text:
Texas 9th Grader Arrested For Building A Clock
A Texas 9th Grader named Ahmed Mohammed was arrested because school officials and police refused to believe that the clock he built wasn't a bomb.
Doug Mataconis · Wednesday, September 16, 2015 · 75 comments
A Ninth Grade student in Texas was arrested and placed in handcuffs for building a clock:
IRVING — Ahmed Mohamed — who makes his own radios and repairs his own go-kart — hoped to impress his teachers when he brought a homemade clock to MacArthur High on Monday.
Instead, the school phoned police about Ahmed's circuit-stuffed pencil case.
So the 14-year-old missed the student council meeting and took a trip in handcuffs to juvenile detention. His clock now sits in an evidence room. Police say they may yet charge him with making a hoax bomb — though they acknowledge he told everyone who would listen that it's a clock.
So he decided to do what he's always done: He built something.
Ahmed's clock was hardly his most elaborate creation. He said he threw it together in about 20 minutes before bedtime on Sunday: a circuit board and power supply wired to a digital display, all strapped inside a case with a tiger hologram on the front.
He showed it to his engineering teacher first thing Monday morning and didn't get quite the reaction he'd hoped for.
"He was like, 'That's really nice,'" Ahmed said. "'I would advise you not to show any other teachers.'"
He kept the clock inside his school bag in English class, but the teacher complained when the alarm beeped in the middle of a lesson. Ahmed brought his invention up to show her afterward.
"She was like, it looks like a bomb," he said.
"I told her, 'It doesn't look like a bomb to me.'"
The teacher kept the clock. When the principal and a police officer pulled Ahmed out of sixth period, he suspected he wouldn't get it back.
They led Ahmed into a room where four other police officers waited. He said an officer he'd never seen before leaned back in his chair and remarked: "Yup. That's who I thought it was."
Ahmed felt suddenly conscious of his brown skin and his name — one of the most common in the Muslim religion. But the police kept him busy with questions.
The bell rang at least twice, he said, while the officers searched his belongings and questioned his intentions. The principal threatened to expel him if he didn't make a written statement, he said.
"They were like, 'So you tried to make a bomb?'" Ahmed said.
"I told them no, I was trying to make a clock."
"He said, 'It looks like a movie bomb to me.'"
Ahmed never claimed his device was anything but a clock, said police spokesman James McLellan. And police have no reason to think it was dangerous. But officers still didn't believe Ahmed was giving them the whole story.
meantime, Ahmed's been suspended, his father is upset and the Council on American-Islamic Relations is once again eyeing claims of Islamophobia in Irving.
A box full of circuit boards sits at the foot of Ahmed's small bed in central Irving. His door marks the border where the Mohamed family's cramped but lavishly decorated house begins to look like the back room at RadioShack.
"Here in high school, none of the teachers know what I can do," Ahmed said, fiddling with a cable while a soldering iron dangled from the shelf behind him.
He loved robotics club in middle school and was searching for a similar niche in his first few weeks of high school.
"We have no information that he claimed it was a bomb," McLellan said. "He kept maintaining it was a clock, but there was no broader explanation."
Asked what broader explanation the boy could have given, the spokesman explained:
"It could reasonably be mistaken as a device if left in a bathroom or under a car. The concern was, what was this thing built for? Do we take him into custody?"
Police led Ahmed out of MacArthur about 3 p.m., his hands cuffed behind him and an officer on each arm. A few students gaped in the halls. He remembers the shocked expression of his student counselor — the one "who knows I'm a good boy."
Ahmed was spared the inside of a cell. The police sent him out of the juvenile detention center to meet his parents shortly after taking his fingerprints.
They're still investigating the case, and Ahmed hasn't been back to school. His family said the principal suspended him for three days.
"They thought, 'How could someone like this build something like this unless it's a threat?'" Ahmed said.
Here's a video where Ahmed describes what happened:
The school district has also sent home a letter to parents about the incident:
@jkfecke @IrvingISD Unbelievable.
— Bruno J. Navarro (@Bruno_J_Navarro) September 16, 2015
There's a more readable version of the letter here.
On the surface, this is yet another example of the paranoia that has enveloped society in general and public education in particular regarding potential threats from students. Ever since the Columbine shooting in 1999 and everything that has followed it, schools have increasingly adopted so-called "zero tolerance" policies aimed at anything that even remotely suggests the idea of violence. This has led to extreme absurdities that have been reported in the media over the years, such as schoolchildren being disciplined for playing a schoolyard game and using their fingers as simulated guns, and even a child who was reprimanded for shaping a Pop-Tart into something allegedly resembling a gun. In almost none of these cases have these policies ever actually prevented a violent attack or uncovered a threat that authorities otherwise would not have been aware of. Indeed, most of the successful attacks in schools that have occurred have been situations where there had been no warning at all that the perpetrator would become violent. Additionally, statistics make clear that schools are actually safer today than they ever have been in that reported violence or attempted violence is at an all-time low compared to other times in the past. Proponents of the "Zero Tolerance" policies will claim, obviously, that the increase in school safety is attributable to those policies, but there's simply no evidence to support that. More importantly, notwithstanding the fact that schools are safer, the rhetoric from school districts, law enforcement, and the media leads one to believe that they are in fact more dangerous than ever before. This leads to paranoia on all fronts, and precisely the kind of absurd situations that would have been dismissed as nothing to worry about decades ago. In this case, it led to a 9th grader with an interest in robotics being treated as a criminal and a terrorist even though there was no evidence that the device he had in his backpack was anything other than what he claimed it would be.
The fact that student's name in this case is Ahmed Mohammad, and that his family is Muslim, of course, points to another source of paranoia in modern society. In the fourteen years since the September 11th attacks, there have been numerous instances of law-abiding Muslim-Americans and Muslim immigrants being harassed by members of the public and by law enforcement. Just a few days before the 14th anniversary of the attacks, a Sikh-American was attacked in Chicago by a group of white men who called him a terrorist and told him "go back to your country," notwithstanding the fact that Sikhs aren't even Muslim to begin with. According to one report of the incident involving Mohammed, one of the police officers who arrived at his school said "Yup. That's who I thought it was." If Ahmed Mohammed had instead been named Davey Smith, how likely is it that the police would not have believed his explanation that he had built a clock, and how likely is it that they would have detained him for hours without contacting his parents, which may well be a violation of his rights? How likely is it that they would have then led him away from the school in handcuffs in front his teachers, staff, and his fellow students? I would suggest that it would have been incredibly unlikely, and that at the most the young boy's parents would have been contacted and brought to the school to discuss the matter.
There is no justification for how this kid was treated. At the most, perhaps, he should have been admonished over bringing something to school from home that wasn't part of an authorized school project. He should not have been treated as a criminal, and the fact that he was demonstrates that there is a lot wrong with the way schools handle students and with how law enforcement deals with people with Muslim names.
Update: President Obama had this message for Ahmed:
Cool clock, Ahmed. Want to bring it to the White House? We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It's what makes America great.
— President Obama (@POTUS) September 16, 2015
Photo via The Dallas Morning News
FILED UNDER: Education, Law and the Courts, Terrorism, US Politics
About Doug Mataconis
Doug Mataconis held a B.A. in Political Science from Rutgers University and J.D. from George Mason University School of Law. He joined the staff of OTB in May 2010 and contributed a staggering 16,483 posts before his retirement in January 2020. He passed for too young in July 2021.
C. Clavin says:
Wednesday, 16 September 2015 at 12:00
15 kids named Bob Smith could have done the same thing and not been bothered.
Why, oh why, won't Texas secede?
LaMont says:
The "great" state of Texas does it again!
On a more serious note, this is really unbelievable. It reads like something out of the Onion!
Modulo Myself says:
This is more about pure abject racism and cruelty than paranoia. Nobody thought this kid was building a bomb. They saw who he was and decided to mess him up. Nobody thinks a dark-skinned guy walking down the street and attacks him while thinking 'terrorist'.
It's pretty clear to me that white people in general are content to entertain the notion that prejudice is a fact-based system gone terribly awry. As if there was an honest concern with Texas cops and principals and Chicago mobs about security which we can all understand.
humanoid.panda says:
@C. Clavin:
Yeah, I am sure his family would be better off if the Texas seceded!
Seriously, this whole "the US would be a utopia if only the mean parts seceded" is a) self-congratulatory to the point of vomitousness, and b) ignores that even in the reddest state Democrats and non-voters and people who vote GOP but are not caricatures, are the vast majority.
OzarkHillbilly says:
Do I need a Concealed Carry permit for my pocket watch?
Ron Beasley says:
This is Texas after all http://www.duffelblog.com/2015/09/jade-helm-observers-unsure-tactical-shit-now/?utm_source=DuffelBlog.com+fans&utm_campaign=35e454dde1-Duffel_Blog_Daily&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6d392bc034-35e454dde1-23782809&goal=0_6d392bc034-35e454dde1-23782809&mc_cid=35e454dde1&mc_eid=b6d52c150e. The rest of us should insist the succeed from the United States..
On another note, there are a bunch of yahoos running around Texas with loaded weapons, fondling them in public because, they say, something bad might happen and they have to be prepared… And then a 14 yr old brings a clock to school and they all wet their pants. I'm surprised nobody shot him.
Texas, land of the armed, home of the scarredy cats.
PS: more snark, "You can have my clock when you pry it from my cold dead hands."
"If you outlaw clocks, only outlaws will know what time it is."
"The only thing that can stop a bad man with a clock is a good man with a watch."
I have to go to town today, I think I am going to strap a clock on my belt.
Clinton:
Assumptions and fear don't keep us safe—they hold us back. Ahmed, stay curious and keep building.
@humanoid.panda:
ignores that even in the reddest state Democrats and non-voters and people who vote GOP but are not caricatures, are the vast majority.
The fact of SENATOR Ted Cruz says otherwise
"the US would be a utopia if only the mean parts seceded"
Straw man much?
Please remember that Republican caricatures are the ones fighting for secession.
On the flip side…I'm sure there are reasonable moderate Republicans….somewhere.
J-Dub says:
When The Onion and reality converge, does that signal the end is nigh?
This is the world as envisioned by modern day Republicans. They own this.
When will the Mars Colony be ready? I'm ready to leave.
An Interested Party says:
This is quite disgusting…a real example of our post-racial society, eh? Those involved should pay for this travesty, but of course they probably won't…hopefully the family sues the school district and the police and gets a lot of money…
@Ron Beasley: Ron, you do know that Duffel Blog is the Onion for the military set? I've been on their distro for years. Frequently funny, scathing, amateurish, scatological. It's worth dipping into every now and then.
There are so many things wrong with this episode besides the obvious that is discussed here.
The indifference of the engineering teacher: Why would he tell the kid not to show it any other teacher?
If the administration believed it could be a bomb, why was the school not evacuated immediately? Why was a bomb squad not called?
I wonder if the police were School District police; not always the sharpest.
I sincerely hope a bunch of these idiots get fired.
gVOR08 says:
The only good I see in this is that I'm going to retire to Florida, and for once it wasn't Florida.
@Scott: I doubt Ron B was serious, but Poe's law is definitely in force here.
John Peabody says:
No one has pointed out the proofing errors…usually someone has yelled at Doug by this point (cutting and pasting the original article, as well as last paragraph of text).
James Blake, the retired tennis player, had a pretty good response to being slammed to the ground by NY cops who said he matched the description of a robber. When asked if he had been racially profiled he responded that he didn't know, but it didn't matter, no one should be treated like that.
Tony W says:
I simply cannot understand pants-wetting red-staters who are so afraid of everything.
This is why we can't have nice things in America. We actively try to suppress kids being creative and smart and inventive because some moron teacher watched too much Fox News that morning.
'Murica – we're afraid, and you should be too.
@Tony W:
Well it's Texas…so clever is a foreign concept…and a clever Muslim is definitely something to be feared.
I bet this Muslim kid was just getting ready for martial law under the Jade Helm military exercises.
Oh wait…that was crazy mother-fwcking white folk.
Argon says:
Hers the part that gets me. ..
"He showed it to his engineering teacher first thing Monday morning …"
So, somebody at the school knew exactly what it was and the administration still went apeshit. Worst case they could have held the clock and returned it to the student at the end of the day, telling the kid that boxes with counting digits might not be the best thing to bring to school. Still, it would make a cool countdown timer for launching Estes model rockets!!!
All this in a suburb of Dallas where a number of computer and semiconductor companies are based.
At least the nerds are on this, taking names and kicking butts. Don't mess with the Maker community.
@Franklin:
Bull doodie.
This is the result of your leftist Zero-Tolerance policies. Kids have been suspended for bringing Nerf bullets to school, for having plastic knives in their lunchboxes, and for making a gun out of their hands.
Given zero-tolerance policies and those incidents above, the reaction to a ticking apparatus seems perfectly reasonable. Well, perfectly consistent anyways. "Zero-tolerance" and "reasonable" don't really belong together.
Just 'nutha ig'rant cracker says:
@humanoid.panda: Yeah, but point "b)" is hard to see sometimes. (I did upvote your commentm btw.)
At the most, perhaps, he should have been admonished from bringing something to school from home that wasn't part of an authorized school project.
Doug…really? Even your "at the most" is way outside the parameters of reasonableness. I'm sooooo relieved that I got to spend the last years of my career in Korea where I didn't see insanity that even vaguely resembled this (and they've been at war with their neighbor for 65 years, now).
In other news, the chief of police of the small town across the river from my adopted retirement home has been terminated for acknowledging that when he looks at black people, all he sees are animals–capping his statement with a gorilla imitation and a stirring rendition of "Dixie"–and the husband of the mayor has been arrested for public obscene behavior and threats against the subordinates who filed the complaint against the chief of police. This town is nowhere near Texas but within 50 or 60 miles, I would guess, of where Ron Beasley lives.
There are days on which I understand why a running joke in Korea is that American don't like to admit where they come from. This is going to be one of those days.
@John:
So you're saying that the school has a policy against clocks?
Hey, it's Zero-Tolerance. I made a point of saying there was nothing reasonable about it.
@J-Dub: As a hint for the administrators and police–who apparently are unwilling to admit they blew this one–bombs can usually be recognized by having quantities of explosives attached to them. And to the best of my knowledge, explosives so powerful that a single gram can demolish a city block are stillin the province of Nick Fury–Agent of SHIELD and other locations in the Marvel universe.
What I really need to know is how to make them un-converge.
You compared a bunch of incidents that fall under established policies…with one that doesn't.
I'm just trying to understand your point…if you have one.
DA says:
I think the scientific illiteracy aspect of this is pretty disturbing, even beyond the bigotry aspect. To see anything with wires and immediately jump to "it's a bomb!" is just so pathetic. A similar thing happened in Boston some years ago: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_Boston_bomb_scare
Ben Wolf says:
Is there a racial aspect here? Almost certainly. I think this also demonstrates the abysmal science education Americans get in some states. From the original article I gathered the police and teachers were specifically freaked out by the clock's circuit board; apparently unaware this technology (though always the centerpiece of bombs in bad action movies) has no explosive capability.
But we're much better off teaching students to pray and their great-grandfathers had dinosaurs for pets.
Tillman says:
@Franklin: No it's not. Public schools exist in this world.
@John: It's not exactly leftist. Zero tolerance grew out of the same intellectual movement as broken windows — they're descendants of our latent war on drugs. Most examples of its application, contra your weapon examples, are related to drugs and, interestingly, dress codes. Zero tolerance doesn't take off in schools until Columbine in '99, also near the peak of our "tough on crime" legislation and the post-9/11 consensus that we won't allow pocket-knives on airplanes.
It's a tad too complex a development to be rendered partisan easily.
Gustopher says:
Was this a well liked kid with lots of friends, or is he more of the alienated-loner type? Have the teachers been getting a lot of "if you see something, anything, report it and call the cops" training before the school year started? Did the kid bring his suspicious object to school on 9/11?
I like jumping on a good bandwagon as much as the next guy, but there may be things here beyond racism.
It sound like the engineering teacher didn't think it was a threat, but that it could be interpreted as one (he gave the boy back his clock, and told him not to show it to anyone), and then realized he was obligated to report it.
And, each step of the way, as the process unfolded, everyone was required to take it more seriously than at the previous step.
I don't that being a brown muslem helped, but I think this is probably more about our culture of fear and paranoia than our culture of bigotry. It's not even a Texas thing — I could see this happening anywhere.
Obama:
Cool clock, Ahmed. Want to bring it to the White House? We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It's what makes America great.
@Gustopher:
this is probably more about our culture of fear and paranoia than our culture of bigotry.
Bigotry is the foundation for our culture's fear and paranoia.
The bigotry drives the fear and paranoia, not the other way around.
Rafer Janders says:
I don't that being a brown muslem helped, but I think this is probably more about our culture of fear and paranoia than our culture of bigotry
Um, those aren't two separate cultures. Our fear and paranoia informs our bigotry, which bigotry then strengthens our fear and paranoia. They're inextricably conjoined.
@Just 'nutha ig'rant cracker: Well, one of the cops did say it looked like a movie bomb.
grumpy realist says:
@DA: One of my friends while in high school managed to spook an entire group of Lufthansa gate agents with what he carried around in his kit bag.
And another of my friends really freaked out the security types when dragging an x-ray condensing system through security, which caused them to see bright white spots on their screen. They flipped out.
Smart kid, Ahmed. Hope he decides to apply to my alma mater, the home of the piano drop noise volume unit (one Bruno) and the measurement called The Smoot.
Jim R says:
@An Interested Party: Unfortunately it will be the taxpayers who pay, not the idiot teachers and cops responsible for the harassment of this poor kid.
jukeboxgrad says:
Someone should mention Obama's tweet.
@Rafer Janders: Ok, sure. Perhaps I should have written that I think this has more to do with a fear of Columbine than a fear of 9/11.
The policies are in place not because someone fears Islamic Jihad in the Heartland (some people do fear this, granted), but because they fear a maladjusted teenager tying to kill his classmates and teachers.
Have there been any mass killings at a school where the attacker wasn't a white kid?
@grumpy realist:
I spent years walking or running across the Mass Ave Bridge measuring out my progress in Smoots….
Mu says:
For the real "how I made my self look like a fool" reaction
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CPC5R4GU8AACkFj.jpg:large
The major of Irving "adjusted" her statement after the outrage broke.
Gromitt Gunn says:
Making a joke about Texas / Texans / secession here is easy but misplaced. This is a post 9/11 reaction. Any brown kid with a funny name in any public school in any state could have ended up in handcuffs here.
@OzarkHillbilly:
You do realize that between people who are immigrants, non-voters, and Democrats, Cruz got mahybe 30% of the adult Texan votes? That even among that number, many probably voted for him because of the R after his name, not because they know who he is exactly?
michael reynolds says:
@Gromitt Gunn:
I've never heard of anything like this happening in California, or Oregon, or Washington or in New England, or Minnesota. It's always Texas, Florida or Arizona, the fever swamps of Republicans.
And now for a different take, over to you, Ms. Geller…
Muslim teen blames his bomb hoax on islamophobia
Don't read the comments. Seriously, you guys, DON'T READ THE COMMENTS.
Stonetools says:
Obama's tweet once again justifies why I voted for him twice. He passes the good citizenship test with flying colors as did NASA , Steve Zuckerberg and Hillary Clinton. Not a single Republican Presidential candidate has responded on this and conservative media has mostly maintained radio silence. Says it all, really.
You do realize that between people who are immigrants, non-voters, and Democrats, Cruz got mahybe 30% of the adult Texan votes?
Yes I do. And what does that say about them? They don't matter. They do of course, but they still saddled the rest of us with tail gunner Ted, so fwck 'em.
ps: any comment I submit gets sent straight to spam hell and will continue to for the foreseeable future, so I am unable to engage in any kind of back and forth except in once every 24 hr bursts. Doug and James are kind enuf to rescue my comments, but I try not to bother them more than once a day.
That's the problem in schools today. There used to be show and tell, science experiments, and science fairs. Now it's a b c d multiple choice testing. This is the result of politicians running the school instead of educators.
This will go down on the "That's Outrageous !" list of the school absurdities, which includes: primary grade student suspended for bringing a water squirt gun, student suspended for making a gun shape out of a toaster pastry, middle school student suspended for a power point presentation that had photos and sketches of Revolutionary War weaponry. (Some schools are dropping any history that mentions guns, bombs, artillery, knives, or missiles).
@CB: Took me awhile to remember who Pam Geller is. "Ground zero mosque", speaker in TX where the cops shot the lone nut Muslim gunman, professional anti-Muslim bigot. I read the comments. How do you run a democracy with people like that?
@C. Clavin: Jade Helm officially ended September 15.
@Tyrell: That's what they told you.
What's scary is not only what happened to this poor kid and his terrifying clock. Strip away the anti-Muslim hatred and prejudice and you have basically people who are ethically null. They're completely dead. The police and the mayor and the teachers and all of the right-wing morons who find time to go after dark-skinned teenagers are finding time to perform tons of idiotic acts against their families, neighbors, employees, and so on. As long as they can go to sleep at night, point to General Jesus and success and someone poorer and less fortunate, it's all good.
And contra the idiots who are worried that liberal prudence has created a MONSTER, this has nothing to do with prudence or oversensitive caution.
@Modulo Myself: Look at my earlier statement. There is a trend of school systems making these dumb nut head decisions: suspended a primary age child for having a water gun on the bus, suspension of a kid for making a gun shape out of his breakfast pastry, suspension of a middle school student for showing images of rifles, cannon, swords in a history report. These were white students, but the student's name in this case may well have been an influence.
The big.issue is these up tight school administrators. And what gets me is that any science teacher would know that thing was not a bomb.
School officials: get a life !
That is my 3¢ worth (2¢ base + 1¢ cost of living).
Grewgills says:
@Rafer Janders:
Yup, it's a positive feedback loop of stupid.
@C. Clavin: Well, as I have already pointed out, there have been many idiotic similar outrages by some of these nutcase school administrators (non-educators who are getting a fat salary for telling teachers what to do) who have suspended students for things like having a squirt gun, a gun shaped toast pastry, or a student's history project that showed images of colonial rifles and artillery. These students were not Muslim, and they did have the common Smith, Jones, Johnson, and Taylor names (sounds like a prestigious big shot law firm). However, in this case the name may well have a factor. And that police officer sounds like that Chief Gillespie (played by the incomparable Rod Steiger) in the "Heat of the Night" movie, one of the greatest ever.
That is my 3¢ worth: 2¢ base + 1¢ inflation
"They call me Mr. Tibbs" "I got the motive which is money and the body which is dead"
there have been many idiotic similar outrages by some of these nutcase school administrators
And in almost every instance, the result was suspension, not arrest. A key difference.
@gVOR08: Do you know something about this that I may not have heard ? Is something else coming down ? Have you heard some kind of chatter over the air waves ? No one is saying anything. Something is going to happen !
The next six to eight weeks are not only important, they could very well be the most important days in the future of this country. Things could start to change quickly, while the people's attention is diverted to "issues" such as "e mails", names of mountains, phony debates, flags, "Caitlyn", and flat footballs.
Hal_10000 says:
I do think racism played a role here. But racism has a tendency to spring up when we give authorities way too much unaccountable power. Doug makes a good point: we've created a system where panic and over-reaction aren't punished, but rewarded. We have politicians telling us that we're constantly in danger and under siege. We're told there's a War on Cops and that our children are under siege and that we can't walk outside without being kidnapped (despite all violence being way way down). We can't be surprised when this "do anything as long as we're safe mentality" results in this sort of thing.
Did the school administration just hate the poor kid? They kept the clock, kind of strange if they really thought it was a bomb, but called the cops anyway. That cannot be innocent stupidity or incompetence. Somebody had it in for a kid smarter and more creative than they are.
This seems to be headed to a better ending. Ahmed will be spend time at an astronomy night at the White House later this fall with a bunch of enthusiastic kids and probably some top flight scientists. The down side is that the stargazing will be from the lawn of the White House. So, maybe the scientists can describe what could be seen if they weren't viewing from one of the most light polluted cities in the world (D.C. is in the top ten). At least the moon will be waxing near its first quarter on that night.
@gVOR08: I had never heard of James Blake before. But I read a lot of what he has said in response to the incident, and he now has my respect. In addition to apparently being decent at tennis, the guy is incredibly thoughtful.
@Tillman: Thank you for your post. I was mostly considering the fear of Muslims that those on the right are mostly responsible for. I would agree that the zero-tolerance BS is not as easy to pin. It's partly due to fear (which the right embraces), and partly a sad sack attempt to make sure we treat everybody equally (which sounds more left-ish).
Thursday, 17 September 2015 at 00:06
@CB: Different take indeed! It's not even the same story. Wa!
@Tyrell: Stay away from the dounts at the diner, Tyrell, they're messin' with your mind.
Build a clock, go to jail. It's Texas.
My brother went there, too, and has described some pretty clever hacks.
I figured he meant the established policies are nuts to begin with – which is true.
There was definitely a racist element here, but over reaction at school doesn't need racism, it runs wild all the time. Zero tolerance is simply garbage.
Take a look at the things kids are suspended, expelled, and arrested for – 95% of my elementary school (back in the 70's) would have been banned for school under those rules. Its insane.
Obama's reaction was perfect – invite the kid for a visit. He should do the same for some of the other cases as well – gun shape with hands? Seriously?
Blue Galangal says:
@Gustopher: Well, there was the comment by the cop when he was brought into the room: 'Yep, that's who I thought it was.'
This is bigotry, plain and simple. They were bullying and intimidating this kid because he was other – from the teachers/administration to the cops.
@george: When I was in school, it was common for kids to bring pocket knives to school. Whittling and wood carving were popular. The high schools had rifle clubs. There was no danger or inappropriate behaviors. The Boy Scouts would wear their knives on their belts during scout week. Our history teacher brought a genuine (not a replica) Confederate officer's sword for a history lesson: we were literally transfixed. Now a days the teacher would be fired for even mentioning the Confederate army .
What have our schools come to ?
Jenos Idanian #13 says:
Saturday, 19 September 2015 at 07:27
Now that the initial hysteria has died down and a few facts have emerged, let's look at this a little more carefully.
1) He didn't "build" or "invent" a clock, he took a Radio Shack clock, took it out of its casing, and put it in a new case. This was no great experiment.
2) I'm seeing a lot of "herp derr Texas" comments. No one seems to want to notice that the first person to hit the panic button was the public school English teacher (who is probably a proud union member), and the administrator called in the police, in full accordance with the "zero tolerance" policies that also gave us kids suspended for chewing a pop tart into the shape of a gun.
3) What is it about this case that drew President Obama's personal attention to this case, to the point of inviting the kid to the White House?
4) Why did the clock alarm go off in the English class, after his other teacher specifically warned him to not show it around?
Lenoxus says:
Belated answers to previous:
1) Taking things apart and putting them back together is pretty much how every engineer will tell you they started out. Yes, some have used terms like "invent" out of economy, the telephone game, whatever. But whether there's been any exaggeration there is kind of irrelevant. He's not up for an engineering award, and we don't normally have national conversations to demean a high schoolers' science project.
2) Stepping outside the culture war completely, it's interesting to me, in general, how people try calculating the percentage of someone's cultural-clique affiliation: on the one hand, she's a union member, but on the other, a Texan. Either way it's a pretty obviously stupid way to score points; I'm not about to make an inane argument that "Texan trumps teacher" or something. And the silliness of that may well have been your point.
3) My guess is that Obama invited him in as part of some kind of Secret Muslim plot. The first phase of the plan is to get right-wingers to find it wildly suspicious that the president would invite him.
4) Back to serious mode. "Why did the clock alarm go off in the English class, after his other teacher specifically warned him to not show it around?" Because technology doesn't always obey its creators, or high schoolers don't always obey their teachers, take your pick. Either way, not exactly worthy of national-news hoopla, until it lead to the stupid behavior by the school…
… behavior which you admit is stupid! How is it so many people try to have it both ways on this — "Just goes to show the absurdity of zero tolerance, but also, that kid's behavior was really fishy and the school's authority is being terribly put upon by the liberal media for doing nothing wrong with regard to that fishy, suspicious Muslim kid — he played those jackbooted unionized thugs like a fiddle, what a jerk."
Trump Floats Idea Of Arming School Teachers
DC Area Schools Not Opening
U.S and Taliban Negotiated over Bin Laden in 1998
California Judge Rules Teacher Tenure Unconstitutional
The Politicization of Math Class


text:
Q: Error in hiding/showing div using jQuery The Story
We have a parent (div). Parent can have n children. The number of children the parent can have is decided by a PHP variable $bigF.
So, if $bigF is 5, then parent has 5 children. If it's 10, then it's 10. But $bigF has no role in this context because once the page is loaded, parent will have n children.
It's not dynamic, you know, that's what I was trying to say.

         Child1

             grand child 1A

             grand child 1B

         Child2

             grand child 2A

             grand child 2B

         Child3

             grand child 3A

             grand child 3B

 Calling children down

 Call Child 1

 Call Child 2

 Call Child 3

In this example, parent has 3 children (div) and they are named child1,child2,child3. IDK who names a child child. That's bad parenting.
And the freaking thing about this family drama is every child has 2 children(div). And they have bizarre names like grandchild1A,grandchild1B, grandchild2A and so on....
Parent is kinda shy. She believes only 1 child should be shown to the outside world. Rest of 'em are kept hidden, may be in the basement or something.
But she has this one BIG rule written all over her face.
If I CALL OUT A CHILD, THE CHILD AND THE GRANDCHILDREN SHOULD COME.
And she has employed 3 guards- who makes her job easy.
And they are Call Child 1,Call Child 2,Call Child 3.
And this is how they do their job.

But every time they call a child, something bizarre happens. Sometimes child & the grandchildren come together. And some other time, the grand children went missing.
And they tried another way also, like:
var calling = $('div:visible').last().attr('id');

and returned with nothing.
Here's the proof. Fiddle
Can anyone help me investigate this story???
I offer Thanks in return. :)

A: The guards are hiding the grandchildren with this line:
$("#parent div:visible").hide();

because the grandchildren are divs within the parent.  You need to apply that operation to just the immediate children of the parent, using >:
$("#parent > div:visible").hide();

A: It's a nice story, but a little confusing :)
If your goal is to toggle the children and grandchildren using the data-count attribute, try this:
$(".callchild").on('click',function(){
    var calling = $(this).attr('data-count');
    $("#parent > div").hide();
    $('#'+calling).css("display","block");
});

Find an updated fiddle here.

A: Great narration,Hatsoff.
I have modified the code little bit.
Please have a look at it.

 $(".callchild").click(function()
    {

        var calling = $(this).attr('data-count');
       $('.click').hide();
        $('#'+calling).show();
    });
.callchild{
  background:aqua;
  width:100px;
  height:15px;
  border-radius:15px;
  padding:15px;
  margin:15px;
  cursor:pointer;
  }

         Child1

             grand child 1A

             grand child 1B

         Child2

             grand child 2A

             grand child 2B

         Child3

             grand child 3A

             grand child 3B

 Calling children down

 Call Child 1

 Call Child 2

 Call Child 3

A: Another working solution:
$(".callchild").on('click',function()
{
    var calling = $(this).attr('data-count');
    $("#parent div:visible").hide();
    $('#'+calling).css("display","block");
    $('#'+calling+"  div").css("display","block");
});

I came to this solution because $("#parent div:visible").hide(); also hiding children elements, so i have added $('#'+calling+"  div").css("display","block"); to show respective children also.
--Working DEMO--

A: In you fiddle just updat $("#parent div:visible").hide(); to $("#parent > div:visible").hide();
$(".callchild").on('click',function()
{
    //var calling = $('div:visible').last().attr('id');
    //alert(calling);
    var calling = $(this).attr('data-count');
    $("#parent > div:visible").hide();
    $('#'+calling).css("display","block");
});

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Ofcom's new plan to automatically compensate customers sounds great - shame it won't kick in 'til Feb 2019.
News, 10 Nov 2017, 12:16 p.m.
Sky Cinema promises a new premiere every day; whether you're a pay TV customer or you're after online streams, here's the best deals.
Feature, 11 Oct 2017, 4:28 p.m.
Cheaper broadband deals means Sky customers can save over £100.
News, 11 Oct 2017, 3:19 p.m.


QlikView offers a wide range of files from which data can import and analysed making it a wholesome tool. In this QlikView Load Data tutorial, we will discuss the different types of files from which data can load in QlikView along with learning how to load data in QlikView.
So, let's start QlikView Load Data from Files.
Delimited files are also known as CSV files which stands for Comma Separated Values. In CSV files the field names and field values separated by a comma or a semicolon or tab. These files also refer to as delimited text or just text files as it contains plain text. The file extension is '.csv'.
Do you know the Architecture of QlikView?
Fixed Record files have the data records or rows of equal length or byte size. In such files, the length of records is fixed and can specify in the script command by (fix n) expression, where n is the number of bytes or characters deciding the record length. The fixed files stores in the system with extension '.fix'.
Dif files are called Data Interchange Format files. Such is said to be of predominant use in import/export tasks. They can only contain the data of a single spreadsheet. The extension '.dif' use for Dif files.
Microsoft Excel files, also known as XLS files can load into QlikView. More precisely, XLS stands for Excel spreadsheet. As the name suggests XLS files store data create in MS Excel document. The extension use by XLS files is '.xls'.
XLSX files are the file extensions for XML spreadsheet format use to store data from MS Excel documents. For the XML part adds in the picture the extension use for these files are '.xlsx'.
HTML or web files are the files containing information on a web page. As you must already know, HTML stands for HyperText Markup Language. Both '.htm' or '.html' is acceptable as extensions for web files.
QVD files are the QlikView Data files that are unique to QlikView and can only read or write in QlikView. These files predominantly use as storage and as intermediate files by QlikView services. The extension used for such files is '.qvd'.
XML is an extension, which uses for files called Extensible Markup Language. Such files contain information about a data file along with the file's data. This file can share via the web. Much like HTML, XML format also uses tags to describe the data. The file extension is '.xml'.
KML stands for Keyhole Markup Language. This file format uses for defining and containing geographical data which use by earth browsers. Similar to XML, KML use tag-based data describing the structure and used case-sensitive tags. There is a standard set of KML tags and only those must use to describe data in a KML file. The file extension is '.kml'.
Data from any of the above discussed ten files can load into QlikView from the Script Editor. You can invoke the script editor either by the icon given on the toolbar or by Ctrl+E keys. In the script editor, selection of the data files takes place in a File Wizard which can invoke by two ways; one way is from the Insert option given at the top bar of the script editor. You can go to Insert>Load Statement>Load from file.
The second way is by using the options given at the bottom pane of the script editor under the name of Data from files. You can open the File Wizard by selecting Table Files.. option.
4. How to Load Data in QlikView?
The first step in loading data from files is to browse and select a file from the Open Local Files dialog. Set the file type to All table files if you want to browse and select from all available file types. Select a file and click Open.
Let's Explore QlikView Tables and how to create different types of QlikView Tables?
Next, you will see a File Wizard: Type dialog which has two panes; a file type pane showing the entire list of file types and a table preview pane along with some other options related to the table. The file type of the file selected by you will read by the tool and will indicate in this dialog with a radio bullet in front the name of that type. Also, the preview pane will display how QlikView has interpreted the data in the tabular structure. You can select Embedded Labels form the Labels option to display the field names in the first row of the table.
The File Wizard has several other tabs as well but usually, those properties are not needed to change and so you can click on Finish just after seeing the table preview and settings some options in this dialog. Upon clicking Finish, you will exit the wizard and the table statement will load in the script. Save this script and the QlikView document as well (if not saved already). In order to use this data in QlikView, reload (Ctrl+R) the script to fetch and use the loaded data.
If, instead of clicking on Finish in the File Wizard: Type dialog, you choose to continue with exploring more options then click on Next>. You will see a File Wizard: Transformation dialog, continuing with which you can transform the newly loaded data in certain ways. We have a dedicated tutorial article on this topic on Data Transformation Wizard which you can refer to if you want to know about this step in detail.
Upon clicking Next>, we come to the next dialog which is File Wizard: Options dialog. Here, you can see the results of the operations you did while transforming the data in the previous step. Along with this, you can edit the Label settings, add Where clauses, and set parameters for crosstables and hierarchy tables.
Do you know about QlikView Time Chart Wizard?
On continuing in the file wizard, the next dialog is File Wizard: Script dialog. Here, you can set how the script should look in the script editor. You can set a Max Line Length for ease of interpretation and using the Load All(*) option, you can command it to load all the fields from the loaded file into the script.
So, this was all about QlikView Load Data. Hope you like our explanation.
So, this concludes our tutorial on QlikView Load Data. In this lesson, we saw what are the different file types form which data can load into QlikView. We also learned how to load files from the system into QlikView. We hope you can smoothly load any type of file into QlikView now, with the methods we just learned. Still, have a confusion regarding QlikView Load Data? Feel free to ask in the comment box.


Lapa Irish Session @ Lapa Irish pub (Lapa) – Tonight at the Lapa Irish Pub is your chance to sample (and take part in) some traditional Irish music.
There are a few rules to abide by, but all are welcome to join the band in this traditional Irish sing-song. If in doubt, ask the very helpful manager of the pub, Suellen.
Entrance is free. Begins around 8:30PM.
BUZZZ @ Pink Flamingo (Copacabana) – Tonight, BUZZZ will be electrifying Copacabana at the brand new Pink Flamingo club.
Dance the night away to the best tunes from the eighties, nineties, and beyond with help from DJ Vino, DJ Cléo Azure (Queens O Concurso), and DJ Heitor Mota (Mamata).
The bar opens at 7 pm with BUZZZ kicking off at 10 pm. Entry is free all night long.
Mundo Lingo @ Jungle Garden Pub (Botafogo) – Practice a language and meet new people at Mundo Lingo, the language exchange event happening tonight at the Jungle Garden Pub.
The group meets every week to chat in different languages, helped, of course, by the beers and cocktails available at one of Botafogo's coolest spots.
This event is free and starts at 7PM.
Botafogo's favorite bar for undergrad students and hipsters, Comuna is famous for its homemade burgers and variety of beer labels.
Specialized in Afro-Brazilian and African food, Bar da Dida is a great option for authentic, hard-to-find soulful food. Make sure to try their appetizers.


Today a good friend sent me the URL for a "Ukraine Rebel" propaganda video.
"This shows how sophisticated they are". I actually expected a decent quality product.
He must have meant NOT sophisticated.
The video was terrible quality – the video resolution, the captions, and the thought that went into making it.
The style of "singing" is drap, as in dumb rap. That's what you do when you can't sing and you definitely can't rap. You get some 20-something year old with a bad haircut, a self-made bad t-shirt with an indecipherable message, and have him lip-synch to overmodulated rap in the language of Ukraine (or is it Russian?) with really cheesy captions underneath in English. Then soften the edges of the captions to the point where they are often illegible, sometimes fading into the background. It actually looks like it was filtered three times, it's that bad.
A whole bunch of pictures are integrated into the video. I recognized a few of them from Odessa. Bodies lying everywhere. THERE IS NO CONTEXT. I guess I'm supposed to guess Government forces killed a bunch of rebels. I see a few men with St. Georges ribbons, so I guess they're playing the part of a good guy.
The basic concept of this video is to have a misguided youth sit on a pile of rubble and throw down gang signs because he's so gangsta. Not. He's trying to explain how they're being hunted down because they're rebels. Well, yeah, duh.
I especially loved the one man holding his AK up in the "spray and pray" position, over his head, not aiming.
Who in the hell would want to sit through that almost 3 minutes of that crap?
The captions were so bad I had to go back two or three times to read them. I discovered that most of the time I couldn't stop the video and read the captions, that would only ruin what resolution there was and the captions faded away.
One unexplained concept: Manhunt. The term is used frequently. My only guess is the Russian rebels are being hunted down by the government of Ukraine, so the rebels call it "Manhunt". Not "the manhunt". Not "a manhunt". Just Manhunt. Sorry guys, it's not Prom.
The worst mistake of all is having the RT symbol constantly popping up in the corner, so that footage is obviously Russian propaganda.
If I had any doubt whatsoever of the muscle behind this propaganda video, it was dispelled at the end. It also reinforced the concept that the video makers were incompetent.
There are two major problems with this screenshot of the video at the end. Can you see what they did and did not do?
1. Donbass is the Russian spelling, Donbas is the Ukraine spelling.
2. "#Save Donbass From Ukraine Army" is ineffective as a hashtag. They want to put it as #SaveDonbassFromUkraineArmy without spaces, but #SaveDonbass would have been more efficient. "from Ukraine Army" is redundant, we know that is who they are fighting. A Hashtag should be short, sweet, and powerful.
After the video was finished I sat for a moment and tried to make sense of it.
It sucked, it stank, it blew.
The good news? This video is four years old and it appears "Voice of Russia" has stopped producing videos. That's a good thing because this was really, really bad.
Gangster rap is popular in Russia.
More than likely, this was put together in a sloppy haste.
This ain't sophisticated propaganda. This be a fail.


Just before I left Australia I had a conversation with a good friend made about the Middle East. She said that she loved to be Australian because she was free. I was puzzled by the comment in its context and asked what she meant. I think all my friends in the Middle East, in Syria and Jordan and Egypt - think they are free. Those friends who live in Palestine - well, perhaps not.
My friend pointed out that she could go wherever she chose and vote for whoever she wanted, and that she was free.
Tabbi was talking to a friend of ours in Syria. He makes perfume. Name it - whatever major perfume you like, and he mixes a copy for $2 a 150ml bottle. We watched in amazement as he took out an identical bottle to a very well known perfume, added oils and essences and an alcohol base for an eau-de-toilette, and sprayed some into the air to check it. He then added a hint of colouring so it looked the same as the original. He carefully resealed the top, and took out a flat sheet of cardboard which, before out amazed eyes, became the original printed packaging for htis known brand. When we asked where he got the bottle and box he just smiled. He then sealed the box into crisp trimmed cellophane. At this point I would have bought this perfume in any duty-free in the world without a hesitation. He then reached into a drawer and pulled out a narrow roll of tape. With one finger he peeled off something transparent and carefully fixed it onto the bottom of the package. Then he twisted the pack around so we ccould see it.
It was a barcode, printed on a tiny transparent sticky label.
We watched in a mixture or flabbergasted awe and horror at blatant ignorance of the international laws of copyright!
When my daughter Tabbi was in Syria my friendly perfumier mentioned to her that he would like to open a perfume shop in Australia. She and Peter were travelling together, and both are law students. Wondering how to put it tactfully, Peter said "I think you might have some trouble with copyright."
He said, "Copyright, copyright, copyright. You think you are so free in the west. In Syria we have three rules.
One, do not talk about the government.
Three, (and he tapped his nose) no cocaine, no drugs.
In Syria we are free. You are not free. You have copyright."
This sort of copying is not illegal in Syria and all sorts of things including music are copied and sold. It is horrifying to us, but they see nothing wrong with it at all as there is no law against it, and no feeling that it is in any way wrong.
It made me think about what freedom is to other people though.
I walked out on to the balcony off our bedroom a couple of days ago. I have no idea why. It is awkward to get at really - especially since I have a couple of suitcases stashed in the doorway. It is too hot to be pleasant to stand barefooted on sundrenched whit marble. I haven't been out there for ages - probably since last time it was washed and by the look of the drifts of dirt and leaves and soot that was a long time ago.
Even with a housekeeper I am a lousy housekeeper. I probably should have suggested it be cleaned - but then I hardly ever use it.
There was a big pool of water on the balcony.
Now, bear in mind that we have had a couple of weeks of over forty degree temperatures (over one hundred for those in the United States)followed by a week of comparatively cooler weather - around thirty two to thirty five degrees. It has not rained. The balcony has not been washed in weeks.
I stood for a moment looking rather stupidly at the puddle. It was a good six feet across and deepish near the drain. It just should not have been there and my brain was having trouble accepting that it was. I even looked up but there was nothing but dusty sky.
I had to accept that somehow the water had actually come out of the drain. It had climbed a floor level to do so, so it was obviously very determined.
I rang the Embassy and they called in a plumber. He removed a large supply of rocks and sand and builder's debris, declared the drain unblocked and proceeded to pack up his tools. I asked where the water had come from. He pointed to the drain. Well, I knew that - but why was it even in the drain when the balcony had not been washed in weeks. He told me that it was fixed now and left.
I went out next morning and came home to the dubious sight of piles of listing cardboard boxes with ominously soggy bottoms on the lawn. Veronica reported that there had been a flood in the basement, but she had cleaned it up. When I queried this, she said it was from the drain that the plumber cleaned, because it had been cleaned out.
Next day Bob went down to the basement to get some wine for a felucca ride. He shouted for assistance - and was assisted by Ahmed to clean up the now mounting pool of water with yet more cardboard boxes ankle deep (can a box be ankle deep?) in it. Unfortunately some of these were full of curtains, now very wet and heavy.
The plumbers came again and diagnosed a broken water main in the wall - hence the constant supply of fresh water in our new indoor swimming pool.
It will be fixed in two days - and meanwhile we mop regularly and often. At least it might help to soak some of the salt out of the walls.
Now wouldn't you think that water appearing from a drain on a second floor would be a clue to the fact that something other than a blocked drain was wrong?
My youngest daughter Tabbi has gone. She left for Australia from the house two days ago. At the airport (and she had been asked to present herself at checkout three hours early) she was told that the plane was going to be two hours late. Two hours later and still no sign of a flight. She had arrived at the airport at twelve and finally left at eight pm. Worst of all, she had missed her connection in Bahrain, so the airline put her into a hotel - to pick up the flight she should have been on a day later. She sent a text that commented that she was the only female in the hotel, and that Bahrain was like a sauna. She spent all her time in airconditioning, and found the heat almost unbelievable.
Even two days later the house feels very empty. In Australia it always takes a while to clear the odd bits of clutter that follow guests - the things that won't fit in the case, the bits and pieces left on shelves in bathrooms, and the jobs left to be done. Here, with my lovely efficient staff, things are whisked away and out of sight, the bed was stripped and remade and within a few hours it was almost as if Tabbi had not been here.
There were odd little things that happened though. A bottle of water in the bathroom had been tipped onto the floor and left water everywhere. I kept feeling strangely as if I were being watched. The house often makes odd noises, and our neighbours can be noisy, but there seemed to be more times when I looked up from what I was doing and thought 'what was that?' I kept seeing flashes of movement out of the corner of my eye, but when I looked up there was nothing there. We have security film on all our windows. It cuts out a lot of available light and makes the house dark, but it also keeps it cool and at this time of the year I am grateful for that. Disconcertingly though, it turns each window into a mirror if it is darker outside than inside, so when the film first went on I often caught movement from the corner of my eye, only to realise that it was me! This seemed to be at times when I wasn't moving around.
None of it was anything to put a finger on - it was just a bit odd and I was happy to believe that I was missing my lovely daughter and her bubbly presence.
This morning Bob brought me a cup of tea in bed. I would like to pretend that is unusual but it is almost routine - but never unappreciated. He gets up earlier to go to work, I tend to like to work late into the nights and then sleep like a log in the last few hours of the night. It is school holidays so there are no beeping cars and school assemblies singing raucous versions of the National Anthem with more enthusiasm than melody. Without my early morning wakeup tea I would probably sleep till eleven. He often brings snippets of news with the tea - a really interesting bit of news from an email or Aussie papers on the internet will actually mean that I drink it hot!
This morning's news was "I find this extraordinary, but there seems to be a cat in the house".
Talk about instant attention! This house is impregnable. I used to think that meant that it couldn't become pregnant. I know know better, but certainly it seems odd that anything could get in uninvited. The windows are kept tightly shut as the air is full of dust and heat and keeping the house closed keeps it cooler. For security reasons doors are always closed and locked. Local cats - even the two that I feed - are too shy and skittish to come in even invited. The two slender apricot males that sleep on our doormat will leap up and seethe and undulate back and forth a safe three metres away till fed.
However, the evidence was irrefutable. A nasty smelly pile was deposited in the centre of the small bed in our dressing room.
Our first assumption was that the cat had been in, used the bed as kitty litter (I don't much like that bedspread either) and gone. On second thoughts I started to put together the odd glimpses of movement and realised that I might not have been imagining it.
So today I cruised the house quietly, shoes off, scaring Veronica half out of her wits when I suddenly appeared beside her. She did not believe the cat could still be inside. I was starting to agree with her. We saw no other evidence. Then at 12.30, having spent too long on the computer in chat with family at home, and in great haste I was rushing around to get ready for a trip to the museum to investigate Tutenkhamen's underwear.
I grabbed some lunch and took it upstairs to eat as I changed. I brought the plate down to the kitchen and there was a flurry of movement from the sink as an elegant charcoal cat - in that lanky stage between kitten and cat - erupted from the sink and whirled around the room, skittering sideways on the tiles in its frantic haste to get away from me. I tossed it a piece of not-time-to-eat-it-chicken as I stepped away and back into the doorway. I moved out of sight and watched the chicken, to see the cat apporach it slowly. He is beautiful and I have seen him often before. He is long and slim and elegant and with the large ears and long face of the classic Egyptian cat. I must have moved because he saw me, and with his piece of chicken in his mouth he took off up the back stairs.
I had to leave for the Museum - but left instructions that he was to be quietly tempted out of the house with a food trail, not chased and frightened or they would have more mess to clean up! I arrived home after my staff had left, but have no idea if I still have a cat inside or not.
I love cats, but not when they are raging around the house untrained! It is nice to have the ghost mystery cleared up though - especially since Bob very kindly did the worst part of the clear-up!


Workers who are paying too much tax because of incorrect secondary tax codes are in line for relief with the passage of legislation through Parliament late last night.
The Taxation (Annual Rates for 2018-19, Modernising Tax Administration, and Remedial Matters) Bill passed its third reading and will come into effect on 1 April.
"We promised to eliminate unnecessary secondary tax for workers with more than one job. We are delivering on that promise," says Revenue Minister Stuart Nash. "I am disappointed that National and Act voted against this measure.
"The changes mean Inland Revenue will more closely monitor the tax paid by wage and salary earners through the year. If it appears the worker is being over taxed, Inland Revenue will suggest a more suitable PAYE tax code tailored to that worker.
"Till now the tax on the second job has often seemed too high. These changes ensure wage and salary earners are only paying the tax they should. Just under 600,000 secondary tax codes are used every year.
"Inland Revenue will also make it easier for individuals to apply for tailored tax codes that suit their earning circumstances, and provide an online process to apply for the codes.
"The legislation also enables automatic tax refunds for about 750,000 New Zealanders every year.
"The simplified tax rules remove the need for people who only earn employment or investment income to file a personal tax summary (PTS) to get a tax refund. Till now, the only way to get a refund was to file a PTS. However 750,000 people failed to do so and miss out on their money as a result. We want refunds to flow automatically.
set the annual tax rates for the 2018-19 tax year, which remain unchanged from previous tax years.
ensure that the company demerger rules are effective in providing tax relief for New Zealanders who receive shares because of a demerger by an ASX listed Australian company.


text:
Boeing, Turkish Airlines Finalize Deal for Up to 30 787 Dreamliners
Press Releases	Aerospace, Boeing
Turkey's flag carrier chooses the 787-9 to expand fleet, improve passenger experience
Firm order puts Dreamliner program above 1,300 orders
SEATTLE, March 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ — Boeing [NYSE:BA] and Turkish Airlines announced they have finalized a firm order for 25 787-9 Dreamliners with options for five more airplanes. The firm order will allow Turkey's flag carrier to further meet the growing demand at its home airport, Istanbul's third airport, and improve the flying experience for passengers.
Boeing [NYSE:BA] and Turkish Airlines announced they have finalized a firm order for 25 787-9 Dreamliners with options for five more airplanes. This rendering shows the airplane in Turkish Airlines livery. (Boeing illustration)
With this firm order – first announced as a commitment last September – Turkish Airlines becomes the 71st customer to buy the 787. Together, these customers have now ordered more than 1,300 Dreamliners, the fastest-selling twin-aisle airplane in Boeing history.
"We are pleased to finalize a landmark agreement that will bring significant benefit to Turkish Airlines and Turkey's aviation industry," said M. İlker Aycı, Turkish Airlines Chairman of the Board and the Executive Committee. "This firm order adds the 787 Dreamliner, one of the world's most state-of-the-art airplanes, to our ever-expanding fleet in 2023, our Republic's 100th year. The 787 will significantly raise our passengers' satisfaction and play an important role in our plans for our new hub, the new Istanbul airport. This will accelerate the steady rise of our country's flag carrier and support the growth of Turkish Civil Aviation."
Turkish Airlines has continued to expand its fleet of Boeing airplanes. Recently, the airline grew its stable of 777 jets with a purchase of three more 777 Freighters. The airline also uses electronic charts and some other services from Boeing Global Services to further optimize its operations and operational systems.
"We are proud to extend our decades-long partnership with Turkish Airlines and we welcome them to the growing group of elite airlines who have made the 787 Dreamliner the most preferred mid-sized twin-aisle airplane today," said Kevin McAllister, Boeing Commercial Airplanes President and Chief Executive Officer. "We are confident that Turkish Airlines will enjoy the Dreamliner's unmatched fuel efficiency, range, and superior cabin features."
About the 787 Dreamliner family
The 787 Dreamliner is an all-new, super-efficient family of commercial airplanes. Since 2011, more than 640 Dreamliners have entered service, flying over 226 million people on more than 680 unique routes around the world, saving an estimated 22 billion pounds of fuel.
At 20 feet (6 meters) longer than the 787-8, the 787-9 extends the family in capacity and range, flying more passengers and more cargo farther. The airplane can fly 290 passengers, in a typical two-class configuration, up to 7,635 nautical miles (14,140 km).
About Turkish Airlines
Based in Istanbul, Turkish Airlines carries over 60 million passengers a year, with direct flights to 301 destinations in 121 countries. The airline made its first domestic flight in 1933 and the first international flight in 1947. Turkish Airlines was founded in 1933 with a fleet of five airplanes that carried a total of 28 passengers, expanding to 328 aircraft today.
SOURCE Boeing
Jeppesen Terminal Charts Now Available Through Honeywell GoDirect Flight Bag Pro Platform
Boeing HorizonX Invests in Fortem Technologies, Creator of Radar Systems for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
Boeing Crowdsources Employee Ideas for $100 Million Tax Reform Investment

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Same bidder cuts price for I-49 interchange project It's $200,000 less but still seen as costly by Noel Oman | January 14, 2021 at 3:35 a.m.
Traffic travels east on Fayetteville's Wedington Avenue at the Interstate 49 interchange in this May 2018 file photo. - Photo by David Gottschalk
A second attempt to attract competitive bidding on an expensive, high-profile interchange project on Interstate 49 in Fayetteville on Wednesday failed to clearly separate itself from the one that the Arkansas Department of Transportation rejected in November.
In the end, it was the same bidder, Manhattan Road and Bridge Co. of Tulsa that submitted the lowest bid both times.
In November, Manhattan's bid was $37.8 million and the only bid submitted.
On Wednesday, the contractor priced the job at $37.6 million. It was one of two bids submitted. The other, by APAC-Central Inc. of Fayetteville, was $38.3 million. A third, Mobley Contractors Inc. of Morrilton, had an opportunity to bid but chose not to submit one.
Philip Taldo, a Arkansas Highway Commission member from Springdale, said of the two bids from Manhattan Road and Bridge that"$200,000 isn't a whole lot of difference. It could be that it's just going to cost more."
The Wedington interchange project was one of 42 projects on which the Transportation Department opened low bids totaling $110.7 million, with the interchange project far and away the most expensive.
The bid letting included 24 state highway projects with low bids worth $104.9 million, a dozen city street projects worth $3.2 million and seven county road projects worth $2.6 million. State transportation officials will review all the bids before contracts will be awarded.
Improvements for the Wedington interchange have been in the works for years, according to regional planners. It was originally identified in a 2006 Interstate 540 Improvement Study and has been part of the overall transportation plan to improve the capacity and safety of I-49 and its interchanges between Fayetteville and Bentonville.
The project is about controlling left turns on Wedington during the commute times in the morning and the afternoon when a lot of drivers are trying to turn onto I-49, according to state transportation officials. The Transportation Department has proposed a loop ramp in the southeast corner of the interchange and two dedicated lanes to get off Wedington and go north on I-49 for traffic approaching the interstate from the west.
Eastbound traffic on Wedington through the interchange no longer will have to wait for cars turning north across traffic.
The plans also show a widened overpass bridge, fewer turn signals on Wedington and a bicycle and pedestrian side path on the north side of the interchange.
The state and city jointly designed the interchange to incorporate bicycle and pedestrian improvements over I-49 as part of the project. Changes to the first draft of the plan were made for bicycles and pedestrians that will cost Fayetteville about $415,000.
The project includes raised curb medians on Wedington to restrict left turns. Drivers will be able to turn left, but they'll have to go to a traffic light.
The interstate underneath the interchange already has been widened to three lanes in each direction.
Transportation Department traffic counts done last year show 37,000 cars a day on Wedington west of the interchange and 25,000 cars a day east of the interchange.
About 9,200 cars a day use the northbound I-49 on-ramp and 3,900 use the southbound on-ramp. The southbound I-49 off-ramp has about 10,000 cars a day.
"Everybody, the city of Fayetteville, is anxious to get started on this," Taldo said. "We've been working on it a long time and everybody has put a lot of time and effort into it and really want to get a contract on it and get it going."
Other significant projects on which bids were opened Wednesday, including bid amount and low bidder:
• Resurface 10.5 miles of U.S. 71 between Arkansas 10 and Mill Creek in Sebastian County; $9.6 million; Forsgren Inc. of Fort Smith.
• Resurface 13.3 miles of Arkansas 22 east from I-540; $8.7 million; Forsgren Inc. of Fort Smith.
• A new bridge over Bayou Derriseaux on Arkansas 212 in Cleveland County; $5.8 million; Simco Inc. of North Little Rock.
• Resurface 4.85 miles of Arkansas 89 from Clinton Road east of Mayflower on Interstate 40 in Faulkner County; $1.5 million; Rogers Group Inc. of Nashville.
• Resurface 2.59 miles of Stagecoach and Colonel Glenn roads, also called Arkansas 5, from Brodie Creek to South University Avenue, also called U.S. 70; $1.1 million; Redstone Construction Group Inc. of Nashville, Tenn.


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Ben Cohen stands up for anti-bullying charity
FE Week campus round up
Mon 14th Nov 2011, 11.12
A rugby hero was back on home turf to spend the day with college students promoting an important message.
Celebrated England Rugby World Cup winner and former Northampton Saints player Ben Cohen raised awareness of his new anti-bullying charity - Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation - at Northampton College.
The aim of the foundation is to combat bullying and homophobia, and during his visit, Cohen talked to college students about the long-term, damaging effects of bullying, in particular homophobia in sports.
He also had the chance to speak to bullied victims about how they have been affected in a special 'anti-bullying cafe' as well as leading an exciting rugby training session.
Northampton College principal Len Closs said: "We were delighted to welcome Ben along to the college as part of this special event. The Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation is founded on values which reflect our whole ethos regarding bullying and harassment and we are keen to help promote his important message to stamp it out.
"Our students enjoyed meeting such a significant local sports hero and being involved in raising awareness of this important cause."
Cohen said: "I enjoyed spending the day with the students at Northampton College and am proud a college in my home town is the first to become an official 'StandUp' College. "Bullying affects so many people. It damages lives and young people's futures. I am putting my whole time into combating it, wherever and to whom ever it occurs. I am incredibly privileged to have a voice to be able to do this and relishing the challenge."
Music student Joseph Conetta said: "I think it's great that Ben has changed career focus and is now concentrating on promoting anti-bullying.
"It's crucial we all stand up against bullies and I think the student body at Northampton College is totally on board with that. It was an interesting day."
MOVERS AND SHAKERS: EDITION 287


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Q: Frobenius Norm Optimization of Quadratic Matrix Form Looking for a method to solve the following problem (not sure if it can be written as a convex optimization problem, and solved by a SDP solver):
$\mathop {\min }\limits_X {\left\| {A - {X^T}BX} \right\|_F} \\ Subject \; to: Some   \; Convex  \; Constraints $
Where $A \in \mathbb{S}^n$, $B \in \mathbb{S}^m$ and  $X \in \mathbb{R}^{m \times n}$.

A: No, it is not convex as it essentially is a non-convex quartic polynomial (if you square the expression to get rid of the square-root, trivial monotonic manipulation). As a simple example, consider the scalar case with $a=1$ and $b=1$ which will lead to $(1-x^2)^2$ which has two distinct globally optimal solutions.
No simple way to solve it.


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Q: Populating an array of items and its values in java script by passing in an array from PHP <?php
$myarray = array();

<script type="text/javascript">
    $(function(){
        $("#demo").grid({
            'genre' : 'All',
            'items' :
            [
                {
                    'title'         : 'A',
                    'description'   : 'qwerty',
                    'thumbnail'     : ['http://mypd.front.net/f4534.jpg'],
                    'large'         : ['http://mypd.front.net/f4534_large.jpg'],
                    'button_list'   :
                    [
                        { 'title':'Demo', 'url' : 'http://mypd.front.net/', 'new_window' : true }
                    ],
                    'tags'          : ['Movies']
                },
                {
                    'title'         : 'B',
                    'description'   : 'asdfg',
                    'thumbnail'     : ['http://mypd.front.net/f5534.jpg'],
                    'large'         : ['http://mypd.front.net/f5534_large.jpg'],
                    'button_list'   :
                    [
                        { 'title':'Demo', 'url' : 'http://mypd.front.net/', 'new_window' : true }
                    ],
                    'tags'          : ['Series']
                },
                ...
                ...
                ...
                {
                    'title'         : 'Z',
                    'description'   : 'poiyut',
                    'thumbnail'     : ['http://mypd.front.net/f6534.jpg'],
                    'large'         : ['http://mypd.front.net/f6534_large.jpg'],
                    'button_list'   :
                    [
                        { 'title':'Demo', 'url' : 'http://mypd.front.net/', 'new_window' : true }
                    ],
                    'tags'          : ['Movies', 'Series']
                }
            ]
        });
    });
</script>

This an embedded script in my legacy index.php.
Now what I wanted to do is to populate the data inside the array of items(like title, description, etc.) by reading it from an array which I have in the php file.
Could you please let me know how I can do this?
Something like this is what I am looking for?
for ($i = 0; $i < sizeof($vodAssetArray); $i++)
{
   populate each of the items in the java script like

     {
                    'title'         : $vodAssetArray[i]->title,
                    'description'   : $vodAssetArray[i]->description,
                    'thumbnail'     : [$vodAssetArray[i]->imgSrc],
                    'large'         : [$vodAssetArray[i]->imgSrc],
                    'button_list'   :
                    [
                        { 'title':'Demo', 'url' : 'http://mypd.front.net/', 'new_window' : true }
                    ],
                    'tags'          : [$vodAssetArray[i]->genre]
                },
}

?>

A: If the JavaScript is in your PHP file, you can simply echo the PHP variable. For example, if your PHP array was $array:
'title'         : "<?php echo $array['title']; ?>",

A: Example
<?php
$vodAssetArray = array(
    array(
        'title'         =>'title 1',
        'description'   =>'description 1',
        'thumbnail'     =>'thumbnail imgSrc 1',
        'large'         =>'imgSrc 1',
        'genre'          =>'Tags 1',
    ),
    array(
        'title'         =>'title 2',
        'description'   =>'description 2',
        'thumbnail'     =>'thumbnail imgSrc 2',
        'large'         =>'imgSrc 2',
        'genre'          =>'Tags 2',
    )

);

$javascript= array();

$count = sizeof($vodAssetArray);
for($i = 0; $i < $count;  $i++)
{

$javascript[]=  "
{
                'title'         : ".$vodAssetArray[$i]['title'].",
                'description'   : ".$vodAssetArray[$i]['description'].",
                'thumbnail'     : [".$vodAssetArray[$i]['thumbnail']."],
                'large'         : [".$vodAssetArray[$i]['large']."],
                'button_list'   :
                [
                    { 'title':'Demo', 'url' : 'http://mypd.front.net/', 'new_window' : true }
                ],
                'tags'          : [".$vodAssetArray[$i]['genre']."]
 }
";

}
?>

<script type="text/javascript">
    $(function(){
        $("#demo").grid({
            'genre' : 'All',
            'items' :
            [
              <?php echo implode(',', $javascript); ?>
            ]
        });
    });
</script>


text:
Chiefs get 8 turnovers, take 2 for TDs in 24-3 win over Jets
Derrick Johnson saw everybody else picking off passes for Kansas City and decided to join the party.
Then he figured he might as well score, too.
The veteran linebacker snagged one of six interceptions thrown by Ryan Fitzpatrick, scored one of the Chiefs' two touchdowns off turnovers, and put an exclamation mark on a rather bizarre 24-3 victory over the hapless, turnover-prone New York Jets on Sunday.
"We put an emphasis on taking away the ball all the time," said Johnson, who scored his fourth career TD. "If you can get a turnover, it's a big momentum changer. And if you can score, it's even bigger."
A turnover? How about get eight.
Marcus Peters had two of the interceptions for the Chiefs (2-1), including the first of four in the fourth quarter. Johnson, Daniel Sorenson and D.J. White grabbed the others as the Jets piled up their most turnovers since setting a franchise record with 10 in a loss to the Patriots on Nov. 21, 1976.
"I'm stunned, disappointed ... mad," Jets coach Todd Bowles said. "We could have come out prepared. We could have come out and executed better. There's 50 million things when you lose and we lost. Pick any one of them."
Alex Smith was 25 of 33 for 237 yards and a touchdown for Kansas City, while Spencer Ware added 75 yards rushing. But it was the performance of the defense - and all those Jets turnovers - that helped the Chiefs bounced back from their first regular-season defeat in 12 games.
Eric Berry picked off a pass in the end zone late in the third quarter, and a fumbled kick return by the Jets' Jalin Marshall was returned 27 yards by Demetrius Harris for another score.
"I think it stemmed from practice this week," Berry said. "Everybody had a great practice. The emphasis was on finishing plays and not being too concerned with the score."
The Jets' Matt Forte, who scored three times against the Bills, was held to just 65 yards rushing, while wide receiversBrandon Marshall and Eric Decker were held in check.
But it was Fitzpatrick who was downright dismal a week after torching Buffalo, going 20 of 44 for 188 yards. His six picks tied a franchise record while establishing a career high, surpassing the five that he threw for St. Louis against Minnesota on Dec. 11, 2005.
"I've had some bad ones," he said, "so all I can do is put it behind me and move on."
CHIEFS NOT INFALLIBLE
Kansas City appeared to take a 24-3 lead in the third quarter when Ware stretched the ball into the pylon for a touchdown. But officials reviewed the play and saw the ball beginning to come out, and decided that it was a fumble resulting in a touchback for New York.
"You don't want them dropping the ball," Chiefs coach Andy Reid said, "but it's hard to tell them not to stretch."
TURNOVER TROUBLE
Things could have been worse for New York. Berry and Sorenson dropped picks moments before Sorenson hauled in his interception, and Fitzpatrick fell on his own fumble earlier in the game.
PETERS A 'PICKER
It was the second straight two-interception day for Peters, who has quickly become one of the league's top cornerbacks. He had eight as a rookie in the regular season a year ago.
"When things are happening like today," Peters said, "you enjoy. You embrace the opportunities."
DECKER MIA
Decker had his streak of touchdowns in six straight games come to an end. The Jets wide receiver, who has scored 15 times in his last 19 games, had his only catch in the fourth quarter.
MARSHALL PLAYS
Marshall was active after missing practice earlier in the week with a slightly sprained knee. But shadowed by Peters and Berry, the star wide receiver had a tough time getting open. He finished with three catches for 27 yards, on several occasions complaining about the tight coverage.
Jets: CB Darrelle Revis was evaluated for an eye injury and missed the final series of the first half. He returned after the break. ... DL Lawrence Thomas left in the first half with a shoulder injury. ... LB Erin Henderson was inactive because of a foot sprain.
Chiefs: RB Jamaal Charles (ACL surgery) remained inactive for the third straight week, but coach Andy Reid insisted the four-time Pro Bowl selection is getting closer to playing.
Posted by Andrew Tanner at 7:36 PM
Labels: Kansas City Chiefs, New York Jets, NFL
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LNG: Maritime's Fuel of the Future
Greg Trauthwein
The move to LNG as fuel in the maritime sector picks up steam, as CMA CGM announced plans to outfit nine of its new 22,000 TEU containerships with LNG fueled engines.
By Greg Trauthwein
A trend that started in the United States is spreading to the world, as global containershipping giant CMA CGM announced its intention to outfit its series of new 22,000 TEU containerships with LNG-fueled engines. The move to 'clean fuel' in the maritime sector has been rapid, spurred by new rules from the International Maritime Organization set to enter force in 2020 which drastically reduces the amount of allowable sulfur in marine fuel. As ship owners mull options, the move by CMA CGM is a watershed moment in the large containership sector.
"We have made the bold decision to equip our future 22,000 TEUs vessels with a technology firmly focused on the protection of the environment," said Rodolphe Saadé, CMA CGM Group CEO. "By choosing LNG, CMA CGM confirms its ambition to be a leading force in the industry in environmental protection by being a pioneer in innovative and eco-responsible technologies."
The new ships will be built by the shipyards group China State Shipbuilding Corporation – (Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. and Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding (Group) Co., Ltd), according to Ludovic Gérard, Vice President of CMA Ships. "These vessels will be the largest newbuilt ocean-going containerships in the world to run on LNG, thus complying with the global sulphur cap taking effect in 2020 and anticipating future regulations. Their delivery is expected throughout 2020 with one ship arriving every month and a half on average."
TOTE Maritime made history when it ordered a pair of LNG-fueled containerships, the world's first, which were built and delivered by General Dynamics NASSCO in San Diego. The ships, Isla Bella and Perla Del Caribe were delivered as a part of a two-ship contract signed in December 2012 with TOTE, making the 764-foot long Marlin Class containerships will be the largest dry cargo ships powered by LNG.
The announcement from CMA CGM is significant as these will be the largest ships in the sector to sport the new technology.
"This is both a real turning point for our group and a strong signal sent to the entire industry. Of course, this decision comes after years of research and work, both within the CMA CGM Group and outside," said Gérard. "The choice we are making regarding LNG is just the beginning because we are thinking long term and we are always working on new innovations. We will continue our efforts to build and strengthen a new strong and efficient LNG supply chain."
The engines for the project will be designed by Winterthur Gas & Diesel Ltd (WinGD), specifically the 12-cylinder X92 DF engines. "They will be rated 63,840 kW at 80 rpm, making them the most powerful gas and dual-fuel engines ever built," said Gérard. "The dual fuel auxiliary engines are not yet selected."
"LNG will make up over 98 per cent of the ship fuel used to run these ships. Marine gas oil which will be used for ignition in the combustion chambers of these engine, will constitute just a small percentage of the overall ship fuel usage (less than 2%)," said Gérard
According to the ship owner, the project is not without challenges.
"If we look at today's use of LNG on containerships, we are talking about ships with a capacity of about 3,000 TEUs. With our decision LNG will be used on giant vessels in 2020," said Gérard. "So we have worked a lot over the years both within the group and with leaders in the LNG-industry. Our decision will use what exists today but to a larger scale. For example, one of our challenges was the optimization of the LNG tank within the hull of the vessel, to cope with its desired capacity and sloshing effect. The result is a single tank underneath the deckhouse and slightly protruding in the cargo hold, designed by GTT and approved by Bureau Veritas as classification society."
In recent years the maritime industry has been in the crosshairs of environmental regulators focused on reducing emissions from ships at sea. In kind, the maritime industry has looked for new and emerging technologies, from fuel 'scrubbers' to the use of alternative fuels. The use of LNG has emerged as an early favorite, as compared to heavy fuel oil it offers:
--	up to 25% less CO2
--	99% less sulphur emissions
--	99% less fine particles
--	85% less nitrogen oxides emissions
"LNG significantly reduces key emissions; it is the best available solution with 99% less sulfur emissions, 99% less particulate matters, 85% less nitrogen oxides emissions and up to 25% less CO2 emissions. The choice for LNG helps us comply with the regulations that will be in effect in 2020 but above all, we think that by choosing LNG, we will be ahead of future regulations as ongoing talks tend to prepare for more binding regulations in the future against polluting emissions and the need to use clean energies," said Gérard.
CMA CGM currently has 462 vessels calling on 420 ports on five continents, and it said that with LNG its Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) which measures a ship's environmental footprint is improved by 20% compared to ships only propelled by fuel oil. The move to LNG as fuel for ships of this size will require more than an investment in ships, also an investment – with port and LNG suppliers – in adapted infrastructure to support the initiative.
"Today, our historic decision to move towards LNG for the nine future 22,000-TEUs containerships that will start to join our fleet in 2020 represent a great accelerator for the entire industry," said Gérard. "As a matter of fact, it will benefit fully from the new supply chains we are going to create and strengthen to serve large-capacity ships. Imagine that our future containerships will have 18,000 cu. m. tanks. That is why we are using our position of leader to make the industry cleaner and more responsible. Consequently, our investments are long-term oriented and are global."
"We are currently working with our partners towards an operational, regulatory and technical framework that will allow a ship to receive LNG without disrupting commercial operations. Some major ports, for example in Northern Europe, are very dynamic in terms of supply chain for LNG and we anticipate new infrastructures in Asia, for example," said Gérard
CMA CGM By the Numbers
Revenue	$16 billion
Volume transported	15.6 million TEU/year
Company owned	166
Capacity	2.2 million TEU
Agencies, global	600
Ports of Call 420 in 160 countries
Employees 29,000
Read LNG: Maritime's Fuel of the Future in Pdf, Flash or Html5 edition of December 2017 Maritime Reporter
Interview: John C. Pfeifer, President - Mercury Marine page: 8
El Faro and Perceived Deficiencies in the ACP page: 12
Maritime Cyber Security: The Wrong Formula page: 14
Navigating the New Norm page: 16
Driver-less Ships: Autonomy in the Maritime Sector page: 22
Maritime's Digital Transformation & Simulation-based Training page: 26
Ship of the Year: MOL FSRU Challenger page: 36
LNG: Maritime's Fuel of the Future page: 48


text:
Toby Tarrant 10am - 1pm
Ready To Go Republica Download 'Ready To Go' on iTunes
Foo Fighters have "shelved" new album "for now" amid COVID-19 pandemic
11 May 2020, 11:02 | Updated: 11 May 2020, 11:07
Frontman Dave Grohl has revealed the band are putting things on hold to figure out when to release their 10th studio album.
Foo Fighters have "shelved" the release of their new album indefinitely.
The Learn To Fly rockers have completed work on the follow-up to 2017's Concrete and Gold, but have no idea when it will be released because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Get the latest NHS advice on Coronavirus
Speaking in the latest issue of Q Magazine, Dave Grohl said: "We've kind of shelved it for now to figure out exactly when it's going to happen."
Foo Fighters. Picture: Press
The rocker - who is in isolation with wife Jordan Blum and their daughters, Violet, 14, Harper, 11, and Ophelia, five - admitted he's not great when it comes to taking up homeschooling.
"Being a high school dropout, I'm really not fond of the whole process, he said. "But I actually just walked out of the room where my 11 year old, Harper, is teaching my five-and-a-half year old, Ophelia, how to write and teaching her about earthquakes and volcanoes.
"My 11 year old is turning into the teacher. It's amazing."
READ MORE: What does Dave Grohl whisper in Everlong by Foo Fighters?
Meanwhile, Foos have given their seal of approval to another "magic" cover of their Times Like These anthem.
The single has had a lot of press recently, with the track being used for a charity single, and now a primary school in High Wycombe has impressed with their own rendition.
Stoken Church Primary School, who like many is staying open for some children, shared their version of the song on Twitter, writing: "Thanks @foofighters and @WBrand18 Even in lockdown and whilst keeping school open for those who need it most, we can create a little @stokenchurchps magic! So proud".
Thanks @foofighters and @WBrand18 Even in lockdown and whilst keeping school open for those who need it most, we can create a little @stokenchurchps magic! So proud 😊🌈💚👋🏼 pic.twitter.com/ql4rmZSUph
— @StokenchurchPS (@stokenchurchps) April 30, 2020
READ MORE: Why Times Like These and other Foo Fighters covers make Dave Grohl cry
More on Foo Fighters
See more More on Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters' No Son Of Mine is homage to Motörhead's Lemmy
Who is Foo Fighters' My Hero about?
This quiz will tell you if you're as nice as Dave Grohl
Foo Fighters to release Japanese sake drink for Medicine At Midnight album
Foo Fighters' Waiting On A War single is dedicated to Grohl's daughter Harper


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Steve Bruce Premier League stats compared to previous Newcastle United Managers – Oh Dear
It appears that Steve Bruce is set to be the next Newcastle United Manager.
Alternatively, if Mike Ashley wants to be open and transparent as he was when giving John Carver and Steve McClaren the job, he will become the next Newcastle United Head Coach.
Either way, he will be just another in a series of desperate people who should never have got the job, prepared to take the job with whatever qualifications are attached, including no say on anything of importance, apart from training the squad and picking the team.
Rafa Benitez of course broke that sequence of appointments but Mike Ashley made absolutely sure he wouldn't want to stick around beyond his three year contract.
Now I know that pretty much all of you out there will be thinking this is just yet another disaster set to be added to the Tsunami's worth of them we have had this Summer…but fair is fair.
We will give Steve Bruce a fair hearing and look at the facts.
Here is a list of the Newcastle United Managers who have managed 200 or more Premier League matches in their career, for NUFC and other clubs.
The table shows total number of Premier League games managed, average points per PL game, then the average goals for and against in the Premier League:
As you can see, we have a certain Rafa Benitez at the very top.
Kevin Keegan, an excellent performance as well.
Then we have the rest.
Then we have Steve Bruce.
His mates in the media are coming out trying to claim black is white but come on, there is nothing at all that says Steve Bruce is somebody who should be even joked about as being the next Newcastle boss.


text:
Redskins-Jaguars Spread Moves Up Half Point
The Redskins-Jaguars spread moved up a half point from where it opened at -6.5 in favor of Jacksonville, a team still in the Playoffs hunt at 8-6.
The key for Jacksonville is whether Maurice Jones-Drew, the NFL's second-leading rusher with 1,324 yards, ends up playing Sunday after being downgraded to doubtful on Friday. Jay Glazer has already suggested it would take a "miracle" for Jones-Drew to play on Sunday.
Perhaps it is this news that has prompted the betting public to start backing Washington somewhat heavy on the spread. 70 percent of those betting the spread were on the Redskins as of late Saturday night. 65 percent of those betting the money line were on the Redskins. There was even action on the total betting which featured an OVER/UNDER of 46.
Let's look at some of the important trends for the Redskins-Jaguars game.
The Redskins are 6-2-1 Against The Spread in their last 9 games as a road underdog.
The Redskins are 9-4-2 ATS in their last 15 games following a Straight Up loss.
The Jaguars are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 games as a favorite.
The Jaguars are 4-0 ATS vs. a team with a losing record.
The Jaguars are just 1-7 ATS in their last 8 games as a home favorite of 3.5-10.0.
Jacksonville is 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games overall.
The Jaguars are 4-10 ATS in their last 14 games after accumulating more than 250 yards passing in their previous game.
The Jaguars are 2-8 ATS in their last 10 games as a favorite of 3.5-10.0.
The Jaguars are 2-10 ATS in their last 12 games in Week 16.
- Dan Shapiro, Gambling911.com
Football News News
Bet the Color of the Gatorade Bath Super Bowl 54
BetOnline has posted odds on the color of the Gatorade bath, a popular prop offered for every Super Bowl.
Super Bowl 54 Total Hitting Record High
Bettors are expecting a plethora of points to be scored in Super Bowl 54.
NFL Betting Props – Super Bowl LIV MVP Odds
The Super Bowl is the biggest sporting spectacle on the planet. As a result it also takes in billions of dollars at the betting window. There are reasons for that. The game sits alone on the schedule and with weeks of buildup there is an assortment of proposition bets available from beginning to end. You can wager the over/under on the duration of the national anthem to what color liquid douses the winning coach. There are also the standard spread and total wagers. One popular prop is the game's MVP, and considering quarterbacks have won the award 29 times in the previous 53 Super Bowls it's not surprising to see Kansas City's Patrick Mahomes and San Francisco's Jimmy Garoppolo at the top of the odds board at BookMaker.eu with a significant drop after that.
Over Bet Super Bowl 54 Seeing Tons of Action
According to Darren Rovel of the Action Report, most totals sports bettors are all over the OVER.
Who Will the Super Bowl 54 MVP Mention First Prop Bet
One of the favorite betting props offered for each Super Bowl, Who Will The MVP Mention First, is once again being offered at Bookmaker.eu.