I haven't been posting to the blog as often as I want to lately. I just came back from a fairly long vacation in India, and over the last month, I have been trying to catch up on stuff, both at home and at work. The good news is that I am almost caught up, so I should return to my normal posting frequency shortly - as long as I have something interesting to write about, that is.
At work, we are setting up Drupal as our internal CMS. This is a bit of a departure from our normal practice, since Drupal is written in PHP, and we are predominantly a Java shop. Personally, I would probably have gone with Alfresco or dotCMS, but I don't know much about either CMS, or much about CMSs in general, so my preference is based solely on the fact that they are written in Java and open-source, so customizing them to interface with other existing (Java) components would be easier.
However, having now spent about a week futzing with Drupal, I am quite impressed with its pragmatic design - there are many good ideas in there that a Java web developer could use. Many thanks to John K VanDyck for writing Pro Drupal Development - this helped me immensely in getting up to speed quickly. Regarding interfacing to existing Java components, its not as huge a deal as I thought it would be either. From my point of view, Drupal (or any other CMS for that matter) is mainly a container of content, and interfacing with it would be done through a narrow (code wise) interface point.
The particular case I was looking at was to allow Drupal to publish/depublish stories to an external data store, from where it would be read by one or more Java application(s). The solution I came up with was to have Drupal send an XML-RPC message to a Java middleware server component on publish or depublish, which would do what is needed to write it out to the external data store. I describe the Drupal side of the interface here.
As mentioned, I have been using Drupal for about a week, so the first step was to install it. On my CentOS desktop at work, I installed (using yum) PHP, PHP-MySQL and re-installed MySQL (since the PHP-MySQL RPM did not seem to play well with the already installed MySQL RPMs from MySQL. I also set up Lighttpd as my webserver, then copied the Drupal tarball into my document root. On my Mac OS X notebook, I had to remove MySQL and install MAMP, which bundles Apache, MySQL and PHP, then install the Drupal tarball into my Document root.
From there, all you have to do is to create your Drupal database and user and then navigate to http://localhost/install.php on your browser. The installation process will walk you through a few pages, and you are all set up.
Extension to Drupal are made via Modules. Drupal modules are typically written by super-experienced Drupal/PHP coders, but this one is really short and simple. I looked around a bit on the Internet for something similar, but perhaps my use case is too trivial for someone to build and contribute a module for. All it does is define an Advanced Action which is triggered on a Node insert, update or delete, along with its form for configuration. All this stuff is adapted from Chapters 3 and 19 of the Pro Drupal Development book.
The actual code is in dxi.module. I initially started with the send_request() and dxi_nodeapi() methods. This would have the effect of being called on every node event. So in the dxi_nodeapi() method, I was checking and firing the send_request() call only when the operation was "insert", "update" and "delete". This is really all that is needed to get my interface up and running.
However, using an Advanced Action instead allows you to let the user choose whether the event should be fired in the future on different events, and to set the URL for the remote XML-RPC server from the Administrator GUI instead of having to hardcode it into the code. So I ended up using the Advanced Action approach. Actions in the dxi module are defined in dxi_action_info() - there is only one, dxi_call_action(). Because it is an Advanced (Configurable) action, it needs a configuration form, which is defined by dxi_call_action_form(), the form validation is defined in dxi_call_action_validate() and the populated form values are returned from dxi_call_action_submit().
Both approaches call the send_request() method, which does the actual XML-RPC call to the remote server. The code for the entire module is shown below, with the first (hook_nodeapi) approach commented out for posterity/just in case.
* fails for any reason.
* @param $server_url - the URL of the remote server.
* @param $op - the name of the operation to invoke.
* @param $node - the reference to the node.
* @return 0 or -1.
drupal_set_message(t('Operation publish_' . $op . '(' . $node->nid .
* for the desired operations.
* @deprecated - use the dxi_call_action approach instead.
* @param &$node - the node object.
* @param $op - the operation.
* @param $a3 - optional argument, set to NULL.
* @param $a4 - optional argument, set to NULL.
* @return the $info object.
* @param $object - the node object.
* @param $context - the context object.
* for the configuration form for this action.
* @param $context - the context.
* @return the $form object.
* for the form inputs. This is a NO-OP here.
* @param $form - the form.
* values of the form.
* @param $form_state - the form state.
* @return the map of names and values of form fields.
Install the Module: Go to Administer :: Site building :: Modules and you should see the dxi module at the bottom of the page. Click the Enabled checkbox and save the configuration.
Add the Action: Go to Administer :: Site configuration :: Actions to see a list of Actions currently available to Drupal. At the bottom is a dropdown list of Advanced Actions. Choose the one that says "Send XML-RPC request" and click the Create button. This will bring up the configuration screen for this action. Set the URL for the XML-RPC server and click Save. You will see the action now associated with node Action type.
Associate the Action with the Trigger: Go to Administer :: Site building :: Triggers. Choose the Content tab. You will see a list of trigger types for Nodes. Add the new action to each of "After saving a new post", "After saving an updated post" and "After deleting a post" triggers.
If you don't have a server available (I don't yet), then just comment out lines 17-30 of dxi.module (the block which has the XML-RPC call and the error handling), then create/update/delete a story. After each step, take a look at the log entries generated - navigate to Administer :: Reports :: Recent log entries and look for the log messages with the type "dxi" - you should see entries with "Sending request..." which should convince you that the stuff is working.
Came up in the number 1 slot on Google for "Posting with xml-rpc using Drupal"
I am at home working on the Popup.
Cool, thanks for the info! I did a search before I wrote this post, and it looks like no one has considered (or at least written about) using Drupal in this way, so I guess it fills a niche that bumps it to the top spot on Google.
i like your blog very much :-) actually i also want to do some thing like that , so can you elaborate it more for me ?
Thanks Samaddar. To answer your question, though, there is not much to elaborate, this is a simple module which hooks into Drupal's event framework - so when a node is saved or published for example, all modules that implement hook_nodeapi() or modules that implement hook_action_info() AND are configured to trigger on certain actions are invoked. I found the Pro Drupal book very useful when building this, it may be helpful for you too.


Rino's Kitchen & Ale House is Chef Rino Bortolin and his wife Anastasia Adam's culinary home away from home. This historic 100 year old house is a quaint, comfortable setting to enjoy Rino's freshly prepared menu. We proudly offer a full range of locally sourced menu items, craft ales and wines. Stop by for a bite to eat or simply a drink on our back garden patio. Reservations are recommended for peak hours.


text:
Q: NSInvalidArgumentException Unacceptable type of value for attribute: property; desired type = NSString; given type = NSNull; value =  Problem: when assigning the null value to a property it gives error: desired type = NSString; given type =null.
Recieving this value from  NSDictionary *logBookClass = [json objectForKey:LOG_BOOK]; And when the value is null the app crashes giving following error:

Terminating app due to uncaught exception
'NSInvalidArgumentException', reason: 'Unacceptable type of value for
attribute: property = "logbook_name"; desired type = NSString; given
type = NSNull; value = .'

Following code is used:
LogBook *lBook = [NSEntityDescription
                      insertNewObjectForEntityForName:LOG_BOOK
                      inManagedObjectContext:context];
    lBook.logbook_id = [NSNumber numberWithInt:[[logBookClass objectForKey:LOGBOOK_ID] intValue]];
    lBook.logbook_name = [logBookClass objectForKey:LOGBOOK_NAME];

Following is the callstack
Terminating app due to uncaught exception 'NSInvalidArgumentException', reason: 'Unacceptable type of value for attribute: property = >"logbook_name"; desired type = NSString; given type = NSNull; value = <null>.'
 *** First throw call stack:
 (
    0   CoreFoundation                      0x00007fff20406d44 __exceptionPreprocess + 242
    1   libobjc.A.dylib                     0x00007fff201a4a65 objc_exception_throw + 48
    2   CoreData                            0x00007fff25bd52a6 _PFManagedObject_coerceValueForKeyWithDescription + 2148
    3   CoreData                            0x00007fff25bdcbc8 _sharedIMPL_setvfk_core + 178
    4   Npalm                               0x000000010fa822c7 -[NpLoginViewController addData:] + 2583
    5   Npalm                               0x000000010fa8182b __50-[NpLoginViewController sendAuthenticateRequest::]_block_invoke + 331
    6   CFNetwork                           0x00007fff23e39a92 CFNetwork + 31378
    7   CFNetwork                           0x00007fff23e55118 _CFHTTPMessageSetResponseProxyURL + 16297
    8   libdispatch.dylib                   0x000000010fee0816 _dispatch_call_block_and_release + 12
    9   libdispatch.dylib                   0x000000010fee1a5b _dispatch_client_callout + 8
    10  libdispatch.dylib                   0x000000010fef0325 _dispatch_main_queue_drain + 1169
    11  libdispatch.dylib                   0x000000010feefe86 _dispatch_main_queue_callback_4CF + 31
    12  CoreFoundation                      0x00007fff20373261 __CFRUNLOOP_IS_SERVICING_THE_MAIN_DISPATCH_QUEUE__ + 9
    13  CoreFoundation                      0x00007fff2036da56 __CFRunLoopRun + 2761
    14  CoreFoundation                      0x00007fff2036ca90 CFRunLoopRunSpecific + 562
    15  GraphicsServices                    0x00007fff2cb72c8e GSEventRunModal + 139
    16  UIKitCore                           0x00007fff2508e90e -[UIApplication _run] + 928
    17  UIKitCore                           0x00007fff25093569 UIApplicationMain + 101
    18  Npalm                               0x000000010fadd618 main + 104
    19  dyld                                0x000000010fe56f21 start_sim + 10
    20  ???                                 0x000000011b12b51e 0x0 + 4749178142
 )

What should be done to handle null value.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
El Ribeyrolles 1918 (oficial y ) fue un fusil de asalto/automático francés.

Historia y desarrollo
El fusil fue creado por el fabricante de bicicletas Gladiator en 1916. Paul Ribeyrolles, director de la fábrica, dirigió el diseño de otros fusiles y armamento para los franceses y el Ribeyrolles quedó en pruebas durante toda la Primera Guerra Mundial. Finalmente fue descartado en 1921 por el Ejército francés.

Descripción
Disparaba el cartucho experimental 8 x 35, era accionado por retroceso directo y alimentado desde un cargador extraíble de 25 cartuchos, con un alcance efectivo de 400 metros. El cartucho, que según algunos autores fue el primer cartucho intermedio especialmente diseñado, fue creado al recortar el cuello del .351 Winchester Self-Loading y montarle una bala de 8 mm. Otra fuente indica que disparaba un cartucho designado 8 x 32 SR.

Referencias

Enlaces externos

Fusiles de asalto
Fusiles de asalto fabricados en Francia
Armas de la Primera Guerra Mundial
Armamento de Francia
Armas de fuego de 8 mm

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
\section{Introduction}
The emerging field of `multi-messenger astronomy' has, as one of its primary goals, elucidation of the detailed mechanisms that drive the most energetic accelerators in the Universe\citep{meszaros2019multi}. Synthesis of measurements from contemporary gamma-ray, charged cosmic-ray, neutrino, and even gravitational wave observatories allows considerably enhanced refinement of astrophysical models than afforded by one cosmic messenger alone. The Earth's polar ice sheets comprise a large and nearly homogeneous target volume for cosmic neutrinos, which can then be detected via the electromagnetic Cherenkov radiation following an interaction of a neutrino with an ice molecule target. At the highest neutrino energies, detection of coherent radio-frequency emissions is perhaps the most cost-effective approach given the high transparency of cold polar ice to radio waves \citep{barwick_besson_gorham_saltzberg_2005,BESSON2008130,ALLISON2012457,Avva:2014ena,barrella_barwick_saltzberg_2011,hanson_2015,aguilar2022situ}. Site-specific ice dielectric measurements are required to quantify the expected neutrino detection rate at a given location. The recently-initiated Radio Neutrino Observatory in Greenland (RNO-G), located at Summit Station in Greenland, seeks first-ever detection of so-called `cosmogenic' neutrinos \citep{aguilar2021design}. In tandem with the deployment of the first radio receivers in the summer of 2021, an extensive data sample was accumulated to quantify the ice radio-glaciological characteristics at Summit Station. Below, we detail measurements, not only of the bulk ice attenuation length, but also of the characteristics of radio scattering layers embedded within the ice sheet itself, including the polarization dependence of the scattering (`birefringence').

\section{Measurements}
Our 2021 ice calibration campaign had four primary measurement goals, seeking to quantify the following:
\begin{enumerate}
\item Numerically, the attenuation length ($L_\alpha$) determines the neutrino detector effective volume
for in-ice radio receiver arrays at high neutrino energies ($E_\nu\gtrsim $1~EeV).
\item Since a variable refractive index profile results in curved, rather than rectilinear ray trajectories, some neutrino interaction vertices are inaccessible to shallow radio receivers. The refractive index profile with depth therefore determines the degree of `shadowing' for signals arriving from primarily horizontal directions; this effect is most important at the lowest detectable energy neutrinos using the radio technique ($E_\nu \lesssim$100 PeV).
\item Anisotropy in signal velocity with electric-field $\vec{E}$ polarization direction (``birefringence'') leads to signal splitting and rotation of polarization vectors, depending on propagation and polarization directions, with signal arrival time staggers of order 1--10 ns per km of distance propagated.
\item Reflection of radio-frequency signals by internal layers can both complicate signal recognition and also present a potential background channel when above-surface radio-frequency noise propagating into the ice may be reflected upwards towards a shallower receiver (Rx) antenna.
\end{enumerate}

\subsection{Summit Station Radioglaciology}
The Summit Station site is among the best studied glaciological sites in the world. The original drilling and extraction of the 3027-m GRIP and 3053-m GISP-2 cores in the 1990's was followed by comprehensive conductivity and chemistry analysis \citep{taylor1993electrical}. This has been complemented by aerial and ground-based radar sounding \citep{paden2010ice}, providing both extensive layering and ice thickness information in the vicinity of the Summit Dome. Relevant to the measurements outlined below:
\begin{itemize}
    \item[--] As revealed by aerial surveys, the bedrock topography in the vicinity of Summit is observed to be highly faceted \citep{paden2010ice}.
    \item[--] Consistent with expectations for a dome, ice flow is minimal at Summit, with measured velocities of order 1~m/year in the direction of Grid West \citep{hawley2020greenland}.
    \item[--] Ice fabric measurements indicate that the \^{c}-axis (defined as a normal to the englacial ice crystal face) distribution, projected onto the horizontal plane is approximately isotropic in azimuth (i.e., ``uniaxial'', such that the horizontal directional eigenvalues of the fabric orientation ellispoid E1 and E2 are approximately equal, but differ from the vertical eigenvalue E3), consistent with the small ice flow at the top of a dome. The \^{c}-axis alignment with vertical grows approximately linearly with depth\citep{thorsteinsson1997textures}; by a depth of 3~km, the \^{c}-axis distribution is almost entirely verticlly aligned.
\end{itemize}
The last two considerations suggest that the refractive indices for signals propagating vertically, but with polarization pointing in any arbitrary direction in the horizontal plane are approximately uniform ($n_1\approx n_2$, where $n_1$ and $n_2$ are the refractive indices for signals with polarizations pointing parallel and perpendicular, respectively, to the local ice flow direction in the horizontal plane).
This uniaxial behavior contrasts with the biaxial ice fabric at South Pole, for which the three refractive indices differ in magnitude by up to 0.2\% \citep{jordan2019modeling}. Figure \ref{fig:GRIPCOF} \citep{thorsteinsson1997textures} shows the published eigenvalues of the crystal-orientation fabric ellipsoid, illustrating the near equivalence of the E1- (parallel to ice flow) and E2- (perpendicular to ice flow, in the horizontal plane) eigenvalues and the increasing dominance of the E3- eigenvalue (\^z-direction) with depth, as compression effects increasingly rotate the \^{c}-axis towards the vertical.

\begin{figure}
\includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{GRIPcof.pdf}
\caption{Published magnitudes of horizontal (E1 and E2) vs.\ vertical (E3) components of crystal orientation fabric tensor for data \citep{thorsteinsson1997textures}, referenced relative to local ice flow direction, and also direction of vertical, taken from Summit Station, Greenland.}
\label{fig:GRIPCOF}
\end{figure}

\section{Experimental Configuration}
Data were taken using the same experimental configuration as recently reported for the in-ice radio-frequency attenuation length, calculated by normalizing to through-air propagation (Figure \ref{fig:GBS.png}, reproduced from \citep{aguilar2022situ}). Schematically, the set-up is typical of bi-static radar experiments, in which a high-gain transmitter beams signal downwards into the ice and the reflected signals are recorded in a similar, downward-facing high-gain receiver antenna, connected to a low-noise amplifier (LNA), and horizontally displaced by $\sim$244 m. To improve the signal coupling to the surface snow, both transmitter and receiver antenna were buried approximately 2 meters. The signal trigger is provided by a direct above-ice transmitter$\to$above-ice receiver antenna. In our case, we use a sharp ($\sim$1 ns risetime) pulsed output radar signal rather than the $\sim$microsecond-duration fixed frequency tones typically employed for mapping ice thickness and bedrock topography, to directly elucidate sharp internal features without the need for advanced radar signal-processing techniques such as synthetic aperture radar.

Since the return signal strength may depend on the electric field polarization direction, four additional data sets (analyzed for the birefringence measurement) were also taken for which the transmitter and receiver antennas were placed on the surface (again, facing down) and moved to a separation $\sim$10\% of the original separation, with the trigger provided by the through-air `leakage' from the transmitter side lobe to the receiver. Each of those four data sets corresponds to azimuthal antenna polarizations co-rotated in 30 degree increments (designated as $\phi_0$, $\phi_{30}$, $\phi_{60}$, and $\phi_{90}$) from parallel to the local ice flow direction, to perpendicular to the local ice flow direction. Given the axial symmetry of the horn antennas, this angular range should bracket the full range of possible polarization orientations.

\begin{figure}
\includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{SimplifiedGroundBounceFinal.png}
\caption{Set up for data-taking at Summit Station, Greenland during August, 2021. Signal chain is as follows: FID, Inc. FPG6-1PNK Signal Generator at the highest amplitude setting $\to$ Mini-Circuits, Inc. NHP-100 100 MHz high-pass filter $\to$ 10m LMA-400 coaxial cable$\to$ RNO-G log-periodic dipole antenna (LPDA) $\to$ Ice Reflector $\to$ RNO-G LPDA $\to$ 10m LMA-400 coaxial cable $\to$ VHF 145+ high-pass filter $\to$ RNO-G Surface Amplifier ($\sim$59 dB gain) $\to$ NLF 575+ low-pass filter$\to$ Tektronix digital oscilloscope for data recording at 5 GSa/s.}
\label{fig:GBS.png}
\end{figure}

The detailed signal chain is as follows: a FID model FPG6-1PNK signal generator (the same unit described in \citep{Besson:2010ww}) set to maximum signal amplitude is connected to a high-pass filter (Mini-Circuits NHP-100) to inhibit potentially damaging reflections due to poor impedance mismatch outside of the system bandpass.
An additional 10-m of LMR-400 coaxial cable is then connected to an RNO-G Log Periodic Dipole Antenna (LPDA, model Create-clp-5130-2n) directed downwards into the snow. At the receiver end, an identical, downward-pointing LPDA, with the receiver antenna plane oriented parallel to the transmitter (Tx) antenna plane (i.e., co-polarized transmitter and receiver orientation) feeds signal into a +59-dB custom amplifier, and, finally, to a Tektronix digital oscilloscope, for digitization and storage.

\section{Experimental Results}
\subsection{Coherence of in-ice scattering}

In addition to coherent scattering expected from  discrete conducting layers, radar signals may be reflected incoherently by individual atomic scatterers much smaller than the characteristic radar signal wavelength. Rayleigh scattering~\citep{rayleigh1881x} over the entire ice volume formally describes the case in which the signal wavelength is much larger than the size of the scatterer, leading to incoherent $1/r^4$ amplitude dependence with distance, and scattering angles increasing with frequency (and therefore often out of our signal beam).

Detailed first-principles calculations of the volumetric Rayleigh scattering expected for airborne ice-penetrating radar~\citep{davis_moore_1993} concluded that, although surface and layered scattering dominates in the low-elevation regions of Greenland, e.g., volume scattering should dominate airborne radar surveys over the interior plateau (East Antarctica, Dome C, Vostok, and South Pole, e.g.). Calculations of radio-frequency attenuation lengths using the `slopes' of radar data echograms typically exclude consideration of volume contributions~\citep{KennyJoeMac2012,stockham2016radio}, although the validity of this assumption that volume scattering can be neglected has not yet been rigorously demonstrated.\footnote{We note that attenuation length determinations based on bedrock echoes implicitly include any processes (either due to the bulk volume or discrete layers) which scatter signal out of the main beam.}
The incoherent volume contribution is not only of interest glaciologically, but also important for experiments seeking to measure neutrinos above some radio-frequency background using radar echoes \citep{prohira2021radar}; some of that background may be due to intrinsic thermal, black-body radiation, and some may be due to incoherent volume scattering.

\subsubsection{Coherent vs.\ incoherent scattering}

To numerically quantify the relative contributions of coherent (layer scattering, e.g.) vs.\ incoherent (including volume scattering) signals, 20 separate runs, each comprising an average of 10000 individual echo waveform triggers, were taken at Summit Station. For each run, a single data file, consisting of the 10K-averaged waveform, was written to the digital oscilloscope memory. Experimentally, for purely coherent/incoherent signal summation, the phase of the return signal observed at a given time $t$ (measured simply as a voltage at a given time) relative to the data-acquisition trigger time ($t_0$) is identical/random trigger-to-trigger.
For N summed waveform files, coherent scattering amplitudes therefore scale linearly with the number of files co-added ($N_{\mathrm{files}}$) whereas incoherently summed waveform amplitudes vary as $\sqrt{N_{\mathrm{files}}}$; the latter corresponds to the expectations for summing thermal noise. Similarly,
averaging waveforms for N runs will not change the amplitude of a coherent signal, while the rms for incoherent signals will decrease by a factor $\frac{1}{\sqrt{N_{\mathrm{files}}}}$. This is demonstrated by the fits in Figure \ref{fig:summed_waveforms}, comparing the averaged waveforms for the two specified (pre-trigger `control' incoherent and immediately post-trigger `control' coherent) time intervals.
\begin{figure}
\includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{figures/coherence_waveforms.png}
\caption{Comparison of the averages from 10,000 waveforms ($N_{\rm files}=1$; blue) vs. 200,000 waveforms ($N_{\rm files}=20$; orange) inside a time window dominated by coherent waveform summation (top) and one dominated by incoherent noise (bottom).}
\label{fig:summed_waveforms}
\end{figure}
This statistical contrast between a coherent vs. incoherent average allows us to quantify the relative contribution of coherent layer scattering to the return echoes for our data sample.

\begin{figure}
\centering
\includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{figures/coherence_fraction.png}
\caption{Top: Variation in the root mean square voltage ($\sigma_V(N_{\mathrm{files}}$)) of the sum of the waveforms from N files of 10000 triggers each, with fits to a linear (red) or square root (green) dependence overlaid. Green shows the result for pure, incoherent noise, red for a time window where the amplifier was saturated and recorded identical voltages event-to-event. Scatter in the green points shows the variation obtained by shuffling the order by which runs are added to the average, to ensure no time-dependent bias in the result. Bottom: Estimated (pre-corrections; see below) relative contribution of coherent scattering to the return signal as a function of signal travel time. The green and red shaded areas mark the time window used for the plot above. For reference, the logarithm of the return power of the return signal is overlaid in orange.}
\label{fig:fCohInc}
\end{figure}

During data-taking, the digital oscilloscope recorded approximately 50 microseconds of data, including 4.5 microseconds prior to the event trigger, and approximately 10 microseconds beyond the deepest observed echo, corresponding to the bedrock at a depth of $\approx$3 km.
To apply the approach outlined above to the full waveform capture, we separate our observed echograms into four time regimes. For t $< 0~\mu$s, i.e.\ before the first signals from the transmitting antenna arrive prior to the t$\approx$0 trigger signal, data are dominated by noise from the environment, which can serve as a control region for entirely incoherent signals. Some of the radio signal broadcast from the downwards-facing transmitter antenna leaks sideways and, via a through-air route, is strong enough to saturate the nearby receiver antenna over the time interval 0 $\mu$s < t $\lesssim$ 5 $\mu$s. Over this time interval, recorded Rx voltages are dominated by the ringdown of the saturated amplifier, which are identical trigger-to-trigger, and can therefore be used as a control coherent region. This is followed by return signals from any reflectors inside the ice (either coherent or incoherent), until the noise floor is reached at $t_{\mathrm{echo}}\sim$20$\mu$s.

We measure the relative contribution of coherent scattering $f_{c}$ to the total signal by calculating the root mean square $\sigma_V (N_{\mathrm{files}})$ of the sum of the waveforms for N files, which is shown for the two control regions in Figure \ref{fig:fCohInc}.
We now solve for the coherence fraction at an echo time $f_c(t_{\mathrm{echo}})$ by fitting a function of the form
 \begin{equation}
     f(N) = f_{c}(t_{\mathrm{echo}}) \cdot \frac{N}{20} + (1 - f_c(t_{\mathrm{echo}})) \cdot \sqrt{\frac{N}{20}}
 \end{equation}
to the $\sigma_V (N_{\mathrm{files}})$ distribution, normalized to $\sigma_V (20) = 1$, in slices of echo time $t_{\mathrm{echo}}$, to extract the relative coherence fraction $f_c$ for that echo time slice. For one of our transmitter/receiver polarization orientations, the initial result of this exercise is shown in Figure \ref{fig:fCohInc}, bottom. Our experimental data indicate completely coherent scattering for the first 15 microseconds, after which signal observed amplitudes degrade and become comparable to the $t<0$ incoherent control region, albeit wth a slight positive offset.

\subsubsection{Cross-checks}
We have performed several cross-checks of the result presented above, as follows:

\begin{enumerate}
    \item Data-driven, vs. parameterized fitting procedure: In addition to fitting our data as described above, we can also perform a bin-by-bin $\chi^2$ fit to the $\sigma_V(N_{\mathrm{files}})$ distributions, for a given bin of echo return time. In this case, we use our `control' incoherent vs. coherent histograms (Figure \ref{fig:fCohInc}, top) as inputs, and, for an arbitrary time slice, directly fit to the linear sum of the two histograms that gives the best match to the observed $\sigma_V(N_{\mathrm{files}})$ distribution for a non-control echo time bin. This procedure is observed to give essentially identical results to the parametric fitting approach outlined above.
    \item Dependence on number of sub-samples used for fitting. Rather than fitting our data using 20 data points (one per file), we can combine data samples pairwise and refit to 10 points of 20K events per point. As expected, this gives consistent results - the smaller number of data points is compensated by the smaller scatter point-to-point.
    \item Dependence on return echo binning. We have verified that binning our results in one microsecond echo return bins vs.\ 250 nanosecond echo return bins yields consistent results.
    \item To allow for the possibility that the low-noise amplifier gain may slightly change over time, or that a data file may have been contaminated by background triggers, we repeated the fitting procedure by shuffling (i.e., randomizing) the order by which each of the 20 files were added to the average. This resulted in no change in our final coherence plot.
    \item Check of amplitude independence of $f_C\equiv 1$. We have verified that our procedure returns complete coherence, independent of amplitude, by inputting the same 10K data file 20 times to our fitting algorithms and recovering 100\% coherence over the entire duration of the echogram, as expected.
    \item We have extracted the fractional coherence using a phase-variation technique for which we measure the rms spread $\delta_{\mathrm{V}}$ between the measured voltages, for a given time bin, run-to-run; we use the Voltage recorded at a given time and a given trace as a proxy for the phase of the signal. As outlined previously, in the case of complete coherence, the measured phase/voltage at a given time should be identical run-to-run; in the case of incomplete coherence, the measured phase/voltage at a given time should vary randomly. To map the true $\delta_{\mathrm{Phase,true}}$ to our observed $\delta_{\mathrm{Phase,measured}}$ distribution, we use a toy Monte Carlo, which allows us to vary the relative input fractions of incoherent Gaussian noise and a coherent sinusoid, and determine a correction function $R_C^{\mathrm{true}}(\delta_{\mathrm{Phase,measured}})$. (We have verified that any arbitrary coherent function which has the same simulated voltage for each time bin in the simulated data file, other than a sinusoid, gives identical results.) We find fair consistency between our results for four different data sets, corresponding to data collected at the four different azimuthal polarization orientations.

\end{enumerate}

In principle, the 15 microsecond time interval preceding the bedrock echo can have contributions from both volume scattering and also thermal noise. To distinguish these two, we note that: a) the expected inverse quartic dependence of volume scattering with distance would imply a depth-variable contribution varying by approximately an order of magnitude over this echo interval, inconsistent with our data, which shows a relatively flat dependence on echo time, b) A direct comparison of data taken while the transmitter was off compared to data taken while the transmitter was on shows approximately identical rms voltages over this interval, as well (Figure \ref{fig:TxOnvTxOff}).
Performing an absolute calculation of the expected level of thermal noise, from $P_{\rm thermal}=k_BTB$ (here, $k_B$ is Boltzmann's constant, T is the ambient temperature in Kelvin, taken to be 250 K and B the bandwidth of our system, taken to be 400 MHz) also yields an expectation for a thermal noise contribution within approximately 25\% of observation.
\begin{figure}
    \centering
    \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{TxOnvTxOff.pdf}
    \caption{Comparison of traces (10K trigger averages) recorded for transmitter off (black) vs. transmitter on (red); we qualitatively note approximate consistency of the rms voltages in the 20$\to$35 microsecond time interval, as well as prior to the event trigger, at negative times.}
    \label{fig:TxOnvTxOff}
\end{figure}

\subsubsection{Corrections}
Our calculation of the fractional coherence assumes a linear interpolation between the zero-coherence and the full-coherence control samples. I.e., although we have verified that we measure $f_c\equiv 1$ for a completely coherent data sample, and $f_c\equiv 0$ for a completely incoherent data sample, it is not necessarily the case that 50\% coherence will yield $f_c=0.5$.
Using the same toy Monte Carlo as described above, we can similarly determine a correction function, that we can apply to the extracted $f_c(\sigma_V(\rm{N}_{files}))$ distribution shown in Figure \ref{fig:fCohInc}. Figure \ref{fig:fCohA}, left shows the mapping from an input $f_c$ value in our simulation to a measured value. After applying a correction based on that mapping, we obtain the results presented in Figure \ref{fig:fCohA}. Qualitatively, we obtain $f_c$ values similar to Figure \ref{fig:fCohInc}; the primary difference is that the corrected peak bedrock coherence is reduced by approximately 50\%. For echo times up to 15 microseconds, we verify nearly complete coherence in the echo returns.

Alternatively, rather than extracting the coherence using the rms of the linear sum of the coherent and incoherent voltage components in our Monte Carlo simulation, we can also consider a quadrature voltage sum as $\sigma_V(\rm{N}_{files})=\sqrt{\sigma^2_{V,coherent}+\sigma^2_{V,incoherent}}$. This leads to a linear dependence of measured $f_c$ value to input $f_c$ value in our simulation, and, ultimately, the same measured coherence fraction, as a function of time.

\begin{figure}
\centering
\includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{figures/bias_and_coherence.png}
\caption{Left: Generated coherence ($f_c$) vs. measured coherence, as obtained from Monte Carlo simulations. Right: Coherence fraction $f_c$, after applying toy Monte Carlo-based corrections, as described in text to coherence extracted using data-driven fit, without constraining relative incoherent/coherent fractions to be bounded by (0,1). Overlaid are results extracted using bin-by-bin phase coherence, from four data samples (taken with varying horizontal polarization angles referenced relative to the local ice flow direction, as indicated in the legend), as well as after applying a correction to the $f_c$ value extracted using the procedure described above, to obtain Figure \ref{fig:fCohInc}. We note some bins where the extracted coherence fraction either exceeds 1 or is less than zero. We interpret the scatter about those physical limits as indicative of the systematic errors inherent in our procedure.}
\label{fig:fCohA}
\end{figure}

Our procedure indicates complete coherence ($f_c\equiv 1$, after averaging 10K triggers per file) over the echo return interval for which our measured signals significantly exceed the irreducible noise contribution, corresponding to return times less than 15 microseconds.

Three remarks are important here:
\begin{itemize}
\item $\bullet$ A higher-power transmitter would likely have greater depth reach in probing coherence and be capable of extending the coherence regime beyond 15 microseconds, or yield a larger measured bedrock coherence, e.g. The results presented herein therefore can be interpreted as a lower limit on the coherence fraction.
\item $\bullet$ Our results are specific for our data averaging, as well. We cannot exclude the possibility that volume scattering significantly contributes to the time interval over which we measure complete coherence (t$<$15 $\mu$s), since that component has already been reduced by a factor of 100 owing to the 10K averaging, prior to recording a waveform.
\item $\bullet$ For the bedrock, we stress that our measured coherence is distinct from the intrinsic reflectivity of the bed -- in our data, for example, we observe complete coherence for shallower layers with very small intrinsic reflectivities (discussed later).
\end{itemize}
\subsection{Check of frequency-dependent attenuation length using absolute calculation.}

\begin{figure}
\centerline{\includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{figures/attenuation_length.png}}
\caption{Calculated attenuation length, as a function of frequency, obtained by
Friis calculation of bedrock echo power measured in a receiver Log-Periodic Dipole Antenna (LPDA) relative to the calculated signal power transmitted into the ice sheet by an identical LPDA, at Summit Station, Greenland. The prior results obtained using the in-air normalization are overlaid.}
\label{fig:bryanLatten}
\end{figure}

We now describe an `absolute' attenuation length measurement, based solely on the strength of the observed through-ice, bedrock-reflected signal, combined with our laboratory-derived values for the system transfer function. This provides a partially-independent check on the recently published measurement \citep{aguilar2022situ} derived by normalizing the observed in-ice bedrock reflection to a through-air $Tx\to Rx$ broadcast. Note that one of the primary uncertainties in that prior measurement (the bedrock signal reflectivity $R$) is inherent in this measurement, as well.
As previously outlined \citep{aguilar2022situ}, the `absolute' extraction of the attenuation length can be derived from standard radar expressions.
The Friis Equation \citep{shaw2013radiometry} prescribes the free space wavelength-dependent received power $P_{Rx}$ given the power output from a transmitter $P_{Tx}$, over the frequency band overlapping with the receiver frequency response, for propagation over a distance $d$ through a medium with frequency-dependent average field attenuation length $\langle L_\alpha \rangle$:

\begin{equation}
P_{Rx}(\lambda) = P_{Tx}(\lambda){\cal G_{\rm Tx}}{\cal G_{\rm Rx}}{\cal G_{\rm LNA}}RF \left(\frac{\lambda}{4\pi d}\right)^2 \exp\left(-\frac{2d}{\langle L_\alpha\rangle}\right);
\end{equation}

\noindent here, $F$ is a flux-focusing factor, $R$ the bedrock reflectivity, $\lambda$ the wavelength being broadcast (since the signal is impulsive, we transform into the frequency domain and calculate transmission amplitude in frequency bins), ${\cal{G_{\rm LNA}}}$ the gain of the low noise amplifier, and ${\cal G_{\rm Tx}}$ and ${\cal G_{\rm Rx}}$ refer to the gain of the transmitter and receiver antenna, respectively.

To quantify the bedrock echo signal power, we use the same power integration window (0.5~microseconds) used in the companion analysis \citep{aguilar2022situ}. The numerical values for the quantities needed to extract the attenuation length are similarly taken from the companion paper; the primary difference is that the gain characteristics of the amplifiers and losses in cables and connectors must be explicitly inserted as multiplicative corrections to the value of $P_{Tx}$ input to the equations above, whereas in the previous measurement these systematics largely cancel.
Applying the Friis equation to the frequency-binned signal power, we obtain the attenuation length, as a function of frequency, as shown in Figure \ref{fig:bryanLatten}.
As in the companion paper, we use a Monte Carlo method, where each parameter is varied randomly within its uncertainties and the total error estimated from the resulting distribution of attenuation lengths. We draw uncertainties on the bedrock reflectivity $R$, the signal propagation distance $d$, and the focusing factor $F$ from the previous publication. The relative uncertainty on the gain of the low noise amplifier is estimated as $\sigma_{\mathrm{LNA}}=0.1$, based on \citep{aguilar2021design}, and the gain of the antennas, which are identical to those used by the ARIANNA experiment, has an estimated relative gain uncertainty  $\sigma_\mathcal{G}=0.15$ \citep{Barwick:2016mxm}.

We obtain final values are typically within 10\% of results previously reported using the through-air normalization technique \citep{aguilar2022situ}, albeit consistently lower. We consider this level of agreement adequate to justify applying this calculational machinery to a measurement of internal layer reflectivity (as described below), which was one of the original primary calibration science goals.

\subsection{Crosscheck of attenuation measurement using envelope of return power profile}

\begin{figure}
    \centering
    \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{figures/A07_power_trace_pure_vs_macgregor.png}
    \caption{Measured return power of the reflected radio signal overlaid with expectations for attenuation models based on \cite{KennyJoeMac2012}, if impurities are included (purple) or ignored (green).}
    \label{fig:layer_attenuation}
\end{figure}

The measurement shown in the previous section measures the total attenuation through the entire thickness of the ice sheet; the depth dependence must be inferred based on ice core data. This is especially unfortunate, as the bulk attenuation is expected to be dominated by the deepest \SI{\sim 1}{km} of the ice sheet while the most relevant region for radio neutrino detectors is the upper \SI{\sim 1.5}{km}, where the majority of detectable neutrino interactions are expected to occur.

However, we can use the power envelope from in-ice scattering as a cross-check, which should scale with distance as $1/r^2$ for coherent scattering; any additional loss can therefore be attributed to attenuation. Having measured the total two-way attenuation to the bedrock and back, we invoke a model of relative attenuation, as a function of depth to infer the total attenuation to an arbitrary depth within the ice, as detailed in the companion measurement\citep{aguilar2022situ}. Given that conducting impurities should contribute significantly to the total attenuation, and that the impurity concentrations as a function of depth are known, we can therefore use these data to check our attenuation length calculation, expecting that a model that incorporates impurity effects should provide a better match to observation.
This approach is complementary to the ground echo measurement, as it is not affected by the deeper parts of the ice sheets and very little affected by systematic uncertainties in the instrument response.

\cite{MacGregorModel} present a model for the depth dependence of the attenuation length, which takes into account the conductivity variation with temperature of impurities in the ice. Figure \ref{fig:layer_attenuation} shows the measured return power as a function of echo time, calculated by integrating the square of the voltages over a \SI{100}{ns} sliding window. Superimposed is the expectation using the MacGregor {\it et al.} model for attenuation, as a function of depth. The measured return power has been rescaled to match the expectation at the early times, when the amplifier has just recovered from saturation. For comparison, the expected return power if only the effect of ice temperature is considered, but impurities are ignored (referred to as the pure ice model) is also shown. The pure ice model predicts a longer attenuation length (around \SI{1100}{m} at \SI{150}{MHz}) at shallower depths compared to the MacGregor model (around \SI{850}{m} at \SI{150}{MHz}), for which impurities in the ice decrease the attenuation length over the upper \SI{\sim 1500}{m} of the ice sheet.
We observe that the MacGregor model qualitatively matches the shape of the measured return power with depth much better than the pure ice model (other models, such as (\cite{paden2010ice} give predictions similar to MacGregor {\it et al.}). These results therefore indicate internal consistency between our measured attenuation length dependence on depth, and the shape of the return echo power envelope measured in our data.

\subsection{Internal layer echo strength and calculation of internal layer reflectivity}
If the reflectivity of internal layers is sufficiently high, the amplitude of radio signals generated by ultra-high energy cosmic ray air showers impacting the snow surface, and subsequently reflected upwards to a near-surface radio receiver, may present an irreducible background to neutrino searches \citep{DeKockere:2021qka,rice-smith_2022}.

We can directly apply the formalism described previously, used to numerically extract the attenuation length, to a calculation of the absolute reflectivity of the observed internal layers. In this case, rather than inputting a value for the bedrock reflectivity, as we do for the attenuation length measurement, we use the measured return strength at a given echo time to extract the reflectivity itself. We use our own measurement of attenuation length, as a function of depth, to quantify the in-ice signal absorption, down to a given layer depth\citep{aguilar2022situ}. Figure \ref{fig:layer_reflectivity}, left highlights the layers considered; the right panel shows, for each of the considered layers, the Friis-derived reflectivity as a function of frequency. Reflectivities are approximately \SI{-65}{dB}, with no clear dependence on frequency or change with depth.

\begin{figure}
    \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{layer_reflectivity.png}
    \caption{Measurement of the reflectivity of the most prominent reflectors in the ice. Left: Return power as a function of signal propagation time. The colored bands mark the position of the radio reflectors. Right: Reflectivity of the radio reflectors considered. For better readability, the measurements have been split between two figures, with the top plot showing the first five reflectors and the bottom plot the last six reflectors.}
    \label{fig:layer_reflectivity}
\end{figure}

Systematic errors for this absolute reflectivity measurement are assessed using a toy Monte Carlo, similar to that used for the absolute attenuation length measurement~\citep{aguilar2022situ}. The uncertainties on the antenna and amplifier gains, firn focusing, and the refractive index are identical to \citep{aguilar2022situ}; the integrated attenuation to a given layer is calculated using our own attenuation length measurement results, and also varied within corresponding errors. In our toy Monte Carlo, we ignore any possible correlated errors between the varied quantities, which yields a conservative estimate of our total uncertainties after adding all errors in quadrature.
During the measurements to check for birefringence (see following section), we noticed that the magnitude of the return power from bulk ice reflections varied between different antenna orientations relative to the direction of ice flow by as much as \SI{40}{\%}.
Admitting the possibility that this may have been an instrumental effect, we correspondingly assume an additional \SI{40}{\%} uncertainty on the return power in our calculation of the total error.

\subsection{Polarization Dependence and Birefringence}
\label{sec:birefringence}
Unlike South Pole, for which the measured crystal orientation fabric (COF) exhibits a strong variation in the horizontal plane \citep{Voigt2017}, the measured COF at Summit Station is significantly more azimuthally isotropic, corresponding to a uniaxial, rather than biaxial, COF (Figure \ref{fig:GRIPCOF}). Consequently, we expect birefringent effects to be less evident for a vertically propagating signal at Summit Station compared to South Pole. To test this, four sets of radar echo data were compiled at $\phi_0=0^\circ$, $\phi_{30}=30^\circ$, $\phi_{60}=60^\circ$ and $\phi_{90}=90^\circ$ angles relative to the direction of the local ice flow (approximately due west, at a velocity an order of magnitude smaller than for South Pole). Biaxial birefringence can result in a $\phi$-dependent wave velocity in ice -- at South Pole, this corresponds to maximum time lag $\delta(t)\sim$10 ns per kilometer of traversed ice for echoes reflected off the bedrock \citep{Allison:2019rgg}.

To quantify birefringence, we window the summed and averaged waveforms $\pm$2 microseconds around the initial observed bedrock echo time for a) azimuthal polarization parallel to the flow axis ($\phi_0$) and b) azimuthal polarization perpendicular to the flow axis ($\phi_{90}$). We find that the value of the cross-correlation between these two windowed waveforms is maximized when we apply a time offset of +1.6 ns to the perpedicular-flow waveform. To quantify uncertainties, we perform a similarly windowed cross-correlation between all unique pairs of the twenty event files (each comprising 10K averaged events) corresponding to a single $\phi$ orientation; the distribution of time offsets peaks at 0.10 ns (consistent with zero, as expected), with a standard deviation of 3.3 ns.
We therefore quote a birefringent time asymmetry of $1.6\pm 3.3$ ns, compared with a central value of 53 ns measured at the South Pole~\citep{Besson:2010ww}, over a 6\% shorter pathlength. Our measured value is considerably smaller than the group delay of typical radio neutrino experiments, indicating that birefringence will not be as important a consideration in reconstructing neutrino signals following primarily vertical trajectories, compared to South Pole. Additional work is needed to quantify this effect for horizontal trajectories, which admit both vertical and also horizontal polarizations.

\begin{figure}
    \centering
    \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{Dispersion_InAir.pdf}
    \caption{Frequency-banded signals, for in-air broadcasts between LPDA surface transmitter and LPDA surface receiver. The observed time shift in signal arrival times is consistent with the known, intrinsically dispersive properties of the LPDA antennas.}
    \label{fig:Dispersion_InAir}
\end{figure}

\subsection{Dispersion}
Among the ice parameters critical to the design of an in-ice radio-frequency neutrino detection experiment is the variation of refractive index over the relevant system frequency band, i.e., dispersion. Laboratory studies of pure ice indicate that the dependence of wave speed on frequency at radio-frequencies (n($\omega$)) should be insignificant over the signal propagation distances typical of experiments such as RNO-G~\citep{fujita1993measurement}. Nevertheless, there are relatively few direct {\it in situ} determinations of dispersion~\citep{Besson:2010ww}. One approach for measuring this critical parameter might be to measure the simultaneity of the bedrock echo as one sweeps in frequency, using bi-static surface radar.

Given the $\lambda^2$ dependence of the antenna effective area, we have banded our data into two frequency bins, spanning 150-190 MHz and 190-340 MHz, respectively. Owing to the intrinsically dispersive nature of the transmitter and receiver LPDA antennas, we expect that the observed signals should show an $\sim$10-20 ns offset between the signal onset for the lower- vs.\ higher-frequency signal bands. The high frequency signal arrival for the through-air path is, indeed, observed to precede the low-frequency signal arrival by 22.5$\pm$4.2 ns (Figure \ref{fig:Dispersion_InAir}).

Cross-correlating the observed high-frequency bedrock echo with the observed low-frequency bedrock echo yields a time offset of 21.4$\pm$4.0 ns, statistically consistent with the offset observed for the through-air path. Subtracting that offset, we obtain a time difference between the two bands of 1.1$\pm$5.6 ns (adding the statistical uncertainties on the bed and through-air offsets in quadrature). Normalized to the total bedrock echo time of 35.5 microseconds implies a dispersive slope of ($3.1\pm15.8)\times 10^{-5}$/100 MHz. This value is statistically consistent with the value obtained at the South Pole~\citep{Besson:2010ww}, albeit with a larger attendant error, in part owing to the more dispersive LPDA antennas used as transmitter/receiver, and in part owing to the more restricted frequency band over which these measurements were made.

\section{Conclusions}
We summarize our results as follows:
\begin{enumerate}
    \item Using the Friis equation, we determine the radio-frequency ice attenuation length at Summit Station and reproduce (to $\approx$10\%) the values calculated by normalizing the in-ice reflection to a through-air broadcast \citep{aguilar2022situ}.
    \item Using the same approach as for the bedrock reflector, we similarly measure the reflectivity of internal layers at Summit Station. We obtain values in the range $-60\ \mathrm{dB}$ to $-70$ dB, roughly consistent with values obtained for a similar analysis at South Pole \citep{Besson:2021wmj}.
    \item Based on the statistics of our observed signals, and the dependence of the measured rms-voltage with sample size, we find no clear evidence for volume scattering within the ice sheet, after averaging $N_{\rm trigger}$=10K triggers per recorded waveforms. However, we cannot exclude the possibility that volume scattering may contribute more significantly as $N_{\mathrm{trigger}}$ approaches 1.
    \item Consistent with expectations based on the known crystal fabric at Summit Station, Greenland, no significant birefringent effects are observed in our radar sounding data for vertically propagating signals.
    \item We observe no evidence for dispersion of radio-frequency signals propagating in ice, over the frequency interval 150-340 MHz.
\end{enumerate}

\noindent Overall, from a radio-glaciological perspective, Summit Station is an extremely propitious site for in-ice neutrino detection. During the summer of 2022, RNO-G more than doubled its sensitive neutrino volume. Given the importance of ice properties to neutrino detection, future campaigns anticipate an expansion of the calibration measurements cited herein, including measurements of birefringence along horizontal trajectories, more precise parameterizations of the refractive index dependence on depth, measurement of cross-polarized reflection strengths, as well as internal layer reflections in the upper 200 meters of the ice sheet.

\subsection{Acknowledgements}

We would like to thank the staff at Summit Station and Polar Field Services for their unflagging and superb logistical support.
We thank our home institutions and funding agencies for supporting the RNO-G work; in particular the Belgian Funds for Scientific Research (FRS-FNRS and FWO) and the FWO programme for International Research Infrastructure (IRI), the National Science Foundation through the NSF Awards 2118315 and 2112352 and the IceCube EPSCoR Initiative (Award ID 2019597), the German research foundation (DFG, Grant NE 2031/2-1), the Helmholtz Association (Initiative and Networking Fund, W2/W3 Program), the University of Chicago Research Computing Center, and the European Research Council under the European Unions Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement No 805486).

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaArXiv


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text:
Q: R S4class containing list of another S4class I have an issue verifying the validity of my class 'class2'; it is made of a list of 'class1' objects. I want to verify that it is indeed the case:
class2 <- setClass(

    Class = "class2",

    slots = c(slotListName = "list"),

    validity = function(object){

             lapply(object@slotListName, function(x){

            if(!identical(is(x), "class1"))
                stop(" not a class1 object");
        });
    });

The problem is that lapply returns values which are not accepted:
Error in validObject(.Object) :
invalid class "class2" object: 1: NULL
invalid class "class2" object: 2: NULL

I checked that the problem was coming from the lapply by testing only the first element of the list, which is working fine:
if(!identical(is(object@slotListName[[1]]), "class1"))
       stop("not a class1 object");

I tried vectorizing but this does not change the problem.
Is there a way to verify that slotListName is indeed a list of 'class1' objects?
Thanks a lot!

A: The problem with your function is that it gives an error for an invalid object. It's supposed to return a diagnostic message, with the S4 object construction machinery taking care of the error.
Here's how you can do it using the recommended approach, which is to define methods for initialize and setValidity. See ?setClass for more details.
class2 <- setClass("class2", slots=c(slotListName="list"))

setMethod("initialize", "class2", function(.Object, lst)
{
    .Object@slotListName <- lst
    validObject(.Object)
    .Object
})

# returns TRUE if the object is valid, otherwise a diagnostic message
setValidity("class2", function(object)
{
    if(length(object@slotListName) < 1)
        "must contain at least one class1 object"
    else if(!all(sapply(object@slotListName, function(x) inherits(x, "class1"))))
        "all objects in list must be class1"
    else TRUE
})

## testing
x <- 42
class(x) <- "class1"
y <- 43
class(y) <- "bad"

l1 <- list(x, x, x)
l2 <- list(x, x, y)

## works
obj1 <- class2(l1)

## error: bad object in list
obj2 <- class2(l2)

## error: empty list
obj3 <- class2(list())


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Home News & Updates Unites States final troops leave Afghanistan
Unites States final troops leave Afghanistan
The last troops of the United States have left Afghanistan after the Taliban have conquered the country. The militant group had warned of dire consequences and after about 20 years, the US troops have left Afghanistan. The move brought an end to the longest war and the biggest non-combatant evacuation movement in the U.S. military history. A formal announcement was made by Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie the commander of the U.S. Central Command.
McKenzie added that the withdrawal of the troops has marked the end of the military evacuation and the 20 year old mission that started off in Afghanistan in September 2001. The Marine Gen added that the mission had helped to bring a just end to Osama Bin Laden and a number of his co-conspirators from Al-Qaida. He continued to inform that the mission was pretty expensive and costed 2,461 U.S. service members and civilians with more than 20,000 injured.
They also included 13 U.S. service members who lost their lives due to an ISIS-K suicide bomber. The U.S. troops in Afghanistan had received threats from the Islamic state Khorasan or ISISI-K, that is a terrorist group in Afghanistan. The United States along with the coalition forces had speed up the evacuation process of the people in a huge airlift operation that included more than 6,000 Americans. Antony Blinken, the Secretary State on August 30, 2021 informed that nearly 200 Americans remain in Afghanistan and want to leave.
Blinken has promised that the U.S. will continue to make efforts to gets those Americans out of the country soon. He also assured that Americans who now wish to stay back but change their mind after a few weeks, even then they would help them to leave. President Joe Biden released a statement and thanked the Americans for the sacrifices made by them during this phase. He is expected to address the end of the conflict in a speech on August 31, 2021.
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Last night Vogue Fashion's Night Out kick-started the fashion week season (with New York up first) and here at Reiss, London, we couldn't wait for the party. All the fun of the fair was the theme, and with fairground grabbers, silly photobooths, gin cocktails and sweets galore, it certainly was fun!
Prizes were plentiful in the Reiss fairground grabber, and drew eager crowds at all our participating stores across the capital.
Our DJ, Zach Nahome, kept the party atmosphere going in our Barrett Street store.
And the delicious cocktails heavily-laced with Bulldog gin were a huge hit with our fashionable shoppers. Sipping on classic G&Ts and the specially-created Oxford Circus, pink grapefuit and lychee cocktails is surely the perfect way to shop?
We also debuted our exclusive Lou and Angelina bags in zebra pony hair on the night.
Which we love so much we printed onto the free limited edition tote bag for our Fashion's Night Out customers.
The Photobooth kept our shoppers upbeat, striking poses against our AW12 campaign backdrop.
With whoops, cheers and even screams back at the fairground grabber, we caught one lucky shopper in action, who looked particularly delighted with his prize.
Stay tuned to the blog for more live reports from the thick of the action.


text:
"Are You Prepared? Shift Happens!" Conference at CSUN Focuses on Disaster Preparedness
by Wyatt Samuelson
Comments Off on "Are You Prepared? Shift Happens!" Conference at CSUN Focuses on Disaster Preparedness
CSUN President Dianne F. Harrison. Photo by David J. Hawkins.
State Sen. Bob Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys). Photo by David J. Hawkins.
City of Calabasas Mayor David Shapiro. Photo by David J. Hawkins.
In January 1994, one of the most devastating earthquakes in state history struck California State University, Northridge and the San Fernando Valley. To commemorate the 25th anniversary of the 1994 quake, The Valley Economic Alliance and CSUN's College of Social and Behavioral Sciences and Valley Nonprofit Resources partnered to host a disaster preparedness conference called "Are You Prepared? Shift Happens!"
The conference, which took place Jan. 11, offered strategies to help business owners, home owners and individuals shift their attention and resources to emphasize the safety of people and property following natural disasters such as earthquakes, fires, floods and power outages.
CSUN President Dianne F. Harrison joined keynote speakers that included State Sen. Bob Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys) and City of Calabasas Mayor David Shapiro to discuss the importance of being proactive in emergency preparation.
"Living in Southern California, we know all too well the importance of emergency planning," Harrison said. "Just last year, our region experienced some of the worst fires in California's history, which caused widespread destruction. With the Northridge earthquake 25 years ago, CSUN and our surrounding community experienced the devastation earthquakes can bring, and why planning, resources, hard work and leadership are all needed to recover."
A goal of The Valley Economic Alliance is to ensure the region is prepared for challenges during and after a natural disaster. The alliance is comprised of businesses, government, education and community organizations that work together to promote greater standards of living and economic vitality in the Valley. CSUN's Valley Nonprofit Resources offers both information and services to strengthen the more than 5,600 nonprofit organizations in the San Fernando Valley.
Sessions at the conference provided advice for both individuals and organizations for staying safe during natural disasters. The tips included the standard "drop, cover and hold on" for individuals experiencing an earthquake, as well as big-picture advice for organizations, including detailed communication plans for employees, updating phone lists with employees' home contact numbers and testing emergency plans.
In December, Shapiro had a front-row seat to the damage caused by the Woolsey Fire. He shared his city's experiences with emergency planning and stories of the recent disaster.
"We lost nine homes, two apartment [buildings], one hotel and two city parks, and [implemented] a complete citywide evacuation for five days, but [experienced] no loss of life thanks to our tremendous first responders," Shapiro said. "One of the things that are most important in our city is brush clearance. This helps firefighters buffer the effects of the fire and saves lives, pets and homes. The work was done by the many sheriffs, police officers and firefighter first responders who carried out a detailed emergency plan for the city."
State Sen. Hertzberg asked how many business owners were present in the room during his address. Seeing dozens of hands raised, he said, "We often like to complain about the inefficiency of government, taxes and all the rest, but as Mayor Shapiro detailed the events of the fire, we see government working, your tax dollars working — people that spent 24-hour days making sure that safety was a No. 1 priority."
In addition to natural disasters, the conference included discussions regarding man-made crises such as burglaries, home invasions and mass shootings. Captain Bryan Lium, commanding officer of the Los Angeles Police Department's Devonshire Division, spoke about practical ways to help secure the safety of one's business and home. He stressed the importance of keeping an emergency plan ready for each situation.
To end the conference, Stephen Jordan, CEO of the Institute of Sustainable Development, a leading expert in disaster recovery and community economic development, spoke about the realities of natural disasters and their impact. Jordan said that private and public organizations must foster greater interdependency and interconnectivity in order to better respond to natural disasters. He referred attendees to a planning guide made available by the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation that included strategies for shoring up both customer information and physical buildings.
"What recent wildfires have shown us is that approaching the future the same we have in the past is just too costly, too painful and not good for anyone in our community," Jordan said. "If a disaster strikes, we need to be worried about not only preparing emergency plans, but how we can reinvent our infrastructure so that if the same disaster strikes it won't be as catastrophic as before."
Northridge Earthquake
Marc 'Mookie' Kaczor Named 88.5 FM's New Program Director
Go On a Quest With a Greek Refugee or Enjoy a 'Freaky Friday' at CSUN's Summer Youth Theater
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11" fabric covered seam roll, for pressing long seams & narrow areas. Eliminates seam allowance ridge marks. Click photo for more information.
For pressing & molding darts, sleeve caps and curved seams. Darts- position over ham and press until point is smooth and flat. Sleeve Caps- press over end of ham to shrink out fullness. Curved Seams, facing, collars and cuffs- shape by pressing over and around ham. Click for larger photo.
There's no flaking, clogging, or white residue on dark fabrics. A special stain shield protects fabrics and Best Press helps resist wrinkles. Best of all, it's more effective than any starch you've ever used. Click for close-up view.
There's no flaking, clogging, or white residue on dark fabrics. A special stain shield protects fabrics and Best Press helps resist wrinkles. Best of all, it's more effective than any starch you've ever used. (We regret that we are unable to ship this product internationally.) Click for close-up view.
Clover Deluxe Take & Press Mat, 24" x 36"
Large portable pressing surface. Handy grid for easy garment pin blocking. Folds for convenient storage and travel. Works on any flat, heat safe surface. 24in x 36in. Click for close-up view.


Named after the beautiful flower 'sakura' (cherry blossoms), this Japanese restaurant is located in the centre of Grand Bay.
Fifteen years of experience have allowed this fine Japanese restaurant in bringing the very best selections to its clientele of sushi, sashimi, yakitori and tempura.
You may also book for teppanyaki, where the chefs demonstrate with grace and dexterity their art and culinary talent right in front of you in a convivial atmosphere. Alternatively, try the Japanese fondues, commonly known as Sukiyaki and Shabu-Shabu.
From May to July, a beautifully carved Japanes lavish buffet is held on a promotional basis during the low season.
Your hosts, Mr. & Mrs. Gérard Alexandre will make you feel at ease while pampering you with the renown Japanese service.


Wheeler praised the mentors for getting involved in the program.
"These young kids will remember you for the rest of their lives," Wheeler said.
"This program would not have been possible if it weren't for the generosity and support from the Bryant family," said Diane Phakonekham, executive director of Big Brother Big Sisters of Central California.
Speaking on behalf of the family, Theresa Bryant said her family has been talking for some time about getting involved with a children's organization, and it was important to them to give back to the community that has supported them and their business over the past 29 years. Phakonekham and Bryant had a chance meeting several months ago,and after the meeting, Bryant said she got to thinking that maybe this is the organization that would be a good fit for the Bryant Family to get involved with.
"After one meeting with the Bryants, it became very clear to the and us that this was a great fit," Phakonekham said.
According to the Program Coordinator Zenia Brizendine, recruiting and screening for the program began in December when agency staff was was invited into Yosemite classrooms to explain the program.
The "Littles" at OES must be a part of the after school program and their parents have filled out an application for their child. The "Bigs," and the "Littles" are assessed, and matched based on compatibility to ensure a long lasting relationship.
Yosemite High Guidance Counselor Stephanie Samuels is serving as adviser for the YHS students.
YHS students currently serving as mentors are Alexia Dahlin, Armando Villanueva, Brittany Collier, Will Martyn, Summer Bolmer, Chandler Clarks, Brianna McCully, Audry White, Erin Schettler, Meagan Monalto, Hannah Morrison, Rebecca Dolzadeli, Isabella Flaherty, Amethyst Wages, and Natalie Bates.
Others who have assisted with the Oakhurst program are Carolyn French, of the Madera County Office of Education, and Diana Davis, YES Program coordinator.
The program's first day was Tuesday with 15 trained high school mentors at OES.
Alex Huerta, BBBS director of operations said Central Valley statistics show that of the children matched with a mentor through Big Brothers Big Sisters, 95% improve in academic performance, 91% are more prepared for school, and 100% experience a boost in self-confidence.
Big Brothers Big sisters has been serving the Central Valley since 1969, with programs currently in Madera, Fresno, Kings, Tulare and Kern Counties.
The agency partners with parents/guardians, volunteers, and others in the community and holds itself accountable for each child in the program to improve educational success by gaining higher aspirations, greater confidence, and better relationships while avoiding risky behavior.
The agency operates three programs in the Central Valley - The "Community-Based," "Lunch Buddies," and "High School Bigs." In the" Community-Based" program, an adult volunteer meets with a child three to four hours per week in the community. In the "Lunch Buddy Program," an adult volunteer meets with a child once a week during the child's school lunch. The "High School Bigs" program takes place on elementary school grounds.
The agency is currently operating 10 "High School Bigs" programs and starting four new ones including Oakhurst. Each program is customized to meet the needs of the children, and the agency tracks grades, attendance, social and emotional behaviors, and reading levels.
Details: Big Brother Big Sisters of Central California, (559) 673-4863, bigs.org.


Securities and investment advisory services are offered solely by Equity Services, Inc., Member FINRA/SIPC, A Broker/Dealer and Registered Investment Adviser, 675 Third Ave, Suite 900, New York, NY 10017 Ph: (212)661-1600. Howard L. Polansky Associates and all other entities referenced are independent of Equity Services, Inc. unless otherwise noted.
**Howard L. Polansky is a Registered Representative and Investment Adviser Representative of Equity Services, Inc. and offers securities in New York. He is also insurance licensed in New York.


Brownwood Cemetery in Sandersville, Washington County, Georgia is where a few of my cousins were laid to rest. Two of them were German Fields Womble and his wife Zannie Peavy Womble. They were united in marriage in the year 1913, and they both died in the year 1969 -- only one month apart. G. F. died the 30th of August, and Mrs. Zannie died the 30th of September. Here are their obituaries from the Augusta Chronicle (Georgia).
SANMDERSVILLE, Ga. -- Funeral services for German Fields Womble, 79, of Sandersville, will be held at 3:30 p.m. Sunday at Sisters Baptist Church with the Rev. Milton and the Rev. Albert Stroup officiating.
Burial will be in Brownwood Cemetery.
Survivors include his widow, Mrs. Zannie Peavy Womble, two sons, Charles H. Womble, Boynton Beach, Fla., and Louie Womble, Sandersville; daughter, Mrs. Lola Daniel, Orlando, Fla.
He was a member of Sisters Baptist Church, the Hamilton Chapter of the Masonic Lodge and a retired civil service employee at Robins Air Force Base. He had lived in Sandersville all of his life.
SANDERSVILLE, Ga. -- Funeral services for Mrs. Zannie Peavy Womble, 77, of Sandersville, who died Tuesday, will be held at 4 p.m. today at Sisters Baptist Church.
...Burial will be in Brownwood Cemetery.
She had lived in Sandersville nearly all her life and was a member of Sisters Baptist Church.
Survivors include two sons, Louie Womble, Sandersville, and Charles H. Womble, Boynton Beach, Fla.; daughter, Mrs. Lola Daniel, Sandersville; three sisters, Mrs. Melinda Russell, Mrs. Clara Mae Horton and Mrs. Lena Holt, all of Macon.
Friends may call at Lang's Chapel until 3 p.m.
Love your cemetery blog. I found it by searching the cemetery blogs at Geneabloggers.
Just added it to my Google Reader, and my links on my genealogy and cemetery blogs.


text:
Susan V. Meyers
FAILING THE TRAPEZE
Winner of the Nilsen Award,
this historical novel tells the story of my family's circus
during the 1930s and 1940s.
DEL OTRO LADO: LITERACY & MIGRATION
Fulbright-funded research study that tells the story of Mexican school children who immigrate to the United States.
"Unwomaning" in New Orleans Review
"Origin Myths" in Hippocampus
"Visits to the Border" in Creative Nonfiction
"This Frozen Life" in The Rumpus
"Failing the Trapeze" in Per Contra
"Desiree" in Wordrunner
Reviews of
A Newpages.com 2014 Editors' Pick
"...an artfully crafted family drama" --Foreward Reviews
"Complex, intriguing, and heartbreaking."--
"I was completely engaged by each of the characters the whole book and had a difficult time putting it down to sleep at night...."--Goodreads
Reviews of Del Otro Lado: Literary & Migration
"...gives voice to those...from the other side of the border."--Composition Studies
"[She is one of the] few researchers talking about transnational literacy practices and the effects of a changing global economy...."--Community Literacy Journal
"...real life testimonies from real women living in a small town in Mexico."--Reading in the Borderlands
2023 Fellow at Virginia Center for the
2022 Grant Recipient, 4Culture
2020 Visiting Artist at Green Olive Arts
2019 Fellow at Monson Arts
2018 Fellow at Bloedel Reserve Arts
2018 Fellow at North Street Collective
2017 Fellow at Hambidge Creative
Residency Program
2016 First Runner-Up, J.F. Powers Prize
2016 Fellow at Brush Creek Foundation
for the Arts
2015 Fellow at Playa arts residency center
2014 Grant Recipient, Artist Trust
2014 Fellow in Jack Straw Writers
Program
2013 Winner, Nilsen Award for a First
Novel
2013 Finalist, New American Fiction
Award
2013 Grant Recipient, American
Association of University Women
2011 Grant Recipient, National
Endowment for the Humanities
After growing up on a carnival route, Susan V. Meyers now directs the Creative Writing Program at Seattle University. Having received grants from Fulbright, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and several arts residencies, she has thrice been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Her novel Failing the Trapeze won the Nilsen Award, and other work has appeared in The Rumpus, Creative Nonfiction, Calyx, Per Contra, and The Minnesota Review.
CCCC Conference 2021. Spokane, WA. 8 April 2021.
Green Olive Arts. Tetouan, Morocco. 20 February 2020.
Universidad Iberoamericana. Mexico City, Mexico. 20 January 2020.
Universidad Cenroamericana. Managua, Nicaragua. 3 September 2019.
Seattle Public Library Seattle Writes Program. 20 January 2019. Seattle, WA.
CCCC Conference 2019. Pittsburgh, PA. 14 March 2019.
Creative Writing Studies Conference, Montreat, North Carolina. 18 October 2018.
Lit Crawl. Seattle, WA. 11 October 2018.
Seattle Writes. Seattle, WA. 9/29 & 10/7 2018.
Write on the Sound Conference. Edmonds, WA. 5-6 October 2018.
North Street Collective Open House. Mendocino Co, CA. 6 September 2018.
San Miguel Writer's Conference. San Miguel de Allende. 15 February 2018.
Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana. Mexico City, Mexico. 16 June 2017.
Warren Wilson College. Ashville, North Carolina. 23 September 2016.
Universidad Iberoamericana. Mexico City, Mexico. June 2016.
University of Arizona. Tucson, Arizona. 13 March 2015.
Women's National Book Association. Seattle, Washington. 8 March 2015.
University of Witwatersrand. Johannesburg, South Africa. 30 October 2014.
Elliot Bay Book Store. Seattle, Washington. 5 October 2014.
Equality State Book Festival. Casper, Wyoming. 11 September 2014.
University of Washington Book Store. Seattle, Washington. 28 August 2014.
Redmond Association of the Spoken Word. Redmond, Washington. 22 August 2014.
Jack Straw Writers Program. Seattle, Washington. May 2014
Portland State University. Portland, Oregon. 12 May 2013.
Old Growth Literary Northwest. Seattle, Washington. 30 April 2013.
For general inquiries, please contact me at susanvmeyers@hotmail.com.
If you are interested in working with me as an editor or writing coach,
please visit my consulting website for current rates and offerings.
Sign Up for News, Events & Much More!
© 2020 by Susan V. Meyers. Proudly created with WIX.COM


Evaluation of the students' achievements is a very important part of the teaching process for the responsible teacher. That is why, in order to judge the effectiveness of any test, it is sensible to lay down criteria against which the test can be measured. There are three features of crucial importance which you should take into consideration when planning to write your own test or choose from the testing material available for classroom use: validity, reliability and practicality.
Keywords: evaluation, test, planning, validity, reliability, practicality.
It is well known that tests are used for assessing students in the classroom. Unfortunately, nowadays many teachers use them just to mark their students, tests taking the shape of isolated gapped sentences that students have to fill in, rewrite or translate from English into Romanian or vice versa. We should evaluate our students in such a way that it enhances further learning.
A good test should have a number of features. There are three very important which all teachers should bear in mind before creating a test or choosing it from test books: validity, reliability and practicality.
Validity is the extent to which test scores can be considered a true reflection of the underlying ability. In other words, a test is valid if it tests what it is supposed to test.
Content validity refers to what goes into the test. We have to decide on the content of a test according to what we want to test. First, we have to draw up the content specifications, a list that helps the teacher ensure that he/she assesses language areas and skills in a balanced mode. If we score short written answers to a listening test for spelling and grammar, then it is not necessarily a valid test of listening because we are scoring the wrong thing.
Face validity is concerned with what students and teachers think of the test. Formal discussions and questionnaires are the means by which face validity is measured. For example, a test which consisted of only three multiple-choice items would not convince students of its face validity.
Predictive validity refers to the students' future ability to use the language outside the educational system, that is their ability to use the language actively, functionally and strategically , to deal with real-world, communicative situations.
Reliability is the extent to which test results are consistent and accurate, and therefore dependable. A student who takes a test at the beginning of the semester and at its end will record different results, but these differences must show differences in his/her skills and not inaccuracies in the test. Reliability is enhanced by making the test instructions absolutely clear, restricting the scope for variety in the answers and making sure that test conditions remain constant.
Practicality is the extent to which a test is practicable in terms of the resources needed. When we write a test we have to be realistic. There are a few questions we will have to ask ourselves if we want to prepare appropriate tests: what equipment do we need (CD player, OHP)? Do we need a special arrangement of the furniture in the classroom? How long it will take to mark the test? How long it will take our students to solve it? How many photocopies will we need?
Last but not least, we should all keep in mind that testing should concentrate on enabling the students to show what they can do and it should be an interesting learning experience.
Bălan, R., In - Service Distance Training Course for Teachers of English, Polirom, Iaşi, 2003.
Harmer, J., The Practice of English Language Teaching, Longman, London, 2007.
Stănişoara, M., Interactive English Language Training Course for Students and Not Only, Aramis, Bucureşti, 2003.
Vizental, A., Strategies of Teaching and Testing English as a Foreign Language, Polirom, Iaşi, 2008.


text:
Pangasinan town creates task force for environment protection
LABRADOR, Pangasinan, Dec. 4 (PIA) -- The local government unit of Labrador, in partnership with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in Pangasinan, formed a multi-sectoral environmental law enforcement task force to protect the ...
How irrevocable is irrevocable
The past indeed influences the future. Actions from the former provide ripples felt by the latter. When things go wrong, you cannot go back and alter the past. Instead you can concentrate on the present and mold the future. In the world of taxation ...
Immigration bureau tightens screening amid influx of foreign nationals
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, December 3) -- Amid the rising number of foreigners in the country, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) said it has been beefing up security and screening process at ...
President Duterte confers Quezon Service Cross Award to late Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago
Before having been elected to the Senate for three terms, Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago previously served as Presiding Judge of the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City, then afterwards as Commissioner of the Bureau of Immigration and Deportation ...
Gordon proposes Congressional power to inspect bank accounts
The ACR, issued by the Bureau of Immigration (BI), is among the requirements needed by foreigners when opening bank accounts in the Philippines. "I am aware of a racket going on right now where Chinese folks are opening bank accounts, arranged by agents ...
Ferry for Metro Cebu wins NRCO-ISP award
The project is a joint undertaking between the NRCO, an attached agency of the labor department, and the ISP. To support the productive reintegration of seafarers, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III encouraged them to start their own business by joining ...
Duterte bestows Quezon Service Cross award to late Miriam Santiago
She had served as a trial judge, an immigration commissioner, a Secretary of Agrarian Reform, and a Senator of the Republic. During the 2016 presidential elections, despite being political rivals ...
USMCA or NAFTA 2.0: what's really new for intellectual property?
The IP chapter of the recently negotiated US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) is one of the most comprehensive of all of the treaties negotiated by the parties to date (eg, the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)).
BIR names Rappler among top withholding agents
MANILA, Philippines - The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) included media company Rappler as among the country's top withholding agents. The BIR handed a notice to Rappler on November 28, stating that the company is now required to withhold the 1% ...
Malacañang says Duterte not behind Rappler tax cases
MANILA, Philippines - Malacañang said on Monday, December 3, President Rodrigo Duterte had nothing to do with the tax cases filed against Rappler Holdings Corporation and Rappler CEO Maria Ressa. The Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed 4 tax cases ...
Rappler's Maria Ressa posts bail for tax evasion case
In the Pasig RTC's arrest order dated November 28, the court said Ressa violated Section 255 of the National Internal Revenue Code. In a statement Monday, Ressa confirmed there was an arrest ...
DOCUMENT: Arrest warrant for Maria Ressa in tax case
It ordered the arrest of Ressa who has been charged with violating Section 255 of the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997. As president of Rappler Holdings Corporation (the holding company of Rappler Inc), she supposedly failed to supply correct ...
Maria Ressa posts bail for tax case at Pasig court
MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) - Rappler Holdings Corporation (RHC) president Maria Ressa on Monday, December 3, posted bail at Pasig City Regional Trial Court Branch 265 for alleged violation of the Tax Code. Ressa posted a bail of P60,000 after the ...
Ressa returns to Manila, confirms arrest warrant against her
Three of the cases were filed before the Court of Tax Appeals and the other one was filed at the Pasig City Regional Trial Court. Based on the complaint, Ressa and Rappler Holdings Corporation ...
Simplified tax on stocks to boost trades
"The taxation of stock investments is indeed ripe for reforms. The proposed reforms which form part of Package 4 will put the Philippines at par with its neighboring countries and would encourage stock market participation of both individual and ...
Senator sees little time for pork review
But he said the funds were not pork as these were not lump-sum appropriations, which the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional in 2013. The high court declared the pork barrel Priority ...
Tax amnesty faces delay
The much-awaited tax amnesty early next year may be delayed if Congress will not pass it together with the automatic exchange of information and the lifting of bank secrecy for taxation purposes ...
TRAIN Law: How was it implemented?
Knowing the law is not the same as knowing how it will be implemented. New laws require rules and regulations on how these changes will be applied. These implementing rules and regulations are ...
Hiring activity rising
Demand for accounting and finance professionals with taxation and audit experience is expected next year because of new tax regulations and greater prioritization of compliance. Job movers ...
PT&T wants SC to overturn decision disqualifying it from 3rd telco process
THE Philippine Telegraph and Telephone Corp. (PT&T) is honoring its undertaking with the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) by not seeking an injunction order against the third telco ...
Cost of producing palay in PHL hits all-time high
The average cost of producing palay in the Philippines rose to an all-time high of P12.42 per kilogram (kg) last year due to more expensive fuel and labor, according to the Philippine Statistics ...
Reforms to simplify financial tax scheme will put PHL apace with Asean peers: NTRC
for resident individuals and nonresident aliens engaged in trade or business, while retaining the exemption of domestic and foreign corporations on intercorporate dividends except sole corporations.
LTFRB execs to tackle formula for predetermined PUV fare
The TWG, headed by LTFRB Executive Director Samuel Aloysius Jardin, is composed of representatives from the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of Energy (DOE), Department of Labor ...
A divorce settlement for Brexit
The "Canada-style deal" (in the way Canada deals with the EU) proposed that the UK would have free trade with the EU, but no freedom of movement (stop free immigration from and to EU countries, no more reciprocal open visas for travel and business).
Bam Aquino: Senate should take lead in investigation of PH-China deals
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, December 2) -- Senator Bam Aquino on Sunday said he hopes the Senate will take the lead in investigating deals of the Philippine government with China. In CNN ...
Only Alejano opposes same-sex unions in TV senatorial forum
At the House of Representatives, former speaker Pantaleon Alvarez has been pushing for a civil union bill. Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio said during oral arguments that a civil union bill gives the same legal rights and status to ...
CA orders Pagcor to grant license for Waterfront casino
MANILA, Philippines - The Court of Appeals (CA) upheld a Manila court ruling which ordered the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor) to issue a provisional license to Waterfront Philippines Incorporated for a casino-hotel. The CA 6th ...
Department of Justice probes 2 law enforcers, lawyer
They are not even regular or organic personnel of the Bureau of Immigration, to begin with. And yet they allegedly had the temerity to abuse or take advantage of their delegated authority for apparently personnel gain. If true, this is a violation of their ...
Notes from the courtroom
A fellow reporter also caught him reading How Democracies Die at another hearing. Supreme Court oral arguments are also filled with light moments, believe it or not. Imagine a classroom setting, but instead of one professor, you have 15, and sometimes one ...
Comelec: Junk candidates campaigning early
The Comelec, however, cannot do anything about this since the Supreme Court ruled in 2009 that premature campaigning was not an election offense. The high court said that this was because one ...
Hope seen for consumers to set power rates
In a statement, Romeo Junia, who filed the petition at the CA seeking a reconsideration of an earlier ruling favoring Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), said the new CA decision was partial victory ...
Government caps off Sulong Pilipinas forum
They also asked the government to simplify the processes of the Bureau of Internal Revenue; enhance peace and order through greater police and military visibility in rural areas, intensive monitoring in coastal areas, and continuing martial law in Mindanao ...
Fear, ignorance define AIDS epidemic - WHO
MANILA, Philippines -- "Fear, stigma and ignorance" are what defined the HIV epidemic that raged through the world in the 1980s, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). As the world commemorated the 30th World AIDS Day yesterday, WHO claimed ...
PHL ranking in World Talent Report stagnant
The relatively higher rank of the Readiness factor was mostly driven by the sub-indicators on availability of skilled labor (7th), language skills (20th), and availability of competent senior ...
Go on with suspension of fuel tax hike, Gatchalian urges Duterte
Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian wants President Rodrigo Duterte to continue with the suspension of the second tranche of the excise tax on petroleum products despite the advice of his economic managers.
Could the Inventions Created by Artificial Intelligence be Protected within the Scope of Intellectual Property Rights?
Intellectual Property (IP) refers to exclusive rights associated to creations of the mind. These rights allow creators, or owners, of patents, trademarks or copyrighted works to benefit from their own work or investment in a creation. But what if these ...
Duterte to confer top civil service award on late Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 30) -- President Rodrigo Duterte is set to bestow the Quezon Service Cross -- the highest civil service award -- to the late Senator Miriam Defensor ...
Insurgency cited for Duterte absence at Bonifacio rite
Malacañang did not immediately say where in Mindanao Mr. Duterte rushed off to. If he were alive... Labor groups said if Bonifacio had been alive today, he would be leading rallies against the ...
A hailstorm of fury
Inquirer Opinion - 2018-11-30
Which leads me to believe that they have done the same with China. Not an unreasonable assumption. If so, then what is the basis for their opinions, as reported by SWS? It has to be their experiences with the Chinese people they meet, plus inherited ...
Fox News Takes A Swing At TVEyes
Fox News sued for copyright infringement; TVEyes asserted a fair use defense, which was rejected by the Second Circuit. TVEyes is asking the Supreme Court to overturn that decision. TVEyes based its defense on the contributions its service makes to free ...
Digong and the Golden Rule
What a delightful day it was for the administration and alumni of the University of the East ... It came to mind when the news that drug dealers in Cebu are offering bounties for every policeman killed! The chief of the Cebu Provincial Police himself ...
Climate change is already here, and heat waves are having the biggest effect, report says
"High- and low- income countries are affected negatively," said Elizabeth Robinson, professor of environmental economics at the University ... followed by the Western Pacific and Southeast Asia ...
How childhood aspirations translates into motivation to succeed in adulthood
My Dream in a Shoebox is an education initiative established in 2009 by TeamAsia and the Information Technology and Business Process Association of the Philippines. It supports the dreams of impoverished children by providing them shoe boxes filled with ...
DBCC reverses proposal to suspend oil excise tax hike in 2019
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 29) -- The Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) on Thursday recommended that the government push through with the next tranche of fuel tax rate ...
Fewer applicants for drivers, nurses in tourism industry, PSA data show
Based on the results of the 2015/2016 Integrated Survey on Labor and Employment (ISLE), the PSA said the total of job vacancies in the tourism sector reached 55,000 between January 2015 and June 2016.
Maria Ressa, Rappler face new tax evasion charges
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 29) -- The Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed five new tax cases against Maria Ressa, controversial president of Rappler Holdings Corporation, parent ...
DILG, BFAR plan to add teeth to inshore bottom-trawling ban
THE Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) signed a joint memorandum circular on Wednesday strengthening enforcement of the ban on bottom trawling within municipal waters. JMC 2018-03 ...
Making the workplace safe(r)
Competency standards and assessment procedures will be established by the Technical Education and Skills Development ... lecturer at the Management and Organization Department, Ramon V. Del Rosario College of Business of De La Salle University, Manila.
Maria Ressa, Rappler Holdings charged in court for alleged tax evasion
MANILA, Philippines - Rappler Holdings Corporation and its president Maria Ressa have been ... correct and accurate information," said the DOJ in its resolution. The first 3 charges are for violation of Section 255 of the Tax Code or failure to file ...