, N. & Sippy, S., (2006) Lights, Camera, Masala: making movies in Mumbai, Mumbai, Indian Book House Ltd.
Davies, C. (2006) An Introduction To Digital Culture and Design.
A selection of films which will give you guidance on what we look for in the portfolios of applicant students to the Foundation Diploma in Art and Design.
As part of our 'Fifteen Questions' series we asked illustrator Matthew the Horse about his practice.


Scripted by Lucy Parham, Nocturne chronicles the romantic life of one of the greatest and most popular composers for solo piano – Frédéric Chopin. The narrative follows his turbulent relationship with the controversial literary figure George Sand, their time together in Majorca, his fragile health and his ultimate demise in poverty in Paris at the age of 39. The readings are interspersed with some of his most loved and poignant compositions.


Honour-based violence is the term used to describe violent or threatening behaviour which is committed to protect or defend perceived cultural beliefs or the "honour "of the family. Honour-based violence is unacceptable behaviour and is illegal. Some of those committing honour-based violence mistakenly believe someone has brought shame on their family or community by doing something against traditional beliefs or culture.
Honour based abuse is unacceptable and illegal. Some of those committing this crime mistakenly believe someone has brought shame on their family or community by doing something against traditional beliefs or culture.
Restrictions on friends, disapproval of adopting 'western' clothing and make-up.
If you or someone you know is suffering from honour-based abuse, please contact police or one of the supporting agencies listed on this page.


text:
HomeAustralian and New Zealand TVReview: Westside 1×1 (New Zealand: TV3)
Review: Westside 1×1 (New Zealand: TV3)
Outrageous Fortune's Life on Mars moment
4th June 2015 Rob Buckley Australian and New Zealand TV, TV reviews 6 Comments
In New Zealand: Sundays, 8.30pm, TV3
As we saw recently with AMC's Better Call Saul, prequels can be tricky things. You typically only get a prequel to a show if it's been popular and has a strong fan base, and those fans are going to want everything to line up nicely with whatever's already been established in the original story. However, unless you want ever-reducing audience numbers, you have to ensure that the prequel is of interest to a wider circle than just the fans.
The show formerly and cleverly known as Westside Story, but which is now presumably for copyright reasons simply Westside, has these two issues to juggle. Now, I've already gone into the history of its progenitor Outrageous Fortune elsewhere, so I won't bother here but suffice it to say, as esteemed New Zealand shows with a huge fan base go, you couldn't find a bigger one than Outrageous Fortune. All the same, that finished five years ago and wasn't widely known in its original form overseas – indeed, these days it's perhaps better known as the show that the creators of The Almighty Johnsons ran before venturing into matters more fantastical and theological. As a result, there's a potential new audience for Westside that never saw the original and who might be looking forward to Rachel Lang and James Griffin's latest production.
So will the story of safecracker Ted West, his wife Rita and their son Wolf, the future prison-bound patriarch of Outrageous Fortune's West family, stand on its own two feet or will it simply be a piece of fan service from a creatively bankrupt team that have run out of ideas?
I'll tell you after the jump.
From Rachel Lang and James Griffin, the award-winning creators of Outrageous Fortune, Westside will take the West family's large and loyal fan-base on a journey back to where it all began.
This six-part series tells the story of legendary safe cracker and career criminal, Ted West and his fire cracker of a wife, Rita. Combining real events and the rich folklore of the West family and associates, this is rollicking history, and a tempestuous romance, set at a time of great social upheaval.
Westside is a prequel to Outrageous Fortune. Over six seasons between 2005 and 2010, Outrageous Fortune established itself as New Zealand's most successful television drama series. A consistent ratings winner, the show achieved cult status and critical acclaim at home and abroad and to date has won more than 50 awards.
Is it any good?
Despite knowing shamefully little about Outrageous Fortune, its characters and its plot, I have to say I did enjoy Westside rather a lot. It's a fun and smart crime comedy-drama in a great period setting, with some good characters.
Now I'll readily admit that almost certainly, a lot of references to the original show went over my head. For example, when a certain house is unveiled in the episode…
…had it not been for pretty much the entire mise en scène shouting "THIS IS AN IMPORTANT MOMENT" at the viewer, I'd have never have realised how hugely important it was.
So with my level of knowledge established, you'll understand that my enjoying the show despite my ignorance means that the average Outrageous Fortune fan must be in some sort of state of nirvana while watching Westside.
For the rest of us, though, there's a whole lot to commend. Tonally, the show is a sort of combination of The Almighty Johnsons, Life on Mars and even Widows, with safecracker Ted West (David de Lautour) coming out of jail after being grassed up to the cops during a robbery involving some Krugerrands. He's reunited first with his wife Rita (Antonia Prebble reprising one of her roles from Outrageous Fortune) and son Wolf, and then with the other members of his slightly stupid gang.
However, in his absence, everyone's lives have moved on, with Rita raising Wolf alone and having an affair with her Welsh neighbour, while the gang has turned to simple robbery and knocking off TV sets. So it's time for Ted to put things right, pull off a few jobs the proper way – and find out who took his Kurgerrands and grassed him up.
Many of these questions are answered by the end of the episode, some in surprising ways, so it looks like most of Westside is going to be less about setting up mysteries for the audience than seeing what happens when Ted and others find out the answers for themselves. The enjoyment largely comes from the various characters and their antics, whether it's Ted's schemes and pride in his increasingly criminal son, Rita's continual plotting and treachery, the gang's laddy stupidity or the simple thrill of cops and robbers, albeit quite nice robbers and quite gentle cops.
There's also the 70s look and feel to the show. This is slightly 'time touristy', with the show delighting in everything from old cars and fashions through to pineapple hedgehogs being served at dinner parties; the plot does its best to reference events of the time. But all this is far better handled and more enjoyable than the egregious "Look at this! We're in the 60s!" crimes committed by NBC's Aquarius, for example, making the viewer feel as delighted to be back in the 70s as Sam Tyler eventually was.
With engaging performances from de Lautour and particularly Prebble, who's far more likeable and sparky here than she was in The Blue Rose, Westside is a fun show, whether you've seen Outrageous Fortune or not. I'm tuning in for the rest of it.
News: Joel McHale joins The X-Files, John Noble is Sherlock's dad, Agent Carter in the UK + more
What TV's on at the BFI in July 2015? Including The Wednesday Play Where Adam Stood (1976)
FFS, TV companies – learn to spell!
5th March 2012 Rob Buckley Australian and New Zealand TV, UK TV 7 Comments
TV networks can't spell 'episode' correctly
What did you watch last week? Including The Bridge, The Almighty Johnsons and Don't Trust The B—-
8th May 2012 Rob Buckley Australian and New Zealand TV, International TV, TV reviews, UK TV, US TV 16 Comments
What I watched last week
Sorry Australia: Hyde & Seek, Rosehaven, The Secret Daughter and The Wrong Girl
17th October 2016 Rob Buckley Australian and New Zealand TV, TV reviews 2 Comments
Reviews of Australia's Hyde & Seek, The Secret Daughter, The Wrong Girl and Rosehaven


text:
Home News Briefs Z Capital Credit Partners promotes two
Z Capital Credit Partners promotes two
Z Capital Credit Partners, Z Capital Group's credit fund management platform, has promoted Shahid Khoja to managing director and upped Brian Morrison to director.
Z Capital Credit Partners, Z Capital Group's credit fund management platform, has promoted Shahid Khoja to managing director and upped Brian Morrison to director. Khoja joined ZCG in 2020 while Morrison came on board in 2019.
NEW YORK, July 26, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Z Capital Group, L.L.C. ("ZCG" or "the Firm"), a leading privately-held asset manager, today announced the following promotions of two senior professionals on Z Capital Credit Partners' ("ZCCP") Investment Team:
Shahid Khoja, has been promoted to Managing Director and will be leading ZCCP's Investment Team going forward. Since joining ZCG in 2020, Mr. Khoja has served as a senior member of ZCCP's Investment Team and is responsible for overseeing research, trading and portfolio management across various funds focused on leveraged loans, high yield bonds, stressed, distressed investments and middle market credit. Prior to joining ZCG, Mr. Khoja was a Director at Garrison Investment Group, a multi-strategy credit-oriented firm, where he served as a senior credit analyst on the corporate credit investment team. Previously, Mr. Khoja served as an Associate at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in the Corporate Debt Products group, where he was responsible for underwriting and executing senior secured and unsecured debt financing transactions, as well as managing a portfolio of credits. Mr. Khoja holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Bowdoin College.
Brian Morrison, CFA, has been promoted to Director. Since joining ZCG in 2019, Mr. Morrison has been responsible for sourcing, research and analysis of existing and prospective performing, stressed, distressed investments, and middle market loans. Prior to joining ZCG, Mr. Morrison was an associate at Oaktree Capital Management, where he was responsible for evaluating investment opportunities that included secondary distressed debt purchases, structured capital placements, and leveraged buyouts in the food & beverage, natural resources, building products, and consumer retail spaces. Mr. Morrison received his Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics from Pomona College and holds an MBA from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. Mr. Morrison obtained his CFA in 2012.
About ZCG
ZCG is a leading, privately held, New York based investment firm with approximately $4.0 billion of assets under management across complementary private equity and credit businesses.
Z Capital Partners, LLC ("ZCP") is the private equity fund management platform. ZCP's investment philosophy centers on operational value creation and is driven by targeted investment themes, deep sector expertise and strong partnerships with management teams. ZCP Principals have made over twenty-six years numerous investments across industries, including consumer products, consumer food, restaurants, gaming hospitality, manufacturing, media, publishing, metals and business services. ZCP current portfolio companies have worldwide annual revenues of approximately $1.6 billion, sell products in 55 countries, operate 15 manufacturing facilities, and have over 200,000 employees and associates directly and through joint ventures.
Z Capital Credit Partners, LLC ("ZCCP") is the credit fund management platform. ZCCP invests across a range of credit investments including leveraged loans, private debt, and opportunistic stressed credit. ZCCP manages closed and open-ended funds as well as structured vehicles for strategic debt. Developed over twenty years, ZCCP's approach to fundamental credit analysis encompasses proprietary sourcing, sophisticated structuring and comprehensive risk management using the Olympus™ system.
For more information please visit www.zcg.com.


When your members have something to celebrate, there's no better solution than CUMONEY® Visa® Gift Cards from LSC®.
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Card values are the member's choice – between $10 and $1000.
A variety of designs to choose from to suit any gift-giving occasion.
For the purchaser: Buy a gift card at the Credit Union with cash, the same process that is done at a store.
For the recipient: Use it like a VISA debit card for purchases, utilizing the balance on the account through purchases.
Once implemented, a stock of cards is ordered through LSC's secured Prepaid Access website by a designated Administrator. Credit Unions store those cards in a vault until issued to members.
Free marketing materials that help showcase the Gift Card program are available.
Need more information? Download our Fact Sheet.
Free marketing materials that help showcase the Gift Card program.


The Beijing High People's Court is setting up a cooperative mechanism with eight city departments to ferret out defaulters and pressure them to quickly comply with verdicts against them, the capital's top court official said.
As of the end of last year, a social credit blacklist in the capital had prevented defaulters from taking 386,000 flights and 430,000 high-speed rail trips, Kou Fang, acting president of the Beijing High People's Court, said in a report given during the recent annual session of the Beijing Municipal People's Congress.
Defaulters are barred from high-end forms of travel to increase the pressure on them to comply with verdicts.
"What we want is to supervise defaulters' consumption and access to credit as a warning, to make sure each verdict is implemented efficiently," Kou said.
The court has signed agreements with a variety of departments, including the Beijing tourism commission and the bureau of civil affairs, to embed information about defaulters in their office systems. This enables automatic comparison, interception and, ultimately, punishment.
"It's also a way of contributing to the establishment of the capital's public credit system, to effectively locate the targeted people and information about them," Kou said.
The blacklist was established in 2013 as a tool to improve the social credit system. By December, more than 230,000 defaulters in the capital had succumbed to pressure and complied with court verdicts, the city's top court said.
In August, the Beijing High People's Court implemented a new regulation to increase pressure on defaulters by prohibiting them from participating in the capital's license plate lottery system. Kou said 22,000 defaulters were hit by that rule.
Legal experts applauded the new deal between the court and the eight departments but also warned of further enforcement difficulties.
Han Dayuan, former dean of Renmin University of China's law school and also a Beijing People's Congress deputy, said the enforcement of verdicts has long been difficult, and courts and departments have played a key role in ensuring that solutions were found.
"Unlawful ways of driving enforcement are unacceptable," he said. "But we should be aware that the next generation might be affected, since the defaulter's information will be readily publicized."
He said that in some places, the children of defaulters found they were unable to enter primary school after courts publicly released a defaulting parent's name.
"Children of defaulters have an equal right to education," Han said. In June 2016, the Supreme People's Court set up a mechanism nationwide, coordinating with nine central departments, to limit defaulters' activities.
From October 2013 to December last year, defaulters on the list had been prevented from taking 17.4 million flights and 5.47 million rail trips, the court said.
Meng Xiang, head of enforcement for the court, told a recent conference that China will continue improving the punishment system.


text:
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Net;
using System.Windows;
using System.Windows.Controls;
using System.Windows.Navigation;
using Microsoft.Phone.Controls;
using Microsoft.Phone.Shell;

namespace LockEx.Controls
{
    public partial class DetailedTextControl : UserControl
    {
        public DetailedTextControl()
        {
            InitializeComponent();
        }
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Bob Goble – Captain, 1980
This is the transcription of a conversation Bob had with Graham Lawrence on 16 October 2006.
I was first introduced to golf in 1962 by a friend I played darts with at the Traveller's Rest in Newtown. His name was Charlie Adams, who later became a member at Corhampton. We went down to the course on the Eastern Road, Portsmouth. I used to do a bit of clay pigeon shooting but I thought that I might get interested in golf.
Shortly after I was in the Kings Head in Wickham where I met Dave Baber, who used to be the policemen in Wickham. He asked me to come up to Corhampton and have a game with Ray Rowe and himself. On the Sunday we played the course. Afterwards Dave ask me what I thought of it and would I like to be a member. I said I wouldn't mind so he said "OK, I'll get in touch with Valentine and Frank Lindley". On the Thursday I was made a member. The joining fee was 13 guineas and the annual subscription after that was 8 guineas for a certain amount of time. That was my first introduction to Corhampton Golf Club.
I once had part of a lesson with Ron Crockford because he'd sold me a decent set of John Letters irons to replace my half set of Japanese clubs I used when I first took it up. I could not stop shanking during the lesson so I told Ron to stay away from me. From then on I taught myself to play. I got very friendly with Ron and that's how I got involved with Sid Parrett who asked me to mow the fairways and rake the bunkers. I drove the club's red International tractor with gang mowers. I used to do that in the mid-sixties, not long after Ron Crockford started. Ron came from Alresford.
I used to play with Charlie Adams early on Saturday mornings about half past seven. We'd play eighteen holes and then go to the Meon Valley Hotel (later the Hurdles) and have a couple of beers and then back up to the club for one o'oclock to play with Dave Baber. I lived in Chapel Road, Soberton then. On Sunday afternoons I'd play with Dave, Ray Rowe and Ken Turner from Porchester whose mother-in-law was a member most of her adult life. Ken's wife, Peggy, used to play.
Jack West, the landlord of the Buck's Head at Meonstoke used to play. He was an ex-policeman and also a member of Alresford. We were drinking in the Buck's Head one night when Jack suggested a match between Corhampton and Alresford for which Jack donated the Buck's Head Trophy. It ran for many years and was always a good occasion. After the match we'd dine in the Buck's Head in the hall bar. We didn't have to rush home because Jack was an ex-policeman. We had a good understanding with the police at Corhampton. They were allowed to play at a reduced cost. We never got pestered by the police so the arrangement was worthwhile. Sometimes we'd be having a good social evening on Sunday night which didn't finish till one o'clock.
I got to know Mike Lutman, known as the Corhampton Fox, because he was very protective of his handicap. I knew Fred Banting because I used to do brickwork for him and his company. I used to play a lot at weekends with John Wright. We'd often play as partners. We played against Henry Clark and Peter Dacombe most Sunday afternoons.
There was a lot of social fun in the old club house. There was a dart board and a one-armed bandit which, I think, belonged to the Reeves. I remember when I was doing an extension for Victor Reeves, who lived next door to his mum, the machine was abandoned at the back of the garage. Fred Banting and Frank Lindley were very crafty with the machine. Once they got two cherries up they would pull the handle so slowly that they'd keep getting two cherries for some time. When John and I got two cherries and pulled the handle slowly we never succeeded in getting another two cherries.
There were a lot of wonderful characters in the days of the wooden clubhouse. Bill Shiner was always straight down the middle. He sliced every shot but it always finished down the middle. Quite a crowd of us used to play on Saturday afternoons. There were Peter and Victor Reeves, John Banting and Mike Miller. There were also people older than us who played with us – John Heathcote and Norman Taylor. The ladies used to present us with cakes and tea on Saturday and Sunday afternoons.
I remember on one Club Championship day in the late sixties I went up with John Wright and after playing the first eighteen we were having a drink in the bar when John Browning teed off from the first tee which was right outside the clubhouse. The ball came off the toe of the club through the clubhouse door, ping ponged around the clubhouse and came to rest under a chair. John Wright, without a smile, looked at me and said "I don't fancy his next shot. Do you?". It was raining hard on that day and a lot of people were dropping out. John and I decided we'd change our wet clothes and get into the clothes we'd brought for the evening hoping that, with so many people dropping out, we might win something. In the afternoon we got those clothes soaked and had to go home and change into dry clothes. We returned to the club in the evening and discovered we hadn't won anything.
John Wright, Dave Baber and myself would sit in the clubhouse and draw up designs for an eighteen-hole golf course on the back of fag packets. Others said it would never happen. The holes would be too close together and people would get killed by so many flying golf balls. Eventually it was taken up and the layout was almost the same as what we had drawn on the fag packets and no one got killed.
Over the years I got involved with the committee. In 1978 the single committee of twelve people added two ladies for the first time – Stella Wright and Joan Haigh, both wives of other committee members. John Wright was Captain and Alan Haigh was vice-captain. I built the beer store for the new club house which had been opened in 1975. The beer used to be kept behind a couple of hurdles. The beer store was built in the junior's room in 1978. They soldiered on with that for quite a few years. Then they asked me to build the restaurant over the beer store in 1989. I also built the extension at the north end of the club house where the pro shop, secretary's office and television room now are. They were built around the time when Bill Clarke was captain in 1988. I did most of the construction work at cost which was my way of contributing something to the club.
When I was captain in 1980 I put up the Goble Cup. There was always a cup for 0-9 handicappers which is called the Club Cup and is played off scratch. The rest of the club could play but didn't stand a chance of winning anything. I put up a cup for the 10-16 handicappers and Alan Haigh put a cup up for the 17-24 handicappers. It's now played for by the 17-28 handicappers.
I also put up a cup for the Past Captains in 1982. I got that going with Fred Hartwell. All the past captains would all meet in the clubhouse at lunchtime and discuss the future of the club and have a ploughman's. We'd then play a round of golf in the afternoon and our ladies would join us for a meal in the evening. The meeting continues today but now it's combined with a Ladies Past Captains event.
When I was chairman of the Greens Committee during the early eighties, a computerised panel was installed to automate the operating of the pop-ups for the sprinkler system. The head greenkeeper determines when the sprinklers are to operate and sets up the computer. That's all housed down in the maintenance compound. Bill Wilson (ex-captain) was also on the Greens Committee. He worked on the course as head greenkeeper. After Bill as head greenkeeper came Maurie Salter and then in 1980 came Mike Smith, who has been there ever since. We had a lot of trouble with the greens and I was the instigator of digging many of them up. We had all sorts of trouble and we had to change the soil on the greens but it did take time for the results to appear. We took samples of the new greens where the depth of soil was up to a foot whereas on many of the others there was only an inch of soil. We started deep hollow tining and filling with top soil. The 18th was dug up and the bunker nearest the clubhouse was removed. I also prepared the wicket for the centenary cricket match. I thought it came up well.
I'm no longer a member but I occasionally play as a guest at Corhampton.
Bob Goble's Captain's Day on the First Tee – 1981
Abi Moore on the first tee
Laurie Abrahams on the first tee
Sid Griffiths on the first tee
Bob Goble congratulating Wally Pinhorn on winning the Club Championship – 1980
Bob Goble putting on the 18th green at the opening of the four new holes
Left to Right: Richard Shillitoe, Bob Goble, Peter Taylor (Secretary), John Forder (Captain)
The bunker in the foreground no longer exists
Ladies of Past Captains
Back: Mrs Keefe, Mrs Hartwell, Mrs Jackson, Mrs Pink, Mrs Yeates, Mr Goble's lady, Mr Clarke's lady, Mrs Griffiths, Mrs Andrews
Front: Mrs Haigh, Mrs Harvey, Mrs Jasper, Mrs Johnson, Mrs Searle
Past Captains 1990
Back: Gordon Jackson, Gordon Johnson, George Smith, Bert Keefe
Front: Bob Goble, Fred Hartwell, Jim Yeates, Bob Harvey, Andy Andrews
Back: Andy Andrews, Dave Searle, Gordon Jackson, Bill Clarke, John Wright, Dennis Pink, Gordon Johnson, Jim Yeates
Middle: Bob Goble, Fred Hartwell, Bill Jasper, Bob Harvey, Sid Griffiths
Front: Bert Keefe
Back: Andy Andrews, Sid Griffiths, Bill Jasper, Gordon Jackson, Bob Linnell, George Smith, Bob Goble
Front: Tom Edmonds, Dave Searle, Dennis Crutchley


Dr Charles CHEN Yidan established the Yidan Prize in 2016 with a mission to make the world a better place through education.
Charles is recognized as China's Internet philanthropy pioneer. He co-founded Chinese Internet giant Tencent in 1998. In 2007, he launched the Chinese Internet industry's first charity foundation with his partners – the Tencent Charity Foundation – of which he remains honorary chairman.
Apart from his charity work with the Tencent network, Charles undertakes other education philanthropy. Since 2009, he has been supporting the Wuhan College, a private non-profit university in China. He has topped the Forbes China Charity List 2017.
Charles holds a bachelor's degree in Applied Chemistry from Shenzhen University and a master's degree in Economic Law from Nanjing University. He served as a visiting scholar of Stanford Law School in 2014 and was conferred the Degree of Doctor of Humanities (honoris causa) of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University in 2017.


I proposed to my girlfriend with a song I wrote called; Sketches of You. The best part is she said yes!
STREAM or DOWNLOAD the Studio Version.
Like, Share & Tag with all your friends who love this!
Engineered/Mixed/Mastered by Miika Weimann aka Above Stars.
Above Stars - Sketches of You (Studio Version) - Duration: 4 minutes, 31 seconds.
Above Stars - Sketches of You - LIVE Proposal song - Duration: 4 minutes, 56 seconds.
Above Stars - I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day - Miika and Mary cover - Duration: 2 minutes, 38 seconds.
Røde NT1A review - Above Stars (signal chain in description) - Duration: 60 seconds.
Something Just Like This - Above Stars - Miika and Mary cover - Duration: 4 minutes.
Above Stars Talks - Health & The Gym - Duration: 4 minutes, 9 seconds.
Falling In Reverse - Brother (Above Stars cover) - Duration: 3 minutes, 16 seconds.
Above Stars Talks - Just Hiking - Duration: 71 seconds.
Niall Horan - This Town (Above Stars cover) - Duration: 3 minutes, 45 seconds.
Above Stars Talks - New Year & PATREON - Duration: 6 minutes, 52 seconds.
Above Stars - Let It Snow - Miika & Mary (FREE download) - Duration: 2 minutes, 26 seconds.
Above Stars - Studio UPDATE 3! - Duration: 3 minutes, 58 seconds.
Imagine Dragons-Demons (Above Stars cover) - Duration: 3 minutes, 2 seconds.
5 Seconds of Summer - Amnesia (Above Stars cover) - Duration: 4 minutes, 23 seconds.
Above Stars-The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire) feat. Andrew Owens-Music Video - Duration: 3 minutes, 32 seconds.
Avicii-Wake Me Up (Above Stars cover) - Duration: 3 minutes, 41 seconds.
Above Stars-Neon Summer Night (feat. Nathan Johnson) Official Lyric Video - Duration: 3 minutes, 26 seconds.
Above Stars-So Much Love Official Lyric Video - Duration: 3 minutes, 42 seconds.
Miika Weimann-Dreamer Official Music Video - Duration: 4 minutes, 27 seconds.
Above Stars - In Love With A Dream (Official lyric video) - Duration: 3 minutes, 26 seconds.
Mayday Parade-Everything's An Illusion drum cover by Miika Weimann - Duration: 3 minutes, 30 seconds.
Justin Bieber - Sorry (Above Stars acoustic cover) - Duration: 2 minutes, 17 seconds.
Above Stars - Who I'm Gonna Be (Official Music Video) - Duration: 3 minutes, 58 seconds.
Above Stars - SMILE (Official Visualizer/Lyric Video) - Duration: 3 minutes, 51 seconds.


Designed specifically for coil-over shocks.
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For the ultimate in performance handling, upgrade to these front lower control arms from Global West Suspensions. Made of DOM steel tubing, arms come completely assembled with ball joints, bump stops and a choice between polyurethane or Del-A-Lum bushings. Specifically designed for use with coil-over shocks, the arms are built with additional support plates for spreading the load around the shock area. Arms come with a glossy black powder coat finish for durability and good looks as well as a limited lifetime warranty.
DOM stands for Drawn Over Mandrel and is an industry standard for chassis and suspension components.


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Exploration vs exploitation

Toy example

Changing kappa and xi on the go

Note

Click here to download the full example code or to run this example in your browser via Binder

Exploration vs exploitation¶

Sigurd Carlen, September 2019.
Reformatted by Holger Nahrstaedt 2020

We can control how much the acqusition function favors exploration and
exploitation by tweaking the two parameters kappa and xi. Higher values
means more exploration and less exploitation and vice versa with low values.

kappa is only used if acq_func is set to "LCB". xi is used when acq_func is
"EI" or "PI". By default the acqusition function is set to "gp_hedge" which
chooses the best of these three. Therefore I recommend not using gp_hedge
when tweaking exploration/exploitation, but instead choosing "LCB",
"EI" or "PI.

The way to pass kappa and xi to the optimizer is to use the named argument
"acq_func_kwargs". This is a dict of extra arguments for the aqcuisittion
function.

If you want opt.ask() to give a new acquisition value imdediatly after
tweaking kappa or xi call opt.update_next(). This ensures that the next
value is updated with the new acquisition parameters.

print(__doc__)

import numpy as np
np.random.seed(1234)
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

Toy example¶

First we define our objective like in the ask-and-tell example notebook and
define a plotting function. We do however only use on initial random point.
All points afterthe first one is therefore choosen by the acquisition
function.

from skopt.learning import ExtraTreesRegressor
from skopt import Optimizer

noise_level = 0.1

# Our 1D toy problem, this is the function we are trying to
# minimize
def objective(x, noise_level=noise_level):
    return np.sin(5 * x[0]) * (1 - np.tanh(x[0] ** 2)) +\
           np.random.randn() * noise_level

opt = Optimizer([(-2.0, 2.0)], "GP", n_initial_points = 1,
                acq_optimizer="sampling")

x = np.linspace(-2, 2, 400).reshape(-1, 1)
fx = np.array([objective(x_i, noise_level=0.0) for x_i in x])

from skopt.acquisition import gaussian_ei
def plot_optimizer(opt, x, fx):
    model = opt.models[-1]
    x_model = opt.space.transform(x.tolist())

    # Plot true function.
    plt.plot(x, fx, "r--", label="True (unknown)")
    plt.fill(np.concatenate([x, x[::-1]]),
             np.concatenate([fx - 1.9600 * noise_level,
                             fx[::-1] + 1.9600 * noise_level]),
             alpha=.2, fc="r", ec="None")

    # Plot Model(x) + contours
    y_pred, sigma = model.predict(x_model, return_std=True)
    plt.plot(x, y_pred, "g--", label=r"$\mu(x)$")
    plt.fill(np.concatenate([x, x[::-1]]),
             np.concatenate([y_pred - 1.9600 * sigma,
                             (y_pred + 1.9600 * sigma)[::-1]]),
             alpha=.2, fc="g", ec="None")

    # Plot sampled points
    plt.plot(opt.Xi, opt.yi,
             "r.", markersize=8, label="Observations")

    acq = gaussian_ei(x_model, model, y_opt=np.min(opt.yi))
    # shift down to make a better plot
    acq = 4 * acq - 2
    plt.plot(x, acq, "b", label="EI(x)")
    plt.fill_between(x.ravel(), -2.0, acq.ravel(), alpha=0.3, color='blue')

    # Adjust plot layout
    plt.grid()
    plt.legend(loc='best')

We run a an optimization loop with standard settings

for i in range(30):
    next_x = opt.ask()
    f_val = objective(next_x)
    opt.tell(next_x, f_val)
# The same output could be created with opt.run(objective, n_iter=30)
plot_optimizer(opt, x, fx)

We see that some minima is found and "exploited"

Now lets try to set kappa and xi using'to other values and
pass it to the optimizer:

acq_func_kwargs = {"xi": 10000, "kappa": 10000}

opt = Optimizer([(-2.0, 2.0)], "GP", n_initial_points=1,
                acq_optimizer="sampling",
                acq_func_kwargs=acq_func_kwargs)

opt.run(objective, n_iter=20)
plot_optimizer(opt, x, fx)

We see that the points are more random now.

This works both for kappa when using acq_func="LCB":

opt = Optimizer([(-2.0, 2.0)], "GP", n_initial_points=1,
                acq_func="LCB", acq_optimizer="sampling",
                acq_func_kwargs=acq_func_kwargs)

opt.run(objective, n_iter=20)
plot_optimizer(opt, x, fx)

And for xi when using acq_func="EI": or acq_func="PI":

opt = Optimizer([(-2.0, 2.0)], "GP", n_initial_points=1,
                acq_func="PI", acq_optimizer="sampling",
                acq_func_kwargs=acq_func_kwargs)

opt.run(objective, n_iter=20)
plot_optimizer(opt, x, fx)

We can also favor exploitaton:

acq_func_kwargs = {"xi": 0.000001, "kappa": 0.001}

opt = Optimizer([(-2.0, 2.0)], "GP", n_initial_points=1,
                acq_func="LCB", acq_optimizer="sampling",
                acq_func_kwargs=acq_func_kwargs)

opt.run(objective, n_iter=20)
plot_optimizer(opt, x, fx)

opt = Optimizer([(-2.0, 2.0)], "GP", n_initial_points=1,
                acq_func="EI", acq_optimizer="sampling",
                acq_func_kwargs=acq_func_kwargs)

opt.run(objective, n_iter=20)
plot_optimizer(opt, x, fx)

opt = Optimizer([(-2.0, 2.0)], "GP", n_initial_points=1,
                acq_func="PI", acq_optimizer="sampling",
                acq_func_kwargs=acq_func_kwargs)

opt.run(objective, n_iter=20)
plot_optimizer(opt, x, fx)

Note that negative values does not work with the "PI"-acquisition function
but works with "EI":

acq_func_kwargs = {"xi": -1000000000000}

opt = Optimizer([(-2.0, 2.0)], "GP", n_initial_points=1,
                acq_func="PI", acq_optimizer="sampling",
                acq_func_kwargs=acq_func_kwargs)

opt.run(objective, n_iter=20)
plot_optimizer(opt, x, fx)

opt = Optimizer([(-2.0, 2.0)], "GP", n_initial_points=1,
                acq_func="EI", acq_optimizer="sampling",
                acq_func_kwargs=acq_func_kwargs)

opt.run(objective, n_iter=20)
plot_optimizer(opt, x, fx)

Changing kappa and xi on the go¶

If we want to change kappa or ki at any point during our optimization
process we just replace opt.acq_func_kwargs. Remember to call
opt.update_next() after the change, in order for next point to be
recalculated.

acq_func_kwargs = {"kappa": 0}

opt = Optimizer([(-2.0, 2.0)], "GP", n_initial_points=1,
                acq_func="LCB", acq_optimizer="sampling",
                acq_func_kwargs=acq_func_kwargs)

opt.acq_func_kwargs

Out:

{'kappa': 0}

opt.run(objective, n_iter=20)
plot_optimizer(opt, x, fx)

acq_func_kwargs = {"kappa": 100000}

opt.acq_func_kwargs = acq_func_kwargs
opt.update_next()

opt.run(objective, n_iter=20)
plot_optimizer(opt, x, fx)

Total running time of the script: ( 0 minutes  34.924 seconds)

Estimated memory usage:  8 MB

Download Python source code: exploration-vs-exploitation.py

Download Jupyter notebook: exploration-vs-exploitation.ipynb

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            © 2017 - 2020, scikit-optimize contributors (BSD License).
          Show this page source


eSports Retail and Merchandise company We Are Nations announces a new partnership with NASR, the Middle East's largest eSports team. The agreement includes the distribution of merchandise worldwide through online, retail and live event channels.
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text:
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text:
Three-day North-East Butterfly Meet 2017 held at Dzongu
Gangtok, 06 Sept:
A three-day national level butterfly meet, North-East Butterfly Meet-2017 (NEBM-2017), was organized by Butterflies and Moths of Sikkim – Nature Conservation Society (BAMOS-NCS) in collaboration with Butterflies of North Eastern India group from 03 to 05 Sept at Namprikdang, Dzongu, North Sikkim. This was the 4th NEBM in India and for BAMOS it was its 2nd meet, the first being held at Yuksam in 2015.
A BAMOS press release informs that the meet was attended by more than 35 participants from different states of India as well as participants from the state. School students from nearby schools also participated. Renowned scientist and author, Issac Kehimkar and Lepidopterist, Monsoon Jyoti Gogoi were the resource persons.
Minister of Forest, Environment and Wildlife Department, Government of Sikkim, TW Lepcha inaugurated the NEBM-2017 while Deputy Speaker of SLA cum Dzongu MLA, Sonam Gyatso Lepcha was the guest of honour.
The programme was attended by Forest Officials, representatives of different agencies like WWF, ATREE, KCC (Yuksam), Indian Himalayan Centre for Adventure and Eco-Tourism (IHCAE, Chemchey), Sikkim University, BAC Dzongu, SDO Dzongu, Zilla Panchayat and Gram Panchayat units and local youth.
Speaking on the occasion, Minister, Mr Lepcha appreciated the initiative of BAMOS-NCS for the conservation of butterflies and moths in Sikkim and congratulated president of BAMOS, Nawang Gyatso Bhutia for his entry into the Limca Book of Records for attracting 95 species of butterflies on his body and presented him the Record Certificate.
Addressing the participants, he said that such types of programmes need to be organized on a regular basis for the awareness of nature conservation in general and butterflies in particular. The Minister further highlighted the commitment of the Chief Minister of Sikkim towards the conservation of environment through different programmes like Green Mission, 10 Minutes to Earth, Paryavaran Mahotsav, etc.
He also emphasized the potential of the rich biodiversity like butterflies and birds to generate alternate sources of income for the people of Sikkim through sustainable ecotourism. Addressing the gathered students, he advised them to take maximum benefit out of this programme to learn about the conservation of natural resources and consider a career in this field.
As guest of honour, Dy. Speaker of SLA cum Dzongu MLA, Sonam Gyatso Lepcha, congratulated BAMOS for conducting a national level Butterfly Meet at Dzongu which would help the people of Dzongu to be aware of the rich butterfly biodiversity. He advised the students to sincerely attend the program.
DFO (Territorial), North Division, TN Bhutia highlighted some parts of the Forest Act which were relevant to the participants for this meet.
The meet was sponsored and supported by Forest department, Kanchendzonga Conservation Committee, IHCAE (Chemchey), ATREE, WWF, BHNS, AARANYAK and Flutters, the release mentions.
During the three days, extensive survey was carried out during the day while evenings were allotted for presentations and brain storming sessions. Both the resource persons delivered lectures on field study, identification and scientific conservation of butterfly diversity of Sikkim.
Principal Chief Research Officer and mentor of BAMOS-NCS, Usha Lachungpa, highlighted the rich biodiversity of Dzongu and need for quality research conservation in scientific manner.
During the meet, the participants documented 163 species of butterflies among which some were rare species like, Dark Tinsel, Khaki Silverline, Himalayan White Flat, Purple Spotted Flitter, Northern Jungle Queen, Evans Snow Flat, Jungle Glory, the release informs.


Dining tables come in various designs and styles, but it's not just all about fashion, looks or beauty, most of these dining tables are designed in various shapes in order to fit your home's dining space as best as possible.
It is essential that your dining table be a perfect fit for the number of diners who would gather around to break bread and have a great meal together, however, the design doesn't end at that, it is also very important that your dining table will not be a major reason why people cannot walk around freely. You should see this article on home space management.
Another important factor to look out for, is to make sure that your table's width is wide enough to contain as much shakers and accessories that will be placed on it. In most cases, a table which is as much as 36 inches wide should do. A longer table length should also reflect in the table's width in order to keep your dining table's scale appealing.
Having a seat that is too close to the wall is totally not ideal. Thus, it is necessary to have a dining table where a diner can sit and stand up easily from their seat without much difficulty.
Standard Procedure: always be sure to leave as much as 42-48" of space between your dining table and your wall.
In the case that there is another furniture in your dining environment, be sure to start up your measurement of 42-48" from the furniture's edge rather than the wall.
When I'm out to measure a dining space, I usually use a table cloth that can make up the size of the intended table. This helps me assess the remaining space to properly decide if I'm following the space management principles correctly.
If you have just as much space for a table for 4, then please just make it a table for 4. Some persons often try to crowd their table, adding more seats than the table can comfortably contain. Every single person on a dining table needs a respectable space of about 2 feet for eating.
When there's a larger gathering, you should be sure that your table can allow an extra seat snuck in somewhere. If it won't fit, don't force it.
The dining table is not the ideal place to watch a movie, although many of us take out computers there to do some work while we're at home. It is ideal to use a smaller seating in order to create more room. Use a seat which can be shoved beneath the table when it's not in use.
If your dining space is square in shape, then it's only ideal you use a square table in place of a round one. The ability to see everyone's face while eating together fosters an intimate dining culture.
Just as sectional sofas are the best fits for small home interiors, round tables also help to make the best use of your dining space. Instead of sharp corners where anyone can bump into, they have round edges that can always take just another seat for an extra diner.
Before you start up with working on a table, first off, know that a pedestal base will guarantee more seating space, this is because it creates more room for the legs, thus reducing the leg-seat friction which can take up space.
Obviously, very large round tables will pose some difficulty when it comes to reaching to the centre to grab food, this is why rectangular tables are often ideal when it comes to a large number of diners.
Next Placing Area Rugs On Carpet Floor: Taboo Or Ideal?


text:
Q: solution of ordinary differential equations How to solve the following ordinary differential equation
\begin{equation}
f_{xx}^{^{\prime \prime }}+2axf_{x}^{^{\prime }}-2sf=0
\end{equation}
with $a$ and $s$ are arbitrary real numbers and the boundary conditions
\begin{equation}
f\left( \delta \right) =f\left( -\delta \right) =1
\end{equation}
After checking some books, I got the general solution
\begin{equation}
f\left( x\right) =C_{1}\Phi \left( -\frac{s}{2a},\frac{1}{2},-ax^{2}\right)
+C_{2}\Psi \left( -\frac{s}{2a},\frac{1}{2},-ax^{2}\right)
\end{equation}
where $\Phi$ and $\Psi$ are degenerate hypergeometric functions. Are there any other forms of the solution, such as double integral or serious?

A: To maintain the meaning of this question, $a\neq0$ and $s\neq0$ should be restricted
Let $f(x)=\int_Ce^{xu}K(u)~du$ ,
Then $(\int_Ce^{xu}K(u)~du)''+2ax(\int_Ce^{xu}K(u)~du)'-2s\int_Ce^{xu}K(u)~du=0$
$\int_Cu^2e^{xu}K(u)~du+2ax\int_Cue^{xu}K(u)~du-2s\int_Ce^{xu}K(u)~du=0$
$\int_C(u^2-2s)e^{xu}K(u)~du+\int_C2aue^{xu}K(u)~d(xu)=0$
$\int_C(u^2-2s)e^{xu}K(u)~du+\int_C2auK(u)~d(e^{xu})=0$
$\int_C(u^2-2s)e^{xu}K(u)~du+[2aue^{xu}K(u)]_C-\int_Ce^{xu}~d(2auK(u))=0$
$\int_C(u^2-2s)e^{xu}K(u)~du+[2aue^{xu}K(u)]_C-\int_Ce^{xu}(2auK'(u)+2aK(u))~du=0$
$[2aue^{xu}K(u)]_C-\int_Ce^{xu}(2auK'(u)-(u^2-2a-2s)K(u))~du=0$
$\therefore 2auK'(u)-(u^2-2a-2s)K(u)=0$
$2auK'(u)=(u^2-2a-2s)K(u)$
$\dfrac{K'(u)}{K(u)}=\dfrac{u}{2a}+\left(-\dfrac{s}{a}-1\right)\dfrac{1}{u}$
$\int\dfrac{K'(u)}{K(u)}du=\int\left(\dfrac{u}{2a}+\left(-\dfrac{s}{a}-1\right)\dfrac{1}{u}\right)du$
$\ln K(u)=\dfrac{u^2}{4a}+\left(-\dfrac{s}{a}-1\right)\ln u+c_1$
$K(u)=cu^{-\frac{s}{a}-1}e^{\frac{u^2}{4a}}$
$\therefore f(x)=\int_Ccu^{-\frac{s}{a}-1}e^{\frac{u^2}{4a}+xu}~du$
But since the above procedure in fact suitable for any complex number $u$ ,
$\therefore f_n(x)=\int_{a_n}^{b_n}c_n(m_nt)^{-\frac{s}{a}-1}e^{\frac{(m_nt)^2}{4a}+xm_nt}~d(m_nt)={m_n}^{-\frac{s}{a}}c_n\int_{a_n}^{b_n}t^{-\frac{s}{a}-1}e^{\frac{{m_n}^2t^2}{4a}+m_nxt}~dt$
For some $x$-independent real number choices of $a_n$ and $b_n$ and $x$-independent complex number choices of $m_n$ such that:
$\lim\limits_{t\to a_n}t^{-\frac{s}{a}}e^{\frac{{m_n}^2t^2}{4a}+m_nxt}=\lim\limits_{t\to b_n}t^{-\frac{s}{a}}e^{\frac{{m_n}^2t^2}{4a}+m_nxt}$
$\int_{a_n}^{b_n}t^{-\frac{s}{a}-1}e^{\frac{{m_n}^2t^2}{4a}+m_nxt}~dt$ converges
Case $1$ : $a>0$ and $s<0$
For $n=1$, the best choice is $a_1=0$ , $b_1=\infty$ , $m_1=\pm i$
$\therefore f(x)=C_1\int_0^\infty t^{-\frac{s}{a}-1}e^{-\frac{t^2}{4a}}\cos xt~dt$ or $C_1\int_0^\infty t^{-\frac{s}{a}-1}e^{-\frac{t^2}{4a}}\sin xt~dt$
Hence $f(x)=C_1\int_0^\infty t^{-\frac{s}{a}-1}e^{-\frac{t^2}{4a}}\sin xt~dt+C_2\int_0^\infty t^{-\frac{s}{a}-1}e^{-\frac{t^2}{4a}}\cos xt~dt$
Case $2$ : $a<0$ and $s>0$
For $n=1$, the best choice is $a_1=0$ , $b_1=\infty$ , $m_1=\pm1$
$\therefore f(x)=C_1\int_0^\infty t^{-\frac{s}{a}-1}e^{\frac{t^2}{4a}}\cosh xt~dt$ or $C_1\int_0^\infty t^{-\frac{s}{a}-1}e^{\frac{t^2}{4a}}\sinh xt~dt$
Hence $f(x)=C_1\int_0^\infty t^{-\frac{s}{a}-1}e^{\frac{t^2}{4a}}\sinh xt~dt+C_2\int_0^\infty t^{-\frac{s}{a}-1}e^{\frac{t^2}{4a}}\cosh xt~dt$
Compare with $\Phi\left(-\dfrac{s}{2a},\dfrac{1}{2},-ax^2\right)$ and $\Psi\left(-\dfrac{s}{2a},\dfrac{1}{2},-ax^2\right)$ , according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confluent_hypergeometric_functions#Integral_representations,
$\Phi\left(-\dfrac{s}{2a},\dfrac{1}{2},-ax^2\right)\propto\int_0^1t^{-\frac{s}{2a}-1}(1-t)^{\frac{s}{2a}-\frac{1}{2}}e^{-ax^2t}~dt$ when $\dfrac{1}{2}>-\dfrac{s}{2a}>0$
$\Psi\left(-\dfrac{s}{2a},\dfrac{1}{2},-ax^2\right)\propto\int_0^\infty t^{-\frac{s}{2a}-1}(1+t)^{\frac{s}{2a}-\frac{1}{2}}e^{ax^2t}~dt$ when $-\dfrac{s}{2a}>0$

A: Since this is a linear second order ODE of the type:
\begin{equation}
y^{''} + A_1(x) y^{'} +A_0(x) y = 0
\end{equation}
it is known that it is reduced to a simpler form with the middle term missing by a substitution $y = \exp(-1/2 \int a_1(x) dx ) u(x)$ with the new function satisfying the following equation:
\begin{equation}
u^{''} - \underbrace{(\frac{A_1(x)^2}{4} + \frac{A_1^{'}(x)}{2} - A_0(x))}_{v(x)} \cdot u=0
\end{equation}
The equation above is called the ${\bf input}$ equation.
Now the idea is to seek solutions of the above equation in terms of known specials functions whose arguments have been changed appropriately. In other words we make a following ansatz $u(x) = m(x) F_{1,2} (\xi(x))$ where
\begin{equation}
\left(\frac{d^2}{d x^2} + a_1(x) \frac{d}{d x} +a_0(x)\right) F_{1,2}(x)=0
\end{equation}
is the ${\bf target}$ equation whose solutions are assumed to be known. Now by inserting the ansatz into the input equation and setting coefficients at $F$ and at $F^{'}$ to zero we get the follwoing equations for the changed variables:
\begin{eqnarray}
 \frac{m^{'}}{m} &=& \frac{1}{2} \left( a_1 \cdot \xi^{'} - \frac{\xi^{''}} {\xi}\right) \quad (i)\\
v&=& \left(\frac{a_1^2}{4} + \frac{a_1^{'}}{2}-a_0\right)\cdot (\xi^{'})^2 + \left( \frac{3(\xi^{''})^2}{4(\xi^{'})^2} - \frac{\xi^{'''}}{2\xi^{'}}\right)\quad (ii)
\end{eqnarray}
Now back to our example. We have $v(x) = a+2 s+a^2 x^2$. I suggest to try to map our equation to the confluent hypergeometric equation or to the Whittaker equation which is its symmetric form. Here we have
\begin{eqnarray}
a_1(x)&=&0 \\
a_0(x)&=&-1/4+\mu/x+(1/4-\nu^2)/x^2
\end{eqnarray}
Now it turns out that if the function $v(x)$ is a rational function equation (ii) has solutions in form of rational functions as well. Theorem 1 on page 3 in [1] gives a recipe on constructing the such solutions. Since our function $v(x)$ is a polynomial of order two it turns out that the solution has to be a polynomial of order two, i.e. $\xi(x) = c_0 + c_1 x + c_2 x^2$. Inserting this into (ii) we get a system of non-linear equations for the parameters $c_0$,$c_1$,$c_2$ which gives a following solution $c_0=0$,$c_1=0$,$c_2=a$,$\mu=-(a+2 s)/(4 a)$,$\nu=1/4$.
Therefore the solutions of the original equation read:
\begin{eqnarray}
y(x) &=& C_1 \cdot \exp(-\frac{a}{2} x^2) \frac{1}{\sqrt{x}} W_{-\frac{a+2 s}{4 a},\frac{1}{4}}(a x^2) + C_1 \cdot \exp(-\frac{a}{2} x^2) \frac{1}{\sqrt{x}} M_{-\frac{a+2 s}{4 a},\frac{1}{4}}(a x^2)\\
&=& C_1 \exp(-a x^2) x U(\frac{3}{4}+\frac{a+2 s}{4 a},\frac{3}{2},a x^2) +
C_2 \exp(-a x^2) x F_{1,1}(\frac{3}{4}+\frac{a+2 s}{4 a},\frac{3}{2},a x^2)
\end{eqnarray}
Here $W$ and $M$ are the Whittaker functions and $U$ is the confluent hypergeometric function.
[1] M. Bronstein & S. Lafaille, ``Solutions of linear ordinary differential equations in terms of special functions'', Proceedings of ISSAC'2002, Lille, ACM Press, 23-28. https://www-sop.inria.fr/cafe/Manuel.Bronstein/

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