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Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP)
Home / Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP)
Understanding Feline Infectious Peritonitis
Niels C. Pedersen, DVM, PhD
Dr. Niels C. Pedersen is Director of the Veterinary Genetics Laboratory and Director of the Center for Companion Animal Health at the University of California at Davis. Dr. Pedersen is an international authority on infectious diseases and immunological disorders in small animals and in comparative genetics. His current areas of research focus on infectious diseases of cats and dogs in the shelter and multi-animal environments, and on applied feline and canine genetics.
What is Feline Infectious Peritonitis – FIP?
FIP is caused by a feline coronavirus; coronaviruses of various species exist in most types of animals and humans and usually cause acute respiratory or enteric disease. FIP is the cause of death of 1 in 100 cats seen at veterinary teaching hospitals throughout the U.S. The incidence can be 5 to 10 times greater among young cats coming from catteries and shelters and is the major cause of abdominal fluid (ascites) and intraocular and neurologic inflammatory disease in cats under 3-5 years of age. FIP is virtually 100% fatal and there is no good prevention. The emotional toll of FIP is especially great because it strikes suddenly weeks, months and even years after initial infection. Therefore, cat lovers usually experience this disease long after they have developed strong emotional bonds with their new pet.
Does FIP only affect pedigreed cats?
FIP affects both pure- and random-bred cats. However, the disease usually starts in young kittens, so it is closely linked with cat breeding. The disease is also enhanced by improper husbandry, especially resulting from overcrowding (shelters, large multiple cat households). We also know that genetic susceptibility may account for 50% or more of the risk of developing FIP. Although FIP occurs in all breeds, there is no doubt that certain bloodlines, and therefore certain matings, are more apt to produce kittens that eventually die from FIP. These genetic factors are most likely a result of the inbreeding that goes into breed development.
Therefore, catteries are at the highest risk because they are subject to all three risk factors (kitten production, dense housing, genetic susceptibility). The likelihood that any given cattery will suffer at least one outbreak of FIP over a five-year period is very high, and mortality in catteries can be 5-10 times higher than it is in the general population. Shelters have the second highest risk, and the greatest incidence is among kittens adopted during periods of overcrowding and prolonged stays. Most shelter kittens are random bred, with many coming from the feral cat pool. Randomly bred kittens are more genetically diverse in general, so husbandry factors are more important in causing FIP in this population than genetic factors. Husbandry factors are greatly influenced by the seasonal influx of kittens.
Why are you particularly interested in cats and FIP?
I was raised on a poultry farm in southern California. My dad fed many feral cats so they would stay around and keep the rodents down. As a result, I experienced and loved cats for as long as I can remember. When people came to the farm to buy eggs, I would sit with a box of kittens to give away, and sometimes I would get 25 cents for a kitten, which at the time I thought was a fortune.
At first, I wanted to be a cattle doctor, because I also grew up around beef and dairy cows and had show steers in high school. But when I went to veterinary school, I discovered that nobody knew much about cats and cat diseases. In those days there were lots of deaths associated with feline leukemia virus, but of course, we did not know this virus existed until several years later. But from the beginning, I had the most fascination for FIP. The first reported clinical cases of FIP were in 1963. My first publication on FIP was in 1965. I've been a member of the faculty at Davis since 1972.
What is the History of FIP?
FIP was first recognized as a specific clinical entity in the late 1950's. This timeline was based on decades of meticulous necropsy records kept by pathologists at the Angel Memorial Animal Hospital. There was a steady increase in the incidence of the disease in the 1960's onward, and it is currently one of the leading infectious causes of death among young cats from shelters and catteries. The reason for the sudden emergence of FIP is not known, but there are at least two possible explanations.
First, it is noteworthy that FIP appeared within a decade of the initial descriptions of transmissible gastroenteritis (TGE) of pigs in North America. The causative virus of FIP is closely related to TGEV of pigs and canine coronavirus (CCV), although they are still genetically distinguishable. However, mixtures between these three viruses are known to occur. At least one strain of canine coronavirus can induce mild enteritis in cats and enhance a subsequent infection with FIPV, indicating a special closeness to feline coronaviruses.
Therefore, CCV may be a more likely parent of FECV in this scenario. Another related possibility is that the FIP mutation occurs only in a relatively new strain of FECV and that this new strain only evolved in the 1950's. Coronaviruses such as FECV are continuously mutating as a result of the manner in which their genetic material (RNA) is replicated. Therefore, genetic change, either among themselves or through genetic mixing with closely related coronaviruses from other species, could have either allowed a coronavirus of another species to take up host in cats or to alter a strain that existed prior to the 1950s. An alternative non-genetic explanation may involve changes in how cats were viewed as pets and their husbandry.
There was a dramatic shift in the status, keeping, and breeding of cats as pets after WWII. The numbers of pet cats greatly increased, pure-breeding and cattery rearing became increasingly popular, and more cats, and in particular kittens, found themselves in shelters. These large multiple cat indoor environments are known to favor feline enteric coronavirus (FECV) infection and FIP. Interestingly, feline leukemia virus (FeLV) infection also became rampant among indoor multiple cat households during this period, and FeLV infection was a significant enhancing factor for FIP until it was pushed back into nature as a result of testing, elimination/isolation, and eventual vaccination in the 1970s and 1980s.
How is the coronavirus spread between cats?
Coronaviruses are ubiquitous among all cat populations and the principle one of cats is correctly referred to as feline enteric coronavirus (FECV). FECV is present in virtually all catteries with 6-8 or more cats and in 40% or so of the kittens relinquished to shelters. The enteric virus in the cat population lives in the digestive tract and is shed in feces. Cats can shed the virus for 4-6 months, or for a year or more in a continuous or intermittent fashion. Recurrent infections are also common. FECV is easily spread through litter and litter dust and can be carried from place to place on people's bodies and clothing. The virus-contaminated material is easily transferred to the paws and fur of susceptible cats and then ingested during grooming. Kittens are infected by other cats at about 9-10 weeks of age, although one report places it as early as 3 weeks.
This image is of FIPV growing in a laboratory flask containing normal cat cells. The cells that are stained apple green are infected with FIPV.
How does the coronavirus turn into FIP?
FIP is caused by a mutation of FECV, which is ubiquitous among cats. Although the mutation of FECV to FIPV is common, it is fortunate that only a small percentage of cats exposed to this mutant virus will get FIP.
FECV is undergoing continuous mutation and several genetic forms of the virus may co-exist in the same animal at the same time. Most of these mutations have very little effect on the behavior of the virus and merely serve to genetically reflect the region from which the virus originated. However, mutations that inhibit or knock out the function of a certain small gene (called 3c) have a pronounced effect on the biologic behavior of the virus.
All known isolates of FIP virus that we have studied, and that have been reported by others, have various types of mutations in the 3c gene. Mutations within the 3c gene with the potential of causing FIP are common. One study indicated that 20% of the kittens infected with FECV will produce a FIP mutant. Of course, only a fraction of the mutants will go on to produce FIP, depending on host resistance factors (genetic or non- genetic).
This FECV to FIPV genetic change is referred to as the internal mutation theory. The internal mutation theory has two corollaries: 1) that each cat that develops FIP, even if it is a littermate, closely related or commonly housed, has a different mutation in the 3c gene, and 2) that horizontal (cat- to-cat) transmission of the FIPV mutant is uncommon. We have reconfirmed corollary 1, and have confirmed corollary 2 in concept but not in fact.
Reconfirmation for the internal mutation theory came from a recent outbreak in three kittens in a litter of Scottish Folds and in a half-sibling from a second litter. All four FIPVs had significant, but different, mutations in their 3c genes, but were closely related in all of their other genes to one of two different FECVs detected in the feces of one of the kittens. We have found that many cats with FIP are in fact shedding the same FIPV in their feces that is in their diseased tissues. However, for some reason, it does not appear to be highly contagious.
What are the signs of FIP?
Signs of FIP arise weeks, months, and in rare cases years after initial infection. During this quiescent stage, the cat may be asymptomatic or suffer from vague signs such as stunted growth or increased susceptibility to other common infections. Many breeders and even clinicians believe that FIP can cause upper respiratory disease signs during its early stages; this is not technically correct because upper respiratory disease is usually caused by herpesvirus, chlamydophilla, mycoplasma, etc., and not directly by FIPV. With time, many cats win their battle with this infection, while others lose.
However, "losing the battle" may occur over a very long period of time; only terminally, when the cat's defenses collapse, do the more characteristic signs of FIP develop. This capitulation to the virus explains why cats with FIP seldom recover because a loss of immunity is extremely difficult to reverse. Cats who develop clinical cases of FIP may initially show nonspecific symptoms such as loss of appetite, depression, rough coat, weight loss, a fluctuating antibiotic resistant fever, and increased susceptibility to secondary infections (such as respiratory disease). More specific signs of FIP vary depending on the form of the disease (wet vs. dry) and the organs that are involved.
The most common form of the disease is referred to as "wet FIP." Wet FIP is caused by inflammation of the linings, of the abdominal viscera, and less commonly of the thoracic organs. This inflammation exudes large volumes of a characteristic mucinous, yellow-tinged fluid (exudate).
Therefore, the major clinical sign in the wet form of FIP is ascites and abdominal distension (abdominal involvement) or dyspnea (thoracic involvement).
FIP can also take a more chronic form referred to as "dry FIP." Dry FIP, as the name implies, is not associated with fluid accumulation in the abdomen or chest, but rather with more localized masses in the kidneys, spleen, liver and terminal bowel, eyes, and the linings of the lungs and heart, and central nervous system. Uveitis (intraocular inflammation) can affect the eyes, making them look cloudy and changing the color of the iris. Inflammation can enter the brain and spinal chord and cause a spectrum of progressive neurologic abnormalities. FIP accounts for over one-half the cases of inflammatory intraocular and nervous system disease in cats under 3-5 years of age. Although unappreciated in the past, we now know that cats in the terminal stages of FIP are often severely immunocompromised. This explains why common bacterial infections may complicate the disease picture in cats with FIP.
Is FIP contagious?
Cats with FIP do not appear to be very contagious to cats that they come in contact with. Although this has been based mainly on clinical observations, it has also been confirmed by laboratory studies. We have not observed contact transmission in experimental settings. Furthermore, cat-to-cat transmission implies that every FIPV isolated from a group outbreak of FIP will be genetically identical in its 3c gene mutation. As I mentioned earlier, we have yet to observe this. However, we now know that FIPV is present in the feces of most cats with FIP, so horizontal transmission is theoretically possible, although very uncommon.
This image is of FIP growing in a laboratory flask containing normal cat cells. The cells that are stained apple green are infected with FIPV.
How does genetics, stress, and other infections play a role in FIP?
FIP is not a breed specific disease but does follow certain bloodlines within breeds. Heritability accounts for about 50% of the incidence. Environmental factors influence the other half.
The age of the cat at the time of initial FECV exposure plays an extremely important role in whether a cat dies from FIP. Kittens usually began shedding FECV at around 9-10 weeks of age, which places their actual exposure a few days to a week earlier. The immune system of the kitten is rapidly maturing during the period between 6-16 weeks of age. Therefore, the first exposure of most cats to FIP causing mutants occurs during a time period when their immune systems are still developing. This lack of development enhances the likelihood of an FIPV mutant to gain a strong foothold in the body. Just as there is an age susceptibility, there also appears to be an age resistance. FIP is seldom seen in cats over 3-5 years of age, and most cases occur before 16 months of age.
In the 1970s, when tests for FeLV became available, we discovered that one-third to one-half of all cats with FIP were also FeLV positive. In later experiments, we showed that cats that had resisted infection with FIP virus would develop FIP shortly after being infected with FeLV. This meant that FeLV infection somehow interfered with the ongoing immunity to FIPV. With the elimination of FeLV as a major infection of cats, we no longer see such a strong relationship, especially among catteries and shelters where FeLV control programs are in effect. Most cats with FIP in the present age, with the exception of a few household pet cats, are not FeLV infected.
Anything that stresses cats can depress immunity and also increase the likelihood that FIPV will establish itself in the body. Stress may also allow an FIPV that is being successfully contained to become active. The effect is even more powerful if the stress occurs at or shortly after the time the cat is exposed to the virus. Stressors can include overcrowding, weaning, spaying or neutering, other infections, being placed in a new and strange household, adding new cats to a household, shipping cats to new owners or other catteries, or stresses of pregnancy, parturition, and lactation. Disease caused by feline herpes virus and other common upper respiratory pathogens are good indicators of cattery or shelter stresses.
If a cattery or shelter is having a lot of problems with these upper respiratory infections, it is likely that they will also have problems with FIP (especially if the genetics are unfavorable as well). For instance, an area SPCA had a huge FIP problem in the kittens they were adopting out. It was kitten season and the facility was overcrowded with cats and they had to stay for longer periods awaiting adoption. There was also a lot of upper respiratory disease. After limiting their intake of cats, overcrowding was eliminated and cats were adopted after shorter stays. The FIP problem decreased to negligible levels, as did the respiratory infections.
Is there a definitive test for diagnosing FIP?
The diagnosis of FIP should be relatively simple, given its affinity for younger cats, its strong tendency to involve catteries and shelters, the typical physical and historical findings, and numerous characteristic laboratory abnormalities. Nonetheless, it somehow remains one of the most difficult of diagnoses for many veterinarians. The truth is that veterinarians have little trouble in placing FIP high, or at the top, of their diagnostic list, but have great difficulty, and even reluctance, in confirming their diagnosis. This is probably because FIP is viewed as a death sentence, and we are reluctant to confer such a sentence without certain proof.
Although a definitive test result would assist decision-making, a certain diagnosis can be based on cumulative odds rather than a single, simple, definitive test result. A young cat from a cattery or shelter with chronic uveitis and/or neurologic signs, high serum proteins, hyperglobulinemia, and hypoalbuminemia fluctuating antibiotic unresponsive fever, leukocytosis with a lymphopenia, and an anemia of chronic disease can have no other disease than dry FIP based on odds alone. Likewise, the same cat with similar history and laboratory findings, but with yellow-tinged, mucinous, inflammatory ascites is highly unlikely to have any other disease than wet FIP. It is interesting that a cattery owner or cattery worker is often the one to cue in on the correct diagnosis based on the simplest of observations and intuition.
In an attempt to reach the elusive definitive diagnosis, veterinarians rely on dozens of tests that claim to highly correlate with the disease or to be diagnostic. I do not have time to go into the dozens of tests that fall into this category or the good tests that are improperly done, or improperly interpreted, that lead to misleading positive or negative results. In truth, the only good definitive way to diagnose FIP is to identify the virus in macrophages within lesions or ascetic/pleural fluid by a procedure called immunohistochemistry. PCR would work equally well on diseased tissues or fluids, but many of the current tests are improperly designed and conducted and frequently yield misleading results. In some cases, the proper fluid or tissues cannot be obtained pre-mortem. However, there is no excuse for not doing such definitive tests post-mortem.
This brings me to a final point, a necropsy should be done by a qualified veterinary pathologist on any cat that requires a proper diagnosis. However, even veterinary pathologists will hem and haw about a definitive diagnosis, even when faced with incontrovertible historical, clinical and histological evidence. Make them make a definitive diagnosis, either based on a proper reading of the odds or by doing immunohistochemistry on lesions.
What is the best way to care for a cat that has FIP?
There is currently no cure for FIP; therefore, the primary concern needs to be making the cat comfortable and deciding when to quit. Cortisone can help reduce inflammation and encourage appetite. Good nutrition, hydration, and non-stressful environments are also important, but in almost all cases they serve only to prolong the inevitable. Therefore, we will encourage some owners to go with symptomatic treatment, but only if the animals are not suffering. There have been reports that the feline interferon omega is effective in combating FIP.
We actually tested it against FIP years ago and it did not work. Fortunately, a double-blind placebo-controlled study was recently reported from Europe on the use of interferon omega in treating FIP. Cats receiving this very expensive treatment fared no differently than placebo-treated cats. This will hopefully stop the use of this treatment in the US and other countries, although some people still believe more in anecdotes than scientific trials. Unfortunately, veterinary medicine is filled with anecdotal treatments.
How do you know when to euthanize a cat that has FIP?
This is a decision only you can make, and it is a difficult one. I would never suggest euthanizing a cat, even with FIP, as long as it looks and acts fairly normal. Miracles do happen, but they can't happen unless they are provided time to happen. However, I also cannot argue with those owners that decide to end suffering at an earlier stage, given the grave prognosis.
I always tell owners to decide to put an animal down when it no longer takes pleasure in life. But cats can feign health to the last moment and you often regret in retrospect not making the decision earlier. I did the same thing with one of my cats that was dying of cancer. He actually was dead one morning, even though I still thought he had time to live and seemed reasonably content. There is also a myth that if a cat is still purring that it is still enjoying life. But research has shown that cats purr even when in extreme pain, it is another way that they mask illness.
After you have had FIP in an environment, how long should you wait before a new cat or kitten is brought in, and what other steps should you take?
Remove any cat related items that you cannot wash or disinfect, such as a scratching post or soft toys. Clean and disinfect everything else in the environment that you can. Time will take care of the rest because viruses of this type are not long-lived in the environment. We generally recommend a couple of months. These steps are undoubtedly an overkill when it comes to FIP, but these recommendations are standard for most infectious diseases and we try to keep everything simple and consistent.
If FIP occurs in a cattery, how do you decide whether and which cat to spay/neuter?
We know that genetics play a strong part in FIP – at least 50% of the incidence or more has a heritable component. We know that susceptibility is carried both in paternal and maternal lines, but we have suggested, at a minimum, that paternal lines that throw kittens that die from FIP not be used for breeding. This is because toms breed multiple queens and sire dozens or hundreds of kittens, and have the greatest influence on how bloodlines are developed. This is true of a lot of diseases – the "Founder effect." If females are genetically weak and bred to weak toms, that is when you get into problems.
If toms are genetically strong, and queens are genetically weak, the male's resistance genes seem to mask this weakness. The best scenario is to not breed either susceptible toms or queens, but not using problem toms is the best possible alternative in the interest of doing the most with the least disruption of breeding practices and bloodlines. However, if there are multiple losses from FIP in a litter, remember that susceptibility comes both from the paternal and maternal lines. It's also important to consider the cat – if you believe the cat may be at risk for FIP, avoiding the stress of being a breeding cat may help prevent the disease for that individual.
If one kitten in a litter has FIP, how likely is it that other littermates will be affected as well?
We know that if one kitten in a litter gets it, that the others are several times more likely, but this is not absolute. If the overall incidence is 5% across the spectrum of young cats produced in a cattery, it could be 10-50% or higher among the remaining littermates. I have seen one kitten in a litter of 6 killed by FIP and I have also seen 5 out of 6 develop the disease. Time is the only thing that will determine the fate of healthy siblings.
Sometimes both bacterial and viral infections exist in a cat with FIP – which came first?
It is really impossible to say which came first because it is like chickens and eggs. A given cat could have had some underlying immunosuppression that made it susceptible to a number of common feline pathogens as well as FIP. It is also possible that the cat suffered from FIP for a long time and that this was the cause of immunosuppression and the other infections were secondary.
What is the best way for breeders to prevent FIP?
Resistance is the ability of the immune system to cope with a disease. We know that 50% of the incidence is heritable, and we know that resistance (or susceptibility) factors exist in both toms and queens. However, culling problem toms is the simplest genetic procedure to reduce incidence. Toms produce far more litters and kittens than queens and therefore have a much bigger effect on the disease. Good judgment and husbandry will influence the other 50% of the equation. Pick the largest and strongest in a litter to keep for breeding and avoid kittens that are slow growing and prone to other infections. Spay and neuter cats that throw FIP and adopt them into good homes.
Avoid stress and overcrowding; maintain only those cats deemed necessary for your breeding program and chose mating wisely to limit kitten numbers. Keep cats in small, separate groups. Consider isolating the kittens from the mother at weaning to avoid exposure to the virus. Don't mix very young kittens with older kittens. If you can limit coronavirus exposure until 12-16 weeks of age, when the immune system is better developed, the likelihood of developing FIP will be less. Follow accepted protocols for vaccinations and practice good husbandry to limit other infections. Clean and disinfect cages and litter boxes regularly. The coronavirus is easily killed by bleach and other disinfectants.
Is it possible to have a coronavirus free cattery?
This is extremely difficult because the virus is ubiquitous in the environment and easily spread by cats and on people. Isolation of queens and early weaning has been touted in the UK and is used in the US. However, UK catteries are small and such a program can only succeed in smaller catteries and with exceptional isolation facilities and quarantine procedures. Moreover, even if you could produce a virus-free cattery environment, the moment a kitten or cat goes to new environments such as a pet home it will most likely be exposed to FECVs. Therefore, we do not recommend this procedure unless simpler husbandry practices totally fail to reduce the problem.
Isn't there an FIP Vaccine?
A vaccine was developed and is available. However, it has to be used in kittens at least 16 weeks of age (most cats are already exposed to coronavirus at this age), it is not effective in cats already exposed to coronavirus (which is most cats), it is not effective against the common serotype of FIPV, and even when all factors are optimal, it has low efficacy. In short, it does not work in the environments where it is needed most (catteries and shelters) and is not justified in older pet cats where FIP is hardly seen. We do not recommend its use.
Why is there hope now for progress on finding ways to prevent and treat FIP?
It is true that there is still no cure or totally effective prevention. But we understand the virus and the infection much better now. We have new tools that allow us to look at viruses at the molecular level. Any knowledge about the virus and how the host cat responds to it will have influence down the road. The Feline Genome has been sequenced and in 2 years it will be complete. We will be able to identify viral genes responsible for causing disease (which will facilitate antiviral drug development) and host genes that confer resistance/susceptibility (which will facilitate genetic control).
There are only two ways to affect the coronavirus at the current time – through husbandry and careful matings. Husbandry techniques can help prevent the spread of the virus – a great deal of research has been done and continues in this area at the Shelter Medicine program at Davis.
Understanding how the immune system affects both resistance and the form of the disease (wet vs. dry) will be important. Immunity studies focus on how to modify the immune system's reaction to the virus. Understanding how to block inflammation and the development of anti-viral drugs would be ways we could fight it. There is no reason why these can't be developed. In fact, this was happening following the appearance of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)- another coronavirus disease, but of humans. However, this research was curtailed when SARS failed to spread to the general population and was easily contained. But it made human researchers interested in the coronavirus. Drugs could be developed and used in FIP with some effect – like HIV/AIDS it could become a manageable disease
If we can discover the genetic basis for susceptibility, we will be able to offer genetic testing and breeders can breed out the trait over several generations, while preserving valuable bloodlines. This is exactly what breeders are doing with many other genetic diseases, such as polycystic kidney disease in Persians and breeds with Persian blood.
How can breeders help with FIP research?
Genetic research has great potential, but it takes time and money. Because FIP is a purely animal disease, there will be limited funding from sources such as the NIH. It's important to start banking DNA and assembling pedigrees showing relationships between affected and healthy cats. Breeders should not be ashamed of FIP. If you breed enough cats, long enough, you will experience FIP. The reluctance of breeders to talk about it has been a huge detriment to FIP research. For instance, if everyone would cooperate, we could determine whether or not there is a genetic basis for FIP resistance or susceptibility in rapid time.
If there is a genetic basis, we could then determine the gene or genes involved and develop tests to predict which cats to breed or not to breed. Fortunately, some breeders are now coming forward and cooperating in raising funds for FIP research and providing information and materials (such as DNA and FIP virus isolates) from the field. Such people have come out in the past, but they usually get frustrated and give up after a while. So if we want to succeed in understanding this disease we must all work on together to collect the DNA, case and pedigree information that will help us advance our research.
FIP affects all breeds, but we cannot spread our genetic studies across all breeds. We only need two breeds, which are inbred to a degree and have relatively small to moderate numbers in their registries. We have seen a number of FIP cases this year. Burmese and Birman breeders seem to know a great deal about bloodlines and certain matings that result in FIP. Because Burmese breeders have cooperated so well on the head defect project, they know what the needs are for another genetic study.
Birmans do not have head defects, but Birman breeders appear equally involved and knowledgeable about the genetics of their breed. We are trying to get as many breeders of these cats as possible to come together and provide at least three generational pedigrees, with DNA samples (cheek swabs with Q-tips), of families known to produce affected kittens. These families are essential for determining the genetic basis for FIP susceptibility
We need FULL cooperation from breeders. We can code the information we receive – so confidentiality will be maintained. It's my hope this will reassure breeders to provide us with full data and pedigrees on FIP cases and related cats they have experienced in their catteries.
There are two types of studies we want to do. Whole genome linkage mapping requires at least three generations of cats with 30 or more members and with accurate identification of FIP affected and non-affected individuals. Similar information can be obtained by combining information from a number of smaller families, providing breed pedigrees are made available to determine degrees of relatedness among these families.
Whole genome association mapping involves two large groups of cats of the same breed – one group of cats that have had FIP, the second that have not had the disease. This can be two different catteries, one with problems and one without (but please be honest about your status, as false classification will doom this type of study). These two groups can also come from different bloodlines in the same cattery – breeders have strong intuition on which cats are problems and which are not. We need a total of 100 or more cats in each group (affected and non-affected) for association mapping.
Breeders, besides information from your cattery, talk to clients. We want information on siblings and parents and grandparents of FIP cats. Get DNA on everybody in your cattery and from relatives whenever possible. Now is the time to start to collect and bank DNA for when the feline genome is complete. It is also important for future research on other feline diseases.
We will also need fecal samples to collect viral RNA for studies on the origins of FECVs and FIPVs. We need to know if certain strains of FECV are more apt to mutate to FIPV, and if catteries having these strains are therefore more likely to suffer high FIP loses. It is extremely important to diagnose FIP correctly. We can help to review veterinary records to see if there is enough evidence to confirm the diagnosis. Also, we can accept proper tissue samples taken at necropsy or biopsy from your veterinarians and test them for FIP. We can also do necropsies at Davis when possible and necessary.
How much money does Davis need for this research?
All money given to Davis will go right into FIP research. Some of this research will be clinical in nature, and some bench top. We need $50,000 – 75,000 a year just for a single technician or graduate student, and the more such people we can engage in research the faster we will reach our goals. The genetic testing is expensive – the DNA chip arrays will cost $400 or more each, just to purchase, read, and analyze.
These are certainly daunting figures, but doable if everyone admits to their problems and work together. As demonstrated by our predecessor, SOCK it to leukemia, a lot of money can be raised by ordinary people (cat breeders, cat owners, cat lovers), and a lot can be accomplished with that money if it is concentrated in the hands of knowledgeable and capable researchers. See Link at the bottom for donating to FIP research.
What about other universities and institutes that are studying FIP?
Though we are trying to focus on U.C. Davis for greater impact, the scientific community is very collaborative and pedigree/disease information and DNA samples are for meaningful collaborations. We are aware that others are interested in this same approach. Our goal is to solve FIP and in the end, it really does not matter how it is accomplished or who does it. Scientific competition is always good. We are also aware that other groups may be raising money to study FIP, and this is also respected and accepted. A world full of researchers have studied this disease for over 40 years, and although we know a lot more about it, we still do not have effective ways to totally prevent or cure this disease. Hopefully, this worldwide research effort will finally bear the needed fruit. We can only do the best as our part.
Credit to Nancy L Reeves, United Burmese Cat Fanciers and to Dr. Pederson for his work in the field of FIP.
Use this link to make a much-needed donation to FIP Research. On the right of the page, it says "Select an Opportunity." Choose FIP.
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Choreographer: DJ Dan & Winnie.
Start position: face to face, man LOD, lady RLOD, same steps except 13-15 en 37-39.
1-3	Cross Left over Right. Step Right to right side. Step Left in place.
4-6	Cross Right over Left. Step Left to Left side. Step Right in place.
13-18 (Lady) 1/2 Turn Left (man) Waltz Back Left. Both Waltz Back.
1-3 L	Step Left forward 1/4 turn left. Make 1/4 turn left step Right back. Step Left next to Right.
1-3 M	Step Left back. Step Right next to Left. Step Left in place.
4-6	Step Right back. Step Left next to Right. Step Right in place.
1-2	Make 1/8 turn right step Left forward on right diagonal. Step Right forward on right diagonal.
1 Step Left forward 1/4 turn left.
Let go left hands, right hands over head lady.
2-3	Make 1/4 turn left step Right back. Step Left next to Right.
1-3	Step Left forward. Step Right next to Left. Step Left in place.
1-3 L	Step Left forward on left diagonal 1/4 turn left.
Right hands over head lady.
2-3 L	Make 1/4 turn left step Right back. Step Left next to Right.
1-3 M	Small step Left forward. Step Right next to Left. Step Left in place.
43-48 Step fwd, Point, Hold, Step Back, Point, Hold.
1-3	Step Left forward. Point Right to right side. Hold.
4-6	Step Right back. Point Left to left side. Hold.
Let go hands, begin again.


text:
Home»Archives»National/World (Page 3)
January 6 Riot Probe Wants to Know Why Trump Failed to Call It Off
By Ken Bredemeier | VOA News on Jan 3, 2022 Featured, National, National/World
WASHINGTON — The congressional investigation into the riot at the U.S. Capitol last January is zeroing in on why then-President Donald Trump did nothing for more than three hours to stop his supporters from ransacking the building and clashing with police as lawmakers sought to certify that he had lost the 2020 election, the panel's chairman […]
Twitter Permanently Bans Marjorie Taylor Greene's Personal Account Over Deadly Covid Disinformation
By Kenny Stancil | Common Dreams on Jan 3, 2022 Featured, National, National/World, Politics
The Georgia Republican, however, can still access and tweet from her official congressional account. Twitter has banned for good the personal account of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene because the Georgia Republican—a longtime purveyor of anti-vaccine and other dangerous conspiracies—refused to stop spreading deadly disinformation about the coronavirus pandemic. "We permanently suspended Marjorie Taylor Greene for repeated violations of our […]
In 'Victory for Democracy' and 'Blow to Trumpism,' FDIC Chair Resigns
By Jessica Corbett | Common Dreams on Jan 2, 2022 Featured, National, National/World, Politics
One critic of Jelena McWilliams said her departure from the federal agency is "good news for financial stability, and the rule of law." What has been described as both "open lawlessness" and a "partisan brawl" came to an end Friday when Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Chair Jelena McWilliams—an appointee of former President Donald Trump—revealed she is […]
New Year, New Laws for US States
By VOA News on Jan 2, 2022 Featured, National, National/World, Politics
A new year brings a new mayor for New York City and new laws in many of the 50 U.S. states. Democrat Eric Adams was elected in November to be the next leader of the largest city in the United States. He succeeds Bill de Blasio, who served two terms as mayor, beginning in 2014. […]
" 1 Campaign Urges Biden Admin to Mail 'Continuous' Supply of Masks, Tests to All US Households
By Jake Johnson | Common Dreams on Dec 31, 2021 Featured, Health, National, National/World
Public health experts and advocates are calling on the federal government to deliver "free rapid at-home tests and N95-quality masks to every household in America twice a month through May 2022." A new campaign led by public health experts and grassroots activists—including the daughter of a Covid-19 victim—is calling on the Biden administration to deliver rapid tests and high-quality […]
US Braces for Omicron Surge
By VOA News on Dec 31, 2021 Featured, Health, National, National/World
Health authorities in the United States are sounding the alarm again, saying Americans could experience disruptions in the coming weeks because of the rapid spread of the omicron variant of the virus that causes COVID-19. The U.S has reported record numbers of cases two days in a row, Reuters reported, adding that 18 states have […]
Biden Urges Putin to De-escalate Ukraine Tensions
By Anita Powell | VOA News on Dec 31, 2021 Featured, National, National/World, Politics
WASHINGTON — U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday "urged Russia to de-escalate tensions with Ukraine" in a 50-minute call with his Russian counterpart, the White House said. A senior administration official added that President Vladimir Putin made no concrete promises about the tens of thousands of Russian troops massed along the Ukrainian border. Biden "made clear […]
Guilty: Epstein Recruiter Ghislaine Maxwell Convicted of Child Sex Trafficking, Conspiracy
By Brett Wilkins | Common Dreams on Dec 30, 2021 Featured, National, National/World
The British socialite—who was convicted of five of the six counts she faced—could spend the rest of her life behind bars. A New York jury on Wednesday found British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell guilty of child sex trafficking and four other counts in connection with her procurement and grooming of minors to be abused by her close […]
LAPD Releases Footage From Police Killing of 14-Year-Old Girl
By Jake Johnson | Common Dreams on Dec 28, 2021 Featured, National, National/World
"Her death was preventable!" said civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who was hired to represent the family of 14-year-old Valentina Orellana-Peralta.  Youtube video of police bodycam, surveillance, and other broadcast footage provided by Los Angeles Times. (warning: the video is disturbing) The Los Angeles Police Department released video footage Monday showing the moment when an […]
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Police this afternoon descended on a town centre as part of a 'pre-planned operation'.
A number of patrol cars were seen in The Strand, Longton, close to the International Minimarket at around 12noon today (April 17).
Eye-witnesses reported seeing officers stood outside with a barrier half-way down.
One man, who was in the barbers at the time, said: "There was a high police presence. There were lots of people watching. It looked like a raid."
A Staffordshire Police spokesman declined to give further details other than to say it was part of a 'pre-planned operation' with more information to be released in due course.
It is not known at this stage whether any arrests have been made.


The Rotoworld Season Pass has everything you need to run your team from opening day to the final game, including tools, reports, frequently updated rankings and projections.
updated rankings, projections and much more.
A daily look at under-the-radar players who can have an immediate impact.
Seth Trachtman looks at this week's FAAB pickups.
Brad Johnson covers a couple up-and-coming prospects and more.
Brad Johnson covers the latest and greatest names to arrive.
Christopher Crawford breaks down his top MiLB starting pitching prospects.
George Bissell looks at changes in Joey Gallo's batted ball profile.
Brad Johnson covers pitchers from the fantasy fringes.
Brad Johnson breaks down the latest hitters along the fantasy fringes, checking in on a top prospect and the best early-season rookies.
Christopher Crawford breaks down the top outfield prospects in the minor leagues.
Josh Donaldson clubbed a pair of home runs on Sunday night, leading the Braves to an 11-5 rout over the Indians.
Donaldson opened the scoring against his former club with a solo shot off of Shane Bieber in the first inning. He did the real damage in his next at-bat though, clobbering a three-run shot off of Bieber in the second to increase the Braves' lead to 5-0. Donaldson also singled and drew a walk in the contest, finishing the night 3-for-4 with three runs scored. After a slow start to the season, Donaldson has been on fire in recent weeks and is now slashing .270/.400/.500 with four long balls and seven RBI on the year.
Freddie Freeman went 3-for-4 with a double and two RBI as the Braves demolished the Indians on Sunday night in Cleveland.
Freeman did his damage after the game had already been long out of reach, contributing an RBI single in the fourth inning to make it 9-0 and another in the seventh to make it 11-0. He also drew a walk in the contest and scored a pair of runs. For the season, he's hitting a terrific .316/.443/.481, though he only has two homers and 12 RBI and has yet to steal a base.
Ozzie Albies went 1-for-5 and drove in a pair of runs on Sunday night as the Braves routed the Indians.
The 22-year-old second baseman had a two-run single in the third inning, increasing the Braves' early lead to 8-0. For the season, he's now hitting .278/.337/.411 with a pair of homers, seven RBI and three stolen bases. He has also established himself as the team's primary leadoff hitter which should lead to a plethora of opportunities to score runs this season.
Max Fried delivered another quality start in Sunday's victory over the Indians, allowing two runs on seven hits over 6 1/3 innings.
Fried struck out six on the night while issuing three free passes. It was somewhat surprising that Braves' manager Brian Snitker sent Fried back out for the seventh inning, as he was already at 90 pitches through six scoreless and the Braves had an 11-0 advantage. In the seventh, he allowed a solo homer to Francisco Lindor and a single to Leonys Martin (who eventually scored) before turning the ball over to the bullpen. Fried has been outstanding through his first six appearances (four starts), compiling a 1.38 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 18/7 K/BB ratio across 26 innings. He'll try log his fifth straight quality start when he takes on the Rockies at home on Saturday.
Francisco Lindor crushed his first home run of the 2019 season as the Indians fell to the Braves on Sunday night in Cleveland.
Lindor's solo shot off of Max Friend finally got the Indians on the board in the seventh inning, trimming their deficit to ten runs at the time. It was his only hit in four at-bats on the night. He's now 2-for-9 (.222) with a homer and a pair of runs scored through his first two games. The power shouldn't be an issue upon his return, but it will be interesting to watch just how active Lindor is on the bases after rehabbing calf and ankle injuries.


text:
6 search results for "gamergate"
Four Things We Want to See in Gamergate 2
2014 was a great year for gamers of every genre. If you were into card games, Hearthstone came out and dominated the market. Were you…
Anita Sarkeesian Criticizes Gay Porn for Lack of Female Representation
LOS ANGELES — Feminist Frequency founder Anita Sarkeesian wrote a critical review of a recent gay porn video, citing the film's lack of female representation…
Kotaku Headline Trying a Little Too Hard to Be Your Friend
NEW YORK — A new headline on the video game website Kotaku about an upcoming video game delay is reportedly trying a little too hard…
Disgusting: [NERD PROPERTY] Fans Are Boycotting Because It Features Some [MARGINALIZED PEOPLE] *TEMPLATE*
THIS IS A TEMPLATE. DO NOT FORGET TO FILL IN THE BLANKS WHEN THE INEVITABLE NEW STORY COMES OUT. DO NOT DISTRIBUTE. – Editor Ugh,…
I Will Not Play the New Smash Bros Unless it Includes All 642 of These Characters
I love Smash Bros as much as the next guy, but if the new game being made for the Nintendo Switch doesn't include EVERY SINGLE…
Can't find what you're looking for? Try refining your search:


The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is accusing United Parcel Service Inc. of discriminating against employees who wear beards or long hair for religious reasons.
The EEOC sued the Atlanta-based shipping company on Wednesday in federal court in Brooklyn.
The lawsuit says UPS prohibits men who interact with customers or who hold supervisor positions from growing beards or hair below the collar. It accuses the company of violating federal civil rights law by not making exceptions for religion.
The EEOC says in one case, a bearded Muslim employee was told he would have to shave to get a driver's job. It says he was told, "God would understand" if he shaved.
UPS denied the accusations in a statement on Wednesday.


text:
Oscars 2023: Cate Blanchett is among the nominees for Australia. Who else made the list?
Australia's Cate Blanchett portrays a manipulative orchestra conductor in Tár.
A spread of nationalities is represented on the 2023 Academy Awards appearing listing, with nominations for performers from a number of international locations.
Malaysian actress Michelle Yeoh was additionally nominated for her starring position in All the things In every single place.
Dimension-hopping journey All the things In every single place All at As soon as has topped the listing of movies nominated for this yr's Academy Awards as voters selected a number of crowd-pleasing hits to compete for the most effective image prize.
All the things In every single place, a science-fiction film about an exasperated lady making an attempt to complete her taxes, landed 11 nominations, together with greatest image and 4 appearing nods.
Australian Cate Blanchett was nominated for greatest actress for her portrayal of a manipulative orchestra conductor in Tár, as was Michelle Yeoh for her starring position in All the things In every single place.
Appearing nominees additionally included Austin Butler for his portrayal of rock legend Elvis Presley, and Colin Farrell, who starred as a farmer obsessive about restoring a friendship in Banshees.
Different movies vying for greatest image embrace Avatar: The Manner of Water, James Cameron's sequel that at the moment ranks because the sixth-highest-grossing film of all time.
Prime Gun: Maverick and Elvis, two of the northern hemisphere summer time's largest blockbusters, additionally made the reduce alongside Steven Spielberg's coming-of-age movie The Fabelmans, The Banshees of Inisherin, Tar, Triangle of Disappointment, Ladies Speaking and All Quiet on the Western Entrance.
British actor Rizwan Ahmed (L) and US actress Allison Williams announce the nominees for Actress in a Main Function through the ninety fifth Academy Awards nominations announcement on the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills, California, on 24 January, 2023. Supply: Getty / Valerie Macon
Winners of the business's highest honours will probably be unveiled at a 12 March ceremony hosted by comic Jimmy Kimmel and aired reside on Walt Disney Co's ABC community.
The Oscars and different leisure awards reveals have been struggling to draw TV viewers, notably youthful ones who spend time on TikTok and YouTube.
Final yr's Academy Awards present, r, drew about 15.4 million TV viewers, the second-smallest viewers ever.
A spread of nationalities is represented on the 2023 appearing listing, with nominations for performers from Australia, Cuba, Eire and Malaysia – together with the UK and the USA.
Eire is especially well-represented and accounts for 1 / 4 of all 20 appearing nominations – with nods for Kerry Condon, Farrell, Brendan Gleeson and Barry Keoghan (The Banshees Of Inisherin) plus Paul Mescal (within the coming-of-age drama Aftersun).
Winners will probably be voted on by the roughly 10,000 actors, producers, administrators and movie craftspeople who make up the Academy of Movement Image Arts and Sciences.


text:
Q: How to run two functions of the same class in different threads Hi I have a class named search and this class has two member functions. The consumer and the producer. This is the way I have activated these functions as two threads in qt.
thread1 = new QThread();
thread2 = new QThread();
mySearch = new Search() ;

mySearch->moveToThread(thread1);

mySearch->moveToThread(thread2);

connect(mySearch, SIGNAL(workRequested()), thread1, SLOT(start()));
connect(mySearch, SIGNAL(workRequested()), thread2, SLOT(start()));

connect(thread1, SIGNAL(started()),mySearch, SLOT(producer()));
connect(thread2, SIGNAL(started()),mySearch, SLOT(consumer()));

connect(mySearch, SIGNAL(finishedscan()), thread1, SLOT(quit()), Qt::DirectConnection);
connect(mySearch, SIGNAL(finishedscan()), thread2, SLOT(quit()), Qt::DirectConnection);

But, it seems that only one is activated. How should I activate both. Please let me know with an example.
Thanks.

A: This is a simple example to run the two methods of the same object in two different threads. Assuming your Search class looks like this:
class Search : public QObject
{
    Q_OBJECT

public:
    void producer();
    void consumer();

signals:
    void workRequested();
    void finishedscan();
};

You would create a second class like this:
class Worker : public QObject
{
    Q_OBJECT

public:
    Worker(std::function<void()> task) :
        QObject{},
        _task{std::move(task)}
    {}

public slots:
    void work() {
        _task();
    }

private:
    std::function<void()> _task;
};

And now you can implement the start:
thread1 = new QThread();
thread2 = new QThread();
mySearch = new Search();
auto worker1 = new Worker(std::bind(&Search::producer, mySearch));
auto worker2 = new Worker(std::bind(&Search::consumer, mySearch));

worker1->moveToThread(thread1);
worker2->moveToThread(thread2);

connect(mySearch, SIGNAL(workRequested()), thread1, SLOT(start()));
connect(mySearch, SIGNAL(workRequested()), thread2, SLOT(start()));

connect(thread1, SIGNAL(started()),worker1, SLOT(work()));
connect(thread2, SIGNAL(started()),worker2, SLOT(work()));

connect(mySearch, SIGNAL(finishedscan()), thread1, SLOT(quit()), Qt::DirectConnection);
connect(mySearch, SIGNAL(finishedscan()), thread2, SLOT(quit()), Qt::DirectConnection);

Important: While this solution solves how to start the two tasks on different threads, stopping won't work yet as QThread::quit only works if the thread returns to the eventloop! If your producer/consumer methods do not return to the eventloop and use it to perform tasks, write so in the comments and I will update the answer to handle that case as well.

EDIT: Since stopping i the above solution only works, if producer/consumer return to the eventloop - which is not the case according to OP, you have to manually notify the worker that it should stop working to gracefully quit the thread.
For the first solution, your worker has to periodically check, if it should stop working. For example:
MySearch::producer() {
    while(!QThread::currentThread()->isInterruptionRequested() {
        //do some work
    }
}

And secondly, you have to adjust how you quit the thread:
connect(mySearch, &MySearch::finishedscan, thread1, [thread1](){
    thread1->requestInterruption();
    thread1->quit();
}, Qt::DirectConnection);

Note: Regardless of how you quit your threads, you should always wait for them in the main thread to finish their work before exiting:
thread1->wait();

Finally, you mentioned in the comments that you use CTRL+C to quit the application - make shure to register a signal handler to catch SIGINT and stop you application gracefully, as the default SIGINT will just terminate it, without proper cleanup

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Following embarkation in Cologne, we meander south on the Rhine to Rudesheim, visiting the old town of Koblenz and then to Boppard, known as 'the Pearl of the Rhine' en route. Cruising through the Rhine Gorge, we experience spectacular scenery, emerald vineyards and a landscape studded with half-timbered houses and picturesque villages.
Arrive in Cologne, where your five-star floating hotel is moored in the picturesque historic center. The friendly English-speaking crew will welcome you and help you to your cabin. After settling into your spacious and well-equipped accommodation, it's time to familiarise yourself with the many first-class aspects of this floating boutique hotel.
We slip our mooring early this morning and our ship resumes its voyage downstream as you enjoy another fine breakfast with views of pretty riverside towns, backed by the rolling volcanic hills for which the area is renowned. Passing the last vineyards and half-timbered houses around the pretty town of Linz, it's not long before we reach the railway bridge at Remagen, captured intact towards the end of the Second World War, thereby arguably shortening the war in Germany. Not long after, we draw in to the heart of Cologne, in the shadow of the magnificent dual-spired Gothic cathedral for which the city is so famous. It's a truly monumental building, taking over 600 years to build and featuring myriad religious and art treasures and perhaps the most intricate stained glass windows in Europe. After lunch, we join a local guide for an informative tour of the city, with time to explore its tree-lined squares and perhaps visit one of its traditional bars, many of which still brew their own beer. This evening the Captain's Dinner takes place on board, during which delicious specialities of the regions you've visited will be served, hosted by the Captain himself, of course. After dinner, enjoy a final digestif in the bar while reflecting on the memories made on this wonderful cruise through the romantic heartlands of Germany's most iconic rivers.


text:
www.timetravelrecords.co.uk
COLLECTABLE VINYL RECORDS
Record categories / Sales catalogue
Hard Rock/Metal/Punk Albums
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Progressive & Classic Rock Albums
Rock & Roll/1950s 7" Singles
1960's 7" Singles
Disco and Jazz-Funk singles
Soul/R&B & Motown Singles
Reggae / Ska 7" Singles
Synth' Pop Albums
Breakbeat/House/Electronic Dance
Film, Stage & TV Soundtracks (OST)
Categories Record categories / Sales catalogue Soul/R&B & Motown Singles Eddie Kendricks - Keep On Truckin' (Part 1)
Eddie Kendricks - Keep On Truckin' (Part 1)
can be shipped within 1-3 working days
"Keep on Truckin'" is a 1973 hit song recorded by Eddie Kendricks for Motown Records' Tamla label. The song was Kendricks' first major hit as a solo artist, coming two years after his departure from The Temptations. "Keep On Truckin'" reached number one on both the Billboard Hot 100 and R&B singles chart upon its release, and was Kendricks' only number-one hit. It also reached #18 on the UK Charts.
By 1973, Eddie Kendricks was two years deep into a solo career following his bitter split from The Temptations in 1971. While his former bandmates went on to record hits such as "Superstar (Remember How You Got Where You Are)" (which was a reported jab at Kendricks and fellow ex-Temptation David Ruffin), and their seven-minute opus, "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone", Kendricks had begun to reach a cult R&B fan base following his last two albums.
Working closely with Frank Wilson, who was the main producer in most of Kendricks' solo efforts, the duo worked on a song that would aim at the dance floor rather than the serene ballads that Kendricks was used to recording. His earlier single, "Girl You Need a Change of Mind", was a cult favorite for club fans. With co-writers Anita Poree and Leonard Caston Jr., Wilson created a song rivaling that of the Temptations' Norman Whitfield-produced cinematic soul that had become commonplace among the group's recordings, but instead of instigating drama, the song's grooves were clearly aimed at the dance floor.
Upon its release in the summer of 1973, the song would finally bring Kendricks out of the shadow of his former band as the song's catchy beats and melody became a crossover hit. By late fall, the song had reached number one on the US pop and R&B singles chart, matching the performance of the biggest singles released by his former group. When "...Truckin'" became a hit, the Temptations' hit luster was waning, with "Hey Girl (I Like Your Style)" barely reaching the Top 40, and the follow-up funk song, "Let Your Hair Down", becoming only a modest hit (although an R&B #1). Much like their "Superstar", which would notably be covered by David Ruffin, Kendricks included a jab at his former bandmates with the lyric:
In old Temptations' rain, I'm duckin'
For your love through sleet or snow, I'm truckin'
Eddie Kendricks - Keep On Truckin' (Part 1) / Keep On Truckin' (Part 2)
UK Tamla Motown TMG 873 (1973).
Record produced by Frank Wilson and Leonard Caston.
The vinyl record attains a strong excellent grading suggesting few plays.
Audio quality is very clear and strong throughout.
Both record centre labels are clean and unmarked.
Both record centre labels are free from tears, stains or stickers.
The record comes with an original company paper sleeve.
Browse this category: Soul/R&B & Motown Singles


text:
The Road Ended at the Beach and Other Legends: Parsing the Escarpment School – Part Two
SAT, FEB 11 / 7 pm
Curated by Brett Kashmere
Introduced by Alan Zweig
The second installment of The Road Ended at the Beach, and Other Legends maps the development of first-person documentary in the work of the Escarpment School filmmakers, while also showcasing forays into image manipulation, layered assemblage, and abstraction. Documentary was a staple of Sheridan College's Media Arts Department during its formative years, as evidenced in the program's first film, Alan Zweig's Trip Sheet, from 1976, as well as in the collaborative work of Janis Cole and Holly Dale of the mid- to late-70s. The turn in documentary from social to personal issues would become more pronounced in the early-80s.
From 1980-85, esteemed Sheridan College professor Jeffrey Paull evolved a series of single-reel Super-8 "documents" that reduce on-screen action down to a simple, unbroken event or gesture. Emphasizing cinema's real-time capacity, these one-shot sketches often utilized the artist's friends, family, and surroundings for their subject matter. One such film, Paull's Oxford Spa, is a suggestive camera-play that mediates between interior and exterior spaces, the world inside and the action on the street.
The infusion of documentary method with autobiographical concerns is illustrated in the personal journeys that follow. Richard Kerr's Canal, Rick Hancox's Waterworx, and Philip Hoffman's river all return to landscapes of the filmmakers' youth, with waterways figuring prominently in each. Exploring geographies of identity, these films take place at the fluid intersection of time, space, and memory and feature an array of strategies, from the use of on-screen text, to the repetition and variation of elements, to the integration of multiple media formats and technologies. – Brett Kashmere
TRIP SHEET – DIR. ALAN ZWEIG | 1976 | 9 MIN
Why do people drive cabs? The answers are varied, for the chance to work independently, for the enjoyment of driving, for the variety of people that one has a chance to meet. Trip Sheet looks at the work from a cab driver's point of view, the scenery outside and the people inside.
OXFORD SPA – DIR. JEFFERY PAUL | 1984 | 3 MIN
"Antecedents for Oxford Spa: 1966: In the NFB's Ladies and Gentlemen, Mr. Leonard Cohen, Cohen chants 'We're keeping the party going! We're keeping the party going!' (No Beginning, no Finish). 1967: Once I saw Wavelength, I went, 'Of course!' (Continuous take). 1970: I was with an intermedia group: 5 improv musicians on stage + 16 projectors, a zillion image mixing possibilities. We took turns improvising on each other: images, music (Real time 'editing'). 1974: For sport, chops, and curiosity: Single-take entire super-8 cartridge: Find an ongoing situation, plan an opening framing, and improvise a coherent arc of visual time. In Boston, Mass., a 'spa' is a corner grocer." (JP)
CANAL – DIR. RICHARD KERR | 1981 | 21 MIN
The imagery of Canal captures the activity of freighters, ship's crews, dock workers and the historical masonry that the original Welland Canal was constructed from. The film deals with two forms–autobiography and memory and is about going to 'my own world of youth' while simultaneously documenting the environment as an adult. (RK)
WATERWORX (A CLEAR DAY AND NO MEMORIES) – DIR. RICK HANCOX | 1982 | 6 MIN
The waterworks in the Beaches area of Toronto is the source of an eidetic-like image from early childhood. It was always an enigma to me, and after returning years later to shoot this film, I was still not satisfied it was merely a filtration plant. Its architecture functioned more significantly as some kind of temporal metaphor. Wallace Stevens' ironic and equally enigmatic poem, 'A Clear Day And No Memories,' was sought out to address this phenomenon, and to appear as interuptive graphic for the same reason the editing is interuptive–that is, to both work with the alluring nature of the image, yet force an intellectual distancing. (RH)
RIVER – DIR. PHILIP HOFFMAN | 1989 | 15 MIN
"The Saugeen River was named Sauking, 'where it all flows out,' by the Ojibwa in the early 1800s. It runs into Lake Huron, in central Ontario. The place where I know it is twenty miles south of Owen Sound, near Williamsford, where I spent lots of time in my youth exploring. Over the past twelve years I've returned there to film, and collected these moments in a fifteen-minute meditation called simply, river. The film is archaeology of how I have come to know this river over these years." (PH)
FAULTLINES – DIR. GARY POPOVICH | 1998 | 17 MIN
In a tapestry of migratory luck, artifacts and shell, a mixed choir of images and sounds engages the paradox of a journey that loses all meaning once it reaches its end. The film's westward inclination to the American shores of the Pacific, bound in a pitiless growth and decay, drives a dense montage, woven with guns and prayers.
DESERT VEILS – DIR. LOUISE LEBEAU | 1992 | 14 MIN
Desert Veils is a personal exploration of images of women filmed in the Chihuahua Desert of north-east Mexico. I was part of a film crew documenting the daily activities of an archeological dinosaur dig; when I wasn't working with the film crew I was shooting my own images, looking beyond the disarticulated fossils and apparent structures, searching for what seemed elusive, hidden from me in my initial encounters with the women I met in Mexico. (LL)
TWO PICTURES – CARL BROWN & ROSE LOWDER | 1999 | 12 MIN Canada's king of visual alchemy teams up with France's mistress of minimalism to fashion a photo-based work of cinematic abstraction. Tactile and textured, luscious and luminescent, "Two Pictures" is a singular statement embodying a powerful dichotomy. This is a film that is simultaneously about nothing and about everything.


text:
10 Best Root Apps For Rooted Android Device in 2021
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Home/Health/Immunotherapy Gene Editing Breakthrough Electrifies the Scientific Community |
HealthMesothelioma
Immunotherapy Gene Editing Breakthrough Electrifies the Scientific Community |
Amir Hussain July 21, 2018
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A research team that included scientists from the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) recently announced a major breakthrough in immunotherapy gene editing. UCSF is one of the top medical schools in the country and is an important resource for mesothelioma patients because the UCSF Medical Center's Thoracic Oncology Program includes specialists in malignant mesothelioma.
Scientists are working on cancer treatments that leverage the human immune system in a number of ways. Treatments that involve immunotherapy gene editing have moved forward slowly, because this type of therapy was time consuming and expensive. The recently announced immunotherapy gene editing research could change all that. What follows might be a big leap forward in the treatment of numerous diseases, including mesothelioma.
What Is Mesothelioma Immunotherapy?
Before describing the new immunotherapy gene editing study, it's helpful to consider what the term "immunotherapy" means and how mesothelioma immunotherapy helps attack this rare form of cancer.
The human immune system is more powerful than any chemotherapy drug at killing foreign invaders, viruses, and rogue cancer cells. To survive, cancerous tumors hijack your natural immune defenses and use them to flip the "off" switch on your body's immune response.
Mesothelioma immunotherapy drugs, such as Keytruda, Opdivo, and Yervoy, down-regulate or suppress proteins that cancer cells use to hide from your immune response. These so-called checkpoint inhibitors unmask the cancer and stimulate your immune system to go on the attack.
Checkpoint inhibitors have been very successful for a minority of cancer patients, including some mesothelioma patients, but most people get little or no benefit from these drugs. Mesothelioma immunotherapy researchers are trying different approaches in hopes of discovering ways to make immunotherapy drugs effective for many more cancer patients.
At the same time, researchers are pursuing other ways to help enlist the human immune system into the fight against cancer. Because immune system cells, especially T cells, can target just the cancerous cells, immunotherapy treatments may have fewer side effects and be more effective at removing all cancerous cells, even after they have spread or metastasized to other parts of the body.
The latest immunotherapy gene editing study looked at one of these alternate approaches. Gene editing allows doctors to create a therapy that hones in on the specific mutations of an individual patient's cancer cells. The benefit of this type of personalized medicine is that it is quite targeted and (researchers hope) more likely to be effective. The down side is that personalized therapies are very expensive and can be time-consuming to create. This immunotherapy gene editing study could revolutionize personalized immunotherapy because, if it proves successful in human trials, it will reduce the time it takes to create treatments and, ultimately, lower the cost.
Immunotherapy Gene Editing Study is Shocking – Literally
Immunotherapy gene editing is not new. As Mesothelioma Circle recently reported, one patient with inoperable Stage 4 breast cancer that had metastasized throughout her body experienced an amazing recovery. After she enrolled in an immunotherapy gene editing clinical trial, researchers removed some of her immune system's T cells, modified them to recognize and attack her cancer, grew billions of these modified T cells, and then reinjected them into her body. Her tumors shrank then disappeared; this patient with advanced, terminal cancer is now in remission.
That patient's success story was due to a monumental effort in the lab. Researchers used viruses to inject modified DNA into her T cells. Viruses are effective DNA delivery systems, but they have significant drawbacks. It can take months to create the virus needed to serve as a vector for a specific patient's cancer fighting cells. In addition, viruses insert the DNA haphazardly; scientists can't control where in the T cell the replacement DNA is injected.
In this recent immunotherapy gene editing study, scientists tried something new. They used a burst of electrical current to relax the membrane that protects the cell from foreign invaders. While the shock loosened the cell wall, researchers used CRISPR-Cas9 technology to cut the T cell's DNA and splice in a new sequence that would activate its ability to seek and identify cancer cells.
CRISPR-Cas9 is the molecular equivalent of a pair of scissors: it cuts apart a DNA strand then removes or inserts DNA code. CRISPR-Cas9 is limited to inserting small segments of new DNA. With the electric shock technique developed in this immunotherapy gene editing study, researchers were able to use CRISPR-Cas9 to insert much larger segments of DNA.
This new immunotherapy gene editing technique is much more accurate than using a virus to deliver the DNA edits because scientists can place the replacement DNA at a precise point in the DNA of the T cell. It's also much quicker, because it doesn't require the development of a new virus. It could reduce the time needed to create personalized T cells to attack a specific cancer from months down to a couple of weeks.
The scientific community has hailed this research as a major breakthrough. For patients with rare forms of cancer such as mesothelioma, this potential advance in cancer treatment is exciting news.
Many Diseases Can Benefit from Immunotherapy Gene Editing
The scientists who conducted this immunotherapy gene editing research studied the response of their edited T cells in the petri dish and got positive results. They also put human melanoma cells in mice and created modified T cells to hone in on the melanoma. The T cells did what they were programmed to do and eradicated the melanoma in the mice.
This technique has not yet been tried on human subjects, but it could have far-reaching implications for human health. Already, the researchers have created modified T cells to replace the mutated T cells that have caused an autoimmune disorder in three siblings. The scientists are waiting on approval from the FDA to administer the gene edited immune cells to these young people. If it works, it could be a far better treatment for their disorder than the current treatment, a bone marrow replacement.
Researchers suggest that clinical trials on humans will be coming, perhaps as soon as a year from now. In addition to the treatment of rare cancers such as mesothelioma, immunotherapy gene editing has the potential to cure HIV (which damages T cells). Other autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus could also benefit from this breakthrough in medical technology.
What Could Immunotherapy Gene Editing Mean for Mesothelioma Patients?
If you have mesothelioma, every potential new tool to combat this serious form of cancer is a cause for hope. Immunotherapy gene editing has already helped one patient with very advanced cancer. While an immunotherapy gene editing mesothelioma treatment has not yet been developed, the increasing speed of advances in cancer treatment means that mesothelioma patients could have new options in years rather than decades. If you are able to enroll in a clinical trial, you could have access to new immunotherapy gene editing treatments even sooner.
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Amir Hussain
Amir Hussain is the founder of Freemium World, a geek by nature and a professional Blog writer . I love to write about new technology trends, social media, hacking, blogging and much more.
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  export MINIKUBE_WANTUPDATENOTIFICATION=false
  source <(minikube completion $(basename $SHELL))
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text:
Reliant Registered Agent
Idaho LLC
Enhanced Name Search
Foreign Registration
Business Identity Protection
Idaho LLC/
Enhanced Name Search/
Foreign Registration/
Change Agents/
Business Identity Protection/
Review/
In-Depth Business Name Search
Start your company on a solid foundation.
Enhanced Business Name Search
If you are starting a new business, now is the time to consider carefully the name of your new company. As part of our Enhanced Business Name Search, Reliant representatives will conduct a search of exisiting business listings and website domains as well as state and federal trademarks to help you make an informed decision about your company name. The last thing you want when you are starting a new company is the distraction and expense associated with having to change your company name, website name, email address, business cards, stationary, etc. simply because you weren't aware that someone else secured the name before you.
Any registered agent worth his or her salt will conduct at least a cursory search for identically named businesses in the state where you are attempting to incorporate. In fact, Secretaries of State throughout the country will generally inform the registered agent when another business already exists in that state with the same name you are attempting to register. A Secretary of State will then require a modification to the name or adoption of an Assumed Business Name (ABN or DBA) in order to distinguish your company before certifying your organization.
Reliant Registered Agent will, of course, check with the Secretary of State's office to determine if your desired business name has a conflict but, as part of our Enhanced Business Name Search service, we will take it to the next level and also search both the state and federal trademark registers for conflicts. Further, we will conduct a domain name search to determine if your desired business name is available as a website address. We will then provide you with a report of our findings so you can make a better informed decision before you have invested in a name for your new company.
As often as not, only a small tweak, and not a complete name change, will be all that is needed for you to preserve the essence of the new business name you desire. In either case, it is best to know before you invest time, energy and money in a name that you might ultimately need to change, or even abandon, if you were to find yourself in the middle of a trademark or unfair competition dispute.
As part of the Enhanced Business Name Search service, we will also assist you with filing a state trademark application for your service and/or product. The description of your trademark, or service mark, calls for somewhat stylized language in the application's description section. The description language identifies the goods or services you are attempting to associate with your trademark. We can provide a draft description of your goods and services for your consideration, suggest an appropriate class under which to file, and suggest whether you should select a trademark or a service mark and then assist you with filing the application for registration on-line, or in writing, with the Idaho Secretary of State's office. The State of Idaho only charges a small fee for this highly recommended initial step in preserving your rights.
This is a true "bang for your buck" opportunity. Federal trademark applications, though very similar in form and content, are much more expensive, generally much harder to obtain and also require that you are using your mark in interstate commerce versus only using it in a single state.
Keep in mind, regardless of whether you file or not, at either level, the critical factor is your active and on-going use of the mark in commerce. In fact, the first date you use the mark in commerce can be the biggest factor in determining your rights down the road regardless of whether or not you filed for trademark protection right away.
Order Enhanced Business Name Search
Free, helpful business information for startups. Your guide for incorporating a business entity with the Idaho Secretary of State (SOS). Reliable registered agent.


Excerpted from "Return: A Palestinian Memoir"
The next morning I awoke early, and decided to take a walk along the empty streets around the hotel while it was still relatively cool. Since arriving in Gaza I had seen little of the UNDP party I had come with. They were busy with their projects, and had picked up two more workers who had been in Jerusalem and would return with us. Looking at the scenes around me I might have been in a poor Indian city: cracked pavements, mounds of rubble and sand, overflowing rubbish bins. A young boy passed by me, barefoot, sooty black with dirt, his blue eyes and fairish hair suggesting his normal complexion underneath was also fair; a grubby T-shirt and short trousers clothed his angular frame. The beaches were deserted; no throngs of skinny boys like him splashing and running in and out of the waves.
The power of the image I had conjured up made me so shake with agitation I had to walk on quickly to dissipate the feeling and after a while calm down. The deputy director of the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, whom I had met briefly the day before, had invited me for breakfast with his family and was due to pick me up at the hotel. He was a genial, happy-looking middle-aged man with an air of optimism and purpose, though the hard life he had led should have made him exactly the opposite. His home where we would join his family for breakfast was in Bureij refugee camp, to which the family had moved from the nearby Nusseirat camp, his birthplace. As with most refugees in Gaza, his parents had fled their village in 1948 and ended up in the Gaza camps where they had lived ever since. Like other refugee children, Jaber was educated by UNRWA, and later became a physics lecturer. With his peers he soon became involved in resistance activities against the Israeli occupation. There were no suicide bombers in those days and violence was unusual, but young men used every other tactic they could think of in their struggle. Inevitably, he was caught, and in 1985, two years before the outbreak of the First Intifada, the army came for him in the night and he was committed to an Israeli jail where he remained for the next fifteen years. He did not tell me what he was accused of, but such harsh punishments were not usual for relatively minor acts against Israel as a deterrent.
There he joined the many thousands of other 'security prisoners', Israel's designation for those carrying out what the Palestinians would have called acts of resistance against its occupation, stone-throwing, distributing revolutionary leaflets, holding secret meetings of activists to plan possible operations. Israeli law had no category of prisoners of war or political prisoners as applied to Palestinians. Along with other inmates accused of planning hostile acts against Israel, Jaber was tortured and kept in handcuffs and leg shackles. It was a terrible, unspeakable time during which his daughter was born, never to set eyes on him until she was five. But it was in that dark and rotten cell, as he described it, where he was kept in solitary confinement, that something important happened to him.
I looked at him as he recounted his harrowing story; despite his ordeal, he had an air of inner peace as if he had indeed found his way. He chatted amiably as he drove me to the camp, telling me about Gaza, his work and his family, and stopping briefly to pick up fresh-baked mana'ish, flatbread covered in olive oil and za'tar (thyme), a typical breakfast dish in Palestine, Syria and Lebanon. Bureij camp was situated in the centre of Gaza and had about 35,000 inhabitants. In 1949 it had been nothing but an emergency collection of hastily erected tents and abandoned British army barracks to house the flood of refugees pouring in from the east of Gaza. But UNRWA later replaced the tents with concrete houses, and the camp became more firmly established. It looked more like a crowded small village than a refugee camp when I saw it, its dwellings set close together, trees and bushes growing amongst them.
I was struck by its peaceful, friendly air on that quiet Friday morning, and as we made our way through the narrow alleyways everyone we passed knew Jaber and greeted him warmly. No one would have guessed at Bureij's turbulent history, how in 1953, when it had barely come into existence, an Israeli army unit under the command of Ariel Sharon – the same 'man of peace' being lauded by President George Bush – opened fire on the camp as people slept, and killed forty-three of them; how when Sharon became Israel's prime minister in 2002, his army raided the camp again, killing ten people, two of them UN employees; and how it attacked again in 2003, demolishing the camp's mosques and fourteen of its homes.
His house was larger than most I had seen in the camp. It was spotlessly clean and welcoming, full of family members, including his old mother. She was waiting for us in their best room in her embroidered thobe, the full-length caftan typically worn by Palestinian peasants, a white scarf loosely covering her hair. She was slight and had a warm, smiling face rather like her son's. He introduced me, raising his voice for her to hear, and said I was interested in her memories of the past. He had earlier told me something about her, and I was eager to hear her story first-hand.
A young girl came in with a tray of coffee, and Um Jaber settled herself in her chair and looked at me expectantly. It turned out that she was used to telling the story of her family's expulsion from their village near Asdud (renamed Ashdodby the Israelis) to journalists and foreign visitors who were curious to hear it. The memory of 1948 was still fresh in her mind, she said, and as she started her account without prompting from me, she spoke fluently and without hesitation. I could not help wondering how much her story had been shaped by hindsight and in response to what she sensed different questioners wanted to hear. I could understand that, for I had felt something of the same myself when faced with Western sympathisers eager to hear the Palestinian narrative.
But I was more than happy to listen to her. The events surrounding the Nakba had fascinated me for years, not least because they were never fully documented. The Nakba was a seminal event in every Palestinian's life, the root of all the sufferings that followed, and I hungered to reach back for its elusive history through firsthand accounts of that time; how else to unseal its memory, so dim and unattainable, and draw it back into a communal space that could be shared, examined and compared? So I listened to Um Jaber recounting how she and her husband and small children had been forced out at gunpoint by Jewish fighters who invaded their village in the night. All the neighbours were driven out with them and all fled. They walked, half carrying the children, half dragging them, through fields and orchards until exhaustion forced them to stop. They found concealment among the trees and survived on what fruit they could pick. Everyone was afraid the fighters would find them and so kept on moving, until finally they reached Gaza where there was no fighting. Abu Jaber wanted to return to the village with the other men once she and the children were safe, but they heard that the Jewish militias fired on anyone trying to come back, and so they resigned themselves to waiting for the time they could return.
That time never came, and every day brought greater numbers of fleeing villagers like themselves to be housed intents and army barracks. Um Jaber did not look unhappy telling this story, and I doubted that it connected with her emotions any longer, the blind panic and terror she must have felt at the time. Whatever spontaneity there had once been in the telling of it had long gone, and robbed that terrible experience of its power.
'Would you like to know anything else, Doctora?' Jaber asked. I shook my head and thanked them. He helped his mother out of the chair and we all went in to breakfast in the kitchen. The table was laid with a generous spread of typical Palestinian food: falafel, fatta, (made with pieces of bread and topped with hummus and pine nuts), cracked, bitter olives,zeit and za'tar (olive oil and dried thyme, eaten by dipping bread in the oil and then coating it with the thyme), and freshly baked flatbread, added to the still warm mana'ish we had brought. As we ate I could see the family was close and harmonious; clearly, Jaber, whatever the hardships in his life, had managed to create a happy home.
After breakfast he suggested we drive to what he called the worst spot in Gaza, the Abu Holy checkpoint. 'You must see this,' he said and the others all nodded. 'You will not understand how hard it is here until you do.' I wanted to say that I did understand already, but I could see he was anxious to show me these horrors in the hope I would spread the word about them abroad, where he thought it mattered. The checkpoint stood on the main north-south highway running thorough Gaza, and an essential thoroughfare for people and goods. Each time the Israeli army closed it, Gaza was split in two and all through traffic was paralysed. It had been erected to enable the Jewish settlements nearby to connect directly with Israel; the settlers used an overpass to drive there, and whenever they did so, the Gaza traffic below was closed off to prevent contact between them and the Palestinians. By such devices the settlers were enabled to live entirely separate lives from those around them. As with all checkpoints, Abu Holy (cruelly named after the farmer on whose land it stood) was built on confiscated farmland, a cause of much bitterness to him and the other dispossessed farmers. Ever since it was erected in 2001 as a punishment for the Second Intifada, journeys that used to take thirty minutes could take ten hours or more.
When we approached I could see why. A queue of cars stretching for as far as the eye could see was ahead of us as we joined the highway. By order of the army, only cars could pass through the checkpoint; no pedestrians were allowed, not even animals, and as I looked about me I saw a car in front with a donkey on the back seat, its head hanging dolefully out of the window. 'What else could the poor man do?' commented Jaber, seeing my stare. 'It's either that or leave the animal behind.' There were three of us in Jaber's car, to comply with another army rule: that all cars must have no less than three occupants, on the grounds that terrorists usually travelled alone or in pairs at most. If it happened that the requisite number of people was not available, one or two of the boys hanging around amongst the trees by the roadside would oblige for a few coins. A small trade in hiring out such children as companions for the ride had grown up, as had also a soft drinks and food business selling provisions for the journey. Many people brought their own sandwiches and coffee in thermos flasks, and even blankets and towels, expecting a long wait in their cars.
The heat was stifling as we crawled along; not a whiff of air passed through the open windows to cool us down, and I started to feel faint. Jaber gave me a bottle of water which had been cold when we set out, but was now warm. The road seemed endless and the ordeal of waiting to reach the checkpoint almost unendurable. Yet people took it stoically enough, leaning out of their car windows to chat to those in front; some joked and laughed or shouted out some piece of news, and everyone seemed to take the whole thing philosophically. It reminded me of the approach to the checkpoint on the way to Nablus. The hold-up on that road was nowhere near as bad as this, but there also people seemed to accept their situation with quiet patience. They got out of their vehicles as they waited and stood around talking to each other, or strolled about to buy drinks from the roadside vendors.
'This wait is dreadful. How can people take it so passively?' I asked Jaber.
It was certainly true that the soldiers at both these checkpoints were particularly aggressive, and it struck me that it was perhaps the very patience and stoicism of the people waiting to cross which maddened them. Far better if the crowd had turned violent and tried to attack them: their assault rifles and armed patrols were always at the ready for such a thing, and could act at a moment's notice. But against this submissiveness they had no weaponry. Looking at the two sides, as I had done at the Nablus checkpoint – the nervy, helmeted soldiers shouting at the queue of cars, and the docile drivers obeying them – I had no doubt which would last the longer in this land.


text:
Trump to visit U.S.-Mexico border to laud border wall
by: KEVIN FREKING, Associated Press
Posted: Jan 9, 2021 / 05:08 PM PST / Updated: Jan 10, 2021 / 01:39 AM PST
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is expected to travel to the U.S.-Mexico border on Tuesday to highlight his administration's work on the border wall, the White House said Saturday.
Trump will travel to the town of Alamo, Texas. He will mark the completion of 400 miles of border wall and his administration's efforts to reform what the White House described as the nation's broken immigration system.
Trump's campaign for the presidency in 2016 focused extensively on the president's desire to construct a border wall. He also promised that Mexico would pay for the wall, but it has been paid for by U.S. taxpayers.
While most of the wall went up in areas that had smaller barriers, the government has built hundreds of miles of fencing as high as 30 feet (9 meters) in a short amount of time — most of it this year.
The administration prioritized areas where the wall could be built more quickly, and crews have blasted hills and bulldozed sensitive habitats in national wildlife refuges and on American Indian land to do it.
The visit will likely be the president's first public appearance since he addressed supporters on Wednesday riling up a crowd that later staged a violent siege of the U.S. Capitol. He is anxious to highlight accomplishments as his presidency winds down.
Meanwhile, Democrats in the House are pushing for an impeachment vote next week and are planning to formally introduce their proposal Monday with a vote possible by Wednesday.
EXPLAINER: What's next after House impeachment vote
by MARY CLARE JALONICK, Associated Press / Jan 14, 2021
WASHINGTON (AP) — Now that the House has impeached President Donald Trump for the second time, Speaker Nancy Pelosi must figure out the best strategy for arguing the case before the Senate.
Senate rules say the trial must start soon after the chamber receives the article of impeachment, which charges "incitement of insurrection" after an angry mob of Trump's supporters invaded the Capitol last week. But Pelosi has not said when the House will deliver it.
Pelosi's nine impeachment managers hope to 'finish the job'
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has tapped nine of her most trusted allies in the House to argue the case for President Donald Trump's impeachment.
The Democrats, all of whom are lawyers and many of whom have deep experience investigating the president, face the arduous task of convincing skeptical Senate Republicans to convict Trump.