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Twinning - 7/29/15
Twinning, Season one episode two, was more of the same drama. Spencer and Skyler got hated on, as did GinaMarie and AnnaMarie.
The competition entailed the twins being on separate sides of a wall and putting together puzzles while being tied to each other. That meant one had to get a piece while the other waited. Tre and Torian did great, unlike last week, while Li and Je didn't do well. Tre and Torian finished first. Taylor and Dylan and Claire and Shawn followed. (Claire and Shawn last week as well.) Spencer and Skyler, who narrowly avoided elimination last week, took the final spot.
Corey and Adam were shady. Not cool. Especially towards
Tre and Torian were happy because they got to spend their birthday together. The houses spend the night partying. Torian spent the night trying to see Kristina. Kristina said she's not here for a boyfriend, but she sees this as an advantage.
Nicole confronted GinaMarie about how she always brags about money. When Nicole told her to go to bed, GinaMarie freaked out and yelled at her. She was confronted by the group and told "you think you're hot sh*t but you're cold diarrhea". Interesting!
There was a tie in the voting booth about who to send to competition, and since Tre and Torian were the first winners, they got to vote again in a tie-breaker. Their choices were Chris and Josh and Kristina and Kamila. Since Torian was into Kristina, she and her sister got to stay, and the twins forced to compete were GinaMarie and Anna Marie, as well as Chris and Josh.
Like last week, the twins had to match five answers first to win. Also like last week, the twins were given a minute to see each other.
The twins bickered, then it was time to compete.
They were asked what night of the week is the best. The guys won (Monday for wrestling) and the girls disagreed on Saturday and Sunday.
In what word, what is your favorite part of your own body? Both teams got points. The guys said penis, the girls said eyes.
If you could learn to play a musical instrument, what instrument would you choose? The girls said guitar and got points, the guys said piano and keyboard.
What one word best describes your bedroom as home? The girls said messy, the guys said horror - both got points.
Which of your senses would you least like to give up for a year? The girls matched on eyesight; the guys messed up on hearing / vision.
If you and your twin could travel back in time, to what year would you go? The guys said 1996 and 2014. The girls won with 1969 and stayed in the game to brag more about their wealth. They wanted to be in that year to be hippie flower children. Josh and Chris, with that, were gone. But not before insulting GinaMarie and AnnaMarie's intellect.
Labels: twinning
So You Think You Can Dance - Top 18 Perform and Elimination - 7/27/15
The So You Think You Can Dance contestants began tonight's episode by dancing to Let The Groove Get In by Justin Timberlake.
Like last week, the dancers picked their styles from a hat.
Alexa, Derek and Jaja got together for a contemporary routine, choreographed by Stacey Tookey. The dance is about bravery, and Jaja was lauded for her bravery. Each person had to play a character, and Stacey said they'd be successful if they truly felt and portrayed their characters. They danced to All Waters by Perfume Genius. Nigel was all compliments, saying Alexa danced like she was six feet tall, per Stacey's notes. Paula said Jaja is morphing each week into a more accomplished dancer. Jason said everyone danced beautifully.
After last week's votes, Alexa, Jaja and Derek were all safe.
Megz, Moises and Jim and did a hip hop routine about saying 'whatever' to the haters, choreographed by Jaquel Knight. It was about tapping into the performance. They danced to Whuteva by Remy Ma. Paula was confusing in her review - she said Megz gave it her all, and said something about how the guys brought it all but have to take it to the next level. It was confusing. Jason said this wasn't his favorite performance. Nigel said it didn't work for him and he doesn't think Moises can be mean and cruel but has to find it in his dancing.
Jim and Megz are safe, Moises was up for elimination.
Tavares Wilson choreographed JJ, Edson and Yorelis in a jazz routine. They danced to Restart by Sam Smith. Jason said that there was too much looking ahead - part of the dance is looking at your fellow dancers. Nigel said the girls were great. Edson was told to feel his sexuality. Paula told JJ to watch her technique.
JJ and Yorelis were safe, Edson was in danger this week.
Jean Marc Generaux choreographed Asaf and Marissa doing a club cha cha. Their song was +1 by Martin Solveig. Nigel said the dance didn't feel like a cha cha. He thought Marissa did everything that was required of her but didn't use Asaf, who she's supposed to be all about in the dance. Nigel said he heard how hard Asaf worked that week, and wanted him to remember that even the ugliest old caterpillar becomes a beautiful butterfly, although this was not a good routine for him.
Marissa was safe, but Asaf was in danger of elimination.
Gaby, Burim and Ariana were with Sean Cheesman for an African jazz dance. They were portraying slithering animals. Gaby was complimented for getting into character. Ariana was complimented for taking to the dance like a fish to water, and we were told that this dance could show why she was saved. They danced to Gorilla by Lord KraVen. They looked like spiders, then scary monsters. It was oh-my-gosh amazing when the girls used each others' bodies to flip around. They were fierce. FIERCE. Terrifying, in the moment, tribal and fierce. Paula said it was a strong routine. Paula said she loved watching Burim's package, meaning his videotape. She was called out for saying that because it sounded like she was talking about another meaning for that word. She said she knew the ladies were strong before this, but in this dance, they were fierce and precise. Jason said it was one of the best numbers but there were little things here and there to fix. Ariana was told she was powerful. Nigel made a joke about liking Burim's package as well.
Ariana and Burim were in danger, Gaby was safe.
Justin Giles created a contemporary routine for Kate and Neptune. It was about a husband and a wife saying goodbye before the husband leaves for a dangerous job. They danced to Promise by Ben Howard. They were complimented for a great routine with a good show of chemistry between the pair. Paula thought the dance was "really, really nice".
Neptune was safe, but Kate was in danger.
Pharside and Pheonix had Hailee and Virgil, who they'd turn into robots from outer space. It was a hip-hop dance. Hailee was complimented for how well she took to the dance. They took to the stage and performed to Runnin' by Noahplause, and stayed in their characters even during the judging. They earned a standing ovation from the judges. Nigel said these two are the best characters on the show. Jason was equally impressed.
Both Hailee and Virgil were safe.
This means Asaf, Ariana, Burim (street) and Edson, Moises and Kate (stage) were in danger of leaving, and viewers had five minutes to vote on Twitter to save them.
We saw a group dance from Team Stage to For My Help by Hayden Calnin. Team Street then danced to Break Ya Neck by Busta Rhymes.
Twitter saved Ariana and Kate. YESSSSS! Team Ariana!!!!!
The judges saved Asaf and Edson.
This means that Burim and Moises left. Sorry, guys!
But seriously, we are Team Ariana on Less Than Reality. So please text ARIANA to 21523!
Labels: sytycd
Hey, Ariana Crowder Fans! There's a New Video Out from the So You Think You Can Dance Contestant!
The Beat Club Crew just hooked us up with a new video featuring SYTYCD's Ariana Crowder, as well as fellow New Jersey native David Suarez. It's up on The Beat Club Crew's Youtube page, but you can also see it below.
You'll see a great mix of skills in this video, and you'll get a glimpse of David Suarez, who I expect to see in a future season of So You Think You Can Dance. Start following him now, because I'm sure he'll be rocking it out in the near future.
Something great about Ariana Crowder, which is showcased in this video, is that she can rock out the street dances on SYTYCD, and she's also got really good technical abilities.
I got my hands on some exclusive pics, which I'm sharing with you below. So if you're team Ariana, please spread the word, make sure your votes are in each week, and you let everyone know that you are Team Ariana Crowder!
By the way, Ariana's part of The Beat Club Crew, which is based out of Edison, New Jersey. If you want to see more of Ariana's skills and learn more about her dance roots, check out their Facebook page, linked above.
Dating Naked Season 2, Episode 1
For season two, Dating Naked got a makeover. Instead of different people dating each week, the show will now feature one guy and one girl throughout the whole season. They'll date a bunch of others who come in and out of the game. How does this work? Each week, they'll embark on two dates. The one they like best will be called a keeper, and that person will stay on the island until the connection falters. The goal is to find their soulmates.
This show features Kerri, who had a relationship that ended badly. She dated a guy who she said had no game. She dared him to get a girl's number. He did, and subsequently cheated with her, ending the relationship.
It also featured Chris, a guy who is the oldest of four siblings - all boys. He moved to San Diego to avoid the cold weather of home. He dated a girl for five years who left him heartbroken.
Kerri and Chris had their first dates with each other. Kerri told us that she went for college to five years until she was hit by a car while rollerblading. She couldn't finish college, but she did make a full recovery.
Together, they created messages in bottles. Kerri noted that she's turned on by Chris' eyes. She also said she noticed Chris' privates...I just noticed his tan lines! Kerri wanted a kiss, but Chris was not providing it. Chris said he knew there was more to come and he didn't want to create something big right off the bat. He did feel the connection, but there were a lot of dates remaining.
Chris met his next date, and he was into her. Her name was Jenny from LA, and she feels like "a 13 year old boy in a tittie suit" (her words, not mine). She dresses as Wonder Woman for Comic Con.
Kerri got Norman, a fitness trainer who was raised around women, and says that he's single because he doesn't take the time to get to know people. Kerri said he was wearing a ring on his privates - I thought she meant a piercing, but it later seemed like it was a sex toy - Norman referenced it increasing sexual pleasure. Kerri didn't feel as comfortable with him as she did with Chris. Norman seemed like he was in this just to hook up with random people - he said he's in this to experiment. He asked Kerri to stretch because he wanted to get her flexible and see how flexible she can be. Wow, classy.
Everyone went back to the house and met up. Kerri was intimidated by the situation at that point because she realized she'd be competing with other women who are attracted to Chris. When Jenny got really crazy, Kerri was thrilled because Chris pulled her aside for some alone time. Jenny and Norman weren't worried - they were spending time together. Both Kerri and Chris had thoughts during the day about how they'd rather be spending time together. Then they kissed, and sparks flew.
The next dates entered the scene. Angie from Texas was there for Chris and the very muscular Louie from Brooklyn arrived for Kerri. Louie fit the Brooklyn stereotype perfectly. Angie made a joke (I think about) being ready to get married and start a life together to the confessional - she was all in!
While Louie and Kerri made drinks, Louie told Kerri all about his Italian lifestyle. She was giving him a chance, but she was still into Chris. Louie said he's overprotective of the girls he dates, and Kerri told the confessional that she's not into overprotective guys, so this wasn't happening. They did connect over their shared hatred of cheating, and that created a stronger connection.
Back at the house, Kerri and Louie's connection grew, and Chris and Angie were connecting as well, although Chris still had Kerri on his mind. Kerri and Chris spent time together and they still had a connection, as well.
Kerri and Chris had to decide which date to keep (the strongest connection they had) and who to get rid of. Louie was wearing clothes at the ceremony because he hurt his privates in the sand or something. It was weird.
Kerri kept Louie, sending Norman home.
Chris picked Angie, sending Jenny home. He had a tough time making the choice. Jenny did not take it well, saying she would have gone home, even if chosen. This made Chris happy with his decision. Angie was surprised since Chris had been reserved.
Jenny let us know that she and Norman were feeling each other and would likely have sex. Okay, then!
Chris said no matter what, he and Kerri would be going through this together, and the episode ended.
Labels: dating naked
Series Premiere - Twinning on VH1
Tonight, VH1 premiered Twinning, a show in which twins compete to see which set of twins have the strongest connection. They'll be eliminated week by week until one set remains, and they'll win $22,222.22.
The twins are Roxanne and Nicole, blond girls. There's also AnnaMarie and GinaMarie, other blond girls. Tre and Torian seem cool, and Skyler and Spencer have never spent more than 12 hours apart and dress alike; they are virgins. Josh and Chris don't look alike, and their goal is to break people down. Claire and Shawn were almost born as conjoined twins but split. Key and Meme seemed to be in tune. Taylor and Dylan were frontrunners in the first challenge. Kamila and Kristina are Ukranian girls who say they have hot heads. Adam and Corey looked strong. Ji and Le didn't get much screen time. Bennett and Winston...I don't even remember seeing them.
The twins were advised that they wouldn't be living together, because the best way to test their connection was to separate them. They'd be living in mirror images of a home.
The twins faced he first double down challenge. The twins, as pairs, would be competing together but with no communication and a wall between them. The four winning sets of twins will get to vote for twins who will be up for elimination, and will be reunited with their twins and can move between the two houses for a whole day.
The twins had to hang tiles in different categories on hangers. The twins had to match eight tiles to be considered winners. For example, they'd have to pick an animal, a food, etc.
Taylor and Dylan were the first winners.
AnnaMarie and GinaMarie were second.
Shawn and Claire were next.
Chris and Josh were the last set of winners.
We then learned what the twin-off is - it's a competition in which the bottom sets of twins has to compete to stay in the house.
AnnaMarie and GinaMarie, annoyed people with their outgoing personalities in the green house. Kamila butted heads with them. and Key found them annoying. Josh and Chris, in the blue house, made fun of Skylar and Spencer.
The teams gathered in their living rooms and the winning teams voted the twins they wanted into the twin-off.
Gina and Anna voted for Meme and Key, as well as Kristina and Kamila. Chris and Josh chose Spencer and Skylar. We didn't see the other details.
Meme and Key were one of the pairs sent to the twin-off, and they're against Skyler and Spencer. Meme and Key were sent because they're seen as competition. Meme and Key acted out, while Spencer and Skyler were calmer and more reserved. The guys reviewed cards given to them by their moms.
The twins took their spots at their podiums, separated by walls, with Spencer and Skyler wearing the same outfits. They got to greet each other briefly before being asked questions
They were asked:
What is the sexiest foreign accent? Neither got it, but Spencer and Skyler said Spainsh and Itilian, justifying this by saying they aren't spellers.
If you were to buy a lottery ticket tonight, which number would you be sure to include? The guys got this one.
What one word best describes your taste in fashion? The girls got this.
In one word, what is the biggest deal breaker for you in a relationship? The guys got this one.
If you were only allowed to listen to one song for the rest of your life, what would it be? The guys got it.
You both have a flight to catch. How many minutes early do you arrive at the airport? The girls got this one.
If you both had to wake up at the same time each day, what time would you chose? Point for the guys.
If you were able to stop aging at any point in your life, what age would you choose? The girls took this one.
The host took a break from the trivia and asked the twins what they'd do with their money. The girls said they would spend it on their families, but the guys would help their mom and a charity.
Then it was time for the potential last question, as the guys had four out of the needed five questions correct. The question was - If you could travel to any country to find love, where would you go? The guys got it right, even though one spelled Italy and Itily. They stayed in the game, sending the girls home.
It looks like this season will bring a ton of drama and fighting...should be interesting!
This show is great. It really is. It's trash TV at its finest. Why? Because twins are fascinating, and competition reality shows are fun. The challenges seem to be totally fluffy and superficial, which is nice because you get to turn your brain off while watching this show. And some of the twins are strong personalities, and because they're not on their own, feel as if they can be extra assertive. This is a fun show to watch!
Today, we saw individual performances and an elimination on So You Think You Can Dance. We lost one stage dancer and one street dancer. The way it worked was that three dancers were in the bottom, we tweeted in to save one and the judges saved another. The third was eliminated.
The episode opened with a performance to the song Baila Como Yo by District 78.
Cat Deeley revealed that it's been 10 years since the first episode of So You Think You Can Dance aired. And we learned that Travis was nominated for an Emmy. The show, and those on it, actually got a total of 8 nominations.
Last week, the dancers were mixed into new groups (not divided by stage and street), and each group randomly chose a dance style that they'd perform this week.
Yorelis, Darion and Hailee
The first group to perform was Yorelis, Darion and Hailee. They were dancing salsa with a sexy vibe. The dance had intricate tricks and the group was nervous. Their song was Blucutu by Saamara. There was a crazy dance step where Darion jumped over Hailee's face - whoa! Jason felt the dance was nerve wracking because of the jumps. The dance was missing the heat but Yorelis did a great job. Nigel thought the girls were fabulous and spicy. Paula loved the helicopter at the beginning and complimented the women on their footwork.
We next found out if anyone was in danger of leaving based on last week's votes. Darion was in danger; Yorelis and Hailee were safe.
Derek and Ariana
Next up was the team I'm rooting for! TEAM ARIANA!!! Derek and Ariana came together for a jazz routine. The piece was about being heartbroken, which Ariana said she can relate to. Ariana was complimented for her level of style and presence in rehearsal.
You know, it's interesting - the theme so far in the show has been that Ariana surprises people. She always get compliments like these: She stands her own. She stands out amongst strong dancers. Things like that. Ariana must have some quiet way of hiding in the background until she lets you know what she's got through her dancing. Today, Twitch finally gave Ariana a compliment she deserves - he said "she blew my mind".
Anyway, the dance was great. Ariana and Derek moved perfectly in sync. Ariana had a great mix of stage and street style. Paula gave her review first. She said Ariana gave a really wonderful attempt and nailed it. Paula said they both need to work on the performance with their faces and eyes. Jason agreed. Nigel was shocked that Ariana was a street dancer who could do as well as she did. He said Ariana came to life right at the end and he wants to see more of that.
Unfortunately, both of them were in danger of elimination.
Alexia, Megz and Virgil
Alexia, Megz and Virgil were tasked with performing a contemporary routine in which the girls run Virgil's life. Nigel loved how the stage and street styles came together in this dance. Alexia was told she's good but stands under the radar. Paula was proud of the team.
All of the dancers were safe from elimination.
Lily, Burim, Gaby and Edson
Next up was a group of four, Lily, Burim, Gaby and Edson. They were tasked with a Bollywood dance, which is heavy on hand gestures. They performed to Dhol Baaje from the Ek Paheli Leela soundtrack. Nigel said the guys' choreography wasn't as strong as it should be. Paula said Lily's face told a beautiful story. Generally, Paula really enjoyed it.
Lily is in danger of leaving; the others are safe.
Asaf, Kate and Neptune
Asaf, Kate and Neptune were the next trio. They were doing a Broadway dance in which they had to create instruments with their bodies. Asaf had a tough time in rehearsal.
They danced to an interesting version of All About That Bass by Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox feat. Kate Davis. I highly recommend you click my link above and listen to that song - very interesting!
Paula thought the dance was inventive. She said Neptune was committed and innovative. She said he's really showing up. She said Kate's a beautiful dancer but can turn it up more. Asaf was told that he's the most improved. Jason wanted more from Kate but still enjoyed her quiet confidence. Nigel told Kate her coolness can be misrepresented and viewed as not performing. Neptune was told that he looked like a jazz dancer at times. Asaf was told to get out of his head and grasp opportunities. He was told to keep working hard.
Neptune was in danger of leaving; Kate and Asaf are safe.
Jaja and Jim
Christopher Scott choreographed a hip hop number for Jaja and Jim. They performed to No Woman, No Cry (Live Version) by Bob Marley and The Wailers. (I'm not sure if I linked to the correct live version, but you get the idea.) They had some spectacular hand movements. The judges stood up to show their approval. Nigel got emotional to see two completely different worlds come together in dance. Paula was also impressed. Jason said Jim did an amazing job and also complimented Jaja.
Both Jaja and Jim are safe from elimination.
Marissa, Moises and JJ
The jazz piece assigned to this group featured Marissa and JJ going after Moises, who they found out was two timing them. They danced to I'm So Sorry by Imagine Dragons. Jason said he originally worried about Moises' strength but it's showing up now. Marissa was a little offputting because she smiled but she was supposed to be mad. Nigel said both girls were strong dancers, but Moises stood his own. Moises had great technique. Paula said she appreciated the smiles from both girls because it showed the joy of them teaming up against Moises. Paula found sexiness in both girls' smirks.
Moises was in danger of leaving; the girls are safe.
We reviewed the dancers in danger and got a change to tweet to save them.
We had:
Ariana, Lily and Neptune and from Team Street
Darion, Derek and Moises from Team Stage
The street team performed to Time by Nathan Lanier. Which was a little funny because it's clearly to use up time before the Twitter votes are counted. It was cool, though, because the Christopher Scott choreographed dance incorporated see-saws. How cool!
Team Stage danced to Stabat Mater by Woodkid. It was great - very primal, as it was supposed to be. The judges went wild.
And then it was results time.
The dancers saved by the Twitter vote were Neptune and Moises. Congrats, guys!
So now we've got Ariana vs. Lily and and Darion vs. Derek. To cut the suspense a little, the show didn't cut as soon as it should have and we heard a random person talking about texting.
DEREK AND ARIANA WERE SAVED BY THE JUDGES!!!! YESSSSS!!!!
Sorry, Darion and Lily. All the best with your careers.
Okay, so now that she's still here, vote Ariana!!! Stop what you're doing and vote Ariana by texting 21523!!!
I Am Jazz - Why This Show Is Important
I finally caught up with the show I Am Jazz, the story of Jazz Jennings, a transgendered teenager.
The show gives us a glimpse into Jazz Jennings' life. We meet Jeanette and Greg, Jazz' parents, as well as her family. Jazz, born as a boy named Jaron, always wanted to do 'girly' things. Jaron asked his mom, as a two year old, asking when his penis would become a vagina. At the age of three, a doctor held up male and female dolls. Jaron said he had a boy body but wanted to be a girl. He wasn't happy being a boy.
Jeanette told us that she struggled with Jazz's feelings, but when Jazz made it clear that she loved her hair in pigtails, Jeanette had to accept that Jazz is transgendered. We also saw that Jazz's grandparents came to accept her as Jazz, even though it was difficult.
While this show is well done (which is great, considering some of the terrible reality shows on TV these days), there are more important factors to this show. This show portrays a family that truly accepts their child for who she is. They accepted, at a young age, that Jaron was no longer Jaron - she was Jazz.
There's also the fact that this show tells us what a transgender child will go through, emotionally, hormonally and medically. It's not as simple as a transgendered person saying that they want to be male or female; there's a lot of hormone therapy that goes into this change.
We learn about the struggles that Jazz faces. For example, she has to wear shorts or a skirt over her bathing suit, because while she's a female at heart, she still has male genitalia. We also learn about Jazz's parents' struggles. For example, Jazz's mom makes sure that all of Jazz's friends' parents know that Jazz is transgendered before they hang out. It's tough because it makes Jazz continually aware that she's different, but it's important because parents may have reservations because of Jazz's situation.
Jazz Jennings deserves so much credit for starring in I Am Jazz and sharing her story. She's leading the way to show other transgendered kids that it's okay to be who you are and love yourself. I'm sure she knows she'll get a lot of flack for doing this show because not everybody is supportive of people like her. And she is giving up any chance of keeping her situation private. But she is doing such wonderful things to show us that Jazz, a wonderful, fun, kind person who happens to be transgendered, is not just surviving - she's thriving. And now that she's helping to pave the way, others can follow in her footsteps.
Labels: i am jazz
One Bad Choice - Kumari Fulbright
I watched the episode of One Bad Choice featuring Kumari Fulbright. If you didn't watch it, here's a synopsis.
Kumari was a law student who was in a relationship with an ex-bad boy older man, named Robert Ergonis. They broke up and Kumari began dating Joshua Conway. She told us that she was initially not into dating Josh, but he was persistent. They dated for a while. Josh drove Kumari to a modeling gig, and on the way back, she blacked out. She couldn't figure out why. She woke up at home and realized that money was missing from her purse. A ring also went missing. Josh watched Kumari's home while she went away. When she came back, her jewelry was missing from her home. Kumari suspected Josh had taken the money and her things.
Kumari asked Josh if he took her things and he denied it. Kumari didn't believe it, so she enrolled the help of Rob to scare Josh into confessing. Kumari asked Rob to set Josh straight and get her stuff back. She said in the confessional that she assumed Rob would just scare Josh by talking to him. Instead, Rob and three friends kidnapped Josh, held him at gunpoint and hurt him until he eventually escaped, but not until after he confessed, saying he owed people money. When Josh escaped, he got help. Police arrived, and Kumari was arrested and sentenced, but got off lightly in exchange for testifying against Robert.
If you're looking for more info on this story, there are some interesting articles out there.
Daily Mail sheds an interesting light on the story, saying:
Fulbright was dating Joshua Conway when she asked him to sell jewellery she was given by her former boyfriend, Robert Ergonis, according to prosecutors.
When Ergonis came back into Fulbright's life, she lied and told Ergonis that Conway had stolen and sold the jewellery.
Fulbright lured Conway to her flat and Ergonis and David Radde jumped him, the prosecutors said.
Another man, Larry Hammond, helped to detain him.
So what's the true story? Is she truly a victim here, or was there something else going on? The TV show was a little strange to me - it made it seem like Kumari was in a bad relationship but it wasn't her fault. Kumari was great at everything. Kumari was a former beauty queen but was also super smart and busy. I don't know, it just doesn't seem to be 100% right. She likes all these bad boys but she's completely a good girl who made one bad choice? The TV show left some questions open, for sure.
Unlike last week's Jessica Rasdall, who I think legitimately made bad decisions and regrets them, Kumari's episode came off differently. It made Kumari look like someone who remembers things where she's perfect in every scenario except this one. I'm not saying that's the case - reality TV is, after all, not real - but it painted a very beauty queen-like image of her.
I tried to think about what Kumari was thinking as this went on. Did she really just ask Rob to talk to Josh? Was there something we're not being told? Who made the decision to take it further? And why didn't Kumari let Josh go? Was she really just so in the moment that she didn't know what to do? It's entirely possible. Being on an adrenaline rush can do that - you know what you're doing is wrong but you can't think outside of it. This show didn't really touch on some of the psychological aspects that I would have liked to know more about.
Keep in mind as you watch the show, it's a show. It's based on Kumari's recollection of a scenario. We don't 100% know what happened, we don't know what anyone was thinking and we don't know the 100% truth. It's hard not to judge, but we have to understand that we don't truly know the entire story.
Labels: one bad choice
Escaping Polygamy - 7/14/14
Escaping Polygamy tells the story of Andrea, Jessica and Shanell, former polygamist sisters (children of Daniel Kingston) who have escaped and now vow to help others do the same.
The show tells us the polygamist culture that they were in rules by fear and intimidation. The women on the show told stories of being courted by family members, being abused and other horrible things. The women set a goal to get out, and they did. They want people to realize that they won't be punished for leaving the abuse and pain they experience in their religious sect.
A text was received from one of the girls' sisters saying she wants out but doesn't know who she can trust. When we met her, we found out it was 18 year old Melanie. She was going to be involuntarily married, and didn't want to do so.
Melanie had a poor upbringing and had to dumpster dive. She had to go to grocery stores and say she'd be giving things to charity but it was really for themselves. She grew up eating rotten food. The church promised that everyone would have a great life and be rewarded with heaven. In the order, they believe everyone else is going to "heck" (her words). Melanie once questioned if there are good people outside of the religion, and she was told that the people in the religion are the chosen ones.
She's seen her dad beat up her family. She's been raped. She realizes this is wrong, and people shouldn't have to go through that to go to heaven.
A trainer at Melanie's gym had offered her a place to stay, but she had to get out while her family was out church. One of Melanie's full sisters (the women featured on this show are her half sisters) tried to escape and was beat to the point where she almost lost her life. Additionally, per Fox News:
"Getting out is a [multi-]step process. You physically move your stuff out, but you also need to emotionally get out and mentally [you need to] stop thinking the way they have trained you to think," she said. "For some people, that's the part where they can't stay out… they can't make decisions for themselves. They can't think for themselves."
One of the sisters (Jessica, I believe) got a video showing a church service where the leader exerted his dominance over the group. In the video, she watches her sister proudly disown the family members who left the order. She, and the other kids featured in the video, are brainwashed into believing such things, according to the women who left the cult.
The show then referenced Kollene, a sister who'd left the order. I believe we met Kollene on Sister Wives. The women want the home that their mom lives in condemned because it's not liveable. She's placed there because that's where her husband wants her. She's not a favorite wife so she is neglected and living somewhere unsafe. They broke the news to their mom, who wanted a reason. They cited safety. Their mom didn't seem terribly upset. The health department gave the family options: issue a notice that things must be fixed, issue a non-enforced letter or make the unit unrentable. She chose the non-enforceable letter.
Andrea, a law student with a goal of helping others, went to visit Ethan, a man who was kicked out of polygamy because he was competition for older men. He turned to drugs, but eventually decided to pursue rehab. He was going from inpatient to transitioning status. Ethan recently visited his dad, and from that, realized he can be an adult and not seek approval.
Melanie's intent to leave was discovered and the sisters had to get her out immediately. Jessica and Shanell met with someone named Cody to break Melanie out. They spoke to Andrea, who suggested having a cop on the scene. As Melanie tried to leave, people screamed at her rescuers and wouldn't let Melanie leave; they physically held her down. The police officer arrived and helped, and Melanie was able to leave. Melanie was hurt because she was hurting her family and loves them, but she knew she had to go.
Melanie, a few weeks later, visited her brother Elic. He's 27 and still has to sneak out of his mom's house because of the cult rules. Elic seemed very emotional when Melanie asked if he still wanted to be in the order.
My thoughts on this show:
This show is great. It exposes the pain and danger that goes on in a cult environment. It's horrible that people have to live in such situations, but it's possible that a show like this can help those in need.
Some things in this show seem very dramatized, but I wouldn't be surprised if many things are reenactments, not real events. This is a reality show, after all - it's not 100% real.
I was a little confused about how the girls were in touch with their mom, who's still in the cult. Isn't she risking everything by being on this show? Can this be real? It's a little confusing. Perhaps she's already left the cult and this is a reenactment of an event that occurred.
at July 16, 2015 1 comment:
Labels: escaping polygamy
Seven Year Switch - Epside 1: Switch Therapy - Recap and Review
The show Seven Year Switch features couples who 'switch' to different spouses for X weeks to save their struggling marriages.
First we got to know Rachel, an artist, and CW, a workaholic. They'd been together 4 years. Rachel seemed to be very emotional, whereas CW was very rational. Rachel made it clear that they wouldn't drink in their new relationships, as they barely do that together, and it's only for special occasions. From FYI.tv:
Their goal as a result of this experiment is to have a more peaceful and cohesive relationship, have better communication, devote more time and energy to each other's needs and to once again enjoy their lives together.
Neal and Leah, married seven years, were next. They'd both faced infidelity in their pasts. Per FYI.tv:
Their goal is to gain more respect and appreciation for each other as a result of the experiment. Neal wants to learn how to forgive Leah and both partners are hopeful that when they reunite, they will reconnect and their marriage will be strengthened.
Eric and Danielle were also together seven years. Danielle fretted about what Eric would share with his new partner. Eric, nicknamed the man-child on screen, got emotional before the switch. From FYI.tv:
Their goal is to come out of this experiment as a strong, united couple who are able to see eye-to eye on minor day to day issues and learn how to make time for each other despite their busy schedules and individual interests.
Last was Houston and Aleshia. The experts noted that Houston seems to take Alicia for granted. Per FYI.tv:
Through this experiment, the couple hopes to become more respectful of each other and Houston wants to learn how to become less self-centered and take care of his wife the way she deserves. They dream of having a baby but realize that their issues must be resolved before they start a family of their own.
The couples would separate for two weeks and be separated from the grid. They'd live in an experimental home with their 'new' spouse and have no contact with their spouse or unscheduled visitors. The homes would fit their personalities and make it as if the participants lived an alternate life. Included in this is the fact that there's only one bed in the house. Danielle freaked out over this, as she was thinking about Eric sleeping in a bed with someone else.
The new pairs were:
Neal and Aleshia, who are fun but need to work on acceptance.
Houston and Leah, who are strong and opinionated.
These pairs were a couple switch. The other pair, in turn, was also a switch.
CW (short for Christopher Wayne, in case you were wondering) and Danielle, who are workaholics.
Eric and Rachel, who want to have fun.
The general first response we heard from everyone is that they find their spouse attractive, or at least not "fugly" (their words, not mine).
During the season, the pairs will meat each others' spouses, face challenges like possible cheating (it sounds like that might happen), and wonder if they improperly chose their spouse.
This show plays on the "is the grass greener on the other side?" concept. The premiere was okay at best - it was somewhat choppy and not terribly interesting. I do think the show will get better as time goes on and we get to potential cheating, the meeting of the spouses, etc.
The best part about the show is that it angered the Parents Television Council because it promotes adultery. Good, let the PTC get mad about more things that it hates, which is pretty much everything ever. Being picky about stuff like this ruins their credibility even more. This show, though misguided, is about saving marriages, so the PTC should be all about that!
Labels: seven year switch
So You Think You Can Dance - Top 20 Perform - 7/13/15
Tonight on So You Think You Can Dance, the top 20 performed.
Everyone was introduced, with Ariana Crowder, who I'm supporting, being introduced in the first pair. Go Ariana!
We found out that Hurricane injured himself and had to leave the competition, and Asaf took his spot.
After tonight, both stage and street dancers will take on all kinds of styles, but tonight the teams will stay in their genres.
The first set of dancers a group comprised of Megz, Neptune and JJ doing choreo by Dave Scott. Nigel said it was some of the best choreography that he's seen on SYTYCD. Megz was told she looked good and brought excitement to the routine. JJ and Neptune (formerly Jessica and Eddie) also earned praise. Neptune was told to bring personality. Paula wanted to see more superhero characterization. Jason thought it was good but was a little let down by the performance.
Next up was stage group Gaby, Derek and Moises. Their dance was classical and beautiful. Everyone wore white and the stage was clouded by white smoke. Paula said that Gaby was incredible and Jason agreed. The whole panel seemed to be blown away; Jason complimented how everyone seemed to breathe as one. Nigel complimented Gaby's ability, especially given that she's a tap dancer.
Lily, Jaja, Asaf and Burim were next for team street, choreographed by Chris Scott. Their dance was awesome. They were illuminated by white spotlights and each had their own time to shine. Jason loved the performance. He said it was "beasty". Nigel said he thought team stage had it after the last number, but team street represented here. Lily and Asaf gained Nigel's praise.
Fourth was Hailee, Marissa and Alexia from team stage, choreographed by Brian Freeman. Their choreographer asked them to dance in stilettos, which would be a challenge for them. Their dance was so cool - sexy and jazzy. Hailee was told she looks like a young Madonna. Nigel said the group needed to internalize a bit because the group was too overtly sexy.
Team stage was next with Darion and Jim. Their dance was powerful. Really strong and beautiful. Their dance was choreographed by Benoit Swan Pouffer. Paula hoped the guys got better costumes, and I agree - they weren't great. But the dance was amazing. The judges agreed on that. Jason said this performance would be remembered.
Next was another street team featuring Virgil, Ariana and Yorelis. Their choreographers were Pharside and Phoenix. Virgil is at the gates of heaven, and has to decide between good and evil. Ariana was focused in rehearsal and her choreographers said she needs to break out of her shell. They performed to Locked out of Heaven by Bruno Mars. There was one part where they did hand movements as part of their dance and it was amazing. In the end, the devil (Yorelis) won and Ariana (the angel) lost, but she had to act to show that, and she rocked it. Ariana was told that she held her own, even amongst strong personalities. Nigel expected to tell Ariana to lift it up, but he didn't have to because she rocked it. TEAM ARIANA!!! Paula said everyone has to work on what they do during their 'breathing' movements, and that was across the board for all three of them.
The final two on team stage, Edson and Kate, were next. Travis Wall choreographed their powerful number. Nigel said it was beautiful dancing and choreography but he didn't understand it because he couldn't understand their emotion - smiling, then not, smiling, then not. Paula felt like the pair was held back emotionally.
Next up was an interview with Michelle Obama, who has an organization to fight childhood obesity. Cat Deeley asked her five quick questions. Her answers were:
Dream dance partner - Michael Jackson
What song gets you on the dance floor - Anything Beyonce
Favorite dance style - freestyle
Favorite move in Gimme 5 routine (I think - not sure if I got this right) - Any of them
Street or stage - Street
Jason Derulo performed next, and it was a great, zombie-filled, spooky routine.
Warren Carlyle choreographed a Broadway routine for team stage. It was Broadway style but contemporary. Everyone wore white. It ended with one of the male dancers doing a split.
Team street was next. Their dance was fierce. Their outfits looked like they belonged in the military...if they danced.
Vote at Fox.com/dance to share your opinion! Or text your favorite's name to 21523. Vote Ariana!
One Bad Choice - Recap and Review
An episode of One Bad Choice aired on MTV. It featured the story of Jessica Rasdall.
The whole thing played out like a bad, slow soap opera. College freshman Jessica and her friend Laura like the same guy, Connor, then we're done with that. They worked together at a restaurant. At some point, Jessica drank and drove, but pulled over so nothing went wrong.
Laura complained about not having a boyfriend, and some guy said she wasn't skanky enough. Laura misheard and thought the guy called her skanky, and was upset that Jessica didn't defend her. Then Laura was upset that Cooper had asked Jessica out, even though he just asked her to see his band play. That led to Laura and Jessica ignoring each other for two weeks. Laura eventually broke the ice and asked to be friends again. Laura told Jessica that she'd been in a car accident - she was fine, but her car was totaled.
Laura asked Jessica to go out to celebrate their reunion, so Jessica went even though she didn't feel well, and they went to a club forty minutes away. The girls were on line, and a guy approached them to let them in. He said he worked there and said they were pretty. They thought it was great at first, and the guy, Mike, wouldn't leave them alone. He then got the girls, who were underage, free drinks. Mike seemed to be watching them the whole time. They tried to hide in the crowd but failed. It got creepy. They kept drinking, though. They eventually got a really bad feeling about Mike. The girls tried to leave before he found them. When they got to the car, they thought Mike might be tailing them. They lost him. Things were good. And that was the last thing Jessica remembered.
After a commercial, we flipped back to Jessica crying with the car flipped on its side. Jessica was trapped and nobody was stopping. She knew someone was in her passenger seat but couldn't figure out who it was. She doesn't remember who found them or how they got to the hospital, but she remembers being in the trauma unit. She remembers she said she was tired. A nurse told her she had to stay awake - no sleep with a head injury. People were talking about identifying the passenger. Jessica tried to say it was Laura but nobody listened. Jessica's mom arrived, and her reaction made it clear that Jessica was in bad shape. It's then when Jessica heard a cop say there had been a fatality. Jessica was overwhelmed with emotion. She'd also heard that there would have to be a drug and alcohol test done, but that wasn't her focus.
Jessica told us that she can't explain how it feels to know your decision led to the death of your best friend. She'd recover fully, but Laura died instantly. Jessica went home, and was notified that her family was not welcome at the funeral. At the attorney's office, Jessica was told that the legal limit for drinking and driving is .08 and her blood alcohol level had been .12. She was advised that Laura's family would pursue a manslaughter charge, which could carry 10 - 15 years in jail. However, Laura was her concern, not the charge.
Jessica's bail was paid and she lived at home until her trial. She was charged with DUI/manslaughter. Jessica was advised to plead not guilty. The state has to prove three things to charge Jessica - she drank, she drove, and she caused the fatality due to the alcohol limit. Jessica wondered how she could not be charged, and the answer was that she was hit from behind so the accident may have not been her fault.
Right before the trial, the judge offered Jessica a plea deal. She could choose four years in prison, and she could accept or reject it. If she accepts it, she does four years. If she doesn't and is found guilty, the prosecutor would press for the full 15 years.
Jessica accepted the four years. She accepted that because she felt that she should be punished for what she did and that justice should be served. Jessica entered a military based youthful offender program. It was physical and difficult. Jessica was introduced to Luann, who was in the same situation, and the pair discussed their never-ending guilt. That gave Jessica hope that she could make it through.
Jessica wants to make sure that Laura's death was not in vain. She wants others to learn from her story. She now shares her story and does what she can to make it right and prevent someone else from making the same mistake. She questioned why she lived, and she then realized it's for a bigger reason - she can help others.
The review:
The show has a good lesson for a teen channel - don't do dumb stuff. But the show played out slowly, very dramatically, and was somewhat stream of consciousness - it was a little confusing. For example, Mike was good, Mike was bad, Mike was good, Mike was bad. That kind of thing.
The show is absolutely haunting. The combination of drama, music and acting made a point that truly hit home. This is absolutely something that teenagers should watch so they don't make the same mistake as Jessica did. The pain never ends in Jessica's story; she's gotten into a relationship and has a daughter, but she has not healed completely. She doesn't know if she'll ever forgive herself, and that's something that people should understand - one mistake can change things forever.
So You Think You Can Dance - 7/6/15
So You Think You Can Dance started tonight with 38 street dancers and 36 stage dancers.
Everyone was called onstage at 9 PM on the second day, and they were told they'd be broken into groups and work through the night to choreograph dances. Someone would be a team leader for each group. They were advised to take chances.
As to be expected, some teams did great and some didn't fare as well in rehearsal.
The groups met again on day 3 after very limited sleep to finish their dances.
The first street group was Jessica Rabone, Lily, Ariana Crowder, Tyrus and Virgil. They were called Party of Five and hit it off right away. They were awesome. They moved great together and their solo moves showed off their individual styles. They got great reviews, and Virgil was told that he shined. They were told they interpreted the song right. Ariana got a strange compliment - she was told that she didn't look bad with such great dancers, which means she looked great.
We next saw stage group were Thomas, Edson, Alyssa, Marissa Milele and Ekaterina Fedosova. In the morning when they reconvened, Thomas was missing. He did make it though, and the dance went well. The acrobatics went well. Paula said her own problem was that it looked like a lot of effort went into it, and they were also told that the execution wasn't as great as it could be. Nigel said it was the worst group from the morning.
The following street group taped their mouths shut, and was comprised of Bdash, Little Boy, Brittany, Angyil and Ladia. They called themselves Blackout. Ladia was the leader of the group. The tape made the statement that they were speaking through their bodies, not their mouths. Their dance was to very dramatic music. I honestly didn't love their dance the way I liked Party of Five. The judges agreed - the back tucks didn't land equally. Ladia didn't give enough from her presence in the middle. The tape didn't go over well. The movement wasn't strong enough. Ouch - the judges did not love it. Nigel was disappointed because nobody was highlighted and they didn't give their best dancing. Angyil was called forward and was sent home. Bdash and Little Boy were called forward next, but told they could stay. Brittany was next. She stayed. Ladia was last, and she was asked to dance for her life to stay on the show.
We had a montage, in which Kenya was told that she was better than what she showed, but earned the opportunity to stay. Zeus was let go.
At 11:30, one stage group was left. Gaby, Hailee, Denys, Natalie and Jim made up this group. They were known as Bloodline. They were told they were the best group of the day.
Ladia danced for her life and was told she did well. Nigel said the negative was that there was no substance, although she draws people in. She was allowed to stay in the competition.
While the street dancers relaxed, the stage dancers met their next choreographer, Sonya Tayeh.
The first group of guys made it through, including Denys. But Brandon Armstrong, a fellow ballroom dancer, didn't make it. And Ekaterina was cut, too. Kevin Morales was cut, as well. Dani and Christina were called forward and stayed in the game. Jacqueline (I think) was sent home. Antonina was told she'd been a good student, but she was done.
We went through Gaby's journey to being successful, and it was noted that she's out of her element in this group dance. Fortunately, she and her whole team made it through.
The street team had their choreography next. This included Mary Poppins, Christy Doyle and Frankie Freeman. (I am not sure if I got these names right.) All of them made it through.
Corey "Mission" Whitfield made it clear he wasn't going home. Unfortunately, he and Anime did lose their spots.
Ultimately, five street dancers lost their places in this round.
Burim Jusufi danced for his life. And he rocked it. End of story. Asaf Goren was next and he made it through, but there was some argument regarding him being a dancer versus an entertainer.
At this point, there were 24 stage dancers and 23 street dancers left. They would soon find out who will make the top ten on their respective teams.
First up for the stage team was Marissa. She made it through.
Asaf was next. He didn't make it through. Latia was also sent home. Bdash didn't make it either.
Edson was next. He made it. Moses, Kate and Hailee made it through. Alan (I believe) also made it to the next round.
Jessica Rabone was next. She made it through. Lily made it through, followed by Ariana Crowder. Watch out for Ariana - she looks fierce!
Denys was bummed after girlfriend Antonina was kicked off, and it apparently got to him. He was going to get a pass, and he said he wanted to quit because there wasn't enough ballroom. It sounded like a lie - he clearly felt guilty or something about Antonina. He denied it, saying it was a gut feeling. He was allowed to go but told the judges had wasted their time on him.
Virgil made it through to the next round. Kenya did not. Alexa Meier and Derek made it through.
Gaby made it through with her tap skills. That meant Christine Shepard did not.
Here's the top 20:
Burim
Megz
Yorelis
Surprise, though - someone got injured and was replaced. We'll find out who it is next week.
So You Think You Can Dance - Top 18 Perform and El...
Hey, Ariana Crowder Fans! There's a New Video Out ...
Seven Year Switch - Epside 1: Switch Therapy - Re...
So You Think You Can Dance - Top 20 Perform - 7/13...


Alta Bates Summit Medical Center plans to eliminate a total of about 370 jobs at campuses in Oakland and Berkeley because of declines in patient volume, revenue and profits, the San Francisco Business Times reports.
Carolyn Kemp -- spokesperson for Alta Bates -- said that layoffs are needed in part because certain procedures are being moved to less-costly outpatient facilities, resulting in steep drops in inpatient volume. According to Kemp, the number of beds occupied by patients decreased by 4% from 2010 to 2011 and fell another 7% through mid-May of this year (Rauber, San Francisco Business Times, 9/7).
On Wednesday, Kaiser Permanente transferred more than 60 patients from its facility on Lakeview Avenue to the new Anaheim Medical Center on La Palma Avenue, the Orange County Register reports.
The new $425 million facility is part of a 27-acre campus that includes two medical office buildings and a three-acre garden with an area for outdoor physical therapy. The new emergency department includes rooms designed specifically for cardiology, pediatrics and trauma patients.
According to Kaiser officials, the old facility will undergo seismic retrofitting and then will be used for other medical purposes (Langhorne, Orange County Register, 9/12).
Last week, Lucile Packard Children's Hospital held a groundbreaking ceremony for a $1.2 billion expansion that will double the size of the facility, the San Francisco Business Times reports (San Francisco Business Times, 9/7).
The expansion will add 150 patient rooms and new space for diagnostic and treatment therapies (Krieger, San Jose Mercury News, 9/6).
On Saturday, Marshall Medical Center will debut its new $70 million south wing that includes a birthing center and emergency department, the Sacramento Bee reports.
The center, which has been under construction for four years, will not officially accept patients for another four to six weeks.
The project will expand the number of ED beds at the hospital from 12 to 26.
James Whipple, CEO of Marshall, said that as new funding becomes available, the hospital plans to add an intensive care unit, a medical surgical department and a cafeteria to the new wing (Sacramento Bee, 9/11).
On Monday, public health officials in Sacramento said they were considering whether to administer antibiotics to eight infants who were exposed to tuberculosis in the neonatal intensive care unit at Methodist Hospital of Sacramento, the Sacramento Bee reports.
According to the public health officials, an individual with active TB spent time in the neonatal unit from Aug. 23 to Sept. 3. They said that as of Monday afternoon, none of the infants were exhibiting any symptoms of the infection.
The officials are working with the California Department of Public Health to assess other individuals who might have been exposed to the disease (Craft, Sacramento Bee, 9/11).
Officials at St. John's Pleasant Valley Hospital have said that the hospital could open a new center for women's health care services next year, the Ventura County Star reports.
The center would provide services such as hormonal replacement therapy, mammograms and pain management, according to officials.
Laurie Eberst -- president and CEO of the hospital -- said, "We are in the process of meeting with interested physicians and have identified space, but we won't have a budget or square footage until the plan is further developed."
Hospitals are considering using a building across the street from Pleasant Valley to house the center (Letzer, Ventura County Star, 9/7). This is part of the California Healthline Daily Edition, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations.	Sign up for an email subscription.


Once you have created your Gcode toolpath in Fusion 360 or other CAM software, you will need to transfer it to the machine in order to be able to run it. Note that Gcode files must be 2.5MB or less to transfer. This is also the maximum file size that the processor can handle when it comes time to check the Gcode for errors before running it.
You can also transfer files using a USB memory stick directly connected to the machine. This is especially useful if you are using the machine stand -alone with an HDMI screen. The USB port is the lowest port on the machine(see photo below).
Once you have plugged in your USB port, you can navigate to your Gcode in AXIS using the File - Open command and navigating to /media/USB_DISK as shown in the photos below. Once you are in the folder, you will want to view all files to make the Gcode files visible.
Using the drive on the BeagleBone while you are connected via USB to the machine is the most simple way to store files. To do this, drop your nc file directly into the "BeagleBone Getting Started" drive.
Once you are logged into your machine, click File - Open, and then navigate to /media/beaglebone as shown below to find your files.
To see what the Beaglebone sees in this directory open up a "terminal" window and then type in (ls /media/BEAGLEBONE) this command will end up creating a list of what the machine sees in that directory.
If you see files in that list that you tried to remove and couldn't get them off of the machine you can then use this command to remove them. (rm /media/BEAGLEBONE/filename.ngc) This will then delete that file. If you are seeing them on your primary computer you may try shutting off the machine and unplugging the USB cable from the machine for a minute and then reboot the machine. This should then get the primary computer to look at the files again and then you should see that the files have actually been removed.


text:
A class-contrastive human-interpretable machine learning approach to predict mortality in severe mental illness
Accepted version (PDF, 1Mb)
Banerjee, Soumya
Lio, Pietro
Jones, Peter
Cardinal, Rudolf
npj Schizophrenia
Nature Research
Banerjee, S., Lio, P., Jones, P., & Cardinal, R. (2021). A class-contrastive human-interpretable machine learning approach to predict mortality in severe mental illness. npj Schizophrenia https://doi.org/10.1038/s41537-021-00191-y
Machine learning (ML), one aspect of artificial intelligence (AI), involves computer algorithms that train themselves. They have been widely applied in the healthcare domain. However, many trained ML algorithms operate as black boxes, producing a prediction from input data without a clear explanation of their workings. Non-transparent predictions are of limited utility in many clinical domains, where decisions must be justifiable. Here, we apply class-contrastive counterfactual reasoning to ML to demonstrate how specific changes in inputs lead to different predictions of mortality in people with severe mental illness (SMI), a major public health challenge. We produce predictions accompanied by visual and textual explanations as to how the prediction would have differed given specific changes to the input. We apply it to routinely collected data from a mental health secondary care provider in patients with schizophrenia. Using a data structuring framework informed by clinical knowledge, we captured information on physical health, mental health, and social predisposing factors. We then trained an ML algorithm and other statistical learning techniques to predict the risk of death. The ML algorithm predicted mortality with an area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) of 0.80 ( 95\% confidence intervals [0.78, 0.82] ). We used class-contrastive analysis to produce explanations for the model predictions. We outline the scenarios in which class-contrastive analysis is likely to be successful in producing explanations for model predictions. Our aim is not to advocate for a particular model but show an application of the class-contrastive analysis technique to electronic healthcare record data for a disease of public health significance. In patients with schizophrenia, our work suggests that use or prescription of medications like antidepressants was associated with lower risk of death. Abuse of alcohol/drugs and a diagnosis of delirium were associated with higher risk of death. Our ML models highlight the role of co-morbidities in determining mortality in patients with schizophrenia and the need to manage them. We hope that some of these bio-social factors can be targeted therapeutically by either patient-level or service-level interventions. Our approach combines clinical knowledge, health data, and statistical learning, to make predictions interpretable to clinicians using class-contrastive reasoning. This is a step towards interpretable AI in the management of patients with schizophrenia and potentially other diseases.
This work was funded by an MRC Mental Health Data Pathfinder grant (MC_PC_17213).
Medical Research Council (MC_PC_17213)
Licence URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Except where otherwise noted, this item's licence is described as Attribution 4.0 International

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


AXIS C3003-E Network Horn Speaker is a simple-to-install outdoor loudspeaker that provides clear,long-range speech for remote speaking in video surveillance applications. In live video monitoring situations,AXIS C3003-E enables an operator to remotely address people and deter unwanted activity. The loudspeaker can also play a pre-recorded audio file when it is manually or automatically triggered in response to an alarm event.
The outdoor-ready AXIS C3003-E is easy to install on walls,ceilings and poles. The loudspeaker has a built-in amplifier and supports Power over Ethernet (PoE). It connects directly to an IP network with one network cable for communication and power. Despite its low power consumption,AXIS C3003-E enables a high sound pressure exceeding 121 dB. Being a standalone unit,AXIS C3003-E can be placed anywhere,enabling a flexible,scalable and cost-effective approach to system design.
The loudspeaker's unique Auto Speaker Test functionality can check that the speaker is in working order by providing audio feedback to the system. The speaker comes with pre-recorded audio files and allows users to upload their own audio.


OPERATING profits at the company that operates the McCabe pharmacy group soared 40pc to €7.59m in the group's last financial year.
Accounts just filed by Behey Ltd to the Companies Office show that the group saw operating profits jump after revenues increased 7pc to €57.9m in the 12 months to the end of January 2013.
The family-owned business, led by MD Sharen McCabe, operates 20 pharmacies across the country with the majority located in Dublin, while the group also runs the Radisson Blu Farnham Estate hotel in Co Cavan.
The figures show that the group recorded a modest pre-tax loss of €74,520 after interest payments of €4.97m and non-cash depreciation and amortisation costs of €2.7m are taken into account. The loss last year compares to a pre-tax loss of €3.4m in fiscal 2012. Numbers employed last year increased by 24 to 454 and the group's staff costs rose from €10.1m to €10.8m.
According to the directors' report on the performance of the pharmacy outlets, "turnover increased due to a good performance from the retail side of the business and increased volumes in the dispensary. Gross margins also improved due to careful purchasing and management of direct costs".
The directors state that the outlook for the pharmacy sector in 2013 and beyond will be extremely challenging.
They point to imminent introduction of generic reference pricing legislation; depressed prescription volume due to rises in the GMS item levy; cuts in the number of medical cards in circulation; and continued private prescription pricing competition.
Other key factors cited include the continued review and reduction of the fees that pharmacies receive from the HSE for dispensing medicines and the escalating costs of maintaining pharmacies to comply with regulations.
On the performance of the Radisson Blu hotel, the directors state: "Farnham continued to perform well and its revenues increased in the year to January 2013. This is being driven by improvements in occupancy levels and the average room rate.
Group bank loans and overdrafts were €72m. Accumulated losses were €47.4m and there was a shareholder deficit of €46.1m. Cash fell from €4.8m to €3.9m last year.
Posted on January 16, 2014, in #ireland, #retail. Bookmark the permalink.	Leave a comment.


text:
NAIC Executive Committee rejects emergency action on capital and surplus relief
On January 27, at a public hearing held in Washington, D.C., the Capital and Surplus Relief Working Group of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) approved a proposal to relax certain capital and surplus requirements for life insurers.1 The Working Group promptly forwarded the proposal to the NAIC Executive Committee for consideration on an "emergency" basis.
On January 29, the NAIC Executive Committee, meeting by teleconference, declined to consider the proposal on such an emergency basis. While not rejecting the proposal outright, NAIC President and New Hampshire Insurance Commissioner Roger Sevigny stated that, "so far the insurance industry is in much better condition than most of the rest of the financial services sector because of strong state solvency regulations." Commissioner Sevigny added, "simply put, the industry has not made a credible case for why we need to make changes on an emergency basis, and why those changes should be limited to the specific proposals made by the industry."
The proposal initially submitted to the NAIC by the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) in November 2008, contained nine specific items that would involve changes to reserving, risk-based capital, reinsurance collateral and accounting requirements. Of these, the NAIC Capital and Surplus Relief Working Group approved six for emergency action. The decision by the Executive Committee against emergency action means that these six items will now wait to be addressed through the NAIC's standard protocol.
One of the items would have accelerated the effective date of certain revisions to variable annuity actuarial guidelines that, while already adopted by the NAIC, are not scheduled to become effective until year-end 2009. These revisions would eliminate a standalone asset adequacy test requirement that may overstate the aggregate liability associated with an insurer's variable annuity contracts and require the insurer to maintain unnecessarily high reserves and risk-based capital. We have no information at this point on whether the NAIC's procedural timeline will allow for any meaningful acceleration.
To view all formatting for this article (eg, tables, footnotes), please access the original here.
Collateral (finance)
Liability (financial accounting)
Bank reserves
National Association of Insurance Commissioners
Virginia's top court strikes down county tax relief program as unconstitutional *
Digital tax bytes - Weekly update *
DOJ sweetens the deal for companies that "come forward, cooperate, and remediate" *
Out of Vogue: Greenwashing litigation on the rise for fashion retailers *
Indiana bill would adopt social media tax *
Checklist Checklist: Anti-bribery and corruption procedures (UK)
How-to guide How-to guide: How to manage your organization's data privacy and security risks (USA) Recently updated


text: "$CLOUD_REBUILD" MysqlCpp 32 dll debug same

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


So much to do, I've borrowed another computer, one renders whilst I work on the other for the bit of rotoscoping I forgot!
I'm at a point now where I am just about ready to import my animated frames and their alpha counterparts into after effects, it's been somewhat of a slog and I'm still not there yet, but, I thought I would quickly just stop and look at what I had done.
wow, that's an impressive time total… but as the title states, and counting…!
After the short test I was so pleased with how it looked I wanted to get a full 30 second scene totally animated, concerns over whether it would work for a longer section were on my mind, considering the amount of time I would need to put into a full test, but I decided to put the time in as I have ideas of overlaying the digital 'cell' animation over separate and different sections of the film, so it should be worth it.
To start with I edited down the section I wanted in premiere pro, this ended up being a 36 second piece from the subway footage. Then I imported that edited section into Photoshop getting it to render every third frame as a separate layer resulting in 300 layers and to each and every layer I undertook the process below.
first of all I added a new layer above the layer I wanted to illustrate, so that I can use my digital cell with and without it's original background, working in a non-destructive process.
Then on this empty layer using the vector pen tool I trace around the area I want to fill with colour, obviously starting with the full outline shape, which will be a lighter colour.
then the inner shadow areas, which are to be filled with a darker colour. I work with a wacom tablet and pen for this quite precise result and like the clean edges it gives you, you have to make definite decisions about where the light and dark will fall on your digital graphic. I have used this style of vector drawing for years, usually in Illustrator to great effect.
Then you select all elements in the path that you want to appear as shadows, make it active in the path tool toolbox and fill it in using your darker colour and the paint bucket tool.
then select the lighter area, make it active, which will switch the areas and fill the outline shape with your lighter colour, occasionally small dart areas didn't fill and would need to be done with a little more accuracy, but it's easy to spot.
Set photoshop up to save as into the same folder, to minimise clicks, and save the 'cell' layer with it's film layer as a single jpeg, bearing in mind the finished number would need to be 3 or 4 digits so start at 001, or 0001, as this will help keep them in the right order when you bring the images into your video editing program to put back together as moving images.
I found on average it was taking me 20 minutes to complete this whole process for 10 frames and over the week I managed to fit in the 10 hours it required to digitally 'cell' animate my 36 seconds of footage.
During the long hours spent over my wacom I came across a piece of music by Bonobo called a beginning, an ending and it had the right mood, so I placed it over the video to give more of a feel to the piece.
After the crit yesterday I wanted to dedicate a morning to see how far I could get with an illustrative styled rotoscoping technique.
This is the still I started with and after setting up all of my shortcuts to minimise clicks, it took me 2 minutes a frame, from start to finish, and here is the result.
I am really pleased with how this looks, love the style and have realised that I have been visualising figurative work with this technique – flat colours/hard outlines – since I was last at college and found great success with painting and drawing, life drawing in particluar.
Interior of a bedroom, it's dark and we can see the moon/streetlights coming in through the thin curtains, a mobile phone starts to ring in the foreground, lighting up the bedside table and we see a shape in the bed.
Roused by the noise, a hand reaches out from the covers ( towards us) and grabs the phone, the figure in the bed puts it to his ear but then turns his back to us and has it on his left ear.
The phone call ends abruptly with our character punching the red end call button (close up on the button on the phone and the screen turning off).
He looks out of the curtains and we see him from behind, his hair is straggly and he rubs his hand through it, and over his face in a pulling down motion, and then flicks up his hood.
As he sits there, he reaches down and – you assume – he pulls on his boots. Then he stands and exits.
We see boots on the stairs in near darkness and they quickly go downstairs, as they exit shot we hold and hear the door slam and then footsteps going away as we are left with the sound of a clock ticking, and starting to chime.
Cut to outside and we see our hooded figure going down a lit alley/street away from us.
so this has changed direction slightly, it still keeps the darkness but is now trying to be more literal in the search. Is the last place they go to find themselves, where a tragic accident happens, in the end do we see a carer talking aside from a pulled back shot, saying " he does this every night" and we realise he is compulsive about his search but to complete his therapy they let him follow the last steps in the hope it aids his mental recovery….
maybe the phone ringing isn't what it appears, perhaps it's an alarm that he sets every night and the reveal could be where we see the phone is not taking a call but he is turning off the alarm, which could be simply called Danny.
It still comes down to why is he looking, all the different alternatives for a search, based on a slight mental problem, an unhingement… perhaps you could see fragments pointing to a hidden story, or that explain more than we hear. The sound could play a major role in hinting at more to the story than just a search, more background.
After taking the photos for my storyboard I needed to get down to writing a script, something I've never attempted before, I work in a very visual way and words don't come easy.
Using my line… just one more place to look Danny… I started to write, going through many iterations I arrived at my first attempt at a script using the line from our soundwalk as my driver for inspiration.
We pull out to a slightly different angle and we find ourselves in the middle of the norwich market, it's night-time and the floor and surfaces are slightly shiny from recent rain. Is our character with someone else, or is that a shadow just a few paces in front of them.
We can see them from behind, a mid shot from the waist up.
They have an urgency to their walk, with purpose, they are cutting straight through the middle row, then they turn at the last minute and we cut to a wider shot of them leaving the market to go up to the forum steps.
They get to just outside the forum and have a moment when you think they are going in, but they hesitate… we can almost see two figures in the darkened reflection of the large glass windows/door…our main character turns round – apparently by themselves again – and head down to sit on the steps… we hear "what are we doing, what are we doing…" muttering under his breath again.
We are now in close up of him on the phone, the light from the screen illuminates the stubble on his chin he's talking rapidly, "so whose side are you on then…?" we see he is angry, we can't hear the response but we see the call gets ended abruptly as he punches the call end button.
Underpass at the top of St Stephens, someone else is with our main character, they look very similar in build and height… one says to the other, "but do you wanna change, do you wanna?" They are walking away from us around the bend and out of shot.
I applied this to my images in a very rough and ready manner, so that when our group met we had something – or the start of something – tangible to discuss….
Feedback from the session was mixed, most liked the images, really evocative but the script is still very much unfinished.
Liam advised me to have a go at writing the script like a story, marking motivation for the dialogue rather than pinpoint script writing.
The other guys also recommended a programme called Celtix – script writing software to format the text into a nice script layout, which I will be looking at.
This module asks us to create an original 1-3 minute piece of moving image.
after my initial storyboard (see last post) I went out on a photographic recce to check out different locations that I had seen and wanted to photograph at night.
The image to the left is the only found image, and it depicts how I see the main character in my story… Hooded, faceless, could be anyone.
The location that I wanted to look at the most was the market, I could see how the camera would follow the character through the space, quite a tight shot, over the shoulder as he moves quickly through the rows.
When I got to the market I was surprised at how bright it is… It looks lovely… but well lit up, the rows seemed vast when empty of the people which is how I normally saw it.
On the way to my next location – the subway – I walked through the churchyard at chapelfield and as I walked past the floodlight my shadow was cast up onto the church wall, it looked great and I added it to my shot list.
The next place was the subway at the top of st stephens, again more lit up than I remember but I like the curved descent into the subway itself with the shiny tiles and the shadows that you get as you walk through the space.
As I travelled down Newmarket Rd, I saw this row of houses with a bright light shining from one and my interest was piqued, as I approached carefully, I didn't want to be staring into someones house, I could see that it was a business, it had many brass plaques either side of the portico.
My last location shot is the visually stunning little road off of Newmarket road where the lamps are old fashioned style all the way down one side with a cobbled floor and high brick walls to either side, I was with a friend and asked him to walk down the lane a small distance and just pause whilst I got my last shot. This shot totally encapsulates the feeling I want for this short film.


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The Stanley Show that closed at Islington last night saw the introduction of very few novelties, but a considerably excellent increase in the standard of the motor cycles, as well as in the main a considerable reduction in price.
The chief novelty of course was the introduction of the Wall Auto-Wheel that is made at Birmingham and aims at enabling any who desire to transformm an ordinary bicycle into a power-driven machine by taking a supplementary wheel and attaching it bya fork to the side of the machine at the back. The price is designed to be exceedingly moderate, so that the invention may be within the range of practically all purses, for the whole accessary, including motor and ignition, will be supplied for the price of a ann ordinary bicycle a few years ago.
The power unit is absolutely independent of the cycle, being attached to it by means of two clamps, one to the offfside back fork and the other to the offside chain stay. The motor is a small two stroke engine fed by a floatless carburettor, the flywheel is contained in the hub of the wheel, and the gearing is on the epicyclic system.
…As one season succeeds another, there are more and more motor features in each Stanley Show, until one imagines that about five years hence when one speaks of a cycle, it will be taken for granted that a motor-driven machine is meant.
As you can see from the extract of the show report, above, the Auto-wheel made its debut in 1909, to great acclaim. Note the comments at the end of the article.
The photo above shows a Wall Autowheel attached to a Dursley Pedersen on the Pioneer Run in the 1950s. Dursley Pedersen advertised one of their machines fitted with a Wall Autowheel in their 1914 catalogue. The article below, from 1982, shows it advertsied in the Wall Autowheel catalogue. The Dursley Pedersen/ Wall Autowheel outfit mentioned in that article is the one featured here.
My friend Derek's father restored this Wall Autowheel and Dursley Pedersen Outfit in the early 1980s. I bought it from him earlier this year. We have recently serviced it, and it's ready to ride.
The frame is nickel plated. All Pedersens were nickeled under their paint; the nickel on this frame appears to be mostly original, with a few parts such as the forks re-nickeled, presumably during its c1980 restoration. It has been fitted with good condition nickel wheels and an Eadie Coaster pack-pedal brake. There is a conventional brake too. The chainwheel is a nickel Chater Lea. The only chrome part on the bike is the pedals. The fitting bar between the Autowheel and the rear stay/ rear stays is stainmless steel. Judging by the screw on caps, the throttle/ advance-retard lever would appear to be an original item.
It has a V5C registration document.
Both the Dursley Pedersen and the Wall Autowheel are in good condition throughout. Both are obviously rare and sought-after items in their own right, the early (ie pre-1914) example of the Wall Autowheel being much harder to find than a Dursley Pedersen.
It is not a very practical combination, as the Dursely Pedersen does not really lend itself to motorisation. Nevertheless, this set-up appeared in both the Autowheel and the Dursely Pedersen catalogues, so this example is therefore of serious historical interest.
For those of you who forgot your school history lessons, HRH Prince George of Battenberg who zipped around on a Wall Autowheel in his twenties (born 1892) was none other than George Mountbatten (he relinquished the above title in 1917). His sister was Princess Alice, (mother of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh) and brother was Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma.


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Q: Wanted: jquery plug-in for gaming-machine-like display of numbers / high score I'm looking for a jquery (or other javascript) plug-in that shows and animates numbers like a high-score on a gaming machine, similar to this:

(source: monevator.com)
Is there anything like that?

A: You could do that so simply by using a transparent PNG as a foreground image to make the shadow gradient on the slot, a large background image applied to each of the slot elements with your "BAR" and "7" and such, then you could animate the css background-position property on the slot elements using jQuery.  There isn't a "slot machine" plugin out there already written that I know of, but it's painfully simple to do with whats already in the jQuery library.

A: No, there is no such plugin. You can always write it yourself.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
NES News News Warp Zone
Two Third-Party Companies Sign On To Bring Games To The NES
July 13, 1986 May 7, 2019 Craig Majaski 0 Comments NES-Gradius, NES-Karate-Champ, NES-Ring King, NES-Tag-Team-Wrestling
In Japan there are tons of companies making games for the Famicom (the Japanese equivalent of the NES). Nintendo has taken a slow and steady approach in the U.S. to keep the quality control of games arriving for its system high. The NES is in the midst of launching nationally right now, but by Christmas there should be a smattering of third-party games available in stores across the country.
The first two approved and licensed third-parties are Data East and Konami. Veteran arcade players may recognize the names, as they are prevalent makers of coin-op games. Data East has announced that it will bring Tag Team Wrestling, Ring King, and Karate Champ to the NES this fall. Konami has several games in the works, but the only one they're ready to announce at this time is Gradius. This is a brand new side-scrolling space combat game. It has sold extremely well in Japan and Konami believes it can succeed here as well.
Tag Team Wrestling
We are hearing that there are many more game publishers lining up to create games for the NES, and Nintendo is eager to sign them on if they have quality software to provide. We will update you as more are announced, and we expect to begin previewing some of the games by September. The lifeblood of any home console is a steady stream of quality games, so it's encouraging to see Nintendo branch out and include more publishers for its system.
Computer Entertainer
Craig Majaski
Craig has been covering the video game industry since 1995. His work has been published across a wide spectrum of media sites. He's currently the Editor-In-Chief of Nintendo Times and contributes to Gaming Age.
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Craig has been covering the video game industry since 1995. His work has been published across a wide spectrum of media sites. He's currently the Editor-In-Chief of Nintendo Times and contributes to Gaming Age.
VIDEO: Warp Zone Podcast: September 1987
September 25, 2017 September 24, 2017 Craig Majaski 0
February 1987 Issue Of Computer Entertainer
February 7, 1987 May 7, 2019 Craig Majaski 0
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January 17, 1987 May 7, 2019 Craig Majaski 0
Latest Warp Zone
Warp Zone is a unique section that aims to recreate what happened 30 years ago today. All articles and reviews will be written as if from that time period. Our aim is to be accurate, so if you find any glaring mistakes let us know via the contact page. Likewise, if you have any classic photos, videos, or knowledge that you think could help, please feel free to get in touch. Thank you!
NES Reviews Warp Zone
Ninja Gaiden III: The Ancient Ship Of Doom Review
August 6, 1991 August 6, 2021 Craig Majaski 0
What should be an exciting conclusion to the trilogy is stunted by a predictable plot, very little innovation, familiar bosses, and uninteresting stages.
Uninvited Review
June 24, 1991 June 24, 2021 Aaron Conwell 0
Power Blade Review
March 11, 1991 May 11, 2021 Aaron Conwell 0
Princess Tomato In The Salad Kingdom Review
February 22, 1991 March 31, 2021 Aaron Conwell 0
Adventure Island II Review
Digger T. Rock: Legend Of The Lost City Review
December 20, 1990 March 21, 2021 Aaron Conwell 0
Déjà Vu Review
Dragon Warrior II Review
Mega Man 3 Review
November 30, 1990 December 1, 2020 Aaron Conwell 0
Yo! Noid Review
November 8, 1990 November 8, 2020 David Buck 0
A Nightmare On Elm Street Review
November 5, 1990 November 5, 2020 Aaron Conwell 0
NES News Warp Zone
Subscribe To Nintendo Power & Get A Free Dragon Warrior Game Pak
Gremlins 2: The New Batch Review
October 30, 1990 October 30, 2020 Aaron Conwell 0
Dr. Mario Review
Classic Concentration Review
October 12, 1990 October 12, 2020 David Buck 1