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Chapter 29: 20. The End of Homo Sapiens
The End of Homo Sapiens
THIS BOOK BEGAN BY PRESENTING HISTORY as the next stage in the continuum of physics to chemistry to biology. Sapiens are subject to the same physical forces, chemical reactions and natural-selection processes that govern all living beings. Natural selection may have provided Homo sapiens with a much larger playing field than it has given to any other organism, but the field has still had its boundaries. The implication has been that, no matter what their efforts and achievements, Sapiens are incapable of breaking free of their biologically determined limits.
But as the twenty-first century unfolds, this is no longer true: Homo sapiens is transcending those limits. It is now beginning to break the laws of natural selection, replacing them with the laws of intelligent design.
For close to 4 billion years, every single organism on the planet evolved subject to natural selection. Not even one was designed by an intelligent creator. The giraffe, for example, got its long neck thanks to competition between archaic giraffes rather than to the whims of a super-intelligent being. Proto-giraffes who had longer necks had access to more food and consequently produced more offspring than did those with shorter necks. Nobody, certainly not the giraffes, said, 'A long neck would enable giraffes to munch leaves off the treetops. Let's extend it.' The beauty of Darwin's theory is that it does not need to assume an intelligent designer to explain how giraffes ended up with long necks.
For billions of years, intelligent design was not even an option, because there was no intelligence which could design things. Microorganisms, which until quite recently were the only living things around, are capable of amazing feats. A microorganism belonging to one species can incorporate genetic codes from a completely different species into its cell and thereby gain new capabilities, such as resistance to antibiotics. Yet, as best we know, microorganisms have no consciousness, no aims in life, and no ability to plan ahead.
At some stage organisms such as giraffes, dolphins, chimpanzees and Neanderthals evolved consciousness and the ability to plan ahead. But even if a Neanderthal fantasised about fowls so fat and slow-moving that he could just scoop them up whenever he was hungry, he had no way of turning that fantasy into reality. He had to hunt the birds that had been naturally selected.
The first crack in the old regime appeared about 10,000 years ago, during the Agricultural Revolution. Sapiens who dreamed of fat, slow-moving chickens discovered that if they mated the fattest hen with the slowest cock, some of their offspring would be both fat and slow. If you mated those offspring with each other, you could produce a line of fat, slow birds. It was a race of chickens unknown to nature, produced by the intelligent design not of a god but of a human.
Still, compared to an all-powerful deity, Homo sapiens had limited design skills. Sapiens could use selective breeding to detour around and accelerate the natural-selection processes that normally affected chickens, but they could not introduce completely new characteristics that were absent from the genetic pool of wild chickens. In a way, the relationship between Homo sapiens and chickens was similar to many other symbiotic relationships that have so often arisen on their own in nature. Sapiens exerted peculiar selective pressures on chickens that caused the fat and slow ones to proliferate, just as pollinating bees select flowers, causing the bright colourful ones to proliferate.
Today, the 4-billion-year-old regime of natural selection is facing a completely different challenge. In laboratories throughout the world, scientists are engineering living beings. They break the laws of natural selection with impunity, unbridled even by an organism's original characteristics. Eduardo Kac, a Brazilian bio-artist, decided in 2000 to create a new work of art: a fluorescent green rabbit. Kac contacted a French laboratory and offered it a fee to engineer a radiant bunny according to his specifications. The French scientists took a run-of-the-mill white rabbit embryo, implanted in its DNA a gene taken from a green fluorescent jellyfish, and One green fluorescent rabbit for le Kac named the rabbit Alba.
It is impossible to explain the existence of Alba through the laws of natural selection. She is the product of intelligent design. She is also a harbinger of things to come. If the potential Alba signifies is realised in full – and if humankind doesn't annihilate itself meanwhile – the Scientific Revolution might prove itself far greater than a mere historical revolution. It may turn out to be the most important biological revolution since the appearance of life on earth. After 4 billion years of natural selection, Alba stands at the dawn of a new cosmic era, in which life will be ruled by intelligent design. If this happens, the whole of human history up to that point might, with hindsight, be reinterpreted as a process of experimentation and apprenticeship that revolutionised the game of life. Such a process should be understood from a cosmic perspective of billions of years, rather than from a human perspective of millennia.
Biologists the world over are locked in battle with the intelligent-design movement, which opposes the teaching of Darwinian evolution in schools and claims that biological complexity proves there must be a creator who thought out all biological details in advance. The biologists are right about the past, but the proponents of intelligent design might, ironically, be right about the future.
At the time of writing, the replacement of natural selection by intelligent design could happen in any of three ways: through biological engineering, cyborg engineering (cyborgs are beings that combine organic with non-organic parts) or the engineering of inorganic life.
Biological engineering is deliberate human intervention on the biological level (e.g. implanting a gene) aimed at modifying an organism's shape, capabilities, needs or desires, in order to realise some preconceived cultural idea, such as the artistic predilections of Eduardo Kac.
There is nothing new about biological engineering, per se. People have been using it for millennia in order to reshape themselves and other organisms. A simple example is castration. Humans have been castrating bulls for perhaps 10,000 years in order to create oxen. Oxen are less aggressive, and are thus easier to train to pull ploughs. Humans also castrated their own young males to create soprano singers with enchanting voices and eunuchs who could safely be entrusted with overseeing the sultan's harem.
But recent advances in our understanding of how organisms work, down to the cellular and nuclear levels, have opened up previously unimaginable possibilities. For instance, we can today not merely castrate a man, but also change his sex through surgical and hormonal treatments. But that's not all. Consider the surprise, disgust and consternation that ensued when, in 1996, the following photograph appeared in newspapers and on television:
47. A mouse on whose back scientists grew an 'ear' made of cattle cartilage cells. It is an eerie echo of the lion-man statue from the Stadel Cave. Thirty thousand years ago, humans were already fantasising about combining different species. Today, they can actually produce such chimeras.
Photo and © Charles Vacanti.
No, Photoshop was not involved. It's an untouched photo of a real mouse on whose back scientists implanted cattle cartilage cells. The scientists were able to control the growth of the new tissue, shaping it in this case into something that looks like a human ear. The process may soon enable scientists to manufacture artificial ears, which could then be implanted in
Even more remarkable wonders can be performed with genetic engineering, which is why it raises a host of ethical, political and ideological issues. And it's not just pious monotheists who object that man should not usurp God's role. Many confirmed atheists are no less shocked by the idea that scientists are stepping into nature's shoes. Animal-rights activists decry the suffering caused to lab animals in genetic engineering experiments, and to the farmyard animals that are engineered in complete disregard of their needs and desires. Human-rights activists are afraid that genetic engineering might be used to create supermen who will make serfs of the rest of us. Jeremiahs offer apocalyptic visions of bio-dictatorships that will clone fearless soldiers and obedient workers. The prevailing feeling is that too many opportunities are opening too quickly and that our ability to modify genes is outpacing our capacity for making wise and farsighted use of the skill.
The result is that we're at present using only a fraction of the potential of genetic engineering. Most of the organisms now being engineered are those with the weakest political lobbies – plants, fungi, bacteria and insects. For example, lines of E. coli, a bacterium that lives symbiotically in the human gut (and which makes headlines when it gets out of the gut and causes deadly infections), have been genetically engineered to produce E. coli and several species of fungi have also been engineered to produce insulin, thereby lowering the cost of diabetes A gene extracted from an Arctic fish has been inserted into potatoes, making the plants more
A few mammals have also been subject to genetic engineering. Every year the dairy industry suffers billions of dollars in damages due to mastitis, a disease that strikes dairy-cow udders. Scientists are currently experimenting with genetically engineered cows whose milk contains lysostaphin, a biochemical that attacks the bacteria responsible for the The pork industry, which has suffered from falling sales because consumers are wary of the unhealthy fats in ham and bacon, has hopes for a still-experimental line of pigs implanted with genetic material from a worm. The new genes cause the pigs to turn bad omega 6 fatty acid into its healthy cousin, omega
The next generation of genetic engineering will make pigs with good fat look like child's play. Geneticists have managed not merely to extend sixfold the average life expectancy of worms, but also to engineer genius mice that display much-improved memory and learning Voles are small, stout rodents resembling mice, and most varieties of voles are promiscuous. But there is one species in which boy and girl voles form lasting and monogamous relationships. Geneticists claim to have isolated the genes responsible for vole monogamy. If the addition of a gene can turn a vole Don Juan into a loyal and loving husband, are we far off from being able to genetically engineer not only the individual abilities of rodents (and humans), but also their social
The Return of the Neanderthals
But geneticists do not only want to transform living lineages. They aim to revive extinct creatures as well. And not just dinosaurs, as in the Hollywood blockbuster Jurassic A team of Russian, Japanese and Korean scientists has recently mapped the genome of ancient mammoths, found frozen in the Siberian ice. They now plan to take a fertilised egg-cell of a present-day elephant, replace the elephantine DNA with a reconstructed mammoth DNA, and implant the egg in the womb of an elephant. After about twenty-two months, they expect the first mammoth in 5,000 years to be
But why stop at mammoths? Professor George Church of Harvard University recently suggested that, with the completion of the Neanderthal Genome Project, we can now implant reconstructed Neanderthal DNA into a Sapiens ovum, thus producing the first Neanderthal child in 30,000 years. Church claimed that he could do the job for a paltry $30 million. Several women have already volunteered to serve as surrogate
What do we need Neanderthals for? Some argue that if we could study live Neanderthals, we could answer some of the most nagging questions about the origins and uniqueness of Homo By comparing a Neanderthal to a Homo sapiens brain, and mapping out where their structures differ, perhaps we could identify what biological change produced consciousness as we experience it. There's an ethical reason, too – some have argued that if Homo sapiens was responsible for the extinction of the Neanderthals, it has a moral duty to resurrect them. And having some Neanderthals around might be useful. Lots of industrialists would be glad to pay one Neanderthal to do the menial work of two Sapiens.
But why stop even at Neanderthals? Why not go back to God's drawing board and design a better Sapiens? The abilities, needs and desires of Homo sapiens have a genetic basis, and the Sapiens genome is no more complex than that of voles and mice. (The mouse genome contains about 2.5 billion nucleobases, the Sapiens genome about 2.9 billion bases – meaning the latter is only 14 per cent In the medium range – perhaps in a few decades – genetic engineering and other forms of biological engineering might enable us to make far-reaching alterations not only to our physiology, immune system and life expectancy, but also to our intellectual and emotional capacities. If genetic engineering can create genius mice, why not genius humans? If it can create monogamous voles, why not humans hard-wired to remain faithful to their partners?
The Cognitive Revolution that turned Homo sapiens from an insignificant ape into the master of the world did not require any noticeable change in physiology or even in the size and external shape of the Sapiens brain. It apparently involved no more than a few small changes to internal brain structure. Perhaps another small change would be enough to ignite a Second Cognitive Revolution, create a completely new type of consciousness, and transform Homo sapiens into something altogether different.
True, we still don't have the acumen to achieve this, but there seems to be no insurmountable technical barrier preventing us from producing superhumans. The main obstacles are the ethical and political objections that have slowed down research on humans. And no matter how convincing the ethical arguments may be, it is hard to see how they can hold back the next step for long, especially if what is at stake is the possibility of prolonging human life indefinitely, conquering incurable diseases, and upgrading our cognitive and emotional abilities.
What would happen, for example, if we developed a cure for Alzheimer's disease that, as a side benefit, could dramatically improve the memories of healthy people? Would anyone be able to halt the relevant research? And when the cure is developed, could any law enforcement agency limit it to Alzheimer's patients and prevent healthy people from using it to acquire super-memories?
It's unclear whether bioengineering could really resurrect the Neanderthals, but it would very likely bring down the curtain on Homo Tinkering with our genes won't necessarily kill us. But we might fiddle with Homo sapiens to such an extent that we would no longer be Homo
Bionic Life
There is another new technology which could change the laws of life: cyborg engineering. Cyborgs are beings which combine organic and inorganic parts, such as a human with bionic hands. In a sense, nearly all of us are bionic these days, since our natural senses and functions are supplemented by devices such as eyeglasses, pacemakers, orthotics, and even computers and mobile phones (which relieve our brains of some of their data storage and processing burdens). We stand poised on the brink of becoming true cyborgs, of having inorganic features that are inseparable from our bodies, features that modify our abilities, desires, personalities and identities.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), a US military research agency, is developing cyborgs out of insects. The idea is to implant electronic chips, detectors and processors in the body of a fly or cockroach, which will enable either a human or an automatic operator to control the insect's movements remotely and to absorb and transmit information. Such a fly could be sitting on the wall at enemy headquarters, eavesdrop on the most secret conversations, and if it isn't caught first by a spider, could inform us exactly what the enemy is In 2006 the US Naval Undersea Warfare Center reported its intention to develop cyborg sharks, declaring, 'NUWC is developing a fish tag whose goal is behaviour control of host animals via neural implants.' The developers hope to identify underwater electromagnetic fields made by submarines and mines, by exploiting the natural magnetic detecting capabilities of sharks, which are superior to those of any man-made
Sapiens, too, are being turned into cyborgs. The newest generation of hearing aids are sometimes referred to as 'bionic ears'. The device consists of an implant that absorbs sound through a microphone located in the outer part of the ear. The implant filters the sounds, identifies human voices, and translates them into electric signals that are sent directly to the central auditory nerve and from there to the
Retina Implant, a government-sponsored German company, is developing a retinal prosthesis that may allow blind people to gain partial vision. It involves implanting a small microchip inside the patient's eye. Photocells absorb light falling on the eye and transform it into electrical energy, which stimulates the intact nerve cells in the retina. The nervous impulses from these cells stimulate the brain, where they are translated into sight. At present the technology allows patients to orientate themselves in space, identify letters, and even recognise
Jesse Sullivan, an American electrician, lost both arms up to the shoulder in a 2001 accident. Today he uses two bionic arms, courtesy of the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. The special feature of Jesse's new arms is that they are operated by thought alone. Neural signals arriving from Jesse's brain are translated by micro-computers into electrical commands, and the arms move. When Jesse wants to raise his arm, he does what any normal person unconsciously does – and the arm rises. These arms can perform a much more limited range of movements than organic arms, but they enable Jesse to carry out simple daily functions. A similar bionic arm has recently been outfitted for Claudia Mitchell, an American soldier who lost her arm in a motorcycle accident. Scientists believe that we will soon have bionic arms that will not only move when willed to move, but will also be able to transmit signals back to the brain, thereby enabling amputees to regain even the sensation of
48. Jesse Sullivan and Claudia Mitchell holding hands. The amazing thing about their bionic arms is that they are operated by thought.
© ImageBank/Getty Images Israel.
At present these bionic arms are a poor replacement for our organic originals, but they have the potential for unlimited development. Bionic arms, for example, can be made far more powerful than their organic kin, making even a boxing champion feel like a weakling. Moreover, bionic arms have the advantage that they can be replaced every few years, or detached from the body and operated at a distance.
Scientists at Duke University in North Carolina have recently demonstrated this with rhesus monkeys whose brains have been implanted with electrodes. The electrodes gather signals from the brain and transmit them to external devices. The monkeys have been trained to control detached bionic arms and legs through thought alone. One monkey, named Aurora, learned to thought-control a detached bionic arm while simultaneously moving her two organic arms. Like some Hindu goddess, Aurora now has three arms, and her arms can be located in different rooms – or even cities. She can sit in her North Carolina lab, scratch her back with one hand, scratch her head with a second hand, and simultaneously steal a banana in New York (although the ability to eat a purloined fruit at a distance remains a dream). Another rhesus monkey, Idoya, won world fame in 2008 when she thought-controlled a pair of bionic legs in Kyoto, Japan, from her North Carolina chair. The legs were twenty times Idoya's
Locked-in syndrome is a condition in which a person loses all or nearly all her ability to move any part of her body, while her cognitive abilities remain intact. Patients suffering from the syndrome have up till now been able to communicate with the outside world only through small eye movements. However, a few patients have had brain-signal-gathering electrodes implanted in their brains. Efforts are being made to translate such signals not merely into movements but also into words. If the experiments succeed, locked-in patients could finally speak directly with the outside world, and we might eventually be able to use the technology to read other people's
Yet of all the projects currently under development, the most revolutionary is the attempt to devise a direct two-way brain-computer interface that will allow computers to read the electrical signals of a human brain, simultaneously transmitting signals that the brain can read in turn. What if such interfaces are used to directly link a brain to the Internet, or to directly link several brains to each other, thereby creating a sort of Inter-brain-net? What might happen to human memory, human consciousness and human identity if the brain has direct access to a collective memory bank? In such a situation, one cyborg could, for example, retrieve the memories of another – not hear about them, not read about them in an autobiography, not imagine them, but directly remember them as if they were his own. Or her own. What happens to concepts such as the self and gender identity when minds become collective? How could you know thyself or follow your dream if the dream is not in your mind but in some collective reservoir of aspirations?
Such a cyborg would no longer be human, or even organic. It would be something completely different. It would be so fundamentally another kind of being that we cannot even grasp the philosophical, psychological or political implications.
The third way to change the laws of life is to engineer completely inorganic beings. The most obvious examples are computer programs that can undergo independent evolution.
Recent advances in machine learning already enable present-day computer programs to evolve by themselves. Though the program is initially coded by human engineers, it can subsequently acquire new information on its own, teach itself new skills and gain insights that go beyond those of its human creators. The computer program is therefore free to evolve in directions its makers could never have envisaged.
Such computer programs can learn to play chess, drive cars, diagnose diseases and invest money in the stock market. In all these fields they might increasingly outperform old-fashioned humans, but will have to compete against each other. They will thus confront new forms of evolutionary pressures. As a thousand computer programs invest money in the stock market, each adopting different strategies, many will go bust but some will become billionaires. In the process, they will evolve remarkable skills that humans can neither rival nor understand. Such a program could not explain its investment strategy to a Sapiens, for the same reason that a Sapiens could not explain Wall Street to a chimpanzee. Many of us might eventually work for such programs, which will decide not only where to invest money, but also whom to hire for a particular job, whom to give a mortgage to and whom to send to prison.
Are these living creatures? It depends on what you mean by 'living creatures'. They have certainly been produced by a new evolutionary process, completely independent of the laws and limitations of organic evolution.
Imagine another possibility – suppose you could back up your brain to a portable hard drive and then run it on your laptop. Would your laptop be able to think and feel just like a Sapiens? If so, would it be you or someone else? What if computer programmers could create an entirely new but digital mind, composed of computer code, complete with a sense of self, consciousness and memory? If you ran the program on your computer, would it be a person? If you deleted it could you be charged with murder?
We might soon have the answer to such questions. The Human Brain Project, founded in 2005, hopes to recreate a complete human brain inside a computer, with electronic circuits in the computer emulating neural networks in the brain. The project's director has claimed that, if funded properly, within a decade or two we could have an artificial human brain inside a computer that could talk and behave very much as a human does. If successful, that would mean that after 4 billion years of milling around inside the small world of organic compounds, life will suddenly break out into the vastness of the inorganic realm, ready to take up shapes beyond our wildest dreams. Not all scholars agree that the mind works in a manner analogous to today's digital computers – and if it doesn't, present-day computers would not be able to simulate it. Yet it would be foolish to categorically dismiss the possibility before giving it a try. In 2013 the project received a grant of €1 billion from the European
Presently, only a tiny fraction of these new opportunities have been realised. Yet the world of 2014 is already a world in which culture is releasing itself from the shackles of biology. Our ability to engineer not merely the world around us, but above all the world inside our bodies and minds, is developing at breakneck speed. More and more spheres of activity are being shaken out of their complacent ways. Lawyers need to rethink issues of privacy and identity; governments are faced with rethinking matters of health care and equality; sports associations and educational institutions need to redefine fair play and achievement; pension funds and labour markets should readjust to a world in which sixty might be the new thirty. They must all deal with the conundrums of bioengineering, cyborgs and inorganic life.
Mapping the first human genome required fifteen years and $3 billion. Today you can map a person's DNA within a few weeks and at the cost of a few hundred The era of personalised medicine – medicine that matches treatment to DNA – has begun. The family doctor could soon tell you with greater certainty that you face high risks of liver cancer, whereas you needn't worry too much about heart attacks. She could determine that a popular medication that helps 92 per cent of people is useless to you, and you should instead take another pill, fatal to many people but just right for you. The road to near-perfect medicine stands before us.
However, with improvements in medical knowledge will come new ethical conundrums. Ethicists and legal experts are already wrestling with the thorny issue of privacy as it relates to DNA. Would insurance companies be entitled to ask for our DNA scans and to raise premiums if they discover a genetic tendency to reckless behaviour? Would we be required to fax our DNA, rather than our CV, to potential employers? Could an employer favour a candidate because his DNA looks better? Or could we sue in such cases for 'genetic discrimination'? Could a company that develops a new creature or a new organ register a patent on its DNA sequences? It is obvious that one can own a particular chicken, but can one own an entire species?
Such dilemmas are dwarfed by the ethical, social and political implications of the quest for immortality and of our potential new abilities to create superhumans. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, government medical programmes throughout the world, national health insurance programmes and national constitutions worldwide recognise that a humane society ought to give all its members fair medical treatment and keep them in relatively good health. That was all well and good as long as medicine was chiefly concerned with preventing illness and healing the sick. What might happen once medicine becomes preoccupied with enhancing human abilities? Would all humans be entitled to such enhanced abilities, or would there be a new superhuman elite?
Our late modern world prides itself on recognising, for the first time in history, the basic equality of all humans, yet it might be poised to create the most unequal of all societies. Throughout history, the upper classes always claimed to be smarter, stronger and generally better than the underclass. They were usually deluding themselves. A baby born to a poor peasant family was likely to be as intelligent as the crown prince. With the help of new medical capabilities, the pretensions of the upper classes might soon become an objective reality.
This is not science fiction. Most science-fiction plots describe a world in which Sapiens – identical to us – enjoy superior technology such as light-speed spaceships and laser guns. The ethical and political dilemmas central to these plots are taken from our own world, and they merely recreate our emotional and social tensions against a futuristic backdrop. Yet the real potential of future technologies is to change Homo sapiens itself, including our emotions and desires, and not merely our vehicles and weapons. What is a spaceship compared to an eternally young cyborg who does not breed and has no sexuality, who can share thoughts directly with other beings, whose abilities to focus and remember are a thousand times greater than our own, and who is never angry or sad, but has emotions and desires that we cannot begin to imagine?
Science fiction rarely describes such a future, because an accurate description is by definition incomprehensible. Producing a film about the life of some super-cyborg is akin to producing Hamlet for an audience of Neanderthals. Indeed, the future masters of the world will probably be more different from us than we are from Neanderthals. Whereas we and the Neanderthals are at least human, our inheritors will be godlike.
Physicists define the Big Bang as a singularity. It is a point at which all the known laws of nature did not exist. Time too did not exist. It is thus meaningless to say that anything existed 'before' the Big Bang. We may be fast approaching a new singularity, when all the concepts that give meaning to our world – me, you, men, women, love and hate – will become irrelevant. Anything happening beyond that point is meaningless to us.
The Frankenstein Prophecy
In 1818 Mary Shelley published the story of a scientist who tries to create a superior being and instead creates a monster. In the last two centuries, this story has been told over and over again in countless variations. It has become a central pillar of our new scientific mythology. At first sight, the Frankenstein story appears to warn us that if we try to play God and engineer life we will be punished severely. Yet the story has a deeper meaning.
The Frankenstein myth confronts Homo sapiens with the fact that the last days are fast approaching. Unless some nuclear or ecological catastrophe destroys us first, the pace of technological development will soon lead to the replacement of Homo sapiens by completely different beings who possess not only different physiques, but also very different cognitive and emotional worlds. This is something most Sapiens find extremely disconcerting. We like to believe that in the future people just like us will travel from planet to planet in fast spaceships. We don't like to contemplate the possibility that in the future, beings with emotions and identities like ours will no longer exist, and our place will be taken by alien life forms whose abilities dwarf our own.
We seek comfort in the fantasy that Dr Frankenstein can create only terrible monsters, whom we would have to destroy in order to save the world. We like to tell the story that way because it implies that we are the best of all beings, that there never was and never will be something better than us. Any attempt to improve us will inevitably fail, because even if our bodies might be improved, you cannot touch the human spirit.
We would have a hard time swallowing the fact that scientists could engineer spirits as well as bodies, and that future Dr Frankensteins could therefore create something truly superior to us, something that will look at us as condescendingly as we look at the Neanderthals.
We cannot be certain whether today's Frankensteins will indeed fulfil this prophecy. The future is unknown, and it would be surprising if the forecasts of the last few pages were realised in full. History teaches us that what seems to be just around the corner may never materialise due to unforeseen barriers, and that other unimagined scenarios will in fact come to pass. When the nuclear age erupted in the 1940s, many forecasts were made about the future nuclear world of the year 2000. When sputnik and Apollo 11 fired the imagination of the world, everyone began predicting that by the end of the century, people would be living in space colonies on Mars and Pluto. Few of these forecasts came true. On the other hand, nobody foresaw the Internet.
So don't go out just yet to buy liability insurance to indemnify you against lawsuits filed by digital beings. The above fantasies – or nightmares – are just stimulants for your imagination. What we should take seriously is the idea that the next stage of history will include not only technological and organisational transformations, but also fundamental transformations in human consciousness and identity. And these could be transformations so fundamental that they will call the very term 'human' into question. How long do we have? No one really knows. As already mentioned, some say that by 2050 a few humans will already be a-mortal. Less radical forecasts speak of the next century, or the next millennium. Yet from the perspective of 70,000 years of Sapiens history, what are a few centuries?
If the curtain is indeed about to drop on Sapiens history, we members of one of its final generations should devote some time to answering one last question: what do we want to become? This question, sometimes known as the Human Enhancement question, dwarfs the debates that currently preoccupy politicians, philosophers, scholars and ordinary people. After all, today's debate between today's religions, ideologies, nations and classes will in all likelihood disappear along with Homo If our successors indeed function on a different level of consciousness (or perhaps possess something beyond consciousness that we cannot even conceive), it seems doubtful that Christianity or Islam will be of interest to them, that their social organisation could be Communist or capitalist, or that their genders could be male or female.
And yet the great debates of history are important because at least the first generation of these gods would be shaped by the cultural ideas of their human designers. Would they be created in the image of capitalism, of Islam, or of feminism? The answer to this question might send them careening in entirely different directions.
Most people prefer not to think about it. Even the field of bioethics prefers to address another question, 'What is it forbidden to do?' Is it acceptable to carry out genetic experiments on living human beings? On aborted fetuses? On stem cells? Is it ethical to clone sheep? And chimpanzees? And what about humans? All of these are important questions, but it is naïve to imagine that we might simply hit the brakes and stop the scientific projects that are upgrading Homo sapiens into a different kind of being. For these projects are inextricably meshed together with the Gilgamesh Project. Ask scientists why they study the genome, or try to connect a brain to a computer, or try to create a mind inside a computer. Nine out of ten times you'll get the same standard answer: we are doing it to cure diseases and save human lives. Even though the implications of creating a mind inside a computer are far more dramatic than curing psychiatric illnesses, this is the standard justification given, because nobody can argue with it. This is why the Gilgamesh Project is the flagship of science. It serves to justify everything science does. Dr Frankenstein piggybacks on the shoulders of Gilgamesh. Since it is impossible to stop Gilgamesh, it is also impossible to stop Dr Frankenstein.
The only thing we can try to do is to influence the direction scientists are taking. But since we might soon be able to engineer our desires too, the real question facing us is not 'What do we want to become?', but 'What do we want to want?' Those who are not spooked by this question probably haven't given it enough thought.


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De Bezirksliga Mittelschlesien 1933/34 was het eerste voetbalkampioenschap van de Bezirksliga Mittelschlesien, het tweede niveau onder de Gauliga Schlesien en een van de drie reeksen die de tweede klasse vormden. Polizei SV Breslau werd kampioen en nam deel aan de promotie-eindronde samen met de andere kampioenen van de Bezirksliga's. Slechts twee teams promoveerden, Breslau werd derde achter SC Schlesien Haynau en SpVgg Deichsel Hindenburg.

Deelnemers

De volgende clubs waren voor de Bezirksliga gekwalificeerd:
 Uit de Breslause A-Liga 1932/33
 VfB Breslau
 VSV Union Wacker Breslau
 SC Alemannia Breslau
  Uit de Breslause B-Liga 1932/33
 Polizei SV Breslau (nieuw opgerichte club)
 VfR Schlesien 1897 Breslau (Fusie tussen VfR 1897 Breslau & SC Schlesien Breslau)
 SpVgg Germania Breslau
 De twee finalisten van de Midden-Silezische competitie 1932/33:
 SC Brega 09 Brieg
 STC 1892 Oels (fusie tussen SSC 1901 Oels, VfR Oels & TSVgg Jahn Oels)
 De twee bestgeklasseerde teams uit de Berglandse competitie groep Oost 1932/33:
 VfB Preußen Langenbielau (fusie tussen VfB Langenbielau & SC Preußen Langenbielau)
 DSV Schweidnitz (fusie tussen SV Preußen Schweidnitz en VfR 1915 Schweidnitz)
 De twee bestgeklasseerde teams uit de Berglandse competitie groep West 1932/33:
 Waldenburger SV 09
 SV Silesia Freiburg

Bezirksliga

Promotie-eindronde Kreisklasse
De kampioenen van de Kreisklassen bekampten elkaar voor twee promotieplaatsen.

Voorronde

Finale

Gauliga Schlesien
Duits competitievoetbal 1933/34

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


We've designed the JustBoom Raspberry Pi Amp HAT to be simple to install and use. With no soldering required and all the mounting hardware already provided this product is suitable for absolute beginners and seasoned professionals alike. Just connect your Amp HAT to a set of passive speakers and you can be up and running quickly, enjoying flawless high quality audio playback within minutes of setting up this Raspberry Pi HAT. We also include an optional IR receiver to allow remote control operation of your Raspberry Pi.
Includes a Class-D power amplifier chip with built in 192kHz/32bit DAC, for a peak power output of 2 x 55 Watts. The JustBoom Amp HAT outputs audio over two speaker cable connector blocks that accept anything up to 14 AWG cable and will provide crystal clear audio to either 4 or 8 Ohm passive speakers. The Amp HAT uses the I2S interface for its audio input which reduces CPU load on the Raspberry Pi compared to USB solutions. It is also designed to back-power the Raspberry Pi over the 40 pin GPIO header, meaning you only need a single power supply for the entire system.
Last but not least, all of the unused Raspberry Pi GPIO pins are still accessible on the Amp HAT for easy customisation of your project - add additional sensors, buttons, LEDs, rotary encoders or anything your heart desires.
Power supply: We recommend using a15v / 65w power supply. We will be listing one for sale shortly on our store.
Back-powers the Raspberry Pi over the GPIO (with full HAT compliant protection) at 2.5A so only one power supply required for the whole system.
Texas Instruments TAS5756M Amp / DAC chip - 192kHz / 32 bit.
Maximum power output of 2 x 55 W ( 2 x 30 W RMS).


text:
#include <aws/servicecatalog-appregistry/model/ResourceInfo.h>
#include <aws/core/utils/json/JsonSerializer.h>

#include <utility>

using namespace Aws::Utils::Json;
using namespace Aws::Utils;

namespace Aws
{
namespace AppRegistry
{
namespace Model
{

ResourceInfo::ResourceInfo() :
    m_nameHasBeenSet(false),
    m_arnHasBeenSet(false)
{
}

ResourceInfo::ResourceInfo(JsonView jsonValue) :
    m_nameHasBeenSet(false),
    m_arnHasBeenSet(false)
{
  *this = jsonValue;
}

ResourceInfo& ResourceInfo::operator =(JsonView jsonValue)
{
  if(jsonValue.ValueExists("name"))
  {
    m_name = jsonValue.GetString("name");

    m_nameHasBeenSet = true;
  }

  if(jsonValue.ValueExists("arn"))
  {
    m_arn = jsonValue.GetString("arn");

    m_arnHasBeenSet = true;
  }

  return *this;
}

JsonValue ResourceInfo::Jsonize() const
{
  JsonValue payload;

  if(m_nameHasBeenSet)
  {
   payload.WithString("name", m_name);

  }

  if(m_arnHasBeenSet)
  {
   payload.WithString("arn", m_arn);

  }

  return payload;
}

} // namespace Model
} // namespace AppRegistry
} // namespace Aws

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


• Learn how to build solo lines based on chord tones.
• Understand various comping techniques used to play jazz standards.
• Develop lines that employ string skipping and "pivot" notes.
From his beginnings in 1955 with the Chico Hamilton Quartet to his work with his own groups in the present day, NEA Jazz Master Jim Hall has a style that's equal parts introspective, whimsical, and virtuosic in a minimalist way. With simple techniques that you can experiment with, Hall has created a sophisticated sound and style that is easily recognized within a few notes. And at 82 years old, Hall is still touring, recording, and evolving as a musician and improviser.
When it comes to comping, the same rules apply. Fig. 2 uses the same chord progression from the previous example and demonstrates one way that Hall might approach it, by using chord tones—most notably the 3s and 7s—as a springboard.


I'm excited to introduce you to my friend Gina Holmes. Gina writes contemporary fiction, and her novel, Wings of Glass, just released to rave reviews (including mine). I'm on the road this week, so I took her up on her offer to share her thoughts on her new release.
Gina Holmes is the founder of Novel Rocket and a PR professional. Her bestselling novels Crossing Oceans and Dry as Rain were both Christy finalists and won various literary awards. Her latest novel, Wings of Glass, released February 2013 and has earned a starred review from Library Journal, a Romantic Times Top Pick and a Southern Indie Bookseller's Okra Pick. She holds degrees in science and nursing and currently resides with her family in southern Virginia. She works too hard, laughs too loud, and longs to see others heal from their past and discover their God-given purpose.
To learn more about her, visit www.ginaholmes.com.
Your 3rd novel, Wings of Glass, has just released. Tell us a little about it.
As a little girl, I watched my mother being physically abused by her husband and then later, two of my sisters enter abusive relationship after abusive relationship and I thought that would never be me. . . until the day my boyfriend hit me for the first time and I began to make excuses for him. I know the mindset of someone who gets into and stays in an abusive relationship, because I've been there myself. It's taken me years, and a lot of reading, praying, and talking to get to the heart of what brought me and kept me in toxic relationships and I want to pass on some of what I learned that helped me find boundaries and recovery from a codependent mindset and most of all healing.
It's my hope and prayer that those who are in abusive relationships will begin to see that the problem lies with them as much as with the abuser. That's something I railed against when friends suggested it. I wasn't the one with the problem! I was no doormat who enabled abuse or addiction… or was I?
I also hope that those who have never understood the mindset of victims would better comprehend the intricacies of codependency and be better able to minister to these women and men. And of course I'd love it if young women would read this before they ever enter their first romantic relationship to have their eyes open to how abuse almost always progresses and be able to see the red flags early.
Which of the characters in the novel is most like you and why?
I absolutely love Fatimah. She had such a great sense of humor and didn't care what anyone thought except those who really mattered. She was really quite self-actualized. She was so much fun to write and I actually find myself missing her presence.
What's your favorite and least favorite part about being a writer?
Favorite: making my own schedule. I love when I'm feeling bad one day knowing that I don't have to punch a clock. I can just take the day off and then work harder the next. Of course, there's a lot of other things I love about writing, like allowing others to consider another point of view that may be far different from their own.
Least favorite: There's a joke that when you work for yourself you at least get to pick which eighteen hours of the day you want. That's true. Working from home means I'm always at work. I work from about 7:30 am until about eight at night most days. Under deadline, it's worse. Truly understanding how much the success of a book rides on the shoulders of the author is a blessing and a curse. Because I get that no one is more invested in the success of my books than me, I put in a LOT of time on the publicity/marketing end of things. It's tiring but an investment that I think pays off in the long run.
Never say never, but I doubt it. I had considered reworking some but having gone back and re-read them, I realized they weren't published for good reason. They just didn't work. Now, there is one story I'm resurrecting characters from for a story I should be writing next, but the plotline is completely different. I started out writing suspensel but as my reading tastes changed, so did my writing tastes. I don't see myself doing suspense again any time soon.
You're known for your quirky characters, what inspires you to write these types into each book?
Honestly, I'm a pretty quirky person. The older I get, the more I embrace those quirks. I think everyone is quirky really. As a student of human nature, I pick up on those and like to exaggerate them in my fiction. I also like to surround myself with quirky people. My husband is quirky, my kids are quirky and so are my friends. Often in life, especially when we're young, we hate about ourselves what makes us different, when really those are the things we should be embracing. Different is interesting. Different is beautiful.
If you could write anything and genre, marketing and reader expectations didn't matter, what would you write?
Speaking of quirky… I read a book a few years back that was so different that it made me want to try something like that. The book was a big-time bestseller, Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell. What turned me on about that book were the characters. They were quirky to an extreme. In contemporary women's fiction, I can get away with a certain amount of quirk. but I'm always having to play it down because it's so over the top. In a fantasy, you can be as over the top as you dare. I'd love to play around with something like that one day and just let my freak flag fly! Will I? Probably not unless I use a penname. I realize readers have certain expectations and I wouldn't want anyone to feel mislead. We'll see. There's lots in life I want to do but since I only get a hundred or so years (if I'm lucky), time won't allow for every rabbit hole.
There are those who have written about subjects that they were told no one wanted to read about and found success. It's smart to figure out what others have done before you to make them successful, but alter the formula to suit your needs and passions. It's okay to be different, in fact, I think great success and maybe even happiness depends upon it. And by all means, read Novel Rocket.com and leave comments. It helps not only encourage those authors who have taken the time out of their day to teach us, but it also connects you to the writing community. Community is important.
Any questions or comments for Gina?
Thanks for this, Susan and Gina!
Since you talked about quirks I'll throw out my favorite quirky question: if you could be any inanimate object, what would you be and why?
wow, that IS a quirky question. I wouldn't want to be any inanimate object but if I HAVE to choose, water. It's life giving.
Thank you, Gina! Love your advice for writers as to not follow too closely to others. I know that comparison thing always trips me up. Blessings and thanks for sharing here at Susan's!
What a great and informative interview! This looks like a book I would enjoy. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks so much. Why did I change from nursing to writing? I went into nursing because it was practical and I'm glad I did. It pays the bills when I need it to (writing is very unpredictable $wise.) I didn't know I was a writer until after college. Once I got the bug for fiction, I was done for. I don't have to nurse (at the moment) but love knowing I can if I need to. I love being a nurse too but the writing comes more naturally. Writing is hard, nursing is much harder. As far as Lindsey goes, yeah, there was a lot of God-given grace there. In a sense I was Isabella. I was with my mom until I was 6 and then raised by my father and stepmother. Both are "mom" to me and I love them both very much. It took a long time for me to realize how hard being a stepmother is to someone else's child. It took me being a stepmother I think.
Thanks for sharing with us today. I didn't realize this book was about domestic abuse. Bless you for tackling such a tough but relevant topic. May He be glorified and others ministered too through it.
Thank you Gina and Susan! Gina, I really enjoyed your presentation on promotion at the Roanoke Writers Conference. You shared a lot of great tips there and in this article. I particularly like how you embrace being different- encouraging us all to follow that inner voice and love what makes us us. Best of luck to you!
Thanks for coming to my class, Julia and your kind words. I don't always embrace what makes me different, but like most everyone, life is a lot happier when I do.
This is really good, so happy I stumbled upon your blog tonight!
I'm always looking for new authors, so thank you!


text:
Former Oklahoma senator convicted of child sex trafficking sentenced to 15 years in prison
by: K. Butcher
OKLAHOMA CITY – A former state senator convicted of child sex trafficking was sentenced to prison Monday.
A federal court sentenced 36-year-old Ralph Shortey to 15 years in prison, along with 10 years to be supervised when he is released.
Shortey pleaded guilty last fall to child sex trafficking; prosecutors dismissed three child pornography charges as part of a plea agreement.
In March 2017, Shortey, who was then an Oklahoma state senator, was found at Moore hotel with a 17-year-old boy.
Ralph Shortey
When police went to check on a juvenile at the Super 8 in Moore, officers said they smelled a "strong odor of raw marijuana" coming from Room 120.
According to an affidavit, the teen told authorities that he and Shortey had known each other for about one year. He said they originally met last year through a Craigslist personal encounter ad. Shortey told detectives he met the teen through a coffee shop he owns, and learned that the teen had dropped out of high school.
"When we first met, I was trying to help him study and get his GED," Shortey said on an interrogation tape.
Shortey told detectives that the young man was supposed to take a test for his GED the next day, and had asked him to come pick him up.
"The night that he called me, he just said that he needed to get out of his house. I'm assuming, I thought that he'd told me that he lived with some friends and he had told me in the past that it was hard for him to get clean because he was always with his friends, living with them. So when he called and said that he needed to get out of there, that he had a test the next day, then the choice was bring him over to my house, which I don't think my wife would have appreciated that. She probably would have been OK with it, but I just figured it'd be easier just to get him another place. And we just decided to talk," Shortey said.
However, officials with the Moore Police Department weren't buying his story.
The teen's Kindle tablet revealed the boy had told the man who went by the name of 'Jamie Tilley' that he needed money for spring break, to which the adult, believed to be Shortey, responded, "Would you be interested in 'sexual' stuff?"
"He offered him money for sexual contact, he then picked up that minor and took him to a hotel for that purpose," Susan Caswell, Cleveland County first assistant district attorney, told KFOR after charges were filed.
A federal indictment that was unsealed in September shows that Shortey was charged in federal court with two counts of transportation of child pornography, production of child pornography and child sex trafficking.
Shortey ultimately pleaded guilty to child sex trafficking in exchange for the other charges to be dropped.
State senators argue over plans to move Medicaid onto managed care contractors

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


February 5, 2020. Register your class/school to show support for GSPD 2020. We will send you an email in 2020 to remind you of the event!
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ALL DAY LONG! We are sending a LOUD message!
If you copy and paste the actual link to your social media profile, it will increase your chances of connecting with other educators to celebrate GSPD.
Only so we can send you an email reminder about the event! We promise that this will be kept PRIVATE. No spam. No marketing. No selling/sharing. Only used to communicate with you about GSPD.
Tell us what you're thinking! Say something encouraging. This will be public.
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This question helps cut down on the spamming of our form. Write your answer as a one-digit number.
Be sure to tell everyone about your passion for play! Use Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and the staff lounge to encourage your friends to sign up. Let's work together to bring unstructured play back to this generation of kids!


text:
Rachel Crosen Will Be the Next Provost at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
Rachel Crosen has been selected as the next provost and executive vice president at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. Dr. Crosen is expected to assume her new duties on March 30, 2020.
"I am honored to be chosen and am excited to serve in this role," Dr. Croson said. "I look forward to working with President Gabel, the Board of Regents, vice presidents, deans, and other academic leaders, but especially the faculty and students across the university's system."
Since 2016, Dr. Crosen has served as dean of the College of Social Science at Michigan State University. She is also a Michigan State University Foundation Professor of economics. Earlier in her career, Professor Crosen served as dean of the School of Business at the University of Texas at Arlington, professor and director of the Negotiations Center at the University of Texas at Dallas, and associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School. She currently serves on the Association of American Universities Advisory Board on Sexual Harassment and Gender Discrimination.
Professor Croson completed her undergraduate work in economics and philosophy with a minor in political science at the University of Pennsylvania before receiving her master's degree and a Ph.D. in economics from Harvard University.
Tags: Harvard University • Michigan State University • University of Minnesota • University of Pennsylvania • University of Texas


text:
ISSR's Research Seminar Series provides an opportunity for domestic and international researchers to present and prosecute their research and encourage networking and collaboration. The seminars are an integral part of the Institute's research culture.
Immigrants' Diverse Employment Trajectories: The Role of Immigration Policy and Gender in the United States and Australia
Dr Rennie Lee, Senior Research Fellow, University of Queensland, Institute for Social Science Research and ARC Life Course Centre
How does immigration policy shape immigrants' employment behaviour? How does this differ for immigrant men and women? Focusing on empirical results from the United States and Australia, I will show the enduring effects of immigration policy, specifically initial visa categories, on immigrants' labour market participation and employment behaviour and how these effects differ for immigrant men and women. My findings have important implications for immigration policymaking and shows that selecting immigrants on their skill alone does not produce the same employment outcomes for men and women.
Intergenerationally penalized? The long-term wage consequences of parental joblessness
Dr Matthew Curry, Research Fellow, University of Queensland, Institute for Social Science Research and ARC Life Course Centre
Studies of intergenerational stratification and mobility have long called for investigation of the joint role of mothers and fathers in affecting labor market outcomes of children. However, long-term effects of parental joblessness—where no co-residing parent is employed at a given time—are not well understood. Using longitudinal data (covering 9,942 person-year observations from 2,281 children) from the Household, Income, and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey, this study investigates the long-term association between parental joblessness and children's wages during early adulthood. It examines whether these associations are mediated by family income, educational attainment and subsequent employment inactivity of the child, and whether exposure at earlier ages is associated with more detrimental effects.
To p or not to p? The seductive (un)certainty of statistical significance
Dr Mark Robinson, Senior Evaluation Manager, University of Queensland, Institute for Social Science Research
Dr Peter Rankin, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of Queensland, Institute for Social Science Research
Five years ago, the American Statistical Association (ASA) published a landmark statement on p values, arguably the world's most widely used, abused, and misunderstood statistical concept. The ASA statement aimed to "draw renewed and vigorous attention to changing the practice of science with the regards to statistical inference" and represented the latest in a long history of debate about p values and their arbitrary division into 'significant' and 'non-significant' findings. In this session, a non-statistician (backed up by a real statistician) provided an overview of the viewpoints relevant to this ongoing debate, drawing on personal experiences (and struggles) to explore the question: to p or not to p?
Fun with stats: Making the most of Stata software
Associate Professor Paco Perales, University of Queensland, Institute for Social Science Research and ARC Life Course Centre
Families in times of Recession: Irish exceptionalism?
Dr Carmel Hannan, Department of Sociology, University of Limerick, Ireland
In this seminar Dr Carmel Hannan presented findings from her research with co-author Dr Ross Macmillan. Dr Hannan first discussed the "econo-centric" turn in family studies and its implications for both theory and research. She further shared findings from a UK/Ireland study of the combined effects of socioeconomic status, economic change associated with the Great Recession, and variation in the strength of familistic culture on the risk of family dissolution during the adolescent years.
Sexism and Attitudes Towards Women's Reproductive Autonomy in the New Zealand Context
Dr Yanshu Huang, University of Queensland, Institute for Social Science Research and ARC Life Course Centre
Although New Zealand has historically been on the forefront of women's rights, barriers to reproductive autonomy have persisted. This seminar presented data from the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study, a national longitudinal panel sample of New Zealand adults. I examined how the endorsement of sexist attitudes correlates with attitudes towards two areas of women's reproductive experiences: (a) attitudes toward abortion and (b) attitudes toward breastfeeding in public. The findings suggest that although attitudes toward gender roles are shifting towards greater egalitarianism, sexism is nonetheless implicated in public support for women's reproductive autonomy in New Zealand.
Discover Social Network Analysis to Create Change
Dr Chiara Broccatelli, University of Queensland, Institute for Social Science Research
This seminar aims at offering a nutshell description of basic assumptions, research goals and potential research benefits of applying Social Network Analysis (SNA) in social science. Using examples from the literature and recent applications, Chiara discusses what SNA is, presents some theoretical SNA concepts and basic SNA research design strategies. She will also explain why this method is different from other statistical approaches and what it is useful for.
View seminar recording here (interal UQ user only)
Improving the view of Scotland's health: the influence of a Public Health Observatory on informing and evaluating public policy
Dr Mark Robinson, University of Queensland, Institute for Social Science Research
Mark recently joined ISSR after 10 years at Scottish Public Health Observatory (ScotPHO) and will use this seminar to share his reflections on the science, art and challenges of using data and evidence to influence public policy in Scotland. He'll do so by telling the story of several high profile projects, including: 1) the Monitoring and Evaluating Scotland's Alcohol Strategy work programme, which incorporates the evaluation of minimum unit pricing; 2) a programme of research to describe and understand recent trends in life expectancy and mortality rates; and 3) the Informing Interventions to reduce health Inequalities (Triple I) project, which uses epidemiological modelling to compare the estimated impact of different interventions on population health in Scotland.
View seminar recording here (internal UQ user only)
Pitching a Social Solutions Lab for ISSR
Professor Tim Reddel, University of Queensland, Institute for Social Science Research
There is growing interest by policy makers, researchers and civil society in methodologies and engagement approaches that bring together theories of change, data analytics, stakeholder co-design and evaluative strategies to support innovation and problem solving in a more adaptive delivery ecosystem. The current COVD-19 crisis with its unpreceded disruption and unavoidable dilemmas brings a laser beam focus on what we mean by adaptive policy making and social outcomes. To promote dialogue this seminar will scan historical and contemporary literatures associated with various approaches to policy innovation and research addressing these 'wicked' social problems. While acknowledging broader political and policy challenges, new strategies and methodologies for solving complex social problems will be investigated, including how academic researchers and public policy stakeholders work together to solve real world practical problems. The emerging trend for universities, public sector agencies and other bodies to establish policy innovation, engagement and impact entities will be examined. In this seminar, a proposal for a Social Solutions Lab as an approach to building social solutions capability in the ISSR will be outlined. A value proposition, implementation challenges and the short-to-medium term priorities of this model will be presented to promote more informed debate and deeper partnerships between researchers and public policy practitioners to solve critical social problems.
The wellbeing affordances of active participation in music performance
Dr Mary Broughton, University of Queensland, School of Music
Music performance is potentially a cost-effective means to promote population wellbeing, which is a global challenge. Scant research has examined music performance through the lens of wellbeing, or from a public health perspective. Through my Faculty Fellowship, I have been addressing this gap by conjoining music performance, psychology of music, social science and health perspectives to investigate how music performance in everyday life contexts, such as concerts through to community activities and events, provides non-clinical populations opportunities to self-manage and promote both individual and community wellbeing. Emerging research is examining the impact of COVID-19 on music performance communities.
Stata workshop
Dr Paco Perales, University of Queensland, Institute for Social Science Research
Academic Achievement of Children in Same-Sex-Parented and Different-Sex-Parented Families: A Population-Level Analysis of Linked Administrative Data from the Netherlands
Dr Jan Kabátek, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research
'Un-neighbourliness': The neighbourhood context of problems and disputes between neighbours
Professor Lynda Cheshire, University of Queensland, School of Social Science
Australian Muslims: The Challenge of Islamophobia and Social Distance
Professor Riaz Hassan, Flinders University and Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore
Quantitative social science for health and wellbeing research: the COMPASS Research Centre
Dr Barry Milne and Dr Nichola Shackleton, Centre of Methods and Policy Application in the Social Sciences (COMPASS), University of Auckland
Test Anxiety under 15-year olds: A comparative study between Australia and The Netherlands
Tim de Vries, University of Queensland, Institute for Social Science Research and Utrecht University
Initial findings of the Millennium Cohort Study
Dr Lisa Calderwood, Centre for Longitudinal Studies - UCL Institute of Education, London
Explaining the evolution of ethnicity differentials in academic achievements: The role of time investments
Dr Ha Nguyen and Dr Francis Mitrou, Telethon Kids Institute
Where is Reconciliation going for Australia? And how can the University take a role?
Adjunct Associate Prof Charles Passi, University of Queensland
Language growth from 4 to 8 and developmental circumstances: Meeting policy demands from the early years sector
Professor Stephen Zubrick, Telethon Kids Institute and University of Western Australia
Predictive analytics for social good: Essential elements & data science challenges
Dr Diana Benavides Prado, Centre for Social Data Analytics, Auckland
Administrative data and learning analytics
Professor Tim Maloney, School of Social Sciences and Public Policy, Auckland University of Technology
How people's own upbringing influences their subsequent parenting practices: A mixed method study of vulnerable mothers
Simon Barrett, Social and Public Health Sciences Unit, University of Glasgow
The West vs the Rest: Exploring the Global Divide in Attitudes towards Homosexuality
Dr Mahalia Jackman, Department of Economics, University of the West Indies
Data, Design and Public Good
Associate Professor Anna Brown, College of Creative Arts, Massey University
Putting Young Children on a Path to Success: Mechanisms Transmitting Income Inequality
Professor Rebekah Levine Coley, Department of Counseling, Developmental, and Educational Psychology, Boston College
Translating cross-cultural research into design evidence for healthcare architecture
Professor Paul Memmott, Professor Michele Haynes, Dr Timothy O'Rourke and Dr Daphne Nash, University of Queensland and Australian Catholic University
Occupational aspirations of girls and boys across ethnic groups in the UK
Professor Lucinda Platt, London School of Economics and Political Science
Contextualizing Productive Ageing in Asia: Determinants and Health Implications
Dr Pei-Chun Ko, Singapore University of Social Sciences
Gender and Education
Professor Deevia Bhana and Dr Yuwei Xu, University of KwaZulu-Natal and UCL Institute of Education
Sleep regulation in early childhood
Associate Professor Monique, LeBourgeois, University of Colorado Boulder
The masculinity paradox and the origins of fatherhood
Dr Barnaby Dixson, School of Psychology, UQ
Homelessness, poverty and a developing social welfare program of research
Associate Professor Cameron Parsell, ISSR (now School of Social Science, UQ)
Policy capability and evaluation
Dr Lyn Alderman, Chief Evaluator, Policy Capability and Evaluation Branch, Department of Social Services
The role of sex and age on predrinking: An international comparison of 25 countries
Associate Professor Jason Ferris, ISSR (now Centre for Health Services Research, Faculty of Medicine, UQ)
Inequalities in mothers' lives and disparities in children's education in multiple countries
Professor Robert Crosnoe, Rapaport Centennial Professor at the University of Texas at Austin, where he is Chair of the Department of Sociology
Economic uncertainty and love: Family building behaviors in young adulthood
Associate Professor Shannon Cavanagh, The University of Texas at Austin, College of Liberal Arts
Age in cohort, school indiscipline and crime: Regression–discontinuity estimates for Queensland
Dr Matteo Sandi and Dr Tony Beatton, Centre for Economic Performance, London School of Economics and Honorary Research Fellow, ISSR
Education: The panacea to poverty?
Gender attitudes: Do we know what we are measuring?
Professor Ester Rizzi, Centre for Demographic Research, Université catholique de Louvain, Belgium
The changing shape of religion in Australia: How Gen Z leads the way elsewhere
Gary D Bouma AM FAICD, Emeritus Professor of Sociology, UNESCO Chair in Interreligious and Intercultural Relations – Asia Pacific, Associate Priest, The Anglican Parish of St John and St Agnes, East Malvern
Bubble CPAP in childhood severe pneumonia: Trial in Bangladesh and post-trial implementation plan
Dr Md. Jobayer Chisti, International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh
Gender equality in early childhood education and care in Norway
Professor Kari Emilsen, Queen Maud University College of Early Childhood Education, Norway
Citizenship and immigrant anti-rumour strategies: A critical outlook from the Barcelona case
Associate Professor Òscar Prieto-Flores, University of Girona
Seminar Enquiries
issr@uq.edu.au
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Room Dining - Seamless | The Jewel Hotel, New York City.
Feast on the culinary delights of New York City from the comfort of your room using the free Seamless app.
Do you want to enjoy a Morning smoothie watching the sunrise from your terrace? Done. Enjoy the best pizza in the world whilst relaxing after a long day adventuring? You can do that too. Let us help you to dine seamlessly with in-room dining.
Browse the variety of neighborhood menus and at the press of a button, Manhattan's eclectic mix of food and drink can be delivered straight to your room.


text:
Hypatopa binotella — вид лускокрилих комах родини бластобазид (Blastobasidae).

Поширення
Вид поширений на значній частині Європи, за винятком Піренейського півострова і більшої частини Балканського півострова.

Опис
Розмах крил 19-21 мм.

Спосіб життя
Метелики літають з кінця травня до середини серпня. За рік буває одне покоління. Гусениці живляться опалою хвоєю різних видів сосни (Pinus).

Примітки

Бластобазиди
Тварини, описані 1794
Метелики України
Комахи Європи


Calvin Begay, Navajo, Silver link bracelet, Jet, Lab Opal, hallmarked.
Sterling Silver link bracelet by Navajo artist, Calvin Begay. Bracelet measures 7.5" in length and has inlay of Jet and Lab Opal. Hallmarked.


text:
Afropunk Army
Confederate Symbols
Corporate Accountability
Criminal Justice Policy
Drop/Bring Charges
End The War on Black People
For-Profit Colleges/Universities
Invest-Divest
Media Accountability
No Guns in Schools
Right Wing Racism
Wrongful Imprisonment
Atlanta pave the way to future; update Atlanta's Bill of Rights
As Justice Impacted People, we know from personal experience—and the stories of our friends and peers—how felony convictions impact our daily lives. We know, for instance, how hard it is to re-establish ourselves financially after jail or prison, and to overcome the landlords' resistance to allowing people like us to rent their apartments. We live in Georgia, a state that allows private employers to learn about our incarceration history—and rarely give us a chance, before rejecting our application, to talk about who we really are. In re-establishing our lives, we have struggled with a host of structural barriers to employment: for example, laws that prevent people with felony convictions from getting accounting, banking, nursing, and real estate licenses. Even when we get a job, we have been denied advancement within the company because of stigma. People don't necessarily know that Black women have a higher rate of unemployment and homelessness than any other demographic group of formerly incarcerated people; or that their children are systematically restricted and excluded like their Justice Impacted parents. People don't know that Justice impacted people are unable to get professional licenses and in some locations no driver's licenses. People don't know that we are denied the right to be a parent, a caretakers to elderly parents and disabled children. People don't know that there is a 42-113% increased risk of suicide for Justice impacted people. Now that you know the damage that Collateral consequences cause to the futures of Justice Impacted people and their children, you can help us change this! We've served our time. Tell your city council member to pave the way for a second chance without suffering the discriminatory effects of collateral consequences. SIGN THE PETITION: Help the City of Atlanta continue to pave the way to an equitable future by updating Atlanta's Bill of Rights to include Justice Impacted People as a protected class.
274 of 300 Signatures
Created by Barred Business
Make November 14th New Orleans Four Day Nationwide
Segregation is happening all over again in schools across America. Segregation perpetuates the School -to-Prison-Pipeline and we must stop it in its tracks! The New Orleans Four, at 6-years old served their little black girl magic and showed the world that children can lead the way. These little emissaries were the epitome of what it means to have the audacity of hope. They broke barriers and opened hearts in 1960 and with this nationally recognized holiday they can continue to remind America and the World that we can ALL live, learn and work TOGETHER. In her speech during the New Orleans Four Day 60th Anniversary ceremony in New Orleans, Alana Odoms (Executive Director ACLU-Louisiana) stated "Since its inception, black girls and black women have shouldered the immense responsibility of perfecting our Democracy. The New Orleans Four were emissaries of justice and freedom, turning the tide of hate in this nation and calling us towards the liberties enshrined in the United States Constitution." Like Dr. Opal Lee, I believe that this national holiday can be a unifier and an inspiration to children and adults around the world. I believe it can be the bridge that brings people together to talk about the hard issues facing our country. The New Orleans Four were the light during a dark time in our country's history and their brave acts will always be a beacon of hope to show young people that they have a voice, they have a say and the wherewithal to create the CHANGE they want to see. Let them be the everlasting reminder of Freedom, Equality & Justice. Learn More: To watch the docuseries teaser and learn more about the project go to www.NewOrleansFourLegacy.com
Created by Diedra Meredith
Stop Stealing Black Property
Oakland and San Francisco California are the most gentrified cities in the entire nation. The Black population in both cities has been reduced over the years by more than 50%. The best way for Black people to have a place to live is to become homeowners. Black homeownership is in crisis. Black people have not recovered (unlike other racial groups) from the 2008 housing crisis when they were targeted by the banks with subprime loans. Black homeownership has continued to decline since then. Redlining, bad appraisals , discrimination in buying, selling and renting have all been devastating hurdles. Real Estate is the best way to pass on generational wealth. It is crucial for Black people to have a legacy. Gentrifying Black rental housing providers will reduce the number of Black tenants in Oakland. No one should lose their property because they have been starved of resources to stay afloat. The focus should be on helping small mom and pop rental housing providers, home owners and tenants. The picture above is located in Oakland, Ca.
48 of 100 Signatures
Created by Lyn X
Save The Red Balloon Preschool in Harlem
At Red Balloon, we strive to serve any and every family that wants to join our community. We do not turn children away based on factors such as disability status or neurotypical development. We serve an economically and ethnically diverse community; we serve the families of immigrants and those new to New York or the United States. Among our community, Polish, Spanish, Mandarin, French, Italian, Hebrew and Hindi are some of the languages spoken at home. We serve the families of graduate students, adjunct professors, essential workers, rank-and-file Columbia staff and members of the Harlem and Morningside Heights communities. We are urging Columbia to extend our lease and let Red Balloon continue its mission to educate children and support working families.
13,118 of 15,000 Signatures
Created by Annapurna Schreiber
#BringHimHome #JUSTICE4GMJ
Seeing an innocent Black Man railroaded by this crooked justice system has darkened my spirit since a small child, when the same was done to my uncle. I'm writing because all too often, Black people are too afraid to speak up for their rights, or to speak up for those who are brave enough to fight back. I'm writing this because I am a mother of 3 Black humans (ages: 24, 21 and 15) and believe that Grand Master Jay's teachings and guidance would/can make an enormous impact on the lives of my children, as well as the lives of All Black People (any age). As history has shown, every strong, motivational, inspirational, spiritual and intellectually intelligent Black male figure, who has spoken up against this crooked justice system, and who talks only of Black pride and power, is either dead, in jail, or silenced. This is an undeniable fact.
Created by Bring Him Home Campaign
Oakland and San Francisco California are the most gentrified cities in the entire nation. The Black population in both cities has been reduced over the years by more than 50%. The best way for Black people to have a place to live is to become homeowners. Black homeownership is in crisis. Black people have not recovered (unlike other racial groups) from the 2008 housing crisis when they were targeted by the banks with subprime loans. Black homeownership has continued to decline since then. Discrimination in buying, selling, renting, redlining and bad appraisals have all been devastating hurdles. Real estate is the primary means of passing along generational wealth. It is crucial that Black people have the opportunity to leave a legacy. Gentrifying Black rental housing providers will reduce the number of Black tenants in Oakland. No one should lose their property because they have been starved of resources to stay afloat. The focus should be on helping small mom and pop rental housing providers, home owners and tenants. The house above is located in Oakland, Ca.
Black Women Are Dying In California Due To Racial Bias In Healthcare!
These are the types of situations that make black women feel like our lives are less valuable in this country. The agencies that are supposed to be specifically dedicated to these issues, and keeping us safe, have either failed us, or perhaps that was never their purpose or intention. The fact that they all fall short in even properly, acknowledging or investigating these instances that are putting our lives in danger, is something we need to speak on, and bring into the forefront of the conversation. We need to put pressure on those in charge with the ability to make change. The best way to do that these days is to expose the truth, and shame them into action. There is so much concern and outrage in this country about mistreatment of specific groups. It doesn't seem like much of this is ever concerned with black women specifically. There are a number of struggles and challenges that we are statistically more likely to encounter. Though racial bias in medicine affects both men and women, studies have shown that black women are disproportionately affected by it. We are always assumed to be strong and unbreakable and capable of fixing or surviving everything on our own, and never in need of help. It is time we start helping black women and talk about all the groups affected, and not just the most camera worthy. We need to take action before our loved ones are filing a wrongful death suit. We are still dying here, in our own country, with insurance, with education; just being denied to death, and no one is even talking about it. More of us are killed by doctors than police, and we need to do something.
Created by Severine Gipson
Alameda County Free Our Kids Youth Justice 10 Point Plan
The Alameda County Free Our Kids Youth Justice 10 Point Plan was written by young people themselves! For the past year, youth leaders from 67 Sueños, Young Women's Freedom Center, Urban Peace Movement, Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice, and Genesis have gathered to create a Youth Justice 10 Point plan. Its purpose is to empower and center youth voices, and it gives the youth an opportunity to demand the justice they deserve and want to see in their communities. The Youth Justice 10 Point plan was completely youth-led, and draws from the inspiration of youth led movements from the past - and especially from the legacy of the Black Panther Party. We hope this platform will empower other youth to create similar 10 point plans that can help them create the change they want to see in their communities!! Alameda County spends nearly $500,000 per youth per year on incarceration and $23,000 on average per year to place a young person on probation. Nearly one in three youth incarcerated in Alameda County are later reconvicted. On the other hand, evidence-based restorative justice practices have a one-time cost of $4,500 and the County's restorative justice alternatives produce recidivism rates of 5% when working with youth charged with specifically violent and serious offenses. We are safer and get a better return on our investment when we invest in the well-being of young people instead of locking them in cages and putting them under surveillance.
Created by Free Our Kids Alameda County
KIDS DON'T BELONG IN AMERICA'S WORST PRISON!
What is most heartbreaking is that our youth are the ones bearing the burden and the blame of the state's failures to implement the solution we know works: a holistic model of care that is focused on prevention and rehabilitation. While the state continues to dump money into a failing and abusive system, these youth are enduring inhumane and violent conditions that trigger and aggravate their trauma. FFLIC believes that all children deserve: · Developmentally-appropriate interventions and supportive services in their home communities not behind bars. · The right to a quality education and mental health services. · The right to learn from youthful mistakes and receive supports that foster their development into healthy and productive adults. · A holistic continuum of care in their home communities, not cages and bars.
2,819 of 3,000 Signatures
Created by Families and Friends of Louisiana's Incarcerated Children
Tell Walmart and Kroger: We need affordable COVID-19 test kits now!
My family and I contracted COVID-19 around the holidays. A few days after Christmas, my body began to feel as though it was literally shutting down. It began with some minor coughing that led to fatigue, fevers of over 102 F, shortness of breath, and body aches. I couldn't even walk without feeling pain on the soles of my feet. While dealing with the physical impact of getting sick, our family decided to drive to the closest drive-thru testing site every three to four days until we each tested negative, since we could not afford to spend thousands of dollars on private testing. Packing up my family while trying to "quarantine," driving, and then sitting and standing in some of the longest lines we had seen up to that point was the worst feeling and situation any family could endure. There was a Walmart only minutes away from my home in Broward, Florida. We should have been able to buy affordable at-home COVID-19 tests there, but leaders like Walmart CEO Dough McMillon and Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen decided to take advantage of the high demand for tests by pushing the prices up by over 40%. No family should have to choose between spending money on necessities like food and bills, and spending money on tests that help us stop the spread of COVID-19 in our communities. That's why I'm calling on Walmart and Kroger to sell their COVID-19 testing kits at cost! In September 2021, the Biden administration announced that it made a deal with retailers like Walmart and Kroger to ensure that COVID-19 at-home tests would be sold for no more than the cost of production at $14. But as soon as the deal ended in December, both chains pushed the price of the kits up, in some cases as high as $80. When I tried to buy tests from Walmart over the holiday season, each one cost $40. That meant testing all five people in my household using the at-home kits would have cost $200. Spending that much money every time we needed to test would have been a huge financial burden on us. With the cost of living increasing in my city, the prices of COVID-19 test kits were simply too high. Now, as the Omicron variant continues to spread through our communities, these companies continue to charge obscene amounts of money for test kits, in a moment when so many people like me are just trying to make ends meet. COVID-19 tests should be affordable, if not FREE. Walmart and Kroger are making the decision to push test prices up knowing full well that what they are paying their own workers is not keeping pace with the higher prices of basic necessities. In November, inflation reached a four decade high of 6.8%, while hourly-workers only received an increase of 4.8%. In the meantime, our hospitals are still overwhelmed. Patients are still being forced to delay life-saving treatment and surgeries. And we are still seeing some of the highest rates of deaths due to COVID-19 since the height of the pandemic in 2020. It's not right. Walmart and Kroger could easily sell COVID-19 test kits at cost and still make some of the highest profits of any company in this country. Instead, they are exploiting our desperation to keep ourselves and our families safe. Tell Walmart and Kroger they must provide affordable COVID-19 test kits, today!
Created by Charnelle Charlestin
"Do the right thing and protect ALL students in Wake County Public Schools.
On 09/20/21, I looked at the Wake County Public Schools website to find information about the number of COVID Clusters in Wake County Public Schools. The site was down and read as follows: We are updating based on the State of Emergency declared by Governor Cooper. This means there is a continuous rise of cases in the state and it is showing up in the schools and hospitals. Our schools are not safe places for our children. It is a known fact, there are not enough teachers, lunchroom staff, maintenance workers, or bus drivers to keep them safe. Our front-line workers are constantly put at risk without the basic protection of unmasking in Wake County. Since this pandemic started 1 in 9 people in Wake County have been affected by COVID, we've had 121,290 reported cases in our community alone. We already see that sending students into schools without masks will lead to even more people getting sick. We the parents from Black and brown communities can not attend Board meetings due to the many barriers that prevent us from attending. We are showing our concern through the signing of this petition. We never want it said that we don't care about our children and all children's safety. We must adhere to the CDC's guidelines to socially distance and implement a mask mandate to protect everyone in Wake County. We should not be listening to the ignorance of anti-maskers who bully and threaten board members to intimidate them from supporting mask mandates. It's our right to be safe and keep our children safe without intimidation. We the members of the Wake County Community Equity Leadership Team and the community ask that the Wake County School Board consider the cost when making your decision. We must put the safety and needs of our community at the center of our decision-making when it comes to the health and our students and families. WE WANT A MASK MANDATE
Created by C ELT
Demand Archer Western to Pay its Black Subcontractors Now!
I've owned my own construction company in North Carolina for the past 9 years. My family has been in the construction industry since the early 70s and I have always viewed my work as a way to build generational wealth and create economic mobility for Black people. However, I've suffered at the hands of huge contracting corporations like Archer Western who have a history of financially exploiting small Black-owned businesses. This has made it extremely difficult to support my livelihood and my family. I've lost a majority of my income from dealing with contracting giants like Archer Western and it is time for them to be held accountable! Archer Western refusing to pay its debt to Black subcontractors shows how systematic racism continues to impact our people. As a result of Archer Western's debt to my small contracting business, I've been unable to pay important medical bills and have even delayed important medical operations. I'm also unable to reinvest in my community by providing employment opportunities to people of color. Enough is enough and big corporations like Archer Western should be held accountable in how they treat small, local minority contractors like me. Archer Western has a history of late payment and non-payment to over 20 of its Black and minority-led subcontractors that we know of. There are likely many more that have been put out of business. I've been fighting to stop this financial exploitation and my pleas are constantly ignored. Join me in telling Daniel Walsh that it's time to do right by its Black subcontractors. We demand that Archer Western release all records of its late and non-payment of Black subcontractors, pay all of their outstanding contracts, and conduct an audit of their racial equity practices. This is the first step in ensuring that small contracting businesses like mine never go under due to corporations' prejudicial, unlawful, and dishonest business practices. Daniel Walsh is the president and co-chairman of Archer Western and has the power to begin rectifying the wrongs Archer Western has committed against small minority businesses. Sign this petition and tell Walsh to begin paying Black subcontractors what they are owed!
9,143 of 10,000 Signatures
Created by Jimmy Dillahunt Jr.


text:
The Bluefin Tuna and The Monkey-Eating Eagle
Date:July 19, 2019
Tagged:Antonio Oposa, Bluefin film, bluefin tuna, Cornell Ornithology, Fish and Fisheries, John Hopkins, Oceans, Philippine eagle
JOHN HOPKINS AND THE BLUEFIN TUNA
Imagine this: you're standing in the stern of a fishing boat, and an enormous fish – maybe 1000 pounds – rises out of the water to eat from your hand. There was such a moment in Jaws – and it was terrifying. This is not a shark, however, but a bluefin tuna, a fish that can cross an ocean in two weeks and swims faster than a torpedo. And it's not you but the tuna that's in danger.
This is the heart of John Hopkins' acclaimed documentary film Bluefin, about the mysterious reappearance of the endangered bluefin tuna in the waters of Hopkins' native Prince Edward Island. Generations of overfishing had so diminished their numbers that they were considered endangered. Traditionally, bluefin tuna travel north every summer from their breeding grounds in the Caribbean to feed on vast schools of mackerel, capelin and herring in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Recently, though, those food species have been diminishing — and yet the tuna are back. They are are normally shy and war, but now they seem to have lost their fear of fishermen and they appear to be starving.
John Hopkins is our newest Green Interview.
Like such other celebrated documentaries as Blackfish, The Cove, and the late Rob Stewart's Sharkwater, John's film is a meditation on the ignorance, greed and carelessness with which we treat the ocean. As our upcoming interview with the noted marine biologist Boris Worm reveals, we're only now developing reliable methods of observing and understanding what's actually happening in the oceans. John Hopkins' concerns are even broader than that. His film asks why our social and political relationships as humans have made us incapable of managing a sustainable harmony with ocean wildlife – and how we can change that.
Canadians can stream Bluefin here. From outside Canada, you can stream it here.
TONY OPOSA AND THE MONKEY-EATING EAGLE
The Philippine Eagle (historically known as the monkey-eating eagle) is the rarest eagle on earth — one of largest, most powerful and (frankly) most scary-looking of raptors. Despite its 200 cm wing span, it's an agile flyer – and although its favourite food seems to be flying lemurs, it also eats monkeys, civets, squirrels, rats, bats, reptiles and other birds, not to mention occasional piglets, dogs and even small deer. A breeding pair requires a hunting range of about 100 square kilometers.
The eagles live exclusively in the old-growth forests of the Philippines, and as those forests have been razed, its numbers have plunged. About 600 remain, and they are the focus of an intense conservation effort particularly on the island of Mindanao, home of the Philippine Eagle Foundation. The Foundation has been increasingly successful because of its partnership with the Obu Manuvu people, who now regard the eagles as "pusaka" – sacred and essential, not to be violated – and actively protect them.
I know all this in part because I belong to the remarkable Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and receive its beautiful quarterly magazine Living Bird. The Lab is deeply concerned about the Philippine Eagle, and has recently released a film I'm eager to see. Bird of Prey: The Story of the Rarest Eagle on Earth has won numerous awards at film festivals, and is now available for download or rental at Amazon, iTunes and Vimeo.
And Antonio Oposa Jr. is the lawyer who sued the Philippine government, on behalf of future generations, to stop logging in the country's old growth forests – and won. You can find Tony Oposa's Green Interview here. I don't know if Tony knew he was suing on behalf of unborn eagles as well as unborn humans, but he was. Everyone on earth who loves the gorgeous complexity and vitality of our planet owes a debt of gratitude to Tony – and to Cornell, and the Philippine Eagle Foundation, and the Obu Manuvu people. Long live the eagle – and God bless its defenders.
The Green Way to Fly
Remembering Abaco


MyPaymentsPlus allows you to go online and manage your child(s) meal account. MyPaymentsPlus allows you to make deposits and create settings to auto-replenish your account or receive free reminders when the balance is low.
Have questions about the new Nutrition Standards?
Celebration Basket or Pizza Party!!!
Celebrating a birthday or a holiday we can take the worry and work out of it for you! Introducing Student Catering!All Celebration Baskets include a choice of a snack, choice of a sweet treat and prizes! Simply fill out order form!
Parents, please be sure to check with your child's teacher before ordering to ensure the date and time works with them. Also, all pizza parties and celebration baskets can only be delivered during the last hour of the school day. All payments must be either in check or cash and sent directly to the cafeteria manager with a copy of the order.


Dutch company proposes using birds of prey to keep away drones.
When it comes to the problem of stopping errant drones, there's been a number of high-tech solutions -- from radio jamming to laser beams to nets launched by other drones -- but a group in The Netherlands is proposing a low-tech solution that's much more elegant.
Guard From Above says it is training birds of prey to attack drones, taking advantage of their natural predatory instincts and precision in the sky.
A video posted by the company on YouTube shows a bird attacking a DJI Phantom drone as it hovers, grabbing the drone with its feet and flying away with it.
It also appears to be a concern to the Dutch National Police, which is investigating the use of birds to take down drones. The police have asked the Dutch Organization for Applied Scientific Research (TNO) to research potential danger to birds.
To date there have only been a handful of incidents in which drones were used to breach security and get to places they are not supposed to be, such as The White House lawn or the roof of the Japanese Prime Minister's office.
But tech companies are racing to provide high-tech solutions to skittish security agencies.
But animals don't appear to be overly impressed with drones, especially when they get a little too close. This chimpanzee delivered a quick verdict to a drone at a Dutch zoo.
And here's a drone getting attacked by a kangaroo.