text:
Signal Expands Encrypted Group Video Calls to 40 People
In a blog post, the Signal Foundation, the nonprofit behind the messaging app, explains how it created the new feature while maintaining the end-to-end encryption.
https://www.pcmag.com/news/signal-expands-encrypted-group-video-calls-to-40-people
Messaging app Signal can now support group video chats with 40 participants—up from five—and end-to-end encryption will still be intact.
The nonprofit behind Signal announced the change on Wednesday; end-to-end encryption means only the participants in the call can view the messages or video. No one, including the messaging provider, government authorities, or hackers, can view the calls, unless a participant accepts them into the video session or they snatch your device.
Signal is best known for offering end-to-end encrypted messaging. However, the developers behind the app only began working on encrypted group video chats last year during the height of the pandemic before rolling it out last December.
(Signal Foundation)
Signal's new 40-participant cap is higher than some rival messaging apps. WhatsApp offers end-to-end encrypted video calls for up to eight participants, for example, while Apple's FaceTime supports up to 32 people at once.
Zoom, on the other hand, lets you host an end-to-end encrypted video session with up to 200 participants, though users have to go out of their way to activate the encryption setting.
If you're hoping the Signal Foundation can expand the video calls beyond 40 participants, there's good news: The nonprofit said this might one day be possible.
In a blog post on Wednesday, the Signal Foundation explained that expanding the group video call function from five participants to 40 involved creating servers that can forward the video call to all participants without viewing or altering the data. Eventually, the Signal Foundation settled on writing the computer code for the server from scratch using the programming language Rust.
End-to-End Encryption Rolls Out for Microsoft Teams
Meta Delays Facebook and Instagram's Encrypted Messages Rollout
Google Fi Introduces End-to-End Encrypted Calls
"It has now been serving all Signal group calls for 9 months, scales to 40 participants with ease (perhaps more in the future)," the nonprofit wrote. The encryption keys necessary to secure the calls also continue to come from user devices, not from the servers.
"When a client joins the call, it generates a key and sends it to all other clients of the call over Signal messages," the Signal Foundation added. "Whenever any user joins or leaves the call, each client in the call generates a new key and sends it to all clients in the call. It then begins using that key 3 seconds later."
Apple Will Let Dating Apps in the Netherlands Use Alternative Payments
Fortnite Returns to iOS Via Nvidia GeForce Now Game Streaming
The Best Weather Apps for 2022
By Max Eddy & Jordan Minor
TikTok & Beyond: The Best Mobile Video Editing Apps
By Michael Muchmore


Latest post Sat, Mar 2 2013 6:46 AM by Marianna. 1 replies.
I have Pinnacle Studio 16 Ultimate and I use it to edit my video game footage. Whenever I make a video that has a lot of cuts (most of them into a clip that's only a few seconds) there is always a couple random video clips that are missing the audio for them after I export my video. I do a commentary on a seperate track and when that's cut up it's fine, also everything works fine in the preview window. No matter which file type I export it as (mpeg 2, avi, wma...) there's always a couple clips where you can hear the commentary but not the sound for the video clip itself. I've tried re-rendering the files multiple times, restarting the program, exproting different qualities and nothing has worked. I'm sure it has something to do with the size of the clips but everytime I export, different clips are missing audio no matter how long. Does anyone know how to fix this??


Many Brother devices have innovative Web Connect features that allow you to upload documents or photos from a scanner or memory card, or print documents directly from popular online storage sites. Connect straight from your Brother device.
Use Brother Web Connect to upload your documents or photos directly to popular cloud storage and social media sites. Watch the video to find out more about how you can upload, share or print files without using your computer.


We interviewed Clean Energy FCU CEO Terri Mickelsen to learn about her credit union's unique start-up challenges, her philosophy, and why she chose us as a partner. Mickelsen, who's had a whirl-wind year of launching the CU and managing the flood of loan applications for green services, found precious time to sit down with us.
Mickelsen has more than 25 years of credit union operations experience. Prior to her new role at Clean Energy FCU, she served as COO and VP of Internal Operations at two credit unions, each with over $500M in assets. Efficiency and cost savings are core principals to her.


text:
May 27, 2015 | « back
Deluxe Book Bonus Tracks Revealed; Win One Of 100 Autographed Copies!
One of the items included in the Before This World Limited Edition Deluxe Book is a second disc containing five exclusive bonus tracks. The titles of those tracks — which include previously unreleased material and demos — have now been revealed. Visit the JamesTaylor.com Store for the complete list.
That's not all – we're happy to announce that all fans who pre-order the Limited Edition Deluxe Book from JamesTaylor.com will be entered into a drawing for one of only 100 copies autographed by James himself!*
*Drawing open to all customers who purchase the Limited Edition Deluxe Book from JamesTaylor.com. That includes all orders already placed. Autographed copies of Limited Edition Deluxe Book will ship by the end of June, however winners will be contacted privately and provided with a digital download link to the full album on June 16.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


I'm planning to buy (probably today) a bluetooth headset so's I can use Skype with my powerbook. Are there any known gotchas in buying such things? What features do I need to look for?
Jabra certainly seem to have a good rep around the net, and are also approved by PalmOne for the Treo 650 (which I also intend to get).
Expansys have a good price on them.


Shubham packers and movers are a bunch of neighbourhood guys and not professional movers and packers. They do not know what goods have to be transported how and in that process they end up damaging your goods. Air conditioning pipe should not be bent, even after telling one of the guys bent the pipe because it did not fit the lift height. Dinning table chair was damaged and all the plants mostly broken because they were kept in small places to accommodate in a small truck. The surveyor who came to book said a Canter truck would be sent because of the number of items but on the day of shifting we got a Tata small truck which did not have enough space for all our luggage. Towards the end I was calling up local transport guys to see how I can transport some luggage to avoid damage. I took some stuff and 5 guys with me in my car as they did not have place to be accommodated. They are not experienced professionals but just couple of random guys picked up from neighbourhood to transport stuff. They would be okay if you have yourself packed your stuff in boxes and they just have to pick up those boxes and keep in the truck, that too would require your supervision. At the end, you are just left with damaged goods for you to spend more money trying to either fix it or replace it. VERY EXPENSIVE ENGAGEMENT.


text:
344 F. 2d 594 - Rochester Gas and Electric Corporation v. Federal Power Commission
344 F2d 594 Rochester Gas and Electric Corporation v. Federal Power Commission
ROCHESTER GAS AND ELECTRIC CORPORATION, Petitioner,
FEDERAL POWER COMMISSION, Respondent.
Docket 29181.
United States Court of Appeals Second Circuit.
Argued January 25, 1965.
Decided April 6, 1965.
Nixon, Hargrave, Devans & Doyle, Rochester, N. Y., Naylon, Aronson, Huber & Magill, New York City (Edward F. Huber, New York City, Daniel G. Kennedy, Rochester, N. Y., James M. Baisley, New York City, Albert L. Beswick, Rochester, N. Y., of counsel), for petitioner.
Richard A. Solomon, Gen. Counsel, Howard E. Wahrenbrock, Sol., Joseph Hobbs, George Bruder, Attys., F. P. C., for respondent.
Before WATERMAN, SMITH and ANDERSON, Circuit Judges.
WATERMAN, Circuit Judge:
The Genesee River rises in the Allegheny Mountains of Pennsylvania and flows northward for 158 miles through New York State to Lake Ontario. Petitioner operates three hydroelectric projects on a stretch of rapids and falls in Rochester, New York, six miles from the mouth of the river. It maintains a fourth power project in Mount Morris, New York, on another turbulent stretch of the river sixty-five miles from the mouth.
Petitioner requested the Federal Power Commission to issue an order declaring that these projects did not have to be licensed under Section 23(b) of the Federal Power Act, 16 U.S.C. § 817. The Commission rejected the request and directed petitioner to apply for licenses for the projects within ninety days. Petitioner asks us to review the Commission's order pursuant to Section 313(b) of the Act, 16 U.S.C. § 825l(b).
The parties agree that petitioner must comply with the Commission's order if, but only if, the four projects are located on "navigable waters" within the meaning of Section 3(8) of the Act, 16 U.S.C. § 796(8):
"`[N]avigable waters' means those parts of streams or other bodies of water over which Congress has jurisdiction under its authority to regulate commerce with foreign nations and among the several States, and which either in their natural or improved condition notwithstanding interruptions between the navigable parts of such streams or waters by falls, shallows, or rapids compelling land carriage, are used or suitable for use for the transportation of persons or property in interstate or foreign commerce, including therein all such interrupting falls, shallows, or rapids * * *."
The parties also agree that the Genesee River need not be navigable for its entire length to be "navigable waters" at Rochester and Mount Morris; that the river is navigable from its mouth to the rapids and falls in Rochester; and that these rapids and falls are "navigable waters" if the river is navigable above them. See United States v. Appalachian Elec. Power Co., 311 U.S. 377, 409, 410, 61 S.Ct. 291, 85 L.Ed. 243 (1940); Citizens Utils. Co. v. FPC, 279 F.2d 1 (2 Cir.), cert. denied, 364 U.S. 893, 81 S.Ct. 224, 5 L.Ed.2d 188 (1960); Montana Power Co. v. FPC, 87 U.S.App.D.C. 316, 185 F.2d 491, 494 (1950), cert. denied, 340 U.S. 947, 71 S.Ct. 532, 95 L.Ed. 683 (1951). In short, this appeal turns on whether the Genesee River is navigable from above the rapids and falls in Rochester to the power project at Mount Morris.
The parties disagree, however, on what constitutes navigability under Section 3 (8). Petitioner argues that the Genesee River is "navigable waters" only where (1) it is presently being used or is suitable for use in its natural or presently improved condition. The Commission contends that, in addition, the Genesee River is "navigable waters," where (2) in the past it was used or was suitable for use in its natural or improved condition, or where (3) it can be made suitable for use by reasonable future improvements.
The Commission relies heavily on United States v. Appalachian Elec. Power Co., supra, 311 U.S. at 407-410, 61 S.Ct. at 299-300. There the Supreme Court stated, with regard to use or suitability for use in the past: "When once found to be navigable, a waterway remains so. * * * Even absence of use over long periods of years, because of changed conditions, the coming of the railroad or improved highways does not affect the navigability of rivers in the constitutional sense." In the same passage the Supreme Court stated, with respect to suitability for use in the future: "In determining the navigable character of [a river] it is proper to consider the feasibility of interstate use after reasonable improvements which might be made. * * * Nor is it necessary that the improvements should be actually completed or even authorized."
Petitioner contends that United States v. Appalachian Elec. Power Co. is inapplicable here, because that case arose out of Sections 9 and 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899, 33 U.S.C. §§ 401, 403, and therefore did not involve interpretation of Section 3(8) of the Federal Power Act. However plausible this contention may have been at one time, it is no longer arguable now. Every court which has considered the question, including our own, has treated the quoted portions of United States v. Appalachian Elec. Power Co. as fully applicable to the definition of "navigable waters" in Section 3(8).1
Accordingly, we hold that the Genesee River is "navigable waters" from Rochester to Mount Morris, if (1) it presently is being used or is suitable for use, or (2) it has been used or was suitable for use in the past, or (3) it could be made suitable for use in the future by reasonable improvements.
The parties agree that these criteria of navigability raise issues of fact and that, pursuant to Section 313(b), the Commission's findings thereon are conclusive "if supported by substantial evidence." Wisconsin Pub. Serv. Corp. v. FPC, supra, 147 F.2d at 748; cf. United States v. Appalachian Elec. Power Co., supra, 311 U.S. at 405, 61 S.Ct. 291. The Commission notes that none of its previous findings of navigability have ever been set aside by the courts. We congratulate the Commission on its achievement, which is undoubtedly attributable to the full factual foundation on which its findings have heretofore been based. This successful performance, however, does not relieve the Commission of the continuing obligation to rely on evidence that is substantial when it determines that a river is navigable.
In this proceeding the Commission adduced no evidence of its own, and cited no factual sources from outside the record in its decision, but relied wholly on the data contained in petitioner's application for a declaratory order, even though petitioner may not have set forth as full a statement of the case as the Commission's rules require. Of course it was the Commission's prerogative to decide the case on this basis so long as the evidence before it was sufficient. But under the circumstances we are unsympathetic to the Commission's belated attempt to buttress its decision on appeal with factual matter from historical treatises which are cited for the first time in its brief.
The Commission made no finding that the Genesee River, except for the six miles at its mouth, presently is being used or is suitable for use as an avenue of interstate or foreign commerce.
The Commission found that the Genesee River has been used or was suitable for use in the past from above the rapids and falls in Rochester to the power project at Mount Morris. This finding was based on the following statements in petitioner's application for a declaratory order:
"Rochester, New York, was first settled in 1812. In the 28 years between that time and 1840, the early settlers made repeated attempts to employ the river channel for navigation by flat-bottomed barges and rafts. The early settlers sent rafts carrying potash, pearlash, and lumber by river to Rochester. Early farmers also rafted some of the wheat grown in the valley to the Rochester mills.
"There is evidence that subsequent to the opening of the Erie Canal in 1825 goods were transported downriver [to just above the rapids and falls in Rochester] for shipment on the Erie Canal. * * * [A]vailable evidence [does not] establish that any commercial shipment of goods downriver was ever initiated as far south as the Mount Morris plant.
"As early as 1825 plans were initiated for the construction of the Genesee Valley Canal, which would parallel the Genesee River from Rochester as far south as Mount Morris, to provide a waterway for the shipment of goods to Rochester and to the Erie Canal. Construction of this particular segment of the Genesee River Canal was completed and opened in 1840. The Genesee Valley Canal was itself abandoned by the State of New York on September 30, 1878. * * *"
We hold that petitioner's statements regarding use of the river channel from 1812 to 1840 constituted substantial evidence supporting the Commission's finding that the Genesee River is "navigable waters" above the rapids and falls in Rochester. Accordingly, we affirm the Commission's order insofar as it directs petitioner to apply for licenses for the three power projects in Rochester.
Petitioner contends that the use of the river between 1812 and 1840 was too limited and too brief to demonstrate navigability. We disagree, having in mind the rule that "small traffic compared to the available commerce of the region is sufficient," and that disuse attributable to "improved highways does not affect the navigability of rivers." United States v. Appalachian Elec. Power Co., supra, 311 U.S. at 409-410, 61 S.Ct. at 300. In this case the use occurred at an early stage in the economic development of the region, and the river was abandoned only when an improved waterway became available.
Petitioner also contends that there is no evidence that the goods shipped down the river entered into interstate or foreign commerce. Perhaps the Commission was justified in inferring that some of these goods eventually must have crossed state or national boundaries. In any event, we agree with the Commission that actual use of a river for intrastate shipments demonstrates its suitability for use as a connecting waterway for interstate or foreign shipments. Especially is this true where the river runs directly into acknowledged avenues of interstate or foreign commerce, here the Erie Canal and Lake Ontario. See United States v. Appalachian Elec. Power Co., supra, 311 U.S. at 406 n. 21, 61 S.Ct. 291, quoting The Daniel Ball, 10 Wall. 557, 563, 19 L.Ed. 999 (U.S.1871).
On the other hand, we hold that the statements quoted above from petitioner's application did not constitute substantial evidence that the Genesee River had been used or was suitable for use as far upstream as the power project at Mount Morris. The Commission relies on the following inferences: if milled lumber was rafted downstream from below Mount Morris, logs must have been floated downstream to the mills from above Mount Morris; the naming of towns located on the river above Mount Morris, "Portage" and "Portageville," shows that the river above Mount Morris was used for transporting goods; and the Genesee Valley Canal would not have been extended through Mount Morris if there had not already been commercial traffic on the river as far upstream as Mount Morris. With all due allowance for the Commission's expertise,2 we cannot agree that these inferences were supported by substantial evidence.
The Commission also argues that the Genesee Valley Canal, which ran through Mount Morris, can be considered an improvement of the river itself. However, canal traffic made no use whatever of the river bed except at occasional crossing points. Thus the canal was no more an improvement of the river than was the Pennsylvania Railroad branch line which in turn superseded the canal. The Commission stresses Judge Groner's statement in Pennsylvania Water & Power Co. v. FPC, supra, 123 F.2d at 161, that the Susquehanna River, "with the aid of canals along its banks, bore a considerable interstate commerce for a long period of years." However, even after the completion of the Susquehanna and Tidewater Canal, "arks which were too wide to pass through the locks were navigated in the river itself during periods of high water." 2 F.P.C. 61, 68 (1939).
The Commission found that the Genesee River from Rochester to Mount Morris could be made suitable for use in the future by reasonable improvements. This finding was based on data attached to petitioner's application which indicates an average stream-flow at Mount Morris of about 1600 cubic feet per second and an average stream-slope from Rochester through Mount Morris to Portage of about 3.9 feet per mile. The Commission's finding was also based on statements in the report of the New England-New York Inter-Agency Committee, The Resources of the New England-New York Region, "Genesee River Basin" § VIII, at 2-3 (1955):
"The River and Harbor Act of 1950 authorized a study of the Allegheny and Genesee Rivers with a view to providing a through waterway. The preliminary examination submitted in response to this authorization was unfavorable.
"Present facilities for navigation are considered adequate. No further development of these facilities in the Genesee River Basin is contemplated at this time."
The Commission contends that the flow and slope of the Genesee River compare favorably with the flows and slopes of other rivers held to be navigable by the courts since United States v. Appalachian Elec. Power Co. It is noteworthy, however, that of the rivers with lesser flows, three are useful only for recreation or for floating logs,3 and the fourth was treated by the court as navigable for less than a mile.4 It is noteworthy, also, that the gradient of the Genesee River in the twenty-one miles on either side of Mount Morris averages 10.5 feet per mile, which is considerably steeper than were the applicable slopes in the other court cases principally relied on by the Commission.5 In any event, flows and gradients alone do not demonstrate the physical eligibility of a river for reasonable improvement. One also needs to know widths, depths, contours, velocities, and similar characteristics which do not appear anywhere in the evidence. See Montana Power Co. v. FPC, supra, 185 F.2d at 495.
As for the statements in the report quoted above, the Commission claims that they are indicative of the river's continuing susceptibility to reasonable improvement. On the contrary, they signify to us that improvement of the river is unfeasible for the time being. Indeed, on this branch of the case the Commission seems to have completely overlooked the test of economic practicability laid down in United States v. Appalachian Elec. Power Co., supra, 311 U.S. at 407-408, 61 S.Ct. at 299: "There must be a balance between cost and need at a time when the improvement would be useful." Compare Pennsylvania Water & Power Co. v. FPC, supra, 123 F.2d at 161. Accordingly, we hold that the Commission's finding with regard to the river's suitability for use in the future was based on considerably less than substantial evidence.
The order of the Commission is vacated insofar as it directs petitioner to apply for a license for the power project in Mount Morris. The case is remanded to the Commission for the taking of additional evidence on the navigability of the Genesee River at Mount Morris and for findings on this issue in conformity with our opinion. Otherwise, as noted above, the order of the Commission is affirmed.
Citizens Utils. Co. v. FPC, supra, 279 F.2d at 3; Montana Power Co. v. FPC, supra, 185 F.2d at 494-495; Pennsylvania Water & Power Co. v. FPC, 74 App. D.C. 351, 123 F.2d 155, 158 (1941), cert. denied, 315 U.S. 806, 62 S.Ct. 640, 86 L.Ed. 1205 (1942); Georgia Power Co. v. FPC, 152 F.2d 908, 912-913 (5 Cir. 1946); Wisconsin Pub. Serv. Corp. v. FPC, 147 F.2d 743, 748 (7 Cir.), cert. denied, 325 U.S. 880, 65 S.Ct. 1574, 89 L.Ed. 1996 (1945). See State of Wisconsin v. FPC, 214 F.2d 334, 337-338 (7 Cir.), cert. denied, 348 U.S. 883, 75 S.Ct. 124, 99 L.Ed. 694 (1954)
According to the Commission's Brief on Appeal, pp. 27-28:
"As a physical anthropologist can determine the age of a person at death, the sex, and sometimes even the stature from two or three bones or fragments of bones from the skeleton, so the Commission's specialized observation, study, and experience by 1964 enabled it to reach firm conclusions from fragmentary facts which, as isolated facts, might be meaningless or susceptible to opposing inferences by a jury unassisted by an expert (i. e., someone having the benefit of specialized observation, study, and experience)."
Namekagon Hydro Co. v. FPC, 216 F. 2d 509 (7 Cir. 1954); Wisconsin v. FPC, supra; Wisconsin Pub. Serv. Corp. v. FPC, supra
Citizens Utils. Co. v. FPC, supra
United States v. Appalachian Elec. Power Co., supra (4.5 feet per mile); Montana Power Co. v. FPC, supra (3.8 feet per mile)


text:
Learning »
What Is an Educational Therapist?
Professionals who work one-on-one with children on learning challenges
Caroline Miller
A child who is struggling and falling behind in school is not a happy child. Kids who have learning disorders, or attention problems that make learning unusually difficult, often suffer for several years before parents and teachers figure out that something is standing in their way.
Once a child's learning challenges are identified, she may benefit from having an educational therapist to work with her on developing the skills she is missing, and on devising learning strategies that build on her strengths and compensate for her weaknesses.
An educational therapist is a professional who is trained to understand an individual child's learning challenges, and the patterns and behaviors he has developed to work around, or mask, his deficits. Some of those behaviors—avoidance, acting out, even tantrums—may have been misinterpreted by parents and teachers who read them as opposition or impulsivity.
Related: Tips for Recognizing Learning Disorders in the Classroom
Helping the whole child
ETs have a range of professional backgrounds, from special education to speech and language therapy to psychology. But they are all focused on the whole child—that is, the emotional as well as cognitive factors involved in successful learning.
When educational therapist Ruth Lee works with children who have dyslexia, for instance, they have usually fallen behind their peers in reading skills, and are often discouraged and anxious, to some degree, about learning in general.
For the first couple of years of school, many kids with dyslexia successfully mask the fact that they're not learning to decode, or sound out words, the way other kids are. They are able to keep up, more or less, by memorizing words and listening extra hard to the teacher. But by the third or fourth grade they often hit a wall, because the amount of reading, and the number of new words they are expect to be able to decipher, rises exponentially. "In the first three grades," Lee notes, "we say kids are learning to read. By the fourth grade they need to be reading to learn."
Her job is to bolster a child's reading skills and his fragile self-confidence. For the reading work, Lee, who is a trained Wilson Reading System instructor, goes back to the point where the student ran into difficulty and moves forward. "You have to start where the child can be successful," she notes. To develop decoding skills she uses what she calls multi-sensory instruction. "That means hearing the sound of the letter, saying it, repeating it, visualizing it in your head, sky-writing it with big hand motions, kinesthetically, and then writing it small, using fine-motor muscles. Sometimes we have kids write in shaving cream or whipped cream, or draw the letters in sand or mud, to experience that resistance." She's not working with kids on their homework, but working on skills they can apply to their homework.
Understanding the rationale
In addition to dyslexia and other learning disorders, many kids need help organizing the work they need to do, using what are called executive functions to visualize, plan, and push a project through to completion. Educational therapists help with strategies for getting started, memorizing information, and building new skills.
"One of the biggest struggles that characterizes almost all of kids I see is they don't know how to think about how to do work in an organized way," says Dr. Matthew Cruger, director of the Child Mind Institute's Learning and Development Center. They don't have a strategy or plan to do it, a sense of the skill set they have to bring to bear on it."
Without that mindset, Dr. Cruger notes, kids experience a lot of frustration when they approach homework. "They don't see that homework has a purpose, that the reason they're doing these problems, for instance, is to be able to master a new skill, or reinforce what they've learned in class. Sometimes assignments don't get translated explicitly that way for kids."
Kids have to feel safe and comfortable in order to learn.
Click To Facebook ShareClick To Tweet
One of the roles of the homework therapist is to help kids understand why they're doing what they're doing, what the rationale is. "Kids with attention problems, in particular, are very pragmatic in a way about how much effort to put into things. We think of it as 'neuroeconomics'—they save their energy for things they are confident will pay off."
That's why it's so important for an ET to help kids score some successes. "When kids put hard work into something, they expect a return, and if don't see the return, it's doubly frustrating," says Dr. Cruger. "They'll think, 'You see, it wasn't a good idea to try."
End procrastination
Often the work of an ET involves helping kids develop a routine to get started doing homework, to get into gear, so to speak, without squandering a lot of emotional energy. "Sometimes a parent will say to me, 'He just doesn't want to try,' says Dr. Cruger. "I'll talk to the child and he'll tell me, 'I'm lying there thinking, but I just can't get started.' We have to figure out what's getting in the way of that."
"You want them to learn to be independent self-starters," notes Lee.
Building a positive relationship
Finding an educational therapist to work with your child depends upon his particular needs, but also personality. The first thing the ET needs to do is build a positive relationship with the child. "You have to overcome the negative feelings that have built up around learning. Kids have to feel safe and comfortable in order to learn, especially when you're asking them to expose what they can't do."
A good therapist will use a lot of positive reinforcement. "When they do something great, you make the most of it," Lee says. "When they mess up, you minimize it. You need to show them that making errors is part of learning."
Dr. Cruger adds that while different kids will respond to different kinds of specialists, personality matters a lot—"a person who's clear, nonjudgmental, encouraging, and able to use humor will be most effective for many kids, especially one's who have become demoralized about learning."
Of course the therapist also needs to be fairly firm, he adds. "We can't let a kid use the time inefficiently," he notes. "If he's spending a lot of time fooling around, it would be a death knell not only for the therapy, but also for learning how to how to approach schoolwork effectively."
Helping Kids Who Struggle With Executive Functions
Learning Specialists at a Glance
Supporting the Emotional Needs of Kids With Learning Disabilities
Learning, School, Specialists,
Caroline Miller is the editorial director of the Child Mind Institute.
Parents Guide to Dyslexia
Signs to look for and how to help.


In this article I'll share some nice web sites for those of you who are majoring in pc science This listing consists of lots of websites with the newest information in pc technology however I'll also embrace some that I feel will curiosity laptop science majors. They did not have the form of knowledge that advanced science and technology has allowed us to have at the moment; however I feel the pyramids are an instance of how resourceful and clever humans may be whatever the time wherein they reside. Youngsters should be taught that computers do what folks ask them to do. They need to know that if the particular person asks the pc to do something, and asks accurately, the computer will do it accurately. That very same yr data security analysts averaged $ninety,one hundred twenty while computer community architects earned a median wage of $100,240. DNA storage of knowledge by Harvard scientists; predictions about modifications in computer processing design.
In reality, the Millennium Technology cannot start to know a time when expertise was not a vital a part of nearly all the things that goes on on the planet. The Millennium Technology are rising up in a time when there is an unprecedented availability of all varieties of expertise. By understanding the hazards lurking in the know-how discipline, anyone can take precautions to protect themselves, even younger kids. Expertise doesn't destroy jobs; it modifications them to one thing extra productive.
A ten year old baby in the present day is aware of quite a couple of issues that a pc can do. They find out about computer games with stunning graphics and vibrant sounds. And of course not all of them have majored in pc science such as you do. This web site collects all these examples of how you should NOT do one thing in pc know-how.
Except some unlucky individuals, all of us miss those good previous times nevertheless it has nothing to do with Technology. Certification and continuing training lessons assist info know-how and pc science professionals to keep up with the most recent advancements in applied sciences.
They did not go. It was lack of expertise that controlled the situation then, and it will be lack of expertise that will management it now. Since there is an increasing use of know-how for school projects, 10 yr old kids will realize that plagiarism is a critical menace to their own work. We're not speaking about how YOU management expertise, we're speaking about how know-how controls YOU. The site distinguishes between published news items and people which can be upcoming.


text:
Is this proposed legislation good?
Look for some merchants to try to slip such a surcharge into their transactions. Is this a problem we should be addressing or at least discussing?
SPRINGFIELD - With the 98th General Assembly about to swing into full gear, State Rep. Barbara Wheeler (R-Crystal Lake) is looking towards consumer protection with her first ever piece of legislation aimed at credit card user fees.
"There are certainly signs that the economy is moving again; however, families are still weary of fee increases," Wheeler stated. "Even small savings can go a long way, and now is not the time to begin burdening families with increased fees, regardless of their size."
The measure, HB 977, seeks to make it unlawful for merchants to impose a surcharge on a consumer who elects to pay with a credit card. In July, an antitrust settlement between the major credit companies, Visa and MasterCard, and merchants will now allow retailers to charge a higher price for consumers who choose the "credit" option as opposed to the "debit" option when making purchases beginning on January 27 of this year. Prior to the settlement, merchants were only allowed to offer discounts to non-credit card purchases, not to charge a higher price to those paying with credit.
This bill marks the first piece of legislation introduced by Rep. Wheeler and is already receiving
support from many of her constituents.
Area business owner Pete Kalantzis, owner of Marzano's Wood Fired Italian Restaurant in McHenry, has already vowed not to charge customers. "Me personally, I will not charge my customers," Kalantzis stated. "Credit cards are a part of our cost of doing business. We are providing a service and we shouldn't be penalizing our customers for using credit cards."
"This is exactly why Rep. Wheeler will be an asset to the people of McHenry County," said Ed Donahue of the Law Office of Donahue and Walsh. "This is a common sense approach to an issue that affects everyone. I am the owner of a small business and credit card surcharges have always been a cost of doing business. I am also a consumer and this is a bill that protects the consumer."
Coach Tom Mitchell R.I.P.
Doctor probes teen on guns in the home
Medical people at Christ Hospital are now questioning children about whether their parents have guns at home. The answers are going into a database operated the Federal government. Now why does the Federal goverment want to know of a kids parents have guns? Is there anyone out there that thinks this is a good idea?
Read about this in today's John Kass column. Evidently, these types of questions are mandated by provisions contained within Obama care.
Chicago is Underwater
It's too early to tell but Richard M. Daley's malfeasance may have destroyed our city. He spent all of the money and didn't consider the possibility of an economic slowdown. If the city is to be saved and continue to exist as we know it, bitter medicine has to be taken.
Attention City of Chicago homeowners, employees and retirees. It looks like that side job you have been working for the last 20 years is going to become handy. That pension they kept talking about, that health care, that civic pride, that great tradition, that this, that that....................it was all just a bunch of wishful thinking. Read the full report and blame it on the management. Press Release
Pew Study Finds 61 Cities' Retirement Systems Face $217 Billion Gap
States' Fiscal Health
State Health Care Spending
Contact Brian Keegan 202.540.6677
Sixty-one key cities across America have emerged from the Great Recession with a gap of more than $217 billion between what they had promised their workers in pensions and retiree health care and what they had saved to pay that bill, according to a report released today by The Pew Charitable Trusts. The new report includes the most populous city in each state, plus all others with populations over 500,000.
For pensions, these cities had a shortfall of $99 billion in fiscal year 2009, the most recent year with complete data. The rest of the shortfall—$118 billion—was for retiree health care and other benefits. Because some cities are slow to report their results, a complete set of data was available only through fiscal year 2009. Over the long term, cities and states strengthen their fiscal position if they have policies that aim to fully fund their pension and retiree health care obligations.
Between 2007 and 2009, 16 cities consistently did well in funding their pensions, while nine cities underperformed. Wide disparities exist in how well prepared cities are to fulfill their pension obligations to employees. Milwaukee, Wisconsin had a surplus at the end of fiscal year 2009, with enough money to cover 113 percent of their liabilities. At the other end of the spectrum, pension systems in four cities—Charleston, West Virginia; Omaha, Nebraska; Portland, Oregon; and Providence, Rhode Island—were the most poorly funded, with Charleston trailing all the cities at 24 percent.
"Cities like Charlotte, Milwaukee, and San Francisco show that pension obligations can be met in a sustainable and affordable way that benefits employees and taxpayers," said David Draine, senior researcher at the Pew Center on the States. "On the other hand, rising costs for poorly funded pension systems can crowd out funding for other city priorities like roads and education, lead to tax increases, or threaten retirement benefits."
While investment losses during the Great Recession depleted cities' pension funds nearly across the board, the new Pew report found another factor made the difference between the best- and worst-funded pension systems.
"Having studied 61 cities and the 50 states, the better-funded plans all share one characteristic; they have the discipline to pay their annual pension bills," Draine said.
Nearly six out of 10 cities made at least 90 percent of their annual payments in all three years studied. Among those jurisdictions, pension funds weathered the recession better and their funding levels dropped only half as much as cities with poor funding habits.
How cities interact with their state can also have an influence on their pension system. For example, in Wilmington, Delaware, the six city-managed pension plans were on average 69 percent funded in 2010. In contrast, the pension fund managed by the state, which includes Wilmington police officers and firefighters hired since 1993, was 96 percent funded. Wilmington has since decided to enroll new general employees in the state-run plan.
However, in Louisville, Kentucky, most of its employees are enrolled in two state-run retirement plans. While the city consistently paid 100 percent or more of its required contribution in fiscal years 2007-2010, its pension savings kept losing ground because the state required cost of living adjustments without ensuring they would be funded. That mandate substantially contributed to the unfunded liability facing the city.
"When city leaders lack the authority to fix their underfunded pension systems, it can further strain budgets," said Draine. "Both city and state policymakers will need to work together to put these poorly funded plans back on a firm footing."
For pensions, the 16 best performing cities included in the Pew study are: Albuquerque, New Mexico; Baltimore, Maryland; Charlotte, North Carolina; Dallas, Texas; Denver, Colorado; Des Moines, Iowa; Los Angeles, California; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Salt Lake City, Utah; San Antonio, Texas; San Francisco, California; Seattle, Washington; Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Virginia Beach, Virginia; Washington, D.C.; Wichita, Kansas.
The nine worst performing cities included in the Pew study are: Charleston, West Virginia; Chicago, Illinois; Fargo, North Dakota; Jackson, Mississippi; Little Rock, Arkansas; New Orleans, Louisiana; Omaha, Nebraska; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Portland, Oregon.
Besides pensions, many localities also have promised health care, life insurance, and other non-pension benefits to their current and future retirees, but few have started saving to cover these long-term costs. As of 2009, only Los Angeles, California and Denver, Colorado had even half of the money needed to fulfill their promises to employees. Thirty-three cities had set aside nothing to pay for this bill coming due.
View the full report.
About the Methodology:
Researchers examined the retirement plans listed in each city's Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR). Principally from these documents, Pew collected the actuarial value of assets and liabilities for each defined benefit pension plan and other post-employment benefit plan that a city participated in for fiscal years 2007, 2008, and 2009. Because some cities are slow to report their results, a complete set of data was available only through fiscal year 2009. The report also includes 2010 data for 40 cities.
The Pew Charitable Trusts is a nonprofit organization that applies a rigorous, analytical approach to improve public policy, inform the public, and stimulate civic life.
After some thought, brought on by my recent retirement, I have decided to try using a new format for this blog. Instead of daily post(s) about something affecting us, I am going to post something of interest, less frequently. The something of interest will probably be an article about a subject which touches our neighborhood, either directly or indirectly. Something which has in the past or may in the future, affect the way of life that we have in the 19th ward.
I'm not going to be writing about falling trees, bake sales or the classes being offered by BAC (although all of those are important). Part of what I want to accomplish is to stimulate discussion about changes in society which are somehow being felt here. Some of these changes are well known and some of them are subtle. I think I am helping out the neighborhood by creating awareness. Also, I only have so much time in the day and I certainly don't want to spending it in front of a terminal.
As always, I will continue to invite serious discussion. Thank you for your support. Murph
Chicago Schools
CHICAGO'S LOSS OF 100K PUBLIC SCHOOL STUDENTS A HOPEFUL SIGN FOR FUTURE
Underneath the Chicago Teachers' Union outrage against proposed school closings is a note of optimism: parents are leaving inner city failing schools empty. There are 100,000 empty seats in a Chicago school system set up for 400,000 students.
How did the Chicago Public School system lose 100,000 students, forcing school closures to be considered? They "flew" through school choice to charter schools, private schools, home schools while the rest escaped to other cities, as well as Chicago's suburbs. Those especially ingenuitive parents saving their kids left behind a travesty in the form of crumbling buildings housing discouraged and down-trodden families. Those left - especially in Chicago's south and western neighborhoods - are now being ruled by gangland terrorists and drug dealers.
Despite community pressure to keep failing and deteriorating schools manned with union teachers and staffers, Chicago Public Schools' exhorbitant, burdensome costs on an exhausted taxpayer base are forcing demand for substantial budget cuts. Chicago teachers are opposed to any personnel cuts, and they're desperately looking for reasons to keep schools open.
EAG News points out the latest CTU tactic to keep schools open: it's too dangerous for students to go to new locations where they may be forced to cross gang territorial boundaries.
Instead of appropriately dealing with gang-related violence, an independent Chicago school closure commission is recommending no school closures because such a move could force students to cross gang lines.
So in Chicago, gang violence is the "new normal" and instead of combating and gaining some control over the problem, city leaders are simply accommodating it.
More on EAG News.
Still, think of those 100,000 students that have escaped Chicago school system's virtual prison and their persistent parents that pushed and pulled to get them out.
Good for them.
Quinn is a failure.
Never has so much been promised and so little delivered.
By Monique Garcia, Chicago Tribune reporter
Pension reform was supposed to be one of Gov. Pat Quinn's biggest accomplishments, an issue he proclaimed he was "put on Earth" to solve after the failure of "12 governors, 13 speakers of the House and 13 Senate presidents" before him.
If last week's result is any indication, fate may have other plans for Quinn. Instead of declaring victory after a yearlong push to overhaul the state's vastly indebted government worker pension system, the Democratic governor joined that same list of leaders who've been unable to bridge wide differences on the politically tricky issue.
Quinn chalked it up to "political timidity" by legislators unwilling to cast tough votes, and there's little doubt lawmakers share in the blame. But the governor's inability to win on several other high-profile issues he had championed before the lame-duck session, including gay marriage and an assault weapons ban, resurrected long-simmering questions about his leadership abilities.
His governing style is often puzzling: He declares deadlines for lawmakers to act, setting himself up for failure when the date comes and goes and nothing happens. He publicly switches positions multiple times on major issues, leaving his allies wondering if they can trust him. And he seems to lack the political skills of past Illinois governors who were able to get stakeholders in a room, find common ground and seal the deal.
"He's not constitutionally cut out, I don't think, to be a manager," said Charles N. Wheeler III, who teaches how to cover state government at the University of Illinois at Springfield. "He is more a rabble-rouser, a populist, a bomb thrower out there stirring the pot. But when it comes to actually figuring out how to get things done, that is not his strong suit."
Senate President John Cullerton, D-Chicago, put it more gently.
"It's not his strength, passing legislation in the General Assembly. You know that," said Cullerton, who credited Quinn for generally doing a good job. "He's never been in the General Assembly, but the four leaders have been here. We know how to pass bills."
But rescuing the pension system from $96.8 billion in debt presents a much larger challenge than passing your average bill. It's particularly tricky for ruling Democrats, many of whom campaigned on pension reform but risk angering public-sector union workers who traditionally have been key supporters.
Indeed, Quinn acknowledged that pension reform is likely the toughest vote lawmakers could face. In an interview with the Tribune on Friday, Quinn said he didn't view the latest inaction on the matter as a defeat, but rather a temporary pause in negotiations.
"I was a cross-country runner in high school, long distance. I was captain of the team, and sometimes you'd come to climbing a hill and you'd think, 'Well, down there is the finish line. No, it's another hill to climb.' That's sort of how I see this," said Quinn, who went to Fenwick High School in Oak Park. "We are going to prevail."
Quinn, however, was the one who set the finish line for pension reform, saying he wanted lawmakers to send him a bill before the session ended Wednesday. The governor also requested that lawmakers act to legalize gay marriage, pass an assault weapons ban, expand gambling and allow illegal immigrants to get driver's licenses. He prevailed only on the last issue.
He pointed to other legislative successes this year, saying few thought he would be able to win a major restructuring of the state's Medicaid health care program for the poor or persuade lawmakers to give up the oft-abused perk of legislative scholarships.
The governor bristled at suggestions that part of the reason he has yet to win pension reform is that he has no experience in the legislature. Despite serving as the state's chief executive, he proudly declares that he's "not an insider" and doesn't want to be one. Quinn said his job is to represent "the people back home" who want change, adding that he expects lawmakers to "put aside personal feelings and vote for the common good."
"Now there are governors who made deals before me, all right. They made deals to make this pension system worse. Let's face the facts," Quinn said. "Somebody ultimately has to step in and stop the merry-go-round and do what's right for the taxpayer."
Quinn also said that "sometimes the only way you get a law passed is you build up public pressure to get it done, and I think I'm good at doing that." Public pressure, outside of newspaper editorial boards, largely has been missing from the pension debate, however.
Quinn did launch an online campaign featuring a cartoon python named Squeezy. The snake was supposed to represent the "squeeze" the pension crisis is putting on the rest of the state budget but was instead mocked, including a satirical Twitter account and a Facebook fan page. That's a far cry from the support Quinn rallied decades ago when he persuaded people to send thousands of tea bags to government offices in protest of legislative pay increases.
Given that pension reform is a tough issue to get the public to rally around, lawmakers say Quinn must do more to convince the people who are doing the actual voting.
Senate Republican leader Christine Radogno, of Lemont, said it's clear that the governor is "well-intentioned" but said he needs to do more heavy lifting behind the scenes in order to reach a compromise. Radogno said one the biggest hurdles is getting Cullerton and House Speaker Michael Madigan to agree on a path forward.
"The governor's office is a powerful one, and he does have influence on members of both parties," Radogno said. "Right now part of the problem is that Democratic legislative leaders are not on the same page. It would be very helpful if he could help make an agreement there."
Madigan seemingly lifted one roadblock when he temporarily backed away from a proposal that would shift some of costs related to teacher pensions away from the state and onto suburban and downstate school districts.
It was not enough. While House lawmakers were scrambling to attract votes on a compromise, Cullerton stood by pension changes that had already passed the Senate, arguing that it was the only proposal that could pass a legal challenge. As a result, some House lawmakers said they wouldn't cast such a controversial vote if it had no future in the Senate.
Cullerton said he plans to pass similar legislation again after a new set of lawmakers were sworn in last week, but this time incorporate some ideas from House lawmakers. Quinn said the bill could be a vehicle forward but acknowledged there were still several hurdles to clear.
For his part, Quinn took several positions throughout the year on what he wanted out of a pension reform bill. At the end of May he sided with House Republicans, only to watch a bill go down to defeat in the Madigan-controlled chamber. By this month, Quinn simply said he wanted a bill that would deal with the pension shortfall.
The changing stances recalled Quinn's push for ethics reform after he took over for impeached ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich. Quinn hailed a watered-down measure as "landmark" before bowing to pressure and vetoing it. He eventually signed a reworked version. To Quinn, it shows he can be flexible. To lawmakers, it's taken as indecisiveness.
Rep. Elaine Nekritz, a Northbrook Democrat and key pension negotiator, said the governor should continue to focus on winning support one lawmaker at a time. Quinn held individual meetings with legislators when it looked like a vote was nearing last week.
Nekritz said she anticipates that when lawmakers begin crafting next year's budget and realize that tax revenues must be spent on the annual pension payment instead of schools, public safety and other priorities, movement might occur.
Quinn found a defender in former Republican Gov. Jim Edgar, who said people often expect too much from a governor, especially when cutting deals isn't as easy as it was in the past. Ethics reforms partly have done away with a system of patronage where governors used to be able to dole out jobs in exchange for votes, Edgar said. Quinn also can't rely on his own popularity — polls show his job approval is below 30 percent — to try to pressure lawmakers.
"That's the one thing a governor might have, and he doesn't have that," said Edgar, who credited Quinn for sticking his neck out on pensions. "At least in the eyes of the members, they are more popular in their districts than he is. So they are not as apt to follow his lead."
Quinn said he's not about to give up and is encouraged by the new crop of lawmakers, predicting they will set a progressive course not seen in the state's history.
As for the lumps he may take along the way, Quinn said he's used to it and is more concerned about the state's future than his own.
"If you're a political consultant who wants to take no risks, then you would not advise your client to take on pensions," said Quinn, who faces re-election in 2014. "But I believe that no-risk baseball is second division baseball. So we're going to be excellent."
Labels: Pension Abuse, Political
O'Shea can be counted on.
Alderman O'Shea should be applauded for his recent efforts to stop a developer from attempting to undermine the BHMP Historic District.
Is Lipinski Quiting?
Is this a trial balloon? He has been in office for 8 years. That is a long time. If so, who should replace him? We have plenty of talent in the 19th. Any names?
Filling the slot tends to be a special headache for Democratic presidents," Vatican
expert and papal biographer John Allen wrote in a column this week for the National Catholic Reporter.
Allen said Vatican diplomats have their sights set on a number of Catholic scholars and politicians, including an Illinoisan: U.S. Rep. Dan Lipinski, a socially conservative Democrat who opposes abortion rights and the health care mandate.
In an interview, Lipinski told the Tribune he has not been offered the job but would welcome consideration.
"Certainly I am honored with the suggestion that I would be a candidate," Lipinski said. "It's certainly, as a Catholic, something I'd be interested in considering."
The U.S. ambassador to the Holy See confers with the Vatican on matters of foreign policy. It also relies on the Vatican to emphasize common values in countries where the U.S. does not have as much influence, said Mark Lagon, a professor in Georgetown University'sSchool of Foreign Service.
Nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate, ambassadors report to the secretary of state. Beginning in 1933, several presidents tapped a liaison to the church in Rome, but the U.S. did not establish official diplomatic relations with the Vatican until 1984. Since then, the appointee has always been Catholic.
The nomination is especially challenging for Democratic presidents because of the party's difficult relationship with the Catholic hierarchy in recent times.
"The custom that it has to be a Catholic complicates things further because it's not just a candidate's policy positions that might cause problems, but his or her internal standing in the church," Allen wrote.
Six former U.S. ambassadors to the Vatican endorsed Republican Mitt Romney in the last election. One of them was Ray Flynn, the former Democratic mayor of Boston who was appointed by President Bill Clinton and knows firsthand that the nomination can cause friction.
"It takes a bit of a courageous act on the part of the president to appoint somebody that he disagrees with on some of these issues, as President Clinton disagreed with me," Flynn said. "You need someone who is going to be well-received, well-respected and at the same time is going to be loyal. Loyalty is the key word here — loyal to his church and loyal to the United States, and that can be done."
The ambassadorship vacancy was created when Miguel Diaz resigned in November to teach at the University of Dayton in Ohio. Obama broke ground in 2009 by appointing Diaz, the first Latino in the position. A Cuban-American theology professor, Diaz said he constantly reminded Vatican officials that he handled foreign policy, not domestic issues.
Politicians hate this but it may be the right thing to do.
A Tinley Park Village Board committee on Tuesday night approved forming a seven-member commission to study mandatory term limits for all elected officials.
The budget committee vote was in response to an advisory referendum in the Nov. 6 election in which residents overwhelmingly approved the idea — 16,808 votes in favor of term limits and 6,635 opposed.
Chicago Teachers Union President, Karen Lewis Jokes About Beheading The ...
A great example for the children! This chick is not a leader. She is a bomb thrower. Time for her to go.
"We are in a moment where the wealth disparity in this country is very reminiscent of the robber baron ages," Lewis said in the speech videotaped Dec. 2. "The labor leaders of that time, though, were ready to kill. They were. They were just — off with their heads. They were seriously talking about that." Laughter rose up from the audience then Lewis continued: "I don't think we're at that point. And that's scary to most people. But the key is they think nothing of killing us. They think nothing of putting our people in harm's way. They think nothing of lethal working conditions."
Fraud Pervades Chicago School Lunch Program
School Investigator: Widespread Fraud Pervades Chicago School Lunch Program « CBS Chicago
Go Irish, Bad Tide. Check out the video of the Irish in action.
A Catholic priest being arrested by ND campus police, for saying the Rosary! They didn't want to offend Obama.
Serious Catholics should not send their children there.
Below is a reprinted newspaper article.
Former Ambassador and Presidential Candidate Alan Keyes and Father Norman Weslin, found of the Pro-Life group Lambs of Christ walked on the campus of Notre Dame University on Friday with approximately fifteen others to pray the Rosary and witness to their opposition to the appearance of President Barack Obama at Sunday's commencement. Two hundred yards later they were stopped by police, arrested and taken away in handcuffs.
The actions of the Notre Dame police were taped and re-broadcast on the Internet just after the event took place.
Those arrested were part of a larger gathering of almost 50 people that met off campus. Police had already informed the group that they would be arrested if they stepped foot on Notre Dame property. Following talks by Randall Terry and others, the crowd prayed the Rosary, Then the smaller group walked on campus carrying a banner as they continued reciting the Rosary.
The group walked up the driveway on campus, while police, along with a group of reporters, photographers and videographers, waited for them with a van just a few hundred yards away. Dr. Keyes was one of the first arrested after one of the officers demanded they leave campus.
The encounter became more intense when police began to remove Father Norman Weslin, a former Army Colonel who became a priest after his wife died in a tragic automobile accident. In his 80's, Fr. Weslin is a familiar figure in the work of Pro-Life through Lambs of Christ.
The elderly priest was singing when he was handcuffed and taken to the ground and carried off on a stretcher.
This probably marks the first time in the history of the University when individuals have been arrested on campus for exercising their Catholic convictions and praying a prayer that has been recited in their chapel millions of times since its founding in 1842.
"Dems have a voracious appetite for more taxes"
The Dems used to be the party that cared about us. Somehow that has changed. Now they just want the money.
(CBS News) The debate over taxes on Capitol Hill "is over," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., insisted today on "Face the Nation," adding that House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi's, D-Calif., suggestion otherwise "underscores the voracious appetite for more taxes on the other side."
With a deal reached on the first of the year to avert the so-called "fiscal cliff," extending the Bush-era tax cuts for individuals earning less than $400,000 a year and couples making less than $450,000 a year, McConnell said, "the tax issue is over. We resolved that a few days ago."
Pelosi, who appeared on the program immediately before McConnell, argued the "cliff" package did not offer enough in terms of revenue, but implied that closing loopholes and deductions in the tax code was a more likely course going forward. Though McConnell agreed tax reform is "a good idea," he added, "now that we have resolved the revenue issue, tax reform ought to be revenue-neutral."
"Now it's time to pivot to the single biggest threat to our country, both in the short-term and the long-term... and that's reducing spending," McConnell said. "We now have a debt of $16.4 trillion. That's as big as our economy. That alone makes us look a lot like Greece. We have an incredible spending addiction. This administration has driven spending as a percentage of our economy from 21 percent up to almost 25 percent."
Asked if he agrees with Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, who in a Houston Chronicle op-ed Saturday said the GOP should be prepared to shut down parts of the government if they can't get to where they want to be on spending cuts in the coming negotiations over raising the debt ceiling, McConnell said "it shouldn't require doing any of these things," but indicated that if it comes to that, President Obama is to blame.
"We have a few opportunities here in the next few months presented to us by his request to raise the debt ceiling, by the sequester kicking in two months from now, by the continuing resolution to operate the government - plenty of opportunities to generate that discussion," he said. "But what's really disappointing to me is that the president isn't generating that discussion on his own; that he has to sort of be dragged kicking and screaming to the table when we have these other big issues like the debt ceiling to get him to talk about it. I wish he'd lead."
McConnell wouldn't go as far as to commit to the level of cuts being pushed by House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio - one dollar in spending reductions for every one dollar the debt ceiling is raised - but indicated such a demand could be used as "leverage" by Republicans.
"If the president won't lead us here, in the direction of reducing this massive spending addiction that we have," McConnell said, "then we have to use whatever leverage we have. And there are some examples of leverage coming along - the debt ceiling is one of them. That hopefully would get the president engaged, even though he seems unwilling to do it on his own."
As for other top-priority legislation, such as a review of gun laws and treatment for the mentally ill - issues Mr. Obama assured Americans after the tragedy in Newtown, Conn., would be handled immediately following his inauguration later this month - McConnell said it may fall to the backburner amid the continuing budget debates.
"Clearly we will not be addressing that issue early, because spending and debt are going to dominate the first three months," McConnell said. But when Vice President Joe Biden, appointed to lead a task force on the subject, does offers proposals, "I'm sure the House and Senate will take a look at them."
Labels: Political, Thoughts
NFL Roundup
1. Atlanta Falcons (13-3)
Wild Card Opponent: N/A, first-round bye
Potential Divisional Round Opponents: A Vikings' win guarantees that Atlanta hosts Minnesota. If Green Bay wins, Atlanta hosts the winner of Seattle-Washington.
2. San Francisco 49ers (11-4-1)
Potential Divisional Round Opponents: A Packers' win sends Green Bay to San Francisco. If the Vikings win, the 49ers would host either Seattle or Washington.
3. Green Bay Packers (11-5)
Wild Card Opponent: vs. Minnesota Vikings
Potential Divisional Round Opponents: A win Saturday means Green Bay heads to San Francisco. The Packers have no other divisional round scenario.
4. Washington Redskins (10-6)
Wild Card Opponent: vs. Seattle Seahawks
Potential Divisional Round Opponents: If the Packers and Redskins win, Washington heads to Atlanta. If the Vikings and Redskins win, Washington travels to San Francisco.
5. Seattle Seahawks (11-5)
Wild Card Opponent: at Washington Redskins
Potential Divisional Round Opponents: Seattle has the same scenario as Washington. The possibility exists for the Seahawks to play at either Atlanta or San Francisco, depending on the Vikings-Packers outcome.
6. Minnesota Vikings (10-6)
Wild Card Opponent: at Green Bay Packers
Potential Divisional Round Opponents: If the Vikings win Saturday, a trip to Atlanta awaits. No other advancing scenario exists for Minnesota.
American Football Conference (AFC)
Thomas B. Shea/Getty Images
1. Denver Broncos (13-3)
Potential Divisional Round Opponents: A Bengals' win sends Cincinnati to Denver. If the Texans win, the Broncos will face either the Ravens or Colts.
2. New England Patriots (12-4)
Potential Divisional Round Opponents: New England will host Houston with a Texans' win Saturday. A Bengals' win means a trip from either Baltimore or Indianapolis.
3. Houston Texans (12-4)
Wild Card Opponent: vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Potential Divisional Round Opponents: A win over Cincinnati sends Houston to New England. The Texans have no other advancing scenario.
4. Baltimore Ravens (10-6)
Wild Card Opponent: vs. Indianapolis Colts
Potential Divisional Round Opponents: Wins from Baltimore and Houston would send the Ravens to Denver. Wins from Baltimore and Cincinnati would send the Ravens to New England.
5. Indianapolis Colts (11-5)
Wild Card Opponent: at Baltimore Ravens
Potential Divisional Round Opponents: The Colts have an identical advancing scenario as Baltimore. A win could send Indianapolis to either Denver or New England, depending on the outcome of Texans-Bengals.
6. Cincinnati Bengals (10-6)
Wild Card Opponent: at Houston Texans
Potential Divisional Round Opponents: Beating the Texans Saturday guarantees a trip to Denver. The Bengals have no other advancing scenario.
Time to sit up and pay attention to what is going on around us!
HOBBY LOBBY CEO PENS LETTER ABOUT LOSS OF RELIGIOUS FREEDOM
The CEO of Hobby Lobby has penned a letter about the tragic loss of religious freedom and liberty in America. The Christian crafts company has been forced by the Obama administration to pay for drugs for its employees in their health care plan that may cause abortions.
Doing so violates the religious freedom of the founders and owners of Hobby Lobby, but the firm has, so far, been unsuccessful in getting courts to give it an exemption while its lawsuit against the HHS mandate continues.
The letter from Hobby Lobby CEO David Green that LifeNews received follows:
When my family and I started our company 40 years ago, we were working out of a garage on a $600 bank loan, assembling miniature picture frames. Our first retail store wasn't much bigger than most people's living rooms, but we had faith that we would succeed if we lived and worked according to God's word. From there, Hobby Lobby has become one of the nation's largest arts and crafts retailers, with more than 500 locations in 41 states. Our children grew up into fine business leaders, and today we run Hobby Lobby together, as a family.
We're Christians, and we run our business on Christian principles. I've always said that the first two goals of our business are (1) to run our business in harmony with God's laws, and (2) to focus on people more than money. And that's what we've tried to do. We close early so our employees can see their families at night. We keep our stores closed on Sundays, one of the week's biggest shopping days, so that our workers and their families can enjoy a day of rest. We believe that it is by God's grace that Hobby Lobby has endured, and he has blessed us and our employees. We've not only added jobs in a weak economy, we've raised wages for the past four years in a row. Our full-time employees start at 80% above minimum wage.
But now, our government threatens to change all of that. A new government health care mandate says that our family business MUST provide what I believe are abortion-causing drugs as part of our health insurance. Being Christians, we don't pay for drugs that might cause abortions, which means that we don't cover emergency contraception, the morning-after pill or the week-after pill. We believe doing so might end a life after the moment of conception, something that is contrary to our most important beliefs. It goes against the Biblical principles on which we have run this company since day one. If we refuse to comply, we could face $1.3 million PER DAY in government fines.
Our government threatens to fine job creators in a bad economy. Our government threatens to fine a company that's raised wages four years running. Our government threatens to fine a family for running its business according to its beliefs. It's not right. I know people will say we ought to follow the rules; that it's the same for everybody. But that's not true. The government has exempted thousands of companies from this mandate, for reasons of convenience or cost. But it won't exempt them for reasons of religious belief.
So, Hobby Lobby – and my family – are forced to make a choice. With great reluctance, we filed a lawsuit today, represented by the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, asking a federal court to stop this mandate before it hurts our business. We don't like to go running into court, but we no longer have a choice. We believe people are more important than the bottom line and that honoring God is more important than turning a profit.
More about the Gay Marriage bill.
THOMAS MORE SOCIETY WEIGHS IN ON ILLINOIS GAY MARRIAGE BILL
From Thomas More Society - a National Public Interest Law Firm -
Dear Member of the Illinois General Assembly:
We strongly encourage you to oppose the "Illinois Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act." From our experience protecting the constitutional rights of Illinois residents for over 15 years, we believe that this Act is both unnecessary and gravely harmful to religious liberty rights. In 2010, the General Assembly enacted a civil union law which provided the same rights and privileges to civil union couples as are enjoyed by married couples. Because of that civil union law, Illinois' same-sex civil union couples already have the same substantive legal rights as married couples do.
However, if you vote "yes" to the proposed same-sex marriage bill, you will harm your constituents in two primary ways:
1) You will declare your constituents who believe that marriage is a union of one man and one woman to be bigots and discriminators. You will further ensure that this declaration is reinforced through official government policy. For instance, as in other states, you may see public schools in your district instruct children, beginning in kindergarten, that (a) same-sex couples and same-sex sexual activity are the same as opposite-sex married couples and opposite-sex marital sexual activity or that (b) kids do not need both a mom and a dad – two moms or two dads are just as good. Parents in your district who disagree have no right under law to opt their young children out of this kind of instruction.
2) You will strip away the meager religious liberty protections of the 2010 civil union law, as these protections are not included in the 2013 same-sex marriage bill. These religious liberty protections currently provide explicit shelter to Catholic Charities and other faith-based adoption agencies in providing private adoptions. These protections also shelter Evangelical, Catholic, and other faith-based organizations, including hospitals and schools, from being charged with Illinois Human Rights Act violations when they follow their beliefs on marriage in employment, facilities rental, and other decisions. Penalties for violating the Human Rights Act include fines, injunctions, and other penalties intended to force acceptance of same-sex unions.
What benefit would a "yes" vote provide to same-sex couples? The mere changing of a title of a license – such that the license for most same-sex unions would now read "marriage license" instead of "civil union license." And, if the example of other states holds true here, the words "Husband" and "Wife" would be stricken from marriage licenses in favor of "Party A" and "Party B." Again, a "yes" vote on same sex marriage would not grant a single additional substantive legal right to any homosexual couple in Illinois.
However, there are likely more grave harms, yet unknown in type and intensity, that will afflict your constituents who are faithful Catholics, Evangelical Christians, Missouri Synod Lutherans, Muslims, Mormons, and Orthodox Jews. The harms listed above are only the likely harms foreseeable in the short-term.
The harms noted above do not begin to address the suffering of your constituents who must participate in and support same-sex unions: small bed & breakfast owners who would be forced to rent out their home for same-sex wedding weekends; solo photographers who would be forced to spend hours photographing and designing albums for same-sex wedding ceremonies that they believe to be sinful; family catering company owners being forced to prepare, feed, serve, and support same-sex wedding receptions, even though the family members oppose those receptions with every fiber of their being. In other states, such businesses have been fined and subject to injunctions, some even permanently shutting down to avoid legal penalty.
A "yes" vote will inflict these harms, all for the sake of giving the title "married" to some number of the fewer than 1% of Illinois households headed by same-sex couples.
This morning, several amendments that purport to protect religious liberty were rushed through that made the bill worse, not better. The alleged "protection" for religious hiring is so weak that it wouldn't protect Catholic and Christian grade schools from being forced to hire teachers in same-sex marriages. The section on facilities rental wouldn't protect most parish halls and Knights of Columbus halls from being enlisted into service for same-sex wedding ceremonies, since many of those halls are not used "primarily ... for worship or religious purposes." The section defining "religious organizations" wouldn't protect Catholic hospitals and healthcare facilities, Catholic Charities, the Knights of Columbus, and other religious service and fraternal organizations. Only time will tell whether organizations would be forced to shut down or significantly reduce their ministries in order to avoid the reach of the "Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act." Of course, none of this morning's amendments even acknowledge the conscience issues faced by people of faith who are forced into participating in these ceremonies.
Titling this measure, "Religious Freedom," is an insult to people of faith – your constituents who go to church weekly, quietly serve their community, and merely ask to be allowed to live out their faith in their daily lives.
Our national motto, E Pluribus Unum, teaches us that while we are one nation, we are a union of many folks of different races, colors, and creeds. Thus we teach tolerance as a solvent that melds us together in a shared political community in spite of our differences. This measure, however, that purports to foster tolerance, swings the pendulum so far as to epitomize intolerance, forcing a vast segment of society to act at odds with their conscience and to behave in ways that offend their fundamental beliefs about right and wrong. In the name of tolerance, then, this bill must be rejected.
Thomas Brejcha
President & Chief Counsel
Peter Breen
Executive Director & Legal Counsel
Labels: Catholic Church, Thoughts
"Same-sex Marriage:" What do Nature and Nature's God say?
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
The Illinois General Assembly is being asked to consider a bill called "The Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act." This is a deceptive title that ignores basic truths.
Marriage comes to us from nature. The human species comes in two complementary sexes, male and female. Their sexual union is called marital. It not only creates a place of love for two adults but also a home for loving and raising their children. It provides the biological basis for personal identity.
It is physically impossible for two men or two women to consummate a marriage, even when they share a deep friendship or love. Does this mean nature is cruel or that God is unfair? No, but it does mean that marriage is what nature tells us it is and that the State cannot change natural marriage. Civil laws that establish "same-sex marriage" create a legal fiction. The State has no power to create something that nature itself tells us is impossible.
Neither did the Church create marriage. The Church asks if a man and woman proposing to marry are mature, responsible and free, willing to commit themselves to one another before the Lord in the presence of the community of the faithful to a lifelong relationship of fidelity to one another and openness to the creation and care for new life in their children. Christ raised marital union to the dignity of a sacrament, giving it significance beyond that given it by nature; but, like the State, the Church cannot change the natural basis of marriage. Does this mean that the Church is anti-gay? No, for the Church welcomes everyone, respects each one personally and gives to each the spiritual means necessary to convert to God's ways and maintain friendship with Christ.
The Catholic Church in the Archdiocese of Chicago has consistently condemned violence toward or hatred of homosexually oriented men and women. Good pastoral practice encourages families to accept all their children and not break relationships with them.
The Archdiocese offers Mass and other spiritual help to those who live their homosexuality anonymously (Courage groups) and also to those who want to be publicly part of the gay community (AGLO, which celebrates its twenty fifth anniversary this year). People live out their sexual identity in different ways, but the Church offers the means to live chastely in all circumstances, as the love of God both obliges and makes possible.
Should the lame duck legislature or the new Assembly take up the passage of a "same-sex marriage" law, it will be acting against the common good of society. We will all have to pretend to accept something that is contrary to the common sense of the human race.
Those who continue to distinguish between genuine marital union and same sex arrangements will be regarded in law as discriminatory, the equivalent of bigots. This proposed legislation will have long term consequences because laws teach; they tell us what is socially acceptable and what is not, and most people conform to the dictates of their respective society, at least in the short run.
What happens next? If we ignore in law the natural complementary of man and woman in creation, then the natural family is undermined. Our individual lives become artificial constructs protected by civil "rights" that destroy natural rights. Human dignity and human rights are then reduced to the whims of political majorities. When the ways of nature and nature's God conflict with civil law, society is in danger. It is to that danger that we direct your attention.
We urge you to visit www.ilcatholic.org to stay updated on the effort to redefine marriage in our state and to find information on how to contact your state legislator.
Pray for our State.
Cardinal Francis George, O.M.I. Bishop Francis J. Kane
Bishop John R. Manz
Bishop Joseph N. Perry
Bishop George J. Rassas Bishop Alberto Rojas Bishop Andrew P. Wypych
A classic lack of leadership.
REPUBLICANS CAVE BIG TIME--NOT ONE DIME IN CUTS
They don't call US Senate Republicans the stupid party for nothing. If they take the latest deal from Harry Reid, not a single dime of spending will be cut now or ever in the future. If Tea Party Republicans in the House go for this horrible deal, even with a modest compromise from Democrats on tax rates, John Boehner has failed as a GOP leader if the House approves.
Never in the future will any Congress or any president of either existing party cut any spending at all until the government is forced into bankruptcy.


text:
The 10 Best Sci-Fi Movies That Were Before Their Time
December 22, 2022 efvxk 0 Comments
The science fiction genre usually imagines alternate futures made possible by technological advancements. Science fiction has been around for a long time and has been one of the most popular film genres for decades. In addition, science fiction stories can challenge the odds by revealing events both far away and close to home.
RELATED: The 10 best sci-fi novels of the last 10 years, according to Reddit
Regardless of when some of the science fiction films were produced, they somehow retain a highly futuristic sensibility that can only be understood in the future. These sci-fi movies represent the future, whether in terms of filmmaking, story, or overall plot.
V for Vendetta It's a sci-fi political action film set in a dystopian future society in Britain, and it's still going strong masked freedom fighter known as V (Hugo Weaving) a young woman involved in complex terrorist operations to start a revolution and become embroiled in V's mission. Natalie Portman.
Pandemic, famine and war destroyed England in the movie can remind viewers of our sad reality. V for Vendetta it also demonstrates that in 2020, it is no longer science fiction, but reality, with its blatant and brutal attacks on democracy. Although not relevant at the time of its release, due to its short and visionary structure as well as its dialogue, V for Vendetta more suited to the modern world.
Matrix It's set in a dystopian future where humanity has accidentally been imprisoned inside the Matrix, a virtual reality designed by artificial intelligence to keep people off guard while using them as a power source. The film follows Thomas Anderson (Keanu Reeves), a computer programmer who goes by the hacker identity "Neo", joins others escaping the Matrix as they learn the truth and rebel against the machines.
Today, we witness the wonders of artificial intelligence, but a 1999 film foreshadowed its dangers with its vivid portrayal of intelligence. The Wachowskis sistersas well as writers V for Vendetta scenario. In essence, The Matrix acts as a gateway to escape reality, constantly reminding viewers that they are actually living in a time where social media and VR technologies are slowly taking over the world, and the fear of being killed and controlled.
RELATED: 10 Great Movie Teaser Trailers That Reveal Almost Nothing About The Movie
Blade Runner It takes place in the dystopian Los Angeles of 2019, where the powerful Tyrell Corporation has created replicants, or synthetic humans, to work in space colonies. The film tells the story of burnt-out cop Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford) who willingly agrees to follow a fugitive crew of advanced replicants as they flee back to Earth.
One of the reasons Blade Runner ahead of its time by exploring the idea of a grim future for Earth, unusual at the time. In addition, he describes an analysis of corporatism and predicts that private industry will become more involved in politics and the pervasive culture of surveillance that prevails in society today.
RELATED: From 'Blade Runner' to 'Back to the Future': 10 Sci-Fi Movies and Shows That Try to Predict the Future
Ex Machina centers on programmer Caleb Smith (Domhnall Gleeson), who won a contest to spend a week at a secluded mountain resort owned by NathanOscar Isaac), sole CEO of the company. It must have the world's first true artificial intelligence, embodied in the form of an amazing robotic female in a strange and interesting experiment.
The main takeaway from the film is that self-serving and manipulative behavior is a better indicator of true AI than effectively replicating a conscious human and bringing the issue to the public's true attention. In addition, it describes and how quickly the barrier between humans and artificial intelligence can be crossed if AI continues to be carelessly exploited.
RELATED: 7 References in 'Ex Machina' You May Have Missed
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
2001: A Space Odyssey a Stanley Kubrick a film about an expedition to Jupiter by astronauts, explorers and the autonomous supercomputer HAL to view an alien monolith.
One of many reasons 2001 is way ahead of its time, as many of the technologies in the film, including tablets, video calls, and spacesuits, hadn't even been invented at the time of publication. In addition, the status of women in the workplace is predicted 2001 foreshadows the position of women in higher ranks and more important functions in the modern world.
Metropolis (1927)
Metropolis is a German expressionist sci-fi drama film set in a futuristic urban dystopia. The film follows Maria (Brigitte Helm), a sacred figure for workers, and Freder (Gustav Fröhlich), the wealthy son of a town master, are trying to bridge the great class gap in their town.
The fictional city's expansive skyline and architecture are also decades ahead of their time in terms of production, and continue to inspire awe and grandeur nearly 100 years after the film's release. The film's cinematography also features time-tested visuals with camerawork and lighting that make for beautiful shots. we would compare favorably with most of what we see now.
RELATED: A history of women produced in science fiction
Her (2013)
His Follows Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix), a loner (voiced) who bonds with Samantha in the final stages of a divorce. Scarlett Johansson) an artificially intelligent and female-voiced virtual assistant.
His He anticipated the lightning-fast developments in artificial intelligence, which had already begun to affect our daily lives long before their time. In addition, the film criticizes the naive trust in artificial intelligence and the unpleasant reality of human exploitation of them. It also describes the sad reality of people spending too much time online and gradually replacing virtual interactions with real ones.
Ready Player One (2018)
A ready player is set in 2045, where most people use a virtual reality simulation called the OASIS to escape reality. The film is about an orphaned teenager (Tye Sheridan) that reveals clues leading to a contest where the prize is owned by the OASIS, so he and his friends try to finish it before a rogue corporation.
A ready player It is gradually becoming a reality due to the expansion of the Metaverse and the increase in people buying virtual homes as well as the need to relocate virtually. Furthermore, he decries realistic interaction with people's dependence on it, and the harsh reality of VR technology that is slowly displacing life. Although the film is new, it predicts what will happen if we humans allow technology to dominate our lives in the near future.
RELATED:10 Best Semi-Autobiographical Movies to Watch Before The Fables
Star Wars: A New Hope (1977)
Star Wars: A New Hope is the first film of Star Wars original trilogy created by George Lucas. It takes place in a fictional universe long ago, where the oppressive Galactic Empire ruled the galaxy. The film focuses on the Rebel Alliance, a group of liberation fighters on a mission to destroy the Empire's newest weapon, the Death Star.
New Hope may have been one of the first films of its time to successfully combine different film genres, making it way ahead of its time. The bar has been raised for all future films combining advanced techniques and technologies with existing ones.
Alien (1979)
Alienbased on a story Dan O'Bannon and Ronald Shusettfollows the crew of the commercial space tug Nostromo, who encounter an angry and deadly alien after discovering a mysteriously abandoned spacecraft on an uncharted moon.
The film's release in 1979 was met with mixed reviews by critics, but audiences today find it very relevant for its deft pacing and realistic portrayal of working-class space crew. In addition, AlienWhat makes it so forward-looking is the shift in attitude from one that embraces high-spirited, science fiction to a wary, fearful future distorted by the instability of technology and evolution.
NEXT:10 Movies Fans Don't Realize Are Science Fiction
← Rivian adds snow mode just in time for winter
The biomass plant that powers Fort Drum will close in March →


text:
Q: float number leading and trailing zeros format I have a float number ranging from 0.001 up to 999.999
The question: how I can format all the range numbers like this:
0.001 becomes 000.001
0.002 becomes 000.002
0.2 becomes 000.200
1.001 becoes 001.001
9.090 becomes 009.090
99.100 becomes 099.100
Thanks

A: Please inspect documentation of of stream manipulators.
There couple tools which will let you do it:
    while (std::cin >> x) {
        std::cout
            << std::setfill('0') << std::setw(7)
            << std::fixed << std::setprecision(3)
            << x << '\n';
    }

*

*std::fixed forces fixed format (decimal separator in same place)

*std::setprecision(3) defines how many digits should be after a decimal separator.

*std::setw(7) - defines minimum space number should occupy

*std::setfill('0') defines what should be used to fill extra space introduced by std::setw(7).

https://godbolt.org/z/zf6q8n97r
Extra note:
C++20 introduces nice type safe and clean equivalent of printf from C: format, but there is no compiler which already supports that.

A: With std::printf:
#include <cstdio>

int main(void)
{
    float f = 99.01f;
    std::printf("%07.03f", f);
}

07 specifies that if the number takes up less space than 7 characters it'll be padded with leading 0s while 03 specifies that the if the numbers after the decimal point take up less space than 3 characters then it'll be padded with trailing 0s.
As of C++20 you can use similar formatting in std::format:
std::cout << std::format("{:07.03f}", f);

A: use std stream formatters from iomanip.
Stop using printf : Why not use printf() in C++
#include <iostream>
#include <iomanip>
#include <vector>

int main()
{
    std::vector<double> values{ 0.001, 0.002, 0.2, 1.001, 9.090, 99.100 };

    for (const auto value : values)
    {
        std::cout << std::fixed;
        std::cout << std::setprecision(3);
        std::cout << std::setfill('0') << std::setw(7);
        std::cout << value << std::endl;
    }

    return 0;
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
The Municipal Stadium of Braga () is an all-seater football stadium located in Braga, Portugal, and the current home  of Sporting Clube de Braga. It has a capacity of 30,286 spectators, making it the seventh largest football stadium in Portugal. The stadium was designed by Portuguese architect Eduardo Souto de Moura who was awarded the Pritzker Architecture Prize in part for this design.

Also known as A Pedreira (The Quarry), for being carved into the side of a mountain, the stadium was built in 2003 as a venue for the UEFA Euro 2004.

History

The project to build a stadium was developed in 2000 by architect Eduardo Souto Moura.  On 5 June, the program to build the new municipal stadium for the European championships in 2004 began, promoted by the municipal council of Braga. Between 2002 and 2003, the municipal stadium was built. The enormous rock moving process contributed heavily to the final €83.1 million cost, the fourth most expensive of the ten new stadia built for Euro 2004, after Estádio da Luz (capacity: 64,642) and Estádio José Alvalade (capacity: 50,095), both in Lisbon, and Estádio do Dragão (capacity: 50,033) in Porto. A football game between Sporting Braga and Celta Vigo inaugurated the opening of the stadium on 30 December 2003.

The stadium became a UEFA-approved site to host the UEFA Europa League final, as well as participation in the elite competition for Europe's top clubs, the UEFA Champions League. During the UEFA European Championship in 2004, it was the site of various matches including: the 13th game, between Group C teams Bulgaria and Denmark (18 June 2004) and the 23rd match between Group D teams Netherlands and Latvia (22 June 2004). This match marked the stadium's last event during the UEFA championship in 2004, even as in October of the same year, the public work along the Avenida do Estádio was concluded.

On 27 January 2005, a dispatch was opened by the president of the IPPAR to classify the stadium as a national patrimony. In the same year, Eduardo Souto Moura received the Secil Prize from Portuguese President Jorge Sampaio, for his work on the municipal stadium. It was followed six years later by the Pritzker Prize. In 2006 the stadium won the Chicago Athenaeum International Architecture Award for the best new global design. A Financial Times article on Britain's stadia referred to the municipal stadium as one of the four examples of "beautiful grounds", noting that: "There has been nothing in this country to match the architectural delight of Eduardo Souto de Moura's stadium for Braga in Portugal, a breathtaking arena carved into the side of a rock face on the site of a former quarry."

As the principal tenant, Sporting Braga paid monthly rent of  for the use of the stadium. In July 2007, Sporting Braga announced a three-year sponsorship deal with French insurance company AXA, which included a promotional change to the name of the municipal stadium by the club. Following this agreement, promoters and team officials began to refer to the municipal stadium of Braga as the Estádio AXA (AXA Stadium). However, the municipality (as landlord) clarified that the stadium had not been officially renamed, as this was a deal between its tenant and its partner. On 23 October 2009, the process to classify the stadium ran out, under terms of article 78 (decree 309/2009), but was prorogued on 23 October.

Architecture

The stadium is situated in an isolated, urban area on the north flank of Monte do Castro, in the sporting park of Dume. The stadium was carved from the Monte do Castro quarry that overlooked Braga; stands were constructed on either side of the pitch, while one of the goal backdrops was carved from the rock walls of the quarry. The opposite goal backdrop is dominated by the city sprawl. Each stand is covered with a canopy-style roof and connected by dozens of steel strings, a design inspired by ancient South American Incan bridges. Movement between stands is accomplished through a  plaza under the pitch.

Events
 The stadium plaza held the Minho Campus Party, a LAN party, in 2004.
 The Corrs performed at the stadium in 2004 on their Borrowed Heaven Tour.
 The outskirts of the stadium annually host the "Enterro da Gata", a university festival that celebrates the end of the school year with multiple concerts and festivities, organized by the University of Minho.

2004 European Championship

The stadium hosted two Euro 2004 group stage matches, Bulgaria vs. Denmark and Netherlands vs. Latvia.

Portugal National Team
The following national team matches were held in the stadium.

References

Notes

Sources

External links

 Braga stadium design page on WorldStadiums.com (with photographs)
 afaconsult: Engineering design firm of the Braga Municipal Stadium
 Stadium Guide Article

Estadio Municipal de Braga
Estadio Municipal de Braga
Sports venues in Braga District
Football venues in Portugal
Estadio Municipal de Braga
UEFA Euro 2004 stadiums
Sports venues completed in 2003
Estadio Municipal de Braga
Estdio Municipal de Braga
Estdio Municipal de Braga

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


This week we released our Pipedrive 2.0 integration for Zendesk, which makes it even more easier to manage sales activities directly from Zendesk with just a few clicks. Go grab the new version at Zendesk Marketplace right here.
So with this new Pipedrive 2.0 integration for Zendesk you'll be sure to never miss a deal again. It is the ultimate timesaver if you're using both Zendesk and Pipedrive.
This Pipedrive 2.0 release is special for us, since Pipedrive 1.0 actually was the very first app that we launched in Zendesk Marketplace. Working with apps for Zendesk has opened up a new area for us. We're all about helping companies achieving an effortless digital customer experience and making apps for Zendesk is going very along with that vision, so it was definitely the right call.
A lot of water has gone under the bridge since then and we have released 3 other apps, hired a bunch of awesome people and just moved in to new offices due to our rapid growth.
At helphouse.io we have the house full of experts that can give you the right guidance to get the full potential out of Zendesk help desk. We're working with some of the biggest brands on improving their customer service and can for sure help yours too.


IndexedDB is not supported in your browser.
You could try using the polyfill for IndexedDB API. I have not yet added the polyfill to this performance analysis.
Error! Could not save results to Browserscope. This could be due to a missing _bTestKey in the test.
Error! Could not load results from Browserscope. This could be due to a missing _bTestKey in the test.
Longer graphs imply faster operations. X axis is operations per second. Uses BenchmarkJs.