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Reky Martha: Co-Founder & President of Hoshizora Foundation
By David Soukhasing
Tell us a bit about yourself.
My name is Reky Martha and I am co-founder and current president of Hoshizora Foundation. I started Hoshizora in 2006 when I was a student in Japan at Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University (APU). Basically while doing part-time jobs, my co-founders and I used our money to help out kids that were dropping out of school in Indonesia. My friends and I started a community to support about 14 street children to get back to school. We set aside our lunch money for one month to pay for the school fees of elementary school students. With more and more traction coming in, it just grew from there. We officially registered as a foundation in Indonesia in 2010. We're also registered in the United States. Now we're supporting 2214 students from elementary school to university. We have 25 full time staff, fully paid with benefits – a team in Yogyakarta and a partnership team in Jakarta. And we're looking to grow more.
Did you always know you were going to be in the education space?
I have always been inspired to be an educator; I feel that Indonesia faces many challenges in education. For instance, public schools are supposed to be free but they're not. Even today, almost 1 million students drop out of elementary school and never enter middle school. In Flores, for example, I saw so many little kids, with their tiny feet, walking for two hours to go to school. In the heat, you know, with no access to fresh water. How do you expect these kids to learn how to read?
As a person who was lucky enough to get scholarships to study in Japan and Canada and land a job in the United States, I feel that the only small way I can contribute back is by providing better education for Indonesian children. And right now we're trying to reach the children who don't even have access to school. We're here to support whatever the government is doing and work with the private sector.
What exactly does Hoshizora do?
We are an organization that provides access to education through our scholarship program, from elementary school to university. We have about one thousand individual donors right now; 100 percent of these one-to-one donations go to the children (80% in the form of a fund, 20% for capacity-building programs). Apart from this scholarship, we truly believe that character-building is the main ingredient to a more successful education system in this country. We do this through our forum, and through meeting our children and providing mentorship every six months. Our area coordinators are closely monitoring our children monthly as well. We work to be sustainable by having various sources of revenue streams to maintain our operation and management professionally.
So Hoshizora pretty much provides scholarships, but not your usual scholarship. We do a lot of capacity building to help the children grow. We have our own Hoshizora curriculum book, filled mainly with soft skills, for children in every grade. It starts from knowing yourself and understanding your emotions, all the way to critical thinking and problem-solving. And it's fascinating because we've been working with the same kids for 12 years now; one of my youngest kids back in 2006 is now in university and I can totally see the changes. They are not only growing as smart and curious people, but they also become empathetic leaders who now are able to create job opportunities for others. Seeing these longitudinal changes firsthand and through our data really validates our model.
What have been some of the biggest insights or takeaways that you've had running Hoshizora over the past 12 years?
I think first of all, education is a very important sector but the urgency is often forgotten because it's not very sexy. When we started this, we did it as a volunteer activity community, but it wasn't going to go anywhere like that. The reason why communities and nonprofits are dying so often is because we're not viewing them as valuable as companies or enterprises. So after four years we realized that we cannot lean on volunteerism. We are still open for volunteers at specific events and giving a chance for young people to experience the work we do, but we do it full time now. And the people who are working full time with us understand that working in the education sector is important, and that they are as valuable as the people working at companies. So it's competitive enough for young people to move from Jakarta to our headquarters to Yogyakarta, to be part of our team because we value them.
Second of all, sustainability is always a problem. In the beginning, we did lean on grants and donations. The reason why we have two revenue streams now is because we want to make sure that individual donors are able to see 100% of their donations go to the children. We built our own social enterprises that is contributing to our operations, and we also do brand activation for corporates and companies. And to ensure sustainability, we build three-to-four year partnerships with companies, rather than just one year.
Hoshizora is also learning that the impact we're having on these children is deep impact. In twelve years, we've had 2,200 kids in our program. We have a formula where our program strives for deep impact that is replicable in different rural areas in Indonesia so we can also scale up our impact.
How does Hoshizora Foundation balance public sector and private sector? Where do you fit in?
We're looking at an ecosystem here, and I think if we break them apart we're not going to get anywhere. There's a lot of ego involved in it for sure. So we're looking at how we can bring everybody together in the ecosystem. The ecological framework that we use is Bronfenbrenner's Ecological System, which stems from child development theories. We need to stay true to our purpose, which is educating children, and we're using a lot of positive psychology and social emotional learning frameworks in our work.
To bring people together, we build partnerships. Our closest partners right now are from the private sector looking to create shared values. Obviously we're here to support the government, even though we do not have any direct collaboration with the them. They have their own system. We're moving forward at a different pace. We tend to work with the private sector because they can move faster, with less bureaucracy. The impact can be fulfilled within months and we can measure it. A clear measurement is very important for us to know what's working, what's not working out, and to keep improving on that.
When we're working with the kids, we get some social enterprises working with us; we give scholarships to children of mothers who are working for a specific social enterprise, for example. So we're opening that collaboration where other social enterprises can work with the parents and make sure that these parents are actually delivering good quality of work so that their children can get our scholarship. At the same time, we're opening a space for corporates to work with schools and teachers, mainly on capacity building. It's building a whole community together with the hope that in few years we can exit when the quality of life is better for that community.
Is Hoshizora the only thing on your plate? What else are you involved in?
I am still trying to find out the best way to give access to education. I was involved in Humanitree, where I want to see if there is a faster way using technology to provide access to education. Perhaps not necessarily formal education; you know, education is not about getting a certificate but really getting skills that people need, such as critical thinking. So how can we give access to education to children out in Papua or Kalimantan, in a way that they can exercise their critical thinking and problem solving? Hoshizora is one way of tackling that challenge, in a deeper way. But it has to be paired up with something that can provide faster access to education. In a way, it's just finding ways to tackling different issues within the education space while heading in the same direction.
As entrepreneurs, we cannot stop learning and exploring ideas. We need to stay focused on what we're doing, but not closing the door to exploring other ways to tackle challenges. I find it very valuable to be in the startup ecosystem in Jakarta, where startups rise and fall every second. To survive and to find the best way to provide solutions to challenges, it's quite challenging.
As one of the earlier female entrepreneurs entering the ecosystem back in 2006, how has it been being a female entrepreneur? How have things changed from 2006 until now?
Sometimes people are surprised that I'm doing this full-time and dedicating my life to provide access to education. When we incorporated Hoshizora as a foundation, that meant dealing with legal, tax, and building good organizational processes and structure. It's a lot of work and I'm proud that I have two other strong female co-founders to go through these tough times. Oftentimes when people see this position being held by a female, they have doubts. Somehow they think that when a female gets married or has kids, obviously they'll only work part-time. Sometimes when I walk into a meeting, I am assumed to be the secretary or PR person. So when I tell them, yes, I'm leading this organization 100 percent, full-time, it surprises people.
Half of my team members are male, so I think gender equality in leadership doesn't necessarily mean having an all-female team. We need males supporting female roles. I find that in the past two years, there have been more support given to female entrepreneurs. A lot of attention is given. But I also encourage males to understand what females are doing and going through. Because if males don't understand, it's still going to be imbalanced. Men should still be encouraged to work with women. There should be equal opportunity within the whole ecosystem for men and women to work together.
What are some strengths to being a female entrepreneur?
Over time I learned that some of the strongest points of leadership are vulnerability, flexibility, and adaptability – qualities that female leaders often possess. I can give you an example. So, being sustainable is a challenge for every non-commercial organization. We don't receive a lot of grants for our operations and management. Two years ago, for example, I was worried about being able to pay my team. Rather than framing it negatively, I communicated it as, "Hey, I'm trying to be sustainable. Give me ideas on how I can be more sustainable." I think female leaders are quite good at articulating and sharing that in a more positive framework, and it results in leadership that is more agile, and partnerships that are more open. Saying, "This is our condition, give me ideas," instead of saying, "We're good to go, we're okay," or pretending that we're okay because of pride, is far healthier.
And definitely over the past two years as a female leader overseeing 25 full time staff, I'm also growing as a person and I couldn't do it without my team. Vulnerability, flexibility, adaptability, staying focused, and being persistent are all things I am learning everyday. Self awareness and self management – those are key to the recipes for creating a harmonious working environment. I think female leaders have the advantage of being able to be aware of what's going on, nurturing that empathy within team members as well.
What challenges do you face as an entrepreneur?
Honestly speaking, it's hard to balance a personal life and surviving in the startup ecosystem in Jakarta. Being on top of what you're supposed to do and being in the community, it takes a lot of hours. My team is in Yogyakarta while I'm in Jakarta, so going back and forth takes a lot of time. It becomes challenging to keep up a healthy lifestyle. Being able to exercise every morning, cooking my own food, or even keeping up with other parts of life. I'm still learning how to do that.
Jakarta is a bubble in a way. When I go to Sumatra, Kalimantan, Flores, or other remote areas, the working style is very different. Leadership has to change all the time. When I'm back with my team in Yogyakarta, I have to switch back to what's best for them. So that adaptability, while holding and stimulating the team to grow is quite challenging.
Have you faced any specific challenges as a female in this field?
Society – especially Indonesian society – has a lot of expectations for females. It can be challenging sometimes when people ask me if I have time to take care of a partner or whatever. I think debunking society's expectations for females is quite challenging. Funny thing, before I moved to Indonesia I used to shave my head completely, just to debunk the notion that females need long hair to be pretty. I haven't really found a way in Indonesia to challenge those mindsets, of what society expects from females.
What else do we need to do to support female leaders in Indonesia?
Engaging the men to talk about how to balance roles in society is important. Because if it's just the females going strong, I don't think it's going to work out as nicely. The males have to understand what the females are doing and engage in active discussion. If a woman is exploring higher career options, what kind of actions can the male can do at home, for instance, to support that? It cannot go just one way.
And the feminist movement, it's not just about females supporting females. It's also about males supporting females and having open discussions on that. I don't think we have a lot of those conversations in Indonesia — especially challenging male Indonesians to have an open discussion. What does it mean for them to support a female leader? More discussion is needed, and an action plan can come out of that, a movement of some kind. But changing mindset, especially in a culture where it's quite patriarchal, it's going to take some time. I think within the startup ecosystem, which is quite vibrant and increasingly run by millennials, if we start opening the discussion there's going to be positive momentum to disrupt what exists. That can be a start.
How do you personally try to keep balance in your life and practice mindfulness?
Yeah, so I like climbing trees. It's my meditation, but it's not always accessible. So every morning for meditation and yoga, stretching is a must for me. My morning glory is my morning glory, and I do it at least an hour before I touch my phone. So that's one thing that I can do anywhere I go.
The second thing is a component of social-emotional learning: practicing self awareness, self management, social awareness, social responsibility, and responsible decision-making. This can be through a practice where we check our intention every second. For instance, why am I doing this interview? What's my intention? Will it be useful? Questioning everything has become a habit for me to help choose and prioritize. And it helps me make more responsible decisions.
Another thing is emotional literacy. I think in a country where most people are still in survival mode where the basics – how do I eat, how do I earn money – aren't fulfilled yet, emotions are often the last thing people think about. We're not told or taught to recognize our emotions and verbalize them. Sometimes we're actually sad and lonely, but it comes across as being angry just because we don't know how to label that emotion. What I'd like to do with my team is to encourage them to express and recognize their emotions, by checking in and saying, "Hey, I'm trying to understand what are your feelings, to help you in understanding and verbalizing them."
So in a nutshell, we need to practice mindfulness all the time.. And I'd like to find more spots to climb trees in Jakarta.
What's your long term vision for yourself?
The ultimate goal is to be an awesome grandmother, with a big house, so I can invite everybody to take a break from their lives and have meaningful conversations over a big meal in beautiful nature. That's the long term goal (laughs). But, I think in the next five to 10 years I'm very keen on finding a better solution to reduce dropout rates. I'm super passionate about finding better ways to reach out to more children. It could be through Hoshizora, or through the digitalization of ways to provide access to education like creating learning tools for critical thinking and problem solving.
Do you have any advice for the younger generation – kids who want to be future leaders?
I think taking time to understand who you are is very important, especially in our world where technology, social media, ads dominate. Everything is changing so fast that it's easy to think that something is our desire while it's actually other people's desire. For example, being a founder of something – a lot of the younger ones want to be a founder of something, but honestly it's not the question of being a founder or not being a founder. It's what problem you want to solve. You need to question yourself: why was I born in this world, what purpose am I fulfilling? Because everybody is an important piece of a larger puzzle. No matter how small they are, if you take out the other pieces, the puzzle won't be complete. Every person is that important, but to know what function your puzzle piece serves is a different question, right?
And I think we are all running too fast, getting all this information without pausing and thinking, okay, is this what I want? Constantly check your intentions and ask, "Why do I want to do this? What is the greater benefit of this? How am I going to be sustainable?" Questioning yourself will activate the neurons in your brain and help you stay on top of your passions – especially if you are passionate in solving challenges through entrepreneurship. Being a reflective person is important.
One thought on "Reky Martha: Co-Founder & President of Hoshizora Foundation"
Jessica Soto says:
Totally insightful and an example to other female and male leaders to put their Heart and time to solve a problem that matter to them creating a balance ecosystem.


What led you to study and practise Buddhism and Vipassana Meditation?
Curiously enough, I think it was a book my father left lying around when I was in university and doing everything I could to avoid studying. It was Betty Edwards' Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain, still a classic text not only for drawing but for spurring creativity in general, and it kept mentioning something called "Zen" and an author named Frederick Franck and his book, The Zen of Seeing. For years afterward I kept drawing and painting and trying to connect these practices with a nascent curiosity about Zen and meditation and so on.
Robert M. Pirsig's 1974 opus, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, was a major inspiration to me then too although I'm only now appreciating the profound things that man came up with way back then. I really didn't have a clue what it was all about in those days – this was before the Internet and before McNally Robinson's – so it is interesting now to reflect back on my early experiences and to pick out the seeds of what I know and do now. I encourage anyone to try this with your own life: What did you used to do, and think, and tell yourself, that turned out to be solid and true and the right path for you?
How long have you been practising this form of meditation?
My explorations without guidance led me to a brief involvement with a group who practised in a Vajrayana tradition, but I could feel that it wasn't right for me so I respectfully dropped out. It's a terrible cliché that "when the student is ready, the teacher will appear", but that's exactly how it happened many years later.
I had a major change in my life circumstances and suddenly found myself living alone and feeling lonely and sad with only two self-serving misbegotten cats for company. A new friend I'd made introduced me to the group which met at the Yoga Centre Winnipeg, and I started attending regularly. For months, I sat at the back, didn't ask questions, and didn't talk to anyone. And still I felt welcomed, and this habit of practising mindfulness took root and began to grow. There was no pressure to be anything or do anything. I hope our group still feels that way to anyone feeling small and perhaps in similar circumstances.
Like Nelle, whom I met way back then, I learned the most from the man who started what is now the WIMG. And I learn lots from my fellow Dharma practice leaders and discussions with people in the group. And then there's just life itself – family, friends, and clients. I learn so much from my work with my clients!
Where have you gone on retreats or places for studying the Dharma?
I do not have time, at this stage in my life, to attend retreats although I've been to some Day of Mindfulness retreats from which I've derived great benefit. I consider my family and my housework and my dishes part of my practice (ha-ha!).
That's hard to answer because we only live life forwards and only once, and that makes for lousy research with a very small sample size! All I can say is that I feel a solid, unshakable foundation in the Dharma, a tremendous sense of community in our little Sangha, and a deep peace in my knowledge of the Buddha. And I wouldn't have it any other way.
I guess I could also say that when others are troubled, I am confident that I have something real to offer in terms of listening, compassion, humour, and perspective.
Yeah. Dishes. Walking with my dog, letting him walk me. Running and bicycling. Reading lots and doing research. Everything I learn in public health epidemiology, psychology and neurology, and any valid school of therapy confirms the Dharma teachings over and over again. This practice is so rooted in good science; for something so ancient, it is really the most remarkable human achievement. So after a while you start to see the Buddha's teachings, and sometimes even the Buddha-nature, in everything!
I really don't know! We have excellent leadership happening organically in the group now, and I cannot see where it will all lead. But I don't want to ever lose the sense of close connection that (I hope!) we have, and I would like anyone who doesn't feel that we're living up to the feeling of a Sangha to tell us. We'll listen.
And like I said above, I hope that anyone who feels the way I did 20 years ago feels welcome to just come and take it in – no pressure, no commitment, and no sell job. Each of us can walk the path in our own way at our own speed. I'm not such a quick study myself.
Is there any other question that you'd like to answer as well? What do you think is the most important thing that people need to know about Insight Meditation?
I feel the most important thing is to clear up the myths and misconceptions about mindfulness meditation that may be out there.
Meditation will not make us levitate. Teachers do not give off light rays. We do not cure cancer. We who practice this path have our hurts and failings, and we suffer just like anyone else.
The essence of what I've gained thus far, really, is just a way of making sense of life's unfairness and its paradoxes. It is something truly grand to inspire and guide me, but which I know I'll never completely live up to. However, the joy is in the trying. In trying, we must be humble, flexible, and forgiving; trying too hard doesn't work! The practice fosters goodwill, humour, compassion, irony, and love – that's all! – no miracles.


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Q: How to get the raw 'created_at' value in the database (not an object cast to an ActiveSupport::TimeWithZone) Imagine I have a Post Model.
and one record in the database will be:
23|title_here|content_here|2011-02-20 08:01:55.583222|2011-02-20 08:01:55.583222

and the last two field (2011-02-20 08:01:55.583222|2011-02-20 08:01:55.583222  ) are the created_at and updated_at field.
Then,
post = Post.find_by_id(23)

Question: How can I get the created_at string: "2011-02-20 08:01:55.583222" in the data base?
As we know, the post.created_at will return a ActiveSupport::TimeWithZone object, not the raw string.
Please help :)

A: use attributes_before_type_cast
Post.find(23).attributes_before_type_cast["created_at"]

or
Post.find(23).read_attribute_before_type_cast("created_at")

Edit
You can call like this also:
Post.find(23).created_at_before_type_cast

according to Accessing attributes before they have been typecasted.

A: Try
Post.find_by_id(23).created_at.to_s

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The Muddle Of Machine Ethics
"There are no objective values."
J.L Mackie, 1977, p. 15
Humanity has no moral canon which a common set of ethics can stem from. There is conflict all around us. Most, if not all conflicts arise out of differences in opinions, which in turn occur because people have their own set of unique morals.
The issue of difference in moral opinions has brought to the table many heated debates. One that has always been seen in the spotlight is policy and law making on various issues, for example: someone is happy with a healthy baby and yet another person is deeming it their right to resort to feticide. Someone who has watched a dear one suffer from a debilitating condition over an extended period of time has a different opinion on euthanasia versus someone who hasn't. Law enforcement officers in violent neighborhoods who have witnessed fellow officers being shot have a different perspective of whether to fire when in doubt, versus human rights activists who haven't.
Parleys between parties who have different sets of moral values are indisputably endless, and therefore, I will dwell no more on those than necessary. The aspect of this debate that I intend to focus on in this article is the labyrinthine world of machine ethics. Machine ethics, also known as computational ethics is a part of the ethics of artificial intelligence concerned with adding moral behaviors to machines which use artificial intelligence, otherwise known as artificial intelligent agents. As the sphere of technology is constantly being updated, we are now seeing more autonomous machines than ever. This has presented programmers with a large scale problem, unprecedented and intricate.
Let's take the example of self driving cars, an innovation that is taking off big time. You are in a self driving car that is running on the road, "boxed in" by vehicles all around. On your right side is a motorcycle, to the left is a regular SUV, in front and to the back of you are two large trucks. The safety of each party is considered by the smart car before it comes to its decision. To elaborate, the smart car knows the following: swerving right immediately results in high damage to the motorcyclist, heading back or front means you will be compromising on your safety. Swerving left to the SUV may be slightly less damaging in terms of net harm done. What should the smart car do?
Another scenario: say you've been found in the same situation, but with motorcyclists on both sides. However, the one to your left is wearing a helmet, and the one to your right is not. What will your robot car crash into? Forward, endangering your own life? Left: to the safer, helmet-armed passenger? or to the right: the exposed, law breaking motorcyclist? "If you say the biker because she's more likely to survive, then aren't you penalizing the motorist? If instead, you swerve towards the biker without the helmet because he's acting irresponsibly, then you've gone way beyond the initial design principle about minimizing harm, and the robot car is now meting out street justice" These are the scenarios displayed in a TED-Ed video:
If a human was driving the same car, whatever they do can be written off as human impulse, and they may not be punished. However, the action of the smart car is pre-meditated, and may pose legal confusions. How can this be resolved?
Coming back to our smart car, what will it do? Well, obviously what it's been programmed to do. What will the programmer do then? Now, that is a tricky question, which can cause an outcry in any way it is answered. As discussed before there are no objective values and therefore, no one can say there is a correct answer. Trying to program the smart car to act in a certain way in various situations will always bring up questions like: is the life of a younger person more valuable than an older one? Would you kill one person if it means saving five even though your inaction means the one person is safe? Dilemmas like this present themselves all the time in machine ethics, and it is unclear if there can ever be a unambiguous answer.
How can researchers equip a robot to react when it is "making the decision between two bad choices".Computer scientists working on rigorously programmed machine ethics today favour code that uses logical statements, such as 'If a statement is true, move forward; if it is false, do not move.' Logic is the ideal choice for encoding machine ethics, argues Luís Moniz Pereira, a computer scientist at the Nova Laboratory for Computer Science and Informatics in Lisbon. "Logic is how we reason and come up with our ethical choices," he says. But how can this be done when they all have different morals? Isn't this somewhat like placing justice on these programmers' plates?
McDonald and Pak (1996), while researching cognitive frameworks used by people to make decisions, identified eight frameworks that influence ethical decisions:
Self-interest: selfishly gaining the greatest degree of personal satisfaction
Utilitarianism: the decision to produce the greatest ratio of good over bad for everyone
Categorical Imperative: regardless of the consequences, the decision is either morally right or wrong
Duty: the decision may be inherently right because of the duty one has
Justice: concerned the fairness of the decision
Neutralization: the decision to reduce the possible impact of norm-violating behaviors upon self-concept and social relationships
The light of the day: the decision to consider the question what if this information went public?
Since it is obvious that the degree to which each of these frameworks applies to each of us, how is the problem of machine ethics solved? Is it right to program robots to the customer's own personal moral values? Is it even feasible? Should a government regulated set of rules be applied to this, similar to normal law making?
These are a few questions that I think us, as a society should discuss and reflect upon. The pace of development is such that these difficulties will soon affect health-care robots, military drones and other autonomous devices capable of making decisions that could help or harm humans.
Note: the words 'morals' and 'values' have been used interchangeably. So have the words 'computer scientists' and programmers'. This article is more discussion-al than anything and is intended to be opened up for further meaningful dialogue.
Credits: medium.com, wikipedia.com, springer link
This article was written by Bharati Challa a new contributor and soon to be writer
28 April 2020 /0 Comments/by Ed Lawrence Ed
https://www.quarksnews.com/cms/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/f27e2d77666cc1d4c7ee55cfe4cf2b1d.jpg 800 1287 Ed Lawrence Ed https://www.quarksnews.com/cms/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/quraksnews_b-1-300x111.png Ed Lawrence Ed2020-04-28 10:01:402020-04-28 10:07:41The Muddle Of Machine Ethics
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Home » Blog » Family Vacation Destinations » Southwest US Destinations » Honoring President Kennedy in Dallas, Texas
Honoring President Kennedy in Dallas, Texas
February 28, 2014 // by Cindy Richards// 2 Comments
Generations of Americans have been born and grown up since Nov. 22, 1963, the date that lives in Dallas infamy as the day President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in that Texas city. Dallas is the mecca for families looking to find and understand Kennedy's life, death and legacy.
During a whirlwind visit to Dallas driving a loaned Cadillac Escalade, we discovered that the place to start that search is the Sixth Floor Museum. Then called the Texas School Book Depository, this is the building where assassin Lee Harvey Oswald used boxes of books to barricade a space near a corner window, according to the official story of Kennedy's assassination. It was from there that he fired the shots that would kill the president and wound Texas Governor John Connolly. They were riding in a convertible past Dealey Plaza and its surprisingly small grassy knoll on his way to a luncheon with Dallas civic leaders and city officials at the Dallas Trade Mart.
The Sixth Floor Museum offers a thorough and moving recap of the events before, during and after the murder of President John F. Kennedy. You can stand next to the spot where officials believe Oswald perched while he waited for the motorcade to arrive. Look out the window and imagine the trees to be much smaller. It seems like an eerily easy shot. The digital sound track, narrated by a mellow-voiced reporter who covered the chaotic scene, transports listeners back to the events of the day. There's also a separate sound track geared toward kids.
Sixth Floor Museum in Dallas
The journey through the museum unfolds slowly. It begins with an exploration of the culture of the times, the political climate in Texas, and the president's plan for visiting the city. It builds to the shooting, then catalogs the investigation in the immediate aftermath, the shooting of the young cop, J.D. Tippit, Oswald's arrest, and his murder by Jack Ruby. There's a discussion of the ongoing debate over who really shot JFK and whether it was a conspiracy–a debate that will no doubt rage again as the 50th anniversary nears.
The museum journey ends with a brief look at Kennedy's legacy. We all walked out feeling emotionally drained and wishing we had allotted much more time for our visit.
Plan to spend a minimum of 90 minutes at the Sixth Floor Museum. Plan a much longer visit on a busy day when the crowds will make it tougher to get close to the large sign boards and take in all of the information, or to more thoroughly explore the museum. There is archival footage to watch and optional extra information embedded in the digital listening device. The audio guide, available in both English and Spanish, is included with the $16 admission fee ($14 for seniors 65+), block out at least two hours.
Learning about Lee Harvey Oswald
After leaving the Sixth Floor Museum, walk across the street toward Dealey Plaza and its grassy knoll. Look for the Big D Fun Tour JFK Trolley Tour. This one-hour trolley tour starts at Dealey Plaza, follows the route the president's motorcade took through downtown Dallas and then follows the route Oswald took in his attempt to escape capture.
The trolley passes the building that served as Oswald's rooming house (it's for sale now), and stops at the spot where Officer Tippit died and the spot where Oswald met his end at the hands of Jack Ruby. With just an hour to cover so much ground to cover, both in miles and narration, our guide made it clear from the outset that discussion of the events, a possible conspiracy or anything else was not welcome.
Tours run Wednesday-Sunday and cost $20 for adults ($18 for seniors 60+).
Category: Southwest US DestinationsTag: Dallas, History, Texas
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Q: How to delete pointer from a dynamic array of pointers at an exact index? When we have dynamic array of pointers in hand, suppose we want to delete 3rd index of this array and copying the higher pointers down one slot.
Q1: Do we need to delete 3rd element?
Q2: What happens after  we make delete aPtr[3] and assigning new pointer to aPtr[3]
Does the code part do what I am trying to do?
'''
A **aPtr = new A*[10];

for(int i=0; i< 10; i++)
{
    aPtr[i] = new A;
}

delete aPtr[3];

for(int i=3; i<9; i++)
{
    aPtr[i] = aPtr[i+1];
}

'''
Another question regardless of the previous one. When we want to delete all the elements in the array of pointers, is the statement "delete [] aPtr;" also required?
'''
A **aPtr = new A*[10];

for(int i=0; i< 10; i++)
{
    aPtr[i] = new A;
}

for(int i=0; i<10; i++)
{
    delete aPtr[i];
}

delete[] aPtr; //<-----Is this line required to free the memory?

'''

A: Your code looks good with one exception.
delete aPtr[3];

for(int i=3; i<9; i++)
{
    aPtr[i] = aPtr[i+1];
}

Add this:
aPtr[9] = nullptr;

Otherwise aPtr[8] and aPtr[9] both point to the same place, and later when you delete the whole thing, you'll double-delete that pointer.
Otherwise, it looks good.


text:
The Best New Manga Series to Read Right Now
Which Mobile Devices Support the Latest Anime Update?
Find out which mobile devices support the latest anime updates by considering factors such as operating system, screen size, processor and storage space.
Anime is a popular form of animation originating from Japan. It has become increasingly popular in recent years, with many streaming services offering a wide variety of anime titles. As such, it is important to know which mobile devices support the latest anime updates.The first thing to consider when looking for a device that supports the latest anime updates is the operating system. Most modern smartphones and tablets run either Android or iOS, and both of these operating systems have dedicated anime streaming apps.
Android users can download the Crunchyroll app, while iOS users can download the Funimation app. Both of these apps offer a wide selection of anime titles, and they are regularly updated with new content.Screen SizeThe next factor to consider is the size of the device's screen. Anime is best enjoyed on a larger display, so it is important to choose a device with a screen size that is suitable for watching anime. Most smartphones have screens that range from 5 to 6 inches, while tablets usually have screens that range from 7 to 10 inches.
If you want to watch anime on a larger display, you may want to consider investing in a laptop or desktop computer.ProcessorThe processor is another important factor to consider when choosing a device for watching anime. The processor determines how quickly the device can process data, which affects how smoothly videos will play. Most modern smartphones and tablets have processors that are powerful enough to stream anime without any issues, but if you want to watch high-definition anime, you may want to invest in a device with a more powerful processor.StorageFinally, it is important to consider the amount of storage available on the device. Streaming anime requires a lot of data, so it is important to choose a device with enough storage space to accommodate all of your favorite shows.
Most modern smartphones and tablets come with at least 32GB of storage space, but if you plan on downloading a lot of anime episodes, you may want to invest in a device with more storage space.In conclusion, there are several factors to consider when looking for a device that supports the latest anime updates. It is important to choose a device with an operating system that supports dedicated anime streaming apps, as well as one with a large enough screen size and powerful enough processor for smooth playback. Additionally, it is important to choose a device with enough storage space for all of your favorite shows. By taking all of these factors into consideration, you can find the perfect device for watching your favorite anime titles.
Next postWhich Browsers Support the Latest Anime Update?
Which Browsers Support the Latest Anime Update?
The latest anime update is here, and it's bigger and better than ever before. With new features, improved visuals, and a host of other improvements, it's no wonder that anime fans are eager to get their hands on the update.
Manga is a popular form of Japanese comic books and graphic novels. It has become increasingly popular in recent years, with many new series being released each year.
What's New in Anime Episodes?
Anime is a popular form of animation originating from Japan. It has become a global phenomenon, with millions of fans around the world.
Anime movies have been around for decades, but the genre has seen a surge in popularity in recent years. From classic titles like Akira and Spirited Away to modern hits like Your Name and Weathering With You, there's something for everyone.
Latest Light Novel Updates: What You Need to Know
What's New in Anime? Updates Coming Soon
Everything You Need to Know About the Latest Anime Updates


text:
Folly vs common sense
By Yakubu Mohammed
Matters arising on Nigeria's population
17 hours ago Opinion
The humanity in Ngillari
Unhealthy development
In the long-drawn battle of wits between the Federal Government and the striking members of the Academic Staff Union of the Universities, ASUU, this column cannot afford to sit on the fence any longer.
The strike has lasted more than eight months. The lockdown of coronavirus pandemic combined with the lockout of ASUU, has kept the children at home for an inordinately long time. It is about time that both sides to the dispute now allow common sense to prevail over folly.
At the end of this unproductive duel, government will have to shift grounds to meet most of the demands of ASUU, and the dogged but recalcitrant fighters will have to make some concession and call off their strike action for the sake of the suffering children and the plight of their parents.
The case between the federal government and ASUU, especially this one, is not the type of case that requires a magistrate to make a pronouncement as to who is guilty and who is innocent. In my view, there is always enough blame to go round. Governments tend to have more of the blame. And I mean all governments. What comes out to the more perceptive public, each time there is an issue between government and labour, is that government officials are forced to enter into agreements they know they cannot keep or are unwilling to keep. They do that hoping to resolve the issues at hand and move on, but they are merely postponing the evil day.
Or when they yield to the genuine demands of the workers, they give the impression they are doing them a favour. Or they prevaricate to prolong discussions and create unnecessary tension only to come round and do that which is just and right after incurring unnecessary costs. Which makes you to wonder whether folly is truly one of those derivative principles of public policy. I can bet you that at the end of the day, ASUU will get most of the demands from government. Failure on the part of government to justify its inability or unwillingness to do the right thing at the right time gives the impression that on this particular occasion, it is on a thin ground.
Both the government and ASUU are fighting for the soul of education in Nigeria. Without sound education, there is really no hope of the country catching up with the rest of the advanced world some of whom have since moved from basic technology to artificial intelligence; many of them boasting of the state-of-the -art health infrastructure that makes them the destination hub for medical tourism. For these countries, the axiom that the economy that works is the one that is driven by knowledge is not merely an academic pontification or something from the science fiction.
Following the examples of India, China and Indonesia, our own President Muhammadu Buhari has vowed that he would provide the structures and the political will to take one hundred million Nigerians out of poverty into prosperity in ten years.
One of the required structures, one can't afford to ignore, is sound education plus discipline and visionary leadership. So crucial it is that UNESCO's benchmark for funding education has remained 26 percent of national budget. It does not require ASUU to go crawling and begging, or go on strike, to prompt education planners and the political leadership to cultivate the right frameof mind and the willingness to give education the right push, to scale up education budget which has been stuck between six percent in 2017 and 6.3 percent in the 2021 budget proposal, a far cry from what UNESCO has prescribed.
But I can understand the paucity of funds. That is why my sympathy goes to Adamu Adamu, Minister of Education, whose call for a declaration of national emergency in education is yet to receive appropriate attention.
It was fashionable in those days to engage in an idle debate whether or not education standard was falling in Nigeria. Today, it does not require any ghost from the pit of hell to give us the right answer. Tying our university system, despite its much trumpeted autonomy, to the apron string of the choking bureaucratic ineptitude, can only have the undesirable effect of pulling us down instead of lifting us up. From where we are today, we only need to go up even if we have to be dragged kicking and screaming.
I have had the opportunity of engaging with ASUU leadership at the national level when I had the privilege of serving the nation as Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of Ahmadu Bello University Zaria from 2005 to 2007. From that experience, I make bold to confess that I have since embraced the school of thought that claims, even in grandiloquent manner, that without the input of ASUU and other unions, the public university system as we know it would have collapsed irretrievably a long time ago.
This is not to suggest that as a trade union they are infallible. They may be selfish in some of their demands. But on the whole, they mean well. Since they arrived on the scene in 1978, they have waged epic battles with government and got bruised in the process. Under the military regimes in the 80s it was serially banned and unbanned with its leadership under lock and key.
But getting the public to understand them is not an easy business proposition largely because of the ease with which ASUU is forced to embrace strike instead of dialogue. This apparent proclivity for strike, closing the lecture halls and going home at the mere drop of a chalk, creates the impression among the largely unconcerned public that they, these detached academics, are irresponsible, uncaring and insensitive to the feelings of the public at large.
Unfortunately, the issues that eventually decide them to embark on strike do not always start like matters of public concern. They come in the realm of family matters, or more appropriately, as a small matter between an employer and the employee. Bread and butter concern. It is when they fail to agree, when communication breaks down, that we, the concerned members of the public especially those of us whose children are in the care of the public universities, begin to hear some grumblings. But these grumblings begin to get more disturbing when the agitated students begin to put their parents on notice to start looking for their transport fare back home in the event that strike becomes the inevitable outcome of the prevailing palaver.
The current long drawn battle presents another opportunity for us to see how folly in government goes into the way of common sense and make an issue where none exists – like making a mountain out of a mole hill. A few of the ASUU demands that have proved a difficult nut to crack have to do with their welfare: release of earned academic allowance, renegotiation of 2009 agreement which include salary package of the lecturers. But on their shopping list is the release of 1.1 trillion naira revitalization funds as agreed with government way back in the 2013 memoranda of understanding.
No matter how dubious ASUU critics want to be, they cannot in clear conscience accuse its members of selfishness. This figure, huge as it is, may not even be enough for the revitalization of the public universities many of whose campuses and other facilities have fallen into disuse.
Another irritating matter that should not be allowed to hold down talks and prolong the strike is the compulsory application of the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System, IPPIS. Given all the explanations by both sides to the dispute – the government and ASUU – this system, designed for classical, General Order- regulated civil servants, has no place in the university system. Taken together with its cousin, the Treasury Single Account, TSA, they have the dubious role of limiting space for operations in typical university system. It is not a matter of ego or even weakness. Government must admit its error and free the university staff from their restrictive applications. This is the least that common sense demands.
Adamu AdamuAhmadu Bello University ZariaASUUIPPISUNESCO
NAF helicopter gunships destroy 6 more terrorists' gun trucks in Borno – DHQ
Guatemala police fire tear gas at US-bound migrant caravan


I'm Ronan, I'm from Ireland, and I play bassoon. Outside of playing bassoon (and making reeds!), I spend my time taking photographs with old film cameras, and making music with modular synths.
I started playing music in my local town band, as my parents finally bought me a trumpet after years of nagging! I haven't stopped since then.
Music has always been the most important part of my life. A life without music isn't worth it for me!
My most recent musical highlight has probably been performing alongside the Ensemble Modern as part of a live radio broadcast on Austrian National Radio.
My top most played artists at the moment are John Coltrane, Gubaidulina, Mendelssohn, Mehliana, and clippping.


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I am a native speaker of Polish.
I provide the following services: Proofreading, Interpretation (consecutive).
I am best in the following fields: Arts and Humanities, Building & Construction, Computer Hardware, Computer Software, Computer Systems and Networks, Computers (General), Cosmetics / Beauty, Education / Pedagogy, European Union, Folklore, General, History, Journalism, Linguistics, Media / Multimedia, Music, Photography / Graphic Arts, Real Estate, Social Science, Telecommunications.
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"As a member of a casting panel you are supposed to make notes during an audition. Sometimes though a performance is so good it leaves you transfixed and the note page blank. Demelza has an astonishing talent and I highly doubt there is a role she could not excel at. The portrayal of her character was honest, pure, natural and deeply effective. This is an actor I am delighted to recommend."
Singing range B2 to E5.


text:
Archive | ISN News
By John Broadway on 1st December 2020 in About ISN, Business IT, ISN News, Network Security
The COVID-19 global health pandemic has changed the way we work – possibly for good. In March, government imposed lockdowns saw IT teams having to implement remote working on an unprecedented scale. Six months on, and despite government exhortations that people should return to workplaces, the latest figures from the ONS reveal that in October, […]
By Richard Titherage on 9th November 2020 in About ISN, Business IT, ISN News
We are proud and delighted to have won the award for Best Tech Support Service for the 2nd time. It's great to be recognised by other businesses within the Wiltshire area and to have achieved this award again. The Techie Awards 2020 are a Business Exchange initiative to celebrate the innovation and entrepreneurship of the […]
By Richard Titherage on 9th October 2020 in About ISN, Business IT, ISN News
The Techie Awards 2020 are a Business Exchange initiative to celebrate the innovation and entrepreneurship of the IT community in Swindon & Wiltshire. We're delighted to have been named as finalists in in the Best Tech Support Service category.
By John Broadway on 5th October 2020 in About ISN, Business IT, Internet, ISN News, Network Security, Security, Wireless
ISN is excited to announce our inclusion onto the G-Cloud 12 framework, part of the UK's official Digital Marketplace for the Public Sector. With our G-Cloud accreditation, ISN is qualified to support UK public sector organisations and agencies in their journey to move to the next generation of Cloud delivered Software Defined architecture, encompassing everything […]
By John Broadway on 13th March 2019 in Business IT, Internet, ISN News, Network Security, Security, Wireless
The what's and why's of SD-WAN is a specific application of software-defined networking (SDN) technology applied to WAN. It's a flexible software layer, which is logically separated from the WAN hardware infrastructure – accessed via the cloud or on-premises – reducing management complexity.
By John Broadway on 30th January 2019 in About ISN, Business IT, ISN News, Network Security, Security
So, a very brief trip to Barcelona for the partner security day at Cisco Live 2019, it always amazes me how the flight costs less than a train ticket to London! The purpose of the partner day is to bring together Cisco's EMEA security partners in one place and to provide an update on what's […]
ISN Networking for the Next Century – the Future is Here
By John Broadway on 13th November 2018 in Business IT, Internet, ISN News, Network Security, Security, Wireless
Managing today's networks is a highly manual and error-prone process that makes it difficult to scale operations or operate with agility. So just imagine if you could provide network access in minutes for any user or device to any applications, without compromising on security.
Transforming your Network for the Digital Era –Why it's Time to Implement Cisco Catalyst 9000 Switches
By John Broadway on 30th October 2018 in About ISN, Business IT, ISN News, Network Security, Security, Wireless
The rapid development of networking technologies over the last 20 years has transformed enterprises around the globe and enabled innovations on many fronts – including the adoption of voice and video applications and seamless user access to corporate services.
How to Immunise your Endpoints from a Cyber attack
By John Broadway on 29th October 2018 in ISN News, Network Security, Security
When things are good and your business is healthy all the functions are working effectively and everything is great. A simple pathogen in the form of ransomware could bring all that productivity to a screeching halt…
ISN Awarded Top Safety Accreditation by Alcumus SafeContractor
By Richard Titherage on 3rd September 2018 in About ISN, ISN News
ISN has been awarded a top Safety Accreditation from Alcumus SafeContractor for achieving excellence in health and safety in the workplace. Alcumus SafeContractor is a leading third-party accreditation scheme which recognises extremely rigorous standards in health and safety arrangements, policies and qualifications of contractors. It is used by thousands of organisations in the UK including […]
ARCHIVE Select Month December 2020 (1) November 2020 (1) October 2020 (2) March 2019 (1) January 2019 (1) November 2018 (1) October 2018 (2) September 2018 (1) May 2018 (2) April 2018 (1) March 2018 (1) February 2018 (1) January 2018 (2) November 2017 (1) October 2017 (3) September 2017 (3) August 2017 (1) July 2017 (2) March 2017 (1) February 2017 (1) October 2016 (3) September 2016 (2) July 2016 (1) May 2016 (1) March 2016 (1) June 2015 (1) March 2015 (4) February 2015 (2) December 2014 (1) October 2014 (1) September 2014 (1) March 2014 (1) February 2014 (1) October 2013 (1)


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Home / Stock Picks / Dividend Stocks / Buy These 5 Healthy Blue Chips with Growing Dividends
Buy These 5 Healthy Blue Chips with Growing Dividends
Performance and growing dividends -- what more could you want?
By Jeff Reeves Nov 6, 2014, 9:28 am EDT November 6, 2014
After a big snap-back rally for the S&P 500 at the end of October, we are once again sitting on a nice year-to-date gain for stock investors. However, one sector that never really faced as much trouble and is sitting on even bigger profits in 2014 is healthcare stocks.
Take the iShares Dow Jones US Healthcare ETF (IYH) or the Health Care Select Sector SPDR (XLV), both of which are up more than 20% so far in 2014 vs. about 9% for the S&P. That kind of outperformance in a volatile market is incredibly noteworthy.
Looking forward, healthcare stocks should continue their run through the end of 2014 — and into 2015, too.
Remember, consumers will cut back on just about anything before they stop paying for the treatments that reduce their pain or extend their lives. That makes the healthcare sector recession-proof.
Furthermore, with the demographic tailwind of aging Baby Boomers and more American healthcare "customers" insured under Obamacare, there's plenty of growth at home in this sector.
Throw in emerging markets, where healthcare spending continues to grow as a more profitable middle class in Latin America and Asia starts spending on their health and wellness, and there's a compelling case for a long-term investment in healthcare even after this big run already.
That's particularly true for big-name healthcare stocks growing their dividends as well as their earnings. After all, if you're going to ride the long-term growth in healthcare for years to come, why not get a 2%, 3% or even 4% dividend yield in addition to the share price appreciation as you wait?
By my estimation, there are five healthcare stocks with growing dividend yields that are a cut above the rest.
Healthcare Stocks: Ventas (VTR)
Dividend Growth: 43% in five years, from 51 cents in 2009 to 73 cents now
Current Yield: 4.2%
Market Cap: $20.3 billion
YTD Return: +20%
Ventas, Inc. (VTR) is a real estate investment trust that focuses on healthcare related facilities, particularly those that specialize in senior housing and elder care. Its reliable revenue stream makes it one of the best healthcare stocks to buy, and the dividend yield makes VTR all the more attractive.
VTR stock is a great way to marry the stability of healthcare with the income mandate of REITs. As Baby Boomers age, they will increasingly need long-term care from facilities like those run by Ventas — everything from cute care and hospice services to simply 55+ apartments for those without major health problems. And that monthly "rent" provides for reliable revenue and reliable dividends.
The company also trades at a fair 15-times fiscal 2015 earnings forecasts, so you don't have to worry about overpaying despite the outperformance lately; Ventas stock is fairly valued.
Healthcare Stocks: HealthSouth (HLS)
Dividend Growth: 17% this year, after its reinstated dividend jumped from 18 cents in 2013 to 21 cents
Market Cap: $3.5 billion
HealthSouth Corporation (HLS) is a rehabilitation company has a rather colorful past, including a massive accounting scandal about a decade ago that nearly led to its bankruptcy. However, the company mended its ways and has been growing briskly since the Great Recession thanks to aging Boomers that increasingly need rehab after injuries or surgeries.
HealthSouth doesn't have a very big dividend history compared to other healthcare stocks — it only started paying shareholders about 18 months ago. But the recent bump in the dividend and the very sustainable payout ratio of just 16% make HLS a dividend growth stock to keep in mind.
Healthcare Stocks: Chemed (CHE)
Dividend Growth: 83% in five years, from 12 cents quarterly in 2009 to 22 cents now
Shifting demographics in America is a great growth opportunity for Chemed Corporation (CHE). Chemed is a leader in home health services, including personal hospice care, and as Baby Boomers age and seek to receive care at home, this growing player is a no-brainer for your portfolio.
Chemed stock is up 35% year-to-date in 2014, showing great outperformance, even among healthcare stocks. And while the dividend isn't much right now at a yield of just 0.8%, the dividend growth is indeed impressive. Chemed has nearly doubled its payouts in the last five years — and since it is paying out just 18% of total earnings in dividends, there is plenty of room for future dividend growth, too.
If you're looking for healthcare stocks with big growth potential, look no further than this small-cap player that focuses on home health services. If you're patient, the dividend could soon grow to a substantial level — and if outperformance continues, you'll have a nice share appreciation to boot.
Healthcare Stocks: WellPoint (WLP)
Dividend Growth: 75% in four years, from 25 cents quarterly in its first dividend in 2011 to 43.75 cents now
Market Cap: $34 billion
WellPoint Inc. (WLP) is a major insurance carrier, and the No. 1 beneficiary from Obamacare enrollments. According to reports, the company had 400,000 new enrollees at the end of Q1 and had said its policies were already running at a profit. That total was estimated to have hit almost 770,000 new enrollments by midyear — far surpassing the company's targets of 600,000.
This big success winning Obamacare enrollees is surely a sign of growth to come for WLP. It's hard to dispute that navigating this complicated marketplace to win new business speaks highly of the management at this company and their ability to seize new opportunities.
In the bigger picture, WLP is the second-largest health insurer in the U.S., and already had the scale to hang tough in any market. But this Obamacare momentum coupled with a return to consumer-facing marketing should help it grow even more.
Among big-name healthcare stocks, WLP admittedly doesn't have the most attractive dividend in the world right now. But it has grown distributions rapidly since initiating its dividend in 2011.
Also, despite a big run in 2014, WellPoint Inc. trades for just 13.5 times forward earnings.
Healthcare Stocks: Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)
Market Cap: $300 billion
We'll end on a "boring" note with an old favorite in Johnson & Johnson (JNJ). No matter how stodgy you think this company is, there's a lot to be said for having this rock-solid company as part of your portfolio's foundation.
It's a hybrid healthcare and consumer staples play thanks to popular brands including Band-Aid, Tylenol and Splenda, and that makes this megacap pretty darn bulletproof.
Many investors soured on Johnson & Johnson after the company struggled from 2010 to 2012 amid quality-control issues and big product recalls. However, JNJ has roared back since January 2013, gaining about 50% to outperform the S&P 500. And that run for JNJ stock doesn't even include the returns from JNJ's juicy dividends, either.
Johnson & Johnson is fairly valued at 16 times 2015 earnings, and is scheduled to pay out only about 45% of those projected earnings in dividends so there's room for future increases.
And if that doesn't convince you of stability in JNJ, consider that this company is one of just four players with a AAA credit rating, boasts over $33 billion in cash on the books and clears $17 billion annually in operating cash flow.
If you're looking for stable, long-term healthcare stocks, there are few options better than Johnson & Johnson stock.
Jeff Reeves is the editor of InvestorPlace.com and the author of The Frugal Investor's Guide to Finding Great Stocks. As of this writing, he did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities. Write him at editor@investorplace.com or follow him on Twitter via @JeffReevesIP.
Article printed from InvestorPlace Media, https://investorplace.com/2014/11/healthcare-stocks-dividend-stocks/.


The days relying on PPC analysts are over. Or at least that's what many in the industry believe. When looking at the current digital marketing landscape, I think the advent of AI/Machine Learning-based bidding actually complicates, rather than simplifies, AdWords.
Along with the increased nuance of attribution options, AI requires agencies and marketers to give up significant specific control, and it also takes a much more qualified marketer to use these strategies to their full effect. If a bad campaign is created, using bad data and bad creative, it doesn't matter how good the AI is at optimizing when to show an ad, it will still fail. In this article I want to examine two pieces of the overall PPC landscape that I am a fan of (Smart Bidding/AI and Attribution Modeling), and believe will make all the difference when it comes to what good digital marketing actually means.
First let's break down attribution and why it matters. The default attribution model for AdWords is Last Click, though I typically push for Time Decay or Position-Based Modeling unless there is a specific option. This distinction may seem arbitrary to most analysts, as you can compare, contrast and rerun your campaign results to analyze and report the numbers as you see fit. However, the use of these models and the advent of Google's Data Driven modeling make a monumental difference in how they are set if you are going to take advantage of Google's AI technology.
Identifying all the goals in a customer journey and identifying which attribution model should be applied to each is necessary from the beginning. If any of these steps isn't set in an effective manner, each data point analyzed will push you further away from an effective campaign instead of closer.
As an example, my agency works with a volunteer organization that was in an early beta of Maximize Conversions Smart Bidding. Most of their campaigns performed exceptionally well under these conditions, however one campaign was targeting a very niche subdomain audience without enough data. So rather than improving the conversions we had defined and manually gathered, the AI simply stopped bidding in auctions. It took several weeks to recover to the previous level of conversions.
This same campaign also illustrates the other end of this spectrum. After this initial crash we defined lesser, engagement based goals. To these, we assigned value for our own reporting (though Max Conversion bidding doesn't take this into account, rather bid types such as Target ROAS), targeted manually until we had some of our real conversions and enough of the lesser conversions that an automated bid strategy would have enough data, then tested again.
Here we see an initial surge in clicks and conversions, a drop back to previous levels, followed by significantly increased average days. This strategy is not for every account or campaign, however, assuming you have a similar niche and a budget to target lesser goals in the short term, you can see significant results. Additionally worth noting, the increase is both in engagement conversions and signups in roughly equal ratio.
Typically, it is best to reach beyond a last click attribution model when using machine learning in order to give the system more data to work with (Google recommends "that advertisers have at least 30 conversions in the past 30 days before using Target CPA… 50 conversions in the past 30 days for Target ROAS". The last example used Time Decay Attribution, however this isn't always the best as the next case explains.
Over the course of a year our agency had used manual techniques to promote magazine subscriptions tracked via outbound links to off site checkout. Before making the leap to a Automated Bid Strategy we analyzed how and when users actually converted. We found that the majority of users that converted did so on the first time, on the page, rather than during an ongoing research process. Using this analysis, we activated a maximize conversion bidding with the effect of increasing weekly conversions from 15 to 35 within one months time while only increasing average CPC by ten cents.
This only scratches the surface of either the benefits of using AI assisted campaigns, and of the necessity of good PPC analysts to make them effective. It doesn't touch on the creativity required, the ads written or designed, or pattern recognition skills needed to see when the AI is learning from the wrong data, but I hope it does spark a few ideas that improve how we all use these tools and remember that each of the settings matters.
Sean Kerr is the COO & CoFounder of Cause Inspired Media. Working with around 250 nonprofits across the country ranging from community foundations to international initiatives gives him a unique perspective on the nonprofit fundraising landscape. This perspective is tempered by realistic expectations of digital advertising and a strong team of support. You can reach Sean via LinkedIn.


Sowmya Simhan, a management professional with specialization in Finance, works for Chettinad Cement Corporation Limited. She has over two decades of involvement in social work. Physically challenged, she founded Sukriti Social Foundation in 2006. Furthermore, since 1999, Sowmya has been a trustee in Maithri Educational and Charitable Trust, an organization working for the education of the underprivileged. She is a recipient of the Ascendas Award for Excellence in 2010 and Outstanding Women Award of Inner Wheel Club in 2014. She is also an active member of Lions Club of Chennai Silver Pearls.
A philanthropist and ac tive member of the Lions Movement in Chennai, Rajalakshmi Ramakrishnan is associated with many voluntary organisations working in the areas of care for the aged and disability.
She is a graduate in Sanskrit and an exponent of the Veena, she is a voracious reader with a deep interest in Indian philosophy.
Mr. Gunasingh, a former State-level hockey player, works with Chettinad Cement and has been involved with Sukriti Social Foundation since its inception. He provides invaluable support – right from taking interest in ongoing activities to suggesting new activities to mobilising support Sukriti's activities.
Swami is a rural management graduate from IRMA and a copywriter with over 10 years of experience in the advertising and marketing communication industry. Swami works with ALC India Ltd. (Access Livelihoods Consulting), a Hyderabad-based company of professionals working on livelihoods of the economically marginalized communities.


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Barbecue University™
From Plantation to Barbecue Joint: The Black Contribution to American Barbecue
By Jessica B. Harris
The Aaron Franklins and Billy Durneys of the world get a lot of attention for their smoked meats. But long before they cooked their first briskets, generations of Black American pit masters laid the groundwork for that great and uniquely American culinary tradition we know as barbecue. I asked my friend and culinary historian, Jessica Harris, to write a guest blog this month telling us more about the Black contribution to American barbecue. As the author of such books as High on The Hog: A Culinary Journey from Africa to America and Iron Pots & Wooden Spoons: Africa's Gifts to New World Cooking, Jessica is eminently qualified to help set the record straight. She recently received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the James Beard Foundation. Congratulations, Jessica! Read on.
"Night before the barbecues, I used to stay up all night cooking and basting the meats with barbecue sauce. It was made of vinegar, black and red pepper, salt, butter, a little sage, coriander, basil, onion, and garlic. Some folks drop a little sugar in it. On a long pronged stick, I wrapped a soft rag or cotton for a swab, and all night long, I swabbed the meat until it dripped into the fire. The drippings changed the smoke into seasoned fumes that smoked the meat. We turned the meat over and swabbed it that way all night long until it oozed seasoning and was baked all through."
Thus recalled a former enslaved African American whose narrative was recorded by the WPA (Work Projects Administration) in the 1930s—a collection of 2,300 first person accounts of slavery. He spoke of an art inextricably interwoven with American cuisine—since our country's founding and long before—an art every bit as near and dear to our hearts today: barbecue.
Simply defined, barbecue is meat slow-cooked over direct or indirect flame with wood smoke providing its flavor—and its soul. But there's nothing simple about barbecue—not even about the word, which can be used as a verb, an adjective, or a noun. As a verb, barbecue means to cook meat low and slow over or next to a smoky fire, and more generally to cook meat outdoors. As an adjective, barbecue describes both a method and style of cooking. When used as a noun, its complexities become even more apparent, with at least three different meanings:
A food cooked with fire and wood smoke
An outdoor event or celebration built around food cooked with fire
The device over which such cooking is done—the so-called barbecue grill
And that's before we get to regional barbecue, because in Texas, the word probably means brisket, in Memphis, ribs, in North Carolina, pulled pork, and in Salinas, California, grilled oysters.
Certainly, the conjoining of meat and flame has taken place for millennia in different parts of the world. There are grills and kebabs and mechoui and more, but the word that is dear to the hearts and stomachs of the New World comes from the Caribbean term barbacoa, the Taino word for the grill on which the meat was cooked.
According to barbecue historian Lolis Eric Elie, author of the seminal book Smokestack Lightning, the word barbacoa first appeared in print in Gonzalo Fernandez de Oviedo's 1526 account of his travels in the West Indies, De la Historia General y Natural de las Indias. It referred to a cooking device used by the Indians of Terra Firme, who roasted meat on sticks "like a grating or trivet over a pit." Thus, the Spanish hidalgo uses the term to describe not a food or a method of cooking, but as a device: the grill upon which the food was cooked.
If the Caribbean region gave our unique culinary form its name, barbecue, the uniquely hemispheric cooking form was perfected in the hands of Black pit masters in the American South. At plantations throughout the South, barbecues (in the second sense of the word) were often staged when there were guests or festivities at the Big House. The cooks for these events were enslaved and free black men who used their talents to create an iconic Afro-Southern dish. The cooking ritual was a complex process replicated today by Black pit masters throughout the South.
That same basic process of slow cooking over smoke took place throughout the barbecue belt that runs from Maryland on down through Mississippi. Post Emancipation, it was carried North and West with The Great Migration by the likes of Henry Perry, born in Shelby County, Tennessee, who learned his trade working in steamboat kitchens plying the Mississippi River, and opened the first barbecue restaurant in Kansas City. Other early Black barbecue entrepreneurs included Arthur Bryant and George Gates of Kansas City and John "Big Daddy" Bishop of Dreamland Barbecue in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
As Black barbecue masters spread across the South and Midwest, their mop sauces evolved, and so did their marinades, rubs , and barbecue sauces. Barbecue scholars, and they are legion, have disserted on regional and even local differences. Competitions (pre-Covid, at least) have evolved into events attended by tens of thousands, with judging done by professional judges who attend "school" to become certified.
While the African American hand in the creation and development of American barbecue is often acknowledged, there have been surprisingly few books on the subject. Happily, that's about to change. Soon background, history, and recipes will be available in the forthcoming work of African American pit masters and scholars: Culinary Historian Adrian Miller's book, Black Smoke: African Americans and the United States of Barbecue will be published by the University of North Carolina Press in 2021, and rocket scientist and pit master Howard Conyers is also working on a book on the African American roots of the art of barbecue. There are cookbooks due out by master pit men Rodney Scott of Rodney Scott's Whole Hog BBQ in Charleston, South Carolina, and Kevin Bludso of Bludso's Bar & Que West Hollywood, California. (By the way, Bludso's delivers barbecue nationwide. Call them at (323) 931-2583.)
We can't wait for them to set the record straight.
African American novelist and anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston in her 1942 work, Dust Tracks on a Road, wrote, "Maybe all of us who do not have the good fortune to meet or meet again, in this world, will meet at a barbecue." I'd like to add, with the new works coming out and while nibbling on burnt ends, sucking on rib bones, and wiping sticky fingers on paper napkins, I hope we will finally acknowledge the crucial African American role in the creation of this unique American culinary art.
Jessica B. Harris is the author of 12 cookbooks documenting the food of the African Diaspora. She is the 2020 James Beard Lifetime Achievement Award recipient. Her latest book is Vintage Postcards from the African World (University Press of Mississippi, May 2020).
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An arrest and conviction for driving while intoxicated (DWI) in Maryland can lead to many consequences. You may face probation, fines, suspension of your driver's license, or even jail time. In addition to court-ordered penalties, many people will face additional collateral consequences that can affect their lives in many ways. Military members are especially susceptible to additional consequences outside of criminal court.
The United States military holds its service members to a high standard of conduct. Therefore, allegations of criminal activity can lead to many different administrative sanctions that can jeopardize—or even end—a military career.
You may think that an off-duty arrest for DWI while you are not on a military base should not affect your military career. However, military policies advise otherwise. Anyone on active duty faces possible sanctions even if the arrest took place away from a base and by a civilian police officer.
After a conviction of DWI, the sanctions can significantly increase and may include a reduction in grade or a bar to reenlistment. If you have more than one alcohol-related incident in one year, your commanding officer may initiate separation proceedings. For these reasons, it is critical to prevent a DWI conviction and have charges dismissed whenever possible.
Active member arrest – This will likely result in a court martial and charges under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) laws, as well as serious administrative sanctions.
Civilian arrest – This can result in criminal charges in federal court instead of in Maryland state court.
Anyone arrested for DWI on or off a military base should immediately call a highly experienced defense attorney who understands all possible military sanctions.
Too many people fail to realize the full range of long-lasting effects of a DWI conviction.
Do not make the mistake of just accepting a DWI conviction by pleading guilty before speaking with an attorney. You could regret the decision for years to come, especially if you are in the military, have a professional license or security clearance, or want to participate in a higher education program. You should never risk your future opportunities—instead, consult with a highly experienced criminal defense attorney at Alpert Schreyer, LLC. We help many clients avoid as many consequences as possible after a DWI arrest, and it is critical to have a strong defense, even for a first-time DWI. Call (866) 444-6363 or contact our office online to schedule your free case evaluation right away.


3D printing, online crowdfunding, bitcoin... it is well known that technology is reshaping the world of real estate. Discover the opportunities & drawbacks of digital technology within the real estate sector with this news review including insights from students & academics!
Most people affiliate innovation, technology and creativity with Silicon Valley companies, not the construction industry.
This new mobile technology can help bring efficiencies to projects that haven't occurred before. These kiosks come to the construction site itself and all plans and changes are made in real time. This allows better collaboration and can speed up the construction process.
Crowd DD is a new site that serves as a one stop source for finding, researching and sharing crowdfunding platforms and equity/debt investments for Real Estate. It allows accredited investors to exchange knowledge of deal participants, their track records and more. Seems like a really good idea considering there are 146 crowdfunding sites out there right now. This should help enable investors to compare fees, learn what questions to ask and examine risk profiles. Glad to see this kind of thing emerging.
Accredited investors typically don't have the ability or time to do their own due diligence on real estate crowdfunding deals. Now, they can turn to CrowdDD.com for due diligence and business intelligence services for crowdfunding deals not only on real estate, but also on start-ups and businesses.As a side benefit, CrowdDD.com also acts as a third-party auditing firm and has already vetted out some bad crowdfunding deals, resulting in revised deal terms or platforms removing the deals all together.
Big data will become more important as we discover new methods and programs to interpret the information. Reducing noise and increasing consistency are top priorities for data scientists.
Chizel Prints, a Pune-based venture has taken 3D printing mainstream by applying its technology in architecture, real estate and marketing. It delivers miniature, scaled down 3D printed models of residential buildings, apartment complexes, shopping malls, […] all equipped with superior automation, wireless integration application and electronics.
It's exciting to see the different directions 3D printing is going. Chizel Prints has now combined elements of building information modeling (BIM), smart cities, and 3D printing to come up with 3D printed models of smart cities. These scaled down 'smart models' are wireless and simulation can be controlled via mobile app. More importantly they have helped reduce project lead time to nearly 50%. Talk about efficiency.
Since the inception of Bitcoin, many have expressed concerns about security. Because the money is not currently regulated, governments are concerned about using the digital currency to avoid taxation and the lack of control associated with the currency. Another main concern has been the difficulty in addressing criminal activity effectively due to the anonymous nature of the digital currency itself. Before investing with Bitcoin, it is important to know whom you are working with and what the risks are.
This year at MIPIM, it's Digital Showtime!
Click here to discover the MIPIM 2015 conference programme including "Digital Economy Challenges Real Estate Sector: Disruptors at the Door".


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REVIEW: L'amico Fritz – The Sunday Series: Opera in Concert
Scottish Opera's music director Stuart Stratford starts this year's Sunday Series on a high note with an outstanding concert performance of Pietro Mascagni's rarely seen, but utterly charming bucolic tale of unrequited love, L'amico Fritz.
Written after his verismo masterpiece Cavalleria Rusticana, Mascagni's intention was to write a work as far removed from Cavalleria as he could and in L'amico, that is absolutely achieved, this is a simple, gentle, pastoral love story – there's none of Cavalleria's bloodshed and the body count is nil. It's 19th Century, pre Franco-Prussia War Alsace where the Protestant and Jewish communities live in blissful harmony. Rabbi and local matchmaker David bets his friend, the marriage phobic, wealthy landowner Fritz Kobus that he will succumb, within the year, to the charms of married life. In the meantime Fritz falls in love with Suzette, the daughter of one of his tenants and a happy ending is guaranteed for all.
Stuart Stratford has previous form with L'amico, conducting a fully staged performance for Opera Holland Park in 2011, and his familiarity with, and love for the piece shines through. The Orchestra of Scottish Opera freed from the pit and onstage in their purpose-built acoustic shell, have rarely sounded better, the gorgeous melodies and beautiful lyricism of the piece are a ravishing treat for the ears. The singers are universally deserving of praise, with Peter Auty's Fritz, Stephen Gadd's David and Hanna Hipp in another 'trouser role' particularly fine.
If the glorious L'amico Fritz is a marker of the quality to be expected for the rest of the Sunday Series, then opera lovers in Scotland are in for a treat indeed.
The next offering from the Sunday Series will be Debussy's L'enfant prodigue on 5th February 2017 at 3pm
For more information visit: https://www.scottishopera.org.uk
tagged with Donald Maxwell, Glasgow, Hanna Hipp, Hazel McBain, L'amico Fritz, Natalia Romaniw, Opera, Paul Curievici, Peter Auty, Pietro Mascagni, Review, Scottish Opera, Stephen Gadd, Stuart Stratford, Sunday Series, Theatre Royal


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Петър Ангеловски () е виден сценограф от Република Македония.

Биография
Роден е в 1931 година в Битоля, тогава в Кралство Югославия. От 1960 година работи в Битолския театър, като първи постоянен сценограф. Автор е на над 200 сценографии, в които са застъпени македонската, югославската и световната драматургия: "Печалбари" от Антон Панов, "Чекор до есента" от Томе Арсовски, "Окървавен камен" Васил Ильоски, "Едип цар" на Софокъл, "Хамлет" от Шекспир, "Севилският бръснар" от Бомарше и други. В 1983 година в рамките на тетаралните игри "Войдан Чернодрински" е направена изложба на негови макети и сценографски скици.

Бележки

Северномакедонски сценографи
Родени в Битоля
Починали в Битоля

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Welcome to the home we're calling "PS TuscanSun". Life doesn't get much better in this haven designed especially for long-term stays. Located on the North end of town, just as you enter Palm Springs is Mountain Gate. It is a wonderful residential neighborhood of local residents. You'll fit right in and live like a local! Literally across the street from the tram and just minutes to downtown, 15 minutes from outlet mall shopping, you are well situated to enjoy all Palm Springs has to offer. RV parking on the side of house; done!
An open floor plan stuns as you enter with the kitchen flowing seamlessly into the living and dining areas. The home is bright and colorful yet comfortable and soothing.
The kitchen, featuring almost every appliance you might need is perfect for family dinners. The island is huge for easy meal prep and offers 2 counter seats for quick snacks before heading off to town. Your inner chef will be thrilled; bring your cookbooks. The living and dining room each welcome 8 comfortably; spending casual time with a few of your friends and you'll be the envy of your group.
The master suite offers an attached office/bonus room so there's a place for your computer and paperwork. A king bed ensures restful nights and relaxation will pop into your mind seeing the master bath: a large soaking tub, separate step-in shower, dual vanities... it's almost your own spa. Call the masseur and have them set up in that bonus room.
2 guest rooms, both featuring queen beds, on the opposite side of the home maintains your privacy and gives you wonderful options to host guests while you are enjoying the desert.
The back yard offers great views, outdoor dining, a sparkling salwater pool and spa and charming sitting area, natural gas grill, outdoor entertaining will pop into your mind. You'll enjoy casual dinners al fresco watching the sun fall behind the glorious San Jacinto mountains.
The home offers a spacious 2-car garage, RV parking parking on the side and indoor laundry (washing and drying machine).
Mountain Gate is a premier neighborhood of Palm Springs. Very residential, it's full of locals and snowbirds alike; all homeowners and very few vacation rentals. It should be noted the city has sound ordinances that are strictly enforced. The owner(s) like to stress this home is ideal for a dream vacation and relaxation but is by no means a "party-central" home. Each guest is expected to be as good a neighbor as the owner(s) themselves. Special events like weddings are NOT allowed.
You can contact Tony through the Contact Host button on this page. If you've already booked, go to My travels.


A border is a strip (or strips) of fabric that frame the edges of the quilt. Your entire quilt top is usually bordered, but you can also have borders surrounding your quilt blocks or as part of the quilt block design.
A quilt's borders can be wide or narrow, pieced or appliqued, or a combination of techniques. Always try to choose a border that complements rather than clashes with your blocks.
For example, if you have stitched together some busy-looking blocks in bright colors, consider adding a simple border. Its simplicity will complement the complexity of your blocks. If you choose a border as complicated as your block design, that complex border could detract from your design by making it impossible to tell where the block ends and the border begins. In contrast, if your blocks are simple and traditional, multiple bands of borders may be just what you need to set them off. The idea is to make sure that all the elements of your design combine to make it eye-catching.
Although you can have dozens of border options to think about when planning your quilt, you most likely will use one of two basic types.
Figure 1: A plain border can have squared or mitered corners.
The squared-corner border is the simpler of the two to stitch. You can use a single wide length of fabric, or you can use several different plain borders together in one quilt.
Borders with cornerstones are simple borders with the addition of a square in the corner of each border (see Figure 2). The cornerstones can be a complementing or contrasting fabric, or you can use pieced or appliqued blocks that complement the center area of your quilt.
Figure 2: A border with cornerstones.
Calculating border size is really pretty simple. Just total all the finished measurements and add your seam allowances.
For example, suppose that the quilt in Figure 3 is made of 10-inch square blocks with one-inch wide sashing strips, and you want a finished border that is 10 inches wide.
Figure 3: How big are my borders?
The finished size of your side border will be 10 wide x 34 inches long, but this is not the cutting measurement — yet. You need to add your 1/4-inch seam allowances to each side of this measurement, because this figure is the finished measurement. You certainly have not yet stitched the borders in place, so the borders are not finished, right? The seam allowances are the areas of fabric along the edges that will be taken up by the stitching. This area needs to be added to the finished measurements, or the border strips will be too narrow and too short after you stitch them to the quilt top.
2. Add 1/4-inch seam allowances to all four sides of the finished measurement.
This results in 101/2 inches x 341/2 inches as the cutting size of the side borders. Now to cut two borders using this measurement — one border for each side.
3. Find the measurement for the upper and lower borders by adding the blocks (two blocks at 10 inches = 20 inches) plus the sashing (three strips that are 1 inch wide = 3 inches) and the finished width of the side borders that you fiddled with in the previous steps (two borders that are 10 inches wide = 20 inches).
Now you have a finished measurement of 10 inches wide by 20+3+20= 43 inches long.
4. Add the 1/4-inch seam allowances to all four sides of the 10-inch x 43-inch length.
The final measurement for the upper and lower borders is 101/2 inches x 431/2 inches. You need to cut two of them this size — one for the top edge and one for the bottom.
You're not alone if when you assembled the quilt center area, your stitching wasn't exactly perfect and your seam allowances were not quite 1/4 inch. You may even discover that the left side of your quilt center is longer than the right side of your quilt. That's okay; you can tweak it into shape by creatively cutting the borders!
Here's a nice simple method for cutting your borders while squaring up the quilt top at the same time, making those uneven measurements jive once again! To keep things simple, assume that the border width in Figure 4 is 10 inches.
Figure 4: Making sure your measurements measure up.
1. Measure the length of the quilt top down the center.
2. Round off the measurement to the nearest inch (assume this quilt center is 33 inches long).
Since the border is going to be 10 inches wide, you now have a measurement of 10 inches x 33 inches.
3. Add 1/4-inch seam allowances to all four sides.
This makes the length to cut 101/4 inches x 331/4 inches.
4. Measure the quilt from side to side and include the borders.
Assuming that the width of the quilt is 22 inches, and your side borders are 10 inches wide, your unfinished measurement will be 10 inches + 10 inches + 22 inches.
5. Add the 1/4-inch seam allowances to all four sides.
You've now got a cutting measurement of 101/2 inches x 421/2 inches.
Before you stitch the border to your quilt, you need to prepare the border strips so that everything will (hopefully) come out okay. You don't want to end up with too little or too much border fabric in proportion to your quilt top (kind of like ending up with too much cake at the end of your frosting).
First, fold each of the four border strips in half to find the centers of the strips and press the center of each border to form a crease, or place a pin at the halfway point to mark it. Find the centers of all four sides of the quilt top as well in the same manner (fold and press or mark with a pin). After you mark the centers, you're ready to stitch.
As shown in Figure 5, align the center of the border with the center of the quilt top, having the right sides together. Pin through the layers at the center marking to hold them together while stitching. Add a pin to each end to hold the ends together, too.
Figure 5: Aligning the border with the quilt top.
Be sure to ease the excess fabric in place when you stitch.
To do this, place the side that has the excess (whether it be the border or the quilt top) next to the feed dogs of your machine. These feed dogs will help ease the extra length for you. Now, start stitching, holding back the top (shorter) layer slightly and allowing those feed dogs to do their job of feeding that lower layer of fabric as shown in Figure 6.
Figure 6: Feeding your border through the dogs.
Stitch the borders to the quilt, placing the side that needs easing toward the feed dogs and pulling back on the top layer to ease.
After stitching the borders to the quilt top, press the borders outward and the seam allowances toward the border fabric.