We're in the gospel of Mark, chapter 2:18-22. This is the third story in a sequence of five stories of conflict that we've been working our way through.
You have a handout – Five conflict stories on how these stories are put together. I would just quickly highlight three things. 1) You can see in the left and right hand columns how these five stories parallel each other in various ways. 2) Each story tells us something about who Jesus is (center column). And 3) the two parables at the very center reference all five stories, not just ours, the third.
Alright, let's work our way through our verses for today.
We begin with some background.
The Law of Moses only requires one fast, a 24 hour fast on the day of atonement (Leviticus 16:29). (Although later there were other fasts that began to be observed – Zechariah 8:19; Esther 9:31; Nehemiah 9:1).
In our story we're dealing with voluntary fasts, that go beyond what is required. These were usually from sunrise to sunset. Voluntary fasting was one of three key practices in ancient Judaism, along with prayer and giving alms. And it was highly regarded as a mark of devotion to God.
Fasting is also associated with prayer (Luke's version of this story adds in prayer to the topic of fasting – 5:33). It's a way of intensifying your prayers in order to make your feelings or your needs known to God; the urgency of the situation (Matthew 6:16-18).
Regarding John the Baptist, Jesus describes him as someone who came "eating no bread and drinking no wine" – Luke 7:33. That is, he was known for fasting and not drinking alcohol. His disciples must have followed suit.
The Pharisees were also known for fasting. They did this twice a week (Luke 18:12) on Mondays and Thursdays.
So both John's disciples and the Pharisees maintained a lifestyle characterized by rigorous voluntary fasting.
This brings us to the question.
There were different religious groups among the Jews, and there is a comparison going on here. John's group and the Pharisees seem really serious and devout. And so the question is "Are you guys slackers?" This question may well have been raised because, in the previous story Jesus and his disciples are feasting with tax collectors and sinners. And although the question is addressed to Jesus about his disciple's behavior, it's meant as a challenge to Jesus who is their teacher.
Now, Jesus and his disciples would have fasted from time to time, for instance on the Day of Atonement. And since Jesus gave them teaching on voluntary fasting in Matthew 6:16-18, it seems reasonable that they put this into practice on occasion. But they were not known for fasting. They did not maintain a rigorous lifestyle of fasting. This is the issue here.
Fasting, as we saw, would more likely be linked to funerals, where there is mourning and lowliness. But Jesus makes the case that his presence among the people is like a wedding. And weddings were all about celebrating and feasting – for seven whole days! Fasting would have been unheard of at such an event. As Jesus says, "they cannot fast" in such a setting.
So he's making a claim about himself – Jesus is the bridegroom. The image of God as the husband of Israel was well known in the Old Testament (Isaiah 54:5-6; 61:10; Ezekiel 16; Hosea). But here Jesus has this role (See also Ephesians 5:22ff; Revelation 19:6-9; John 3:29) – and his disciples are his groomsmen or wedding guests.
And so it's a time of celebration. This is why Jesus was a "feaster," not a faster. He maintained a lifestyle of celebration and joy, not mourning and sadness. As he says about himself in Luke 7:33, in contrast to John the Baptist, "the Son of man came eating and drinking." And he celebrated so much that some slandered him as "a glutton and a drunkard." And this is why he and his disciples were feasting in the previous story.
So Jesus is saying, the new has come! I'm here! The kingdom of God is here. And this has an impact on some traditional practices. The old has to change.
If these other Jewish groups had recognized Jesus' claim, they too would have changed their practices from a lifestyle of fasting – to a lifestyle more associated with feasting. But they didn't accept Jesus' claim, and so they didn't change their practices.
So this new thing, a lifestyle of celebration, is a change of practice specifically related to Jesus' presence on earth.
Next comes two parables about the new and the old.
"21No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made.
These both make the same point, there's an incompatibility between the new and the old. In the first, the new is the unshrunk cloth. If you sew this onto an old garment, the patch will shrink and everything will be ruined.
In the second, the new is the new wine. If you put it into an old wineskin that has already been stretched out and is brittle, when the wine continues to ferment and expand, it will burst the wineskin and everything will be ruined. There's an incompatibility.
The new of Jesus' presence and the kingdom requires some new practices, not grafting the new onto the old (the patch) or putting the new into the old (wine). With Jesus' coming – things get changed up!
1. Jesus' divine identity. As we have seen several times now, most recently when Jesus forgave a person's sins, Jesus takes on the role of God. Or to say it another way, he is the Son of God.
In our text today he identifies himself as the bridegroom of God's people, who of course, is God. This is who Jesus is. He is not just a prophet. He is not just the Messiah. He is not just a son of God – a powerful ruler or heavenly being. He is the Son of God. This is who our Savior is.
2. Do you fast? This is a challenge that this passage presents to us. Jesus specifically says that after his death, "they will fast in that day." This is the time we live in now.
If you don't already, I encourage you to try fasting as a way of engaging in intense prayer, lifting up your sorrows and problems to God. And God will hear you since he is especially attuned to the lowly.
Although, remember to do it according to Jesus' teaching – so that we don't advertise our fasting by playing the part of a mourner, as he teaches in Matthew 6:16-18.
3. Are you living in the new that Jesus teaches? As we saw, the change with regard to fasting was temporary, being specifically related to Jesus' bodily presence with us.
But as I pointed out, the two parables on the new and the old, at the very center of the five stories of conflict, also point back to the first two stories and forward to the last two stories.
In the first two stories – with Jesus' coming the kingdom brings in a time of mercy and forgiveness, so that Jesus now announces forgiveness and extends mercy even to notable sinners.
And in the second two stories – with Jesus' coming the kingdom brings with it a new way of observing the Sabbath for Jesus' Jewish followers, that emphasizes that it's made to bless people, and doing good to others on the Sabbath is encouraged.
The coming of the kingdom changes our practices in these ways also. And if the fasting example is mostly temporary, these are long-term changes that clarify for us what God's will is with regard to how we treat "sinners" and how we might observe Sabbath.
We are back again in Mark 8:22-26, the story of the healing of the blind man of Bethsaida. Let's read this to refresh our memoires.
Last week we saw a couple of interesting things about this story. First, this is one of three times that we have Jesus using spit to heal someone. Second, this is the only healing recorded in the gospels that takes two tries, or has two steps.
Today I want us to take another angle on this story. It's one that is pointed out by many commentators, and I think there's something to it.
This is where Jesus warns the disciples about the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod. And the disciples think that he's talking about them not bringing along enough bread.
Jesus gets frustrated. He asks, "Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? . . . And do you not remember?" – Mark 8:17-18. To even talk about a lack of bread betrays a deeper misunderstanding on their part. Not only do they not get his figurative use of bread, they haven't gotten who Jesus is.
As they left Bethsaida they started on their way North to Caesarea Philippi. But the trip would eventually lead South to Jerusalem and the cross.
Just after Peter's confession, Jesus "began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed . . .." – Mark 8:31. But Peter rebukes Jesus – 8:32. Don't talk like that Jesus! That's not who you're supposed to be. You're the Messiah. What do you mean suffering? What do you mean getting killed? No, no, no Jesus. The kingdom of God comes when the Messiah unveils his power and leads God's people in triumph over all the nations, defeating them in war and ruling over them.
Peter understands partially, Jesus is the Messiah. But he doesn't yet understand how Jesus is to be the Messiah. He doesn't understand the cross.
So Jesus rebukes Peter – Mark 8:33. Be quiet! Your thinking is all messed up. Then he teaches that not only must he go to the cross, anyone who wants to be his disciple must take up their cross and lose their life – Mark 8:34-35.
Jesus is saying, the kingdom comes through the cross (and then the resurrection). It doesn't come through earthly power, war and politics (which is why Jesus didn't pursue these). It comes through lowliness, suffering love, and then trusting in God to come through for you. It comes through the cross and resurrection.
Peter sees partly, but his understanding is till fuzzy and blurred. He doesn't get the part about the cross and suffering love being the way that the kingdom is brought into reality in this world.
Our story comes right between the two we have just looked at. And our story comes at the turning point of the gospel as a whole, where Peter confesses that Jesus is the Messiah, and then where Jesus shifts and begins to teach them that he must suffer and die.
Step one: Peter sees that Jesus is the Messiah, but he is confused about what this means, especially the cross. He is no longer blind but his vision is blurry, like the man in our story.
And then, after the resurrection, comes step two: He sees that Jesus had to die and then be resurrected to bring in the kingdom of God. It was then that he saw clearly, like the man in our story. After the second step.
I believe that Jesus may have used two steps to heal the blind man in our story to prophetically look forward to a similar process in his disciples' understanding of his identity. So in answer to our question last week, 'Why didn't Jesus just heal him right away?' It may have been intentional for this very reason. And they could look back on it and understand that he knew what was going on ahead of time.
And even if this is saying too much, that Jesus did this intentionally, I believe that Mark arranged his story in such a way that it highlights the symbolic nature of the healing of the blind man – to foreshadow the process of the disciples coming to an understand who Jesus is.
The prophetic object lesson is this – the disciples' understanding of who he is will come in two stages. But also the message is there that Jesus is able to bring them to clear vision, just like with the blind man.
In general we can say that we often move from blurry vision to clearer vision. We don't fully understand everything about Jesus and the Christian life and so we need time. We are on a journey. And we have to grow and mature.
And, of course, as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13:12, "For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face." Even our clearest vision in this life, will be made more clear when the kingdom comes in its fullness.
More specifically, I ask, 'Is your vision of Jesus and the kingdom and the cross blurred?' Oh sure, we know that Jesus had to die. We came into the picture thousands of years after he already did. But we often don't understand how the cross works for us.
The same Jesus who said he had to go to the cross, also told us to take up our crosses. The same Jesus who was teaching Peter that the kingdom of God comes, not through worldly power, but by suffering love, also teaches us the same. Just as Jesus brought forth the kingdom through the cross, we are to advance the kingdom through the cross.
But most of us are like Peter. Most Christians are still in step one! Our vision is blurred; we are confused about all this cross stuff. We have a veiled and partial understanding of Jesus and the kingdom. But Jesus calls us to follow him, not to take a different path. We are also to expand Jesus' kingdom by means of lowliness and suffering love, and then calling on God to come and act, just like Jesus did. We are to follow the same path. This is how the kingdom of God is made manifest in this world.
Finally, our story gives us hope, because in it we see that Jesus is able to cure our blindness. Just as he healed the blind man in two steps, he was able in two stages to show the disciples who he is, and how the kingdom works. He gave them clear vision.
And he can do the same for us. He is able! If we are open to it. He can deal with our blindness, and give us clear sight and understanding. Ask him to open your eyes!
We are starting a new series today and I'm really excited. We are going to go through what is called 'the sermon on the plain.' We all know about the sermon on the mount, found in Matthew 5-7, right? Well this one is much shorter; a kind of miniature sermon on the mount. It is found in Luke 6.
In this sermon, Jesus is speaking to his disciples, for it says, in Luke 6:20, "he looked up at his disciples and said . . ." – and then he gave his sermon. This is not just the twelve. There is also the "great crowd of his disciples" as verse 17 says. All of these disciples are the "you" that is addressed throughout the sermon. This shows us that his teaching here is not for the super-spiritual. It is meant for every follower of Jesus – including you and me.
Although this sermon doesn't cover every area of discipleship, it does lay out nicely some of Jesus' core concerns that he wants us to focus on.
– in verses 20-26. There are four blessings and four woes in our verses. Up first are the blessings, or beatitudes.
Blessed are you who are poor for yours is the kingdom of God.
Blessed are you who are hungry now for you shall be satisfied.
Blessed are you who weep now for you shall laugh.
We will look more at the identity of the recipients in a moment, but for now I will just say that, however you want to interpret the beatitudes in Matthew, here in Luke the content of this teaching is fairly easy to understand. We are dealing with literal poverty, hunger, weeping, and rejection. There is no indication that any of this is figurative.
To be blessed means that you are favored by God. And this favored status shows up in what is given: possession of the kingdom, being satisfied, laughing, and having a great reward in heaven.
Now notice the first and fourth beatitudes focus on present blessings, with present tense verbs. The second and third beatitudes focus on future blessings, with future tense verbs. So some of the blessing come now, and some later when the kingdom comes in its fullness.
Now we look at the four woes.
But woe to you who are rich for you have received your consolation.
Woe to you who are full now for you shall be hungry.
Woe to you who laugh now for you shall mourn and weep.
Woe to you when all people speak well of you for so their fathers did to the false prophets.
Notice that these woes exactly parallel the blessings: poor/rich; hungry/full; weep/laugh; and revile you/speak well of you.
In this case, once again, we are dealing with literal riches, food, laughter and social acceptance.
"Woe" is a way of pronouncing God's curse or judgment on someone. The judgments are: no hope of the kingdom, hunger, weeping, and although the fourth is left unsaid, the opposite of reward is condemnation.
The first woe speaks to something already present. The second and third woes look to the future with future tense verbs. So just as with the blessings, some of the judgment occurs now, and some later, at the final judgment.
The exalted one and the humble one trade places. Let's look at this in our verses.
In the world those who are rich are on top, and those who are poor are on the bottom. But in the kingdom there will be a reversal.
In the world there are those who are well fed and they have all they want, and then there are those who are hungry. But in the kingdom these places will be reversed.
In the world those who laugh have an easy life, and then those who weep are without what they need. But in the kingdom there will be a reversal.
In the world those who are accepted and well spoken of have a good life, and then there are those who are rejected and spoken evil of, who suffer. But in the kingdom things will be the opposite.
Jesus is clear, the coming of the kingdom turns everything upside down.
Who are the recipients of these blessings and woes??
Disciples who are poor, hungry, weeping and rejected are exalted with the coming of the kingdom.
And disciples who are rich, well fed, laughing and socially accepted are brought low and judged.
2. The suffering here has to do with faithfulness to Jesus. What I am saying is that the poverty, hunger, weeping, and rejection all come – to use the phrase from the last beatitude – "on account of the Son of Man" – Luke 6:22.
So Jesus is not talking about or advocating here voluntary poverty, or voluntary hunger, or voluntary weeping for that matter. It has to do with how people treat you because of your commitment to Jesus.
Jesus is working here with the common theme of the faithful prophet who suffers, and as well, the unfaithful prophet who has it good in life. And he is laying out the marks of faithful and unfaithful prophets as this is found in the Old Testament.
This comes out at the end of the blessings and at the end of the woes. v. 23 says, "for so their fathers did to the prophets." v. 26 says, "for so their fathers did to the false prophets." So Jesus is making a connection between us as his disciples and the prophets of old.
True prophets speak God's word regardless of the consequences. Thus they are rejected and persecuted. Because of this they are made poor, hungry, and they weep. They are oppressed for their faithfulness.
False prophets, however, say what pleases their audience. Thus they are well spoken of by all. Because of this they have wealth, food and they laugh. They are accepted by those in power and receive the good things of this life.
Jesus is saying, just like it has always been, so it is with his disciples.
So those who are blessed are disciples who have suffered loss for their commitment to Jesus. Those who are cursed are disciples who have compromised to gain the things of this world.
– which I think are important for us to see.
1. You don't have to be in a continual state of suffering to be blessed. After all, Jesus was well spoken of for a time. This didn't make him a false prophet. He is referring to the long haul. If you are consistently faithful to God, these kinds of things will mark your life.
2. You don't have to have everything that's on the list in order to be blessed. For any suffering is a mark of faithfulness and brings God's blessing. To be hated and defamed is enough. We are not penalized simply because those who hate us, in our context, don't have the power at present to make us poor or hungry. (Although in our society some still get rich and live the high life because they tell people what they want to hear.) But if they do gain this power we must endure it.
3. It's often 'the people of God,' so called, who will do these things to you. It was the people of Israel who oppressed the prophets of old and also Jesus. They didn't like what they heard – and thought they knew better.
One of the reasons Jesus gives this teaching is to encourage those who are suffering for him. Think about those who are going through terrible loss all throughout the world for their faith – and the discourage-ment and weariness that this can bring.
Jesus is saying, don't give up. It won't always be this way. And he is saying, there will be a day of reckoning for those who do this to his disciples. And he is saying, it will be worth it. The rewards of the kingdom more than outweigh what is lost in this life.
Am I with the ones who are suffering for faithfulness and will be blessed?
Or am I with the ones who have compromised in order to gain the world's favor and will be judged?
Now granted, we don't live in a society that really persecutes. There are limits to what can be done, as I said before. But you can be ridiculed, slandered, made an outcast or worse – like lose a job because of your faith.
The question for us in our setting is, when there are negative results that come to us because of our commitment to Jesus – Are we faithful, despite the consequences?
This is the test of whether we are among the company of the true prophets or the false prophets.


The G10 Collection, designed by Greta M. Grossman in 1950, is another of her undiscovered designs. The lamp collection is characterized by a distinctive lamp shade, giving the space a pleasant light, as well as its rough surface, and polished contrasting brass details, which both define the lamp's unique look. The collection, consisting of a floor lamp and a pendant, has a refined, luxurious charm combined with an industrial character, which give an expression of classic yet contemporary design.
The G10 collection was produced, as was much of Grossman's other work, in both America and her native Sweden, where this collection drew its features from the Swedish influence.


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Charlie Chaplin was een Engelse acteur, regisseur, componist en komiek.

Charles of Charlie Chaplin is ook de naam van:

 Charles Chaplin (kunstenaar) (1907–1987)
 Charles Chaplin (kunstschilder) (1825–1891), Frans schilder
 Charles Chaplin (junior) (1925–1968), Amerikaans acteur, en zoon van Charlie Chaplin
 Charlie Chaplin (film), film uit 2002
 Charlie Chaplin (zanger), artiestennaam van de reggaezanger Richard Patrick Bennett

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Wonder Babies at Peter White Public Library | Upper Peninsula of Michigan Radio - Yooper News, Interviews, Pictures, and Calendar of Events - Great Lakes Radio, Inc.
Marquette, MI – Wonder Babies takes place every Monday and Tuesday in April from 10:15 am-10:40 am in the Peter White Public Library Great Room. The program includes songs, rhymes, stories and fingerplays for ages 0-18 months and a loving adult. Older siblings welcome. Playtime and adult social time after storytime encouraged. For more information call 226-4323, visit www.pwpl.info or find Peter White Public Library Youth Services on Facebook.


Many chemicals and other substances are hazardous if not used properly. You can be safe if you know which are hazardous, what the hazards are, and how to work with them safely. You can detect many of these hazards by reading the labels.
The label doesn't tell everything, but it's a good starting point—read it first!


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Home » Cancer » Hitting a home run with trial melanoma treatment
Hitting a home run with trial melanoma treatment
August 11, 2016 Providence Health Team
Chuck Howard's symptoms began around Christmas in 2009. They weren't alarming – just some "minor discomforts" near what he assumed was his gallbladder. When the pain persisted into spring, his doctor ordered some tests.
As the technician performed an ultrasound, Chuck, then a 60-year-old dentist from Salem, Ore., watched for her reaction. "She tried not to tell me too much," he says, "but it was obvious that she was concerned."
Indeed, this and other tests revealed the culprit: Chuck's body was riddled with dozens of tumors, including one above his right kidney with a mass the size of a baseball.
Chuck had advanced melanoma, a skin cancer that had gone undetected while it spread throughout his system. It was a devastating diagnosis. Metastatic melanoma kills 95 out of 100 patients within five years. Chuck's niece succumbed to the disease at age 27. Still, his reaction was low-key.
"I was taken aback, and I don't really know what was going through my mind other than this could be the end and we'd better start preparing," he says.
Referred to a good team
Chuck's doctor in Salem referred him to oncologist Brendan Curti, M.D., medical director of Providence Immunotherapy Program in Portland, Oregon. Dr. Curti specializes in immunotherapy to treat metastatic kidney cancer and melanoma. It just so happened he and Steven Seung, M.D., Ph.D., a Providence radiation oncologist and immunologist, were studying a new treatment that pairs high-dose radiation with interleukin-2, a powerful immunotherapy.
IL-2, as it's called, boosts the body's immune system to seek out and kill cancer cells. It has produced remarkable results, delaying the disease's progression and in some cases even curing the cancer. But it works for only 15 to 20 percent of patients.
On his first visit with Dr. Curti, Chuck had no idea if he would be one of them. He recalls Dr. Curti's metaphor: "He said the treatment would be either a strikeout or a home run."
Preparing for the worst
Despite Chuck's optimism, his health was declining rapidly. Experience has taught Dr. Curti that the sicker the patient, the less chance of recovery.
Chuck and his wife, Jo, who worked in his dental office, hoped for the best, but began to prepare for the worst. He visited a financial consultant, began to draft his will and advertised for an associate to take over the practice while he was in treatment.
"I was thinking that even if I recover, I'm probably going to have a shortened life expectancy," he says.
Game-changing radiation technology
Researchers have known for years that radiation affects the immune system, and in the 1980s they conducted a study combining radiation and IL-2, a treatment they hoped would deliver the one-two punch needed to kill the cancer. The results, however, were disappointing.
"Radiation techniques were not as sophisticated as they are now," Dr. Seung says of the early research, "and the dose intensity was less than was necessary to kill the melanoma cells."
In early 2009, Providence acquired a state-of-the-art radiation machine that solved the problem. It could focus a radiation beam precisely on a tumor with doses 10 times stronger than traditional radiation without significantly harming surrounding healthy tissue. This technique is called stereotactic body radiotherapy, or SBRT.
Drs. Seung and Curti, and Marka Crittenden, M.D., Ph.D., a Providence scientist and radiation oncologist also involved in the research, designed a study to see if SBRT might give IL-2 the boost it needed to succeed with more patients.
Surprising results
Dr. Curti enrolled Chuck in the new study combining radiation and IL-2. Because the trial was a pilot study, Chuck was one of only 12 patients given the combination therapy.
Chuck's treatment began with radiation sessions, followed by a series of IL-2 treatments. The therapy provokes a powerful immune response, with side effects ranging from drops in blood pressure to joint pain and nausea. Because of this, week-long hospitalization is required during each round.
For six months in 2010, Chuck and Jo traveled back and forth between Salem and Portland, making the best of it. Jo referred to Providence Cancer Center as "the resort," where happy hour began at 3 p.m. with a cocktail of IL-2. Chuck celebrated his 61st birthday on the seventh floor. The staff sang "Happy Birthday," and Chuck watched the Ohio State Buckeyes trounce Miami.
Meanwhile, his immune system was finally recognizing the cancer cells and started waging a fierce battle. As side effects—which at one point included hallucinations—worsened, doctors found more evidence that the therapy was working.
Sure enough, the tests that followed each cycle were encouraging. The first scan showed that the number of tumors and size of the cancer decreased by half. Chuck's tumors were shrinking, then disappearing. The treatment was a home run.
The same was happening with others enrolled in the trial. Not just one patient, which would have been typical for IL-2 alone, but half the study group was seeing astonishing results.
"Factoring in that it was a small study, this finding is very, very surprising," Dr. Curti says. "It really has not been observed in the history of interleukin-2 therapy."
Health restored
Six months after treatment, there was no evidence of cancer in Chuck's body. And given what researchers know about IL-2 success, there's a good chance it won't come back. Nowadays, Chuck sees Dr. Curti only once a year for his annual scan, and every time has resulted in a clean bill of health.
Chuck returned to work full time until spring of 2016, when he hung up his hat at the dental practice. During retirement, he plans to spend time with two of his hobbies, photography and woodworking.
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


It is no secret that the current political climate has rendered most middle east countries categorically instable. It's this reason that has made it crucial for many wealthy business people specially from the middle eastern countries like Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi etc. to covet a new citizenship to insure safe business and family's future. Visa restrictions and other such issues have also paved way for most wealthy nationals to seek a new home elsewhere without emigrating from their home country.
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Dominica is peaceful tropical country with beautiful beaches, and tranquil environment and sublime surroundings. The country ensures best quality of life for its citizens.
A lifetime grant of citizenship that can pass on to other family members of eligible age limit.
Holding dual citizenship is permitted with no residency requirements either before or after the grant.
Visa on arrival or visa free travel to more than 120 countries, including Britain, Singapore, Germany, Hong Kong, and many more.
No tax regulations on foreign based income, wealth, capital earnings, gifts inheritance, etc.
Easy acquiring of work, education or residence permit in Dominica after the grant of second citizenship.
Processing time- Dominica CIP officials have a reputation for clearing applications within a shortest period of time.
It's the most cost effective program with the fastest process time. No other country with such benefits, pros and cons offers such a lucrative and powerful passport at similar price.
No language requirement. English is the official language of the country which is but most commonly spoken in the middle east and hence a viable option.
Confidentiality is the key to this process. The Dominican authority does not notify about your new citizenship to the country where you currently belong to.
Freedom to start and operate business with US and UK and or any other country you may wish to.
Dominican citizens also have the advantage to obtain a residence permit in places like UK, Switzerland, Monaco, Bahamas, Bermuda and other Caribbean island nations.
Dominica does not require the applicants to have a proof of residency in the country before filing for migration. This is a great advantage that most other countries that offer dual passports do not provide. Nor does the offer entails any criteria that the applicant has to reside in the country after acquiring the citizenship. They only require an Interview once after the grant of the new citizenship and passport for which you have to present yourself to the CIP office.
Now with such amazing benefits who would not want to acquire one more home, that too in a place which is safer. A second Dominica Passport opens up greater economic and educational opportunities and a cultural, religious and professional freedom your current country of residence may not.
With a secure future and a safe lifestyle to offer, Dominica Citizenship by Investment Unit has garnered a positive reputation, a highest number of inquiries and a huge increase in applications from across globe for a second passport.
CtrustGlobal has witnessed a steady rise in demand for migration applications for Dominican Passport over last decade.
Do You Want to File Application for Dominica Citizenship by Investment?
CTrustGlobal is the most trusted channel for most clients across places to obtain a second home, a second citizenship and a second passport in Dominica. We have professionally qualified and experienced team of advocates, and legal advisors to facilitate the hole process for our clients.
For any further information, just drop your email address and your question in the comment section below, we are ever ready to help and guide our future clients. You can contact us via the given channels or visit our office in Dubai.


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Scouting Report: Bradford City
Taylor Catton
Take a closer look at the Bantams ahead of their visit to The Lamex Stadium on Tuesday 20th August 2019...
What we know about the opposition…
The Yorkshire based club are back in Sky Bet League Two after a six year stay in the division above. A disastrous campaign last time around saw the Club relegated as the bottom side in Sky Bet League One but the Bantams will be hoping for a similar season to the last time they competed in League Two, back in 2012/13.
That year, the Club enjoyed a stunning season as they beat three Premier League teams to reach the League Cup final at Wembley, where they were defeated 4-0 against Swansea. A few months later the Bantams were back on Wembley Way, as they beat Northampton Town 3-0 in the League Two Play-Off Final, to cap off a historic season for the Club.
Latest Form…
At the beginning of the season, Bradford was tipped as one of the favourites for promotion but haven't had the best starts, despite still being unbeaten in the league. They picked up their first win last Saturday with a 3-0 victory over pointless Oldham, of which you can watch the highlights below.
Before that, the club picked up two points from their first two league games after draws against Cambridge United (0-0) and Grimsby Town (1-1).
Bradford's squad has seen a vast amount of change both coming in and out of the team following relegation last season. Experienced players such as Calum Woods (Tranmere), Nathaniel Knight-Percival (Carlisle United), Josh Wright (Leyton Orient), Paul Caddis (Released), Billy Clarke (Released), Ben Wilson (Coventry), Ryan McGowan (Sydney FC) and Alex Jones (Partick Thistle) all left the Club during the Summer.
On the incoming front, the Bantams have brought in two of the best strikers in the division, in the form of James Vaughan (Wigan) and Clayton Donaldson (Bolton). Both started up-front for their opening three league games of the season and both were on the score sheet last Saturday.
They also brought in the likes of Zeli Ismail (Walsall), Sam Hornby (Port Vale), Ben Richards-Everton (Accrington Stanley), Matt Palmer (Rotherham) and Paddie O'Connor (Leeds).
The Gaffer…
Gary Bowyer is the man in charge at Valley Parade after taking over from caretaker boss Martin Drury in March earlier this year. After picking up his first competitive win of the new season on Saturday, Bowyer commented, "I am happy with the result, the clean sheet and the three goals.
"I felt we could have played a lot better and maybe even added a few more goals. The pleasing aspect is that there is still loads to build on, for us to progress. But the main thing is us getting our opening win of the season and it was great to get that at home."
The 48-year-old managed Blackburn Rovers between 2013-15, but his biggest success came at Blackpool during a two year spell between 2016-18. After being relegated from League 1 in the 2015/16 season, Bowyer was appointed as manager of the Tangerines and guided them to an immediate return to the third tier after beating Luton Town and then Exeter City in the League Two Play-Offs. Bowyer then resigned from his position just a few months later in August of the new season.
James Vaughan (31) has played in all four major English leagues having started his career with Premier League outfit Everton, where he became the Club's youngest goalscorer at the age of 16 years and 271 days, overtaking previous record holder Wayne Rooney.
His career has seen him join the likes of Crystal Palace, Huddersfield, Birmingham City, Bury, Sunderland and Wigan. The responsibility of scoring the goals to fire them back into League One will be placed on Vaughan's shoulders, who has started this season on hot form, with two goals from three league games.
Journalists View, with Simon Parker of the Telegraph & Argus...
How important was it for Bradford in getting their first win on the board against Oldham on Saturday?
"It took the pressure off because they are the favorites with the bookies. Everyone is expecting Bradford getting promoted and that first win just calmed everyone down and it ended up being quite convincing against Oldham."
What are the expectations for the Club?
"Well, straight back up to League One. It isn't going to be easy and they know that."
Did anyone expect this start to the season with just one win in three games?
"No, not really. The first game against Cambridge they got a lot of men behind the ball. I think teams will try and block for a point when they come to Valley Parade. When they get use to the League, I expect them to finish in a decent place in the table at the end of the season."
How confident is Bradford in going to The Lamex and potentially picking up a result?
"I think they will be confident off the back of last Saturday's result and how they played. That win settled everyone down and it would be great to pick up two wins in four days."
Final prediction and goalscorers?
"I will go with Bradford to snatch a 1-0 win with James Vaughan stepping up again and nicking the winner."
Stevenage vs Bradford City on 20 Aug 19
Opposition Preview


Maybe the Aliquippa school board should have fired a boatload of teachers instead of the football coach.
The 9-person board voted Wednesday night 7-2 to vacate the job of head football coach, which means Mike Zmijanac, who's had the job for 21 years and is 201 games over 500, with 10 straight appearances in the WPIAL Championship game, is out.
No coach in PIAA history, who has won more than 200 games, has a higher winning percentage.
So, it would appear that Zmijanac is fulfilling one of the major requirements. He wins almost 90% of the time.
Only one of the seven board members, who voted to fire Zmijanac, had the guts to give a reason. Remember, they are elected officials and are supposed to answer to the taxpayers.
We'll ignore the idiotic use of the word edification and just ask the question – why didn't the board vacate the jobs of the Aliquippa teachers?
They teach at the 10th worst high school in Pennsylvania.
I know nothing about Zmijanac's ability as an English teacher but I do know that only 30 percent of Aliquippa students are proficient in reading.
And maybe Ezra and the board should think about vacating some of the math teacher positions. Only 16 percent of Aliquippa students are proficient in math.
According to my math, that means only 185 of the 1156 students are capable of doing high school math.
I've never met Mike Zmijanac and the only thing I know about him as a football coach is his won-loss record. But anybody who has paid attention to high school sports for any length of time knows of many cases of coaches losing their jobs because somebody on a school board has an agenda.
And that agenda usually involves a son or daughter who's not getting the amount of playing time or playing the position that pleases a board member.
Current and former Aliquippa students defended Zmijanac and said the board was making a mistake. Lowe wasn't impressed.
Talk about a moronic statement. The coach doesn't play a down? Really?
How many downs did Vince Lombardi play?
Board member Aileen Gilbert, who seconded Lowe's motion to vacate the position, is the mother of Sean Gilbert, who played at Pitt and in the NFL. There has been some speculation that Aileen would like to see Sean get the job.
But doesn't a guy who's been there 54 years as a teacher and coach deserve an explanation when he's fired?
When Zmijanac's replacement is hired, will the gutless board members endorse him and clarify what improvements they anticipate as a result?
Will the new coach be judged on his winning percentage, how he treats the kids or how many of his former players are on the corner?
The people in Aliquippa take pride in their football team and they won't care how nice the coach is to the kiddies if the team doesn't show up for the WPIAL Championship every year.
If you're a football coach who'd like to take a crack at improving on Zmijanac's record and making the gutless, clueless members of the Aliquippa School Board happy, here's another example of Ezra Lowe's brilliance, as told to Ralph Iannotti of KDKA-TV.
Ezra – who's "Here for the kids." – and the other members of the Aliquippa School Board and the parents of the 1156 students would be a lot better off if they let one of the most successful high school football coaches of all time alone and started asking why there are only nine high schools in Pennsylvania doing a worse job of educating their kids.


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Electronic book text
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Words 108000
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Print Edition 9781421412610
John Lindsay, New York, and the American Dream
Edited by Joseph P. Viteritti
Summer in the City takes a clear look at John Lindsay's tenure as mayor of New York City during the tumultuous 1960s, when President Lyndon Johnson launched his ambitious Great Society Program. Providing an even-handed reassessment of Lindsay's legacy and the policies of the period, the essays in this volume skillfully dissect his kaleidoscope of progressive ideas and approach to leadership—all set in a perfect storm of huge demographic changes, growing fiscal stress, and an unprecedented commitment by the federal government to attain a more equal society. Compelling archival photos and a timeline give readers a window into the mythic 1960s, a period animated by civil rights marches, demands for black power, antiwar demonstrations, and a heroic intergovernmental effort to redistribute national resources more evenly.
Written by prize-winning authors and leading scholars, each chapter covers a distinct aspect of Lindsay's mayoralty (politics, race relations, finance, public management, architecture, economic development, and the arts), while Joseph P. Viteritti's introductory and concluding essays offer an honest and nuanced portrait of Lindsay and the prospects for shaping more balanced public priorities as New York City ushers in a new era of progressive leadership.
The volume's sharp focus on the controversies of the Mad Men era will appeal not only to older readers who witnessed its explosive events, but also to younger readers eager for a deeper understanding of the time. A progressive Republican with bold ideals and a fervent belief in the American Dream, Lindsay strove to harness the driving forces of modernization, democratization, acculturation, inclusion, growth, and social justice in ways that will inform our thinking about the future of the city.
Contributors: Lizabeth Cohen, Paul Goldberger, Brian Goldstein, Geoffrey Kabaservice, Mariana Mogilevich, Charles R. Morris, David Rogers, Clarence Taylor, and Joseph P. Viteritti
Joseph P. Viteritti is the Thomas Hunter Professor of Public Policy and Chair of the Urban Affairs and Planning Department at Hunter College. He is author or editor of eleven books, including, most recently, When Mayors Take Charge: School Governance in the City and City Schools: Lessons from New York, the latter also published by Johns Hopkins.
"Professor Viteritti... and his fellow contributors make a convincing case that, at the least, Mr. Lindsay deserves another look."
- Sam Roberts - New York Times
"The book was well-written and the research impeccable."
- History Buffs
"Viteritti has recruited a superb mix of senior and junior scholars who collectively make a substantial contribution to understanding an important period (1966-73) in America's national and urban development... This well-integrated volume illuminates crucial developments in New York City's adapting to change to maintain its status as a global city."
- Choice
"John Lindsay, supposed exemplar of the failures of liberalism, has been given a bum rap by history. These first-rate essays provide a positive revaluation of his mayoralty, a convincing defense of the progressive tradition he championed, and a timely reminder of ways that activist government can advance the common good."
- Mike Wallace, Pulitzer Prize–winning coauthor of Gotham
"Viteritti has done a great service with this book on John Lindsay, because it places Lindsay's mayoralty in the context of the past fifty years of New York history—the social changes that occurred and the politics and governance of the city that accompanied them. By turning to other contributors who are expert in their separate fields, the book most accurately reflects Lindsay's unique contribution."
- Dick Ravitch, Former Lieutenant Governor of New York, 2009–2010
"Summer in the City artfully balances the interplay of leadership, ideas about urbanism that were prevalent at the time, and deep political, intergovernmental, demographic, and economic structural forces at play in the 1960s, producing the best volume about Mayor John Lindsay ever published."
- Richard Flanagan, City University of New York
Publisher Johns Hopkins University Press
BISAC Subject Headings
BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Political (76 Titles)
HISTORY / United States / State & Local / Middle Atlantic (DC, DE, MD, NJ, NY, PA) (170 Titles)
POLITICAL SCIENCE / Public Policy / City Planning & Urban Development (27 Titles)
POLITICAL SCIENCE / American Government / Local (5 Titles)
BIC Subject Headings
Political science & theory (203 Titles)
History of the Americas (970 Titles)
Politics & government (261 Titles)
US school grade range From 13 To 17
Other Titles by Joseph P. Viteritti
City Schools
Lessons from New York
edited by Diane Ravitch and Joseph P. Viteritti
May 2003 - Johns Hopkins University Press
Other Titles in BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Political
The Political Career of W. Kerr Scott
The Squire from Haw River
Julian M. Pleasants
Jul 2019 - University Press of Kentucky
A Political Biography of Aung San Suu Kyi
Hans-Bernd Zollner, Rodion Ebbighausen
Dec 2018 - Silkworm Books
See All 76 Titles in BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Political
Other Titles in Political science & theory
Globalizing Women
Transnational Feminist Networks
Valentine M. Moghadam
Feb 2021 - Johns Hopkins University Press
The Black Butterfly
The Harmful Politics of Race and Space in America
Lawrence T. Brown
Jan 2021 - Johns Hopkins University Press
Control of the Laws in the Ancient Democracy at Athens
Edwin Carawan
Dec 2020 - Johns Hopkins University Press
See All 203 Titles in Political science & theory


You know how much you rely on your phone. It's no wonder that robust battery life means more to you than you ever thought possible. You may want to know which phone has the best battery life? The answer is big battery has the best battery life! Here we list 5 KXD smartphones which battery exceed 3000mAh.
The KXD K10 has a high capacity 3300 mAh non-removable battery with KXD own battery saving technology. It will last for up to 16 hours of talk time. It can last for up to 11days of standby time, 120 hours music playback. This battery also features 600 battery cycles which means it can still retain 80% of the rated capacity after 600 full charge/recharge cycles.
The KXD K30 come with 5.7 inch dual glass full screen display, Octa-Core Processor and 3GB RAM, 32GB ROM provides a balance of size and comfort. A long-lasting, 3,300 mAh, non-removable high density battery and optimization technology gives up to 16 hours of talk time to keep you powered up through the day. In addition to the phone's long-lasting battery, a Power Save feature extends battery life even further.
KXD Y20 is a full screen large battery, "full screen large battery" is its slogan; 6.0 inch 18:9 full screen display, 85% screen-to-body ratio; the redesigned 3,600 mAh battery in the KXD Y20 has been built to pass an 8-point battery safety check. This extreme testing process, followed by careful inspection, ensures the KXD's batteries meet the highest quality standards. That means up to 22 hours of talk time and 14 days of standby.
KXD 6A is a 5.5 full screen display with face unlock with a speed up to 0.3 seconds. The KXD 6A Play comes in a slim case, but packs a big, 3,000 mAh all day battery that can stay powered up all day—up to 15 hours of talk time.
KXD S60X is not a ordinary smartphone, it is a rugged phone which designed for extreme environment, so it features water protection and ultra strong. KXD 6A has performance and power to spare with an octa-core processor and Non-Removable 4000 mAh battery . The energy-efficient, Mediatek Helio octa-core 1.5 GHz prcoessor delivers powerful performance to support the best multi-taskers.


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Edgar Roy--an alleged serial killer held in a secure, fortress-like Federal Supermax facility--is awaiting trial. He faces almost certain conviction. Sean King and Michelle Maxwell are called in by Roy's attorney, Sean's old friend and mentor Ted Bergin, to help work the case. But their investigation is derailed before it begins--en route to their first meeting with Bergin, Sean and Michelle find him murdered.
It is now up to them to ask the questions no one seems to want answered: Is Roy a killer? Who murdered Bergin? With help from some surprising allies, they continue to pursue the case. But the more they dig into Roy's past, the more they encounter obstacles, half-truths, dead-ends, false friends, and escalating threats from every direction. Their persistence puts them on a collision course with the highest levels of the government and the darkest corners of power. In a terrifying confrontation that will push Sean and Michelle to their limits, the duo may be permanently parted.


Can credit cards put the glue in your member relationships?
Visa reported on February 8 that credit card usage rose 10 percent in the first quarter of 2012 – a possible sign that the economy is warming, along with consumer interest in spending with plastic.
Better yet, credit cards are profitable. Just ask Visa: They reported a 16 percent increase in profits to go along with the boost in card usage. Credit cards are among the most profitable products that credit unions offer. Yet, profits may not be the best reason to reconsider building (or rebuilding) your card portfolio.
Consumers want financial partners they trust. Big banks and card companies haven't done a great job of building trust with cardholders. Quite the opposite. Getting the word out on humane rates and fees – as well as "credit builder" programs for members hit with reduced credit scores and lines during the recent downturn – demonstrates the credit union difference in real, relatable terms.
People love plastic. Consumers will hold onto favorite credit cards even after they've ended other relationships with a financial services provider. Credit cards represent an alternative payment method to checks and debit, extending your share of wallet.
You can reward loyalty. "Credit cards are the perfect vehicle for loyalty-building with programs that tie earning points to card usage," says Jennifer Kerry, CO-OP's Vice President of Credit Card Services. Want to up the ante? Community Financial Credit Union in Broomfield, Colo., increases rewards points for members with multiple accounts and/or high balances.
There's room to grow. Credit card expert Ondine Irving of Card Analysis Solutions estimates that fewer than three in 10 credit unions members carry credit union credit cards.
While this may be a great time to start or expand your credit card program, doing so successfully takes some smarts. "Although credit cards are a very profitable product, they're also a very risky product," says credit card expert Tim Kolk of TRK Advisors. Credit unions need solid, data-driven programs to keep charge-offs to a minimum. Also critical: target marketing efforts to qualified, segmented membership groups and maintaining tight control of existing accounts.
Credit cards aren't a fast, easy way to get cash – for consumers or credit unions. Kolk estimates that a new card program may take three to four years to become profitable. But long-term benefits to the bottom line – and the long-term relationships you can develop with members – may well be worth the investment.


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Tag Archives: local
By Joseph J. Kerski, University of Denver and Esri.
Abductive reasoning (also called abduction, abductive inference or retroduction) is a form of logical inference that goes from an observation to a hypothesis that accounts for the observation. It ideally seeks to find the simplest and most likely explanation. In abductive reasoning, unlike in deductive reasoning, the premises do not guarantee the conclusion. One can understand abductive reasoning as "inference to the best explanation". The fields of law, computer science, and artificial intelligence research have renewed interest in the subject of abduction.
Abductive reasoning can be effectively taught through spatial thinking and analysis with the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology and methods. Through the overlaying, swiping, and display of maps and imagery in a GIS, students are encouraged to make observations about the patterns, relationships, and trends, or lack of pattern. They can then form a hypothesis about why the pattern exists and how it came to be. They can then test that hypothesis against the data, by running a set of spatial statistical techniques, by testing different models, by symbolizing and classifying the data in different ways, and by examining different regions of the world at different scales, testing whether the relationship holds in all regions and scales, or just some.
All of this is what I find most valuable about teaching with GIS–it is one of those few tools that allow for inquiry, investigation, hypothesis testing, changing the variable(s) analyzed, all in one environment. In fact, GIS was created to be that very thing—a toolset that would allow problem solving and investigation. I like to think of GIS as a means of enabling students to investigate the "whys of where". These investigations can occur at the local level, where hypotheses could include "Food stores in my community will be geographically dispersed, while antique shops will be more geographically clustered, " or, "There is a positive correlation between median age and median income in my community." But the questions can be in an optimal location style, such as, "Where is the best location for an urban greenway in my community?" These questions can occur at the regional scale, such as "How have the land use patterns changed in the past 25 years, where have they changed, and why?" and at the global scale, such as "What is the pattern of earthquake depth and magnitude in close proximity to plate boundaries? What is the relationship between birth rate and life expectancy, by country, and what is reason for the patterns that I see?"
As we begin examining the data, I find that it is best if the students give a hypothesis. In one of the examples above, I ask students to state what they hypothesize the pattern of global earthquake magnitude related to the major types of plate boundaries to be, and then do the same thing with global earthquake depth. I also ask them to state why they stated their hypothesis that way. What components of past geographic knowledge are they bringing to bear on their hypothesis, or are they truly "in the dark" about this specific type of spatial relationship without prior knowledge?
With today's web-based GIS tools, students can visualize and analyze real-world phenomena in 2D and 3D, and increasingly in real time. They can collect their own data with smartphone apps with their own equipment and then map and analyze that data. They can communicate their results with web mapping tools such as multimedia story maps and share these maps with others. I find that students think holistically about problem solving through the use of these tools. Through these web based GIS investigations, students also must deal with issues such as data quality, data volume, scale, location privacy, crowdsourcing, and the proper use and citation of web images and data. They must also think about which maps that they should share with the public, which maps they should share with a smaller group such as their own research colleagues or classmates, and which maps they should not share at all.
Consider this example that I have taught with many times from secondary school to university level. After examining the types of crops grown in the USA, and after conducting research on the type of climate and the amount of precipitation that is required for cotton, students hypothesize about where cotton will be grown. They then observe the pattern of cotton production on an interactive web map. They note that their hypothesis was confirmed, at least in part: Cotton exhibits a southerly pattern: Thus, latitude does matter. But although some of these southerly areas receive enough precipitation, others are semiarid. How can cotton be grown in these semiarid regions? After further investigation, students discover that irrigation from river diversion makes cotton production possible in southern Arizona and irrigation from deep groundwater extraction makes cotton production possible in west Texas. Students then begin to ask, "Should cotton be grown in these semiarid areas? Is this the best use of natural resources?" At this point, the students, not me, are driving the inquiry. In the best spirit of geographic inquiry, student investigations lead to additional questions, and the investigation continues using the web maps as one of the tools of study. Thus, the map layers and the GIS tools are means by which the students investigate the issues. The maps are not used merely to find "where" but help students understand the "whys of where." And they help move students forward in their thinking from "what are past and current patterns" on to "what would be the best plan in the future for this community, region, country, or global phenomena." Thus they use the tools to envision a better and more sustainable future.
Consider another example below from a GIS-based investigation: Say after observing the map of ecoregions and population density that I created online, that the student's hypothesis is that the savanna regime division is generally characterized by higher population densities in the region of East Africa. Then, students investigate such questions as: "Does the savanna suffer from biodiversity loss to a greater degree than less populous ecoregions? What are other factors that can help explain the pattern of population density in this area? Is it topography, water availability, proximity to roads, agricultural production, or some other reason? If I zoom in to a larger scale, does the population density remain higher in the savanna than other ecoregions at that larger scale? Why or why not? What are the long term implications for the ecoregions in this area? How do these patterns compare to those in other regions, including the region in which I live? How can I use what I have learned to make wiser decisions about land use and ecoregions in the future?"
How have you used hypothesis testing and abductive reasoning in your own teaching or your own research?
This entry was posted in 1st years, 2nd year, 3rd year, BA, BSc, Community projects, Fieldwork, School/College-University, Student-led, Working with stakeholders and tagged abduction, communication, cotton, G.I.S., Geographic Information Systems, GIS, inquiry, local, observation, patterns, population density, reasoning, research, school, smartphones, spatial thinking, trends on February 14, 2017 by the gees network.
Fieldwork: always have a plan B.
by Julie Peacock, University of Leeds
I updated the risk assessment for a second year field trip to Middlesmoor, Upper Nidderdale, early in the Academic Year, 2015/2016. I noted the comments, 'In the event of extreme weather, the trip will not go ahead.' I've seen and even written this on risk assessments many times, but I'd never needed to act on it.
We planned two, one day field trips with 81 second year students, one in early November followed by one in March. This fieldwork is part of a larger skills module. The students work in groups to plan, then complete a research project focusing on Ecosystem Services. The first field trip, covers key techniques and familiarises students with the site. The second enables students to carry out their projects. In between these trips students work to prepare projects and present proposals to a panel of academic staff who provide feedback.
The second trip was to take place on a Friday. Monday brought a bleak weather forecast. Students were emailed to remind them to bring suitable clothing and asked to review their field plans to ensure they could work efficiently even in poor weather conditions. On the Thursday, the landowner advised postponing because snow was forecast. We thought it was unlikely the weather would be that bad. Crucially, there was nowhere else in the timetable for the fieldtrip, considering availability of 81 students and six staff, not to mention re-booking the labs for student's sample analysis.
I considered the options. What if one of the mini-buses got stuck? Would the students bring suitable kit for the weather? Yet, if we didn't go how could the students complete their projects to meet learning outcomes given timetable inflexibility?
By the time I got into Leeds University at 7am on Friday, both the landowner and local farmer had called to say not to come. Roads were shut and still it snowed. In some ways I was relieved; the decision was made, but what now for our fieldwork?
The campus at the University of Leeds is urban. Although significant work has been done to improve biodiversity and sustainability on campus, including a sustainability garden, it has no open 'wild' space. It is incomparable with Nidderdale! Nevertheless, urban ecosystem services are increasingly important as urban areas continue to expand.
By 7.30am an email had been sent advising students to meet in the department foyer. One lecturer wrote the risk assessment and gained necessary signatures; university estates had granted permission for soil sampling; two large teaching spaces were booked (fortunately, it was reading week); mini buses were cancelled and colleagues who were to meet us at Nidderdale were updated.
At 8am, the planned bus departure time, students were briefed. The trip to Nidderdale was cancelled, but they were to spend the next two to three hours re-planning their work to study ecosystem services on campus. Inevitably, reactions were mixed, some students were glad (given the weather), others understandably disappointed not to be working on well-planned projects.
Students worked in their groups with academic staff mingling to discuss ideas. The VLE was populated with links to the University's Biodiversity Action Plan, maps and useful literature. The field stores made a wide range of equipment available and taught students to use kit they hadn't planned to use previously. Lab technicians made themselves available to talk to students wanting to undertake different analysis.
Changing the assessment brief was probably the hardest part. Students had worked hard on projects and were due to be assessed on a scientific report. Many would have started their literature reviews and methods. It was decided to ask students to review both Upland and Urban ecosystem services, writing up both methods, one where months of planning had taken place and one which had been planned rapidly. Students found this brief hard given the unchanged word count to meet the advertised assessment. However, no alternative seemed ideal.
Field work was successful, despite the dreadful weather, with laying and falling snow, then heavy rain. Staff circulated to provide advice. A statistics expert stationed in the foyer answered questions. Our students demonstrated resilience as they planned new projects. They showed they could work effectively under pressure, transferring learning about planning projects to a new situation. They learned in fieldwork too, Burns' cliché holds that 'the best laid schemes o' mice an' men, gang aft a-gley.'
This last minute change to fieldwork with such a large group of students couldn't have worked without university staff's teamwork and enthusiasm. Students had a valuable learning experience, and we learned too. In fieldwork planning is always key. A contingency plan for extreme weather should occur. Many HEIs have local areas which could be used. Permissions for so-called 'Plan B' fieldwork could be gained, a risk assessment completed and students advised of the contingency plan including its impact on assessments, so if it is implemented it is not a shock. It's useful to have a plan B and for the students to know it exists.
What have you done in similar situations? It would be interesting to hear.
With thanks to the following for making the changes work on the day: Karen Bacon, Janet Chapman, Dom Emery, Rachel Gasior, Rachel Homer, Jamie Mullen, Graeme Swindles, Clare Woulds and others who added useful documents to the VLE over subsequent days.
This entry was posted in 2nd year, Curriculum change, Ethics, Fieldwork and tagged assessment, biodiversity, coursework, emotions, enthusiam, extreme weather, group work, innovative solutions, kit, lab techniques, learning experience, learning outcome, local, Middlesmoor, reactions, resilience, risk assessment, skills module, snow, statistics, sustainability, timetable, transferable skills, VLE on June 30, 2016 by the gees network.
What's going on? Secondary school teachers' response to the geography national curriculum
By Mary Biddulph (University of Nottingham), Senior Vice-President of the Geographical Association.
This contribution to the GEES blog concerns the teaching and learning of geography in schools. It is based on a conference session hosted by HERG at the 2015 RGS Annual Conference entitled: 'The impacts of recent policy changes to the school geography curriculum: policy, processes and subject knowledge'. To put this session into context, curriculum change is now well-underway in schools in England: since 2014 a new national curriculum has been introduced in primary and secondary schools and currently secondary school geography departments are now considering which of the reformed GCSE and A levels specifications to teach from 2016.
Curriculum change inevitably generates debate, and the recent changes have certainly caused the geography education community to ask the question: What kind of geography(ies) should be taught to young people? The 'what' of geographical learning came under scrutiny following the publication of the 2010 White Paper, 'The Importance of Teaching'. In the White Paper the then coalition government proclaimed that a return to rigour in leaning could only be achieved via a return to the "core of essential knowledge" of subjects. The White Paper made no attempt to define these terms, but political rhetoric at the time left the geography subject community concerned that we were on the cusp of a return to a content heavy, gazetteer-type curriculum which would be dense with facts but strangely short on conceptual discipline. The Department for Education and education Ministers appeared to exert considerable political influence over the curriculum changes, and when finally published the 2014 national curriculum was a significant departure from the concept-led framework of its predecessor. Emphasising locational knowledge, regional study, traditional human and physical themes and making no explicit mention of geographical enquiry, the 2014 curriculum could be said to stress the 'what' of geography: what teachers need to teach, with rather less emphasis on what sense we expect children to make of this.
Conversations with geography teachers reveal that despite curriculum prescription, teachers remain committed to creating curriculum experiences for pupils that are engaging, interesting and enjoyable to learn. Teachers I have talked to in recent months see geography's role in the broader educational endeavour as a moral one as well as an intellectual one. They are clear that learning geography provides structures (using geographical concepts) that allow students carefully and critically to examine important local, national and international themes. Themes such as European migration, climate change, national and international poverty and social inequalities are, they feel, central to teaching geography. They believe that they have a responsibility to raise important cultural, social, ethical and ecological questions with students and that school geography has a role to play in helping young people think about and engage with the world around them.
Some teachers express misgivings about the new level of prescription in part because many have received no subject-specific professional development in the last 5 years. They acknowledge that they feel less than confident to teach 'new' content such as soils, Russia, glaciation and geological timescales and in addition, some are frustrated that making way for new content is at the expense of topics and themes they feel are important and that their students enjoy. An further concern is that accommodating the new content may yet produce a shift in pedagogical approaches, away from more open-ended enquiry-led and discussion based learning to what is sometimes anachronistically labelled 'chalk and talk' (enabled these days by powerpoint!). Some teachers fear that an over-emphasis on content could jeopardise more critical pedagogies.
The curriculum changes described above are of some significance for colleagues in higher education. For most students entering higher education, the foundations of their geographical learning and their enthusiasm for the subject are laid down by their school experiences. However, if we accept that the role of school education is not just to serve as a preparation ground for a university degree, there is a deeper significance for higher education. It could be argued that providing all young people with an intellectual framework to help them make sense of super-complex world issues is the hall mark of an effective education – at any level. For geography to fulfil its educational potential, this implies the need for a closer relationship between school and university geography so that the ever-changing 'what and the how' of the discipline can serve to support more meaningful and better informed curriculum change in schools.
This entry was posted in Curriculum change, School/College-University and tagged climate change, critical pedagogies, emotion, enquiry-led, ethics, geology, glaciation, inequalities, international, local, migration, national, poverty, professional development, Russia, soils, student debate on September 29, 2015 by the gees network.
Bright Futures
By Cherish Watton (History student, Cambridge)
From the 1st to the 4th September 2015, the Royal Geographical Society ran their annual international conference programme, this year entitled 'Geographies of the Anthropocence'. As part of this, I had the great pleasure of presenting on the Bright Futures a programme, a 2½-day residential held at Holt Hall Environmental and Outdoor Learning Centre in Norfolk. The programme, aimed at high school and college students, focuses on energy education and real-life consultancy opportunities offered by Sheringham Shoal Offshore Wind Farm. This case study was one of five presentations on university engagement with issues of community and sustainability in a session sponsored by the Higher Educational Research and chaired by Rebecca Farnum, PhD researcher at King's College London
The session focused on thought-provoking discussions around how individuals personally react to issues surrounding international research, volunteering and climate change. This was highlighted particularly by Marisa Goulden (University of East Anglia) in her paper on transformational learning and supporting students to be agents of change. Marisa's presentation raised the issue that university staff and students alike are encouraged to emotionally detach themselves whilst undertaking and studying what is frequently depressing work. It is largely expected by academia that individuals 'keep calm and carry on', but this is easier said then done and needs greater consideration. Marisa highlighted the benefits of supporting individuals to enable them to come to terms with their experiences, and utilise these productively, yet sensitively, to bring about a change in values.
The discussion called to my mind a particular moment on the Bright Futures programme where personal responses to climate change are particularly evident amongst the high school participants. Using the "Best Foot Forward" carbon footprinting cards, they are asked a series of questions regarding their lifestyles (on transport, consumption, and the like). Each response is given a score and students tally up their numbers to get a total that links to the number of 'Earths' that would be required if everyone lived as they do. Most Norfolk high school and college students learn they use the equivalent of 2 or 3 Earths. At this point, we see visible signs of consternation, regret, confusion, and reflection, as students' impact on the Earth is brought home in a pertinent way. After being given time for reflection, we encourage students to look at what small actions they could take to improve matters, starting with their individual lifestyles and then considering actions within their homes and schools. Recognising and acting on this reality is one of the first activities on the programme, inspiring change from personal responsibility and conviction. As Marisa emphasised, we can not shy away from discomfort: sometimes this is what is needed in order to change. It should, however, be carefully facilitated.
The session also raised questions about scaling up. How do the successful case studies in one or two departments begin to transform the entirety of the university system? A presentation from Kate Baker (King's College London) on the Intrepid Explorers model demonstrated the significant impact of a student-run group in sharing learning and experiences from field research over a variety of disciplines. Oriel Kenny and Su Robinson (Leeds Beckett University) highlighted the diverse opportunities offered to university students to participate in volunteering as part of their university experience, particularly in the Politics and Applied Global Ethics programme that requires volunteering as part of its degree. The key message from presenters, as introduced by keynote Professor Tim O'Riordan (University of East Anglia), was the need for collaboration above all. The projects presented are united by their multi-disciplinary approach to bringing together groups and individuals. Bright Futures' multi-tiered mentoring makes use of the connections between high school students from both Norfolk and Norway, university students from the University of East Anglia, Marshall Scholar postgraduate and PhD students, and local businesses and charities. Mentoring takes place at every level, enabling everybody to learn with, and from, each other in a supportive and inspiring environment.
All of these programmes develop the universal skills and confidences needed to tackle sustainability – teamwork, communication, leadership and collaboration. At the heart of these experiences is the aim of, and need for, equipping the next generation to adapt and be creative. This is central to the Bright Futures programme, whether it is via team building activities in the shape of cheerleading rock, paper, scissors or young people presenting on the impacts of climate change and how they want to reduce energy usage back in their schools. Young people are eager to seize these opportunities. It is the responsibility of the university and ourselves to provide and link up opportunities in the emerging green economy so young people feel equipped to deal with the challenges of tomorrow. In the words of a recent participant: "I think that this is a valuable experience that should be offered to more pupils; when we become adults sustainability will be our problem, and it's important that we have the chance to understand it more now."
To read a dialogue between Rebecca Farnum and Cherish Watton on the thinking behind Bright Futures, please visit https://beyond2015.acu.ac.uk/submissions/view?id=123
To view the Prezi presentation given in the session, please go to https://prezi.com/flmwmjsgvicq/bright-futures-presentation-september-2015/
For more information about the Bright Futures programme, visit their website at http://brightfuturesnorfolk.wordpress.com/
Cherish Watton
Cherish Watton is currently in her second year studying History at Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge. Before studying, Cherish set up in a business, working as an eco-consultant and social entrepreneur for Cherish Watton Enterprises in Norfolk. Her work has focused on running environmental residentials, evaluating programmes and developing opportunities for young people to seize the potential of the Green Economy based upon their interests, passions and experiences with environmental issues at school and college. Cherish also founded and runs http://www.womenslandarmy.co.uk, a website on the work of the British Women's Land Army during World War One and Two. Cherish is developing the website so it becomes the national online hub for information on the Land Girls and Lumber Jills – sharing original documents, magazines, photos and videos.
This entry was posted in School/College-University, Sustainability, Working with stakeholders and tagged behaviour change, career devlopment, climate change, college, consultancy, emotions, energy, international, local, mentoring, reflections, residential, RGS conference, school, student-led, sustainability, team work, third sector on September 8, 2015 by the gees network.
A tale of two cities: urban regeneration in Reading and Luton.
By Alina Congreve (University of Hertfordshire)
When I started work at Reading University, I took over the urban regeneration module that urgently needed refreshing. Coursework involved students writing essays to answer questions such as 'Shall we build the channel tunnel rail link?'. The course was run twice with quite small numbers, in one term for third-year undergraduate students and in the other for MSc students. Most of the students who selected the option did so because it had a reputation for being easy. I took a decisions to run the module once and run it well, combining the third-year and MSc groups.
In trying to design new, engaging coursework I set up a meeting with the head of regeneration at the Borough Council. After a very shaky start to our meeting he mentioned two projects that he was thinking of paying commercial consultants to do with a budget of about £30,000. I offered to do them both for £7,000 with my students. The projects involved students working in two low-income neighbourhoods, collecting information and ideas from local residents to support neighbourhood plans. Once someone is paying you for work you have to do it, so I used the money to pay a regeneration practitioner to mentor the students. They were expected to complete stages of work by set milestones and the regeneration practitioner met with them several times as they reported back on progress.
Community facilities at Amersham Road
The students worked in teams and when in the community they were always in groups of two or more. Within their teams they had their own specific brief, to minimize the risk of a student free riding on others efforts. Students liked the combination of team-work and individual effort being rewarded. They learnt a lot about young people in those neighbourhoods who had very different experiences from them, including those who had turned down training and apprenticeship because their family needed them to earn money. They ran focus groups, talking to older people who travelled into the city centre to get groceries because they were intimidated at their local shopping parade with fears about their safety.
The students identified the way youth provision did not cater for 8-12 year olds, leading to them being drawn into trouble at an early age. They also provided innovative solutions and came up with fresh ideas to draw in private sector support. They approached large Reading based employers based in the town and suggested schemes where staff working in IT could volunteer one day a month to help older residents improve their skills. They also suggested improved timings to local bus services so residents were not so cut off from employment. These were were taken up by the bus operator. Students presented their findings at the end of the module to the Council and community representatives.
Starting at Hertfordshire with a new MSc planning course, only a small number of students signed up to the regeneration optional module. Concerned the group was too small for the students to have a good learning experience, I approached a colleague who ran the Tourism and Hospitality Management MSc After some discussion she allowed the regeneration module as an option on her programme. It took time to build up contacts and networks that I had developed at Reading. Hatfield has been subject to an excessive number of student projects that have added little value to the problems of the town. Looking a bit further afield I heard about the work of Luton Culture, a third sector organization that runs that arts, museums and community facilities. In the town centre an arts venue, the library theatre, had been almost unused for 18 months. There were ambitious plans to re-open the venue with a lively programme of theatre, comedy and music. There were a number of ideas Luton Culture staff would like to explore, but were stretched for time. These included: creating links between users of the library and the theatre; introducing a loyalty card; working with schools; and creating a volunteering programme for young people. The students carried out desk research and contacted other arts venues by phone and email. Whilst half the lecture content was delivered by a regeneration practitioner and half by me, there was no budget this time for practitioner mentoring. With the smaller group (15 students) this was feasible but it would be much more challenging with two or three times that number.
A key feature to the success of both projects was the commitment and support of staff at Reading Borough Council and Luton Culture. They were able to provide information, contacts and other practical support, such as local venues for meetings, that meant the students could get off to a quick start. They also provided an enthusiastic audience for the students work, ensuring that their first experience of delivering work to a client was a positive one.
So, was is the benefit for the University? Or to put it another way, how can you persuade your head of department you should be spending time on this? A key hook is positive local press coverage. In many university towns there is a lot of negative publicity about students, often focused on rowdy behavior and untidy front gardens. To have a story in the local media about students making a positive contribution to the town can start to change that. Some universities have community awards for students who make a significant contribution to the community, and winning or being shortlisted for awards is good for the department. Professional bodies are keen for both staff and students to be engaged with real world problems and this type of project can provide evidence of that engagement. From a personal point of view it can also help your own career development, engaging with senior figures in local government and giving interviews to the media.
So what are the challenges? Surprisingly, few come from the students. A few students are initially skeptical, but this can be largely overcome if you open the module in the right way. This is going to be challenging but it is going to be interesting and it will look great on your CV. One challenge is time pressure, and while English universities have professional staff whose role includes engagement or work placements, the scope varies widely. You will get very different levels of practical assistance depending on where you are. Local authority budget cuts have put pressure on funds and getting even small amounts of money to pay for additional support is more challenging than five years ago. The biggest barrier I currently face is the university ethics procedures. This can take 6-8 weeks for even a simple questionnaire or focus group with residents to be approved. As a result I have had to adapt so that the projects are carried out without the need for ethics approval. We still have quite a bit to learn in making these kind of projects a regular part of students learning rather than the exception.
This entry was posted in 3rd year, Authentic assessment, BA, BSc, Community projects, MSc, Working with stakeholders and tagged arts, audience, bus, career devlopment, community, community awards, council, coursework, desk research, essays, ethical review, focus groups, fresh ideas, funds, head of department, individual work, innovative solutions, lecture, local, local press, museums, practitioner mentors, presentations, private sector, professional bodies, shopping, small numbers, team work, third sector, time pressure, urban regeneration, youth provision on August 28, 2015 by the gees network.


MUSICultures (formerly the Canadian Journal for Traditional Music / La Revue de musique folklorique canadienne, 1996-2009; formerly the Canadian Folk Music Journal 1988-1996) is the scholarly journal of The Canadian Society for Traditional Music / La Société canadienne pour les traditions musicales. It is a refereed journal that is published twice a year under the auspices of the Society. The Journal publishes original articles in English and French on a wide range of topics in ethnomusicology, traditional music research, and popular music studies. The Journal welcomes articles on music in Canadian contexts as well as music in global and transnational contexts. The Journal also publishes reviews of books, and sound and visual recordings.


But Justice Stephen Breyer, writing for the minority in protest of the 5-4 upending of Brown, gave the country not only a history lesson but also some lasting words to live by — something to get us out of this brown study caused by yesterday's ruling.
While the school districts use various verbal formulations to describe the interest they seek to promote — racial diversity, avoidance of racial isolation, racial integration — they offer no definition of the interest that suggests it differs from racial balance.
His past opinions, before he became the country's chief justice, showed warmer regard for the rights of corporations than for the rights of people. But the depth of his icy disregard for the 1954 Brown decision was stunning.
Breyer warmed to the task. His memorable dissent is not only a good argument but good history.
The compelling interest at issue here … includes an effort to eradicate the remnants, not of general "societal discrimination" [as Roberts's opinion said], but of primary and secondary school segregation; it includes an effort to create school environments that provide better educational opportunities for all children; it includes an effort to help create citizens better prepared to know, to understand, and to work with people of all races and backgrounds, thereby furthering the kind of democratic government our Constitution foresees. If an educational interest that combines these three elements is not "compelling," what is?
[Roberts's opinion for the plurality of the court] pays inadequate attention to this law, to past opinions' rationales, their language, and the contexts in which they arise. As a result, it reverses course and reaches the wrong conclusion. In doing so, it distorts precedent, it misapplies the relevant constitutional principles, it announces legal rules that will obstruct efforts by state and local governments to deal effectively with the growing resegregation of public schools, it threatens to substitute for present calm a disruptive round of race-related litigation, and it undermines Brown's promise of integrated primary and secondary education that local communities have sought to make a reality. This cannot be justified in the name of the Equal Protection Clause.
The historical and factual context in which these cases arise is critical. In Brown, this Court held that the government's segregation of schoolchildren by race violates the Constitution's promise of equal protection. The Court emphasized that "education is perhaps the most important function of state and local governments." 347 U. S., at 493. And it thereby set the Nation on a path toward public school integration.
In dozens of subsequent cases, this Court told school districts previously segregated by law what they must do at a minimum to comply with Brown's constitutional holding. The measures required by those cases often included race-conscious practices, such as mandatory busing and race-based restrictions on voluntary transfers.
The school board plans before us resemble many others adopted in the last 50 years by primary and secondary schools throughout the Nation. All of those plans represent local efforts to bring about the kind of racially integrated education that Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U. S. 483 (1954), long ago promised — efforts that this Court has repeatedly required, permitted, and encouraged local authorities to undertake.
This Court has recognized that the public interests at stake in such cases are "compelling." We have approved of "narrowly tailored" plans that are no less race-conscious than the plans before us. And we have understood that the Constitution permits local communities to adopt desegregation plans even where it does not require them to do so.
Overall these efforts brought about considerable racial integration. More recently, however, progress has stalled.
Between 1968 and 1980, the number of black children attending a school where minority children constituted more than half of the school fell from 77% to 63% in the Nation (from 81% to 57% in the South) but then reversed direction by the year 2000, rising from 63% to 72% in the Nation (from 57% to 69% in the South). Similarly, between 1968 and 1980, the number of black children attending schools that were more than 90% minority fell from 64% to 33% in the Nation (from 78% to 23% in the South), but that too reversed direction, rising by the year 2000 from 33% to 37% in the Nation (from 23% to 31% in the South).
In light of the evident risk of a return to school systems that are in fact (though not in law) resegregated, many school districts have felt a need to maintain or to extend their integration efforts.
The upshot is that myriad school districts operating in myriad circumstances have devised myriad plans, often with race-conscious elements, all for the sake of eradicating earlier school segregation, bringing about integration, or preventing retrogression. Seattle and Louisville are two such districts, and the histories of their present plans set forth typical school integration stories.
Roberts's opinion danced around not only the topic of integration but also the word itself. He preferred to look with disdain upon what he called "racial balancing," that buzz phrase used to good effect by foes of integration.
The principal interest advanced in these cases to justify the use of race-based criteria goes by various names. Sometimes a court refers to it as an interest in achieving racial "diversity." Other times a court, like the plurality here, refers to it as an interest in racial "balancing." I have used more general terms to signify that interest, describing it, for example, as an interest in promoting or preserving greater racial "integration" of public schools. By this term, I mean the school districts' interest in eliminating school-by-school racial isolation and increasing the degree to which racial mixture characterizes each of the district's schools and each individual student's public school experience.
Regardless of its name, however, the interest at stake possesses three essential elements.
Second, there is an educational element: an interest in overcoming the adverse educational effects produced by and associated with highly segregated schools.
Third, there is a democratic element: an interest in producing an educational environment that reflects the "pluralistic society" in which our children will live. … It is an interest in helping our children learn to work and play together with children of different racial backgrounds. It is an interest in teaching children to engage in the kind of cooperation among Americans of all races that is necessary to make a land of three hundred million people one Nation.