Logitech's G502 Proteus Core mouse will feature a 12,000 DPI sensor, which brings their sensor technology to the next level. Yes, just when you thought 8200 DPI sensors were insane you may be surprised that other manufacturers such as SteelSeries have already released a mouse with 12,000 DPI. The G502 mouse features a 32-bit ARM processor, will retail for around $80 USD, and it will launch sometime later this month. You can check out more details regarding the Logitech G502 mouse on their official website.
Razer Naga Hex Update Reveals Red Diablo 3 Version of the Mouse?
Looks wise, it's better than their current G line. Wtf is up with the sensor though? Who'll use that thing and why?


text:
Agenda, decisions and minutes
Audit & Governance Committee - Wednesday, 17 November 2021 2.00 pm
Printed decisions PDF 424 KB
Printed minutes PDF 333 KB
Venue: County Hall, Oxford, OX1 1ND
Contact: Lucy Tyrrell, Tel 07741 607834; E-mail: lucy.tyrrell@oxfordshire.gov.uk
Link: video link https://oxon.cc/Audit17112021
Apologies for Absence and Temporary Appointments
Councillor Jane Murphy attended as substitute for Councillor Ted Fenton.
Declaration of Interests - see guidance note
None received.
To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 15 September 2021 and to receive information arising from them.
The minutes of 17 November 2021 were agreed by the Committee as an accurate record of the meeting.
The following actions were noted:
· Item 61/21 – Anita Bradley, Director of Law and Governance advised that the comments regarding underage volunteers will be inserted into the introduction of the Policy on Compliance with the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000.
· 62/21 – noted by the Clerk to take forward.
Steve Jorden, Corporate Director for Commercial Development, Assets and Investment updated the Committee on the restructure of the property team at Oxfordshire County Council which was based on three areas requiring development: lengthy job descriptions and Carillion legacy issues, review of working practices and an opportunity for cost savings by introducing efficient working practices. An external company had been employed to undertake the initial consultation, now in its discovery phase, following consultation with CEDR, staff across both councils and trade unions. Acknowledged that this has been a challenging time for staff with difficult decisions made in terms of the management structure. However, would like to take the opportunity to introduce the new Director of Joint Property Services and advised that the new structure will go live early next year following the final recruitment process.
In response to questions from the Committee, Steve Jorden advised the following:
· There are similarities between the two councils which enables efficiencies for maintenance contracts.
· A key component of the restructure was to build resilience within the team and ensuring business continuity plans are in place across the councils.
· Where valuations of property are required, a number of external agencies are employed to ensure quality valuations take place.
Petitions and Public Address
Currently council meetings are taking place in-person (not virtually) with social distancing measures in the venues. However, members of the public who wish to speak at this meeting can attend the meeting 'virtually' through an online connection. Places at the meeting are very limited due to the requirements of social distancing. While you can ask to attend the meeting in person, you are strongly recommended to attend 'virtually' to minimise the risk of Covid-19 infection.
Please note that in line with current government guidance all attendees are strongly encouraged to take a lateral flow test in advance of the meeting.
Normally requests to speak at this public meeting are required by 9 am on the day preceding the published date of the meeting. However, during the current situation and to facilitate these new arrangements we are asking that requests to speak are submitted by no later than 9 am four working days before the meeting, i.e., 9 am on Thursday 11 November 2021. Requests to speak should be sent to lucy.tyrrell@oxfordshire.gov.uk. You will be contacted by the officer regarding arrangements for speaking.
If you ask to attend in person, the officer will also advise you regarding Covid-19 safety at the meeting. If you are speaking 'virtually', you may submit a written statement of your presentation to ensure that if the technology fails, then your views can still be taken into account. A written copy of your statement can be provided no later than 9 am 2 working days before the meeting. Written submissions should be no longer than 1 A4 sheet.
External Auditors - External Audit Report PDF 529 KB
Representatives from the external auditors, Ernst & Young, will attend to present the following reports:
· Oxfordshire County Council 2020/21 Audit Update Paper
· Oxfordshire Pension Fund Audit Results Report Year Ended 31 March 2021
AG_NOV1721R05 - 2020-21 OPF Audit Results Report Updated as at 05.11.2021 , item 71/21 PDF 3 MB
Maria Grindley and Adrian Balmer of Ernst & Young presented the following report: Oxfordshire County Council 2020/21 Audit Update Paper which followed the previous report to the September Committee, and provided an update on the outstanding areas of work and key focus.
Maria Grindley and Adrian Balmer responded to questions as follows:
· In respect of the Dedicated Schools Grant Unusable Reserve, the council has made changes in line with recommendations and will await the final set of financial statements to ensure this has been carried out.
· The valuation cycle changed from 5 years to 3 years, therefore the values were not previously identified. However, these have now been rectified, with outstanding issues for the previous two periods not valued under that cycle.
The Committee went on to consider the report 'Oxfordshire Pension Fund Audit Results Report year ended 31 March 2021', and Maria Grindley advised that the audit has moved substantially forward and is awaiting sign off alongside the Council audit when it is finalised.
Update on Closure of Accounts 2021/22 PDF 214 KB
Report by the Director of Finance
There are two major pieces of work that are underway currently so that they can be incorporated into the closure of the Council's 2021/22 accounts and provide opening balances on the Balance Sheet as at 1 April 2022. This report provides an update on this.
The Audit and Governance Committee is RECOMMENDED to note the content of the report.
Lorna Baxter, Director of Finance, introduced the report which highlighted the two major pieces of work currently underway so that they can be incorporated into the closure of the Council's 2021/22 accounts and provide opening balances on the Balance Sheet as at 1 April 2022.
Lorna Baxter responded to Members' questions as follows:
· Previous IFRS16 preparatory work ensured that any additional assets have been included, and this includes service contracts such as the Order of St Johns.
· Valuation work is outsourced, and valuers have not yet been appointed. This will incur additional audit fees, of which is not known until the external auditors have given an indication of the additional time taken to complete this work, however this is monitored by the PSAA to ensure is an additional reasonable cost.
In response to a query from Cllr Roz Smith, Lorna Baxter confirmed that she will circulate a response to the Committee on the values of the Council's non-current assets. (ACTION).
RESOLVED to note the content of the report.
External Auditor Appointments PDF 237 KB
Report by the Director of Finance.
The current auditor appointment arrangements cover the period up to and including the audit of the 2022/23 accounts. The Council previously opted into the 'appointing person' national auditor appointment arrangements established by Public Sector Audit Appointments (PSAA) for the period covering the accounts for 2018/19 to 2022/23.
PSAA is now undertaking a procurement for the next appointing period, covering audits for 2023/24 to 2027/28.
The Audit and Governance Committee is RECOMMENDED to recommend to Council to allow Public Sector Audit Appointments (PSAA) to appoint external auditors on behalf of the Council for the period 2023/24 – 2027/28.
AG_NOV1721R07 - External Auditor Appointments Annex 1 , item 73/21 PDF 249 KB
Councillors had before them a report from Lorna Baxter, Director of Finance which outlined the appointment of external auditors as per the national auditor appointment arrangements established by the Public Sector Audit Appointments (PSAA), previously opted into by the Council. The report outlines the next appointing period, covering audits for 2023/24 to 2027/28, and all local government bodies are required to decide on the options to either arrange their own procurement and make the appointment themselves or in conjunction with other bodies, or join and take advantage of the national collective scheme administered by the PSAA.
In response to member's questions, Lorna Baxter advised of the following:
· Audit fees have been reduced significantly over the past five years, impacting on auditor's ability to resource and deliver good quality audits.
· Audit Managers are rotated; however, the external auditor could be successful in successive bids.
· No estimated qualitative management of time savings has been included at this stage of the process.
RESOLVED to recommend to Council to allow Public Sector Audit Appointments (PSAA) to appoint external auditors on behalf of the Council for the period 2023/24 to 2027/28.
Treasury Management Mid-Term Review PDF 705 KB
Report by Director of Finance.
The report sets out the Treasury Management activity undertaken in the first half of the financial year 2021/22 in compliance with the CIPFA Code of Practice. The report includes Debt and Investment activity, Prudential Indicator monitoring and forecast interest receivable and payable for the financial year.
The Audit & Governance Committee is RECOMMENDED to
a) Endorse the report, and
b) recommend Council to endorse the Council's Mid-Term Treasury Management Review 2021/22.
Tim Chapple, Treasury Manager, introduced the report which covered the treasury management activity for the first six months of 2021/22 in compliance with the CIPFA Code of Practice, and highlighted the following:
· The external debt balance remained at £335.38m on 30 September 2021.
· The average daily balance of temporary surplus cash invested in-house in the six months to 30 September 2021 was £472.76m, compared to a budgeted figure of £428.00m. The rate achieved of 0.48% was below the budgeted rate of 0.58% as set in the strategy, however the budget has been exceeded in cash terms due to higher than forecast balances.
· Forecast returns for externally managed funds for the year are in line with the budgeted figures of £3.81m.
· Link Treasury Services were appointed as the Council's Treasury Management advisors on 1 May 2021 for 3 years following a competitive tendering exercise.
Tim Chapple responded to Members' questions as follows:
· Whilst the budgeted rate of in-house return for the period was lower, the budget has still been exceeded in cash terms due to the higher than forecast balances as the Council took advantage of inter local authority rates which were higher as a result of increased PWLB rates, rather than inter-bank rates which are lower
· Interest rates have been impacted during the pandemic and will remain low, however, would expect interest rates to rise by February 2022
· The external funds have a longer investment horizon as their capital value can fluctuate and are therefore higher risk and would not want to divest away from the investment at a time not suited to the Council.
· The CIPFA consultation on Treasury Management and Prudential Codes ended yesterday, of which we responded and will include a section on ESG as part of the credit risk policy.
· There is a need to balance borrowing at a very low rate now whilst there is still a cost of carry, and potential higher future borrowing rate. Any borrowing is likely to be spread out to balance the risk.
The Committee wished to record their thanks to the Treasury Team in maintaining good rates of return in these difficult times.
RESOLVED to:
b) recommend Council to endorse the Council's Mid-Term Treasury Management Review 2021/22
Counter Fraud Update PDF 247 KB
This report presents a summary of activity against the Counter Fraud Plan for 2021/22.
The committee is RECOMMENDED to note the summary of activity against the Counter Fraud Plan for 2021/22.
Sarah Cox, Chief Internal Auditor introduced the report which presented a summary of activity against the County Fraud Plan for 2021/22 which was previously presented to the July 2021 Audit & Governance Committee. The Plan supports the Council's Anti-Fraud and Corruption Strategy by ensuring the Council has in place proportionate and effective resources and controls to prevent and detect fraud as well as investigate those matters that do arise.
Sarah Cox responded to members' questions as follows:
· Whilst some cases take longer than others, the team monitors all activity weekly.
· The Council currently has 30 joint cases with the police and could not comment on how that compares with other authorities, however, will endeavour to obtain this information for the Committee. (ACTION)
· A counter-fraud service is provided for all maintained schools; however this is not offered for non-maintained schools.
In response to an enquiry from Cllr Ian Middleton, Sarah Cox advised that a training session to cover definitions, terminology and more in-depth analysis of current cases will be organised for the Committee. (ACTION)
RESOLVED to note the summary of activity against the Counter Fraud Plan for 2021/22.
Constitution Review PDF 204 KB
In September 2021, the Committee approved the scope for a review of the Constitution and agreed to the appointment of an informal cross-party Working Group and its terms of reference. The purpose of the Working Group is to make recommendations to this Committee on potential changes to the Constitution. The Committee endorsed an outline approach which envisaged the Committee receiving a draft, revised version of the Constitution in March 2022. The purpose of this report is to update the Committee on the commencement of the Working Group to deliver the review.
The committee is RECOMMENDED to note the membership of the Constitution Review Working Group and to receive this update on its establishment.
AG_NOV1721R10 - Constitutional Review Terms of Reference ANNEX , item 76/21 PDF 260 KB
Anita Bradley, Director of Law & Governance and Monitoring Officer introduced the report which updated the Committee on the commencement of the Working Group to deliver the review and confirmed that the first meeting will take place on 24 November 2021. It had been brought to her attention that members wished the Working Group to have named substitutes, and the recommendation will be changed to reflect this.
In response to a question from Cllr Brad Baines, Anita Bradley confirmed that research for best practices would involve comparing against examples from other local authorities, identified by type of Council structure, and the Centre for Governance Public Scrutiny.
RESOLVED to note the membership of the Constitution Review Working Group, including named substitutes from each Group, and to receive this update on its establishment.
Annual Governance Statement 2020/21 Update PDF 210 KB
Report by Director of Law and Governance and Monitoring Officer
On 2 June 2021, this Committee approved the Annual Governance Statement (AGS) for the year 2020/21. Local authorities are required to prepare an AGS to be transparent about their compliance with good governance principles and to give an opinion on the effectiveness of those arrangements. As part of the process, authorities are expected to highlight particular areas of focus for the year following. This report therefore updates the Committee on the three particular areas of focus identified for 2021/22.
The Committee is RECOMMENDED to receive this update on the actions from the Annual Governance Statement 2020/21 and to make any comment upon them.
AG_NOV1721R11 - Annual Governance Statement 2020-21 Action Updates ANNEX , item 77/21 PDF 129 KB
The Committee had before it a report from Anita Bradley, Director of Law & Governance and Monitoring Officer which updated the Committee on the three particular areas of focus identified for 2021/22 in the action plan.
In response to members' concerns regarding lack of involvement all Members in addition to Cabinet Members at the initialisation of procurement contracts, Anita Bradley agreed to take these comments away and respond via email.
Anita Bradley further advised that the Social Value Strategy is still in the officer domain, and will be presented firstly to CEDR, and then through political channels via the Portfolio Holder, however noted the comments made by members that they wished for increased councillor involvement at this stage.
In response to a query from Cllr Judy Roberts, Anita Bradley informed members that a request for a governance review of the organisation does not sit within this Committee, and would have to be presented to Full Council.
RESOLVED to receive this update on the actions from the Annual Governance Statement 2020/21 and to make any comment upon them.
Whistleblowing Policy PDF 310 KB
Report by Director of Law & Governance and Monitoring Officer
A review of the Council's approach to whistleblowing has not occurred for some time. Up to now, the Council has had two whistleblowing policies, one internal, aimed at encouraging whistleblowing from employees, councillors and contractors: and a second policy, for members of the public. In reviewing the Council's approach, it has been important to take stock of best practice guidance and of other authorities' recent approaches. The draft prepared by the Monitoring Officer accords with such best practice. It has also had the benefit of prior consideration by this Committee's Audit Working Group. The fundamental change being recommended at this time, is to create a single whistleblowing policy and to refocus this primarily on employees, councillors, contractors. The Committee is asked to endorse the draft policy.
The committee is RECOMMENDED to:
a) endorse the Whistleblowing Policy proposed by the Monitoring Officer; and in so doing
b) suggest any additional changes to the Monitoring Officer for her consideration.
AG_NOV1721R12 - Whistleblowing Policy - Annex , item 78/21 PDF 497 KB
Anita Bradley, Director of Law & Governance and Monitoring Officer introduced the report which recommends a single Whistleblowing Policy refocusing primarily on employees, councillors and contractors, consistent with the Whistleblowing Commission's Code of Practice.
In response to a comment by Cllr Roz Smith, Anita Bradley confirmed that under the constitution, approval of this policy is taken following consultation with the Leader and Deputy Leader of the Council.
Anita Bradley responded to members' questions as follows:
· The Policy sets out a number of ways to raise concerns, both inside and outside of the organisation and would not act in a punitive manner to those concerns raised appropriately within the policy.
· Legal advice is available to all whistle-blowers should they request it, however, could amend the policy to include a named person of support.
· Anonymous claims are discouraged as they are harder to investigate thoroughly. If matters are referred to the police, it is not always possible for the identity of any whistle-blower not to be made known. However, the independence of the Internal Audit Team seeks to give reassurance to employees coming forward.
· OXLEP have their own whistleblowing policy, as they manage their own financial affairs, and are audited by our Internal Audit Team every two years.
Members wished to include the following additional comments under para a) Annex 3 Whistleblowing protections; to include reference to the Director of Law and Governance or Chief Internal Auditor for further advice regarding whether it is lawful to make a disclosure.
RESOLVED to
b) suggest any additional changes to the Monitoring Officer for her consideration as above.
OFRS Statement of Assurance PDF 109 KB
Report by the Chief Fire Officer.
The Fire and Rescue National Framework for England (the Framework) sets out a requirement for fire and rescue authorities to provide an annual statement of assurance on financial, governance and operational matters and to show how they have due regard to the requirements of the Framework and the expectations set out in authorities' own integrated risk management plans.
To demonstrate this, the Framework requires that each authority must publish an annual statement of assurance. The Statement of Assurance 2020/21 document is intended to meet the obligation to produce this statement through reference to public webpages, existing reports and documents.
The Audit and Governance Committee is RECOMMENDED to approve the report in its entirety.
AG_NOV1721R13 - OFRS Statement of Assurance , item 79/21 PDF 288 KB
Rob MacDougall, Chief Fire Officer introduced the report, prepared following the Department for Communities and Local Government guidance on statements of assurance for fire and rescue authorities in England, and will be subsequently published on the public website with accessible links to relevant supporting information.
Having already been reviewed by the Audit Working Group, no further comments were received from the Committee.
RESOLVED to approve the report in its entirety.
Audit Working Group PDF 216 KB
This report presents the matters considered by the Audit Working Group meeting of 20 October 2021.
The Committee is RECOMMENDED to note the report.
Sarah Cox, Chief Internal Auditor introduced the report which summarised the meeting of the Audit Working Group held on 20 October 2021. She advised that on considering item number 21.30 Risk Management Update, including leadership risk register, the Group requested a more detailed review of LR8 Capital Infrastructure Governance Delivery and for officers to be invited to allow questions from the Group at the next meeting, 15 December 2021.
Anita Bradley, Director of Law & Governance and Monitoring Officer updated the Committee on the provision cycle implementation update paper coming to the 5 January Committee and informed Members about the 'living well at home' procurement, where two small clusters of the tender were subject to a second procurement exercise, which would be included in the report to the January meeting.
RESOLVED to note the report.
Audit & Governance Committee Work Programme 2021/22 PDF 199 KB
To review the Committee's work programme.
The following additions were agreed for the 5 January 2022 meeting:
· Provision Cycle Implementation Update (Anita Bradley/Melissa Sage)
· Constitution Review Update (Anita Bradley)
The following additions were agreed for the 16 March 2022 meeting:
· Constitution Review Proposals (Anita Bradley)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


The perception that only elite schools produce elite leaders needs to die.
The No. 1 company in last year's Fortune 500 was Walmart Inc., with $500 billion in revenue. That would make its chief executive, Douglas McMillon, a pretty important and powerful executive, don't you think? Can you guess where he went to college? The University of Arkansas. He has an MBA, too. From the University of Tulsa.
Fourth was Apple Inc., whose chief executive, Tim Cook, is arguably the most important executive in all of tech. He went to a university better known for football than academics: Auburn.
Of the CEOs of the top 20 companies in last year's Fortune 500, exactly one — Amazon.com Inc.'s Jeff Bezos — went to an Ivy League school (Princeton). And that's not all. We tend to think of the founders of technology companies as having all gone to Stanford University (or dropping out of Harvard University). And yes, many of them did. But Michael Dell went to the University of Texas. Steve Jobs dropped out of Reed College in Portland, Oregon. Marc Andreessen went to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. So did Larry Ellison, though he never graduated.
No, what dismays me is that these parents and their children — just like millions of elite parents and their children up and down the East and West coasts — seem to view getting in a top-ranked school, preferably an Ivy League university, as an absolute key to a successful life. Yes, there are powerful reasons, starting with status anxiety, that underlie the obsession with name-brand schools. And yes, as several high-brow commentators have noted, getting your kid into an elite school is a way for the so-called meritocracy to replicate itself into the next generation.
But the elites can't say that out loud. So the way they justify their obsession is by saying that an education from a top school — not just the Ivies, but the Dukes, the Berkeleys, the Stanfords, the Amhersts — gives their graduates a leg up on life. And perhaps, in a status-obsessed profession like finance, it does. But for the vast majority of us, it won't. And it doesn't. If you don't believe me, just look at that list of CEOs again.
It's the hoariest of cliches, but it's true: what you get out of your education is what you put into it. That is especially true when you enter a university because you are usually on your own for the first time. You can make your own decisions about whether to attend that early morning class or sleep through it. Every school has excellent teachers; if you're motivated, you'll find them. The qualities you exhibit in college — ambition or laziness; attention to detail or sloppiness; success-oriented or content with mediocrity — will likely be the qualities you bring to your life after college. They will matter a lot more than where you went to school when you were 18.
In his book "Where You Go Is Not Who You'll Be," the columnist Frank Bruni describes the obsession with getting into Ivy League schools as "madness." He's right. "A sort of mania has taken hold, and its grip seems to grow tighter and tighter," he adds.
"There is no single juncture, no one crossroads, on which everything hinges," Bruni concludes. I'm sure that in their own lives, those who were arrested Tuesday had enough life experience to understand that. Had they only been able to see that the same would hold true for their children, they would have saved themselves an awful lot of trouble.


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How does audio translate into bits in a computer file?
Question38.91K May 21, 2019 4 Comments
How audio is so unique but when you open an audio file in a hex editor, the audio is comprised of bits. How is that possible?
In: Technology
aseiden commented May 21, 2019
If you think of a digital picture, you essentially have a bunch of tiny, single-color pixels which, when put together, make a pretty good recreation of whatever you take a picture of. The same is true for a digital audio file, it's essentially a ton of tiny "pictures" of the audio signal and when you put them together and play them back, it's a fairly accurate and sometimes exact replica of the original audio, depending on the audio format. You have an analog-to-digital converter which takes in the audio as input, and separates it into millions of tiny pieces of sound, often 44,100 times per second. Each of these tiny pieces is an approximate record of the sound of the audio signal during that fraction of a second. When you play an audio file, the computer stitches all these tiny fragments back into a continuous sound which is played by a speaker.
SYLOH commented May 21, 2019
Sound is wave, you can imagine it as a line on a graph.
Think back to school, you remember that lesson where they drew little rectangles under a curve?
They said that the more rectangles you drew the more closer all the rectangles would match the curve.
Well digital audio does that.
The sounds moves a magnet a tiny bit, they record how far the magnet is pulling.
This forms one box under the sound curve.
Now they just have to make several tens of thousands of boxes for every second of music.
For example, a CD has 44,100 of those boxes for every second.
For the human ear that's close enough to the real curve that we recognize it as sound.
a-WaltzingMatilda commented May 21, 2019
Audio isn't unique. That was your first mistake.
Sound is just a pressure wave in air. Sound only has meaning because you've learnt that certain sounds have a meaning.
If you know what a sine wave looks like, that's basically what sound is. A compression and a rarefaction in air.
That can easily be turned into an AC electrical signal because it's the same thing, except positive and negative voltage.
That can easily be turned into a bunch of ons and offs, 0s and 1s, which is what digital is.
A digital representation of a waveform carves it up into slices. For a CD like others have said, that is 44100 times a second.
Nyquist-Shannon theory states that to recreate a waveform, any waveform, you need to sample it twice. Humans can hear between 20Hz and 20000Hz. Two samples per wavelength therefore would be 40000Hz. Add a bit for posterity and you get 44100Hz.
Nothing unique about it. Simple physics.
newytag commented May 22, 2019
Pretty much every week ELI5 has some question about how this or that can possibly be stored in binary. The answer is the same in every case.
Binary is just a number system. Rather than having 10 digits like we have in our decimal system, binary has 2 digits, which we represent as 0 and 1. Any decimal number you can think of, can be represented in binary. Computers use binary because they're electronic devices, and it's easier for them to understand two different electrical voltage levels (on/off, high/low etc) than it is to try and measure a range of different values with varying voltage. "Bits" and "Bytes" are just word we use for computers working with individual binary digits (eg. an 8-bit number, aka a Byte, is just a binary number with 8 digits (10101101), just like "47" is a 2-digit number). "Bit" is actually shorthand for "Binary digit".
Computer instructions can be represented by numbers. CPUs are built with a list of instructions they can perform, where each instruction is indicated by a number, which then also tells the CPU to expect more numbers as parameters for that instruction. So you could build a CPU where 0110 is the instruction for "Add", which will the add the 2 4-digit numbers that are sent next. So you send 0110 0001 0101 to "Add 1 and 5" and get 0110 (6) as output. x86 is one such standard instruction set for CPUs.
But data can also be represented as numbers. Text can be represented as numbers, with each character being represented by an 8-bit number. This is the ASCII standard, but other standards have been developed (eg. Unicode) so we can use non-English characters and other stuff like Emoji too.
Images can be represented as numbers. At the basic level all you have to do is specify the amount of Red, Green and Blue for each pixel in order from left to right, top to bottom. Add stuff like compression, transparency, metadata etc and that becomes the specification for a file format like JPEG or GIF.
Sound can be represented as numbers. Sound is just a wave of pressure changing over time from high pressure (compression) to low pressure (expansion). Measure the amount of pressure, say, 44100 times per second, and you can recreate the pressure wave. Store those measurements as a list of numbers, and now you have essentially a WAV file. Add compression and metadata, now you have an MP3.
So in answer to your question, sound isn't unique. It can be measured, and represented as numbers (not to an infinite level of detail, but enough to more or less resemble the original) just like most other information can, and anything that can be represented as a set of numbers can be stored in binary on a computer. And as long as you store those numbers in a specific known format, people can write software that can understand it and possibly use the machine's output devices (monitor, speakers, printer etc) to recreate it.


Home » Our Doctors » Danielle L. Alperin, O.D., F.A.A.O.
Dr. Alperin graduated From The Ohio State University College of Optometry. She completed her residency in Cornea, Contact Lens and Refractive Surgery from Southern College of Optometry in Memphis, Tennessee. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications, Arts and Sciences from Michigan State University. Dr. Alperin is a member of the American Optometric Association, Ohio Optometric Association and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry.
Dr. Alperin's past work at University Hospitals/Case Western Reserve University allowed her to partake in multiple clinical research studies and expand her expertise in specialty contact lenses for normal and irregular corneas. Dr. Alperin focuses on general optometry and contact lenses and she is very excited to be working with Dr. Stoler and his team!


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About: Roses come in several colors ( red,yellow, pink, white, orange, purple), each one expressing a certain emotion and used on different occasions. The most used and appreciated is most certainly the red rose. Red roses are a time-honored way to say "I love you." or just to express your appreciation. There's no better way than a bouquet of red roses to express your feelings.
Liked "Red Rose On Black Velvet" ?


text:
Q: Record not showing even the record exist in query using PL SQL I have written a query to fetch a record using unique SAPID and CandidateID but the record is not getting fetched.
But for the same SAPID and candidateId record exist. Here is my query below
SELECT VT.*,VTS.STATUS_NAME
        FROM TBL_VSAT_MST_DETAIL VT
        LEFT JOIN TBL_VSAT_STATUS_MST VTS ON VT.STATUS_ID = VTS.STATUS_ID
        WHERE VT.SAP_ID = 'I-KA-CTPR-ENB-9016'
        AND VT.CANDIDATE_ID = 'C3';

Please suggest where I am wrong
update
SELECT ENB.SAP_ID AS SAP_ID,CAND.CANDIDATEID AS CANDIDATE_ID,ENB.R4G_STATE AS STATE,ENB.SITE_TYPE AS SITETYPE,CAND.SITENAME AS SITENAME,
CAND.STATUS AS CANDIDATESTATUS ,ENB.SITEID AS SITEID,ENB.PRIORITY_SITE AS PRIORITYSITE,ENB.CIRCLE AS CIRCLE,
DECODE (VTS.STATUS_NAME,null, 'Fill Vendor Survey form', VTS.STATUS_NAME) AS VSATSTATUS,
ENB.LATITUDE, ENB.LONGITUDE, VTS.STATUS_ID
FROM R4G_OSP.ENODEB ENB
INNER JOIN R4G_OSP.CANDIDATE CAND ON ENB.SAP_ID = CAND.SAP_ID
LEFT JOIN TBL_VSAT_MST_DETAIL VT ON ENB.SAP_ID = VT.SAP_ID
LEFT JOIN TBL_VSAT_STATUS_MST VTS ON VT.STATUS_ID = VTS.STATUS_ID
WHERE ENB.SCOPE = 'EnodeB-Connected_MW'
AND ENB.SITEBACKHAUL = 'MW'
AND CAND.STATUS = 'Fill Vendor Survey Form'
AND (VT.STATUS_ID IS NULL OR VT.STATUS_ID IN (2,4))
AND ENB.SAP_ID = 'I-KA-CTPR-ENB-9016'
AND CAND.CANDIDATEID = 'C3';

A: I think you already have the query: I derived it from your second query:
SELECT ENB.SAP_ID AS SAP_ID
    ,CAND.CANDIDATEID AS CANDIDATE_ID
     ,VT.*
     ,VTS.STATUS_NAME
FROM R4G_OSP.ENODEB ENB
INNER JOIN R4G_OSP.CANDIDATE CAND ON ENB.SAP_ID = CAND.SAP_ID
LEFT JOIN TBL_VSAT_MST_DETAIL VT ON ENB.SAP_ID = VT.SAP_ID
LEFT JOIN TBL_VSAT_STATUS_MST VTS ON VT.STATUS_ID = VTS.STATUS_ID
WHERE ENB.SCOPE = 'EnodeB-Connected_MW'
    AND ENB.SITEBACKHAUL = 'MW'
    AND CAND.STATUS = 'Fill Vendor Survey Form'
    AND (VT.STATUS_ID IS NULL
        OR VT.STATUS_ID IN (2, 4)
        )
    AND ENB.SAP_ID = 'I-KA-CTPR-ENB-9016'
    AND CAND.CANDIDATEID = 'C3';

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Swimming pool maintenance identified to be a straining assignment that if an individual performs him or herself may miss some of the important repairs that needs to be fixed, thus it is important to consider hiring a pool cleaning service for it to perform regular cleaning and maintenance of the pool. Research conducted in many homes using professional pool cleaners establish, there are benefits associated with professional cleaning when conducted by a professional company on a regular basis; the professional company is able to spot any minor repairs that need attention before they develop to major problems. Pool owners have established, there is a lot of hassle and stress that comes along with attempting to maintain the swimming pool, there is much more to maintenance than removing the debris seen on the pool, by having the professions pool maintain the pool, the owner can have peace of mind knowing the pool is properly cleaned and serviced.
The professional companies allows the pool owner to rest and have fun with the pool instead of being stressed up in maintaining it, with the regular checkups that are done to the pool the professional cleaners are able to do the work within a short time and allow the pool owner to enjoy having fun. Homeowners are keen on their investments, a pool is a significant investment that all owners strive to ensure they are well protected, the professionals ability to identify small faults in the pool allow them to make quick repairs saving the pool owner lots of cash in case the issue was assumed. Additional advantages noted by the pool owners is with the professional cleaners, the pool owner is offered advice on how to maintain the pool and what actions to undertake to ensure the value of the pool is upgraded for the best outlook of the pool.
Professional pool cleaners have established a professional pool checkup is something the pool owners cannot be able to perform on their own, there is need to have the professionals do the inspection with use of their equipment on a regular basis, upon inspection the professionals are able to identify sharp edges, cracks and other hazards in need of repair. In order to guarantee the safety of the pool water users, the professionals are able to keep the pool chemically balanced, when a pool owner decides to keep the water chemical balanced a lot of guesswork is involved, but with a professional pool cleaner a pool is able to maintain its safety and cleanliness. In summary, it is important to explain pool repairs identified to be expensive if not detected early, the professional pool cleaning services noted to provide flexible payment plans to the pool owners to ensure they maintain their pool while they are enjoying the pool.


When a ceiling collapses, it not only causes serious property damage, but can also cause life-threatening injuries to you and your loved ones. If a ceiling has fallen on you or someone you love, it may be due to the negligence of a few parties. Contacting Jordan Law in these circumstances can put you on the road to the financial compensation you rightfully deserve.
Injuries from a ceiling collapse can be severe, causing life-long complications. This includes spinal injuries, nerve injuries, and broken bones. In some cases, you may even sustain a brain injury or other catastrophic injury. There may be additional complications that you may be at risk for in the future. Trauma to the body can lead to or worsen degenerative joint disease and arthritis.
It is challenging to determine who is at fault when a ceiling falls. Conducting a proper and thorough investigation is essential to determine whether the responsible party is the business owner, property owner or manager, repair company, construction company, sub-contractor, manufacturer, or architect.
Ignoring or covering up signs of impending collapse such as water damage, buckling, cracking, and sounds of creaking could have contributed to the accident. Accidents can be avoided if ceilings are properly maintained. Although the negligence may have unintentional, it led to your injury and it puts other people at risk. The negligent party should be held accountable and you need to be compensated.
Insurance companies encourage you to settle quickly because they may know that their client is at fault. They are not looking out for your best interests. The insurance company wants to spend as little money as possible to make accept a settlement and close the case. We know how insurance companies work and will fight to ensure that you are fully compensated for your injuries.
Injuries from a ceiling collapse can result in life-long issues. It's common for ceiling collapse injuries to require surgery and extensive rehabilitation. Medical bills add up quickly. Time off work temporarily or permanently can have crippling financial effects for you and your family. Not being able to work at full capacity can keep you from moving forward in your career and achieving your career goals. Missing work for physical therapy, doctor's visits, and treatments can hurt your chances of promotion.
If you're suffering from injuries resulting from the collapse of a ceiling, you need an attorney who will fight for your rights. You deserve to be fully compensated for all your losses. At Jordan Law, our goal is to protect your rights by maximizing your compensation.
Experts in Colorado personal injury, Jordan Law has a track record of recovering millions of dollars in damages for our clients. Because we work on a contingency fee basis, you pay nothing up front and only owe a fee if we win a judgment or settlement on your behalf.


Today, HRC Foundation and the University of Connecticut released a new report detailing the alarming challenges and barriers facing transgender and gender-expansive youth around the country -- and their perseverance in the face of discrimination and harassment. The findings, which focus on the experiences of transgender and gender-expansive youth both at school and at home, were drawn from the 5,600 transgender and gender-expansive youth who participated in HRC's groundbreaking 2017 LGBTQ Youth Survey.
Less than a quarter of transgender and gender expansive youth feel like they can definitely be themselves at home.
Seventy-two percent of transgender and gender expansive youth report hearing their families make negative comments about LGBTQ people.
Sixty-nine percent of transgender and gender expansive youth have received unwanted sexual comments, jokes and gestures.
Transgender and gender expansive youth are roughly twice as likely to be sexually assaulted or raped because of their actual or perceived identities than their cisgender LGBTQ peers.
Less than a quarter of transgender and gender expansive youth can definitely be themselves at school.
Only 16 percent of transgender and gender expansive youth always feel safe at school.
Forty-two percent of transgender and gender expansive youth have received physical threats due to their LGBTQ identity.
Fifty-one percent of transgender and gender expansive youth never use restrooms at school that align with their gender identity.
The report also outlines steps families, schools and lawmakers can take to support and protect transgender and gender expansive teens, including advocating for inclusive non-discrimination protections for LGBTQ people at the local, state and federal levels, and comprehensive training for school faculty and staff.
In May, HRC released the 2018 LGBTQ Youth Report, which detailed the overall findings of the 2017 LGBTQ Youth Survey and its 12,000 respondents nationwide.
The U.S. lacks reliable data about LGBTQ people, especially about the experiences of transgender youth. In light of this, and in the face of consistent attacks on LGBTQ youth, HRC is ensuring that this data is in the hands of teachers, counselors, coaches, doctors and other youth-serving professionals across the country. These findings will inform a variety of HRC Foundation programs for youth and youth-serving professionals, including the Welcoming Schools program, the All Children-All Families program and the Time to THRIVE conference.
The full report on the experiences of transgender and gender expansive youth can be found here.


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News / Publications / Statement of Intent 2019 - 2029
Statement of Intent 2019 - 2029
Creative New Zealand - Toi Aotearoa,
09 July 2019, New Zealand
The Statement of Intent sets out Creative New Zealand's ten year strategic direction, to achieve a vision of 'dynamic and resilient New Zealand arts, valued in Aotearoa and internationally'. It describes how we create value for New Zealanders through our support for the arts, and what we need to do to increase that value and ensure all New Zealanders – regardless of where they live and who they are – share in those benefits.
https://www.creativenz.govt.nz/about-creative-new-zealand/corporate-documents/statement-of-intent-2019-2029
New Zealand Report presents findings about creative spaces
Te whakanui i te rua tekau mā rima tau – Celebrating 25 years
See all news from New Zealand
Pacific ACORNS 390: The future of policy and public support for arts and culture
Nuevo miembro afiliado: Departamento de Cultura y Turismo de Abu Dhabi
See all news from Pacific
Policy implementation Nuevo Nodo de Economía Naranja potenciará el desarrollo de Cúcuta y Norte de Santander
Development Plan, a pact for culture and creativity
See all news from Policy implementation
Statistics, evaluation and research ACORNS 390: The future of policy and public support for arts and culture
Executive Summary, Counting on the World to Act (2019)
See all news from Statistics, evaluation and research


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Additional Titles
Emord
Mandatory Vaccination is an Assault on Individual Liberty
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HIDDEN FROM VIEW
By Attorney Jonathan Emord
Author of "The Rise of Tyranny" and
"Global Censorship of Health Information" and
"Restore The Republic"
NewsWithViews.com
The Obama Administration may be the most secretive, least transparent in modern time. Its public promises to the contrary have fallen flat and appear Orwellian. The recent revelation by the IRS that it somehow lost a huge quantity of Lois Lerner emails with the White House, Justice Department, Treasury Department, Federal Election Commission, and Democratic members of Congress pre-dating 2011 fails to pass the smell test because it comes from an Administration with a long history of withholding documents, making false statements, and obfuscating in response to investigations of every one of the half dozen prominent Administration scandals.
On June 13, the IRS informed Congress that it could not find emails from Lois Lerner, the former Director of the IRS Tax Exempt Organizations Division, that pre-date 2011 because Lerner's computer allegedly crashed in the summer of that year. In particular, Lerner's emails to key Administration officials and from them have vanished. Those emails are critical to congressional efforts to determine the extent to which other high ranking officials of this Administration were aware of, condoned, or encouraged the IRS targeting of conservative groups.
Aside from whether a forensic computer analyst can still retrieve the emails from IRS computers (and whether computers at the White House, Justice Department, Treasury Department, Federal Election Commission and Democratic members of Congress may be investigated to find the "lost" Lerner emails), the latest announcement of this "loss" is highly suspicious, coming as it does over a year after Congress asked the IRS for the very information.
Increasingly the shenanigans of the Obama Administration remind me of those in the Nixon era, but the Obama Administration scandals are far more numerous, extensive and widespread. During the Watergate investigation, President Nixon's secretary, Rose Mary Woods, became infamous for her statement that she had made a "terrible mistake" while transcribing recordings made secretly in the oval office and Lincoln rooms of the White House. She said that while playing back a tape of recordings made on June 20, 1972, she answered a phone call and contorted her body in such a way as to cause her foot inadvertently to press on the record pedal rather than the stop button. Within the 18 and ½ minutes of deleted content were conversations between President Nixon and his Chief of Staff H. R. Haldeman concerning the arrests made at the Watergate Hotel—potentially damning evidence.
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The present "loss" of years of Lerner emails germane to the congressional investigation of the IRS targeting scandal likewise raises suspicion because those emails likely include revealing information exchanged by Lerner and officials in the Obama White House and Department of Justice. At some point we will likely discover who was responsible for the obliteration of the data and who is aware of some of the content. No doubt we will not know the complete picture for some time after Obama has left the White House and after the issue has greatly receded in the minds of Americans. Nevertheless, it is clear to all who record history with sincerity that the Obama Administration is the most scandal ridden in American history, and this President has shown the least concern or regard for wrong doing in his Administration than any modern president. He condones the scandals by his choice of inaction which, itself, speaks volumes about his own lack of integrity.
For the moment, the loss of such a massive quantity of Lerner email traffic engenders suspicion even greater than that arising from the infamous Rose Mary Woods 18 and ½ minute gap, because this Administration's penchant for scandal, false statement, refusal to comply with subpoenas, and lack of transparency surpasses that of the Nixon Administration.
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© 2014 Jonathan W. Emord - All Rights Reserved
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Jonathan W. Emord is an attorney who practices constitutional and administrative law before the federal courts and agencies. Congressman Ron Paul calls Jonathan "a hero of the health freedom revolution" and says "all freedom-loving Americans are in [his] debt . . . for his courtroom [victories] on behalf of health freedom." He has defeated the FDA in federal court a remarkable eight times, seven on First Amendment grounds, and is the author of Amazon bestsellers The Rise of Tyranny, Global Censorship of Health Information, and Restore the Republic. He is the American Justice columnist for U.S.A. Today Magazine and the host of "Jonathan Emord's Truth Trial" on the GCN Radio Network (visit gcnlive.com and emordtruthtrial.com). For more info visit Emord.com and join the Emord FDA/FTC Law Group on Linkedin.
Website: Emord.com
E-Mail: jemord@emord.com
Increasingly the shenanigans of the Obama Administration remind me of those in the Nixon era, but the Obama Administration scandals are far more numerous, extensive and widespread.


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Stormy Saturn and Some Space Trivia
Move over, Mars, you're not the only act in town that can show folks some extreme weather. The orbiting Cassini spacecraft took this image, released today by NASA, of Saturn's northern latitudes, including an edge of the planet's famed atmospheric hexagon that swirls around its north pole. —Image courtesy NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute The tight, high-resolution...
Move over, Mars, you're not the only act in town that can show folks some extreme weather.
The orbiting Cassini spacecraft took this image, released today by NASA, of Saturn's northern latitudes, including an edge of the planet's famed atmospheric hexagon that swirls around its north pole.
—Image courtesy NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute
The tight, high-resolution shot was captured on August 25 using a wide-angle camera with a spectral filter (no, ghost hunters, it's not what you think) that lets in infrared light.
Taken from about 336,000 miles (541,000 kilometers) above the planet, the shot encompasses 18 miles (29 kilometers) per pixel, which should give viewers some idea of the scale of those swirling storms.
As a gas giant, Saturn is almost all atmosphere, and it's raging winds really book it—hustling the clouds around at up to 1,100 miles (1,770 kilometers) an hour.
For the record, those are *not* the fastest winds in the solar system. That honor goes to Neptune, where breezes can reach 1,600 miles (2,575 kilometers) an hour.
But Saturn does get some pretty neat superlatives, such as being the first planet known to have rings (Uranus and Neptune do, too) and being the only planet with a moon, Titan, known to have its own atmosphere.
In the spirit of space trivia, I won me a nice little graphic that confirms just how much I [heart] space, and I swear I did it with zero Googling:
I was amused to see the factoids that accompanied my award, such as, out of the 11,105 people who have taken this test, I am among the 25.7 percent who ID'd themselves as female.
Since the demographics are voluntary, 3.9 percent of the test takers are "confused," according to the Web site, while the vast majority so far have been men.
Interestingly, 5.6 percent of the space-lovin' women said that they don't believe humans have landed on the moon.
Only 3.7 percent of the men think this, although both genders are beat by the 11.8 percent of people over 60 who think the landing was a hoax. Huh.
Not that this is in any way an accurate survey of true public opinion… but it is kinda thought-provoking.


Why Kenoa Exclusive Beach Spa & Resort: Relax in tranquility at this exclusive Brazilian beachfront resort. Between pristine tropic rainforests and stretches of deserted beach, you will experience stunning nature—horseback riding on the beach, snorkeling through coral reefs or canoeing to an oyster nursey. Delight your senses with gastronomical treats at the Kaamo Restaurante and enriching treatments at the Kenoa Spa. This world-class resort combines luxury and privacy to create an intimate, transcendent stay.
Travel and Transport Exclusive Offer*: Upgrade on arrival, subject to availability; complimentary 50-minute massage for up to two people, per room, once during stay; early check-in/late check-out on arrival and departure date; complimentary Wi-Fi.
Why Ponant Yacht Cruises & Expeditions: Looking to expand your culinary and cultural palette? Board this 12-day food and wine cruise of Australia. From Cairns to Sydney, you'll explore the eastern coast of Australia and take a cooking masterclass with one of Australia's most acclaimed chefs, Guillaume Brahimi—named the 2015 Chef of the Year by GQ Australia. After full days snorkeling in the Great Barrier Reef or uncovering tropical flora at the Brisbane Botanic Gardens, enjoy delicious multi-course degustations with perfect wine pairings.
Travel Design Lounge Exclusive Event: Join us on Tuesday, May 8th, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. for a formal presentation from our partners at Globus as they showcase vacation experiences to Australia and New Zealand. For event inquiries or details, please email us at TDLevents@traveldesignlounge.com or call us for details at 402.548.3280.
Why Riches of the Mekong: From bustling, colorful marketplaces to the exotic fauna of lakeside wetlands, explore the rich cultural heritage of Vietnam and Cambodia on this intimate Mekong River cruise. On shore excursions, you will receive a blessing at a Buddhist monastery, take a tuk tuk ride through Phnom Penh, learn the traditional art of rice paper making and more. On the spacious but intimate AmaDara cruise ship, you'll experience comfort, convenience and luxury during your unforgettable journey.
Travel and Transport Offer*: Fine dining with all meals included during your cruise; multiple dining venues; unlimited wine with every lunch and dinner on board; complimentary house-brand spirits, beer and soft drinks during cruise; bottled water in every stateroom, replenished daily; choice of life-enriching tours and excursions daily with personal headset included; Welcome Dinner and Farewell Cocktail Party & Dinner; all transfers with the purchase of cruise & air package.


If you or your family or friends ever shop online, there is a very easy new way of supporting Estuary League of Friends.
then click on the 'find a cause' link and select Estuary League of Friends.
It really is that simple. If you then shop via the easyfundraising site (buying things from well-known firms like John Lewis or Amazon) we will receive a small donation from the shop you use.
In return, you also receive special offers, so both you and the charity should benefit.


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Conservative activist Jacob Wohl charged with running election robocall scheme
admin October 1, 2020 2 min read
Jacob Wohl, a conservative activist known for his largely bumbling attempts to stage political scandals, has been charged with running a robocalling scheme to spread false election information. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel filed four felony charges today against Wohl and his partner Jack Burkman. They're accused of targeting Detroit residents with calls that discouraged voting, including false claims that mail-in ballots would let health agencies "track people for mandatory vaccines."
Wohl and Burkman allegedly targeted voters in Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Illinois, making a total of around 85,000 calls in August. The calls claimed to come from a group called "Project 1599, a civil rights organization founded by Jack Burkman and Jacob Wohl," and they were aimed at areas with large Black populations, urging them to not "be finessed into giving your private information to the man."
They allegedly made around 85,000 calls
Michigan officials denounced the calls at the time, but they stopped short of confirming that they were made by Wohl and Burkman. The 2020 presidential election has been fraught with concerns about misinformation and voter suppression, especially because many voters could be mailing in their ballots amid the coronavirus pandemic. President Donald Trump, who has retweeted posts by Wohl, has repeatedly and falsely cast doubt on mail-in voting's validity. Wohl himself was suspended from Twitter last year after announcing that he would create fake accounts to interfere with the election.
This is just one of several schemes associated with the pair. During the Democratic presidential primary, Wohl and Burkman appeared to manufacture a sexual assault accusation against candidate Pete Buttigieg. They later held a widely mocked press conference where they falsely claimed Elizabeth Warren had a relationship with an ex-Marine male escort. Wohl was charged last year with securities fraud in California, another state-level felony offense. In a relatively rare instance of successful fakery, he briefly tricked the Washington Post into reporting on a nonexistent FBI raid last month.
Nessel says her office is now arranging for Wohl and Burkman to appear in Michigan court in the "very near future." Two of the felony counts against each man carry up to 5 years in prison, while the other two carry 7-year sentences. "This effort specifically targeted minority voters in an attempt to deter them from voting in the November election," said Nessel. "We're all well aware of the frustrations caused by the millions of nuisance robocalls flooding our cell phones and landlines each day, but this particular message poses grave consequences for our democracy."
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Larte acusmatica è un tipo particolare di musica elettronica, creata per essere ascoltata tramite altoparlanti. Il termine musica acusmatica è stato coniato dal compositore francese Pierre Schaeffer, nel suo libro Traité des Objets Musicaux (1966), e deriva dal termine acusmatico e dallakusmatikoi, la scuola pitagorica i cui discepoli udivano il maestro parlare dietro ad un velo. Nell'arte acusmatica, il velo è una metafora dell'altoparlante.

Caratteristiche

La musica elettroacustica abbraccia l'insieme dei generi musicali che fanno uso dell'elettricità nella concezione e nella realizzazione delle opere. Le opere elettroacustiche su supporto si identificano con le opere dell'arte acusmatica.
L'arte acusmatica raggruppa le musiche concrete o acusmatiche, le creazioni radiofoniche e i radiodrammi, le opere acusmatiche applicate (per teatro, danza, cinema, video...), le installazioni sonore realizzate su supporto audio diffuso su altoparlanti (in cui la concezione visiva non stabilisce un rapporto diretto di causa/effetto con il risultato sonoro ascoltato), una certa frangia di musiche dette elettroniche (techno) derivanti da una realizzazione in studio fissata su supporto e consegnata al solo ascolto. Infine, alcune realizzazioni di poesia sonora come quelle che si avvicinano alla creazione radiofonica.

Le opere che ne risultano sono opere su supporto: esse non si manifestano se non attraverso la lettura del supporto sul quale sono state registrate, fissate in forma definitiva (su dischi flessibili alla fine degli anni quaranta, poi sul nastro magnetico dei magnetofoni e oggi sulla memoria dei calcolatori).

Il musicista acusmatico parte da registrazioni del suono. Se acustiche, esse possono essere realizzate a partire da interventi su diversi strumenti scelti per la loro predisposizione a "suonare" (dei corpi sonori), da universi abitati da eventi caratteristici, da percorsi, da gesti o sequenze appositamente realizzate, e anche da suoni "figurativi" o da interventi su strumenti tradizionali o "esotici". Se sintetiche, le registrazioni possono essere costituite da suoni o da sequenze elettroniche suonate sul sintetizzatore, oppure digitali, risultato della programmazione del computer o di trasformazioni immediate di eventi sonori.

Il compositore classifica le registrazioni accumulate, e opera su di esse delle scelte, una ripartizione, dei tagli, e quindi molteplici trasformazioni in uno studio equipaggiato con numerosi apparecchi prodotti dall'evoluzione tecnologica degli ultimi decenni: montaggio, inversione, anello, trasposizione, campionamento, compressione, gel (freeze), riverberazione, eco, ritardo, filtraggio, missaggio, accumulazione.

È l'aspetto sperimentale di tale procedimento (il famoso "procedimento concreto" in cui la composizione si fonda sull'ascolto diretto del risultato, in un costante andare e tornare dal fare all'ascoltare, a partire da suoni creati o acquisiti e trasformati) connesso a una manipolazione dei suoni "bruti", già "trovati", che spinge Pierre Schaeffer nel 1948 a coniare il termine di musica concreta.
Il quale rinvia in modo sicuramente esplicito a quello di musica "astratta" strumentale, che si concepisce "a tavolino" in maniera "teorica" (al di là di ogni contatto diretto con il materiale e la cui concezione passa per l'astrazione di una codificazione, di un linguaggio: il solfeggio).

In un'andata e ritorno costanti dal fare all'ascoltare, l'artista elabora così progressivamente la sua opera, in un procedimento che comprende sia la volontà di un progetto preliminare di composizione (la scelta di una tematica, di un universo sonoro, di una "grande forma", di un ritaglio), sia la sensibilità, rendendo possibile l'invenzione di una "scrittura" attraverso la gestione dei sincronismi, degli imprevisti, dei contrasti, delle similitudini, delle diffrazioni, delle convergenze.

Infine il compositore esegue la sua opera davanti al pubblico attraverso altoparlanti di differente "colore" e di differente potenza, disseminati nello spazio del concerto, della galleria, del museo, del luogo pubblico, a seconda che egli scelga di comporre per il concerto, per l'installazione sonora o per qualsiasi altra forma di espressione acusmatica.

Tale dispositivo di diffusione (altrimenti detto "orchestra di altoparlanti" o anche acousmonium) è un insieme di casse acustiche distribuite nel luogo del concerto in cui si fa variare l'intensità e il colore di uscita del suono con l'aiuto di un impianto di proiezione (tramite filtri, cavi e amplificatori) per la collocazione nello spazio delle opere interpretate. Motus è attualmente la sola situazione in cui un interprete professionale, Jonathan Prager, è stato nominato, dal 1995, titolare del suo acoumonium.
Si parla metaforicamente di "proiezione del suono".

È dunque necessario elaborare una interpretazione:

Attraverso ciò che si può definire un'interpretazione (scelta della disposizione dell'impianto, della spazializzazione, del gioco tra le intensità e i colori, dei filtraggi) l'artista rende la sua opera accessibile al pubblico, ormai consegnata unicamente al dominio dell'ascolto.

Definizioni
Di seguito qualche definizione e commento del termine acusmatica da parte di diversi autori.

Nel periodo della grande avventura della radiofonia negli anni '50, mentre nascevano le prime "musiche del rumore" e Pierre Schaeffer ne definiva i primi tratti metodologici, lo scrittore e poeta Jérome Peignot dichiara in una trasmissione:

Pierre Schaeffer, nel suo Traité des objets musicaux (1966) riprende il termine acusmatico e lo collega all'"ascolto ridotto":

Per Denis Dufour e Jean-François Minjard l'arte acusmatica è un'arte del suono che produce un'opera fissata e definitiva, su supporto, proposta al solo ascolto: senza ricorrere al visivo e utilizzando tutti i mezzi elettroacustici offerti al compositore dallo studio, quali che siano le tecnologie impiegate. La composizione acusmatica è fondata sull'ascolto. In un'andata e ritorno costanti dal fare all'ascoltare, a partire da suoni creati o acquisiti e trasformati, il compositore costruisce e sistema gli elementi della sua opera in un'invenzione inaudita di scrittura di dettaglio e di articolazione di immagini di suoni tra di loro. I suoni elaborati per se stessi, quindi slegati dal modo in cui sono prodotti, implicano l'abbandono della loro causalità reale a vantaggio di una causalità virtuale, essa stessa generatrice di spazi interni, esterni, indotti, immaginari, metaforici, ecc., le cui giustapposizioni inducono senso.

Per Michel Chion acusmatica si dice della situazione d'ascolto in cui si sente un suono senza vedere le cause dalle quali proviene. Questa parola greca designava al tempo i discepoli di Pitagora, che ascoltavano il loro maestro insegnare da dietro un tendaggio. Pierre Schaeffer, inventore della musica concreta, ha avuto l'idea di riesumare questo vocabolo per caratterizzare la situazione d'ascolto generalizzata dalla radio, dal disco, dall'altoparlante. Nel suo Traité des objets musicaux (1966), egli ha analizzato le conseguenze di tale situazione sulla psicologia dell'ascolto. Dopo di lui, il compositore François Bayle ha pensato di recuperare il termine acusmatica per definire ciò che comunemente si designa come musica elettroacustica. "Musica acusmatica", "concerto acusmatico" sono per lui termini che meglio si addicono alle condizioni di ascolto e di costruzione di tale musica "invisibile", nata dall'altoparlante e in cui il suono registrato è slegato dalla sua causa iniziale.

Storia

Già prima di Schaeffer, diversi sperimentatori hanno esplorato idee che mettevano in gioco il suono o i rumori come materiali rientranti nell'ambito delle esigenze compositive: il pittore e compositore futurista italiano Luigi Russolo, all'inizio del '900 (con i suoi "intonarumori"), il cineasta sperimentale tedesco Walter Ruttmann, il quale utilizza la banda sonora della pellicola cinematografica per produrre un "film senza immagine" (Week-end, 1930), e certamente Edgard Varèse e la sua famosa utopia del "suono organizzato"... Tuttavia nessuno di loro ha avuto l'idea di utilizzare la registrazione (seppure accessibile e in evoluzione dagli anni '10) al fine di creare una vera "arte dei suoni fissati".

Nel 1948 Pierre Schaeffer, animatore di un piccolo gruppo di ricerca all'interno della radio francese, inventa una nuova forma di espressione artistica che lui stesso chiamerà musica concreta.
Creatore e produttore di trasmissioni radiofoniche, in cui "l'ascoltare senza vedere" determina al tempo stesso il mistero e il successo di tale nuovo mezzo di comunicazione, egli si lancia in un'avventura musicale interamente nuova, dopo mesi di sperimentazione e di osservazione dei suoni "fissati", che i processi di registrazione gli consentono di riascoltare a piacimento: i più diversi materiali sonori disponibili all'interno della fonoteca, lasciati dai tecnici o registrati da lui.

Nell'utilizzare più piatti di giradischi, scrive:

Dal suo entusiasmo e dal suo spirito scientifico nascono gli Etudes de bruits (prima opera di musica concreta registrata su disco) diffusi per radio prima di essere dati in concerto. Pierre Henry lo raggiunge al Club d'essai della Radio nel 1949. Insieme compongono Bidule en ut e Symphonie pour un homme seul, opera che farà in seguito il giro del mondo con il balletto di Maurice Béjart.

Nel 1951 il gruppo di Pierre Schaeffer diventa il Gruppo di ricerca di musica concreta della Radiodiffusion-Télévision Française. È riorganizzato nel 1958 sotto il nome di Gruppo di ricerca musicale (GRM). Attualmente diretto da Daniel Teruggi, il GRM nel 1974 fu integrato all'Istituto nazionale dell'audiovisivo.

Da parte sua Pierre Henry prosegue in un cammino solitario e fonda il primo studio privato di musica concreta, Apsome, nel 1960. Da allora il suo percorso è disseminato di concerti che riunisce un pubblico sempre più vasto: Messe pour le temps présent, Le Voyage, L'Apocalypse de Jean, Futuristie, Messe de Liverpool…

Nel corso degli anni cinquanta, numerosi compositori tradizionali o d'avanguardia dell'epoca, da Darius Milhaud a Iannis Xenakis, da Olivier Messiaen a Edgard Varèse, da Henri Sauguet a Pierre Boulez si iniziano alla pratica della musica concreta dopo Pierre Schaeffer. Allo stesso tempo, alcuni compositori all'estero aprono studi di composizione elettronica: Karlheinz Stockhausen presso la WDR di Colonia (Gesang der Jünglinge, 1956), Bruno Maderna, Luciano Berio presso la RAI di Milano (Thema-Omaggio a Joyce, 1958). Negli Stati Uniti l'esperienza dei suoni fissati assume un aspetto più tecnico, con la ricerca di Max Matthews sulla sintesi del suono tramite calcolatore nel laboratorio della Bell Telephone a Murray Hill, ma anche con i tentativi di Otto Luening (Fantasy in space, 1952) e Vladimir Ussachevsky (Incantation, 1953) presso il Columbia-Princeton Music Center di New York… In Francia si crea subito un vero vivaio di compositori esclusivamente acusmatici: François Bayle (Espaces inhabitables, 1967), Pierre Boeswillwald (Sur le chemins de Venise, 1983), Michel Chion (Requiem, 1973), Christian Clozier (Quasars, 1980), Luc Ferrari (Hétérozigote, 1964), Jacques Lejeune (Parages, 1974), Bernard Parmegiani (De natura sonorum, 1975), Jean-Claude Risset (Mutations, 1969), Alain Savouret (L'Arbre et coetera, 1972)…

L'arte acusmatica oggi

Repertorio mondiale

Influenzati e stimolati dall'esempio di Pierre Schaeffer e da quello dei pionieri della musica elettronica, numerosi altri paesi hanno creato i loro studi. Nel 1970 Françoise Barrière e Christian Clozier fondano il GMEB, gruppo di musica sperimentale di Bourges, catalizzatore della musica elettroacustica mondiale e più particolarmente nei paesi dell'Est, nell'Europa del nord, a Cuba e in America del Sud. Grazie all'esistenza di classi di composizione all'interno dei conservatori e delle università, la pratica dell'arte acusmatica conosce un forte sviluppo nei seguenti paesi: Francia (con Marcel Frémiot, Guy Reibel, Denis Dufour, Philippe Mion…), Canada (con Francis Dhomont), Belgio (con Annette Vande Gorne), Gran Bretagna (con Denis Smalley), Austria (con Dieter Kaufmann), Germania (con Hans Tutschku), Brasile (con Jorge Antunes, Rodolfo Caesar), Italia (con Roberto Doati, Agostino di Scipio, Lucio Garau…), ma anche Polonia, Ungheria, Svezia, Norvegia, America del Sud, Stati Uniti, Giappone…

L'acusmatica attrae nuove generazioni di compositori (citiamo Frédéric Acquaviva, Patrick Ascione, Paul Dolden, Ingrid Drese, Jean-Marc Duchenne, Marc Favre, Thomas Gerwin, Bernhard Günter, Jonty Harrison, Tomonari Higaki, Frédéric Kahn, Erik Mikael Karlsson, Patrick Kosk, Francisco López, Lionel Marchetti, Elio Martusciello, Robert Normandeau, Ake Parmerud, Dominique Petitgand, Agnès Poisson, Daniel Teruggi, Christian Zanési…) e decine di compositori che operano in diversi stili, di universi e di procedure a volte fortemente lontane dalle prime idee di Pierre Schaeffer. Utilizzando una tecnologia in perpetua evoluzione, questi creatori si riconoscono sotto differenti denominazioni: a seconda dei periodi, dei luoghi e delle scuole, la musica acusmatica ha avuto come denominazioni anche quella di musica concreta, musica sperimentale, musica elettronica, musica elettroacustica, Tonbandmusik, Elektronische Musik (Germania), Tape music (USA).

Un'esperienza dagli sviluppi molteplici

Il mondo della composizione strumentale contemporanea è il primo a essere influenzato dall'esperienza della musica concreta. Compositori quali Iannis Xenakis, Ivo Malec, François-Bernard Mâche, Philippe Leroux e Denis Dufour sono stati potentemente influenzati nel loro stile e nelle idee musicali da idee di morfologia e di scrittura provenienti dalla loro pratica di studio. Il "solco chiuso" (lanello) si inserisce poco a poco nel vocabolario musicale contemporaneo e non si può negare che i compositori americani minimalisti della scuola di New York (Steve Reich, Phil Glass, Terry Riley, La Monte Young…) siano stati ispirati dapprima nelle loro opere per nastro e poi nelle opere strumentali dall'idea di "anello", ma anche che si siano nutriti di tutta una competenza di studio. La moltiplicazione delle possibilità di intervento e di distanziazione in rapporto al tempo musicale che lo studio offre ha prodotto delle opere singolarmente nuove, e questo cambiamento di paradigma si fa ancora sentire nella produzione attuale.

Negli anni settanta una nuova scuola estetica nasce in Francia, rifacendosi alle ricerche sul suono di Pierre Schaeffer (ma non alla musica acusmatica), la scuola spettrale, che si ispira alla struttura acustica del suono (le sue armoniche, il suo spettro) per sostenere la scelta delle altezze, la definizione della forma e l'orchestrazione dell'opera.

Quanto a Jean-Michel Jarre egli si rifà al suo rapporto con il GRM, dopo aver seguito per qualche mese la classe di Pierre Schaeffer, presso il Conservatorio nazionale superiore di musica di Parigi, alla fine degli anni 60. Troviamo delle simili metamorfosi musicali oltre Reno con Klaus Schulze (ispirato da Karlheinz Stockhausen), i Tangerine Dream e il gruppo Kraftwerk degli inizi. Dalla fine degli anni 60, le sequenze "plananti" e gli effetti sonori di studio, ispirati principalmente dal lavoro di Stockhausen, invadono la produzione pop: i Beatles (Revolution 9), i Pink Floyd (The Dark Side of the Moon), i Can e i più radicali Faust, ma anche i Velvet Underground e i Soft Machine… fino alla più egemonica varietà internazionale attuale (Michael Jackson).

Infine agli inizi degli anni 90 appare la Techno (musica elettronica), di cui i DJ, al tempo stesso animatori, tecnici e adesso musicisti, rivendicano ad alcuni di loro l'eredità di Pierre Schaeffer e di Pierre Henry (definito a 70 anni sulla copertina di una rivista come "il più vecchio DJ del mondo"!).

Quanto alle musiche applicate (commerciali e/o pubblicitarie, d'illustrazione sonora per la televisione, la radio, il teatro o il balletto, le colonne sonore di corto e lungometraggi, le sigle musicali, i jingle e altri gimmick sonori) non sono le ultime ad aver fatto uso dell'acusmatica.

In Italia
In Italia, oltre ad essere presenti in numerose rassegne di musica elettroacustica, le opere acusmatiche sono presentate in due festival dedicati esclusivamente all'arte sonora su supporto: il Festival di interpretazione della musica acusmatica (organizzato dall'associazione Amici della musica di Cagliari) ed il Festival Silence (organizzato dall'associazione M.ar.e a Bari).

Note

Voci correlate
 musica concreta
 musica elettroacustica
 musica contemporanea
 musica elettronica
 acusmatico

Musica elettronica

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


College friends mix disco, roller skating, and the apocalypse in new play "Roller Dynasty"
College friends mix disco, roller skating, and the apocalypse in the new play "Roller Dynasty."
HOLLYWOOD (KABC) -- It all started at Kenyon College in Ohio.
Two young women from Los Angeles did their senior project together - a play called "The How and the Why."
Flash forward a couple of years and Sarah Grace White and Hannah Zipperman are again on stage together... this time in Hollywood. The play? "Roller Dynasty." It's about two young women who work at a roller rink.
"They're faced with the apocalypse which could be literal, could be not," said White. "But essentially what happens is they're locked in the roller rink until they figure out who they are and what they mean to each other and what their friendship really means."
"It's a lot about thinking about is your best friend the right match for you? Are you two sides of the same coin? Is your friendship toxic or is it not?" said Zipperman.
The cast and crew of "Roller Dynasty" is a young one. Only one person involved is over 30.
"It's been really great collaborating with people my age because we are all kind of hungry and eager working together," said Emma Pasarow, the play's director.
The show's stars had to learn how to roller skate for this. And that wasn't easy.
"I've got some bruises," laughed Zipperman.
"Oh yeah, we've got, like, battle wounds for sure," agreed White.
But they also have kind words from theater-goers who've connected to the material.
"I've had a lot of people come up to me after and be like, I really felt like this was me and my best friend in college and this is what I went through," said White.
"Roller Dynasty" runs through Saturday, April 13th, at The Other Space at The Actor's Company in Hollywood.


Hu sails across the ocean to learn English and experience life, but soon finds himself confined to lonely studies in a dreary housing project. Hu tries to end his isolation by painting a third eye on his forehead. His third eye reveals the thoughts of strangers, and Hu descends into the dark heart of the new world.
The Vandals are attacking the city. The Queen doesn't notice. Will Max the butler save the day, save himself, or serve dessert? The town is in peril; the royal family is having tea.
Rain is a hunter in a city made of glass, somewhere inside a forgotten computer game. As long as she can remember she has been stalking panthers made of black glass. Now, only one panther remains, and hunter and prey will meet for the last time.
In a world without a sky, Anna is a mechanical puppet who works in a dark wallpaper factory, but in her dreams, she is a little girl wandering beneath lovely trees. Anna's imaginary world becomes so powerful she sacrifices everything to remain there - and her dreams and reality merge.
Gomi and Nadja are eccentric best friends; Nadja is a surrealist little girl and Gomi is an aesthete talking bear. They love to play occult games. Their taste for the bizarre brings them to a midnight performance at the Mysterious Theater.
Daniel McDaniel sends his sons on a perilous journey to gather salt deep in a mythical desert. The brothers use their wits, a magic song and a crazy horse to overcome a host of astonishing dangers. And yet, after braving dust storms, scorpions, and sand pirates, the biggest surprise awaits them at home.


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Made to order — please allow 3 weeks before shipment. All made to order items are final sale.
The ziggurat-inspired shape of The Granite's porcelain Step Lamp says Memphis, but its pastel, lavender hue speaks of more sophisticated interior trends. As an added bonus, the stepped form can be used as a table lamp or hung as a sconce, meaning it will fit in literally anywhere you choose.
Note: Cord length is 8′, and switch is located at 18″ from the lamp. Location of the switch can be customized. Please specify where you would like the switch in when you check out. For interior use only. Max 60W type A bulb – not included.


text:
Troubled by Jacob Blake shooting, Raptors discuss boycotting playoff series against Celtics
By Adam Himmelsbach Globe Staff,Updated August 25, 2020, 5:43 p.m.
The Raptors said they held a team meeting Tuesday in which they discussed how to take further action.Kim Klement/Associated Press
When the NBA restarted in Orlando in the midst of the surging social justice movement, there was some concern among players that the games could become a distraction and stall the momentum of the initiative. Players have worked to keep the movement in the forefront, from kneeling during the national anthem to dedicating large segments of their media sessions to raising awareness.
But some are unsure if that is enough. In the wake of the shooting of Jacob Blake by police in Wisconsin, Raptors players said they held a team meeting Tuesday in which they discussed how to take further action, including the possibility of boycotting their conference semifinals series against the Celtics.
"We knew coming here or not coming here was not going to stop anything," Toronto guard Fred VanVleet said. "But I think ultimately playing or not playing puts pressure on somebody."
Related: Washburn: Sequestered in bubble, NBA players wondering if they are doing enough to eradicate racism
When asked about the Raptors' comments, Marcus Smart said the Celtics could consider a similar path.
"It's been talked about," he said. "We aren't really sure. We haven't confirmed anything, but it's definitely something in the back of our minds. It's something that — something needs to change. Like I said, it's more important than basketball right now. It's definitely a thought and we have to talk more with each other and try to get on the same page."
Jaylen Brown said the Celtics had not discussed a potential boycott, but he indicated it could be a topic of discussion in the coming days.
Jaylen Brown has been outspoken when it comes to off-court issues.Mike Ehrmann/Associated Press
"Those emotions are real," Brown said. "That is real. Yes, we're athletes. Yes, we're being paid to play a sport that we love. But we are human beings, members of our community. We are fathers, uncles, nephews, brothers, etc. So all those emotions are real and I don't really have a lot to say. I'm just happy by the grace of God that Jacob Blake is still alive, because the police who shot him, that wasn't their intention. They shot him to kill him, and that's a problem in this country. There's a million different ways you could have dissolved that situation and your thought was to kill him. That was the best method."
Blake, who is Black, was shot by police when trying to enter his car after police in Kenosha, Wis., were called about a domestic disturbance. He survived the shooting, but his father said he has been paralyzed below the waist.
Related: 'Are we not human beings?' Jaylen Brown comments on the shooting of Jacob Blake
Brown, who led a peaceful protest in Georgia before the NBA's restart, was visibly upset Tuesday as he spoke about his sadness and frustration following this latest shooting.
"Are we not human beings?" he asked. "Is Jacob Blake not a human being? I don't care if he did something 10 years ago, 10 days ago, or 10 minutes ago. If he served his sentence and he was released back into society, he still deserves to be treated like a human and does not deserve to be shot in the back seven times with the intent to kill. His kids will never unsee that. His family will never unsee that. And frankly, I will never unsee it."
Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals is scheduled for Thursday night.
Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @adamhimmelsbach.