Eligibility for the U.S.D.A. Child Care Food Program.
Referrals from the local resource and referral agency.
Technical assistance from regulatory staff.
Tax deductions for business use of home.
Access to professional child care associations. This benefit can improve a provider's self-image and allows for networking with other providers in their area.
Participation in financial and/or resource equipment incentive programs. Various agencies offer grants and loans to providers at various times. We will notify providers when these opportunities are available.
Access to other community resources such as training opportunities.
Ability to earn an income at home, being at home with your own children, and being your own boss.
Regulated providers usually make more money than unregulated providers.
Greater likelihood of obtaining liability insurance.
Another less tangible benefit is the perception that regulated care is of a higher quality than unregulated care.


Paul Ingraham • Oct 20, 2015 ARCHIVEDMicroblog posts are archived and rarely updated. In contrast, most long-form articles on PainScience.com are updated regularly over the years.
I've always taken the position that "sitting is the new smoking" was probably irresponsible fear-mongering. I'm quite pleased with myself that I never swallowed the hype. And now science has my back.
Pulsford et al. is a good FUD-fighter: its results directly contradict the overhyped notion that a lot of sitting is just as dangerous as smoking, an idea that's been around for a few years now, and it always reeked of premature fear-mongering speculation. There was never any good evidence for it, but this is good evidence that "sitting time was not associated with all-cause mortality risk" in over 5,000 subjects.
And it's still possible that sedentariness is unhealthy independently of other exercise, and I'm sure we're going to see more research about it. Regardless, the scary headlines over the last few years were not defensible, and this new evidence is definitely reassuring.


Bob Marshall's newest release is an enjoyable, solid mix of Contemporary Western and Country tracks Ten top Austin-area session people participated, including former WMA artist/now Reckless Kelly leader Cody Braun. When you're aiming to secure Texas radio airplay, this is all to the good. But anyone doing it should know there is an Austin formula sound...and some of it has crept in here.
Bob Marshall is a strong enough performer to garner airplay and fans wherever he can, and he certainly can't be blamed for looking for both wherever they can be had. He's another example of the need to build a commercial base from which serious Western artists can work. Thirteen tracks. Recommended.


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text:
\section{Introduction}
\label{introduction}

Swarm robotics systems \cite{DorBirBra2014:sch-sr} have the potential to shape the future of many applications, e.g. targeted material delivery \cite{Andrea2008}, precision farming \cite{Bechar2017a} and search task \cite{cimino2016using}. Assisted by technological advancements such as distributed computing \cite{Ferrer2016c}, novel hardware design \cite{Mondada2006}, and manufacturing techniques \cite{Oxman2014,CastelloFerrer2015}, nowadays swarms of robots are starting to become an important part of industrial activities such as warehouse logistics \cite{Andrea2012,Liu2017}. The potential of robot swarms has been acknowledged as one of the ten robotics grand challenges for the next 5-10 years that will have notable socioeconomic impact \cite{Yang2018a}.
Currently, one of the main study areas of swarm robotics systems is on foraging behaviors. Foraging is the set of actions to explore and collect objects or information scattered in an environment. Foraging tasks can be projected to more complicated problems (e.g., exploration vs exploitation trade-offs, consumer and producer models, etc.), and currently they are one of the main benchmarks to evaluate swarm robotics systems \cite{Lu2018b}. Applications of swarm robotics foraging are wide-ranging from carrying objects and tokens to specific target locations \cite{Dorigo2005, Castello2016} to rescuing natural disaster victims \cite{Payton2005}. The similarity among these examples is that robots always leave from and return to a common central location (e.g., nest, headquarters, etc.). Central Place Foraging (CPF), as it is called, is in fact the most studied foraging approach in the field \cite{Winfield2009,Brambilla2013,Castello2016}. Although CPF provides good results in simple missions and indoor scenarios, the overall performance (e.g., tokens collected, packages delivered, etc.) of the swarm decreases when the size of the scenario or the number of robots grow \cite{Lu2016,Zia2017b}. Due to this phenomenon, CPF-based systems might be inadequate for deployment in larger, more dynamic areas such as big cities or vast urban environments \cite{Salvini2018g}.
However, one possible solution to this issue could be Multiple Place Foraging (MPF). MPF is a bio-inspired problem \cite{Chapman1989a,Schmolke2009a} that relies on multiple nests rather than one central depot. Nests are scattered across the area and each robot inside the swarm can change its correspondent nest depending on its location and energy status \cite{Lu2016a,Lu2018b}. One of the main coordination mechanisms to steer the swarm is stigmergy \cite{zedadra2015design}. With stigmergy, pheromones are released in a shared environment and are used as a type of ``in-field'' communication that can be used to self-organize the swarm collective motion \cite{alfeo2018swarm}. Theoretically, CPF and MPF have a very similar set of parameters \cite{Lu2016a, Lu2016}. However, MPF-based research has not been conducted outside simplistic scenarios \cite{Halasz2007a, Berman2008} and therefore further studies are required to test its feasibility.
In the meantime, the world is urbanizing at an unprecedented rate~\cite{Shahrokni2014b}. UN-Habitat estimates that by 2050, 3.5 out of the 9.1-billion global residents will be living in informal urban communities \cite{habitat2016urbanization}. On the one hand, novel urban infrastructures together with new technologies such as IoT, 5G, LiDAR, etc. allow to understand the city as a senseable, programmable, and actuable ecosystem \cite{Shahrokni2014b}. On the other hand, this urbanization implies important social and environmental challenges such as fuel production, air pollution, etc. \cite{Girardet2008b, Kumar2015b}. Experts estimate that it will require 57 trillion USD to adapt traditional heavy infrastructures to the informal urban needs \cite{jahan2017human} and that today's solutions will not be able to scale at the pace urbanization is taking place. One of the main urban services that could drastically benefit from the inclusion of novel technology is waste management due to its economical and environmental impact~\cite{Zanella}. For instance, in areas that are experiencing fast growth, waste management has become a challenge since the basic resources are not adapted to such changes \cite{Offenhuber2012}.

The aim of this paper is to explore the synergy of swarm robotics systems and urban environments by using MPF and stigmergy to improve the efficiency and autonomy of the urban waste management system. To achieve this, a diverse set of simulation experiments was conducted using real-world GIS data and implementing different garbage collection scenarios driven by robot swarms.

\section{Approach Description}
\label{sec:description}

Nowadays, cities have to respond to the growing demands of more efficient, sustainable, and increased quality of life, thus making them ``smarter''. In this context, the ``smartness'' can be defined as the capability to gain insights about the current urban conditions, and to react dynamically to manage them properly \cite{goodspeed2014smart}. According to this view, smart cities can be seen as cybernetic urban environments where different agents (e.g., citizens) and actuators (e.g., swarm of robots) exploit the city wide infrastructure as a medium to operate synergistically. The approach proposed in this work is presented as a multilayer simulation model where each layer represents one of these components: (a) The urban environment, (b) the waste management infrastructure, and (c) the actuation layer (see Fig. \ref{img:city_layers}).

\begin{figure}[tbh]
\centering
  \includegraphics[width=0.92\linewidth]{img/scenario_city_robots_colors_changed.png}
  \caption{Multilayer model of the ``smart'' city. (a) the urban environment, where buildings, roads, and citizens coexist. (b) the waste management infrastructure, where RFID tags coexist with Trash Bins (TB) and Deposits (Ds). (c) the actuation layer, where swarm robots exploit other layers to deliver the urban waste management service.}
    \label{img:city_layers}
\end{figure}

\subsection{The urban environment}
\label{sec:UrbanEnvironmentLayer}

 The urban environment (Fig. \ref{img:city_layers} (a)) is modelled according to publicly available demographic data and considering a trade-off between the proper representativeness and the complexity of the scenario, thus containing (i) \textit{buildings}, where agents stay in specific hours of the day, (ii) \textit{roads}, used by agents to move between buildings, and \textit{citizens} (iii). Citizens are special agents that move between \textit{buildings} (e.g., home, workplace, amenities, etc.) at certain hours during the day using \textit{roads}. In our approach, citizens recreate the daily activity of the urban area; their simulated behavior and mobility patterns were described in recent literature \cite{grignard2018impact, Alonso2018}.

\begin{figure}[tbh]
  \centering
  \includegraphics[width=0.8\linewidth]{img/CitizensBehavior.png}
  \caption{Representation of a citizen's travel path and waste depositing process. Citizens start their activity in an initial location (1). By travelling around (2) citizens generate waste. If citizens find a Trash Bin (TB) within distance $\varphi$ (3), they drop $\lambda$ amount of waste inside. Once this process is completed, or if the TB is full, they continue their journey (4).}
  \label{fig:citizens_fsm}
\end{figure}

Due to the citizens' activity (e.g., shopping, eating out, etc.), waste is generated and deposited in urban Trash Bins (TB). Waste generation is a multi-step process (Fig. \ref{fig:citizens_fsm}). Firstly, citizens are positioned on an initial location (1). When it is time to travel (2) (e.g., go to work, return home, etc.), the citizen chooses a destination and starts the trip. While travelling, if the citizen is bringing waste, is within a distance $\varphi$ from a TB, and the TB is not full, the citizen drops $\lambda$ liters of waste in the TB (3). After depositing waste in the TB, the citizen continues traveling (4). In case citizens find a TB that is already full, they do not drop any waste and continue traveling.

\subsection{The waste management infrastructure}

\begin{figure}[tbh]
\centering
  \includegraphics[width=0.75\linewidth]{img/directions.png}
  \caption{Representation of a scenario with 3 deposits (Ds) and the direction between each road crossing to its closest D.}
    \label{img:directions}
\end{figure}

 On top of the urban environment layer we have the waste management infrastructure (Fig. \ref{img:city_layers} (b)), which employs (i) Trash Bins (TBs). TBs are geolocated and arranged beside the roads\footnote{More information about the geolocation of TBs for the area of study can be found in Sec. \ref{sec:experiment}}. Each TB has an RFID tag containing a unique ID and the current amount of waste inside it \cite{ghadage2017iot}. The TB detects its amount of waste and updates the RFID tag accordingly. Once a minimum threshold is exceeded, the TB automatically packs the waste into a transportable unit~\cite{chomik2017waste}. The number of packed waste units that can be kept in each TB is limited. Once this limit is exceeded, the TB is no longer usable. (ii) Deposits (Ds) are facilities that provide final trash disposal services (e.g., waste compactors, recycle processes, etc.) as well as robot battery refills. (iii)~RFID tags at every crossroad store the information needed to steer the swarm of robots. Specifically, each RFID tag contains the time-stamp of the last RFID operation, the amount of pheromone characterizing each road on that crossroad, and the distance and the direction toward the closest D. The path and distances between each road crossing and the closest D are fixed and known. This information allows robots to compute the shortest path between each crossing and the closest D and to store this information in its correspondent RFID tag. As an example, in Fig. \ref{img:directions} a scenario with 3 Ds is shown.

\subsection{The actuation layer}
\label{sec:actuationlayer}

The actuation layer (Fig. \ref{img:city_layers} (c)) is composed of a swarm of robots in charge of carrying the waste from each TB to the closest D. In order to increase the feasibility of our approach, we decided to model our robots using a real-world platform with specifications suited for the task. The Persuasive Electric Vehicle (PEV), depicted in Fig. \ref{fig:PEV}, is an autonomous tricycle developed at the MIT Media Lab aimed to be a hybrid between autonomous cars and bike sharing systems.

\begin{figure}[tbh]
	\centering
	\includegraphics[width=\linewidth]{img/PEV2.png}
    \caption{(a) The PEV on the streets of the Kendall area (Cambridge, MA). (b) The PEV carrying several packages as a payload.}
	\label{fig:PEV}
\end{figure}

The core idea behind the PEV is to provide an affordable, highly-customizable, self-driving solution to urban mobility. One of the main advantages of this platform over more ``traditional'' approaches is that it can operate on bike lanes; therefore, it would not stress the already saturated road infrastructure of a populated urban area. The main specifications for the PEV are: a maximum payload of 120.0 kg, maximum speed of 40.0 km/h, and 2 hours battery autonomy. In addition, the PEV is equipped with a wide variety of sensors such as R/W RFIDs, cameras, LIDARs, IMUs, etc.

\begin{figure}[tbh]
\centering
  \includegraphics[width=0.95\linewidth]{img/FSM_Robot.png}
  \caption{Robots' behavior as a finite state machine: robots \textbf{Wander} to explore the environment. Robots move to the closest D to \textbf{Carry} the waste they find in a TB, or to \textbf{Recharge} their battery before it gets exhausted.}
  \label{img:FSM_ROBOT}
\end{figure}
Fig. \ref{img:FSM_ROBOT} depicts the robot behavior via a finite state machine diagram with 3 states. The initial state of every robot is \textbf{Wander}. While in the wandering state, the robot travels from one road crossing to another by choosing the road with the strongest pheromone level. If this is not possible (i.e., if there is no pheromone on any road or all the roads have the same amount of pheromone), the next edge is chosen randomly. In order to avoid getting stuck on the same area until all the pheromones evaporate, robots can choose a random road with a probability of (1-$X_{r}$), where $X_{r}$ represents the exploitation rate of the robots, a parameter that will be described in Sec. \ref{sec:experiment}.

At each road crossing, the robot estimates the distance that can be traveled with the remaining battery. If this distance is approximately the same to the closest D, the robot state switches to \textbf{Recharge}. In this state, the robot moves towards the closest D by following the directions on the RFID tags on the way. The robot returns to the wander state when it reaches the closest D, since we assume that the deposit automatically swaps the battery of the robot.

When the robot is close to a TB, it reads the RFID tag on the TB. If the TB contains at least one transportable waste unit, the robot changes its state to \textbf{Carry}. Then, the robot withdraws a waste unit from the TB and moves to the closest D by following the directions available on the RFID tags on the way. While the robot is in the carry state it ignores the TBs in its way. The robot returns to the wander state after reaching the D.

The fundamental mechanism on which the self-organization of the swarm of robots is based is the perception and distribution of pheromone amounts. In this work, an RFID tag is placed at each road crossing. In addition to the direction to the closest D and the time-stamp of the last operation, the RFID tag contains the pheromone amounts corresponding to each direction (thus, each road) that can be taken from the road crossing. The pheromones amounts are maintained in a consistent state by the robots, which manipulate them according to a precise set of rules that echo biological models of stigmergy-based foraging~\cite{zedadra2017multi}.
In particular, the pheromone amount is subject to three processes:

\textbf{Marking}, i.e., the addition and aggregation of pheromone to the already existing pheromone trail due to the performance of a given action (e.g., when an ant is carrying food). In our model, this is achieved by robots in the carry state by increasing the amount of pheromone in the crossroads from which the robot is coming, thus marking the path towards where the waste is being generated. This amount is proportional to the amount of waste found in the TB.

\textbf{Evaporation}, i.e., the decay of the pheromone trail over time. In our model, this is achieved by each robot by decreasing the amount of pheromone corresponding to the current crossroad visited. The amount of pheromone decreasing through the evaporation mechanism is proportional to the difference between the current time instant ($t$) and the time-stamp ($ts$) of the last RFID operation. If the final amount of pheromone is less than zero, it is set to zero.

\textbf{Diffusion}. To increase the probability that robots are attracted to a location with uncollected waste, we implemented the diffusion mechanism: the capability of marking a road with a small portion of the pheromone perceived on the last RFID tag, so as to make the pheromone perceptible even from roads immediately close to the marked path and steer the robots toward it. In our model, this is achieved by each robot by increasing the amount of pheromone corresponding to the road from which the robot is coming.

In brief, when the robot interacts with an RFID tag, it decreases the amounts of pheromones on it depending on the time elapsed since the last RFID operation and the evaporation rate. Moreover, the amounts of pheromones regarding the direction (i.e., the road) from which the robot comes from is increased due to the diffusion and marking processes (if the robot is carrying waste). Specifically, the following formula describes the updating procedure of the amount of pheromone corresponding to each edge in the RFID tag:

\small
\begin{equation}
  \vspace*{0.8cm}
\label{eq:pheromoneUpdate}
P_{t} =  P_{ts}-[E_{r} \cdot P_{a} \cdot (t-ts)]+(P_{a} \cdot T_{a})+(D_{r} \cdot P_{max})
  \vspace{-0.8cm}
\end{equation}
\normalsize

In Eq. \ref{eq:pheromoneUpdate}, $P_{t}$ represents the amount of pheromone corresponding to the current edge at the current time instant. $P_{ts}$ is the amount of pheromone corresponding to the current edge at the time-stamp (i.e., the last operation on the RFID tag). $E_{r}$ is the evaporation rate (0 $\leq$ $E_{r}$ $\leq$ 1), i.e., the amount of the pheromones disappearing per unit of time. $P_{a}$ is the amount of pheromone to be added to the RFID tag for each unit of waste found in the TB from which the waste has been picked up (only if the robot is performing the carry action). $T_{a}$ is the amount of waste found in the TB (only if the robot is performing the carry action and it comes from the current edge). $D_{r}$ is the diffusion rate (0 $\leq$ $D_{r}$ $\leq$ 1), in other words, the portion of the pheromone to diffuse. Finally, $P_{max}$ is the maximum pheromone amount on the last RFID tag.

\section{Experimental Setup}
\label{sec:experiment}

The presented system\footnote{A copy of code repository can be found here: https://goo.gl/tqRvS4} was developed in GAMA \cite{grignard2013gama, taillandier2018building}; a realistic agent-based simulation tool applied in fields such as urban planning, disaster mitigation, etc. The urban environment layer described in Sec. \ref{sec:UrbanEnvironmentLayer} was built using real-world GIS data by integrating the map of the Kendall (Cambridge, MA) urban area. The number of citizens was initialized to 10,000 following previous research works about the area of study \cite{grignard2018impact,Alonso2018}. Regarding the waste generation process, according to the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) Americans produce 2 kg of waste per day \cite{EPA2012}. However, not all of that waste goes into public TBs; a large portion of it is dropped in residential bins as well. According to \cite{MasDEP2013}, Cambridge public works collect an average of 1.18 kg of waste per citizen per day from Cambridge households. Thus, we estimated that 0.82 kg of waste per citizen was deposited in public TBs everyday. By using conversion data about the weight of different types of waste \cite{ConversionFactorsEPA2016}, we transformed the amount of kg of waste generated per citizen into liters. The result of these conversions was 8.42 liters/citizen. We initialized $\lambda$ to this value throughout our simulations. Finally, $\varphi$ was initialized to 50 meters.

\begin{figure}[tbh]
\centering
  \includegraphics[width=\linewidth]{img/scenario.png}
  \caption{Urban swarm's simulation, Kendall area (Cambridge, MA). Citizens (small colored dots) can drop waste in close TBs (green dots) when moving on the road. The robots (cyan dots) can move over the roads to carry the waste from the TBs into the Ds (blue dots) using the information in the RFID tags at each crossroad.}
    \label{img:simulation}
\end{figure}

Fig. \ref{img:simulation} shows a screenshot of the simulation tool where each building (gray), TB (green dots), road (black lines), and citizen (small dots over buildings and roads) is depicted. Moreover, we obtained the number and location of TBs from the Cambridge Geographic Information Service\footnote{More information can be found here: https://goo.gl/os3nxN}. Ds (dark blue dots) were placed by using the k-means algorithm to minimize the distance between them and the TBs.

Finally, each robot is represented as a cyan dot. The effectiveness of the proposed approach was tested with different configurations (i.e., by changing the behavioral and scenario parameters). The ranges of the parameters were chosen to allow the implementation of significantly different behaviors on the swarm of robots. Specifically:

\textbf{Number of Robots} ($R_{n}$): affects the effectiveness and the size of the overall system; the tested values are 20, 35, and 50 robots.

\textbf{Evaporation Rate} ($E_{r}$): affects the amount of time the system retains the information about the waste disposal demand; the tested values are 0.05$\%$, 0.15$\%$, and 0.3$\%$.

\textbf{Exploitation Rate} ($X_{r}$): affects the probability that the robots follow the path with the strongest pheromone rather than a random one. A higher value results in a higher exploitation of the information about the waste disposal process, whereas lower values increase the exploration of the overall scenario. A more exploratory swarm easily reaches isolated TBs, while a swarm more prone to the exploitation of the waste disposal information exhibits a more aggressive waste collection behavior toward the previously-discovered non-empty TBs. The exploitation rate affects also the diffusion rate, which is 1-$X_{r}$, since in a non-exploratory swarm the diffusion will just reinforce the already marked path. The tested values are 0.6, 0.75, and 0.9.

\textbf{Carriable Waste} ($C_{w}$): affects the amount of carriable waste per robot. Lower values of this parameter result in a more responsive but slow reaction of the system since the waste can be picked only if the $C_{w}$ is already present in the bin. Indeed, we assume that the $C_{w}$ corresponds to the amount of waste that a TB can pack to be transported. The tested values were 6, 12, and 18 liters of waste. This was designed taking into account the PEV capabilities introduced in Sec. \ref{sec:actuationlayer}.

\textbf{Number of Deposit} ($D_{n}$): affects the responsiveness of the overall system; the tested values are 2, 3, and 5 Ds.

\subsection{Current waste management model}
In order to provide a better insight about the implications of the proposed approach, we decided to compare it with the waste management model that is currently operating in the urban area of study (i.e., truck-based). We built this model based on the information provided by the Cambridge Department of Public Works (CDPW)\footnote{More information about the specific route and timetables can be found here: https://goo.gl/cHXDYS}. According to CDPW, a single truck system in 5 working days (Monday-Friday) in 5 hours a day (7-12PM) is able to empty approximately 6000 TBs. This results in a capability of emptying about 240 trash bins in an hour. In our scenario, the number of TBs is fixed to 274. Therefore, the truck should be able to empty all TBs in about an hour and 10 minutes and should pass once a day.

\section{Results}
\label{sec:results}
We conducted ten simulations for each possible parameter combination introduced in Sec. \ref{sec:experiment}. In order to analyze the effectiveness of both approaches, we introduced two performance metrics. First, the \textbf{Amount of Uncollected Trash} (AUT, measured in liters) represents the amount of waste left unattended in the environment. Higher AUT levels correlate to the appearance of urban issues such as pests, air pollution, and public health problems. Second, the average number of \textbf{Full Trash Bins} (FTB, measured in units) in the scenario during a day. FTB shows the average number of unusable TBs that the system leaves in the urban environment during the day. Higher FTB values typically correlate to higher citizens' dissatisfaction rates since they might have to travel longer distances to dispose their waste. For the sake of interpretability, each of the measures is presented as a percentage (the lower, the better) considering that in our scenario there are 274 TBs with a capacity of 125 liters each\footnote{This capacity correlates to the TB model (Big Belly BB5) currently operating in the study area. The BB5 is equipped with a solar-powered waste compactor and a wireless data link. More information can be found here: http://bigbelly.com/}.

\begin{figure}[tbh]
\centering
  \includegraphics[width=\linewidth]{img/comparisonCPF-MPF.png}
  \caption{Percentage of AUT and FTB measures for the truck and the swarm (best parameterizations) with the CPF and the MPF approach. Log scale.}
  \label{img:TruckVsSwarm}
\end{figure}

\begin{figure*}[t!]
  \begin{center}
  \begin{subfigure}[t]{0.45\textwidth}
    \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{img/trashAmountFinal.png}
    \caption{}
    \label{img:allResultsTrashAmount}
  \end{subfigure}
  \hspace{1.5cm}
  \begin{subfigure}[t]{0.45\textwidth}
    \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{img/FullTrashBinsFinal.png}
    \caption{}
    \label{img:allResultsFullBins}
  \end{subfigure}
  \caption{(a) The average percentage of Amount of Uncollected Trash (AUT) in the scenario during a day by changing the parameterization. (b) The average percentage of Full Trash Bins (FTB) in the scenario during a day by changing the parameterization.}
  \end{center}
  \vspace{-0.5cm}
\end{figure*}

We compare the performance of our proposed approach against (i) the current trash disposal model i.e., truck-based model; and (ii) a CPF solution i.e., by using the stigmergy-based foraging with a single deposit. Thus, we simulated each model and computed the corresponding performance metrics. The results obtained with ten simulations are summarized in Fig.\ref{img:TruckVsSwarm}. Results show that the current waste management system offers lower performance than the swarm-based solution proposed in this paper. In fact, in terms of the percentage of AUT and FTB, the MPF approach offers a decrease of 71\% (0.061) and 99\% (0.0007) compared to the results obtained with the truck-based model (0.212 and 0.202 respectively). Moreover, the MPF approach results to be more effective than the CPF approach for both AUT and FTB.

It can be observed from the results in Fig. \ref{img:allResultsTrashAmount} that our system is able to collect most of the disposable trash on average during the day, leaving a AUT of 17\% (worst case) and 6\% (best case). Moreover, in general, the increase of $D_{n}$, $C_{w}$, and $R_{n}$ results in a lower AUT. A greater number of deposits results in a shorter path to reach them, while more robots and a greater carriage capacity result in a system that collects and disposes waste more quickly.

The results in Fig. \ref{img:allResultsFullBins} prove that our system is able to empty the TBs fast enough to have less than 1 (0.0007\%, best case) or 2 (0.0066\%, worst case) FTB in the scenario on average during the day. Moreover, it can be noticed that by increasing $E_{r}$ and $R_{n}$ we obtain a lower percentage of FTB since it increases the responsiveness of the system.

\section{Discussion}
\label{sec:discussion}

\begin{table}[tbh]
 \begin{center}
\begin{tabular}{|c|c|c|c|}
\hline
                 & $\beta_{Rn}$ & $\beta_{Cw}$ &  $\beta_{Dn}$ \\
\hline
\textbf{AUT}    & -0.6615   &  -0.7580 & -0.3868 \\
\textbf{FTB}    &  -0.4647  &  -0.9584 &  0.0407 \\
\hline
\end{tabular}
\caption{$\beta$ coefficients, multiple standardized regression}
\vspace{-0.5cm}
\label{table:stdregression}
\end{center}
\end{table}

Two parameter configurations provided the best performances: (1) $R_{n}$=35, $E_{r}$=0.15, $X_{r}$=0.6, $C_{w}$=18, $D_{n}$=3 which produces a 0.7\% FTB and 6.1\% AUT and (2) $R_{n}$=50, $E_{r}$=0.15, $X_{r}$=0.6, $C_{w}$=12, $D_{n}$=5 which obtains a 0.9\% FTB and 5.9\% AUT. The first solution is characterized by a medium number of deposits and robots, but can assure a good responsiveness of the system thanks to the relatively high $C_{w}$. On the other hand, the second solution, is characterized by a large $D_{n}$ and $R_{n}$, and a medium $C_{w}$. These configurations suggest that there is a balance between the size of the system ($D_{n}$ and $R_{n}$) and the amount of carriable waste ($C_{w}$). At the same time, both solutions are characterized by an $E_{r}$ of 0.15 and a relatively high $X_r$ with a value of 0.6.
To assess the relationship between $R_{n}$/$D_{n}$/$C_{w}$ and the proposed performance measures, we computed a multiple standardized regression, i.e., the regression in which both dependent and independent variable are substituted by their Z-score \cite{keith2014multiple}.
By considering the size of each $\beta$ coefficient, we are able to compare the impact of each variable on the corresponding performance measure despite the differences in their scale. Larger coefficients correspond to higher contributions, whereas the sign describes the direction (positive or negative) of the contribution. It is worth recalling that all performance measures proposed must be minimized to achieve a better performance. Table \ref{table:stdregression} shows that increasing $R_n$ and $C_w$ improves the performance. Surprisingly, increasing $D_n$ increases the AUT performance but decreases FTB's; indeed, a greater number of Ds means shorter travel distances for robots, therefore a more responsive system and a better AUT performance. However, since Ds are the destination of all robots, the paths around the D are more likely to be marked by digital pheromones which are aimed at steering the swarm. This means that around each D the robots' exploratory capability is reduced due to the overwhelming amount of deployed pheromones, therefore the probability of reaching TBs in areas that require to pass by a near D may be lower. This explains the decrease in the performance at the bottom-left corner of Fig. \ref{img:allResultsFullBins} when $D_{n}$ is increased.

\section{Conclusions}
\label{conclusions}
In this paper, the design, implementation, and experimentation of a robotic swarm aimed at managing the waste disposal in a realistic urban environment was presented. We showed that a swarm is able to handle the waste management in an effective and self-organized manner, without any external information source or prior knowledge about the trash disposal demand. With the proposed approach, both the average amount of trash and the average number of full trash bins during the day are considerably reduced compared to the current solution. Moreover, we provided insights on how to parameterize the system according to the desired outcome, that is, higher exploration (needed to reduce the FTB) or more exploitation (needed to reduce the AUT). Finally, the proposed approach is not specific to waste management and can be used in a number of different applications such as package delivery, autonomous vehicle rides, etc. To prove the suitability of the proposed approach with different applications future research work will be focused on real world contexts and scenarios.

\section*{Acknowledgment}
\label{acknowledgment}
This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No. 751615.

\bibliographystyle{ieeetr}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaArXiv


text:
Mum's the word as this mother-daughter duo look to remove "horror stories" from pregnancy
Written by Zen Terrelonge on Friday, 10 May 2019. Posted in Interviews
With Babies in Waiting, Emily and Jo Bull are determined to change the perception of pregnancy to make expectant mothers aware giving birth is something to celebrate, not fear
"When I first meet people, they think 'What, you can actually enjoy giving birth?' which is such a shock to them," explains Emily Bull, the co-founder of Babies in Waiting, the pregnancy care franchise. Being fearful is easily done though – have you ever seen a film or TV show portray a calm and relaxed birth? The dad is usually clueless and the mum is generally having a meltdown. Of course, this needn't be the case, which is something Bull and her mother Jo are eagerly trying to make clear. "Sometimes we revert back to our subconscious conditioning of what we've seen in the media about birth, which is quite traumatic, like what we've seen on Eastenders, which is just entertainment," says Bull. "There's going to be shock and horror [on those programmes] and actually it doesn't have to be like that."
Before going into business with her mother though, she was arguably as dubious as some of the mums-to-be she speaks with today. While her mother had worked in pregnancy care over her career as a doula while also championing natural remedies as a homeopath, Bull's work life started as an English teacher at a secondary school. "I was working in a comprehensive high school locally and then I discovered I was pregnant," she says. "I had a mum who's a hypnobirthing practitioner and she opened my eyes to the idea or prospect of a really calm, beautiful birth, which at the time I was a little bit sceptical of. I was thinking 'Really? For all of those people you've been telling me have had such great experiences, did that really work?' But I thought 'No, actually, I want to find out more about this.'"
And find out more she did. Even though her mother's work had shaped her outlook as a child growing up, she still wanted to do her own research on the birthing front. "I think I've always been around a more holistic outlook to things," she says. "As a family, we've always questioned medicines and looked at different ways of treating things and complementary things to support conventional medicines. That's definitely had an impact on my line of thinking."
Still, with many of her mum's clients reporting amazing births, Bull proceeded to learn the hypnobirthing technique despite her doubts. "It wasn't until I learnt this stuff for myself and sat on the course and had that first birth that I thought 'Wow, this does [work],'" she laughs, adding it was "an amazing birthing experience" with a son born at home through a water birth. "Weighing 10lb 6oz, he was quite a large baby," Bull recalls. "There was no pain relief or intervention, it wasn't dramatic, it was a very calm, relaxed birth." From that point, Bull has continued to adopt the method to the extent that the three children she's had since were all born at home. The birth of her daughter was actually filmed and can be found on YouTube, where it's attracted over 620,000 views.
Entering motherhood, especially with this newfound birthing knowledge, opened Bull's eyes to a new opportunity within her reach. "I was at a crossroads in my life where I wanted to be able to teach people this stuff," she says. "If you can give birth calmly and confidently without any intervention, just by using the power of your mind and education, what else can you do with it?" Excited by the concept of embracing new visualisation techniques to support other women, Bull didn't want to return to life as a schoolteacher. "I felt a real sense of passion that I wanted to develop my skills, so I trained to be a clinical hypnotherapist and hypnobirthing practitioner." Through hypnotherapy, she learnt how to support people with goal achievement, motivation, overcoming fears and phobias, although it was applying it to birthing that really compelled her. And this paved the way for Bull to join forces with her mum to put the family in family business.
With Babies in Waiting, the pair have created an educational pregnancy course of their own design. "It's a very practical, common sense and comprehensive antenatal course," Bull details of the hypnobirthing teachings. "We write birth plans and help birth partners with how they can best support their partners but the real unique part of the course is the focus on the mindset as well." She reasons that the female body is designed to grow and nurture a baby, which means mums-to-be are generally able to go about their daily lives – assuming there aren't any special medical circumstances – but things become confused when the baby is due to arrive. "When it comes to labour, society fears birth," Bull claims. "There's lots of drama and horror stories surrounding it. So women are almost bracing themselves going into this event which should be a really normal, natural, amazing experience in their lives [because] it's their baby's first birthday." Based on that, the focus for the duo is to dispel myths and negativity to make way for confidence and belief.
Indeed, there's an almost sporting approach to the big day with the support of Babies in Waiting in terms of where that visualisation element is concerned. It's not uncommon to hear analogies about playing football or running a marathon on the course – you wouldn't have a sportsperson participate in one or the other without training, would you? And that's what Bull is trying to foster with the business – mental encouragement and performance in the same way a coach would get their athletes to succeed. "I could tell someone consciously 'Just relax and have a good birth' but it wouldn't go past the surface of where I need it to go to," says Bull. "Whereas with hypnosis you can bypass what's called the conscious critical faculty and you can get into the powerhouse, which is their subconscious mind, and you can really make massive changes to their belief system about their body, self-esteem and confidence."
In addition to hypnobirthing, the duo also hosts pregnancy relaxation classes. While hypnobirthing focuses on getting the expectant mother and their birthing partner up to speed ahead of the labour, pregnancy relaxation is something of a safe space for mums in the making to unwind. "The pregnancy relaxation sessions are open to anyone at any stage of their pregnancy and they're an opportunity to have that continuity of a place where they can come and offload any concerns, worries or fears, any anxieties, stresses or negative thinking," says Bull.
With a guided relaxation that includes creature comforts like blankets and pillows alongside eye masks and soothing music, each week has a specific theme for the stage of pregnancy. "If a woman is feeling endorphins and oxytocin regularly then that has a huge impact on the baby's wellbeing," she details. Pointing to the modern always-on lifestyles many lead today, from long working days and emails to phones and social media, Bull encourages mums to have some alone time. "It's so important she takes time out to relax," she continues. "To think 'Right, this is the place where I come and, even if I can only do one hour of this class a week, that's the time I can let go and focus on the baby.'"
It was several years after opening their doors in 2009 that Bull and her mother came to the conclusion they were onto a winner and franchising was thrown into the mix. "The majority of the people we've met and been teaching over the past ten years or so have had mind-blowing birthing experiences," says Bull. "And it was in 2016 that we realised 'Actually, we can franchise this business we've got' and that's when we got quite excited about that whole prospect."
For the years leading up to 2016, it was just the mother and daughter team that were teaching in their town of Billericay, Essex. Although franchising would be a transition from a team of two with the emergence of a franchise network, they had many of the tools required at their disposal already. "We'd created our own course, our own scripts, had our own music composed, everything was trademarked and protected and we thought 'You know what, we can roll this out,'" Bull says matter of factly. Another burst of encouragement came from the customers themselves, many of whom had begun saying how much they'd like to be part of Babies in Waiting. "So that gave us the inspiration to think 'Well actually, why don't we look into training people to teach this? Why don't we expand our team?'" she adds. With enquiries rolling in from places they physically couldn't operate in alone, their minds were made up.
With no real experience of franchising before entering the sector first-hand, female-centric franchise body Encouraging Women Into Franchising (EWIF) was a big helping hand to get the Babies in Waiting founders up to speed. "We got a lot of support with EWIF," recalls Bull. "I spoke to some really lovely ladies, like Anne-Marie, the franchisor from diddi dance. We've also got quite a close relationship with Sounds Right Phonics, so we've spoken to EWIF and other people who were doing it at the same time and was pretty [much] guided through the process."
Having received a crash course in franchising, Bull and her mother were ready for action. In terms of their own method of communication with interested parties, upon receiving an enquiry, they speak a few times before meeting and interviewing potential franchisees. Those who make it through to training are then given time with Bull herself for hypnotherapy, access to a midwife and practice runs teaching the sessions. Noting that the franchise incorporates continuous professional development, franchisees needn't worry they'll be left alone once committing either. "We have ongoing meetings with them, we observe their classes – that's the whole benefit of a franchise isn't it?" opines Bull. Detailing just how accessible they are at HQ, she says: "We're in constant communication with them, so if they've got any questions, need additional support or just want to clarify something, they can reach us immediately. And it's worked really well."
Bull has received a series of positive reviews about the growing network, which has 14 franchises currently, and it's seen mums want to stay in contact with their teachers to maintain a relationship even after the course is complete. "We received a bunch of flowers from a woman whose baby was having her first birthday and it was like 'Wow, you know what, that's amazing,'" Bull says, painting a vivid picture of just how happy some customers are. "Her baby's first birthday and she sent us flowers to say thank you. So it's more than a business. It's pretty much a way of life for us, it's what we love, it's a passion. So we branch that out and spread that to the franchisees. We see them as an extension of our family basically." It's unsurprising given many of the initial franchisees were already familiar with the brand, having taken part in the courses themselves.
In terms of challenges along the way, it doesn't appear Babies in Waiting has experienced any – although Bull confesses she's probably not the best person to ask about downsides. "I'm probably programmed to always see the positive in every situation," she laughs. "If I saw a challenge, I'd think 'What have I learnt from it? How can I flip it?' If there was something a bit trickier or harder, I'd see it as a learning process. I think we were just really lucky." Part of the reason things have been so smooth is down to the business running on its own steam for the better part of ten years. And in addition to hypnotherapy knowledge, Bull has also studied things like babywearing, breastfeeding and so on, combined with her own knowledge of being a mother. "For us, [franchising] was the perfect fit of what works well and what doesn't work so well from our own business," Bull says. "We're always growing and learning and developing and changing. But it's quite an exciting process really."
One of the developments was introducing the mother and baby club part of the business to the franchise opportunities at Babies in Waiting where it joined hypnobirthing and pregnancy relaxation. These take the shape of groups where new mums with babies up to three months old can meet others in their shoes and find new friends. "We notice there generally isn't a lot of support out there in the world for a postnatal mum," says Bull. "They can sometimes feel a bit isolated and vulnerable and don't often have someone they can ask questions."
She notes that other cultures can be learnt from as they'll really support new mums, whether that's family and friends taking food around, helping with chores or otherwise, while dads overseas will receive more time off to bond with their new baby and support their partners than they do in the UK. "Here you only get two weeks [of paternity leave] off [but you] have to get up and then get on with it and that's just so wrong," Bull stresses. "This is the foundation of our society: pregnancy, birth, new parenthood. These are going to be the future adults in our society making decisions. If we get this time right, if we respect and nurture and support a family, they're going to have less problems, stress and issues in the future."
And with the future in mind, Babies in Waiting is looking to expand from the Essex region and go nationwide with its offering. "The first few people we trained had done our course," says Bull. Like herself, they were professional mums who became converted through "really good birth experiences". "Obviously that's now changing because we've got a [franchisee] in Ireland – and she wasn't our client," laughs Bull of the logistical notion of hopping between the Emerald Isle and Essex once a week for the pregnancy group. "Our lady in Ireland is a midwife, she's a nurse and has six children, so she's very, very qualified for the role," she continues, chuckling.
In terms of other markets, the Midlands and north of England are appealing areas for the franchise. "Now it's really our goal to look at Manchester, we want to go to Birmingham and Sheffield, we want to try to get further afield," says Bull. Offering more perspective, straight from the heart, she adds: "That love of wanting to talk about the mind, birth and babies, that's the key really. And that's what shines through our team, which is this really is something they love. And when you do something you love that's what makes a success."
Of course, while the franchisees are of real importance, so too is her mother. "Obviously I've learnt about birth from her and she learnt about birth from me and the critical process of birthing," Bull laughs. "She's had four natural births herself and she's got six grandchildren, I've had four natural births, so we're literally embodying what we're telling people about." Adding how supportive they are of one another is what she thinks adds for a great working relationship. "The only reason we've been able to make Babies in Waiting such a success is because of that relationship, I believe. So we're really excited about the future and how we're going to develop it further."
Zen Terrelonge
As editor, Terrelonge can be found on the hunt for all things startup and scaleup – that's when he's not busy talking babies via DADult Life. Whether it's health or hospitality, food or philanthropy, tech or travel, he'll be seeking out the most interesting entrepreneurial developments to run in the magazine and online.
The National Franchise Exhibition returns to Birmingham next month
Jess Mackinnon
Why size doesn't matter when it comes to franchising
Does exclusivity mean franchisees truly have a place of their own?
Kate Legg
Original Poster Company bought by Cathay Investments 2
Pyjama Drama is shining on the world stage


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text:
Jim Dine: A Day Longer
Like the Wind
December 16, 2020By Heidi EllisonExhibitions
"Rules of the Forest" (2020). © Courtesy Templon, Paris–Brussels
Distressingly for art lovers, the reopening of museums in France has been postponed from December 15 to January 7, but the good news is that small art galleries are open. One exhibition well worth seeing is "A Day Longer," a presentation of three years' worth of new work by 85-year-old American artist Jim Dine, some of it made in his Paris studio during lockdown, at the Galerie Templon.
An assault on the senses greets visitors when they walk into the gallery's main room at the sight of eight heavily impastoed, forcefully colorful monumental paintings on wood. Your first impression might be that Dine went crazy and randomly squeezed tubes and tubes of paint onto the canvas and then threw everything in his studio – including his tools, dirt and blocks of wood – on for good measure and covered them up with more paint. Not so: there is method to his madness.
There is no surprise in the presence of so many mallets, hatchets, saws, etc. embedded in the lavishly applied oil paint: Dine has been using tools as part of his work since his Pop Art days in the early 1960s, a byproduct of an obsession with tools that has persisted since he was a child in his grandfather's hardware store.
"Prophet in the Storm" (2020). © Courtesy Templon, Paris–Brussels
Tools, wood, sand and charcoal are not the only add-ons to these at-first-glance abstract works, however: humans also creep into them in the form of barely distinguishable bodies ("Prophet in the Storm") or mask-like faces in roughly carved wood ("At Night, I Ride"), iron ("The Twisted Lyre") or bronze and aluminum ("Forgotten Harvest, Fragrant Spirit). Dine doesn't worry much about the labels "abstract" and "figurative."
"Me #1" (2020). © Courtesy Templon, Paris–Brussels
In fact, the 15 smaller paintings in the back room are entirely figurative, depicting nothing but human faces – all of them Dine's, easily recognizable by the bald head and prominent ears, but otherwise all very different.
The show also includes two sculptures in a new "collage" style: in each one, a "head" made of assembled painted cast-bronze pieces is mounted on a simple base.
The prolific Dine, who is also a poet, has a way with words, as seen in the lyrical titles of these works (I especially like the evocative "At Night, I Ride"). The show's poignant title, "A Day Longer" – "It's death breathing down my neck," he explains – is his as well.
"Paintings are mysterious objects," says Dine in the exhibition video. "They have a life of their own. You have to harness it. It's like the wind." In the catalog, however, poet and critic John Yau writes that Dine, "a masterful draftsman capable of delicately nuanced sensual lines," has "thrown caution to the wind" in his recent work. It seems to me that Dine has managed to have it both ways.
If you liked this article, you might also like Jim Dine: Paris Reconnaissance.
Galerie Templon
Through January 23, 2021
30, rue Beaubourg
Métro: Rambuteau
Open Tuesday-Saturday, 10am-7 pm. Closed December 25th, 2020-January 4, 2021.
templon.com


Doug Owens: I understand how expensive it can be to care for a child with autism, and I would support adding autism coverage to federally-regulated plans. I also know that those expenses often don't end when the child becomes an adult. It's estimated that care for an adult with autism will cost more than $3 million over a lifetime, and few parents have much, if any, excess cash to pay into a savings plan to prepare for those expenses. This is why I proudly supported the ABLE Act, and would have co-sponsored it in Congress. The ABLE Act helps individuals save money to cover expenses like housing, transportation, education, and other types of necessary assistance. These tax-exempt saving accounts will help reduce the financial stress and difficulties individuals with autism and their families face when planning for their future. In addition, these accounts will not impact eligibility for disability benefits. I also support broadening 529 college education savings plans to include children with special needs. Individuals with autism and their families need the financial flexibility and freedom to live a life that suits them best.
Doug Owens: Ensuring that every child receives a quality education is one of my highest priorities. I understand the unique needs and demands involved with educating autistic children, and I am committed to supporting measures that provide them with the best education possible. All educators, not only special education teachers, are vastly under-valued and under-paid, and we must develop ways to bring more money into the Utah education system that will provide our educators with the resources and flexibility to address the most pressing needs of their students. This is especially true for special education needs. As a Member of Congress, I will work to ensure that any revisions to the No Child Left Behind Act would increase funding and reduce burdensome requirements for improving special education. I will fight to maintain Utah's share of federal resources for Title 1 schools and special education programs.
Doug Owens: I have seen firsthand how those with autism benefit greatly from being employed. That is why I would have voted for and strongly support the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act.
Doug Owens: When elected to Congress, I will strongly support Avonte's Law and would also be proud to introduce the House version of this bill. I understand that wandering is one of the greatest fears for families of autistic individuals. The option of tracking devices would not only help reduce the stress families face when their child wanders, but would also reduce the cost and length of potential searches. The $10 million in grants provided in this bill would help make tracking devices an accessible option for working families. Utah's incidence of autism, which is one in 54 children, is higher than the national average, and I would fight hard for Utah to receive a greater share of these grants.
Doug Owens: My wife Cynthia and I are the parents of four wonderful children, one of whom has high-functioning autism. Autism is not an "issue" for us. We have lived and continue to live the concerns of parents with children on the spectrum. When elected, you can count on me to work tirelessly to ensure that all individuals on the spectrum and their families have the resources they need to address the condition and flourish in our society.


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text:
Nursing homes are invariably subjects of controversy as are rising Medicaid costs. A decision by the state of Illinois to regulate Medicaid costs for elderly and disabled nursing home residents is generating a lot of attention. Illinois nursing home negligence attorneys are closely following this new development.
MADO Management was selected as a partner in a government project aimed at controlling health spending for high-cost recipients of Medicaid insurance. There is some controversy over the fact that MADO, an organization that operates many nursing homes, was selected even though its facilities received inspection violations and reportedly have unsatisfactory staffing levels. However, it appears that MADO was the only nursing home that applied for Illinois' plan to shift mentally ill residents to independent apartments or group homes.
Illinois governor Pat Quinn announced six partnerships that will enable Illinois to comply with a new state law that requires at least half of all Medicaid recipients in Illinois to be transferred to managed care by 2015. State officials are opening some contracts to nonprofit mental health centers and hospitals to carry out this transfer. They hope that this move will eliminate unnecessary ER visits and other types of care while bringing down costs for Medicaid patients.
The welfare of mental patients is the chief focus of another Illinois state-initiated program called "Be Well Partners in Health" that also involves MADO Management. The organization works in partnership with various nonprofit organizations.
MADO does not particularly have a distinguished track record in helping nursing home residents with mental issues live more independently. Critics mention the MADO facility Sacred Heart Home, which repeatedly received a two-star from the Nursing Home Compare website. Among safety and health violations, Sacred Heart Home was also cited for its failure to provide rehabilitation services to a resident.
However, MADO Healthcare claims that it has been in the forefront of healthcare reform in Illinois. It collaborated with Illinois in the nursing home reform law of 2010 and worked with the state for three years to make it happen. MADO claims it wants to move towards recovery and rehabilitation services from long-term care. Experienced Chicago nursing home abuse lawyers will be closely observing how the plan works, and be ready to help residents who suffer as a result.
The controversy is further heightened by the fact that the businessman Peter O'Brien, who is the owner of MADO Healthcare, is now appointed to a state board. The family has political connections, since O'Brien's brother, the late Daniel O'Brien Jr. was a state representative and senator. So some critics are asking if MADO's selection was politically motivated.
The company denies any political motivations and claims that its comprehensive proposal is the reason that is was selected for this state scheme. O'Brien himself shrugs off his political connections, saying that he always likes to play an active part in making a difference to someone's life. O'Brien claims that much of the motivation behind MADO participating in the state's relocation plan was the mental illness of his late son. It made him think of a need for a "person-centered program" to take care of the rehabilitation, hospitalization and community care needs of mentally ill people as well as the elderly and physically weak.
The six projects are mostly run by government health agencies, hospitals and such nonprofits. A group of healthcare centers will concentrate on some counties in central and northwest Illinois. The Healthcare Consortium of Illinois leads another group of counties, as does the Macon County Mental Health Board. Cook County's Heartland Health Outreach and Illinois' Community Care Alliance are also involved.
Around 6,000 Medicaid recipients are expected to benefit from the efforts of these institutions. The organizations will get fees for the patient care they offer, but will be penalized if the required quality standards aren't met. They will need to share their savings with the state too.


When you hire our expert team of Leicester painter and decorators in Leicester at Mark Rogers Decorating, we want you to be thrilled with every phase of your painting and decorating project. That's why we only employ the best. All of our painter and decorators in Leicester are fully qualified and time served tradesmen. They all have to work to our very high standards and we carry out regular checks and final inspections on all of our projects.
If you have an interior or exterior painting and decorating project in Leicester then let our specialist team of Leicester painter and decorators in Leicester give it that professional look. With over 20 years experience you can guarantee you are in safe hands. We are both 'Dulux Approved Select Decorators' and 'Trust Mark Members' which also means you get two years guarantee with any Dulux paint we use on your project.
Whether you are repainting the interior lounge in your home or painting your new commercial building before the exciting grand opening event, you can trust our team of painters and decorators in Leicester to do the job right from start to finish. Every project is completed to your specifications and on-schedule.
Our Leicester Painters and Decorators at Mark Rogers Decorating Services use the latest dust free sanding system from Festool. Dust is produced when sanding and sawing wood or mineral materials, and this can become a serious health risk.


Rodrigo Fernandez-Stoll is an award-winning filmmaker, actor, and producer from Toronto, Canada. His short film Job Interview won a Canadian Comedy Award for Best Comedy Short in 2015. Rodrigo is the recipient of the BITE Comedy Award from the National Screen Institute of Canada. He has appeared in Kim's Convenience, The Beaverton, Baroness Von Sketch and tons of other shows.
Past producing credits include: Womanish (The Templeton Philharmonic/CBC Punchline), Wanda (Tony Ho), Dissection (Tony Ho), Street Violence (Digits official music video), Never Come Down (Brave Shores official music video).
Rodrigo has also collaborated with La Rue Productions on International Emmy nominated The Amazing Gayl Pile, True Dating Stories and frequently works with acclaimed Toronto editor Marianna Khoury, DOP's Timothy Moore, Henry Sansom, filmmakers Christopher Lazar, Allison Johnston, Dan Tahmizian and Matt O'Brien.
Rodrigo contributes to a monthly film variety show called Videorama, hosted by Toronto filmmaker Dan Tahmizian.
Copyright Rodrigo Fernandez-Stoll. All rights reserved.


Hysterectomy Weight Loss: Will I Lose or Gain After a Hysterectomy?
A hysterectomy is a surgical procedure to remove the uterus. It's done to treat a variety of conditions, from cancer to endometriosis. The surgery can cause a range of side effects. Without a uterus, for example, you can't get pregnant. You'll also stop menstruating.
But does it have any effect on your weight? Having a hysterectomy doesn't cause weight loss directly. However, depending on the underlying condition it's treating, some people might experience weight loss that's not necessarily related to the procedure itself.
Read on to learn more about the potential effects of a hysterectomy on weight.
Weight loss isn't a side effect of a hysterectomy. Some people experience a few days of nausea following a major surgery. This can be a result of pain or a side effect of the anesthesia. For some, this can make it hard to keep food down, resulting in temporary weight loss.
In some cases, this surgery is used in conjunction with chemotherapy. Chemotherapy has a number of side effects, including nausea, vomiting, and weight loss. Some people may mistake chemotherapy-related weight loss for a side effect of a hysterectomy.
Hysterectomies also help to reduce chronic pain and heavy bleeding caused by fibroids, endometriosis, and other conditions. When these symptoms resolve after surgery, you might find that you have a lot more energy for physical activity, potentially leading to weight loss.
If you've recently had a hysterectomy and lost a lot of weight, follow up with your doctor, especially if you can't think of any other factors that may be causing it.
Can a hysterectomy cause weight gain?
While a hysterectomy isn't directly linked to weight loss, it may be related to weight gain in some people. A suggests that premenopausal women who've had a hysterectomy without the removal of both ovaries have a higher risk for weight gain, compared with women who haven't had the surgery. More research is needed to fully understand the potential link between hysterectomies and weight gain.
If you do have your ovaries removed during the procedure, you'll immediately enter menopause. This process can last for several years, but women gain an average of 5 pounds after going through menopause.
You might also gain some weight as you recover from the procedure. Depending on the approach your doctor uses, you'll need to avoid any strenuous activity for four to six weeks. You can still move around during this time, but you'll want to hold off on any major exercise. If you're used to exercising regularly, this break could have a temporary impact on your weight.
Also keep in mind that a hysterectomy is major surgery, so try to cut yourself some slack and focus on your recovery. You'll be feeling better within a few weeks, even if you gain a few pounds in the process.
What are some of the other side effects of a hysterectomy?
A hysterectomy can have several side effects that aren't related to your weight. If you still had your period before your hysterectomy, you'll stop getting it after your surgery. You also can't get pregnant after a hysterectomy. The loss of both fertility and mensuration is a benefit to some. But for others, it can cause a sense of loss. Here's one woman's take on feeling grief after a hysterectomy.
These should gradually decrease and eventually disappear as you recover.
There's no connection between hysterectomy and weight loss. Any weight loss noticed after a hysterectomy probably has an unrelated cause. Always talk to your doctor about any unintentional weight loss, as there could be an underlying condition at play.
Surgical menopause occurs after both ovaries are surgically removed. Learn about the benefits and risks of having this procedure.
A serendipitous adoption finally brought motherhood into Leah Campbell's life. This is how infertility prepared her for it.


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An Anti-War Ash Wednesday in Dublin Ireland (photos) (english)
by redJaDe	 06 Mar 2003
{ photos by redJaDe } (c) (article 10)
from http://Indymedia.ie
Who Are The Catholic Workers?
http://www.geocities.com/londoncatholicworker
http://www.CatholicWorker.org
Philosophy of Nonviolence
By David McReynolds
http://www.nonviolence.org/commentary/messages/2047.htm
An Interview with Cesar Chavez
on the Philosophy and Strategy of Non-Violence
http://www.sfsu.edu/~cecipp/cesar_chavez/apostle.htm
' Ash Wednesday is an appropriate time for nonviolent resistance to the war. Ash reminds us of the cost of war and also of our own mortality. Issues the United States as an empire is in complete denial about. Like all the empires that have preceeded them - Roman, Egyptiian, British, they seek to gain dominion over all the world's people and resources. Empires believe they will continue forever at any cost. We refuse to be silenced by the threats of injunctions or the bribes of cash and accomadation. We hope all peoples of all faiths will join together in opposing the genocidal sanctions on Iraq and the escalation of this war." '
More text & Photos
http://indymedia.ie/cgi-bin/newswire.cgi?id=32648
' An illegal package was posted in the General Post Office on O'Connell street today. Addressed to the head of the Iraqi Red Crescent, it contains three packets of medicine. Like the war machines passing through Shannon, it is on its way to Iraq. '
Feb 10 2003, Limerick Prison
' Shannon has become a major pitstop for U.S troop and munition movement into Kuwait and Qatar. The witness once again reveals the twin reality that the weapons are not secure ! / the weapons dont secure us ! Over 90 ploughshares communities over the last 23 years all arriving at the weapon systems they hope to disarm - many located in more intense security envoirnments than the hangar at Shannon. The presence of U.S troops and munitions in Ireland enroute to war is not only unconstitutional but endangers Iraqi, Irish and American lives. '
http://indymedia.ie/cgi-bin/newswire.cgi?id=28489&start=0


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Windows 11 Gets a Window Into Gaming With Game Pass
ByOlivia Waker
Redmond wants to make widgets a core feature of Windows 11, so they've added a variety of built-in options for the app, while leaving the door open to developer customization. A new widget, Game Pass, debuts with build 25174 and lets you see the latest titles available from the gaming service as well as ones that will be leaving soon. This is great news for gamers, but what will it mean for the rest of us?
YT Game Bar Overlay
You can get this application from the Microsoft store. The video game enthusiast will enjoy the YouTube Game Bar Overlay. It allows you to watch videos without leaving your game. You can even play music from Spotify without switching applications. Then, you can connect with friends on the same platform. The Widget Store has additional game bar widgets, and you can choose any one you want.
Microsoft is testing a new PC Game Pass window in the Windows 11 preview, and it's meant to give the gaming subscription service a visual boost. It'll show you the most recent additions to your library, as well as those that are soon to leave. It'll also highlight categories for new releases. Once you click on a game's name, a shortcut will take you to the Xbox app, where you can install it and read reviews.
Game Bar Calculator
The Xbox Game Bar is a great addition to the new Windows operating system, but it can do more than just add useful game-related information. You can also get cheat codes, tips, and other helpful tidbits right from the Game Bar itself. It can also be pinned to the top of any other window, which makes it convenient to use while playing games. The Game Bar calculator also has an optional browser that lets you view game guide pages without leaving the game.
ALSO READ: Microsoft's Windows 11 Brings Updates For Android Gamers
Snap Layouts
The new Windows Snap Layouts feature lets you resize, move, and rotate windows in a way that suits your preferences. To move windows in a snap, simply click or drag the window's title bar and drag it to the left or right side of the display. In either case, the window will take up half of the screen, or even a quarter of it, depending on the size of the window. If you have a large area of your desktop unoccupied, Snap Flyout will appear to fill the space. You can close it or continue to work in your desktop as usual.
Dynamic Refresh Rate
You can enable the screen refresh rate widget in your Android device's settings to keep track of the refresh rate of all your games and apps. This widget will appear in the upper left corner of your screen. There is no need for you to install third-party apps in order to view this information. If you don't want to see this information, you can disable it from the Developer Options menu. You can also disable the widget if you want to play games at a slower refresh rate.
App restore from another device
The Xbox Game Pass for PC widget will give Windows 11 users a window into the world of gaming. The new widget will show you which games are currently available, and which titles are leaving your Game Pass subscription soon. Clicking on the widget will take you to the Xbox app for PC, where you can install the games, read reviews, and play them. Microsoft is focused on providing quality to Windows users, so this update will make the OS a bit less resource-hungry.
Scuti Launches First Ever Gamified Ad Units For Video Games
Advertising Reimagined For the Gaming World
Dec 29, 2022 Maria Jose
What Is Call Of Duty Camo Boosting?
Dec 15, 2022 Alexa Johnson
Top-Rated Fully Automatic Gaming Chairs Reviewed
Dec 13, 2022 Charles Logan


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Staff and Board Leadership
Vendor and Contracting Opportunities
Holiday Giving Campaigns
The Holiday Brunch
Home and Garden Tour
Protecting Syrian Refugees in Lebanon
With 1.2 million Syrian refugees, Lebanon is host to the highest percentage of Syrian refugees per capita—one in five—of any country in the world. Women and children make up 79% of the registered refugee population, with children constituting 53.2% of this figure. Violence, overcrowded shelters and insufficient incomes are the most pressing issues among this community.
HAI has been working in Lebanon since 2008 in the following ways:
Combatting gender-based violence and expanding access to services. HAI has created and continually staffs safe spaces that serve over 2,700 women and girl refugee survivors of violence and those at risk of experiencing violence. These walk-in safe spaces include mental health and legal services, vocational training and child care services. These locations also share information about the rights given and services available to refugees.
Healing trauma and restoring well-being. HAI collaborates with existing social and health clinics to provide sliding scale and free services for Syrian refugees. The organization has trained clinic staff to provide mental health services for refugee survivors of violence.
Paving a path to sustainability. HAI brings together high-level national and local government, along with non-governmental organizations to help them better understand and respond to violence against Syrian refugee women and Lebanese host community member In addition, HAI partnered with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) to expand gender-based violence response and prevention in eight community centers inside eight Palestinian camps in Lebanon.
Protecting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) refugees. LGBT individuals have the right to be safe, healthy, engaged and empowered. HAI works with local partners to meet the most pressing needs of LGBT communities and increasing acceptance and support from within the larger refugee and host communities. HAI conducted the first assessment of its kind on the specific vulnerabilities facing LGBT refugees in Lebanon. This landmark report informs HAI's and other organizations' programming in working with this particularly vulnerable group of refugees.
Ensuring education for all. HAI provides training for Syrian refugee adolescent girls and children who are unable to participate in formal education because of language barriers.
Heartland Alliance International


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'Queen Sono,' Netflix's first African original, to debut Feb. 28
Dec. 10 (UPI) -- Queen Sono, Netflix's first African original series, is coming in February.
The streaming service shared a release date, Feb. 28, poster and teaser for the new show Tuesday.
The poster, released on Twitter, shows South African actress Pearl Thusi sitting on a throne.
"She is #QueenSono. February 28," the caption reads.
The teaser shows Thusi walking up and taking a seat on the throne shown in the poster. She ends the teaser by giving a wink.
Queen Sono is a crime drama set in South Africa. The series follows Queen Sono (Thusi), a highly-trained spy who must juggle dangerous missions with changing relationships in her personal life.
Queen Sono is created by South African actor, comedian and director Kagiso Lediga. The series co-stars Vuyo Dabula, Sechaba Morojele, Chi Mhende, Loyiso Madinga and Rob Van Vuuren.
Netflix ordered Queen Sono to series in December 2018.
"We are delighted to create this original series with Netflix, and are super excited by their undeniable ability to take this homegrown South African story to a global audience. We believe Queen Sono will kick the door open for more awesome stories from this part of the world," Lediga said at the time.
Thusi is known for playing Patricia Kopong on the BBC/HBO series The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency and Dayana Mampasi on the ABC series Quantico.
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Home > Contents > Photobooks > Book Details
[Click on the appropriate flag to buy the book]
Diane Arbus: An Aperture Monograph was originally published in 1972, one year after the artist's death, in conjunction with a retrospective of her work at the Museum of Modern Art. Edited and designed by Arbus's daughter, Doon, and her friend and colleague, painter Marvin Israel, the monograph contains eighty of her most masterful photos. The images in this newly published edition, marking the twenty-fifth anniversary of the collection's original publication, were printed from new three-hundred-line-screen duotone film, allowing for startlingly clear reproduction. The impact of the collection is heightened by the introduction, which contains excerpts of audio tapes in which Arbus discusses her experiences as a photographer and her feelings about the often bizarre nature of her subjects. Diane Arbus's work has indelibly impacted modern visual sensibilities, evidenced by the intensely personal moments captured in this powerful group of photographs. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
"Diane Arbus was no a theorist but an artist. Her concern was not to buttress philosophical positions but to make pictures. She loved photography for the miracles it performs each day by accident, and respected it for the precise intentional tool that it could be, given talent, intelligence, dedication and discipline. Her pictures are concerned with private rather than social realities, with psychological rather than visual coherence, with the prototypical and mythic rather than the topical and... read more --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
Diane Arbus-- born Diane Nemerov in New York City in 1923-- married Allan Arbus at the age of eighteen. She started taking pictures in the early 1940s and studied photography with Berenice Abbott in the late 1940s and with Alexey Brodovitch in the 1950s. It was Lisette Model's photographic workshops, however, that inspired her, around 1957, to begin seriously pursuing the work for which she has come to be known.
Her first published photographs appeared in Esquire in 1960. During the next decade, working for Esquire, Harper's Bazaar, and other major magazines, she published more than a hundred pictures, including portraits and photographic essays, many of which originated as personal projects, occasionally accompanied by her own writing. Diane Arbus: Magazine Work (Aperture, 1984) documents this aspect of her career and its relationship to her best-known imagery.
In 1963 and 1966 she was awarded Guggenheim Fellowships for her project on "American Rites, Manners, and Customs." She traveled across the country, photographing the people, places, and events she described as "the considerable ceremonies of our present." "These are our symptoms and our monuments," she wrote. "I simply want to save them, for what is ceremonious and curious and commonplace will be legendary."
A selected group of these photographs attracted a great deal of critical and popular attention when they were featured, along with the work of two other photographers, in the Museum of Modern Art's 1967 exhibition "New Documents." The boldness of her subject matter and photographic approach were recognized as revolutionary.
In the late 1960s, Arbus taught photography at Parsons School of Design, the Rhode Island School of Design, and Cooper Union, and continued to make photographs. Notable among her last works is a series of photographs she took at residences for the mentally retarded. Untitled (Aperture, 1995) is a collection of fifty-one of these photographs. "The extraordinary power of Untitled confirms our earliest impression of Arbus's work," wrote Hilton Als in the New Yorker. "It is as iconographic as it gets in any medium. These pictures are purely ecstatic."
In 1970, Arbus made a portfolio of ten prints, which was intended to be the first in a series of limited editions of her work. She committed suicide in July of 1971. In the years following her death and the Museum of Modern Art's posthumous retrospective-- which was seen by more than a quarter of a million people befo
This photographer...
Diane Arbus: An Aperture Monograph, Twenty-fifth Anniversary Edition
Diane Arbus; Doon Arbus; & Yolanda Cuomo
Diane Arbus; Doon Arbus (Editor); & Marvin Israel (Editor)
Portraits: Arbus, Model, Stromholm
Diane Arbus (Photographer); Lisette Model (Photographer); & Christer Stromholm
Diane Arbus: Revelations
Doon Arbus
Diane Arbus: A Biography
Patricia Bosworth
Diane Arbus: Family Albums
Anthony W. Lee; & John Pultz


Portada's Latin American Advertising and Media Awards: Nominate Your Candidates!
Let the fun start! Portada's Latin American Advertising and Media Awards reward excellency in Latin American (panregional) advertising campaigns and in start-ups/media companies targeting pan-latin audiences (Latin America, U.S. Hispanic and the Iberian Peninsula!).
Award Winners will be announced at Portada's 2013 Latin American Advertising Media Summit, June 4-5 at the Intercontinental Hotel in Miami.
Click here to register for the Summit and/or the Latin Content Marketing Forum!
Start the fun and enter your candidates!