Ceph scales out, Ceph is highly redundant, Ceph is flexible, Ceph is full of cool features. Ceph and #OpenStack are close friends.
Firefly is the last Ceph's release and is a beauty starting point for us to develop what we named "the first storage solution fully supported by KIO". As I've mentioned in my previous notes regarding to this "Software Defined Storage" current reality, commodity is helping out to companies like us to support and design our own hardware storage technology. These new trends are supported by powerful innovators like EMC ScaleIO (or ViPR), Nutanix – BTW, Yesterday I've met a high trustable source that told me there is a chance that Nutanix decouples its software from its hardware to get more flexibility and it will be in a very short term – Pivot3 – who dares to say they are the "inventors of Software Defined Storage"- , VMWare Virtual SAN, SimpliVity and more?
Much Faster: Ceph is freely-available and that help us to get a more affordable option to use Solid State Disks only to store all Data Blocks at reasonable market prices and removing out the need for Storage Tiering, and therefore a high simplification to manage different applications with different performance needs. Actually, we are adding Flash PCI Cards for caching and making your applications fly like never before!
Flexibility: Ceph supports a truly Scale-Out operation model allowing you to add more boxes/servers to increase capacity and performance without any issue to data accessibility.
Highly Redundant: You can have up to three copies of the stored data spread among the servers.
We were seeing solutions with integration with OpenStack's Cinder like SolidFire; EMC VNX and NetApp. We've chosen Ceph to reach the market prices that our customers demand. SolidFire was pretty close to be selected, but the uncertainty about its efficiency factor and its eventually real results and its dependency from the application data type, make to consider a solution like Ceph that brings a complete accuracy on our storage costs.
Ceph is a solution that brings an unified storage solution: objects, block and file access. Ceph's block storage feature works through a special interface called RBD (RADOS Block Device). Ceph doesn't work with the traditional storage protocols like Fiber Channel over Ethernet or iSCSI. Anyway, Ceph is optimized to bring a really good performance thank to it "automatically stripes and replicates the data across the cluster". Then, Ceph thinly provisions any server image into the cluster spreading pieces in different servers and disks (where OSD daemons reside) to balance performance and disk capacity usage.
Ceph uses CRUSH algorithm to define where the data needs to be located into the Cluster and it is responsible for the efficiency to scale and balance the usage of the Cluster's resources.
Sounds simple, but you need to dedicate some time to architect and implement it. However, You will not regret to try it!
CEPH sounds great on slides. You'd be wise to look deeper though (e.g. the Ceph war stories session at the OpenStack Design Summit… where the term Cephpocalypse was coined). Data loss is generally frowned upon when selecting a storage solution.
Love the articles!.. keep em coming!


For a project we initialize multiple message objects, each object is set to only receive messages from one particular id.
The problem we are facing is that after a certain period those messages are ignored.
This problem only seems to occur when we periodically transmit CAN-messages from the LPC11CXX.
Is there a solution to fix this problem?
I managed to strip down the code, I hope this makes locating the problem easier.
Below are the project properties, to reserve RAM for the can message buffer and can API.
Looking forwards to the solution.
I checked your code and I sow that you use the CMSIS library (version 2p00).
Could that be the issue? May be there is a bug in 2p00 version of the CMSIS LIB with related with CAN?
Does anybody know if the latest CMSIS LIB version is 2p00?
I found a temporary workaround by adding the command __WFI(); to the while in the main function.
However the __WFI(); command is causing a sleep mode if there is no CAN RX message.
Therefore this solution is not favorable.
Does anyone have a clue why this helps?
Here is yet another workaround which seems to work.
This has been achieved by defining two separate CCAN_MSG_OBJ structures for receive and transmit (see below).
Here the msg_obj_rx is used in the CAN_rx() function and in the CAN_Init() function.
Whereas the msg_obj_tx is used in the main() function to transmit CAN messages.
I would please like to hear if this is a correct solution, or if there are also other ways to solve this issue.


Raytheon's Network Centric Systems business unit has started software development work aimed at integrating the Navy's cooperative engagement capability (CEC) with the Joint Land-Attack Cruise Missile Defense Elevated Netted Sensor System (JLENS), a joint-service initiative managed by the Army, with the goal of extending the wide-area netting of sensors for joint-service cruise missile defense.
The JLENS work is landed by the Army through a contract awarded to Raytheon by the Navy's Program Executive Office for Integrated Warfare Systems. The company will develop the software required to integrate the CEC system with new radars being developed for the JLENS moored aerostats, which at an altitude of about 15.000 feet will provide over-tlie-horizon surveillance for potential threat missiles.


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Lion Links: 4/24/15
Diversity in MLS, CONCACAF fury in Montreal, Lots of disciplinary action, Spursday Night Football, and Americans playing abroad this weekend, all in Friday's Lion Links.
By Scott Crumbly@ScottCrumbly Apr 24, 2015, 7:30am EDT
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The face of a man who has been CONCACAF'd.
Stew Milne-USA TODAY Sports
Friday is upon us, and we're just two days away from Orlando City's Sunday night showdown with Toronto FC.
We're looking out for you, as we always do, with some Lion Links to get your Friday started and springboard you into a weekend of soccer, and most likely lots of beer, too.
MLS is America's Most Diverse Professional Sports League
Major League Soccer is the most diverse pro sports league in America, as determined by birthplace. Almost half of the league's 551 total players were born outside of the United States, with a total of 58 countries represented.
Argentina and England are the two most heavily represented nations outside of the U.S. and Canada, boasting 22 players apiece in MLS. Behind those two countries, Brazil (19) and Jamaica (18) sit in second- and third-place, respectively.
Nearly half the players in MLS were born outside the U.S. and Canada – a total of 236 players hailing from Central America, South America, Africa, Europe, Asia, Australia and the Caribbean.
Within the U.S. and Canada, players hail from 41 different states and provinces. California leads the way individually by a wide margin, as 58 players hail from the Golden State. The state of Florida has produced nine current MLS players.
Montreal Coach Slams CONCACAF Referee After Draw at Azteca
Montreal Impact coach Frank Klopas was less than pleased with the officiating on Wednesday night in Mexico when his club took on Club América in the CONCACAF Champions League Final first leg. Klopas has a legitimate gripe, as it appeared that Club América should have been reduced to 10 men in the first half when Osvaldo Martinez clearly denied a goal-scoring opportunity for Montreal striker Dominic Oduro just before halftime (1:00 mark of this video).
Instead of having to manage the second half a man down, Club América was able to substitute Martinez at the half and avoid a potential second yellow for the midfielder before eventually netting the equalizer in the final minutes thanks to Martinez's replacement.
Montreal, you've been CONCACAF'd.
The MLS Disciplinary Committee Was Busy on Thursday
On Thursday, the MLS Disciplinary Committee was handing out discipline like candy on Halloween. Defender Chad Marshall of the Seattle Sounders and midfielder Marcelo Sarvas of Colorado were both hit with fines and suspensions, while Columbus was found guilty of mass confrontation for the second consecutive week.
Marshall was suspended one game for his late challenge on Colorado's Vicente Sánchez, while Sarvas was hit with a two-game ban for violent conduct after he made contact with Clint Dempsey while he was on the ground. Both were fined an undisclosed amount by the league. Columbus, meanwhile, appears to have escaped further discipline despite being warned last week in relation to mass confrontation before being caught in the act once again in the 33rd minute of their match against OCSC on Saturday.
Charlies Davies of New England was warned by the league after revealing an unsanctioned undershirt against Philadelphia on Sunday, while NYCFC keeper Josh Saunders was also dealt a one-match suspension and an undisclosed fine following a high-footed challenge on Portland's Ishmael Yartey.
Could Tottenham Host the NFL at New White Hart Lane?
Tottenham is set to begin construction on a new, 61,000-seat stadium to be completed for the 2018-19 season. Reports surfaced Thursday that the Premier League club was in talks with the National Football League over hosting future American football games at the new White Hart Lane, but Spurs declined to comment on those reports.
However, Tottenham is open to hosting other sporting events besides soccer at the new venue, per ESPN FC. According to reports, Tottenham is planning to make sure that enough space is built into the new stadium to host other events like concerts and non-soccer sporting events.
The Times are reporting that the club have made plans to ensure that space is being put aside in the new stadium that will "accommodate the 70 players and coaches of an American football team, as well as extra rooms for coaches, physiotherapy and rehabilitation," which would be required for regular NFL football at the venue.
Spursday Night Football could be in our futures.
Americans Abroad: Weekend Schedule
Soccer By Ives has compiled a schedule for the coming weekend of American players whose club teams will be playing in foreign leagues. Perhaps the biggest match of the weekend involving an American will take place in the Bundesliga, where John Brooks and Hertha Berlin will take their seven-match unbeaten streak to the Allianz Arena to face league leaders Bayern Munich.
Elsewhere on Saturday, you can find Americans such as Brad Guzan, Geoff Cameron, Julian Green, Alejandro Bedoya and DeAndre Yedlin in action. On Sunday, Tim Howard, Fabian Johnson, Aron Johannsson, Joe Corona and others will be in action.
Here's to the weekend!

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Tobruk - bombed by night and day
31st July 1941: The besieged garrison learns to live with regular bombing
A British anti aircraft gun crew in Tobruk using a captured Italian Breda 20mm gun.
In North Africa the stalemate persisted. Both the British and the Germans were looking to build up their forces in order to bring on a decisive engagement. In the middle stood the besieged port of Tobruk, stubbornly holding out against constant attacks from the Luftwaffe. It remained an awkward obstacle for Rommel as he planned a new assault on the main British forces in Egypt.
Geoffrey Nowland was with the 9th Australian Division besieged in Tobruk. His diary paints a broad picture of the privations and daily life within the garrison:
Last night I witnessed the most spectacular fireworks display I have yet seen. It was Tobruk's elaborate reception to the enemy bombers that visited us and duly departed, rather hurriedly, after depositing their contributions to the show.
Thousand pound bombs and big ack'ack' guns with accompanying loud bangs, did their best to rival an outback Aussie thunderstorm; while long inquisitive fingers of light from the searchlight batteries wove fantastic mathematical designs against the clear sky. Order amongst chaos!
Smaller guns filled the heavens with multi-coloured tracers that must have given the raiders the jitters, but that was to us an impressive, heartening sight. Occasionally a thin silver stream of tracers would strangely flow down against the luminous tide, as some optimistic invisible raider dared to pit his guns against the formidable ground defences.
These displays are naturally best appreciated from a distance, where descending flak and shrapnel are the chief hazard, but in any case where heavy bombs are likely to be dropped there is usually an adequate shelter; which is just as well, because in Tobruk are to be seen reinforced concrete walls two feet thick, caved in as though they were matchwood, under the impact of a heavy bomb.1
A Bren gun used for anti-aircraft defence in besieged port of Tobruk.
In July 1941 David Sutherland, then a junior officer in No. 8 Commando, had volunteered for a small raiding party based in the besieged port of Tobruk. Sutherland had joined Jock Lewes just after he had led the Twin Pimples raid. These two young officers would soon move back to Cairo to become founding members of the SAS.
My own feelings at being besieged in Tobruk were depression and unease. The experienced enemy had the initiative. One did not know what was going to happen next. Our job was to rest by day and patrol in no-man's-land during the night.
The day, often after a spectacularly beautiful dawn, usually began with the first of four or five dive-bomber - Stuka - attacks of the day on Tobruk harbour, 12 kilometres away.
There were several Bofors light anti-aircraft guns in the area firing non-stop to add to the crunch of exploding bombs. Every now and then a Stuka was hit and began to lose height. Everyone cheered.2
An anti -aircraft gun at Tobruk, surrounded by old ammunition boxes filled with stone.
Lest We Forget : Fifty Years On
He Who Dares - Recollections of Service in the SAS, SBS and MI5
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Going for gold at Leroy H. Smith School
Having won two medals in prior WinterKids Winter Games competitions, students and teachers at the Winterport elementary school are enthusiastic about their prospects in the 2023 games.
By Carolyn ZacharyAssistant Editor: Republican Journal
Leroy H. Smith School fourth graders hold up their hashtag sign during their WinterKids Winter Games opening ceremony Jan. 9 in Winterport. Courtesy of Hillary Hoyt and Hannah Hotham
WINTERPORT — Students at the Leroy H. Smith School are going for gold in the sixth annual WinterKids Winter Games with the theme, "My Wild Winter."
The school, which took third place last year and fourth in an earlier competition, is one of 16 elementary schools vying statewide on the program's competitive track for cash prizes. Smith students kicked off four weeks of WinterKids outdoor fun and activities Monday, Jan. 9, with teachers Hillary Hoyt and Hannah Hotham as their coaches.
Smith School is the only Waldo County school taking part in the annual competition this year.
Smith School kindergarteners Will and Cooper practice their snowball throws Jan. 9. Courtesy of Hillary Hoyt and Hannah Hotham
The WinterKids competitive track calls for outdoor physical activity this week, a focus on nutrition during Week 2 (Jan. 16-20), family engagement in Week 3 (Jan. 23-27), and concludes with a winter carnival in Week 4 (Jan. 30-Feb. 3).
"We're very excited about getting the kids outside and learning," Hoyt told The Republican Journal in a phone interview Jan. 9. "We had our opening ceremony this morning where the whole school participated in a snow dance to start off our WinterKids challenge. Hannah made a video of that and submitted it. (The judges) will pick one school to win an extra point for that."
Activities in coming weeks will include guest speakers on a variety of relevant topics, including a nutritionist coming in to speak and make smoothies with the kids.
Gabrielle, a Smith School third grader, holds up one of a pair of books she donated to the school's WinterKids community clothing drive. Courtesy of Hillary Hoyt and Hannah Hotham
Other events include a community clothing drive, a food drive, and a family night "where the community will come out and be a big part of it." The school's parent group, Partners in Education, is helping to organize that event. "We're really happy to get the community involved and excited about it," Hoyt said.
In the final week, guest speakers will talk about birds, ice fishing, skiing — "a bunch of outdoor activities," Hoyt said, with activities culminating in a winter carnival to celebrate the end of the 2023 program.
"We're really hoping for gold this year," Hoyt said.
First graders get excited during the Smith School's opening ceremony snow dance Jan. 9. Courtesy of Hillary Hoyt and Hannah Hotham
In the statewide competition, the winning school will receive $5,000, the second will receive $3,000 and third place will receive $1,500 in school-wide prize ceremonies. All competitive schools will receive a cash prize based on how they finish.
All told, 3,000 children and 527 teachers will participate in the competitive track of the Winter Games for a chance to win cash, while an additional 7,000 students and 900 teachers will participate in the Play Along Track and receive incentives and a chance to win weekly prizes.
"We are thrilled to offer a fun, active way to engage all kids in outdoor learning throughout the winter," Julie Mulkern, WinterKids executive director said in a press release. The program celebrates nature-based learning in winter through outdoor physical activity, nutrition, family engagement and winter carnivals.
Embracing outdoor learning helps to counteract the negative effects of excessive screen time — particularly for those in elementary school. WinterKids provides resources for both teachers and parents to get their kids outside and active. There is also a WinterKids Winter Games Facebook group for resource sharing, and downloadable activities on the organization's website at winterkids.org.
After learning about the parts of a snowman, Smith School kindergarteners practice throwing snowballs at it Jan. 9. Courtesy of Hillary Hoyt and Hannah Hotham
Leroy H. Smith School, WinterKids Winter Games 2023


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Lamb: Iranian general 'deserved to die,' but questions whether missile strike necessary
J.D. Prose @jdprose
U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb offers additional comments on Iran following House vote on war powers resolution. Democratic lawmaker says U.S. should focus on China as a serious threat.
U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb offered additional comments on the situation with Iran on Friday after voting for a resolution to restrict President Trump's ability to strike the Middle Eastern country without congressional approval.
On Thursday, Lamb, D-17, Mount Lebanon, voted for the resolution, which passed 224-194 with all Democratic support except for three Republicans.
"Our debate this week wasn't about which party supports the military more strongly, or whether Soleimani deserved to die," Lamb said in the first of three Twitter posts on Friday afternoon made under his campaign account @ConorLambPA. "He did. He was a ruthless enemy of the US & our military proved yet again that our enemies should fear a similar fate at any time."
1. Our debate this week wasn't about which party supports the military more strongly, or whether Soleimani deserved to die.
He did. He was a ruthless enemy of the US & our military proved yet again that our enemies should fear a similar fate at any time.
— Conor Lamb (@ConorLambPA) January 10, 2020
Lamb, a Marine Corps veteran, was referencing the Iranian general Qassem Soleimani, who was killed in a U.S. missile strike in Baghdad, Iraq, on Jan. 3.
Trump and administration officials have claimed there was an "imminent threat" posed by Soleimani planning attacks against Americans, but they have offered no specific details other than the president saying four U.S. embassies were being targeted.
In a second Twitter post, Lamb said the debate was about whether the missile strike was "the best use of American power." He also said the Trump administration "seems to think risking a third long war in the Middle East is in our interest."
Lamb then recommended that Trump officials read New Yorker writer Evan Osnos' reporting on "how China takes advantage of us when we make decisions like this."
Lamb's third tweet also concerned China with him lamenting that the Pentagon has conducted 17 war games that China won. "We cannot accept that," Lamb said. "We have no illusions about who our enemies are. We're asking whether the administration is focused on the right threat at the right time."
Lamb made his first comments on the Iranian situation on Wednesday after Trump administration officials briefed the House and Senate in separate meetings.
"The administration still will not explain why Soleimani suddenly was an 'imminent' threat after multiple U.S. and Israeli administrations declined to kill him," Lamb said in a statement.
"Nonetheless, we know the following has resulted from the administration's policy in the Middle East: We now have 15,000 more American troops there than we did six months ago. Our mission to defeat ISIS has been slowed down by the need to defend from additional Iranian attacks. Iran is now closer to developing a nuclear weapon," Lamb said. "The administration owes us an explanation of why, under their leadership, things in the Middle East are getting worse."


nice 1 i will give you that, going on the fact that scoring and caps means nothing about being successful then you are 100% correct DOC is irelands most successful player and in fairness i am glad for him because he is a really nice guy and a great player, actually a very under rated player.
Sorry, munster#1, I'll happily defend most players, irrespective of club ties, but for DOC that just can't happen. The man has 55 caps, so being under-rated in just not an option. OK, I never played in the second row, or the pack for that, but I can never understand what the man brings to the party. When I watch games again, I find it incrediable how little I see DOC doing. I know people say he does the 'unseen work' but I honestly think that's a cop out. He virtually never takes the ball into contact, never seems to be the man making the tackles, and not exactly rallying the troops. He has lasted this long, so he must be doing right, but I just never see it. Ever.
I actually though that DOC had one of his best seasons for Ireland this year Suisse - I was at the matches in Croker, and once against England and once against France he engineered turnovers by holding up big runners in the tackle: getting his arms under the ball, taking the surge out of the run and sort of ... frogmarching is too strong a word,but essentially putting the momentum of the runner across the pitch rather than allowing him to go the shortest route to the gainline. He was then able to stand up the player in the maul/tackle and not let the ball get to deck, winning the scrum. It was an impressive feat of strength and strength endurance.
I also followed him around when I rewatched the Cheetahs game [because I had been so p*ssed off at how many turnovers we conceded], and in fairness to him, he was always in motion. He works bloody hard to get back on his feet after rucking and make the next one, he makes them early and he hits the thing. He doesn't really take breathers: as a result, he doesn't often put in the 100% effort huge counter-rucks you see from the likes of Sheridan or Botha, but then again, oftentimes those lads haven't been at the last ruck, or even the last two.
I'm not his biggest fan at all – I think his antics against Contepomi over a couple of matches have been irritating, and throwing Shane Jennings' gumshield into the crowd was the act of an a*sehole – and generally 'the unseen work' is the excuse of a fan in denial [I should know, I use it myself!], but a second viewing of a match with O'Callaghan on 'player cam' is pretty revealing.
With that said, his lack of carrying ability is a real negative. He should be capable of making the hard yards that O'Connell makes, and we've seen that the better teams have picked up the very predictable tactic of O'Connell one-out and been able to neutralise it. I actually can't think of an occasion where Donncha has taken the ball from depth and charged through the defensive line ... and he's probably quicker than O'Connell [thinking specifically of his breakaway try from 45-50m out for Munster a couple of seasons back]. Thought he had a good Lions tour as well, but needed to up the aggression factor.
As I said hugonaut, I just never see it, but if someone, like you have done so there, can offer something different, then very good. Good response, by the way. I'll give you the Lions examples, and I think he has upped his game dramatically. I thought he was very lucky to even make the squad, and when left out of the first 2 games (iirc) it looked like his chance had gone. But he has looked like a man possessed. The funny thing is, I was really surprised he captained one of the Lions' teams. I thought Ireland lacked that extra bit of leadership that, maybe, the likes of Casey or Cullen would offer. The Munster fans might disagree with their own club, but I just feel that in big events and matches, he tends to go missing for Ireland. I also took a big interest in watching him versus Cullen in the semi-final (replay viewing). He was totally and utterly anonymous, and seemed to spend the whole match lying at the bottom of rucks. I don't think he made a single contribution that day.
Do you remember after the Autumn Internationals, the RTE panel were saying his time was up. Hugh Farrelly in the Indo took offense, but it is clear that opinion is mixed.
With all due respect, he has forged a great career for himself, and is possibly looking at another Heineken Cup and 6 Nations title before being moved on.
Hugh Farrelly is a total kn*b though – one of these faux-'hard-nosed' journalists who think that if they espouse a Roy Keane-esque winning-is-the-only-thing-that-matters attitude that they're somehow mentally tough/on a par with the sportsmen they cover. That sort of attitude is fine if you're a professional sportsman, but unbelievably grating if you're a p¡ss-poor hack who writes for an ink-sodden rag.
"It's so tough being in the same hotel as the players. We don't have anything to say to each other in the lift and it can be awkward." That's a paraphrase, not a quote, but then you have the same c*nt saying something like "The Lions are – say it with me – losers" in one of his post-second test reports. Which is it Farrelly: delicate, socially-awkward little wallflower or win-at-all-costs, those-who-fall-behind-are-lost Ubersturmfuhrer? What an a*se-clown.
According to Fourie he did, just like Burger!
I think that just might have been a joke Scott.
Last edited by downsouthdukin on July 3rd, 2009, 3:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.
says it can find server??
DSD - have you a torrent client? You could probably search for it on one like Vuze anyway (I just had to uninstall it so I can't check).
fourthirtythree wrote: DSD - have you a torrent client? You could probably search for it on one like Vuze anyway (I just had to uninstall it so I can't check).
They showed it on the big screens outside the Queen's Head DSD, there were about 4,000 of us there and the beer was absolutely flowing(the reason why I missed Dizzee Rascal and CS&N).
BlueArmyOriginal wrote: They showed it on the big screens outside the Queen's Head DSD, there were about 4,000 of us there and the beer was absolutely flowing(the reason why I missed Dizzee Rascal and CS&N).


Students enjoy a student reception at last year's TWS conference in Pittsburgh. At this year's conference in Manitoba, there will be a special event at the chapter for students to learn about careers with U.S. Forest Service and Wildlife Services.
Are you a student with a passion for wildlife biology, who's just not sure what type of career you want after college? Or are you a professional who is considering new career options? If so, then this is the event for you!
At this year's TWS Annual Conference, the "Careers with U.S. Forest Service and Wildlife Services" session will feature employees from both of these agencies, who will share their experiences as well as career opportunities in the agencies that they are representing. The event will take place on Sunday, October 18 from 1:30-3 p.m. in the Millennium Suite at the RBC Convention Centre.
Both agencies offer unique job opportunities for students and professionals to put their wildlife biology education and experience to use. Take a sneak peek at what you can look forward to at this informative event.
Employees with Wildlife Services will share how their jobs assist in the agency's mission to resolve wildlife interactions that threaten public health and safety, property, agriculture, and natural resources.
Wildlife Services employees present at the event will include biologists identified as leaders in various areas. For example, there will be a rabies biologist, a wildlife disease biologist and an eastern region wildlife specialist.
"All of these individuals showed the excellence of their work over the course of last year," Bannerman said.
Primarily, Wildlife Services hopes to give students an idea of the variety of jobs available including NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) specialist, airport wildlife hazards biologist, or even working in management positions. Field work can range from working with beavers in swamps to airports in major cities, Bannerman said.
With a staff of about 1,500 people, Wildlife Services works with biologists in other agencies including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Department of the Interior, the Bureau of Land Management as well as other state agencies.
"I'm looking forward to having people come and learn more about how Wildlife Services assists other wildlife agencies that they may work for someday," Bannerman said.
The U.S. Forest Service plans to inform potential future wildlife employees about job opportunities at their agency as well.
The Forest Service employs more than 30,000 people to serve in careers including professional, technical, and administrative positions on the front lines of conservation, intelligent resource utilization and wildland management, according to Brian Logan, the national wildlife program leader at the U.S. Forest Service.
For individuals just starting out with early careers with the Forest Service, Logan said they will most likely be applying for wildlife technician jobs. This job often consists of working on a field crew on wildlife projects including bird surveys, mammal surveys and more.
"That's probably the best job in the agency in my view!" Logan said.
Individuals in this position will collect data in the field and then also work on data entry — a lesser exciting but equally important task, he said.
Students will learn how they can work their way up through the agency from a GS-5 position, a government position that doesn't require a degree, to GS-7, which in this field could be a wildlife technician with a bachelor's degree, to a GS-9 or GS-11, which could be a district wildlife biologist. In wildlife biology positions, individuals will work with specialists in other areas including grazing and timber to contribute towards the multiple-use mission of the agency.
Logan, who has had a diverse background of jobs in the wildlife biology field around the country, advises students to start early.
He also advises students to be open-minded concerning where they are willing to work.
To learn more about the 22nd Annual Conference and the many educational and networking opportunities available for students in Winnipeg this year, visit our conference site.


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Home USA Health Mortality Rates From Liver Cancer on the Rise in the US
Mortality Rates From Liver Cancer on the Rise in the US
Mon December 24, 2018
More Americans Dying From Liver Cancer
The mortality rates from liver cancer increased substantially to 43% from 2000 to 2016, according to a report released Tuesday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics.
The increase of death rates has placed liver cancer in sixth place from the ninth place standing as the leading causes of death in 2016.
With the rise of the liver cancer death rates, Dr. Jiaquan Xu, the author of the report cited this is strongly related to the assumption that more people are developing this deadly cancer.
The data of the research were collected from adults 25 and older in the United States from 2000 to 2016.
The Culprits
Aside from the disclosure of data for the death rates from liver cancer, the report also cited reasons for the surge in death rates due to this particular cancer.
According to Dr. Farhad Islami, the scientific director of cancer surveillance research at the American Cancer Society, the rise in the death rates is attributed to obesity and hepatitis C virus infection.
"I think the main reason for the increase in liver cancer incidence and death rate in the US is the increase in the prevalence of excess body weight and hepatitis C virus infection in baby boomers."
Aside from that, the opioid epidemic might also be one of the contributing factors, said Dr. Manish A. Shah, a medical oncologist at Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-Presbyterian. Hepatitis C, spread by sharing needles, caused the surging rates of liver cirrhosis, or scarring due to damage to the liver, in the 1990s and 2000s, Shah said.
Prevalence by States
The highest recorded number of deaths was in Washington D.C., and lowest in Vermont. Illinois was in the middle.
According to state-by-state data from the CDC, in Illinois in 2016, 1,006 adults died from liver cancer.
When it comes to incidence of death by gender, more men died of liver cancer. In fact, the death rate for men was between 2 and 2.5 times the rate for women, according to the CDC.
However, the most common risk factors such as obesity and diabetes can be prevented. That is why lifestyle changes are crucial to curb the risk of of developing cancer.


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ReviewsMusic
Here are 4 new albums you should know about this week
Clayton Purdom,
Sean O'Neal,
Gwen Ihnat,
and Kyle Ryan
Filed to:music review
John Maus (Photo: Shawn Brackbill), Julien Baker (Photo: Nolan Knight), Weezer (Photo: Jeremy Cowart)
Julien Baker's crushingly intimate songs get more breathing room on Turn Out The Lights, Weezer feels caught in an endless summer, and John Maus' hypnotic Screen Memories is either genius or a joke. These plus Ty Dolla Sign in the week's notable releases.
Note: Our review of Fever Ray's Plunge, released today, is forthcoming.
Julien Baker, Turn Out The Lights
[Matador]
Julien Baker's debut, Sprained Ankle, was a hauntingly sparse, shockingly mature album recorded in the span of a few days by an 18-year-old former hardcore kid with help from her friend. One of the best albums of 2015, it attracted an overwhelming amount of acclaim, and Baker seemed understandably rattled by the attention to her deeply personal songs. After signing to indie powerhouse Matador Records, Baker is now poised for even brighter lights and bigger stages. But she keeps a tight grip on the reins on the new Turn Out The Lights, which she self-produced at in her hometown's legendary Ardent Studios.
While the songs remain spare, she builds them out with strings ("Over," "Appointments, "Everything That Helps You Sleep," "Hurt Less," "Claws In Your Back"), and clarinet and saxophone ("Over," "Appointments"). Baker also bases several songs on piano instead of her usual guitar ("Televangelist," "Everything That Helps You Sleep," "Hurt Less," "Claws In Your Back"). The short instrumental opener "Over" sets the tone: the sound of a door opening and closing, some footsteps, then Baker sitting at a piano and playing.
As Baker digs into mental health, relationships, faith, and adulthood, Turn Out The Lights is, understandably, absolutely crushing. Nearly every song has a devastating turn of phrase: the strained optimism in "Appointments" ("I think if I fail again, that I know you're still listening / Maybe it's all gonna turn out all right / I know that it's not, but I have to believe that it is"); the suicidal impulses in "Turn Out The Lights" ("I'd never do it, but it's not a joke / I can't tell the difference when I'm alone"); the mental anguish of "Shadowboxing" ("You can't even imagine how badly it hurts just to think sometimes / How I think almost all of the time"); the broken relationship in "Sour Breath" ("You're everything I want and I'm all you dread"); the anxious insomnia of "Everything To Help You Sleep" ("Lord, Lord, Lord is there some way to make it stop / Nothing that I do has ever helped to turn it off"). It goes on and on like that.
But there's also a newfound, weary optimism beneath it all. In "Happy To Be Here"—whose guitar recalls Jimmy Eat World's similarly somber "Roller Queen"—Baker sings of becoming an electrician to fix her "faulty circuitry," saying, "I heard there's a fix for everything, then why not me?" Yet whether hopeful or wallowing, Turn Out The Lights is beautifully crafted throughout, full of the kinds of songs that linger long after they've ended. Baker doesn't make it easy, but fans wouldn't have it any other way.
RIYL: Waxahatchee. Elliott Smith. EMA. Sadness.
Start here: Building on Baker's voice and guitar, the title track moves slowly to an expansive crescendo, shifting the song from intimate and unsure to something more powerful and empowering. [Kyle Ryan]
Weezer, Pacific Daydream
[Crush Music/Atlantic]
Grade: C-
Rivers Cuomo's fascination with the West Coast—from the Blue Album's "Surf Wax America" to the Green Album's "Island In The Sun" to Make Believe's "Beverly Hills"—is well established. But more recently, it's become an all-consuming obsession; last year's White Album was more or less a concept album about summer love. The new Pacific Daydream continues that coconut-scented theme, albeit with even staler songs. The Weezer frontman continues to tap that increasingly dry well, his dusty lovelorn longings for perfect summer nights now sounding completely formulaic.
The "summer love" theme shows up from the get-go in leadoff track "Mexican Fender," which also awkwardly rhymes "computer programming" with "end up jamming" on its way to a lame "She loves me / She loves me not" chorus. It continues through the schlocky "Feels Like Summer" and Cuomo's ode to his longtime favorite "Beach Boys"—where Brian Bell's dreamy, '70s radio guitar works hard to overcome Cuomo's flat platitudes about how listening to them "keeps you young"—as well as in Cuomo's rhapsodic waxing over coconut and lime in "Happy Hour." "La Mancha Screwjob" also extols the virtues of "hanging out on a summer night," backed by some fun, insect-inspired percussion. But after so many trips to the beach, it all ends up hazily forgettable. There's something hollow, too, about Cuomo—now a married father—still singing from the perspective of a teenage nerd who "can't find anyone to do algebra with me" on the nostalgic "QB Blitz." Throughout it all, the irrepressible hooks that have saved lesser Weezer songs are, unfortunately, nowhere to be found.
With 11 albums now to its credit, to Weezer's disadvantage, there's now a wealth of previous releases to compare itself to. And while all of Pacific Daydream is typically well-crafted—with expert production, luxurious swaths of guitars and effects, and those still-tight harmonies—it highlights that, at this point in the band's career, what Weezer could use most is some digression. Instead, what Pacific Daydream offers is little more than another reason to tour.
RIYL: Weezer, especially enough to be a fan of even their C-level songs. The Beach Boys, especially their stuff about surfing. Still obsessing over high school. The smell of Coppertone.
Start here: "Get Right" blessedly leaves the beach for a welcome nighttime jaunt that sounds like it could soundtrack an '80s caper movie. [Gwen Ihnat]
John Maus, Screen Memories
[Ribbon Music]
John Maus is a dazzlingly bright guy—a former professor of political philosophy who drops casual reference to ontology and ecclesiastical modes in interviews—who also happens to make incredibly dumb music. Because there is so much theory surrounding his music's intent, much of the response to it can feel theoretical as well: His stock palette of analog synths; flattened drum machines; and gloomy, echoing vocals isn't more retro-'80s nostalgia; rather, it's an evocation of a harmonic tradition dating back to the Renaissance. Lyrics like "Grandma peed her pants again / And I got it on my hand" aren't the kind of juvenile sing-song 12-year-olds might make up in the back of the school bus; actually, they're subversive expressions of the symbolic constraints placed on us by language. The question posed here, you see, is not whether these songs are cheesy and dumb, but whether pop music itself is, and whether this is what makes it truly sublime.
Screen Memories—Maus' first since 2011's We Must Become The Pitiless Censors Of Ourselves garnered him an obsessive cult that's already pissed about the preceding paragraph, and spawned endless think-pieces littered with Derrida references—only promises to muddle this conversation. On the one hand, it's another record full of haunting, churning synth lines rendered with impressive precision, burbling over Cure-esque bass lines and under Maus doing his best Sleepy Ian Curtis. There's nothing so lovely here as We Must Become's (Molly Nilsson-written) "Hey Moon"—although the hazy spirals of "Decide Decide" come awfully close, thanks partly to Maus trading his usual baritone for a Bradford Cox-like sigh. But generally speaking, it builds on that record's understanding of hooks, however muted under layers of murky reverb. Chances are you'll once again walk away with some of its lyrics rattling around your brain.
On the other hand, those lyrics have never seemed more like open dares to take them way, way too seriously. "Teenage Witch" is built almost entirely on the couplet "Teenage witch / Want to start a fire witch." "Touchdown" repeats the phrase "Go for the touchdown / Yeah, the touchdown" while literally describing what happens in a football game. "Pets" consists solely of the line, "Your pets are gonna die." Perhaps these are all brilliantly concise, impressionistic sketches of our postmodern American angst—or maybe they're just fucking stupid. Whatever interpretation you choose to bring to it, Maus' music does have an undeniably hypnotic pull. Sometimes it's even enough to convince you you're hearing something else.
RIYL: Synthwave. Chillwave. Vaporwave. Pretentious-made-up-genre-wave. Tim And Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!. Having intense discussions about subtext with people who may or may not be kidding.
Start here: "Teenage Witch" is a pretty good litmus test for whether you find Maus' music to be genius or a joke. [Sean O'Neal]
Ty Dolla $ign, Beach House 3
[Atlantic]
On Beach House 3, Ty Dolla $ign finds himself. Not morally—he's still floating with great delight through a fog of druggy, misogynistic excess, so high he actually means it when he says he's in love. No, the reliable hookman finds himself here by caring less than ever, sending his sweet tenor over airy Prince pop ("Love U Better"), aqueous ambient ("Daw$in'$ Breek"), and sprightly lite reggae ("$o Am I"), transforming the bleating dubstep-like intensity of earlier efforts into something warm and more mature.
The roster of A-list guest rappers—YG, Lil Wayne, Swae Lee, Future—all provide just enough contrast to highlight the weird versatility of Ty's voice, which he spits rapid-fire or screwed or raspy or unvarnished, depending on what the frequently co-produced tracks need. But while 2015's Free TC felt designed to impress, a little too encyclopedic and earnest for its own good, Beach House 3 takes its concept literally, soundtracking a hypothetical bender in a paradise where the comedown never arrives. (The closest it gets is a track called "$ide Effect$," which makes actual side effects sound like a type of tropical drink.) It's just a blurring sea of smiling faces, drugs, and anonymous women, one sunset fading into the next forever.
RIYL: Jeremih. Curren$y. "Clubbing." Luxury goods.
Start here: "Love U Better" perfectly splits the difference between its two guests, with an aching The-Dream melody and one of those late-game Weezy verses the old guy proves he can still peel off every now and then. [Clayton Purdom]
Purchasing via Amazon helps support The A.V. Club.
Julien Baker doesn't just want to make you cry
What are you listening to this week?


text:
Miho Takagi ist der Name folgender Personen:

* Miho Takagi (Schauspielerin) (* 1962), japanische Schauspielerin
 Miho Takagi (Eisschnellläuferin) (* 1994), japanische  Eisschnellläuferin

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Q: Sonicwall: cannot send email (outlook) and drops connection (google drive) I will start by saying Im a web developer and my networking knowledge is very limited, please be patient =) . We dont have network/sysad in our company.
We are having problem with our connection. We cannot send outgoing email on our outlook UNLESS we restart the interface by pressing the disconnect button (see picture). After restarting, the emails will be sent BUT after few minutes same problem occurs, then we have to restart again! We are also using google drive is unable to connect to google server (not sure if its because of frequent restarts we are doing)

by the way, we had this problem solved (kinda) for a month or two, everything is working fine until I pressed the disconnect button. Then the problem starts occuring again until now.
Please note that we dont have any problem receiving emails. Only for outgoing.
We are using Sonicwall Model TZ 105

Other Info:

*

*Email Client: Outlook 2013/2016

*OS of Users: Windows 8/8.1/10

*Email Provider: Etisalat (local provider in United Arab Emirates)

*Outgoing Server: mailv.emirates.net.ae Port: 25

*Incoming Server: mailv.emirates.net.ae Port: 110

*SSL: we are not using it (not sure what to provide)

Update
When using cmd on host machine and try pinging the outgoing mail server Im having request timeout response. But when pinging inside virtual machine (virtualbox) Im receiving different response (see image). When using mobile data and ping the outgoing server mailv.emirates.net.ae using host machine then its successful. I've also tried different laptop and ping mailv.emirates.net.ae they are successful.

[![enter image description here][4]][4]
If you need further information please let me know.

A: Etisalat is blocking port 25 as part of their spam mitigation policy.

Dear Customer,
Thank you for contacting Etisalat Business Services Support Desk
Kindly be informed that we have implemented spam mitigation policy on dynamic IP Internet services in order to avoid our IP pool getting blacklisted.
Those customers who are sending SPAM / MASS mail will be identified by spam mitigation algorithms and their internet SMTP traffic will be blocked and will not be able to send mails using outlook or any mail client for next 1 hour.
Our system will refresh the checks every one hour and will unblock the network if the spam/mass mailing is stopped.
  Customer have to delete emails which is stuck on outbox and make sure to not to send spam/bulk mails in order to continue the service without any interruption.
Regards,
  Abdelrahman Siddig
  Customer Care/Business Services
  Tel: 8009111
  Fax: +971 6 7481000
  Email: 8009111@etisalat.ae

A: It sounds to me like your WAN IP is getting, or is already, blacklisted.  This could be because you have a computer on your network that is sending out spam.  When you Disconnect and reconnect to PPPoE interface, you are given a new WAN IP address which is clear from any blacklists.  After a few minutes the computer on your network has been spamming out on the new WAN IP so the blacklists start picking up that IP address.
You can see evidence of this theory using the MX Toolbox Blacklist check:
http://mxtoolbox.com/SuperTool.aspx?action=blacklist%3a92.96.70.123
Another possibility is that the IP addresses you are being assigned from your ISP are already blocked.
To get around this problem, typically your ISP will have an Outgoing email server you can use.  For example, if your ISP is Comcast you can generally use smtp.comcast.net with the appropriate settings.
Edit
The error you're getting indicates that your ISP may be blocking you or having problems of their own.  You may want to reach out to them for help.

A: i have Symatec Endpoint protection and malwarebytes in all the PCs even though etisalat is blocking outlook outgoing mails. Seems etisalat consider all legitimate mails are SPAM !!! and they simply block port 25 for long time and it open after office hours.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Keylan Laxton: Chief Engineer at Dauphin Street Sound
Published on Jun 26, 2017 by Stephanie Rizzo
Traditional advice holds that you should never give up, especially if the thing you're considering giving up is in some way connected to your passion. But what if giving up meant leaving a place, only to find your way back?
Keylan Laxton knows all about that. Currently, he works at one of the most unique recording studios in the country. More than a mere recording facility, Dauphin Street Sound is a recording studio that actors a complex of creative spaces – including a live venue, band house, and fully-functioning ranch – owned and operated by Major League Baseball star Jake Peavey and his brother Luke.
Nearly a decade ago, Keylan was a new Full Sail grad interning at Jada Entertainment, a small studio in his native Mobile, Alabama. Soon, he was promoted to the position of assistant engineer. But the situation wasn't ideal. Changes in technology meant the studio's equipment was quickly becoming outdated, and the owner wasn't willing to invest in updates.
"It was right at the time when ProTools was shifting to a new interface," recalls Keylan. "It would have been tens of thousands of dollars in upgrades, and it just wasn't possible. So I started collecting my own equipment."
Eventually, Keylan left to open his own small project studio called Fade Out Entertainment. At the same time, he got a freelance gig as a production manager for Soul Kitchen Music Hall, one of the largest venues in Mobile. There, he had the opportunity to run sound for artists like Seether, Shinedown, J. Cole, and CeeLo Green.
"That was huge in terms of growing my reach beyond being just a regional engineer," he says. "I started getting gigs all over the southeast."
Keylan's success caught the attention of local guitar player and studio manager Ben Jernigan, who put him in contact with professional baseball player Jake Peavy. Jake was fresh off a World Series win with the San Francisco Giants in 2014. A guitar player himself and a native of Mobile, Jake and his brother Luke were looking to start a recording studio catering to up-and-coming artists, and they wanted Keylan to come on board.
Recording spaces are rare in Mobile, but as luck would have it, one was for sale around the time Jake and Luke were looking to buy. In a particularly meaningful twist for Keylan, it was the same studio he'd worked at all those years ago when he was a struggling college grad living with his parents.
The brothers did a complete overhaul of the building, and Keylan's prior knowledge of the space and the existing equipment was a valuable asset to the team during the planning stages. Jake and Luke also brought in GRAMMY Award winning producer Trina Shoemaker, and together she, Keylan, and Ben acted as consultants on what would become Dauphin Street Sound.
A premier destination studio offering recording and post-production services, and even field and live recording packages, Dauphin Street Sound is meant to be a fully-inclusive creative experience. Instead of staying in a hotel, bands and artists are encouraged to post up at Dauphin Street's band house located just a few blocks away. Or they can try out new material at the Cedar Street Social Club, the Peavy brothers' live venue. Those looking for a more solitude can head to Southern Falls, Jake's creative retreat located on a 5,000 acre ranch.
Today, Keylan serves as Dauphin Street's chief engineer. When he walks through the doors to come to work, he sometimes thinks about walking out all those years ago, and how sometimes you have to leave a place in order to find your way back under the right circumstances. He continues to work live gigs and take smaller projects through Fade Out Entertainment. Not bad for a quitter.
"It all came together," he says. "Living in Mobile, I always thought I'd be a big fish in a small pond. It wasn't that straightforward. What we did at Dauphin is create our own pond."
Explore Music & Recording Degrees
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text:
Q: SpriteKit PhysicsBody: Could not create physics body I have a player in my game, it has two states flying, falling. Each of them has an image: player_flying, player_falling correspondingly. I am also using a physical bodies to detect collision. It is completely normally functioning when I use one texture. But when I am trying to use both in different conditions using different textures, it shows me an error in the log. I am trying it like that:
if (self.player.physicsBody.velocity.dy > 30) {
    self.player.texture = [SKTexture textureWithImageNamed:@"player_flying"];
    self.player.physicsBody = [SKPhysicsBody bodyWithTexture:self.player.texture
                                                        size:self.player.size];
}
else
{
    self.player.texture = [SKTexture textureWithImageNamed:@"player_falling"];
    self.player.physicsBody = [SKPhysicsBody bodyWithTexture:self.player.texture
                                                        size:self.player.size];
}

the error is:

2014-08-30 12:55:47.515 kalabaska[1569:50535] PhysicsBody: Could not create physics body.

A: thanks 0x141E, i found out that my texture had some white shit around it, after I've deleted it, everything started to work. Now i am wondering how to hide stroke around my texture which represents my physical object.

A: You shouldn't change the texture and physics body of player at the update rate (up to 60 times a second). You should change them only when needed. Here's an example of how to do that:
if (self.player.physicsBody.velocity.dy > 30) {
    // Change texture/body only if not already flying
    if (!isFlying) {
        self.player.texture = [SKTexture textureWithImageNamed:@"player_flying"];
        self.player.physicsBody = [SKPhysicsBody bodyWithTexture:self.player.texture
                                                        size:self.player.size];
        isFlying = YES;
    }
}
else
{
    // Change texture/body only if not already falling
    if (isFlying) {
        self.player.texture = [SKTexture textureWithImageNamed:@"player_falling"];
        self.player.physicsBody = [SKPhysicsBody bodyWithTexture:self.player.texture
                                                        size:self.player.size];
        isFlying = NO;
   }
}

A: Check the image for stray pixels away from the main image. This can cause the 'could not create physics body' error.
Clean Image

Image is not clean - note extra pixel island to the bottom right

Typically this extra pixel island can be a very light / low alpha block that looks similar to the background or is just really difficult to spot.
I ran a loop through all of my images testing them as follows:
                    let t = SKTexture(imageNamed: filename)
                    let physics = SKPhysicsBody(texture: t, size: t.size())
                    if physics.area == 0.0 {
                        print("File \(filename) - failed")
                    }


text:
<tool id="ngsutils_bam_filter" name="BAM filter" version="@WRAPPER_VERSION@">
    <description>Removes reads from a BAM file based on criteria</description>
    <xrefs>
        <xref type="bio.tools">ngsutils</xref>
    </xrefs>
    <macros>
        <import>macros.xml</import>
    </macros>
    <expand macro="requirements" />
    <expand macro="stdio" />
    <expand macro="version" />
    <command><![CDATA[
## If the tool is executed with no filtering option,
## the default parameters simply copy over the input file
if grep -q "\w" '${parameters}'; then
    python '$__tool_directory__/filter.py'
    '$infile'
    '$outfile'
    `cat ${parameters}`;
else
    cp '$infile' '$outfile';
fi
    ]]></command>
    <configfiles>
        <configfile name="parameters"><![CDATA[
#if $minlen:
    -minlen $minlen
#end if
#if $maxlen
    -maxlen $maxlen
#end if
$mapped
$unmapped
$properpair
$noproperpair
#if $mask:
    -mask ${mask}
#end if
#if int($uniq) > -1:
    -uniq
    #if int($uniq) > 0:
        $uniq
    #end if
#end if
$uniq_start
#if $mismatch:
    -mismatch $mismatch
#end if
$nosecondary
$noqcfail
$nopcrdup
#if $excludebed:
    -excludebed ${excludebed} $ignore_strand
#end if
#if $includebed:
    -includebed ${includebed} $ignore_strand
#end if
#if $includeref:
    -includeref ${includeref}
#end if
#if $excluderef:
    -excluderef ${excluderef}
#end if
#if $maximum_mismatch_ratio
    -maximum_mismatch_ratio $maximum_mismatch_ratio
#end if
        ]]></configfile>
    </configfiles>
    <inputs>
        <param name="infile" type="data" format="bam" label="Select BAM dataset" />
        <param argument="-minlen" type="integer" value="" optional="True" min="0"
            label="Remove reads that are smaller than"
            help="in bp"/>
        <param argument="-maxlen" type="integer" value="" optional="True" min="0"
            label="Remove reads that are larger than"
            help="in bp"/>
        <param argument="-mapped" truevalue="-mapped" type="boolean" falsevalue=""
            label="Keep only mapped reads"
            help="" />
        <param argument="-unmapped" truevalue="-unmapped" type="boolean" falsevalue=""
            label="Keep only unmapped reads"
            help="" />
        <param argument="-properpair" truevalue="-properpair" type="boolean" falsevalue=""
            label="Keep only properly paired reads"
            help="both mapped, correct orientation, flag set in BAM" />
        <param argument="-noproperpair" truevalue="-noproperpair" type="boolean" falsevalue=""
            label="Discard properly paired reads"
            help="" />
        <param argument="-mask" type="text" value="" optional="True" label="Remove reads that match the mask"
            help="e.g. 0x400, 0x2" />

        <param argument="-uniq" type="integer" value="-1" optional="True" min="-1"
            label="Remove reads that have the same sequence"
            help="up to the Nth nucleotide starting from the 5prime end. -1 means do not filter, 0 means check along the entire read,
                10 would make filter reads that are unique over the first 10 nucleotides."/>

        <param argument="-uniq_start" truevalue="-uniq_start" type="boolean" falsevalue=""
            label="Remove reads that start at the same position"
            help="Use only for low-coverage samples" />

        <param argument="-mismatch" type="integer" value="" optional="True" min="0"
            label="Remove reads with that many mismatches"
            help="Indels always counts as 1 regardless of length. Requires NM tag to be set."/>

        <param argument="-nosecondary" truevalue="-nosecondary" type="boolean" falsevalue=""
            label="Remove secondary alignment reads"
            help="Remove reads flagged with 0x100" />
        <param argument="-noqcfail" truevalue="-noqcfail" type="boolean" falsevalue=""
            label="Remove reads that do not pass the quality control"
            help="Remove reads flagged with 0x200" />
        <param argument="-nopcrdup" truevalue="-nopcrdup" type="boolean" falsevalue=""
            label="Remove reads that are marked as PCR dupicates "
            help="Remove reads flagged with 0x400" />

        <param argument="-excludebed" type="data" optional="True" format="bed" label="Remove reads that are in any of the regions" />
        <param argument="-includebed" type="data" optional="True" format="bed" label="Remove reads that are NOT any of the regions" />
        <param name="ignore_strand" truevalue="nostrand" type="boolean" falsevalue=""
            label="Strand information from BED file is ignored"
            help="Affects -excludebed and -includebed." />

        <param argument="-includeref" type="text" value="" optional="True" label="Exclude reads NOT mapped to a reference"
            help="" />
        <param argument="-excluderef" type="text" value="" optional="True" label="Exclude reads mapped to a particular reference"
            help="e.g. chrM, or _dup chromosomes" />

        <param argument="-maximum_mismatch_ratio" type="float" value="" optional="True" min="0.0" max="1.0"
            label="Filter by maximum mismatch ratio"
            help="fraction of length"/>
    </inputs>
    <outputs>
        <data format="bam" name="outfile" />
    </outputs>
    <tests>
        <test>
            <param name="infile" ftype="bam" value="ngsutils_bam_filter_input1.bam"/>
            <param name="minlen" value="100"/>
            <param name="maximum_mismatch_ratio" value="0.02"/>
            <output name="outfile" file="ngsutils_bam_filter_result1.bam" ftype="bam" />
        </test>
        <test>
            <param name="infile" ftype="bam" value="ngsutils_bam_filter_input1.bam"/>
            <param name="minlen" value="250"/>
            <param name="properpair" value="True"/>
            <output name="outfile" file="ngsutils_bam_filter_result2.bam" ftype="bam" />
        </test>
        <test>
            <param name="infile" ftype="bam" value="ngsutils_bam_filter_input1.bam"/>
            <param name="minlen" value="100"/>
            <param name="nosecondary" value="True"/>
            <param name="noqcfail" value="True"/>
            <param name="nopcrdup" value="True"/>
            <output name="outfile" file="ngsutils_bam_filter_result3.bam" ftype="bam" />
        </test>
        <test>
            <param name="infile" ftype="bam" value="ngsutils_bam_filter_input1.bam"/>
            <output name="outfile" file="ngsutils_bam_filter_input4.bam" ftype="bam" />
        </test>
        <test>
            <param name="infile" ftype="bam" value="ngsutils_bam_filter_input1.bam"/>
            <param name="mask" value="0x40"/>
            <output name="outfile" file="ngsutils_bam_filter_result5.bam" ftype="bam" />
        </test>
        <test>
            <param name="infile" ftype="bam" value="ngsutils_bam_filter_input1.bam"/>
            <param name="excludebed" value="exclude.bed" ftype="bed"/>
            <param name="ignore_strand" value="True" />
            <output name="outfile" file="ngsutils_bam_filter_result6.bam" ftype="bam" />
        </test>
    </tests>
    <help><![CDATA[
Removes reads from a BAM file based on criteria.

Given a BAM file, this tool will discard reads that did not meet the selected filtering criteria
The output is another BAM file with the reads not matching the criteria removed.

Note: this does not adjust tag values reflecting any filtering. (for example:
      if a read mapped to two locations (IH:i:2), and one was removed by
      filtering, the IH:i tag would still read IH:i:2).

Currently, the available filters are:

+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
| Agument                        | Description                                     |
+================================+=================================================+
| -minlen val                    | Remove reads that are smaller than {val}        |
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
| -maxlen val                    | Remove reads that are larger than {val}         |
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
| -mapped                        | Keep only mapped reads                          |
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
| -unmapped                      | Keep only unmapped reads                        |
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
| -properpair                    | Keep only properly paired reads (both mapped,   |
|                                | correct orientation, flag set in BAM)           |
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
| -noproperpair                  | Keep only not-properly paired reads             |
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
| -mask bitmask                  | Remove reads that match the mask (e.g. 0x400)   |
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
| -uniq {length}                 | Remove reads that are have the same sequence    |
|                                | Note: BAM file should be sorted                 |
|                                | (up to an optional length)                      |
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
| -uniq_start                    | Remove reads that start at the same position    |
|                                | Note: BAM file should be sorted                 |
|                                | (Use only for low-coverage samples)             |
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
|-mismatch num                   | Number of mismatches or indels                  |
|                                | indel always counts as 1 regardless of length   |
|                                | (requires NM tag in reads)                      |
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
|-nosecondary                    | Remove reads that have the 0x100 flag set       |
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
|-noqcfail                       | Remove reads that have the 0x200 flag set       |
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
|-nopcrdup                       | Remove reads that have the 0x400 flag set       |
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
|-excludebed file.bed {nostrand} | Remove reads that are in any of the regions     |
|                                | from the given BED file. If 'nostrand' is given,|
|                                | strand information from the BED file is ignored.|
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
|-includebed file.bed {nostrand} | Remove reads that are NOT any of the regions    |
|                                | from the given BED file. If 'nostrand' is given,|
|                                | strand information from the BED file is ignored.|
|                                | Note: If this is a large dataset, use           |
|                                | "bamutils extract" instead.                     |
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
| -includeref refname            | Exclude reads NOT mapped to a reference         |
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
| -excluderef refname            | Exclude reads mapped to a particular reference  |
|                                | (e.g. chrM, or _dup chromosomes)                |
+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+
    ]]></help>
</tool>

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Swagger Episode 8 Release Date, Time and Spoilers
Dhruv Trivedi
'Swagger' is beginning to really get into its groove, and the tense episode 7 brings together all the elements that make the show so poignant. The team tries to pull together in the face of outright racism, and multiple characters shine through, showing that what happens off-court is also an important part of the game. Jace begins to grow into his role as a leader and is more motivated than ever to prove himself. The hurdles get more daunting, but Swagger DMV continues to forge through! So what can we expect next? Here's everything we know about 'Swagger' episode 8.
Swagger Episode 8 Release Date
'Swagger' episode 8 is set to premiere on December 3, 2021, at 3 am ET on Apple TV+. The first three episodes released simultaneously on October 29, 2021, and subsequent episodes of the sports drama series are scheduled to release every Friday till the season finale on December 17, 2021. In total, season 1 has 10 hour-long episodes.
Where To Stream Swagger Episode 8 Online?
'Swagger' episode 8 will be available exclusively on the Apple streaming platform— Apple TV+. All-new episodes, as well as previously released episodes, are available on the streaming service. Apple TV+ also offers a 7-day free trial that you can use to check out the show.
Swagger Episode 8 Spoilers
Episode 8 is titled 'Still I Rise' and will pick up from the team's ordeal against rampant racism during the previous match. Since the events have gone viral, we can expect to see an outpour of support. With the pandemic still on the rise, however, things will likely continue to spiral from bad to worse. In keeping with the theme of 'Swagger,' Jace and his team will overcome the hurdles and learn important (and painful) lessons along the way.
In the upcoming episode, we can expect to see an apologetic Alonzo who might finally approach the team with a sponsorship deal. Crystal will likely have to testify against her abusive coach, and we might see her put in a tough spot if she's asked about the attack on him (which was masterminded by Jace). Finally, Jace and Ike's plan to get to Nationals in Florida will also be put in place.
Swagger Episode 7 Recap
Episode 7, titled '#RADICALS,' centers around Swagger DMV's match against Nick's former team, the Gladiator-sponsored Dominion Ballers. As Jace and the team head South for the match, things get ugly, and they are victimized by racists as they eat breakfast at a diner. They eventually leave without trouble, but Jace is furious at Ike's apologetic behavior in front of the bigoted police offers. However, the coach retorts that his first priority is his team's safety and that there is no point in trying to make people listen when they don't want to hear.
Things get worse at the match, which is hosted in an arena that sports a confederate flag. Due to the COVID-19 epidemic, the crowd is sparse. However, when Jace takes a knee during the national anthem, followed by many other team members, including Ike, members of the home crowd begin to fling abuses at the team. Eventually, despite scoring the winning shot, Swagger DMV loses because of a biased referee. Alonzo, who is there supporting the Dominion Ballers, also begins to get overwhelmed by the ugliness of the situation.
The episode closes on a poignant note, where the team spots a protest on their way back and enthusiastically joins in. A few members of the crowd recognize them and reveal that their ordeal at the diner and unfair loss has gone viral and that they are being hailed with the tag "#RADICALS."
Read More: Shows Like Swagger


One common use of Sonamine predictions is to upload specific user lists, such as likely converters and high predicted revenue users, into user acquisition tools such as Facebook and Snapchat. Conceptually this allows mobile UA managers to find look-a-ilke audiences similar to these users with high predicted value. As an extension of this capability provided to our Sonamine prediction customers, we are proud to announce the availability of the Sonamine Audience Sync service. Now you can sync any audience, not just Sonamine predictions, to your Facebook custom audiences and Snapchat match segments. Here's a link to the details. https://www.sonamine.com/component/sppagebuilder/11-syncfbaudience Why would you want to do this?
Ever since retargeting and lookalike modeling became fashionable on digital ad platforms, marketers have discovered that these are one of the most ROI positive campaigns. Basically these systems allow advertisers to show ads only to users who have expressed some interest since they came to your web site, or who are very similar to their best users. Facebook marketing offers these as "custom audiences". Snapchat marketing calls them "match segments". Advertisers can load up a list of encrypted and hashed userids; and then target advertising campaigns to these users, or their lookalikes.
These retargeting campaigns have proven to be very very effective from a ROI and return-on-ad-spend (ROAS) perspective. Lookalikes were created after the advertisers clamored to reach more users but with the results of re-targeting campaigns.
Customers use Sonamine predictions to improve live ops. However some customers discovered that loading Sonamine predictions into Facebook and Segment audiences could also improve user acquisition campaigns. From that step, we learned that managing these marketing user audiences was a big headache. Surveying the market place, we noticed it was an unsolved problem. Several marketing vendors such as Adjust provide such a service, but at an additional cost of $5,000 per month, or only to very large customers. Most tools that offer audience management assume and require that all your data reside in their system, which just is not the true situation in most marketing departments.
Prone to errors. When advertisers are keeping many different user lists on their computers and updating them manually in Facebook or Snapchat, it's not difficult to accidentally upload the wrong list. And unfortunately, there are no easy ways to "undo" these mistakes. As a result, advertisers need to update all the campaigns.
User list data in different places. When data is stored in different places, such as Adjust csv data and app analytics database, advertisers take a long time to obtain the user lists that meet their criteria.
Time consuming manual steps. Every step from getting user lists and uploading them is manual and time consuming.
Stale lists. Due to the volume of lists and users, advertisers frequently do not update their lists frequently. This leads to stale lists and campaigns whose results decline with time.
Sonamine's prediction infrastructure and platform already has the automation, scheduling, error retry, logging, data integration capabilities that are used to generate Sonamine predictions. So we hypothesized that we would be able to offer a barebones yet functional audience sync service that addresses the major challenges of the status quo.
Integrate multiple data sources. We allow advertisers to merge different data sources to generate the Sonamine predictions, why not the audience lists?
Flexible rules. Most tools such as Adjust have a "rule" system that allows you to specify what these are. Of course, by design these rule definitions are limited. We would allow advertisers to define the rules, even SQL themselves, if they wanted.
Flexible data locations. Most CDP want advertisers to send all data to them. This helps with centralization and re-use; but of course this is not practical in many real world situations. We would allow different data locations, including in-house databases, cloud databases, third party analytics tools.
Low cost. We are data management experts, so we have various techniques and tricks to lower the cost of storage and processing. We will pass this along to our customers.
High touch service. Since we utilize our own in-house platform that is not manual, our in-house team can offer high touch service without having to do any "coding". This high touch service allows us to support sophisticated rules and yet have a fast turnaround.
We look forward to your feedback and thoughts.


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BLOG — Solving the Coverage Puzzle: Medicaid Stabilization Fund
by Tricia Barrentine Guay
More than 262 million Americans access medical care through a private health plan, either provided by an employer or through Exchanges, Medicaid and Medicare Advantage run by carriers. The Alliance of Community Health Plans (ACHP) has proposed several novel approaches to ensuring access to care, maintaining continuity of coverage and stabilizing the health insurance market in the face of this unprecedented public health emergency. Ensuring the states most impacted by COVID-19 are prioritized for support to care for the most vulnerable is one piece of the puzzle.
A Medicaid Stabilization Fund to Protect the Most Vulnerable
Due to the economic impact of the ongoing pandemic, Medicaid programs across the country are experiencing increased enrollment and spending. Each state's Medicaid program will be impacted differently depending on the severity of COVID-19 and the economic toll of the pandemic. To protect our most vulnerable neighbors, the ACHP urges Congress to create a "Medicaid Stabilization Fund" to provide additional support based on the severity of the human and economic toll of COVID-19 in the state. This would be a one-time fund appropriated by Congress and distributed to states based on impact of COVID-19. Additionally, Congress could decide how the money is distributed or it could direct the Secretary of HHS to develop distribution guidelines based on parameters included in the statute.
Recent reports show that many state budgets are suffering greatly from the ongoing pandemic. The brunt of the impact will be felt in Medicaid programs, which serve the poorest children, adults and seniors and those with disabilities. Historic unemployment of 14.7 percent with a loss of over 30 million jobs in just 7 weeks has resulted in forecasted Medicaid growth of at least 11 million with some states being impacted more than others. Experts predict an additional 5 million new Medicaid enrollees for reasons other than the loss of employment. A Medicaid Stabilization Fund is an equitable solution to provide an important lifeline to states serving residents experiencing the worst effects of this public health emergency.
To maintain health coverage and access for the most vulnerable Americans including millions who recently lost a job, Congress should create a Medicaid Stabilization Fund to distribute aid to the states hardest hit by COVID-19.
Tags: Coverage Puzzle| COVID-19| Medicaid


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Barberry, Common
Return to Land Gallery
Fact SheetBerberis vulgaris
Images of this species:
Common look-alikes:
Berberis vulgaris is a deciduous shrub that can reach 13 ft. (4 m) in height. Arching branches which come into contact with the soil can produce new plants.
The leaves are oval, 0.75-2 in. (2-5 cm) long, 0.25-0.75 in. (1-2 cm) wide, serrate and occur in clusters of 2-5. Each cluster of leaves is subtended by a short, three-branched spine.
Flowering occurs in May to June, when small, yellow, less than 0.25 in. (6 mm) wide flowers develop in dangling racemes. The flowers have an unpleasant odor.
Berries are red ellipsoids which are less than 0.3 in. (10 mm) in length and contain 1-3 small black seeds. The fruit is dispersed by birds and other wildlife.
Ecological Threat
Barberry forms dense stands in natural habitats including forests, open woodlands, wetlands and meadows. Once established, it displaces native plants and reduces wildlife habitat and forage, increasing pressure on natives by whitetailed deer. It has been found to alter the pH and biological activity of soil. Barberry is also a human health hazard, not only because it has sharp spines, but also because it acts as a nursery for deer ticks, which can transmit Lyme disease.
Originally favored as an ornamental in the 1800s. But fell out of favor, and was actually actively removed because of it's impact to cereal crops. Common barberry acts as an alternate host for cereal stem rust (Puccinia graminis), which can severely reduce cereal crop yields. In the early 1900's crop failure was common due to cereal stem rusts outbreaks so in 1918 the United States created a barberry eradication program to remove them from the landscape.
Forests, forest edges, meadows, fields
In midspring to early summer, drooping clusters of pale yellow flowers develop, turning into bright red berries.
Management Options
This species is Quarantined: Class B Noxious Weed
Barberry is easy to identify in spring because it is one of the first shrubs to leaf out. Using thick gloves, small plants can be pulled by hand, while larger plants should be dug up. Be sure to remove the entire root system and to bag and dispose of any plant material, including fallen fruits. Mowing or cutting is not advisable except to make removal easier. This plant is sensitive to fire; prescribed burns and weed torches are good options.
Systemic herbicides, such as glyphosate and triclopyr, are effective in managing barberry. Herbicide can be applied as a basal bark or cut stump application. Late summer during fruiting may be the best time to apply herbicide, but early spring applications may avoid non-target impacts.
Be careful not to damage or kill nearby native plants when conducting management work. And when using herbicides, always follow the instructions on the label.
Vermont Distribution
iNaturalist project: Mapping for Healthy Forests Vermont
"Present"
Native/non-invasive alternatives
Back chokeberry (Aronia melanocarpa)
Native Perennials and Shrubs for Vermont Gardens
Choose native plants
Alternatives to Common Invasive Plants and Characteristics of Select Alternatives
5270042,5270045, 1237091, 5448950, 5448899, 5448926, 5448876, 5448985, Leslie J. Mehrhoff, University of Connecticut, Bugwood.org
5506149, Nisa Karimi, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Bugwood.org
Information Credit
New Hampshire Department of Agriculture, Markets and Food, Common barberry
Pennsylvania DCNR, Common barberry
GoBotany, Common Barberry


text:
Grow your entrepreneurial mindset
Conferences, Clubs and Hackathons
Courses in Entrepreneurship at Queen's
Entrepreneurship Internships
Launch Overview
QICSI
QYourVenture
Pitch Competitions
Health Innovation
African Entrepreneurship
Connect and Collaborate
Meet the Startups
Innovation Fellows
Research Commercialization
Co-Working & Event Space
Co-working and Event Space Overview
Accessing co-working space
Event Commons
SparQ Studios Makerspace
Dunin-Deshpande Queen's Innovation Centre
Jim Leech Mastercard Foundation Fellowship on Entrepreneurship
The Jim Leech Mastercard Foundation Fellowship on Entrepreneurship gives African students and recent graduates the opportunity to access resources, financial support and a network of mentors to bring entrepreneurial ideas to life. This 9-month program helps fellows develop entrepreneurial skills and encourages them to develop the drive to make a social or financial impact.
The program's training is delivered virtually through an online learning platform that gives prospective fellows the opportunity to complete video training and readings at their own pace. In order to demonstrate their commitment to the entrepreneurship training and their progress on building a venture, prospective fellows will submit assignments online, adhering to strict deadlines.
This program will be delivered in the English language. All applicants and participants must be able to participate and complete the program in English. If prospective fellows are unable to speak or write English, they are still encouraged to apply, but must form a team with someone who can fulfil all the requirements of the program in English. Prospective fellows may also work with their local university to come up with a strategy to make sure they are able to access university resources that will help them navigate the challenge related to language ability.
Best-in-class Training
Business bootcamp delivered by Queen's University faculty and industry leaders who bring decades of combined entrepreneurship and C-Suite experience
The Disciplined Entrepreneurship framework, a proven step-by-step framework for scalable startups developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Pitch coaching and mastery
Certificate awarded for 100% completion of DDQIC's essential entrepreneurship training modules
Global Visibility and Network
Liaise with mentors and speakers leading innovation and entrepreneurship in North America
Access a Global Network of Queen's entrepreneurial alumni
Join a cohort of thousands of like-minded students and recent grads from across Africa
Fellows are matched to industry leaders and entrepreneurs in the final phase of the program
Receive feedback at important startup milestones
15 Fellows will receive a stipend of $500 CAD
Opportunities to pitch for funding in Dunin-Deshpande Queen's Innovation Centre seed funding competitions
We believe we do our best work when we tackle problems from diverse perspectives.
We are committed to eliminating barriers to entrepreneurship and making the program inclusive to as many people as possible. We are constantly iterating and improving the courses in response to user needs.
In 2020-2021, 60% of the cohort identified as women, and we strongly encourage women to apply to the program as we recognize the additional barriers women face when accessing employment or venturing into entrepreneurship.
In 2020-2021, the courses were adapted to be accessible by those with limited internet access.
All Queen's University badges earned in the course are free of cost.
Each participant receives direct access to a program coach to provide support and mentorship in the completion of the course.
Applications for our JLMCF Program are now open and can be completed using the link attached. Applications will close on November 30, 2021. For inquiries, please email jimleechfellowship@queensu.ca.
Program Timeline
Phase 1: Explore (January 2021-February 2022)
1000 exceptional candidates receive access to a curated list of online entrepreneurship courses and work through the first 11 steps of the Disciplined Entrepreneurship framework workbook. Candidates have several months to demonstrate their commitment to the entrepreneurial process by completing the training and progressing on their ideas' respective milestones.
Phase 2: Ignite (March-April 2022)
30 finalists with an outstanding commitment to the entrepreneurship process, who will have excelled at the milestones set out in phase one will be selected to join this phase. Under this phase, they will continue to go through an additional curated list of additional online entrepreneurship courses and work through the remaining steps of the Disciplined Entrepreneurship framework's workbook. At the end of this phase, the participants will pitch their ideas, competing for the fellowship, and the most advanced and promising business ideas will become the finalists who receive the fellowship.
Phase 3: JLMCF on Entrepreneurship (May-August 2022)
15 Fellows will be selected to join DDQIC's summer incubation program. During this phase, Fellows will get the opportunity to work on their ideas, access seed funding, and participate in weekly 3-2-1 pitch presentations about the work they are doing as they transform their ideas into scalable startups. In addition, Fellows will receive a $500 stipend and dedicated coaches and mentors from DDQIC's Global Network of industry experts and entrepreneurs.
Graduation (August 2022)
Startup entrepreneurs (Fellows) will complete their incubation program at the end of August. After graduation, Fellows will continue to receive post-incubation services, support, and pitch competition opportunities as part of DDQIC's network. Fellows will be invited to participate as ambassadors and mentors for future Jim Leech Mastercard Foundation Fellowships as well.
Victor Sifiso Xaba, Founder of HemPad South Africa
2021 Fellow from University of Cape Town
HemPad South Africa is a social enterprise that is meant to tackle the problem of inequitable access to safe, high-quality, environmentally friendly and affordable sanitary products, especially for the marginalized and low-income class. HemPad was awarded $10,000 in the Dunin-Deshpande Summer Pitch Competition.
Titose Chembezi, Co-founder of Altery
Altery is a digital platform that uses an innovative approach for SMEs and the informal sector to access credit. Altery offers alternative credit scoring to assist financial institutions to extend credit to the unbanked in Africa. Altery was awarded $5000 in the Dunin-Deshpande Summer Pitch Competition.
Solomon Bwire, Founder of Kawallet
2021 Fellow from Makerere University
Kawallet is a unique out-of-the-box fintech that enables children in boarding schools to safely store their money, conveniently access more money from parents when in need and easily withdraw money with the aid of key holders. Kawallet received an honourable mention at the Dunin-Deshpande Summer Pitch Competition and received free branding consulting.
Dennis Ssekimpi, Co-founder of Hya Bioplastics
Hya Bioplastics is creating biodegradable packaging from re-engineered plant fibres. They have developed an innovative and patent-pending process that re-engineers plant fibres to produce bioplastics. Hya Bioplastics was awarded $10,000 in the Dunin-Deshpande Summer Pitch Competition.
Fellows' Success Stories
Farhia Jama
Featured on the WTO "Let's Talk Trade" podcast discussing her experience running her business during the pandemic:
Enoch Muwangezi
Interviewed on SEE TV, a national Ugandan Television channel, on his startup Ugabrush.
Rose Innovation Hub
Jim Leech Fellowship


Children casting announcement | Professional stage auditions | Oxfordshire.
Children aged 8 – 14 yrs required for professional stage show, performing at the end of the year.
Auditions will be held locally, early September.
Must be available for the entire rehearsal and performance period, mid-October to mid-January.
WOAPA students please check your emails or contact the WOAPA office on the link below for more details about this exciting opportunity.


text:
Loyola Investigates 'Toxic' Undergraduate Admission Office After Resignation of Associate Director
Katie Anthony | The Phoenix Our Streets LUC, a student-run protest group, is calling for the termination of the dean of undergraduate admission after the former associate director of admission accused her of creating a "toxic" atmosphere in the office in his resignation letter.
By Leen Yassine
Updated December 21, 2020 8:30 p.m. CT
Published September 21, 2020 8:44 p.m. CT
Loyola's Associate Director of Admission Marcus Mason accused the university's admissions office of a "toxic atmosphere" and "inequitable and exclusionary treatment of staff" in his resignation letter Aug. 24. Mason's last day working for Loyola was Sept. 4, according to the letter.
Mason wrote of "a toxic atmosphere of hostility, intimidation, fear and manipulation within the Undergraduate Admission Office (UAO), especially pertaining to people of color," which he said was "created" by Erin Moriarty, dean of undergraduate admission.
Mason said he pursued avenues to rectify the situation prior to his resignation, including directly addressing Moriarty and involving his human resources representative.
"I have been ignored and rebuffed," Mason wrote. "It is egregious that a university standing on and touting its commitment to diversity, inclusion and social justice would decline to investigate or rectify claims of racism within the office most crucial to ensuring these values are reflected in the entire campus community."
Moriarty, who has been dean of undergraduate admission since July 2015, didn't respond to multiple requests for comment.
After Our Streets LUC published Mason's resignation letter on its Instagram page Sept. 10 with his permission, the student protest group called for Moriarty to be fired during a demonstration on Loyola's Lake Shore Campus Sept. 18.
Dozens of demonstrators gathered outside of Sullivan Center for Student Services — where the Undergraduate Admission Office is — and chanted "we want Erin" and "Black lives matter" into the building while holding the doors open as prospective Loyola students attended a presentation inside.
About 50 Our Streets LUC protesters gathered outside of Sullivan Center for Student Services Sept. 18
Katie Anthony | The Phoenix
Our Streets LUC also added "fire Erin Moriarty" to its existing list of demands, which includes calling on Loyola to cut ties with the Chicago Police Department and better support Black students, among other things.
"A department that is instrumental in the process of coming to Loyola should not be run by a person with bigoted values," the new demand says, referring to the admissions office which plays a large role in vetting, accepting and declining would-be Loyola students. "We demand that Erin Moriarty be fired for the way she has behaved while employed as the Dean of the Undergraduate Admissions Office."
A representative of Our Streets LUC didn't respond to requests for comment. The group plans to demonstrate outside of Sullivan Center for Student Services every weekday starting Sept. 21, according to its Instagram.
Loyola spokesperson Anna Rozenich wrote in an email to The Phoenix that the university has started an internal investigation through its Office for Equity and Compliance, which works to prevent and address instances of sexual harassment, sexual violence, hate conduct and discrimination on campus.
"In keeping with our values, our University maintains a Non-discrimination policy which prohibits discrimination," Rozenich wrote. "At the conclusion of this process, we will take appropriate action to address any issues that are not consistent with our values and mission."
Rozenich didn't respond to follow-up questions regarding the length of the investigation and whether Moriarty will continue working during its duration.
"The University does not comment on personnel matters given they are confidential to protect individuals' privacy," Rozenich wrote to The Phoenix. "As previously shared, at the conclusion of this process, we will take appropriate action to address any issues not consistent with our values and mission."
Mason declined to comment beyond what was written in his resignation letter, but he directed The Phoenix to speak with two of his former Loyola colleagues, both of whom said Mason's letter resonated with their own experiences.
In his letter, Mason wrote of insensitive comments made by administrators at Loyola toward Black colleagues.
"White supremacist ideology is reinforced not only by the senseless killing of Black and Brown people, but when the Dean of Undergraduate Admission comments about [another Loyola dean] in front of colleagues 'He's black, black. Like you almost can't see him Black,'" Mason wrote in his letter.
Derek Brinkley, the assistant vice president of undergraduate admissions at Columbia College, said he previously held Mason's position from September 2014 to January 2017. He said the office's "toxic" environment is one of the reasons he left the university.
Brinkley said his experiences were more about the overall working environment at Loyola rather than specifics involving his former bosses.
"My experiences were more, I guess about the feelings that I got," Brinkley said. "I mean there were certain projects that I was left out of, there were certain things … I was not able to participate in because I was not included."
For example, Brinkley said he recalls being the only associate director of four who was not informed about a hiring process of a certain employee. He said he was the only Black associate director at the time, but he said he doesn't know if the issue was race-related.
"I don't want to speculate too much because I don't know what reason there was for not being involved," Brinkley said of the situation. "I felt like it was just another one of those things that happened where I felt that I was not welcomed at the table."
Brinkley — who said he helped launch Arrupe College, Loyola's associate degree college aimed at providing higher education for students with limited financial resources — said he hopes Loyola finds a way to remedy the situation so more people don't have to go through what he, Marcus and others went through.
"Loyola has the opportunity to be a fantastic, progressive institution moving forward if they focus on leadership within the institution and really figuring out ways that people in positions of leadership represent, first off, the students that they want to serve," he said.
Sean Whitten — who left Loyola in October 2018 after about a year and a half as associate director of admission — said he agrees with the sentiments that were shared in Mason's letter.
"I think Loyola does need to do better in the context that there needs to be a clear, lined pathway for people of color that work there, that attend there, for Black and Brown students, faculty and staff to be able to present their issues and concerns without fear of retribution," Whitten said in an interview with The Phoenix.
At the end of his letter, Mason suggested Todd Malone, senior associate director of freshman admission counselors, be promoted to director of undergraduate admission.
"He is the leader the Undergraduate Admission Office deserves," Mason wrote.
Malone didn't respond to The Phoenix's request for comment.
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Leen Yassine
Leen Yassine is a journalism and political science double major with a minor in Arabic. Leen works as a news reporter and copy editor at The Phoenix. Raised in Toledo, Ohio, she loves exploring her hometown's metroparks and practicing yoga.
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