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The Wealth of Strong Families, Communities, and Congregations: Utah as a Case Study in Social Capital
Last year, the Social Capital Project released its Social Capital Index, a tool that measures the health of associational life across the United States. As explained in our earlier report, What We Do Together: The State of Associational Life in America, we define associational life as the "web of social relationships through which we pursue joint endeavors—namely, our families, our communities, our workplaces, and our religious congregations."1 Overall, Utah ranks as the state with the highest social capital among the 50 states and Washington, D.C. Utah's robust associational life is likely connected to the history of many of its people, whose ancestors pioneered to the Salt Lake Valley in the mid-1800s to seek religious freedom and build a united, religious community.
The Index utilizes several categories of variables to measure social capital at the state level: family unity, family interaction, social support, community health, institutional health, collective efficacy, and philanthropic health. 2 Utah ranked number one on three of these categories—family unity, social support, and philanthropic health. It ranked within the top ten on three others—family interaction, collective efficacy, and community health. However, on institutional health it ranked all the way down at number 30.
Social Capital Project Social Capital Index, by State
Source: Social Capital Project, https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/9935863c-a25e-44c5-8295-4ddf1c96e538/figure-1.-new-window.html.
Utah is a unique state in that over half (55 percent) of its population is made up of members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a religious minority in the rest of the United States.3 Thus, an analysis of Utah will by nature require an analysis of the Church. That such a large portion of the state's population belongs to the same religion most certainly contributes to the strong connectedness of Utahns to each other, as does the fact that many share a heritage of pioneer ancestry. The Church's teachings and practices also promote social connectedness on many levels, including in the family as well as in the community.
Family Unity (#1) & Family Interaction (#8)
The Index measured "family unity" using three variables:
- percent of births in the past year to unmarried women;
- percent of adult women who are married;
- percent of children living in a single-parent family.
Utah has the lowest rate of unwed childbearing, the lowest percent of children living in single-parent homes, and the highest percent of married women.
Utah's high overall ranking on family unity is likely due to a few factors. Utah has a relatively highly-educated population, ranking 13th highest on percent of adults 25 years and older with a bachelor's degree or more.4 Highly-educated adults in the United States are far less likely to have children outside of marriage, and they are also more likely to be married.5 Furthermore, Utah's population is largely made up of non-Hispanic whites (78.5 percent), who are less likely to have children outside of marriage compared to blacks and Hispanics.6 Among all races, those with higher education are less likely to have children outside of marriage, but racial differences in unwed births still persist across education levels.7
Utah's rates of unwed childbearing and percent of children in single-parent households are much lower than those of any other state. These differences are also likely due to the large population of Latter-day Saints. Like most religions, Latter-day Saint doctrine teaches that sex and childbearing should take place only within marriage. Their doctrine also teaches that marriage and family relationships are eternal and thus should be built to endure. In a 2014 study using a nationally representative sample of adults ages 18-60, researchers found that Latter-day Saints were by far the least likely among all religious groups and non-religious groups to report having engaged in premarital sex, and also the least likely to agree that "cohabitation is a good idea for couples considering marriage."8 Additionally, a 2018 Pew Research Center report found that Latter-day Saints are the most likely of all religious groups and non-religious groups to be married.9 Furthermore, a 2012 Pew Research Center survey found that Latter-day Saints are far more likely than the general public to say that being a good parent is one of the most important things in life (81 percent of Latter-day Saints, compared to 50 percent of the general public) or that having a good marriage is one of the most important things in life (73 percent of Latter-day Saints, compared to 34 percent of the general public).10
Family Interaction
We measured family interaction using three variables:
- the percent of children who spend four hours or more per weekday watching TV;
- the percent of children who spend four hours or more per weekday on an electronic device (excluding homework);
- the percent of young children who have a family member reading to them every day.
Utah ranks number nine on children's TV watching, meaning the ninth lowest on the percentage of children watching four or more hours of TV per weekday, and number five on children's time spent on electronic devices. But it ranks below average on the percent of young children who have a family member reading to them daily, at number 29.
Children in homes headed by college-educated parents on average spend less time watching TV and on electronic devices, compared to children in non-college-educated homes, potentially explaining part of the reason why Utah ranks relatively low on children's screen time.11 There is also a significant difference in screen time by race, with white children spending much less time watching TV or on computers compared to black and Hispanic children.12 The Church also places emphasis on family interaction, with members encouraged to set aside one night a week for "Family Home Evening," for example.
The fact that Utah ranks below the middle on the percent of young children with an adult family member who reads to them daily is somewhat surprising, considering children in college-educated households are more likely to be read to every day, as are children who are non-Hispanic white.13 Children in married-parent homes are more likely to be read to every day as well, compared to children in single-parent households.14
Social Support (#1)
The Index uses four variables to measure social support: percent of adults who say they get the social support they need, the average number of close friends adults report, the percent of neighbors who say they do favors for each other, and the percent of adults who say they can trust all or most of their neighbors. Utah ranks first on three of these areas, and ranks second on the fourth area, the percent of people who say they get the social support they need.
Utah's strong social support is likely a function of the religious make-up of the state as well. Latter-day Saint congregations (called "wards") are structured geographically, with those living closest to each other generally being members of the same congregation. Thus, Utahns are often not only neighbors with those living around them, but they frequently are fellow congregants with many of their neighbors as well. Thus, it is unsurprising that Utahns have a high level of trust among neighbors and that neighbors are likely to provide favors for each other. Besides the overlapping nature of neighborhoods with wards, the Church also promotes service among ward members by assigning each member of the ward to look after specific individuals or families within their ward.
Philanthropic Health (#1)
Another area where Utah ranks number one is on philanthropic health. This is measured by a single variable: the share of people who say they have made a contribution of $25 or more to a charitable group in the past year.
Utah's philanthropic strength is also likely connected to its large share of Latter-day Saints, as other researchers have noted.15 Members of the Church are asked to contribute a tenth (a tithe) of their annual earnings to the Church. Nearly 80 percent of Latter-day Saints in the United States say they pay a full tithing, according to the Pew Research Center.16 Latter-day Saints are also encouraged to help the poor through fasting once a month and then contributing at least the amount they would have spent on the foregone meals to offerings that fund the Church's welfare programs. The Church's welfare system includes food assistance that is provided through "Bishop's storehouses"—grocery distribution centers for those in need—thrift stores, social services, job training, and so forth.17
Collective Efficacy (#8)
Collective efficacy is measured by the number of violent crimes among every 100,000 people. Utah ranks among the lowest 10 states on violent crime, at number eight, with 215.6 violent crimes per 100,000 people in 2014.
Community Health (#10)
The Social Capital Index's measure of community health includes eight measures:
- percent of adults who have volunteered for a group in the past year;
- percent of adults who have attended a public meeting in the past year;
- percent of adults who have worked with neighbors in the past year to fix or improve something;
- percent of adults who have served on a committee as an officer of a group;
- percent of adults who have attended a meeting in the past year where political issues were discussed;
- percent of adults who took part in a march, rally, protest, or demonstration in the past year;
- membership organizations per 1,000 people;
- number of registered non-religious non-profits, including religious congregations, per 1,000 people.
Utah ranked high or at least above average on some of these factors: it ranked number one (the highest) on percent of adults who had volunteered for a group in the past year, number three on percent of adults who had worked with neighbors to improve or fix something, number four on the percent of adults who had served as an officer on a committee, number 11 on percent of adults who had attended a political meeting in the past year, and number 14 on percent of adults who had attended a public meeting in the past year. Religiosity in general is correlated with many of these elements of community involvement; thus, Utah's religiosity is also likely correlated with its relatively high ranking on several of these areas.18
However, Utah ranked poorly on several other community health factors, particularly on the number of membership organizations per 1,000 people, where they ranked last, as well as on the number of non-religious non-profits plus religious congregations per 1,000 people, where they ranked number 43. The state ranked in the middle (number 26) on the percent who had attended a march, rally, protest, or demonstration in the past year.
Volunteering is more common among those who are married, those who have children, college-educated adults, and non-Hispanic whites, all demographic factors common or relatively common in Utah.19 The state's high level of volunteering is also likely due to the large amount of volunteering that takes place within the Church. The Church functions entirely with a lay ministry, and most active Latter-day Saints volunteer in their wards. A 2012 University of Pennsylvania study of about 2,700 active Latter-day Saints found that they report volunteering an average of 240 hours per year.20 This is compared to an average of 52 hours annually among active volunteers in the United States.21
Surprisingly, Utah ranked relatively low in terms of having a small number of membership organizations as well as a small total number of (combined) non-religious non-profits plus religious congregations. This might also be a byproduct of the state's large population of Latter-day Saints. Other membership organizations or non-profits outside of the Church may not be as necessary because so much of social, charitable, and community life happens within the Church. Fewer membership organizations and non-profits may simply reflect the centrality of the Church for many Utahns, rather than their lack of associational life. However, it could also mean that those inside the Church are not connecting with those outside of the Church. For example, the Pew Research Center found that nearly three-quarters of Latter-day Saints in Utah say that all or most of their close friends are also Latter-day Saints.22
However, it is also possible that the poor performance of Utah on these measures reflect bad data. The County Business Patterns data on which the membership organization figures are based implausibly suggest that Utah ranks lowest in the nation in terms of religious membership organizations. For example, the data indicate that Utah has only 196 religious establishments across Salt Lake, Utah, and Davis counties. However, these counties have 414 Latter-day Saint "stakes" (a stake consists of multiple wards) combined.23 The reason for the discrepancy may be because organizations are only counted if they have paid employees, and because Latter-day Saint congregations are operated solely by volunteers, they would not be counted.
Institutional Health (#30)
Utah ranks below average on institutional health at number 30. Institutional health is measured by five factors:
- voter participation in the 2012 and 2016 elections;
- mail-back response rates for the 2010 census;
- percent of adults who have confidence in corporations to do what's right;
- percent of adults who have confidence in the media to do what's right;
- percent of adults who have confidence in public schools to do what's right.
While Utah scored high on confidence in corporations (ranking third), and ranked relatively high on the Census mail-back rate (at number 15), the state scored low on voter participation (at number 38), and scored the absolute lowest of all states and Washington, D.C. on confidence in the media (at number 51). Utahns' confidence in public schools ranked roughly in the middle (at number 23).
It is somewhat surprising that Utah has such low voter turnout, given that in the 2012 election Mitt Romney, a fellow Latter-day Saint, was the Republican presidential candidate. Furthermore, Latter-day Saints are encouraged to vote by church leaders at the highest level.24 However, Utahns might be less motivated to vote given the state's political homogeneity— it has nearly the largest Republican voter demographic in the nation—and thus many political races are non-competitive.25 The state's strong distrust in the media may also be linked to Utah's large Republican population, as Republicans are far less likely to trust the media compared to Democrats.26 We would like to have had state-level measures of confidence in local institutions, where Utah might exhibit more confidence than other states.
Overall, Utah is a state that is rich in social capital. Families are strong, individuals are socially connected and trust their neighbors, charitable contributions are high, violent crime is low, and people are volunteering in their communities and helping their neighbors. Its thriving associational life appears to be embedded into the culture of its people, a culture that is the lasting legacy of the original Latter-day Saint pioneers who settled the state back in the nineteenth century.
1 Social Capital Project, Joint Economic Committee, "What We Do Together: The State of Associational Life in America," May 15, 2017, https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/socialcapitalproject?ID=1F27B7E7-6538-4A2D-8A77-538A47558C87.
2 The Index also measures social capital by county, using a smaller subset of variables.
3 Pew Research Center, Religious Landscape Study, "Mormons," http://www.pewforum.org/religious-landscape-study/religious-tradition/mormon/, accessed January 29, 2019.
4 U.S. Census Bureau, American Fact Finder, "Educational Attainment, 2017 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates," Table S1501, https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/nav/jsf/pages/searchresults.xhtml?refresh=t , accessed February 4, 2019.
5 Social Capital Project, Joint Economic Committee, "Rising Unwed Pregnancy and Childbearing across Educational and Racial Groups," February 14, 2018, https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/tagged?id=E135079C-D69D-4905-840F-48367F80BF38; Pew Research Center, "As U.S. marriage rate hovers at 50%, educational gap in marital status widens," September 14, 2017, http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/09/14/as-u-s-marriage-rate-hovers-at-50-education-gap-in-marital-status-widens/, accessed January 29, 2019.
6 U.S. Census Bureau, Quick Facts, "Utah," https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/ut, accessed January 29, 2019; Social Capital Project, Joint Economic Committee, "Rising Unwed Pregnancy and Childbearing across Educational and Racial Groups."
7 Elizabeth Wildsmith, Jennifer Manlove, and Elizabeth Cook, "Dramatic increase in the proportion of births outside of marriage in the United States from 1990 to 2016," Child Trends, August 8, 2018, https://www.childtrends.org/publications/dramatic-increase-in-percentage-of-births-outside-marriage-among-whites-hispanics-and-women-with-higher-education-levels, accessed February 12, 2019.
8 The Austin Institute for the Study of Family and Culture, Relationships in America Survey, 2014, "Premarital sex by religious affiliation," Figure 12.3, http://relationshipsinamerica.com/relationships-and-sex/how-common-is-premarital-sex, accessed January 29, 2019; Ibid. "Cohabitation is a good idea for couples considering marriage," Figure 21.1, http://relationshipsinamerica.com/family-attitudes/is-cohabitation-a-good-idea-for-couples-considering-marriage, accessed January 29, 2019.
9 Pew Research Center, "Share of married adults varies widely across U.S. religious groups," March 19, 2018, http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/03/19/share-of-married-adults-varies-widely-across-u-s-religious-groups/, accessed January 29, 2019.
10 Pew Research Center, Mormons in America–Certain in Their Beliefs, Uncertain of Their Place in Society, "Life Goals Among Mormons and the General Public," January 12, 2012, http://www.pewforum.org/2012/01/12/mormons-in-america-family-life/.
11 Victoria Rideout, The Common Sense census: Media use by kids age zero to eight, (San Francisco: Common Sense Media, 2017), https://www.commonsensemedia.org/sites/default/files/uploads/research/csm_zerotoeight_fullreport_release_2.pdf, accessed January 29, 2019.
12 Northwestern University, School of Communication, Center on Media and Human Development, "Children, Media, and Race: Media Use Among White, Black, Hispanic, and Asian American Children," June 2011, http://cmhd.northwestern.edu/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/SOCconfReportSingleFinal-1.pdf, accessed January 29, 2019.
13 Ibid.
14 Data Resource Center for Child & Adolescent Health, http://childhealthdata.org/browse/survey/results?q=5535&r=1, accessed January 31, 2019.
15 Philanthropy Roundtable, The Almanac of American Philanthropy, "Who Gives Most to Charity?", https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/almanac/statistics/who-gives, accessed January 29, 2019.
16 Pew Research Center, Mormons in America–Certain in Their Beliefs, Uncertain of Their Place in Society, "Tithing," January 12, 2012, http://www.pewforum.org/2012/01/12/mormons-in-america-beliefs-and-practices/, accessed January 29, 2019.
17 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, "Welfare," https://www.lds.org/topics/welfare?lang=eng&old=true, accessed January 29, 2019.
18 Robert Putnam, "American Grace," Lecture, Tanner Lectures on Human Values, Princeton University, October 27-28, 2010, https://tannerlectures.utah.edu/_documents/a-to-z/p/Putnam_10.pdf, accessed January 29, 2019.
19 U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, "Volunteering in the United States, 2015," February 25, 2016, https://www.bls.gov/news.release/volun.toc.htm, accessed January 30, 2019; See also: Social Capital Project, Joint Economic Committee, "Volunteering in America," September 12, 2017, https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/socialcapitalproject?ID=5F05F45C-B94A-446E-873D-7AF645FD9174.
20 Van Evans, Ram Cnaan, and Daniel W. Curtis, "Volunteering Among Latter-Day Saints," Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 52, no. 4 (2013): 827-841.
21 U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, "Volunteering in the United States, 2015."
22 Pew Research Center, Mormons in America–Certain in Their Beliefs, Uncertain of Their Place in Society, "Mormon Friendship Networks," January 12, 2012, http://www.pewforum.org/2012/01/12/mormons-in-america-mormon-moment/, accessed January 31, 2019.
23 Temples of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, http://ldschurchtemples.org/statistics/units/united-states/utah/, accessed February 12, 2019. The total number of stakes was calculated by adding the number of stakes and districts for the following temple districts: Bountiful, Draper, Jordan River, Mount Timpanogos, Oquirrh Mountain, Payson, Provo City Center, Provo, and Salt Lake.
24 Newsroom, "First Presidency 2016 Letter Encouraging Political Participation, Voting in US," October 5, 2016, https://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/first-presidency-2016-letter-political-participation, accessed January 30, 2019.
25 Pew Research Center, Religious Landscape Study, "Party affiliation by state," http://www.pewforum.org/religious-landscape-study/compare/party-affiliation/by/state/, accessed January 30, 2019; Utah Foundation, "Checking the Box: The Latest on How Utahns Vote," October 17, 2017, http://www.utahfoundation.org/reports/checking-box-latest-utahns-vote/, January 30, 2019.
26 Andrew Dugan and Zac Auter, "Republicans', Democrats' Views of Media Accuracy Diverge," Gallup, August 25, 2017, https://news.gallup.com/poll/216320/republicans-democrats-views-media-accuracy-diverge.aspx, accessed January 30, 2019.
Supplemental Data for Social Capital Index
The Geography of Social Capital in America
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I have always been obsessed with Lush. Since it came into malls way back when I was a young teen, I always loved their products. Lately, as the poor university student I am, I haven't really been able to afford them. Lush is amazing, perfect for sensitive skin, for ethical sourcing and production, and unlike stuff in Bath and Body Works, it actually smells good. They're expensive, but worth it in my opinion. At least every once in awhile. And a small note: I am allergic to coconut, so none of these products will have coconut in them.
This one is by far my favorite product for Lush. This sweet smelling lotion is made with cocoa butter, olive oil, and shea butter. They have, out of all of their ingredients, five safe synthetic ingredients. If you go to their website, they have explanations of the ingredients both natural and synthetic. The best part though? They donate 100 percent to charities around the world to help them. So you can feel good inside and out with this product. This product was amazing for my skin. It feels soft, and looks healthy. I use it for my whole body, except for my face, and my skin has literally never been healthier. It sells for almost $8 for the small tub and almost $30 for the big one. It lasts a long time, because with this lotion, a little goes a long way.
This shower jelly has been my go-to since Lush began. It smells amazing, and leaves my skin feeling happy and refreshed. The blue color is always a favorite of mine, and the jelly texture is fun to play with (yes play) in the shower. This product only has four synthetic ingredients in it, while the rest are natural. It is mostly citrus, which leaves your skin vibrant and often helps with scar tissue healing. It is almost $9 for the small tub and almost $16 for the large tub. This product can last awhile as well, as long as you use it with a loofah or other scrub.
Sadly, this classic bath bomb isn't sold in stores anymore, but you can still purchase it online. I've tried many of their bath bombs, but this one is my favorite. It only has five synthetic ingredients in it, and the rest are completely natural. It makes your bath look pretty and blue, it smells like citrus and lavender. It's good for after a long day at work, or for those who have periods, a long soak to ease cramps. It's warm and leaves your skin soft and exfoliated. They sell online for $7 a bomb. It's a nice way to treat yourself after a long day. Close your eyes, listen to some music, and pretend you're on the beach.
You'll want to eat it right off your face, trust me. This product is available only in stores, as it needs to be kept cool and in the fridge. This product only has one synthetic ingredient, and that's Fragrance. Everything else is natural, including chocolate, vanilla, and mint. This mask is made really for oily skin, it cleanses your pores pretty deeply, gets rid of inflammation and redness, and cools down the skin. It's $10 a tub, and unfortunately won't last too long, as it will go bad because of its natural ingredients.
Not often do I personally use fragrance, so when this was given to me as a gift I was surprised. Pleasantly surprised, of course. This smells amazing. One small spritz around your neck is perfect. It's expensive, running at $40 for a one ounce bottle, but it can really last you forever if you plan it right. It only has four synthetic ingredients. My father, who is very sensitive to smells and his nose will stuff up at the slightest sent, can handle this perfume, and its mild sent is just enough to add to your day to smell nice and sweet.
There are so many Lush items and they all have their uses and amazing ingredients. Cruelty free, natural, ethically sourced, well paid employees, and amazing products! Treat yourself every once in awhile and enjoy it, they may be expensive, but we all deserve something fun every once in awhile.
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Made entirely from digital synths instead of his previous external synth based production, the Abstraction EP sees Rizzle leaving the vintage samplers and offboard kit to one side, to focus on sound creation and digital manipulation – challenging himself to build entire tracks within the DAW.
From the creeping, introspective sound of Serenity to the rugged growl of Palisade this EP has something for everyone. Stand out track The Lie Machine makes great use of vocal processing and the acidic synths line of Memoirs completes this fantastic return to Dispatch.


Like PAHs, these minerals -- mainly iron compounds called magnetite and pyrrhotite -- can come from inorganic sources.
Traces of arsenopyrite and pyrrhotite have also been recognised.
This horizon generally contains from 5 to 25% sulphides consisting mainly of pyrite and pyrrhotite.
Sphalerite, chalcopyrite and galena occur in varying amounts with pyrrhotite, pyrite and arsenopyrite.


Is this Manchester United's greatest ever away shirt?
Up there with the best on show.
Where are Paul Pogba's fellow Manchester United youth team stars now?
Between 2009 and 2012, the France superstar was the club's most promising young prospect, and helped the young Red Devils to the 2011 FA Youth Cup.
Manchester United fans are rejoicing as their prodigal son, Paul Pogba, returns to the club he left four years ago. Pogba signed for United on Monday evening for a world-record £89million, having developed into one of the world's finest footballers. Although he turned 23 in March, Pogba has won five Serie A titles, two Coppa Italia trophies and two Supercoppa Italia wins.


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Leticia Salinas
March 28, 2017 January 9, 2020
Since 2017, Leticia Salinas has served as Associate Superintendent for Educational Services in Newark Unified School District. She brings over two decades of experience as a teacher, lecturer, principal, supervisor of K-12 schools, human resources leader, and English Language Learner program expert. As Associate Superintendent for Educational Services, Ms. Salinas oversees Special Education, Pupil Services, Technology, East Bay Induction Consortium, curriculum and instruction, assessment, textbooks, school supervision, enrollment, student placement, parent engagement, and behavioral/mental health services. In her role, she supports the integration of standards, standards-based curriculum, research-based instruction, professional development and accountability. She is also responsible for auxiliary services including research, categorical compliance, special projects, and the District English Learner Program Advisory Committee (DELAC). Prior to joining NUSD, Ms. Salinas served as Assistant Superintendent, Human Resources in Hayward Unified School District and as Assistant Superintendent, Elementary LEAD with San Francisco Unified School District. Ms. Salinas holds a Bachelor's of Arts in English, with a minor in Spanish literature from the University of California, Berkeley. In addition to several teaching credentials, she also earned a Masters of Arts degree in English from California State University, Hayward. As a leader in her field, Ms. Salinas has completed executive programs at Stanford University and Harvard University.
On December 19th 2019, the Newark Unified School District Board of Education appointed Ms. Leticia Salinas as the Acting Superintendent. Effective December 19, 2019 assumes all responsibilities of the Office of the Superintendent. Ms. Salinas currently serves as the Associate Superintendent of Educational Services and will ensure we have a smooth transition and that our district continues to build on our successes.
When Superintendent Sanchez announced his resignation we worked together so there would be continuity of district work and support for our school district. We appreciate that Mr. Sanchez proposed the idea to support capital improvement projects for the district so that between now through June 30, 2020, he will lead projects that the Newark community has deemed urgent and needed for the safety of our schools.
Donna Hanifin
Charlene Aquino

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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This is the Board of The Royal Norwegian Society for Development. The Board consists of five members. In addition, the Board's 1st Deputy and the Chairman of the Board of Representatives attend to the meetings.
Eli-Grete Høyvik
Eli-Grete Høyvik is the manager and owner of Interplan, Balhom AS and Ciderhuset, she is also an university lecturer. She was elected for the Board of Directors as Vice Chairman in 2015 and as Chairman in 2016.
Elisabeth Grændsen
Deputy Chairman of the Board
Elisabeth Grændsen is the economical and administrative manager of the foundation of Norwegian Folkemuseum. She was chosen as a Member of the Board of Directors in 2015 and Deputy Chairman from 2016.
Gunn Jorunn Sørum
1st Deputy to the Board
Gunn Jorunn Sørum works in Norsk Landbrukssamvirke (the Norwegian Agricultural Cooperative) as project manager in Landbruk Arena (Agricultural Arena). She was elected as 1st deputy to the board in 2018.
Lars Fredrik Stuve
Representative to the Board
Ragnhild Bjelland-Hanley
Employee Representative to the Board
Steinar Dvergsdal
Chairman of the Board of Representatives
Steinar Dvergsdal is engaged in diary production and several property companies. He was elected as Chairman of the Board of Representatives in 2015.
Trond Rafoss


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Get Connected. Get Help. Dial 211
We're here for you, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
One of United Way of Lancaster County's signature programs, Pennsylvania 211 East (formerly known as LINC), has more than 40 years of experience providing information and referrals for a broad range of services including child care, after-school programs, food banks, elder care, basic needs, health services and more. In 2011, Pennsylvania 211 East was awarded a contract by the Pennsylvania 211 Collaborative to become the Call Center for seven counties in eastern Pennsylvania due to our record of professional service in Lancaster County.
Currently services are offered to residents of Berks, Carbon, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Northampton, and Schuylkill Counties.
Our services in addition to traditional information and referral have been expanded to include housing and homelessness intake screenings for 35 counties across Pennsylvania.
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PA 211 East Quarterly Report – January 2021-March 2021
PA 211 East Monthly Report – April 2021
PA 211 East Monthly Report – May 2021
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PA 211 East Monthly Report – September 2021
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For individual county reports, please click on the respective county to view them
PA 211 East has been fielding many inquiries for information/resources from those affected by the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic. Please know that 211 is still available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Reach out to us the following methods:
Phone: 211 or 855-567-5341
Text: Your zip code to 898211
Database: Search for resources by visiting www.pa211.org/get-help
Need Help? Call 211
Pennsylvania 211 East is a free, confidential, non-emergency, comprehensive information and referral service that connects Berks, Carbon, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Northampton, and Schuylkill county residents with the health and human services they need.
You can reach us by calling 211 or 855-567-5341.
Connect with 211
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é um jogo eletrônico de RPG desenvolvido pela Monolith Soft e publicado pela Namco. É o primeiro título da série Xenosaga, parte da metassérie Xeno, e foi lançado exclusivamente para PlayStation 2 em 2002 no Japão e no ano seguinte na América do Norte. A jogabilidade contém exploração de ambientes através de uma narrativa linear, enquanto os combates utilizam um sistema de turnos com os personagens lutando tanto a pé quanto pilotando um mecha chamado de A.G.W.S..

A história se passa em um futuro em que a humanidade deixou a Terra, seguindo Shion Uzuki, uma funcionária das Indústrias Vector; e também KOS-MOS, uma androide de batalha projetada para enfrentar os alienígenas hostis gnosis. Uzuki e KOS-MOS são puxadas para dentro da luta entre a Federação da Galáxia e a Organização U-TIC após terem fugido de um ataque gnosis. Com a ajuda de outros personagens, as duas enfrentam o mistério sobre as motivações da U-TIC e dos planos do imortal Albedo Piazzolla.

O desenvolvimento de Episode I começou em 2000 sob o codinome "Projeto X" logo depois da fundação da Monolith Soft. O título tinha a intenção de ser um sucessor espiritual de Xenogears, tendo a participação de vários membros da equipe original como o diretor e roteirista Tetsuya Takahashi, a roteirista Kaori Tanaka, desenhista de personagens Kunihiko Tanaka e o compositor Yasunori Mitsuda. O jogo foi bem recebido pela crítica, vendendo mais de um milhão de cópias. Uma sequência foi lançada em 2004 e um terceiro título em 2006. Episode I recebeu uma adaptação em anime na televisão em 2005.

Jogabilidade

Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht é um RPG eletrônico; o jogador controla um grupo de personagens que se expande no decorrer da trama, navegando-os por uma variedade de ambientes conectados com a progressão da narrativa. Os segmentos de jogabilidade são separados por sequências de história, que são contadas por meio de cutscenes tradicionais. O grupo pode coletar diversos itens enquanto exploram os ambientes, alguns dos quais podem ser usados na jogabilidade para melhorar características dos personagens ou restaurar a vida. Uma base de dados é desbloqueada no decorrer do jogo, documentando os eventos da história e explicando as terminologias. O jogador pode acessar vários sistemas através de minijogos ativados pelo console portátil de Shion Uzuki, enquanto um sistema de emails permite que os jogadores tomem decisões bem humorados e jocosas que têm pouco impacto no enredo principal. O console também pode ser utilizado para acessar áreas já percorridas; isto dá acesso a missões paralelas separadas da história principal.

Os inimigos ficam visíveis nos ambientes durante a navegação, com um confronto sendo opcional. Caso o jogador decida entrar em batalha, alguns elementos ambientais como objetos inflamáveis podem ser usados a fim de alterar as estatísticas dos oponentes e dar ao jogador uma vantagem. O grupo de três personagens do jogador e o grupo inimigo são dispostos em uma arena de combate quando a batalha começa. O combate ocorre através de um sistema de rodadas. Cada personagem tem acesso a ataques corpo a corpo e à distância, podendo também utilizar itens que afetam o próprio grupo ou os inimigos. Os ataques do grupo do jogador são determinados por combinações de botões, com combinações diferentes acionando diferentes sequências de ataque que podem ter efeitos secundários nos personagens companheiros ou nos oponentes. Combinações de ataque podem ser customizadas pelo jogador entre as batalhas.

Cada ataque usa Pontos de Ação, com os pontos restantes ao final de cada rodada podendo serem usados na próxima. Movimentos especiais para cada personagem são desbloqueados ao acumular Pontos de Ação no decorrer de várias rodadas. Um personagem pode realizar uma ação exclusiva quando o mínimo de três Pontos de Ação estão disponíveis, infligindo grandes danos contra o oponente. Ataques mais poderosos podem ser realizados com uma quantidade maior de pontos. Além disso, os personagens podem fazer movimentos de Éter: ataques poderosos e ações de suporte que usam seus Pontos de Éter. Tanto o jogador quanto alguns inimigos possuem medidores de "impulso", que quando cheio permite que um personagem realize uma ação a mais ao mesmo tempo que tira a vez de um oponente na rodada.

O grupo tem acesso a mechas chamados A.G.W.S., que podem ser equipados ao abrir mão de uma rodada. Esses possuem movimentos próprios e ataques mais poderosos, porém mantém os danos sofridos de uma batalha para outra. O grupo é recompensado ao final dos confrontos com dinheiro que pode ser usado para comprar itens e acessórios. Os personagens também recebem pontos de experiência que aumento seus níveis, além de uma variedade de pontos de habilidade. Estes são divididos em Pontos de Éter a fim de melhorar as habilidades relacionadas com éter, junto com Pontos de Habilidade e Pontos de Tecnologia. Os primeiros são usados para ativar efeitos passivos ligados a acessórios, enquanto os segundos aumentam a efetividade e poder de ataques de tecnologia desbloqueados enquanto a experiência dos personagens cresce.

Sinopse

Mundo
Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht se passa em um universo baseado em ficção científica. No ano de "20XX", o Zohar, um artefato datado do começo do universo e que está relacionado com uma energia quase-divina chamada U-DO, foi descoberto por uma expedição arqueológica no Quênia. O Zohar é a chave que permitiu que a humanidade viajasse para fora do Sistema Solar. Mais de quatro mil anos no futuro, a humanidade deixou a Terra para trás após um evento terrível a fim de colonizar a galáxia, fazendo com que a localização do planeta fosse perdida e a Terra apelidada de "Jerusalém Perdida". A humanidade adotou um novo sistema de calendário chamado de "Cristo Transcendente" (C.T.), com os eventos do jogo se passando no ano 4767 C.T., equivalente a 7277 d.C. A espécie agora se espalha por mais de quinhentos mil planetas, com seus governos formando a Federação da Galáxia. Os planetas estão conectados por uma rede de viagem de dobra nomeada de Rede Unus Mundus. Esta é administrada pelas Indústrias Vector, que também controla interesses no exército da Federação. Existindo ao lado dos humanos estão os realianos, humanos sintéticos que possuem os mesmos direitos que humanos naturais. A Federação está sob ataque de uma antiga espécia alienígena chamada de gnosis. Armas normais são ineficientes contra os gnosis, assim a Vector desenvolveu dois tipos diferentes de sistemas de armas a fim de combatê-los: mechas humanoides chamados de A.G.W.S. e os androides de batalha KOS-MOS. Outra facção hostil é a Organização U-TIC, um antigo grupo científico que agora deseja tomar o controle do Zohar. Um episódio importante na mitologia do jogo é o Conflito Miltiano, uma guerra travada entre a Federação e a U-TIC que  causou a chegada dos gnosis e fez o planeta Miltia ser engolido por uma anomalia espaço-temporal.

Personagens
Os personagens principais são Shion Uzuki, uma cientista humana que trabalha nas Indústrias Vector, e sua criação o androide de batalha KOS-MOS. Shion recebe no projeto a ajuda de Allen Ridgeley, também interagindo com os oficiais Andrew Cherenkov e Luis Virgil da Federação durante sua estadia na nave Woglinde. Uzuki e KOS-MOS conhecem em sua jornada a tripulação do Elsa, uma nave associada com a Fundação Kukai, administrada por Gaignun Kukai e "Jr."; os dois são seres artificiais chamados de U.R.T.V.s, com o corpo de Jr. especificamente não envelhecendo além da infância. Dentre a tripulação do Elsa está Caos, um jovem melancólico com um passado misterioso. O grupo ainda conta com o androide Zigurate 8, apelidado de Ziggy, e a protótipo reliana M.O.M.O.. Os principais antagonistas são Margulis, líder da U-TIC; e Albedo Piazzolla, irmão de Jr. e Gaignun. Os eventos da história são monitorados por Wilheim, diretor da Vector; e Nephilim, uma jovem conectada com o Zohar.

Enredo

Uzuki está a bordo da nave Woglinde fazendo testes em KOS-MOS. A tripulação capta o sinal de um Emulador Zohar, uma das treze réplicas do Zohar original. Cherenkov monitora o progresso, porém ao mesmo tempo é um espião da U-TIC à procura do Zohar. A Wogline é pouco depois atacada pelos gnosis. KOS-MOS se ativa automaticamente e protege a equipe de Uzuki, no processo matando Virgil em fogo amigo a fim de salvar Uzuki e Ridgeley. KOS-MOS leva os dois e Cherenkov para a nave Elsa, que está seguindo para Segunda Miltia. Os gnosis atacam novamente e Caos usa sua habilidade para salvar Cherenkov. O ataque faz Cherenkov entrar em mutação, tormentando-o com visões de seu passado como soldado que falhou em ajustar-se a vida civil e matou muitas pessoas, incluindo sua esposa. Uzuki fica preocupada que KOS-MOS está apresentando um comportamento errático, enquanto Ridgeley fica preocupado com o estado emocional de Uzuki. Em outro lugar, Ziggy é enviado para resgatar M.O.M.O. da U-TIC, já que dados guardados dentro dela podem abrir o planeta Miltia original, perdido em um desastre pelo qual seu criador Joachim Mizrahi é culpado. Ziggy resgata M.O.M.O. e escapa por pouco. Piazzolla, que está trabalhando para a U-TIC atrás de objetivos próprios, parte atrás de M.O.M.O..

A Elsa é tirada do hiperespaço e engolida por um gnosis gigante. Cherenkov se transforma em um gnosis e o grupo é forçado a matá-lo, escapando da nave e sendo resgatados por Jr.. Uma batalha se segue e KOS-MOS ativa armas nunca vistas antes e absorve o gnosis. A equipe descobre de Jr. que a Fundação Kukai estão reunindo e armazenando Emuladores Zohar criados por Mizrahi. Enquanto isso, a U-TIC usa agentes dentro da Federação para alterar imagens da batalha entre Jr. e a U-TIC com o objetivo de implicar o grupo na destruição da Woglinde. Eles viajam para a base da Kukai acima da Segunda Miltia, operada por Gaignun. O grupo é feito de refém por agentes da Federação por causa da influência da U-TIC. Eles recebem a ajuda de um aliado de Gaignun e recuperam evidências do centro de memória de KOS-MOS que pode exonerá-los.

O grupo atravessa a memória de KOS-MOS, que é apresentada na forma de um reino lúdico construído a partir das memórias reprimidas de todos, por todo caminho observados por Nephilim. Uzuki encontra uma visão de Debronia, uma realiana morte no Conflito Miltiano, que lhe pede para "libertar" suas irmãs Cecily e Cathe pelo bem tanto de humanos quanto realianos. Nephilim conta ao grupo que KOS-MOS foi projetada para impedir que as energias U-DO entrassem nesta realidade, um evento que causou o planeta Miltia original desaparecer em um vácuo de espaço-tempo. Uzuki tem a capacidade de fazer um futuro melhor por sobreviver a um encontro com um gnosis e permanecer humana. Piazzolla, durante esse eventos, captura e tortura M.O.M.O. psicologicamente até iniciar a "Canção do Nephilim", uma música que atrai um enxame de gnosis.

A frota da Federação tenta destruir a base Kukai por parecer que é a origem da Canção, porém Wilheim, que tem observado secretamente os eventos, chega com uma frota particular que destrói os gnosis e protege a base. KOS-MOS utiliza uma arma avançada a fim de detectar a fonte da Canção em uma nave camuflada. O grupo aborda a nave espacial, resgatam M.O.M.O. e enfrentam Piazzolla, porém são parados por um homem azul que permite que Piazzolla escape com dados extraídos que podem dar acesso a Miltia. Ele convoca a Proto Merkebah, uma nave de pesquisa criada por Mizrahi, destruindo a frota da Federação antes de mirar suas armas na capital de Segunda Miltia. O homem azul revela ser Virgil ressuscitado e observa os eventos antes de desaparecer. O grupo infiltra-se na Proto Markebah e destrói seu núcleo, porém Piazzolla foge. Eles escapam da nave enquanto ela entra em autodestruição, com KOS-MOS protegendo a danificada Elsa enquanto esta entra na atmosfera de Segunda Miltia.

Desenvolvimento
Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht foi o primeiro jogo produzido pela desenvolvedora japonesa Monolith Soft. Seu co-fundador Tetsuya Takahashi atuou como diretor e co-roteirista. Takahashi anteriormente tinha trabalhado na Square em Xenogears. Este título fora originalmente pensado como uma série em seis partes, porém os planos nunca foram adiante pois a Square decidiu focar seus recursos em suas franquias já estabelecidas, como Final Fantasy. Outro motivo citado foi que a companhia não tinha o dinheiro necessário para poder investir no conceito. Takahashi deixou a Square por discordar dessa estratégia e foi procurar uma nova empresa que pudesse ajudá-lo a criar o que ele e outros da equipe tinha pensado. Segundo o produtor e co-fundador Hirohide Sugiura, a maioria das companhias com quem eles entraram em contato sugeriram formar a Monolith como uma desenvolvedora independente, com apenas a Namco sugerindo que se tornassem uma subsidiária, estando também disposta a financiar a produção e cuidar das logísticas e divulgação, permitindo assim que os desenvolvedores se focassem apenas na criação do jogo. A produção de Episode I começou em 2000, logo depois da fundação da Monolith. Takahashi estava trabalhando no conceito do título desde 1999 com a intenção que fosse um sucessor espiritual de Xenogears em vez de uma recriação ou sequência. O desenvolvimento demorou dois anos com um orçamento de aproximadamente um bilhão de ienes.

Episode I foi desenvolvido por uma equipe formada entre sessenta e oitenta pessoas, expandindo para mais de cem durante seu período mais ativo. Dentre a equipe, vinte tinham anteriormente trabalhado em Xenogears. A maior questão enfrentada pelos desenvolvedores foi que estavam produzindo um produto para o PlayStation 2, um console com um poderio muito maior do que qualquer outra plataforma que tinham trabalhado. Uma grande melhora para Takahashi sobre seu trabalho em Xenogears foi que agora ele era capaz de fazer um jogo totalmente com gráficos tridimensionais, algo que não tinha conseguido fazer antes. O real desenvolvimento de Episode I só começou no final de 2000 por causa da quantidade de trabalho preparatório necessário e para se acostumarem com o novo console. A Namco proporcionou a tecnologia de captura de movimento. Takahashi comentou posteriormente que a quantidade de desenvolvedores jovens e inexperientes na Monolith impactou negativamente na produção, com o motor de jogo gráfico sendo finalizado apenas seis meses antes do lançamento. Episode I foi desenvolvido sob o título provisório de "Projeto X" até ser oficialmente anunciado.

O desenho dos personagens foram criados por Kunihiko Tanaka e Kouichi Mugitani, enquanto o projeto dos mechas ficou com Mugitani e Junya Ishigaki. Mugitani também trabalhou como o desenhista de produção do jogo. O diretor de arte foi Yasuyuki Honne, que anteriormente tinha trabalhado em Xenogears e Chrono Cross, enquanto a movimentação dos personagens ficou aos cuidados de Norihiro Takami. Honne colaborou com Takami na criação dos movimentos dos personagens nas cutscenes. Tanaka recebeu uma descrição geral dos personagens dada por Takahashi além de comparações com atores reais, criando seus desenhos a partir dai. Seu estilo de arte, que dava aos personagens olhos grandes que dominavam o rosto, mostrou-se um desafio para a equipe porque Takahashi queria que o modelo tridimensional fosse o mais próximo possível dos desenhos, porém o poder expressivo dos olhos grandes poderia ser facilmente "destruído" pela luz errada. Takami trabalhou muito nos modelos para garantir que os olhos fossem preservados sem atrapalhar o equilíbrio geral. Mugitani e Ishigaki trabalharam nos desenhos da Vector e da Federação, respectivamente. KOS-MOS inicialmente foi desenhada por Tanaka, porém ele teve alguns problemas para finalizá-la. Mugitani então contribuiu, criando algo próximo do desenho final da personagem, que então foi polido por Tanaka. Este também teve dificuldades com Shion, lhe dando óculos como um modo fácil de mostrar sua personalidade.

O roteiro de Episode I foi escrito por Takahashi e sua esposa Kaori Tanaka. Takahashi se consultou com toda a equipe sobre a direção que o roteiro estava seguindo antes mesmo da produção começar, a fim de garantir que o desenvolvimento permanecesse focado. Ele inicialmente planejou que a série Xenosaga fosse composta de seis jogos, com a narrativa sendo dividida em três partes, todas contendo as figuras de KOS-MOS e Caos. Quando os personagens humanos eram tipicamente representados como fortes apesar do corpo frágil, KOS-MOS foi pensada como o oposto: uma pessoa "inquebrável" com espírito frágil. Os nomes de KOS-MOS e Caos eram referências deliberadas aos conceitos filosóficos de ordem e caos no universo, conectando-se a elementos Zen incorporados à estrutura do mundo. O jogo faz grande uso de mitologia bíblica, traço compartilhado por outros títulos da série. O subtítulo foi tirado do título nativo do livro A Vontade de Poder, uma coleção de notas do filósofo alemão Friedrich Nietzsche. A utilização de conceitos e obras de Nietzsche tornaram-se um elemento recorrente da franquia; dentro do contexto de Episode I, o subtítulo reflete diretamente os personagens e a força de suas vontades. A estrutura militar da Federação foi baseada no Exército dos Estados Unidos, com alguns elementos tirados do Exército Imperial Japonês. Além das referências a Nietzsche, Takahashi incorporou referências a Richard Wagner, como o nome da nave Wogline, devido a histórica associação de Wagner com Nietzsche.

A existência de Episode I foi anunciada oficialmente em junho de 2001 para ser lançado ainda no mesmo ano. Foi confirmado em setembro que o jogo fora adiado para o próximo fevereiro. Ele estreou no Japão em 28 de fevereiro de 2002. Takahashi tinha confirmado algum tempo antes que uma localização ocidental seria feita após o lançamento japonês. O título foi localizado pela Interone Inc, com a dublagem em inglês sendo realizada pela ZRO Limit Productions e Animaze. Este processo demorou mais de um ano. Apesar de todo o sangue, referências religiosas e xingamentos terem sido mantidos na versão ocidental, uma cena entre Albedo e M.O.M.O. teve suas conotações sexuais diminuídas. Episode I foi lançado na América do Norte em 25 de fevereiro de 2003. Esta versão continha figurinos adicionais e elementos extras, tendo sido depois lançada no Japão em 20 de novembro sob o nome de Xenosaga Episode I Reloaded.

Música
A trilha sonora de Episode I foi composta por Yasunori Mitsuda. O compositor quase não conseguiu participar do jogo por causa do cronograma apertado. Diferentemente da trilha da maioria dos RPGs da época, Mitsuda colaborou com Takahashi na criação de faixas para cenas específicas, em vez de ter um pequeno número de faixas que se repetem. Ele criou a música de forma principalmente orquestral, usando a Orquestra Filarmônica de Londres em várias faixas. Outras faixas incluíam vocais pelo coral da Metro Voices, solos de piano por Yasuharu Nakanishi e performances de cordas pela Gen Ittetsu. As duas canções temas, "Pain" e "Kokoro", foram cantadas pela cantora céltica Joanne Hogg, com quem Mitsuda tinha anteriormente trabalhado em Xenogears. As músicas vocais foram feitas no formato coral, ópera, a cappella e canto gregoriano, enquanto o tom geral da trilha foi descrito como "sério, por vezes sombrio, pesado e algumas vezes assombroso". Mitsuda chegou a planejar chamar outra pessoa para orquestrar suas composições depois de uma peça inicial não ter funcionado e precisou ser descartada, algo que o fez perder a confiança em suas próprias habilidades. Entretanto, ele reconquistou a confiança depois de vários meses e decidiu ser o próprio orquestrador, uma decisão que ele posteriormente considerou que o fez melhorar como compositor.

Recepção

Episode I alcançou o topo das tabelas dos mais vendidos no Japão ao estrear, tendo vendido mais de 240 mil cópias em apenas três dias. O jogo já era o sétimo título mais bem vendido de 2002 ao final do ano com números de vendas acima de 340 mil unidades. Não estão disponíveis dados precisos, porém a Namco afirmou que Episode I foi um de seus jogos mais bem sucedidos no mercado internacional. A empresa anunciou em julho de 2003 que o jogo tinha vendido mais de um milhão de cópias mundialmente.

A revista japonesa Famitsu comentou positivamente sobre o mundo e o desenvolvimento dos personagens, enquanto a GamePro afirmou que a história e os personagens "[rivalizavam] com aqueles de um bom e profundo romance de ficção científica ou a melhor série de anime disponível". Greg Kasavin da GameSpot gostou da narrativa, porém achou que os elementos bíblicos existiam apenas pelo choque do que por serem adições significativas. Christian Nutt da GameSpy sentiu que os personagens fortes ajudavam a sustentar o enredo. Jeremy Dunham da IGN elogiou muito a história e o desenvolvimento dos personagens, mas comentou que alguns jogadores poderiam ficar insatisfeitos com os elementos não resolvidos deixados abertos para jogos futuros. Jake Alley da RPGamer falou que a narrativa era "interessante", já Rob Fahey da Eurogamer elogiou a complexidade e profundidade do enredo. Vários críticos comentaram o grande número e duração das cutscenes, com alguns gostando enquanto outros acharam exagerado.

A GamePro afirmou que o jogo era agradável apesar de parecer "inicialmente confuso, mesmo para veteranos de RPG". Kasavin gostou da falta de encontros randômicos e também do fluxo estratégico do combate, enquanto Nutt falou bem tanto do desafio proporcionado quanto suas mecânicas profundas. Dunham elogiou as opções de customizações disponíveis na jogabilidade, porém foi menos positivo sobre os mini-jogos presentes. Fahey achou que a jogabilidade era "excelente" e também comentou positivamente sobre a remoção dos encontros randômicos. Os mechas A.G.W.S. foram considerados por vários críticos como uma adição decepcionante para a jogabilidade. As mecânicas usadas para permitir que os jogadores revisitassem calabouços foram citadas como sendo maquinadas.

Kasavin escreveu que Episode I era "um jogo muito bonito" apesar de alguns problemas de sincronização labial, também elogiando a cinematografia e os gráficos usados nas animações. Nutt disse que os ambientes eram um "puro prazer visual" e que os modelos dos personagens eram "tanto variados quanto uniformemente excelentes". Dunham gostou da cinematografia e destacou as animações faciais e expressões dos personagens. Fahey escreveu que os gráficos eram excelentes, também elogiando a fusão de cinemáticas e gráficos em tempo real para a criação de uma experiência homogênea. A música foi elogiada de forma geral, porém Kasavin e Alley acharam que ela era muito escassa durante os segmentos de jogabilidade. A dublagem em inglês foi recebida de forma mista: Alley e Nutt elogiaram o elenco ocidental, porém Dunham e Kasavin não ficaram tão impressionados, com o primeiro comparando-a com a dublagem de um anime mediano.

Legado
O sucesso internacional de Episode I fez a Namco oferecer mais apoio a série, com Yoichi Haraguchi, então vice-presidente da empresa, nomeando a Monolith como uma parceira de desenvolvimento valiosa junto com a Namco Tales Studio. Uma adaptação em mangá foi escrita por Atsushi Baba e publicada na revista Monthly Comic Zero Sum. O mangá foi publicado pela editora Ichijinsha em três volumes entre 2004 e 2006. Um disco suplementar chamado Xenosaga Freaks foi criado após a estreia de Episode I. Ele foi lançado em 28 de abril de 2004 e era dividido em quatro segmentos: um visual novel envolvendo vários personagens do jogo, um mini-jogo chamado XenoPitten, um dicionário explicando as terminologias da história e também um demo para a sequência. Freaks era parte de uma iniciativa que tinha o objetivo de transformar a série Xenosaga em uma franquia multimídia, com o projeto ficando substancialmente maior do que anteriormente planejado.

Uma sequência chamada Xenosaga Episode II: Jenseits von Gut und Böse foi desenvolvida por uma nova equipe, com Takahashi supervisionando o projeto para que assim a série seguisse em um novo rumo sob desenvolvedores mais jovens dentro da Monolith. O roteiro escrito por Norihiko Yonesaka foi baseado no rascunho inicial feito por Takahashi e Tanaka, porém acabou deixando fora boa parte do conteúdo originalmente planejado. Episode II foi lançado no Japão em junho de 2004 e na América do Norte em fevereiro do ano seguinte. O jogo foi publicado na Europa pela Sony Computer Entertainment Europe em outubro de 2005. Episode I e Episode II foram reimaginados em Xenosaga I & II para o Nintendo DS, lançado em março de 2006. O título foi co-desenvolvido pela Monolith junto com a Tom Create, enquanto o roteiro foi supervisionado por Takahashi e incluía materiais que precisaram ser cortados das versões originais dos dois jogos. I & II permanece até hoje como um exclusivo do Japão.

O desenvolvimento de Xenosaga Episode III: Also Sprach Zarathustra começou enquanto os trabalhos em Episode II estavam em andamento. Apesar da equipe ter ficado aberta à possibilidade de jogos futuros, Episode III foi pensado como o último título da série. Koh Arai e Yonesaka retornaram como, respectivamente, diretor e roteirista. Takahashi concebeu o esboço da história e supervisionou o roteiro. O jogo estrou mundialmente em 2006 e foi o último título lançado para a série Xenosaga.

Anime

Uma adaptação em anime de doze episódios chamada Xenosaga: The Animation foi produzida pela Toei Animation e encomendada após o sucesso comercial do jogo. Nenhum membro da equipe de Episode I envolveu-se na produção, porém a equipe do anime queria manter-se o mais fiel possível aos eventos do jogo. The Animation foi anunciado em 2004 e foi transmitido pela TV Asahi entre janeiro e março de 2005. A série foi dublada e licenciada nos Estados Unidos pela A.D. Vision. Os direitos foram depois adquiridos pela Funimation. Vários membros da equipe de The Animation posteriormente foram trabalhar no desenvolvimento de Xenosaga I & II.

Ligações externas
Página oficial

Episode 01 Der Wille zur Macht
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Jogos eletrônicos desenvolvidos no Japão

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Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families
Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families (AACF) is a nonprofit policy advocacy organization that was formed by a group of concerned citizens, including Hillary Rodham Clinton, in 1977. The group's mission is to ensure that all children and their families have the resources and opportunities to lead healthy and productive lives and to realize their full potential.
The idea for a statewide child advocacy organization sprang from conversations between Dr. Bettye Caldwell, at that time the director of the Center of Early Development and Education at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR); her assistant Don Crary; and Jim Miles, then deputy commissioner of the Arkansas Department of Social and Rehabilitative Services. The three talked about forming a group that would make children's issues its primary focus, one that could alleviate an imbalance of lobbying power and give children a voice in the political and legal systems of Arkansas. According to Elizabeth Shores, author of the report "Steadfast Defender: Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families," in December 1976, twenty people gathered at a Little Rock (Pulaski County) restaurant with the aim to "form a group that would be able to wield as much lobbying power as an organized group of social service providers, which were then the only advocacy groups addressing children's needs." Hillary Rodham, then on the faculty at the University of Arkansas School of Law, composed the articles of incorporation and applied for the organization's tax-exempt status.
AACF was incorporated on October 4, 1977, and Rodham, Sharon Pallone, and Betty Lowe signed the charter. Rodham was appointed the first president of AACF's board of directors. The group was modeled after the Children's Defense Fund, a Washington DC–based organization for which Rodham had worked and subsequently served as board president.
In 1979, AACF joined other concerned groups in a ten-year-long effort to improve the juvenile justice system. By collecting and analyzing data, increasing public education, and collaborating on legislative and legal advocacy, AACF paved the way for reform. In January 1987, the Arkansas Supreme Court declared the juvenile court system unconstitutional. This created the impetus for a separate juvenile court system to deal with delinquency and child welfare cases in Arkansas.
The group was instrumental in the establishment of ARKids First, the state's version of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), which is a part of Medicaid. When ARKids First began enrolling children in health coverage in 1997, the uninsured rate for kids was twenty-two percent. The ARKids First program reduced the number of uninsured children in Arkansas to just six percent in 2013. Other policies that have had a major impact on children include a 2003 expansion of the Arkansas Better Chance program, which is a pre-kindergarten program for at-risk and low-income children. This expansion made the state a national leader in early childhood education access for three- and four-year-old children.
AACF continues to advocate for programs and policies that help Arkansas's low- and middle-income families: better access to high-quality preschool programs, affordable health coverage, a tax system that benefits working families, and juvenile justice reforms that focus on the rehabilitation of youthful offenders. AACF consists of an executive director and a staff of twelve employees. The group is headquartered in Little Rock in the Union Station building. AACF also has a northwestern Arkansas office located in Springdale (Washington and Benton counties).
Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families. http://www.aradvocates.org (accessed October 12, 2021).
"Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families: Affecting Policy and Programming." Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, 2011.
Shores, Elizabeth. "Steadfast Defender: Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families." Little Rock: Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, 1994.
Gerard Matthews
Divergent Prosperity and the Arc of Reform (1968–2022)
Government and Politics / Parties and Interest Groups
Betty Lowe
Give Entry Feedback Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families
Leave a Comment Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families


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Q: app.config prevent end users from modifying it On our product there are many config files (we have many processes)
For "logicical" configuration, we store all configuration in a document based database and then distribute the configuration to different component upon configuration change.
But, We also store configuration on app.config files, and sometimes, these files are being modified, e.g we store connection strings, ports, and other configurations.
Is there a common way to prevent End-users from playing with the app.config of a process?
The simple way is to encrypt/convert to Base64 the fields and decrypt them when loading the XML attribute, but that is a bit hacky.
Thanks

A:
Is there a common way to prevent End-users from playing with the app.config of a process?

If your process is running on a modern Windows machine and you install your application somewhere under C:\Program Files then the job is [mostly] already taken care of.
Windows' User Account Control will prevent "regular" Users from changing any files under this location (and numerous others).
OK, someone with "administrative" access to their machine can still "get at" and manipulate the files but if they do so and break something well; that's really their fault, not yours.  It's the sort of thing that should be covered in the Licence Agreement or Support Contract for your application.

A: The universal rule is "you can't trust the client" even if you encrypt the strings, if the client can decrypt them so can the user.
If you need something to be secret or unchangeable you need to put it on a computer you own.
So in the case of DB connection strings, you need to have the client call an API which then connects to the DB, rather than have the client connect directly

A: Encryption seems a logical solution to prevent users from modifying the configuration. But how does your application decrypt it? If you can use a built-in encryption mechanism provided by the operating system, runtime or browser (depending on the technology used to create the client), encryption is the way to go. If you instead end up with hard-coding a secret key into your application used to decrypt the configuration, other developers or advanced users will break your security measures. A normal user will probably shy away from an encrypted configuration, regardless of how safe decryption is realized.
Otherwise, don't use client-side config files. Instead, store your configuration as default values of a configuration class. Just hard-code the settings in your code. This makes it harder to change things but at least you know that there is no configuration to worry about.

A: You can combine your config file with a licence key.
We have certain settings (like the number of users allowed) in a config file. A hash of that file is checked against the licence key, so if the user tries to change those settings, they'll get an 'invalid licence key' message.
This doesn't stop the users from reading the settings, just from changing them.

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When Jimmie Han inherited the Beijing Duck House from his father, he inherited his father's vision of a Chinese restaurant in the United States, as well as the staff, the menu, and the décor. Yet as Jimmie is about to open his own restaurant, a tragedy shakes his plans to their foundation. A hopeful story that explores themes of youth and aging, as well as the opposing dynamics of family life.


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Music for Media/Motion Pictures
To the Top (Adventure) - Ilia Skibinsky
Forbidden Truth (Epic) - Ilia Skibinsky
The Gatekeeper (Epic) - Ilia Skibinsky
Hidden Thoughts (Mystery/Suspense) - Ilia Skibinsky
Ascendance (Trailer) - Ilia Skibinsky
The Land of Dawn - Prologue (Fantasy) - Ilia Skibinsky
Commercial/Production Music
Tonight Forever (Corporate/Motivational) - Ilia Skibinsky
The Road Taken (Piano Score) - Ilia Skibinsky
Beliefs (Inspirational) - Ilia Skibinsky
True Memories (Corporate/Motivational) - Ilia Skibinsky
The Things Ahead (Acoustic Guitar) - Ilia Skibinsky
Morning Lullaby (Ukulele) - Ilia Skibinsky
Occurrencies for a Symphony Orchestra - Ilia Skibinsky
The Land of Dawn (Excerpt) - Ilia Skibinsky
The Passage (samples from the Album)
1) The Passage - Part 1 - Ilia Skibinsky
4) When We Forget - Ilia Skibinsky
5) Beyond the Sun (Excerpt) - Ilia Skibinsky
7) Distant Lights - Ilia Skibinsky
8) Dorian Ways - Ilia Skibinsky
3) Seven Skies (Excerpt) - Ilia Skibinsky
6) Translucent - Ilia Skibinsky
9) What Worlds Cannot Express - Ilia Skibinsky
Ilia Skibinsky is a composer, multi instrumentalist, band leader and producer. Working in a variety of musical styles his current focus is Orchestral and Symphonic music.
As a media composer, Ilia's works for TV can be heard in a variety of TV shows such as:
Forged in Fire (History), Real World Road Rules Challenge, Catfish (MTV), Married to Medicine (Bravo), Too Cute (Animal Planet), Say Yes to the Dress (TLC), Real Housewives of Miami, Southern Charm, Dirty Money, Being Liverpool, Pawn Stars and others. In 2015, Ilia has co-written and recorded saxophone for the soundtrack of "Kung Fury", a short movie which has become a youtube sensation building a cult like following and over 32 Million views (as of 2019). He has also worked as a composer and producer on various independent projects.
In August 2018, Ilia's original orchestral score "The Road", received the 2nd prize award in the "2 Agosto" international composition competition (Bologna, Italy), followed by an earlier Special Jury Mention award he received for another score in August 2016.
Aside from being a composer, Ilia also has an extensive experience as a performer.
Selected credits include: A 15 month tour with Cirque Du Soleil, Several off Broadway Musicals, TV show spin offs of "American Idol" and "Dancing with Stars", and a multitude of festivals and venues around the world sharing the stage with a plethora of prominent artists.
Ilia's diverse background, training and performance career worldwide, has allowed him to develop a unique perspective, which comes into expression in his work.
Download Full Biography
ILIA SKIBINSKY
Tel: +49 160 953 77232 (Germany)
Email: ilia.skib(at)gmail.com
www.iliaskymusic.com
For lessons, general inquiries or if you just feel like saying hi, please feel free to use the form below.


Welcome back to the second edition of Pandaren Ponderings. Last week I took a look at the Pandaren race. This week I'll cover the new class introduced in Mists of Pandaria, the Monk. Lets go over the basics, shall we? Monks are available to almost every race in the game. The only restrictions are no Worgen and no Goblins. For those not counting that leaves the 11 remaining races to get their Monk on.
Monks are a cloth/leather wearing melee-based class. A true hybrid; they can Tank, Heal or DPS. Lorewise they follow the theme of Asian combat monks, not the stuffy old man in a brown robe stereotype. The reason for this is simple, the class is being "taught" to the other races by the Pandaren. The Monk has three specs which are as follows Brewmaster (Tank), Windwalker (DPS), and Mistweaver (Healing). I've always been a tank first and foremost, except for that 2 week stint of role experimentation when I first began playing, but we're not going to talk about that. (Ed: Ahh, Brad's college experimentation years.) So as such I've spent the most time on beta with a Brewmaster Pandaren Monk. It has been awhile since I played with him so I'm sure a lot has changed, but I still have a fairly accurate idea of how the core class mechanics work.


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Maruni Wood Industry Inc. is proud to announce that Maruni Collection directed by Naoto Fukasawa is on exhibition at the "Japon-Japonismes, objets inspirés 1867-2018″ at Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, France.
Since its founding in 1864, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs has been at the forefront of preserving and presenting Japanese art in France.
The exhibition is taking place as part of the "Japonismes 2018: les âmes en resonance" program, which will showcase the diversity of Japanese culture through nearly 100 venues in Paris and other locations over an 8-month period in celebration of 160 years of diplomatic relations between the Government of Japan and the Government of France.
At "Japon-Japonismes, objets inspirés 1867-2018″, visitors have the opportunity to admire nearly 1,400 works of art spanning a wide variety of artistic media, including art and design, fashion, graphic arts and photography. Sousuke Fujimoto, acclaimed Japanese minimalist architect, is responsible for the exhibition design, which extends over 2,200 m2 on three floors of the Rohan Wing.
The exhibition is underway until March 3, 2019.


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Coronavirus: Delhi imposes night curfew today, tomorrow from 11 pm to 6 am
New Delhi, First Published Dec 31, 2020, 9:59 AM IST
With this, Delhi joins Punjab, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Rajasthan in the imposition of the night curfew to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
Delhi: Ahead of the 2021 New Year's Eve celebrations, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) on Thursday imposed a night curfew in the national capital in order to check the spread of the coronavirus disease.
No public gatherings will be allowed in Delhi tonight and tomorrow between 11 pm and 6 am as the state government has announced a night curfew to restrict the New Year celebrations.
No New Year "celebratory events, congregations and gatherings at public places shall be permitted from 11 pm of December 31 to 6 am of January 1 and 11 pm of January 1 and 6 am of January 2," the Delhi Disaster Management Authority said in a statement. Traffic movement, however, will not be restricted.
"A detailed assessment of the situation in Delhi has been made and considering the threat posed by the mutant UK strain of COVID-19 virus and after observing the local incidents of Covid-19 pandemic in Delhi, it is apprehended that gatherings, congregations, and public celebrations of New Year pose a considerable threat of the spread of the virus and may cause a setback to the appreciable gains made in the suppression of chain of transmission of COVID-19 cases in Delhi," the order said.
The Union Health Ministry has asked all states to keep a strict vigil on New Year celebrations that could be potential COVID-19 super-spreader events and also to curb crowding as a precautionary measure during the winter season.
The United Kingdom, where the new mutant strain was first detected in September, has seen a massive surge in coronavirus infections in the last few weeks. Earlier this month, Britain had said the virus is "out of control", which led to a new wave of worldwide restrictions amid pandemic.
UK virus
night curfew
11 pm to 6 am