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Executive Director of the Center on Reproductive Health, Law & Policy at UCLA School of Law
Part-Time HVAC Instructor
Blinn College
Brenham, Texas
Assistant Director of Development, Social Sciences
Academic Physicians - Allergists/Immunologists #PED104
University of Chicago (UC)
Director of Operations, Administration & Planning
Dialysis Staff Nurse (PRN) - Forest Park Kidney Center
Assistant Professsor of Clinical FCM-DMD/DDS - SMS-3000 (Lincoln)
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University of Wisconsin - River Falls
River Falls, Wisconsin
Associate Director, Curriculum and Administration
Director/ Associate Director of Major Gifts Tri-State & Eastern PA
Research Scholar - 997784
Academic/Faculty
University of California Los Angeles
Requisition Number: JPF06954
UCLA School of Law is seeking an inaugural Executive Director to launch the Center on Reproductive Health, Law & Policy. Working with the new Center's Faculty Director, the Associate Dean of Public Interest Law, and the Associate Dean for Academic Programs and Strategic Planning, the inaugural Executive Director will develop the vision and the overall goals and programs for the new Center and will be responsible for their day-to-day implementation. The Executive Director will have overall strategic and operational responsibilities for the Center's staff, research, programs, fundraising, budget, and mission.
The Center on Reproductive Health, Law & Policy is the first interdisciplinary, academic center located on the West Coast dedicated to conducting rigorous, independent research on reproductive health, law and policy. The new Center will join other highly regarded programs such as the Williams Institute on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Law and Public Policy; Critical Race Studies Program; The Promise Institute for Human Rights; David J. Epstein Program in Public Interest Law and Policy; Health and Human Rights Law Project; and the Criminal Justice Program, in promoting the highest standards of intellectual discourse at UCLA Law School. Through research and published articles, UCLA Law's centers offer invaluable information for legislators, the judiciary, and the public, while providing critical training for UCLA students and the broader community.
The Executive Director will provide vision and creativity to build this new Center; hire and lead a team of talented researchers and staff; develop and lead the execution of world-class and innovative public policy research, programs, and initiatives that advance the mission of the Center; stay informed of, and engage with, reproductive health, law, and policy to ensure the Center's programs and research remains relevant and timely; provide strategic leadership and direction for the dissemination of the Center's work; develop and engage a committed group of volunteers, donors, and advisory councils; represent the Center to the public, press, and policymakers; and develop and oversee its core programs, fundraising, and operations. In addition to successful experience as a manager and innovative leader, the Executive Director must have the capacity to develop, collaborate, and engage with the Center's new partners and audiences, and the substantive expertise and communication skills to serve as an effective representative of the organization and as the principal spokesperson for the Center. A passion for the mission of the new Center, appreciation for its unique institutional voice as an academic research center, and a commitment to a programmatic portfolio that embraces the full diversity of communities impacted by, and working for, reproductive justice and health are required.
The successful candidate should have either a J.D. or other terminal degree. The ideal candidate will have at least 7+ years of successful senior management and leadership experience, a track record of innovation and program building, and familiarity with current reproductive health, law and policy issues. We are also looking for candidates with demonstrated administrative and organizational skills, and success in fundraising, and managing a budget. Successful candidates will be creative, motivated, committed to diversity, have an entrepreneurial spirit, and be passionate about the work of the new Center. The individual will have an established track record for organizing and leading a strong team; be able to generate investment and enthusiasm; have strong interpersonal skills; and have a demonstrated ability to create and maintain productive relationships with colleagues, constituents, donors, and advisory board members. The ideal candidate will have excellent verbal and written communications skills and will be able to represent the Center to the press, policymakers, and the public. Applicants whose work focuses on women, People of Color, LGBTQ people, people with disabilities, children and youth, and/or people of low socio-economic status are encouraged to apply. The University of California seeks candidates committed to the highest standards of scholarship and professional activities and to a campus climate that supports equality and diversity.
This is a full-time, year-round, non-tenure track, academic position. The salary and level of appointment will be commensurate with qualifications and experience. This appointment is subject to the rules and regulations of the Regents of the University of California, which are mostly embodied in The UCLA CALL and the University of California Academic Personnel Manual. (See https://www.apo.ucla.edu/policies-forms/the-call; and https://www.ucop.edu/academic-personnel-programs/academic-personnel-policy/index.html.)
Confidential review of applications, nominations and expressions of interest will begin immediately and continue until an appointment is made. To ensure full consideration, applications should be received by Monday, February 28, 2022, but will be considered thereafter until the position is filled. Please apply online at https://recruit.apo.ucla.edu/JPF06954 by submitting pdf copies of a cover letter, resume, and contact information for at least three professional references. Finalists will later be expected to supply at least two letters of recommendation during the final vetting process.
The University of California is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender, gender expression, gender identity, gender transition status, pregnancy, physical or mental disability, medical condition (cancer-related or genetic characteristics), genetic information (including family medical history), ancestry, marital status, age, sexual orientation, citizenship, or service in the uniformed services, including protected veterans. For the complete University of California nondiscrimination and affirmative action policy, see: UC Nondiscrimination &Affirmative Action Policy at https://policy.ucop.edu/doc/4000376/DiscHarassAffirmAction.
To apply, please visit: https://recruit.apo.ucla.edu/JPF06954
The University of California is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age or protected veteran status. For the complete University of California nondiscrimination and affirmative action policy, see: UC Nondiscrimination & Affirmative Action Policy, https://policy.ucop.edu/doc/4000376/DiscHarassAffirmAction
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About University of California, Los Angeles
UCLA is known worldwide for the breadth and quality of its academic, research, health care, cultural, continuing education and athletic programs. UCLA offers undergraduate degrees in more than 127 majors and graduate degrees in 198 program areas. UCLA has 11 highly regarded professional schools. Eight are ranked among the nation's top 15 in their field by U.S. News & World Report. UCLA is consistently among the most popular campus in the nation for undergraduate applicants. The University of California is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status. Benefits:UCLA offers a comprehensive benefits package, including an average of three weeks' vacation per year; an average of 12 days per year sick leave; 13 paid holidays per year; health, dental and optical benefits; life insurance; disability insurance; the University of California Retirement Plan with 5 year vesting and various voluntary UC Savings Plans. There are also special programs and privileges available, such as accessibility to cultural and recreational programs, athletic events, and the University Credit Union.
Connections working at University of California, Los Angeles
https://main.hercjobs.org/jobs/15904713/executive-director-of-the-center-on-reproductive-health-law-policy-at-ucla-school-of-law


Wyoming! Make sure you're protecting the legacy of the Wide Open West and vote green this year! To learn more about Sustainable Politician Project, please read our full intro here.
According to Wyoming state law, all parties must conduct open primaries. Although voters have to be affiliated with a state party when they vote, they can change affiliation on election day. Whichever candidate receives the most votes receives the nomination, even if they don't receive the majority.
Things on the ballot this year: US Senate, US House, Governor, Secretary of State, State Auditor, State Treasurer, State Superintendent of Public Instruction, state senate, state house, state supreme court, local judges, school board, and candidate ballot access.
We like Gary for a number of reasons. For one, he has a fantastic grasp on the endless sustainable energy potential that Wyoming has to offer. With all the open spaces, Wyoming has a great potential to supply a lot of wind and solar energy. He also wants to see Wyoming transition those working in coal to working in safer bio-fuels. Second, he wants the federal government to continue its legacy of helping new energy resources gain footing in the economy by encouraging development and conservation in the private sector, instead of handing out subsidies to big fossil fuel and oil corporations.
Trauner is also of the opinion that a strong green energy sector will bring a stronger economy, lower unemployment rates, increase our national security, and reduce pollution. These are great reasons to support the development of sustainable energy, and that's why we also support Trauner.
Helm has a few policies that we particularly like. For starters, his previous employment with the fossil fuel industry has given him a few opinions on policy. Travis wants to hold mineral extraction companies responsible for the pollution and damage that they have done and do to our environment. This includes fracking. He also would like to set up some regulations with energy companies to make sure they consult with local communities before they begin operations, so as not to disrupt endangered species or the ecosystem.
Helm recognizes that coal needs to go, even if it's not an immediate transition. He wants to provide opportunities for sustainable energy to take root in Wyoming so that we aren't reliant on global fossil fuel production.
Keeping public land public is another cornerstone of his environmental platform. Helm believes that state land should be available to the public and that it should be maintained by the federal government so that all citizens can use these lands for their enjoyment as their right. He's a fighter to keep water, air, and the environment clean and prospering. He wants to mitigate the effects of climate change now before they can't be reversed or cost a fortune to fix.


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Union bashing and Miliband's austerity agenda
Miliband's confrontation with the trade unions is a reminder that he and the people around him have a very different agenda to most Labour supporters
There can be few sights more likely to bring a feeling of gloom to even the brightest summer day than that of Ed Miliband attacking his party's links with the trade unions and declaring that he is bravely going to stand up to their overwhelming power and influence.
Only in the fantasy world of the Blairites could such a claim be given any credence. The anti union laws are the worst in Europe, British workers work some of the longest hours in Europe, and union membership is around half what it was when Margaret Thatcher came to power in 1979. Strike levels are at historic lows. Inequality is growing as the gap between rich and poor widens. The coalition Tory government is enforcing levels of austerity which have not been seen since the 1930s.
Maybe it is fear that the unions and Labour's left might be organising to do something about the parlous state of working class life that is affecting millions of people that led Lord Mandelson to attack Unite the union's role in the Falkirk selection process to decide the party's new candidate there. Or maybe it is Mandelson and his fellow Blairite John Reid's particularly sadistic idea of a joke. After all, the Blairites have never recovered from the younger Miliband's winning of the Labour leadership instead of his older brother David - at the hands of the union vote. What better punishment than to force Ed to savage Len McCluskey and to suspend the Unite favoured candidate in Falkirk from the Labour Party?
Union money, anti union policies
The Falkirk selection process was triggered by the resignation from the party of sitting Labour MP Eric Joyce following a House of Commons brawl. The experience has not led Joyce to a period of calm reflection but to himself launching an attack on Unite. McCluskey and Unite have defended themselves, as have other union leaders such as Paul Kenny from the GMB and Billy Hayes. They and others on the left have pointed out the bankers and other millionaire businessmen who bankroll the Tories. Billy Hayes also pointed out the forcing union members to opt in to party membership is a repeat of the old union busting policies brought in following the defeated General Strike of 1926.
What are the factors underlying this argument? The unions, and especially Unite, claim that they want more working class people representing Labour. They argue that in a period when the mass of people feel disconnected with all the main parties, Labour can help to reconnect by putting forward people who actually know what it's like to work in ordinary jobs or struggle with bills. Who could argue with that, you would have thought?
But this isn't the first time that there have been such problems over selection. It was one of the issues which brought about the Labour/SDP split back in the early 1980s, was the issue behind the vicious campaign against Peter Tatchell in Bermondsey in 1983, and now is the question so vexing those various advisers who see Oxbridge and full time political posts as the path to becoming MPs.
People who have no problem with union involvement when it ensures the selection of this sort of candidate (such as Peter Mandelson and David Miliband in the strongly Labour north east seats of Hartlepool and South Shields) hate the thought that this could lead to different types of candidate who might even be responsive to their constituents rather than to various factions around Westminster. None of them have any problem with union money and local logistical support when elections come round, but don't actually want to carry out pro union policies.
This was a running sore through there Blair and Brown years, from which the unions got next to zero. The problem for both sides is this: many Labour supporters feel bitterly disillusioned from those years, especially over Iraq, but on a range of issues. There has frequently been talk of a left alternative, and there were the beginnings of one with Respect, but Labour has always succeeded in regaining its seats in subsequent elections. It gambles that this will continue. The majority of trade unions have stuck with Labour despite this growing disillusion. They will not want to break now.
But the continuing link between Labour and the unions, with all its historic importance for both sides, has to deliver something on both sides. The unions hoped this would be the case with Miliband (let's face it they are inured to low expectations) and they did not expect this confrontation. It demonstrates the grip the Blairites still have (or at least their ability to wreck things if they don't get their own way). It also demonstrates the different interests now represented by the unions and Labour in terms of resisting austerity or implementing it.
The People's Assembly reflected a very strong mood among union and Labour members for an end to neoliberal policies and a serious fight against the Tories and their big business supporters. Miliband's confrontation in the past week is a reminder that he and the people around him have a very different agenda. While many expect him to win the election in 2015, even this is looking more difficult as more people ask what exactly is the point of voting for a Labour Party which commits to defending Tory spending levels? This latest argument may inexorably bring closer the time when the unions are forced to reconsider exactly who and what they are paying all this money for.
If Labour wants to win back the working class, it has to reject Keir Starmer
By Reuben Bard-Rosenberg
The Corbyn Project was defeated by the historic strengths of conservatism and liberalism
What caused Labour's decline: 2019 vs 2017

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Human Rights in the Rear View Mirror: Colombian Commandos Training Mexican Military and Police
Cyril Mychalejko ,
UpsideDownWorld
In another misstep of the historic failure of Plan Colombia and the US supported War on Drugs
In another misstep of the historic failure of Plan Colombia and the US supported War on Drugs, Colombia is training thousands of Mexican soldiers, police and court officials in an effort to boost Mexico's fight against drug cartels.
Trainings have mostly taken place in Mexico, but now Mexican troops and police are traveling to Colombia to receive training from "Colombia's battle-tested police commandos," The Washington Post reported on Saturday. The article also suggests that, in addition to asserting itself as a regional power, Colombia is acting as a proxy for Washington because increased U.S. military presence in Mexico is not politically viable.
White House Drug Policy Director Richard Gil Kerlikowske, while meeting with Colombia's President Juan Manuel Santos Calderón in Bogotá on January 18, said that Colombia "serves as a beacon of hope for other nations struggling with the threat to democracy posed by drug trafficking and related crime."
A Beacon of Hope?
Kerlikowske's deceptively rosy assessment of Colombia and the effectiveness of Plan Colombia is severely undermined by the facts on the ground.
Earlier this month, Colombian military judge Alexander Cortes and his family were granted asylum by Switzerland. They were forced to flee the country after receiving death threats as a result of Cortes's ruling that the Colombian Army had been guilty of 55 instances of "false-positives", during which soldiers killed innocent young men and dressed them up as rebels in the military district of Urabá, Antioquia Department, in March of 2007.
A February 2009 cable from the U.S. Embassy in Bogotá released by WikiLeaks last year revealed that, despite thousands of extrajudicial murders committed by soldiers in the 'false-positives scandal', Colombian Army Inspector General Maj. Gen. Carlos Suarez, in charge of investigating the scandal, told an embassy official that then-President Álvaro Uribe continued "to view military success in terms of kills." In addition, military policy rewarded soldiers with "bonuses, promotions and vacation days." According to Human Rights Watch's (HRW) annual human rights report released on Monday, "As of May 2010, the Attorney General's Office was investigating 1,366 cases of alleged extrajudicial killings committed by state agents involving more than 2,300 victims. There have only been convictions in 63 cases."
But these types of problems have plagued Colombia for decades. "The CIA and senior U.S. diplomats were aware as early as 1994 that U.S.-backed Colombian security forces engaged in 'death squad tactics,' cooperated with drug-running paramilitary groups, and encouraged a 'body count syndrome,'" state declassified documents published by the National Security Archive in January 2009. This might account for why Colombia leads the world in cases of forced disappearances.
In 1997 the US Congress approved the "Leahy Provision" or "Leahy Law," an amendment to the Foreign Operations Appropriations Act which banned the US from giving anti-narcotics aid to any foreign military unit whose members have violated human rights.
Furthermore, Uribe, who currently teaches at Georgetown University, is being investigated by a Colombian congressional commission for using his country's intelligence office, the Department of Administrative Security (DAS), to spy on supreme court justices, rival politicians, journalists, human rights organizations and other civil society groups. In addition, according to the U.S. Labor Education in the Americas Project, the DAS "was exposed for providing paramilitaries a hit list of 23 trade unionists and others. The majority of the individuals on the list have since been killed or displaced."
Uribe, who in June was praised by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as a "remarkable example of democratic leadership", also saw some of his "most prominent political supporters" investigated for ties to paramilitaries. Now that his hand-picked successor and former defense minister is in power, Juan Manuel Santos Calderón can be expected to continue what Clinton calls "a great legacy of progress," and which Washington continuously and groundlessly gushes over.
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Mexico: From Bad to Worse?
In September, U.S. President Barack Obama praised Mexico for its "vast and progressive democracy."
Human Rights Watch's section on Mexico in Monday's report paints a different picture of this country's democratic institutions. The report documents that "while engaging in law enforcement activities, the armed forces have committed serious human rights violations, including killings, torture, and rapes," and that 1,100 complaints of human rights abuses have been filed against the Army with Mexico's National Human Rights Commission in the first six months of last year.
Amnesty International also released a report in December 2010, Mexico: Human rights violations by the military, in which the human rights organization criticizes the Mexican government for its inadequate pursuit of justice regarding allegations against the military. "There is a disturbing pattern of crimes committed by the military in their security operations, abuse that is being denied and ignored by both the civilian and the military authorities in Mexico," says Kerrie Howard, deputy director of Amnesty International's Americas programme.
Since Mexican President Felipe Calderon, whose 2006 election was marred by allegations of irregularities and fraud, unleashed the military to take the lead in the fight against drug cartels, close to 35,000 people have been killed, while "collateral" civilian deaths increased 172 percent from 2009 to 2010.
"If the killings continue to increase at the current rate, that total will rise to about 75,000 by the time the government's term in office ends in December 2012," Eduardo Guerrero Gutierrez, a political scientist and security consultant, told Canada's National Post.
The Latin American Herald Tribune also pointed out that, like in Colombia, Mexico's military are using "false-positive" methods to cover up civilian deaths. Meanwhile, a WikiLeaks cable dated Jan. 29, 2010 reveals that Washington, at least privately, is concerned with widespread corruption, low prosecution rates, and human rights abuses.
Extinguishing a Fire with Gasoline
The decision to allow Colombia to train Mexican authorities and military personnel to aid the fight in the drug war is akin to throwing gasoline on a fire, given both countries' records of human rights scandals and institutionalized impunity. Never mind the fact, as The Economist recently pointed out, that Colombia is still "the world's biggest cocaine producer," which calls into question the effectiveness of Washington's military approach to combat drug trafficking, or whether this is even their objective.
"The use of Colombian military trainers in Mexico may also be a way to get around the US legal requirement, contained in the Leahy Law, to exclude rights abusers in Mexico from receiving training and equipment," said John Lindsay-Poland, Research and Advocacy Director for the Fellowship of Reconciliation. He also noted that, unfortunately, "the Leahy Law doesn't put a filter on abuses by the trainers."
According to "Drug Czar" Richard Gil Kerlikowske's recent interview with CNN, this may mark part of the "next wave" of the Mérida Initiative, Washington's $1.6 billion security package to bolster anti-drug efforts in the region.
"There is [the] Mérida [Initiative] and the [Obama] administration is working on the shifts for the next wave of what will happen with Mérida…Mérida is not just a Plan Mexico; it is about Central America as well," he told CNN.
If that is the case, the resulting violence could light the whole region on fire.
Cyril Mychalejko is an editor at www.UpsideDownWorld.org.
Cyril Mychalejko
Cyril Mychalejko is an editor at www.UpsideDownWorld.org, an online magazine covering politics and activism in Latin America. He also serves on the board of the Canary Institute. This article was originally published at www.TowardFreedom.com.
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BuzzFeed's AI-Produced Content Experiment Is a Glimpse Into a Bleak Future


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International public health community supports SEATCA's Smoke-Free Index and urges rejection of PMI-funded Foundation for a Smoke-Free World (FSFW)
Philip Morris International (PMI) and the PMI-funded Foundation for a Smoke-Free World (FSFW) have hijacked public health's smoke-free terminology to detract from the global tobacco control treaty, the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). PMI claims it wants a smoke-free future, but it's one built on smokers shifting to heated tobacco products (HTP) and electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) such as e-cigarettes, purportedly less harmful alternative products, rather than quitting altogether. This is a tactic to promote the tobacco industry's new products, sustain tobacco company profits, and reposition the industry within the tobacco control policy space.
Since January 2019, PMI-funded FSFW has filed for trademark of "[Smoke-Free Index]" in the US, EU, UK, and Switzerland. Then, in March 2019, it announced it had appointed a research company, Euromonitor, and a think tank, SustainAbility, to develop "the first ever Smoke-Free Index",[i] which would evaluate actions of 15 tobacco companies to shift from cigarettes to alternative "smoke-free" products. Given PMI's aggressive promotion of its HTPs and ENDS, this report could well be an annual PR gimmick to endorse PMI and its new products.
In so doing, FSFW has misappropriated SEATCA's Smoke-Free Index to promote PMI's own corporate strategy and vested interests. Considering that SEATCA's Smoke-Free Index was first published in 2016, FSFW's use and trademarking of the term "Smoke-Free Index" is misleading, potentially confusing, and tantamount to wrongful appropriation of SEATCA's intellectual property.
News of FSFW's Smoke-Free Index has been met with skepticism by tobacco control campaigners and financial investors,[ii] and government and civil society rejection has led to the cancellation of regional dialogues organized in Turkey and Thailand by SustainAbility intended to inform this copycat index.
The international public health community supports SEATCA's Smoke-Free Index and rejects the PMI-funded Foundation for a Smoke-Free World.
[i] Foundation for a Smoke-Free World. Leading global research firms selected to create the first-ever smoke-free index, 18 March 2019. Available at: https://www.smokefreeworld.org/newsroom/leading-global-research-firms-selected-create-first-ever-smoke-free-index
[ii] Milburn, E. (14 May 2019). Planned smoke-free index met with skepticism from campaigners and investors. Responsible Investor. Available at: https://www.responsible-investor.com/home/article/fsfw/
Organizations and Individual Supporters:
Action on Smoking & Health, USA
Airspace Action on Smoking and Health, Canada
Austrian Council on Smoking and Health
Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, USA
Comité Nationale Contre Le Tabagisme (National Tobacco Control Committee), France
Corporate Accountability International, USA
Department of Health, Philippines
French Alliance against Tobacco and French National Committee against Smoking, Prof. Gerard Dubois, Honorary Chairman, France
Healthbridge Viet Nam
International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, France
Japan Society for Tobacco Control
Malaysian Women's Action for Tobacco Control & Health
Ministry of Health, National Tobacco Control Committee, Lao PDR
OxySuisse, Switzerland
Pratyasha Anti-Drugs Club, Helal Ahmed,Secretary General, Bangladesh
Smoke Free Partnership, EU
Society for Alternative Media and Research, Pakistan
Tobacco Free Portfolios, Australia
Dr. Widyatuti Soerojo, Indonesia
World Heart Federation, Switzerland
Below are excerpts from the statements of support by the international public health community:
Action on Smoking and Health (ASH US), USA
"Philip Morris International (PMI) has closely watched the public health community for decades and is always looking for ways to counteract and undermine our work. PMI funding a new entity, the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World, is their most recent attempt to hijack and destabilize civil society's work, so it's no surprise they would turn to patent lawyers to look for ways to undermine existing, respected reporting mechanisms like SEATCA's Smoke-Free Index."
Laurent Huber
Full Statement
"Airspace Action on Smoking and Health — the world's leading ALL-VOLUNTEER anti-tobacco/anti-nicotine organization, based in Vancouver, Canada — is extremely proud and honoured to support the current campaign by the South East Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA) to completely shut down one of Philip Morris International's newest front groups/scams (the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World)…specifically, the FSFW's recent efforts to trademark the title "Smoke-Free Index", which SEATCA first published in 2016…before FSFW was even established!"
Errol E. Povah
"The Smoke-Free Index was developed by the Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA) and has nothing to do with the fake index given by the same name by Philip Morris International (PMI). The Foundation for a Smoke-Free World (FSFW) funded solely by PMi hijacked the term "smoke-free" to make the public believe that PMI products like IQOS are equivalent to smoke-free."
Prim. Kurt Aigner, M.D., FCCP
Prof. Manfred Neuberger, M.D.
The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids stands with the Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA) in expressing outrage that the 'Foundation for a Smoke-free World' has co-opted SEATCA's important and long-standing Smoke-Free Index in a move designed to confuse decision-makers and the public. Sadly, it is no surprise that the foundation – an entity entirely funded by tobacco giant Philip Morris International – has chosen to co-opt the work of a respected health organization. This move fits the pattern of an organization whose purpose increasingly appears to be a public relations stunt to distract from proven public health solutions and help Philip Morris International undermine global efforts to reduce the death and disease caused by tobacco use.
The Philip Morris International-funded Foundation for a Smoke-free World has convinced two additional organizations to help in developing its dishonest version of the Smoke-Free Index: EuroMonitor and SustainAbility. In a normal world of respect for others' ideas and deference to organizations like SEATCA who have dedicated years of skilled effort to global public health, it would be unimaginable for an organization purporting to be a research foundation to aggressively take over the title and focus of SEATCA's Smoke-Free Index. However, in the current world in which Philip Morris International – the company that is a major cause of the world's eight million annual deaths from tobacco-related disease – is actively trying to convince policy makers and the public that it is concerned with health, the most that can be hoped for is that groups like EuroMonitor and SustainAbility will protect their own credibility by ending their partnerships with the Foundation for a Smoke-free World, and that other groups will refuse to work with the foundation when it comes calling.
Mark Hurley
Director of International Communications
Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids
"On behalf of Cancer Council Australia I am writing in support of your campaign to call out the absurdity of Phillip Morris funded Foundation for a Smoke-Free World's hijacking of SEATCA's Smoke-Free Index. SEATCA first published the index in 2016 and is at the forefront of confronting industry tactics within the region. We offer our support for you in countering this clear appropriation of SEATCA's intellectual property by an organisation funded entirely by Phillip Morris. Good luck with your efforts to counter this blatant attempt to take what is rightfully yours.
Professor Sanchia Aranda AM
Comité Nationale Contre Le Tabagisme (CNCT), France
"The Foundation for a Smoke-Free World, funded by the tobacco company Philip Morris, hijack the "Smoke-Free Index" intended to measure the implementation of one of the measures of the WHO treaty, the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, in order to protect from exposure to passive smoking. As early as 2016, even before the establishment of this foundation by the tobacco company, a publication was produced by civil society organizations: SEATCA, member of the Framework Convention Alliance attached to the treaty, using this index. The current goal of the tobacco company is clearly to spread its own messages by usurping this indicator, deliberately deceiving health actors and the general public, who may legitimately believe that these messages come from an independent body. The SEATCA alliance warns about these risks and the CNCT is particularly supportive of this warning process, particularly for health professionals.
This intentional hijacking of the term "smokefree" by both PMI and the FSFW is not only unseemly, but also deceptive and confusing, because the term "smoke-free" has long been used by the global tobacco control community and recognized by the public at large as referring to tobacco use, and most public health officials consider e-cigarettes and HTPs as new ways of smoking. Clearly, PMI continues to be a big part of the tobacco problem."
Emmanuelle Béguinot
Directrice, CNCT
Corporate Accountability International (CAI), USA
"Philip Morris International (PMI) has long tried to disrupt the vital role the global tobacco control community plays in curbing the tobacco epidemic. In 2017, Reuters exposed PMI's massive clandestine campaign1 to undermine global public health policymaking. The investigation revealed internal documents naming SEATCA directly as an organization the industry found particularly concerning to its tobacco operations. One such document even states, "we're still building ASEAN-wide counterweights to SEATCA, the major ATO [anti-tobacco organization] in Asia."[2] A central and important component of SEATCA's global tobacco control monitoring has been its Smoke-Free Index, first published in 2016."
Michėl Legendre
Associate Campaign Director, Corporate Accountability
Department of Health (DOH), Philippines
"The Department of Health (DOH) of the Philippines stands for health and the importance of enabling the public to make rational choices based on truthful information. Cigarettes, heated tobacco products (HTPs), and other tobacco products have overwhelming evidence of harm. E-cigarettes and HTPs have no sufficient data as to their safety profile. It is also worth noting that these products are addicting and potentially harmful as there is no clear evidence that they are useful for quitting smoking. Given these, it is prudent to uncover the deceptive messages and tactics of the groups that forward the market of HTPs and e-cigarettes claiming that these products are contributory in forwarding smoke free people and environment. To be smoke free is to be free from the use and exposure to cigarettes, e-cigarettes, heated tobacco and all related options—which is in opposition to the claims of tobacco industry front groups. These front groups include the Foundation for Smoke Free World (FSFW). Campaigns and publications of FSFW, and such organizations that encourage the use of emerging tobacco products, are misleading and confusing. Further, we regret the act of FSFW to hack the concept of the Smoke Free Index as conceptualized by Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA)—a partner of the ASEAN members in promoting health.
Countering and exposing the deceptive campaigns of the tobacco industry and its front groups is not just an endeavor; it is a FIGHT for the health and life of the present and future generations."
Dr. Rolando Enrique Domingo
Undersecretary, OIC – Director General, Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
HealthBridge, Viet Nam
"SEATCA has been working with its partners in the region, including HealthBridge Viet Nam, in developing and updating its Smoke-Free Index since 2016. SEATCA's Smoke-Free Index supports the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and is a well-known indicator to assess the implementation of smoke-free policies in the region. The recent use and trademarking of the term "Smoke-Free Index" by the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World (FSFW) funded by Philip Morris International is an act affecting the reputation of SEATCA and threatening tobacco control efforts worldwide. HealthBridge Viet Nam is strongly against FSFW's hijacking this term and calls on FSFW to immediately stop its Smoke-Free Index. HealthBridge Viet Nam calls on governments, organizations, and individuals around the world to reject the FSFW's Smoke-Free Index"."
On behalf of MOH Lao PDR we would like to support SEATCA on reject any partnership with PMI funded FSFW. and we also support by sharing through our medias partner and social medias.
Dr Katthanaphone Phandouangsy
"OxySuisse (Swiss tobacco control NGO based in Geneva) fully supports SEATCA's advocacy campaign. Philip Morris's hijacking, via its front organization Foundation for a Smoke-free World (FSFW), of the term "Smoke-free Index" cannot be accepted. We note that Philip Morris claims intellectual property not only of the trademark [SMOKE-FREE INDEX] – this is already unacceptable – but also of the term "Smoke-free Index", as is seen on the extract shown below taken from the website of FSFW (https://www.smokefreeworld.org/advancing-industry-transformation/smoke-free-index). The Smoke-free Index was introduced in 2016 by SEATCA for monitoring the implementation of Article 8 of the WHO Framework-Convention on Tobacco Control. Letting the tobacco multinational appropriate such an element of established tobacco control terminology would set a dangerous and worrying precedent. OxySuisse fully supports SEATCA in its move to oppose Philip Morris's predatory claim of ownership of the Smoke-free Index."
Pascal Diethelm
President, OxySuisse
Smoke-Free Partnership, Belgium
The Smoke Free Partnership (SFP) stands firmly behind SEATCA in its fight to defend its Smoke-Free Index against the actions of the Phillip-Morris International-funded Foundation for a Smoke-Free World (FSFW). The actions of FSFW serve to further the commercial interests of the tobacco industry and to endanger the reliable, trustworthy resources developed in support of the WHO FCTC by SEATCA. We appeal to governments, academia and civil society to continue rejecting and resisting any FSFW actions around this, and to join SEATCA against yet another unethical tobacco industry activity.
Anca Toma Friedlaender
Smoke Free Partnership
The Union supports SEATCA's campaign against latest attempts by PMI to undermine tobacco control
The Union supports SEATCA's campaign against the Philip Morris International (PMI) funded Foundation for a Smoke-free World (FSFW), which is attempting to hijack the "Smoke-Free Index" concept to further its own corporate agenda.
"The FSFW-funded 'smoke-free index' is yet another obvious marketing ploy intended to undermine tobacco control policy and promote the business interests of PMI," said Dr Gan Quan, Director of Tobacco Control at the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (The Union).
"PMI claims a commitment to reducing harm, but at the same time is continuing to promote the sale of cigarettes around the world, whilst actively interfering in public health policies which are proven to reduce tobacco use."
The FSFW has been reaching out to research organisations, NGOs and academics in search of partners to legitimise its attempts to promote smoking alternatives such as e-cigarettes and heated-tobacco products like IQOS, which PMI aggressively markets in low- and middle-income countries.
The public health community remains sceptical of the FSFW's agenda, however, and The Union has joined high profile organisations like WHO and hundreds of othersto publicly reject any form of collaboration with foundation.
In the past month, two regional meetings organised by the FSFW to inform the development of its "Smoke-Free Index" tool, scheduled to be held in Bangkok and Istanbul, have been cancelled due to a lack of confirmed attendees, following urgent calls by the public health community to boycott such events.
Dr Gan Quan said: "The public health community has been strong and vocal in its refusal to partner with the FSFW, and it is encouraging to see that this is working. It is important that we continue to stand against big tobacco, and support campaigns like SEATCA's which expose the industry's manipulative and deceitful tactics."
Gan Quan
Director of Tobacco Control at International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (The Union)
Tobacco-Free Portfolios
It has come to the attention of the Tobacco Free Portfolios that the 'Foundation for a Smoke-free World', the foundation funded by tobacco company Philip Morris International, is requesting input from investors on the diea of a 'Smoke-Free Index'. The Foundation has proposed multiple events via a third party – SustainAbility.
In relation to this initiative, we request that you kindly note the following:
Tobacco Free Portfolios does not endorse this initiative.
We stand united with the World Health Organisation, the UN Tobacco Treaty (the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control) and other organisations who will not engage with the above-named Foundation (Please see the following World Health Organisation Statement on the
Foundation: https://www.who.int/news-room/detail/28-09-2017-who-statement-on-philip-morris-funded-foundation-for-a-smoke-free-world and the
Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Statement: https://www.who.int/fctc/secretariat/head/statements/2017/commentary-on-the-launch-of-the-foundation-for-a-smoke-free-worl/en/).
We consider this initiative to be a direct challenge to the positive impact achieved to date by the finance sector in advancing tobacco-free finance and we strongly advise Signatories of the Tobacco-Free Finance Pledge to not engage with the Foundation or the proposed initiative.
Dr. Bronwyn King AO, MBBS, FRANZCR
CEO Tobacco Free Portfolios
Foundation funded by Philip Morris hijacks SEATCA's Smoke-Free Index
WHO affirms commitment to public health, rejects partnership with PMI foundation
SEATCA Statement on PMI's Foundation for a Smoke-free World
Secondhand Smoke Is Much More Than Just a Smelly Nuisance


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There is no email in this inbox yet. After you use this email address, you need to click the button Check Inbox continually to update. Usually an email will arrive within 10 seconds. If you are struggling with receiving an email for a long time, a problem of a sender could be the reason. In this case, you can get a new address by clicking the title at the top-left of this page and try again.
Already there's an automatically generated random ID! However, you can also use personally chosen ID. either would be good. What's important is that ID is changeable but the domain should be 'ese.kr'.
Widely open trashcan. Anyone who knows an address of a trashcan could look in it.
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Thank you to Mark Cremonni and Bank of America for their generous donation. Donors like them help keep our kitchen and shared mission alive. Mark is a volunteer and also pushed for us to receive such a generous donation from Bank of America. We cannot thank volunteers like him enough, because without them we wouldn't be able to feed the hungry. Thanks again to all who got involved and remember everyone can G.I.V.E Get.Involved.Volunteer.Engage. Volunteer or Donate today!


text:
Dealcorp delivers The Residences at Glenarm Square to Glen Iris
Published in: 25 March, 2019
Categories: The Residences Glenarm Square
From award-winning masterplanned communities in Bundoora to top-end penthouses in South Yarra, developer Dealcorp has been pioneering landmark residences for 35 years.
Originally established in 1984 by executive chairman David Kobritz, the business has grown organically over the years and has become one of the most respected names in the property industry.
The small team has completed 16 projects since 2011, such as Polaris 3083. The development is the perfect example of the benefits of urban renewal in Melbourne's inner north. The site, which had fallen into disuse, now has a vibrant retail precinct with a supermarket, Dan Murphy's, and 26 retailers which service both the Polaris apartment residents and the local neighbourhood.
"We pride ourselves on over-delivering on all aspects of a project," says David. "Whether it's upgraded tiling or flooring, increased landscaping, or improved signage, we will always look for ways throughout construction to improve the outcome of a project."
"We're extremely proud of all our projects, however, a recent highlight was our C.F Row Development, completed in late 2017."
"The site is located in one of Fitzroy's most iconic tree-lined streets and the original building was a beautiful brick warehouse which, surprisingly, wasn't heritage listed. We chose to retain the façade and the result is an iconic building which sets a new standard for apartment developments in the area."
With a vision like this, it's only natural the company jumped at the prospect of turning a crossing level nightmare into a residential precinct which will provide value for the whole Glen Iris community.
Named The Residences at Glenarm Square, the development is set to deliver a collection of one, two and three bedroom homes designed by award-winning studios Plus Architecture and Hecker Guthrie. Residents have access to exclusive shared amenities such as a fully equipped gymnasium and 20-metre indoor pool, as well as a communal lounge and business hub.
In addition to the 2,700 sqm site, there will be 1,000sqm of public retail and commercial space, spread over two levels. The north-facing plaza will deliver new office spaces, eateries and other modern amenities for both residents and commuters passing through.
"As a developer, it was critical for us to create new community connections at Glenarm Square, as well as apartment solutions," David says. "The site acts as an access point to the plaza for both the surrounding residents and those who will live in the building.
"Glenarm Square is an opportunity to regenerate and re-activate one of Melbourne's most in-demand inner eastern suburbs in a specific locale where this kind of community amenity is currently lacking."
Article Credit: Apartment Developments, published on the 23/03/2019


text:
Blog Tour: Rupture by Ragnar Jonasson
Today I'm pleased to host a stop on the Rupture blog tour by Ragnar Jonasson. Rupture is the fourth novel in the Dark Iceland series published by Orenda Books and translated by Quentin Bates. The action of Rupture follows on from Blackout but before the events of Nightblind.
Now for the blurb:
Two young couples move to the uninhabited, isolated fjord of Hedinsfjörður. Their stay ends abruptly when one of the women meets her death in mysterious circumstances. The case is never solved. Fifty years later an old photograph comes to light, and it becomes clear that the couples may not have been alone on the fjord after all…
In nearby Siglufjörður, young policeman Ari Thór tries to piece together what really happened that fateful night, in a town where no one wants to know, where secrets are a way of life. He's assisted by Ísrún, a news reporter in Reykjavik, who is investigating an increasingly chilling case of her own. Things take a sinister turn when a child goes missing in broad daylight. With a stalker on the loose, and the town of Siglufjörður in quarantine, the past might just come back to haunt them.
In the quaint town of Siglufjörður, the inhabitants are forced to keep themselves locked behind doors as a deadly strain of a virus hits which has everyone in a panic, and the whole town trapped in a quarantine.With no-one to seemingly 'police' Ari Thor is left with a lot of time on his hands. So when someone brings in an old photograph which provokes him to look into an very old case, Ari uncovers more than he bargains for. Running parrallel to this is Isrun, a news reporter who is concealing her own health issues who is forced to unpick a dangerous mystery of her own.
What can I say about this novel without giving anything away?
I loved revisiting Ari Thor and his world, as he struggles to face yet another mystery which seems just out of his grasp, forcing him to rely on his own initiative – which gets him into lots of trouble!
There are a few different point of view characters in this novel each with their own story line which blend seamlessly into one narrative, which I thoroughly enjoyed and just demonstrates the amazing writing skill of this author.
At the end of each chapter the author raises yet more questions which kept me on my toes with its subtle mysteries and mini-cliffhangers – I just couldn't put this book down!
I have always enjoyed the descriptions in the Dark Iceland series and this one didn't disappoint! The author showcases yet more of the beautiful but terrifying landscape of Iceland in this novel which built into yet another atmospheric but chilling read.
I thought this was another brilliant novel from Ragnar which has all the ingredients of a fantastic golden age mystery novel with hard-hitting themes and a flawless writing style which lulled me into a false sense of security.
If you haven't read any of the Dark Iceland series it is a must! And Rupture is definitely my favourite novel of the series so far.
With thanks to Karen Sullivan at Orenda Books for my copy of Rupture.
To buy this book from Amazon just click here.
Icelandic crime writer Ragnar Jónasson was born in Reykjavík, and currently works as a lawyer, while teaching copyright law at the Reykjavík University Law School. In the past, he's worked in TV and radio, including as a news reporter for the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service. Before embarking on a writing career, Ragnar translated fourteen Agatha Christie novels into Icelandic, and has had several short stories published in German, English and Icelandic literary magazines. Ragnar set up the first overseas chapter of the CWA (Crime Writers' Association) in Reykjavík, and is co-founder of the international crime-writing festival Iceland Noir. Ragnar's debut thriller Snowblind became an almost instant bestseller when it was published in June 2015, with Nightblind (winner of the Dead Good Reads Most Captivating Crime in Translation Award) and then Blackout following soon after. To date, Ragnar Jónasson has written five novels in the Dark Iceland series, which has been optioned for TV by On the Corner, and had rights sold in fourteen countries. He lives in Reykjavík with his wife and two daughters.
To find out more about Ragnar Jónasson follow him on Twitter @ragnarjo or visit his website here.
Don't forget to check out all the other stops on the tour as well!
Posted in Blog Tour, Book review | Tagged Ari Thor, Blog Tour, Dark Iceland Series, Golden Age Mystery, Orenda Books, Ragnar Jonasson, Rupture | 1 Comment
Deep Down Dead, Rupture Launches and Warming the Blood event
So last week I was super pleased to be invited to a few events to kick off the 2017 -and boy did they not disappoint!
Last Tuesday I headed over to Waterstones Piccadilly for the launch of Steph Broadribb, aka Crime Thriller Girl, debut novel Deep Down Dead, published by Orenda Books.
As part of the launch Steph was interviewed by the wonderful Martyn Waites where conversation soon turned to handcuffs and tasers. There was also cookies, cake, JD and wine on offer which was fab along with book signings making it a fun and enjoyable evening.
The launch was a packed out event with what I can only describe as the crime community coming out in force to support Steph – I am fortunate to have already read this novel which I thought was amazing! I'm very fortunate to also have been quoted as a blogger in there, so if you haven't already go read it!
So now on to a very busy Wednesday – to kick-off the night I attended Ragnar Jonasson's pre-lash launch for Rupture at Goldsboro books, published by Orenda Books, where lots of cupcakes were on offer. This was a lovely, intimidate event where we all raised a toast to Ragnar and Karen Sullivan – I can't wait to finish reading Rupture, it's magnificent.
If that wasn't enough, I then hot-footed it to an event – Warming the Blood in January hosted by Crime Files at Headine Towers.
This again was a fabulous event with publicists and authors gathering to showcase the upcoming new titles from Quercus, Headline and Hodder & Stoughton, as well as to talk all things book-related over a glass of wine. I got to speak to lots of lovely people, including some new faces, which I loved. At the end of the event you were offered a goodie bag by the lovely Crime Files team…which some new books and proofs I can't wait to sink my teeth into!
Posted in Event | Leave a comment
*Blog Tour The One by John Marrs*
Today I'm super thrilled to be a part of The One blog tour by John Marrs. I adored this book and cannot put into words how good it was, but will try along with a cheeky Q&A with the author. As always don't forget to stop off at all the other stops on this blog tour – #MatchYourDNA
How far would you go to find THE ONE?
One simple mouth swab is all it takes. One tiny DNA test to find your perfect partner – the one you're genetically made for.
A decade after scientists discover everyone has a gene they share with just one person, millions have taken the test, desperate to find true love. Now, five more people take the test. But even soul mates have secrets. And some are more shocking – and deadlier – than others…
A psychological thriller with a difference, this is a truly unique novel which is guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat.
Oh My – This was such a superb read which had me on the edge of my seat most of the time with all it's twists and surprises I just didn't see coming. It is definitely a psychological thriller with a difference.
The One tells the story of five characters who have all taken the Match Your DNA test, but what turns out as a simple DNA swab which millions of other have done previously, quickly turns into something more sinister. Something more shocking than they could ever have imagined.
Nick is content with his fiance Sally, or so he thinks, right up until the point she begs him to take the test. But what could possibly go wrong when he is matched with a straight man?
Ellie is a successful businesswoman, closed off from the world but then she is matched. Can she open her heart? And what could go wrong when she does?
Jade is matched with a man halfway across the world, but does she have the guts to leave everything behind to meet the love of her life?
Mandy is ecstatic when she discovers she has been matched to the man of her dreams, after her past relationships but then she starts looking him up online…
Christopher is a psychopath who is so wrapped up in his own project that when he meets his match he is unaware of the effect she will truly have on him.
I loved how the author superbly weaves each of the character's story, giving equal weight to each one while ending each chapter with a smallish-cliffhanger, leaving me as the reader needing to read more. It was one of those books where because of the short chapters you could keep reading another and another, although because I did just that one morning it forced me to literally run to work.
It was a book which really built the tension up from the word go with the author trickling surprise after surprise until you thought you couldn't take anymore, well until the author wacked me with yet another corker of a twist about halfway through – turning the story completely on it's head.
I just loved every minute of this book which had me literally gasping out loud with the many surprises and twists I couldn't keep up with! I'm still not sure whose story was the most disturbing which makes it all the better. This was a novel so full of high drama which made for a fantastic read! I would recommend for all lovers of psychological crime.
I wonder, would you take the test? I'm not quite sure if I would anymore…
So now onto the fab Q&A with John Marrs:
Welcome John to the CKT blog.
Thank you! I'm actually big fan of your reviews. In fact it was your review on The Kind Worth Killing last year that encouraged me to buy it and it's become one of my firm favourites.
Aww thank you, to start off with, can you tell us a little bit about your novel The One?
Of course. It's set in the present, but ten years after a gene has been discovered in all of us that links us to one other person in the world. And that person is the one who you are pre-programmed to fall in love with. However, you have no say over who it is. It could be someone in a different age bracket, religion, skin colour or of the same sex. To find the person, you just do a mouth swab, send it to an agency and when you get a Match, you'll be informed. My story follows five people who have taken the test and we watch how their relationships proceed. And some take much darker twists and turns than others!
The One has such an interesting concept which I love – how did you come up with the idea of having a DNA test leading to something more sinister?
In December 2015, my partner and I were planning our wedding in New York. I was heading down the escalator on the London Underground thinking about how lucky I was to have found 'the one' and how different the world of dating might be if we knew there was someone out there who was made for us. Not just a soul mate, but someone who physically was made for you. Obviously if these people met and they were all 'happy ever afters,' it'd be a short book. So I picked five characters and started playing God with their lives.
The One is told from five different characters point of views, who is your favourite character from the novel and why?
I have two. One is Christopher who, without giving too much away, has psychopathic tendencies. So many books choose a psychopath as a central character and blame something awful in their childhood for how they turned out. I didn't want to do that, I wanted him to be from a normal background but who's brain was wired differently and got his kicks in a way you or I wouldn't. My other favourite is Nick, a straight guy who's about to marry his girlfriend until he discovers his Match is with another man, who is also straight. I liked writing his story a lot because of the awkwardness of what could happen when two men who aren't gay fall in love with each other.
With five different story lines, how did you keep track of everything? Did you plot the story out first or dive right in and see where it takes you? Or a mixture of the two?
It depended on what mood I was in as to which characters I would work on thath day. I can't work methodically so I'd do a bit here, a bit there and hope it all came together when I edited it to become draft one. Also some of the characters were easier to write than others. There was one character I wasn't so keen on and I almost cut her out of the final version. But Emily, my editor at Del Rey, helped me to transform her into someone a lot more interesting and now she's one of my favourites. I very loosely plotted out which direction each character's story was going to take but more often than not, I'd get a lightbulb moment and have an idea that would turn the story on its head.
I am a terrible reader. Since I started writing books, I don't have time to sit down and read any more. Trying to juggle a full time job as a journalist alongside writing books and spending time with my husband and our families means I don't get the time to spend a few hours reading novels. I used to download a lot of podcasts, but my New Year's resolution has been to download audio books as I keep missing out on great reads. However, I've just ordered Peter Swanson's first and latest book in physical format, so I'm going to make some time for him.
I have just finished re-editing my first novel, The Wronged Sons, which will be released in late Spring on the Thomas & Mercer book label, although it'll have a different title and cover. I've also just completed my first draft of book four, a psychological thriller under the working title of The Good Samaritan. It's about a volunteer at a helpline who has her own agenda. That probably won't be released until 2018 though.
And most importantly, would you take the test?
No, I'm afraid I wouldn't. My other half, also called John just to confuse matters, is perfect for me. So I'm more than happy to say no to the test!
Thank you John for letting me grill you, it's been a lot of fun!
It's been a pleasure. And thanks for letting me stop off on my first ever Blog tour and visit your murderous corner of the Internet!
Thanks to Stephenie Naulls and Ebury Publishing for my ARC.
The One isn't quite out yet, but with the ebook out on 26th January 2017 and the Paperback out 4th May 2017, you can preorder it here.
To find out more about John Marrs follow him on Twitter at @johnmarrs1.
Posted in Author interview, Blog Tour, Book review | Tagged Blog Tour, Book review, John Marrs, Match Your DNA, The One | 5 Comments
*Blog Tour Deep Down Dead Part One*
So today I'm thrilled to be hosting a stop on the wonderful Deep Down Dead Blog Tour by Steph Broadribb, published by Orenda. For the tour I thought I would re publish my review of Deep Down Dead. But do check out my blog a bit later for my interview with JT, one of my favourite characters from this novel.
As always don't forget to check out all the other stops on this tour as well!
Blurb: 'Lori Anderson is as tough as they come, managing to keep her career as a fearless Florida bounty hunter separate from her role as single mother to nine-year-old Dakota, who suffers from leukaemia. But when the hospital bills start to rack up, she has no choice but to take her daughter along on a job that will make her a fast buck. And that's when things start to go wrong. The fugitive she's assigned to haul back to court is none other than JT, Lori's former mentor – the man who taught her everything she knows … the man who also knows the secrets of her murky past.
Not only is JT fighting a child exploitation racket operating out of one of Florida's biggest theme parks, Winter Wonderland, a place where 'bad things never happen', but he's also mixed up with the powerful Miami Mob. With two fearsome foes on their tails, just three days to get JT back to Florida, and her daughter to protect, Lori has her work cut out for her. When they're ambushed at a gas station, the stakes go from high to stratospheric, and things become personal.'
OMG I have no words to express how amazing this book is. I literally read this in a day because I just couldn't put it down – it was that good!
Lori is a bounty hunter struggling to make ends meet and cover her daughter's hospital bills so when she is handed a seemingly straight forward assignment she thinks her luck has changed. That is until Lori comes face to face with the bounty – JT; her ex-mentor who she has a history with.
I love love love the character of bad-ass Lori; a single mum who has had to toughen up just to survive, and charismatic JT who have to work together once again as they face a number of different enemies hell-bent on destroying both their lives.
Lori is such a stand-out character who is like a female lioness, unrelenting in her quest to protect her daughter and will stop at nothing to make sure she does. It is so refreshing to have such a strong and fierce female action hero, I just fell in love with her character.
Reading this book you can't forget JT, he is literally oozing sex appeal and one who I'n dying to read about again. I also enjoyed Dakota's story which the author, Steph, does a wonderful job of capturing the innocence of a doe-eyed nine-year old girl who is forced along on her mum's bounty hunter journey.
As I read this novel I discovered more about Lori's past and her history with JT which the author does a stand out job of weaving it into the present day action without it spoiling the main narrative.
One other thing I adored was Steph's descriptions of the theme park Winter Wonderland in Florida with the intricate details really made me feel like I was right there running along with the characters.
I won't say much more as I think the novel does that for itself. What I will say is this: It is a fast-paced, nail-biting, hard hitting novel which not only takes you on an all guns blazing action adventure but will also take you through the emotional ringer. Yet another stand out novel published by Orenda Books which every crime fan must read. I just can't wait to get my mitts on the next instalment in the series!
With thanks to Karen Sullivan at Orenda Books for my advanced review copy.
Posted in Blog Tour, Book review, Crime Thriller | Tagged Dakota, Deep Down Dead, JT, Lori Anderson, Orenda Books, Steph Broadribb | Leave a comment
Blog Tour: Lying In Wait by Liz Nugent
To kick off the New Year I am excited to be hosting the next stop on Liz Nugent's Lying In Wait blog tour.
So, as part of the tour I have a fab Q&A with Liz, the author, along with my review.
Welcome to the CKT blog, Liz.
To start off with, can you tell us a little bit about your novel, Lying in Wait and what inspired the idea for this novel?
Lying in Wait details the story of the murder of a young woman in 1980 and the consequences for the family of the murderer as well as the family of the victim. At the centre of the story is a monumentally disturbed and obsessive maternal character, Lydia.
A man once told me that he strongly suspected his father had murdered a prostitute. He had no evidence or no way of proving it. He never had the courage to challenge his father and went to his grave wondering. He told me this story about 25 years ago and he is long dead now. I always wondered what it would be like to grow up in a house where you suspect your father is a murderer.
Lying in Wait is told from the view point of three different characters. My favourite character to read was Lydia's view point as she was such an interesting and toxic character, but who was your favourite view-point character to write and why?
I really enjoyed writing Lydia because she says and thinks the most outrageous things and I find snobbery hilarious. But the challenge for me was to keep her real so that she is not a cartoon villain, so I had to explore her past to explain her current psychosis, but you know, when you are writing a character, you have to 'become' them a little so you do actually grow to like them no matter how monstrous they are.
I identified with Laurence the most because he is a coward like me who will do anything to avoid confrontation. Karen is the most decent character. She just wants the truth and is extremely tenacious about getting it.
Your novel features a number of time points, starting with 1980, and is full of many twists and turns which I loved! How did you keep track of everything that was going on? Did you plot the story out first or just dived right in? Or a mixture of the two?
I always start off with a half-baked notion but then I find tangents that lead me down more interesting paths as I go. I literally make it up as I go along. I do however, often start at the middle or the end and work my way backwards or forwards from there. Keeping track of things is difficult. It is like when you were a teenager and you lied to your mum about where you were going, but you have to remember the lie and remember all of the details of who knows what. It's that multiplied by a thousand. Luckily, I lied to my mother A LOT when I was a teenager so I got a lot of practise!
Lying in Wait is actually your second novel. How did you find writing a novel the second time round after the success of your first one, Unravelling Oliver? Did you feel added pressure to write Lying in Wait?
The second novel is definitely harder than the first because you have the weight of expectation, a deadline, a genre into which you must fit, and a lot of readers who you don't want to disappoint. The pressure is immense. I'm writing my third novel now, and it's even worse.
The first draft of Lying in Wait was rejected. I rewrote about 75% of it in five months to meet the deadline. Funny thing is, the rewrite wasn't half as tortuous as the first draft. I don't mind rewrites. I know this is unusual and most writers hate them, but for me the wrenching of an initial story out of my head and on to the page is the most painful. I'd rather have root canal treatment.
Lying in Wait has an underlying theme of lies, hidden secrets and a mother's suffocating love. Can you tell us a little bit about why you wanted to explore this in Lying in Wait and what fascinated you most about this darker side of your characters?
I have always been fascinated by the darker characters in literature. Think of Wuthering Heights and Heathcliff, for example, and imagine how his life (and Cathy's) might have been so different if she had returned his love. She spurned him because of her own snobbery and consequently, they were both miserable for the rest of their lives. Another Bronte sister had Mr Rochester lock his mad wife in the attic while he entertained lavishly with balls and parties. On the outside, these people had money and servants and big houses, but inside, there was tragedy that ran through generations. I find that interesting.
Talking about the theme of secrets, do you have a secret which you would be willing to share with us?
I just ate the Curlywurly my husband thought he had hidden. I am going to plead ignorance and blame my nephew.
Apart from your own fabulous novels, what other crime novels have you read and would recommend as a must for die-hard crime fans, like myself?
The best I have read in recent times is The Dark Adapted Eye by Ruth Rendell (writing as Barbara Vine). It is so brilliantly structured as the truth is drip fed to the reader bit by bit. An absolute classic.
I really enjoy Jane Casey's Maeve Kerrigan series. Her female detective and Neanderthal-but-strangely-attractive colleague Derwent are a wonderful team.
I'm also anxiously waiting for Sinéad Crowley's third novel. She has a female detective, Claire Boyle, at the centre of her books too. I'm wondering if Claire's fragile marriage will survive the next case.
My third novel is called Skin Deep. It's in the early stages so I'm afraid anything I say about it is subject to change. It's about a woman who is scarred, but not just on the surface.
I would like to say a big thanks to Liz for letting me grill her!
Now for the Blurb and my Review:
A Mother's Love Can Be Murder
Lydia Fitzsimons lives in the perfect house with her adoring husband and beloved son. There is just one thing Lydia yearns for to make her perfect life complete, though the last thing she expects is that pursuing it will lead to murder. However, needs must – because nothing can stop this mother from getting what she wants …
Review: I adored this novel with its cast of compelling but damaged characters, whose toxic lives seem to leap of the page and draw me further into the story.
The story starts off with a bang. I loved it from the very first line where the chilling words 'My husband did not mean to kill Annie Doyle, but the lying tramp deserved it' truly haunted me. The narrative immediately grabbed my attention, already making me question things like why did he kill her? Why is she a lying tramp? What happened? Is the Lydia telling the truth?
I think my favourite character by far has to be Lydia. Even though she is a serial manipulator and a truly ghastly person, I thought she was a truly fascinating character which kept me reading on. I wonder what this says about me?
In this novel, the author creates a dark and claustrophobic world with its twisted tale of deceit and hidden truths and suffocating love. What is there not to love?
I don't want to say anything else as I may spoil it, but what I will say is this is a dark and compulsive read full of twists and turns.
Liz Nugent has worked in Irish film, theatre and television. She is an award-winning writer of radio and television dramas and has written short stories for children and adults. Her first novel, the No 1 bestselling Unravelling Oliver, won the 2014 IBA Crime Fiction Award. She lives in Dublin with her husband.
With thanks to Sara D'Arcy at Penguin Random House for my advanced review copy.
To buy this book from Amazon click here.
To buy this book from Waterstones click here.
To find out more about Liz Nugent check her out on Twitter at @lizzienugent.
Don't forget to check out all the other fab stops on the Blog Tour!
Posted in Blog Tour, Book review, Psychological thrillers | Tagged Author interview, Blog Tour, Liz Nugent, Lying In Wait, psychological thriller | 1 Comment


text:
Bhumibol Adulyadej
From Wikiquote
Bhumibol Adulyadej (Thai: ภูมิพลอดุลยเดช) (5 December 1927 - 13 October 2016), conferred with the title King Bhumibol the Great in 1987 (officially conferred by King Vajiralongkorn in 2019), was the ninth monarch of Thailand from the Chakri dynasty, titled Rama IX. Reigning since 9 June 1946, he was the world's longest-reigning current head of state from the death of Emperor Hirohito of Japan in 1989 until his own death in 2016. During his reign, he was served by a total of 30 prime ministers beginning with Pridi Banomyong and ending with Prayut Chan-o-cha.
Development of the nation must be carried out instages, starting with the laying of the foundation by ensuringthe majority of the people with their basic necessities throughthe use of economical means and equipment in accordancewith theoretical principles. Once reasonably firm foundationhas been laid and in effect, higher levels of economic growthand development should next be promoted.
"Speech given at the ceremony of conferring degrees at Kasetsart University" (18 July 1974)
It is highly important to encourage and help people inearning their living and supporting themselves with adequatemeans, because those who are gainfully employed andself-supporting are capable of contributing definitelytowards higher levels of development.
Some complained they were asked too much to sacrificefor the sake of common interest that they were annoyed tohear. They might think what they would get in return if theykeep sacrificing. Actually, doing good for the sake of common interest does not bear fruits only to the public but also to the individuals....
"Speech given to the students at Khon Kaen University" (20 December 1971)
The Nation belongs to everyone, not one or two specific people. The problems exist because we don't talk to each other and resolve them together. The problems arise from 'bloodthirstiness'. People can lose their minds when they resort to violence. Eventually, they don't know why they fight each other and what the problems they need to resolve are. They merely know that they must overcome each other and they must be the only winner. This no way leads to victory, but only danger. There will only be losers, only the losers. Those who confront each other will all be the losers. And the loser of the losers will be the Nation.... For what purpose are you telling yourself that you're the winner when you're standing upon the ruins and debris?
A television broadcast of King Bhumibol Adulyadej to Suchinda and Chamlong. (20 May 1992)[1]
If we are a highly advanced country, there is only oneway to go: backwards. Mind you, those highly industrializedcountries are bound to go down, and down in a very dangerous way. On the other hand, if we use a "poor man's"method of administration, without being too dogmatic about theory, but with the spirit of Unity in mind, that is, with mutual tolerance, we will have more stability.
"Speech given on the occasion of the Royal Birthday Anniversary" (4 December 1991)
All Thais should realise this point a lot and behave and perform our duties accordingly, our duty for the sake of the public, for stability, security for our nation of Thailand.
"Thai king urges mutual support in birthday speech" in BBC (5 December 2013)
Sufficiency means to lead a reasonably comfortable life, without excess, or overindulgence in luxury, but enough. Some things may seem to be extravagant, but if it brings happiness, it is permissible as long as it is within the means of the individual. This is another interpretation of the sufficiency economy or system. Last year, when I mentioned the word sufficiency, I mentally translated it and actually spelled it out as self-sufficiency; that is why I said sufficiency for the individual. In fact, this sufficiency economy has a wider meaning than just self-sufficiency. Self-sufficiency means that the individual produces the things to fulfill his own needs without having to purchase them from others; the individual can live entirely on his own.
"Speech given to the audience of well-wishers on the occasion of the Royal Birthday Anniversary at the Dusidalai Hall, Chitralada Villa, Dusit Palace" (4 December 1998)
If the King can do no wrong, it is akin to looking down upon him, because the King is not being treated as a human being. The King can do wrong.
As quoted in 2005, "Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej: One of the world's longest-reigning monarchs" in CNN (14 October 2016)
If they want to write about me in a good way, they should write how I do things that are useful. If they want to criticize me, I don't care, I don't mind. But they must criticize me fairly. Usually the criticism is not fair. Or the praise, even the praise sometimes is not fair.
"King Bhumibol's Reign" in The New York Times (21 May 1989)
My philosophy has been to take things day by day. When I talk about this philosophy it makes people perhaps a little surprised.
I do some things that are within my rights and then they see that it is something that is all right. So they begin to understand that I am doing things not for my own enrichment or my own interest. It is for the whole country.
You can stay in the frame of the law, You do what the law says. That is, if you say something, the Prime Minister or a minister must countersign, and if he is not there to countersign, we cannot speak. That is one way to do it - do nothing, just nothing at all. The other way is to do too much, use the influence we have to do anything. That doesn't work either. We must be in the middle, and working in every field.
Thailand has been a peaceful nation for a long time; this is because of the existence of national solidarity and because members of society have performed their duty in a complementary manner with each other for the interest of the whole nation.
"The king's birthday speech" in New Mandala (5 December 2013)
Encyclopedic article on Bhumibol Adulyadej at Wikipedia
Media related to Bhumibol Adulyadej at Wikimedia Commons
↑ Error on call to Template:cite web: Parameters url and title must be specified (in th). Golden Jubilee Network (1999).
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text:
Q: Layout a Manager with USE_ALL_HEIGHT style without overriding sublayout() in BlackBerry I want to layout three VerticalFieldManager in a screen with NO_VERTICAL_SCROLL. One manager should be aligned to TOP, one should be aligned to BOTTOM and the last one should consume the rest of the height between the former two.
Can it be achieved without overriding sublaout() for any Manager? The result I want to achieve is:

I layouted this screen with the following code. The problem is that I wasn't able to do it without overriding sublayout().

public class LayoutSandboxScreen extends MainScreen {
    public LayoutSandboxScreen() {
        super(NO_VERTICAL_SCROLL);

        VerticalFieldManager vfmTop = new VerticalFieldManager(USE_ALL_WIDTH);
        vfmTop.setBackground(BackgroundFactory.createSolidBackground(Color.GREEN));
        vfmTop.add(new ButtonField("TOP", FIELD_HCENTER));

        final VerticalFieldManager vfmCenter = new VerticalFieldManager(USE_ALL_WIDTH);
        HorizontalFieldManager hfmCenter = new HorizontalFieldManager(USE_ALL_HEIGHT | FIELD_HCENTER);
        vfmCenter.setBackground(BackgroundFactory.createSolidBackground(Color.RED));
        hfmCenter.add(new ButtonField("CENTER", FIELD_VCENTER));
        vfmCenter.add(hfmCenter);

        final VerticalFieldManager vfmBottom = new VerticalFieldManager(USE_ALL_WIDTH);
        vfmBottom.setBackground(BackgroundFactory.createSolidBackground(Color.BLUE));
        final ButtonField btn = new ButtonField("BUTTOM", FIELD_HCENTER);
        vfmBottom.add(btn);

        VerticalFieldManager vfmSecond = new VerticalFieldManager(USE_ALL_HEIGHT) {
            protected void sublayout(int maxWidth, int maxHeight) {
                setExtent(maxWidth, maxHeight);

                layoutChild(vfmBottom, maxWidth, maxHeight);
                int bottomHeight = vfmBottom.getHeight();

                layoutChild(vfmCenter, maxWidth, maxHeight - bottomHeight);
                setPositionChild(vfmCenter, 0, 0);

                setPositionChild(vfmBottom, 0, maxHeight - bottomHeight);
            }
        };

        vfmSecond.add(vfmBottom);
        vfmSecond.add(vfmCenter);

        add(vfmTop);
        add(vfmSecond);
    }
}

A: Since you're already using a MainScreen, have you tried using setTitle() and setStatus() for the top and bottom VerticalFieldManager?  I think that will do what you want.
Edit
If MainScreen is too specific, you can write your own MainManager, which supports the same layout components as MainScreen - banner, title, main content, status.  You will have to write your own layout code though, so you'll still be implementing sublayout(), which you specifically wanted to avoid.  The plus side is that this will be more composable - you won't be overriding the sublayout() method in an ad-hoc way on random UI components.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Republicans and Democrats at odds on overtime pay
by: Raquel Martin
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) — The Trump administration has put forth a new policy for what workers can collect overtime pay, but Democrats are pushing back, saying it will short millions of people.
Currently, companies do not have to pay overtime to salaried workers who make more than $23,000 annually. The Obama administration tried to raise that figure to $47,000, but businesses complained, states sued and the courts ultimately blocked it.
"It sounds great in the short term but there can be a lot of long-term and even short-term unintended consequences," Patrice Onwuka of the Independent Women's Forum said of the Obama proposal, listing possibilities like lower wages, layoffs and a more stressful environment for workers forced to rush through their day.
The Trump administration is trying to split the difference, setting the cap at $35,000.
Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, says that's not good enough.
"They're not willing to tell corporations, 'You're going to pay overtime to these people because they earned it,'" he said. "That's reprehensible when you see the number of millionaires and billionaires that are in this White House."
He and 19 other Democrats are urging the U.S. Labor Department to withdraw the proposed rule.
Brown is also pushing a bill to make the $47,000 cap the law. He's working to score Republican support but said he knows that's a long shot.
More Washington-DC Stories
Army Futures Command, now a year into modernization plan, almost fully operational
by Brie Jackson / Jul 19, 2019
WASHINGTON (Nexstar) -- It's been nearly one year since the Army announced its largest reorganization in decades. It's called Army Futures Command.
Military leaders said it's a key part of the Army's modernization plan and efforts to combat emerging threats from adversaries including Russia and China.
House passes bill to raise minimum wage to $15 an hour
by Morgan Wright / Jul 18, 2019
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) — The House of Representatives passed a bill Thursday that would gradually raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour.
The 231 - 199 vote was largely along party lines with all but six Democrats voting yes and all but three Republicans voting no.
Bill would prioritize workers amid bankruptcy
by Raquel Martin / Jul 18, 2019
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) — Democrats and former workers from bankrupt retail giants like Toys R Us and Sears Us are calling out Wall Street.
At a press conference on Capitol Hill Thursday, laid off workers shared stories of unkept promises, saying that instead of helping, private equity firms drained the companies financially to make a quick buck and left them without jobs and benefits.
Newsfeed Now / 1 hour ago
FaceApp foreign roots could pose threats to user privacy
Deputies: Florida man tied up wife's lover, cut off penis
Newsfeed Now / 2 days ago


Today we can simulate 10 percent of the human brain in a supercomputer, but a whole brain simulation would revolutionise neuroscience, unlock the secrets of the brain and lead to new breakthrough cognitive treatments.
The renowned physicist Dr. Richard Feynman once said "What I cannot create, I do not understand. Know how to solve every problem that has been solved," and now an increasingly influential subfield of neuroscience has taken Feynman's words to heart. To theoretical neuroscientists the key to understanding how intelligence works is, apparently, to recreate it inside a supercomputer, neuron by neuron, and they're hoping a new algorithm they've developed will very soon let them reconstruct the neural processes that produce a thought, a memory, or a feeling, and ultimately allow them to create a real life digital simulation of the entire human brain – something that's never been done before.
With a digital brain in place they'll be able to test out current theories of cognition and explore the parameters that lead to a "malfunctioning mind" and conditions like dementia. As philosopher Dr. Nick Bostrom at the University of Oxford argues, simulating the human mind is perhaps one of the most promising, albeit laborious, ways to recreate and surpass human level ingenuity, but there's just one problem – traditional supercomputers still can't handle the massively parallel nature of our brains. Squashed into our 3 pound organ are over 100 billion interconnected neurons and trillions of synapses, and that's a lot for a computer, even a supercomputer, to get its circuits around.
Even the most powerful supercomputers today balk and fall over at that scale, for example, so far, machines like the ultra-powerful K computer at the Advanced Institute for Computational Science in Kobe, Japan can only simulate at most 10 percent of neurons and their synapses.
This is partially due to the software the systems are running, as computational hardware inevitably gets faster, it's the algorithms that increasingly become the bottleneck that's holding us back from realising our goal of 100 percent whole-brain simulation.
"With this new technology we can exploit the increased parallelism of modern microprocessors a lot better than previously, which will become even more important in exascale computers," said study author Jakob Jordan from the Jülich Research Center in Germany, who published the work in Frontiers in Neuroinformatics.
"It's a decisive step towards creating the technology to achieve simulations of brain-scale networks," the authors said.
Current supercomputers are composed of hundreds of thousands of subdomains called nodes, and each node has multiple processing centers that can support a handful of virtual neurons and their connections, but the main issue in brain simulation is how to effectively represent those millions of neurons and their connections inside these processing centers in a way that cuts down time and power.
One of the most popular simulation algorithms today is one called the "Memory Usage Model." Before scientists simulate changes in their simulated neuronal networks they need to first create all the neurons and their connections within the virtual brain using the algorithm, but here's the rub – for any neuronal pair, the model stores all information about connectivity in each node that houses the receiving neuron, something called the Postsynaptic neuron.
In other words, the presynaptic neuron, which sends out electrical impulses, is shouting into the void, the algorithm has to figure out where a particular message came from by solely looking at the receiver neuron and data stored within its individual node.
It sounds like a strange setup, but the model allows all the nodes to construct their particular portion of the neural network in parallel. This dramatically cuts down boot-up time, which is partly why the algorithm is so popular, but as you probably guessed, it comes with severe problems in scaling. The sender node broadcasts its message to all receiver neuron nodes. This means that each receiver node needs to sort through every single message in the network, even ones meant for neurons housed in other nodes. That means a huge portion of messages get thrown away in each node because the addressee neuron isn't present in that particular node.
Imagine overworked post office staff skimming an entire country's worth of mail to find the few that belong to their jurisdiction and you get the picture. It'd be crazily inefficient, but that's pretty much what goes on in today's traditional Memory Usage Model.
The problem becomes worse as the size of the simulated neuronal network grows as well. Each node needs to dedicate memory storage space to an "address book" listing all its neural inhabitants and their connections. And at the scale of billions of neurons it shouldn't come as any surprise that this address book becomes a huge memory hog.
The receiver nodes contain two blocks of information. The first is a database that stores data about all the sender neurons that connect to the nodes. Because synapses come in several sizes and types that differ in their memory consumption, this database further sorts its information based on the type of synapses formed by neurons in the node.
This setup already dramatically differs from its predecessor, in which connectivity data is sorted by the incoming neuronal source, not synapse type, and because of this, the node no longer has to maintain its address book.
"The size of the data structure is therefore independent of the total number of neurons in the network," the authors explained.
The second chunk stores data about the actual connections between the receiver node and its senders. Similar to the first chunk, it organises data by the type of synapse, within each type of synapse, it then separates data by the source, the sender neuron.
In this way, the algorithm is far more specific than its predecessor, rather than storing all connection data in each node, the receiver nodes only store data relevant to the virtual neurons housed within.
The team also gave each sender neuron a target address book. During transmission the data is broken up into chunks, with each chunk containing a zip code of sorts directing it to the correct receiving nodes. Rather than a computer wide message blast here the data is confined to the receiver neurons that they're supposed to go to. And the modifications worked beautifully.
In a series of tests, the new algorithm performed much better than its predecessors in both scalability and speed, and on the supercomputer JUQUEEN in Germany, the algorithm ran 55 percent faster than previous models on a random neural network, mainly thanks to its streamlined data transfer scheme.
At a network size of half a billion neurons, for example, simulating one second of biological events took about five minutes of JUQUEEN runtime using the new algorithm, whereas its predecessor clocked in at six times that.
"This really brings investigations of fundamental aspects of brain function, like plasticity and learning unfolding over minutes within our reach," said study author Dr. Markus Diesmann, and as expected several scalability tests revealed that the new algorithm is far more proficient at handling large networks, reducing the time it takes to process tens of thousands of data transfers by roughly threefold.
While revolutionary, the team notes that a lot more work remains to be done though. For one, mapping the structure of actual neuronal networks onto the topology of the individual supercomputer nodes should further streamline data transfer, and for another, brain simulation software needs to regularly save its process so that in case of a computer crash, the simulation doesn't have to start all over again.
"Now the focus lies on accelerating simulations in the presence of various forms of network plasticity," the authors concluded, and once that's solved we'll very soon be able to realise whole brain simulation within a computer system, and a true "digital brain," that will us revolutionise neuroscience, and unlock the mysteries of the human brain, will be born.