The markets ride pharma harder these days. Profits are 5% down as a percentage of revenue compared with 15 years ago.
Yet pharma pays investors back 13¢ on the dollar on average in dividends, and another 6¢ on the dollar in stock buybacks.
To maintain growth, pharma is borrowing more from the market – the industry's long-term debt now is the same as its revenue, up from 20% at the turn of the millennium.
So what? While debt can accelerate growth, too much can catalyze collapse. Markets tend to ignore debt until something goes wrong. Then they treat it as an encumbrance and start downgrading company valuations. Valeant has fallen; who's next?
For people close to it the pharmaceutical industry can appear rather complicated. Its arcane traditions and regulatory complexity woven with the mysteries of research and development and the black arts of marketplace survival create challenging intricacies in the mechanics of running a drug company. The products change, the markets change, the competition moves ahead, rule tweaks favor one company over another, developments falter and different leaders try to adjust the picture to the best of their ability.
The financial markets – and the people who operate in them – represent one of pharma's most important dependencies, one that has increased markedly in recent years. For a start, pharma has been borrowing a lot more money lately.
Long-term debt carried by pharmaceutical companies has increased significantly. Consider the longstanding residents of pharma's top tier, firms such as Pfizer Inc., Merck & Co. Inc., Sanofi, AstraZeneca PLC, Amgen Inc., Eli Lilly & Co. and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., businesses that were in the pharma top 20 both now and back in 2000. In 2000, for every $1 of revenue these big pharma companies made, they were carrying about 13¢ in long-term debt; by 2016 that ratio was five times higher at 70¢ per $1 of revenue.
For emergent companies such as Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., Mylan NV, Endo International PLC, Allergan PLC, Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. and Shire PLC, debt is an even more important mechanism in propelling growth: in 2016, the mean long-term debt for these six generic and specialty companies was nearly double their revenue levels ($1.95 debt for every $1 in revenue; range $1.4–$2.95.) (See Exhibit 1).
The green line shows aggregated figures for Pfizer, Merck & Co., Sanofi, AstraZeneca, Amgen, Eli Lilly and Bristol-Myers Squibb.
The red line shows aggregated figures for Teva, Mylan, Endo International, Allergan, Valeant and Shire.
The markets have demanded a greater level of stringency in corporate performance. Among the big pharma companies, average operating profits have fallen from around 27% of revenue in 2000 to 21% of revenue in 2016, and net profits have fallen from 21% of revenue to 16%.
Even as profits have declined, however, the level of dividend paid out to shareholders has risen. For every dollar earned in revenue in 2014–16, established pharma companies on average paid 12.5¢ to shareholders in dividends, compared with 8¢ per revenue dollar back in 2000–02. They also handed over another 6¢ per dollar of revenue by buying back stock from existing shareholders.
Between 2011 and 2016, these seven firms collectively returned $270 billion to equity investors, equivalent to 20% of their combined revenues in that period.
Easing the flow of capital to and from the financial markets is increasingly important in the business of running pharmaceutical companies. So understanding how markets think about pharma is key for any management team.
The evidence for this is shown in Exhibit 2a, which for 18 different top-tier drug companies over a 16-year period shows the correlation between market capitalization and revenue. The strong linear relationship between the revenue and its market capitalization is clear.
The consistency of this relationship may be surprising to those in the industry given that the 18 companies covered take quite different approaches to their pharma businesses. (See sidebar, "Why We Examined These Companies.") Some focus on generic drugs, others on biopharmaceuticals; some have grown rapidly through acquisition or product development, others have shrunk from past glories; many are headquartered in the US, but many are European (either historically or for tax purposes).
A look at the companies we included in our analysis.
Those operating in the financial markets may be cognizant of and sensitive to this variety of backgrounds, and they may understand that each pharma company is itself a complex web of interacting disciplines organized efficiently to transform new knowledge into clinically effective products in myriad indications. However, when they look holistically, it appears the financial markets see pharma as a cash-in, cash-out black box.
Furthermore, the markets' rough estimate of value for the black box is obtained by multiplying product revenues by a constant. For this set of companies over a period of 17 years, that constant is 3.5.
Having said that, an even better fit to the data emerges through two refinements of this basic "value equals k times revenue" model.
The first refinement adjusts for "stock market sentiment," the openness or otherwise of the financial markets that broadly influences stock price movement and market capitalization. The NYSE Arca Pharmaceutical Index (DRG) is a decent measure of pharma-specific sentiment and indexing for DRG takes much of the fluctuating "market sentiment" toward the pharma sector in general out of the equation. DRG-indexed market capitalization data plotted against revenue are shown in Exhibit 2b.
Two things are apparent from Exhibit 2b. First, the data are tighter: the correlation between sentiment-adjusted market capitalization and pharma revenue is stronger than in Exhibit 2a.
Second, the data split according to the time period involved. In 2007 or before (green circles), market capitalization valuations are more generous relative to revenue. With some exceptions, the green circles are above the line of best fit; the red circles representing post-recession valuations, on the other hand, tend to be below that line.
This is still a very simple model of pharmaceutical company value.
What caused the financial markets to adjust their implicit formula is unclear. It could have been the general economic turmoil that accompanied the global economic recession of 2008–09. Barack Obama's presidency and the extended (and continuing) tussle over the Affordable Care Act may have caused investors to reassess the value of pharma revenue streams. The Pfizer-Wyeth and Merck-Schering-Plough megamergers may have highlighted the paucity of pipelines at big pharma and spooked investors. The impending loss-of-exclusivity of Pfizer's Lipitor (atorvastatin) may have contributed, too.
Data shown are based on annual average market capitalization and annual revenue figures for Pfizer, Merck & Co., Sanofi, AstraZeneca, Amgen, Eli Lilly, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Teva, Mylan, Endo International, Allergan, Valeant, Shire, Gilead, Biogen, CSL Behring, Novo and Celgene between 2000 and 2016.
In Panel A, Market Cap is plotted against Revenue; in Panel B, Market Cap is indexed against the Arca Pharmaceutical Index to adjust for general market fluctuations; in Panel C, Revenue is adjusted to reflect the apparent market's reevaluation after 2007.
Data from 2007 or before shown in green; after 2007 shown in red.
The flip that occurred after 2007 illustrates that although the hand of the market may be invisible, its collective mind can change. Not only that, it is possible to measure the change. In this case, the data suggest that until 2008, those in the financial markets considered a drug company's valuation to be about five times its product revenue; after that, the multiplier fell to around three.
It turns out, perhaps surprisingly, that market views of individual company valuation also largely adhere to a simple revenue-multiple model. This is illustrated in the following sections: valuations derived from revenues compare closely to actual market capitalization based on stock price across a range of drug companies.
What is also clear is that the market view of individual companies can also be inflated by indefatigable optimism about the future or spooked by apparently unexpected business factors, such as the accumulation of debt.
Why debt accumulation is an unexpected factor for financial markets is itself a mystery, given that the numbers are right there in the annual and quarterly reports, and that it is financial markets that do the money-lending.
Each panel shows the fit between the multiple-of-revenue model of company valuation (green) and market capitalization based on stock price (red). The model used applies a 5x multiple of revenue until 2007 and a 3x multiple after that. Actual market capitalization is adjusted for general market fluctuations in the DRG Arca Pharmaceutical Index.
The previous sections imply that to a first approximation the financial markets have a one-size-fits-all model for valuing companies in the pharmaceutical industry. In the following section, data from individual companies demonstrate that this claim holds largely true for well-established companies and fast-growing companies in generics. For specialty pharma and biotherapeutics firms, the markets make other adjustments.
Exhibit 3 looks at seven established top-tier pharma firms: Amgen, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Eli Lilly, Merck & Co., Pfizer and Sanofi.
There is a large degree of agreement between the actual and modeled data for all companies except Amgen. In other words, if you take out the vicissitudes of general market sentiment, the markets' assessment of the worth of these established pharma companies is based almost wholly on the value of drugs they sell.
Some temporary and company-specific departures are apparent. For instance, the unwinding of the Vioxx (rofecoxib) scandal in 2004 pushed Merck's actual market value below that estimated from its sales. Similarly, the tide of rising Lipitor sales propelled Pfizer's traded value upwards in the early 2000s.
But in general, a revenue-multiple model accounts for most of the variation in market capitalization values for big pharma.
In Amgen's case, the financial markets remain generous in their assessment of the company's value. Its market capitalization over the last decade approximates to a four-fold multiple of sales rather than the three-fold multiple that appears to apply to other established firms, perhaps reflecting the more robust exclusivity of its biologics portfolio. Even a four-fold multiple is a significant drop from the eight- to 10-fold multiples the company attracted in the inflated post-genomic biotech bubble.
The relationship between indexed market capitalization and value calculated solely from revenues largely holds for the fast-growing generics and specialty pharma companies in this sample. (See Exhibit 4.) As with the established pharma companies, there is one exception.
Each panel shows the fit between the multiple-of-revenue model of company valuation (green) and market capitalization based on stock price (red). The model used applies a 5x multiple of revenue until 2007 and a 3x multiple after that. Actual market capitalization is adjusted for general market fluctuations using the DRG Arca Pharmaceutical Index. In addition, a third orange line shows the multiple-of-revenue model adjusted for the level of long-term debt a company carries.
Exhibit 4 shows similar data to Exhibit 3 but for three generics companies: Teva, Endo and Mylan (Exhibit 4a), and three specialist pharmaceutical companies: Allergan, Shire and Valeant Pharmaceuticals (Exhibit 4b).
For the generics companies, there is a reasonable fit between the actual market capitalization (adjusted for general market fluctuations – red line) and a value for market capitalization calculated from revenue alone (green line).
However, for the generics companies there is a better fit if the calculated value includes a downgrade for the level of debt that a company is carrying.
This is clearest for Mylan, where the gap between actual and calculated values is closed when debt is brought into the equation.
The improvement in fit when debt is accounted for is also apparent for Endo International: the market had inflated Endo's value following its major acquisitions of Auxilium Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Par Pharmaceutical Inc. (in addition to acquisitions of a string of private companies), apparently happy to add the company's gains in goodwill and intangible assets to its value and to ignore the concomitant uptick in its liabilities.
But when Endo warned of a drop in forecast revenue and profit in February 2016, investors quickly became more aware of both the very large level of debt that the company was carrying and the fragile value of the goodwill it had acquired. Its stock price fell from over $50 at the end of February to under $15 in May. Its price and market value have continued to fall in 2017.
For generics companies, the market seems to recognize (eventually) that debt can reduce value, even when accompanied by gains in assets, and especially so if those assets are as ephemeral as goodwill and intangibles.
Making adjustments for debt doesn't seem to be an automatic process in making assessments of corporate value, even when debt is prominent on a company's balance sheet. In fact, if you are a specialist pharma that has plied investors with a convincing growth-adds-value story, debt seems almost irrelevant to valuation. This is surprising, given what has happened to Valeant in the past year and a half.
The descent of Valeant's stock has been well documented – from a market cap of nearly $90 billion in the summer of 2015 to $9 billion less than a year later and now to under $4 billion. But the accumulation of debt began long before the market took note.
For fiscal year 2010, Valeant reported long-term debt of $3.7 billion in the context of revenues of $1.2 billion, a ratio of 3:1. No one seemed to mind. But in 2015, Valeant's position of carrying $30 billion in debt against revenues of $10 billion suddenly became untenable. Lots of questions were asked even though the debt-to-revenue ratio was identical five years earlier. Perhaps scale matters.
As Exhibit 4b shows, accounting for debt would have attributed a value to Valeant of roughly zero from 2010 onward, a value that is much closer to the market's current best estimate than the blinded optimism investors actually displayed throughout 2010–15.
Learning a lesson from the Valeant experience, investors could monitor closely the manner in which another specialty company, Shire Pharmaceuticals, handles its newly assumed debt. Since 2009, and even before then, Shire's long-term debt has been relatively small – equivalent to a third or a quarter of its revenue. But to acquire Baxalta Inc., Shire assumed a debt level in 2016 equivalent to nearly twice its revenue. Investors should be watching to ensure Shire manages to pay down that mountain.
As Exhibit 4b shows, the markets apparently continue to attribute value to Shire based solely on revenue. If Shire can tackle its debt burden, and if former-Baxalta revenues hold up in their new corporate surroundings, this may prove valid; if not, a correction for debt might be needed.
Allergan, too, is a company that investors may need to watch closely. Its market valuation has already fallen to two-thirds of its value at the point when a tax-propelled merger with Pfizer seemed likely. But the market still values Allergan at a considerable premium to the formula it applies to pharma companies in general. Allergan's March 2017 market capitalization was around $80 billion, not 3 times its reported revenue for 2016, but 5.5 times. And the company still had nearly $33 billion in long-term debt.
The apparently optimistic outlook on Allergan may last if the company continue to pay off its debts.
A simple revenue-multiple model of pharmaceutical company value appears to apply also for high-growth biopharmaceutical firms, although not at the multiples that apply to other companies. Exhibit 5 shows the relationship between actual DRG-adjusted market capitalization (red) and a value calculated from revenue (using the same parameters as elsewhere in this article).
After Gilead's revenues from its hepatitis C franchise peaked in 2015, the company's market capitalization reverted to a three-times-revenue model (the actual and model data in Exhibit 5 are resynchronized).
For Novo Nordisk, it only took an announcement in August 2016 that the company's dividend would be halved to cause stockholders to re-examine the firm. They reducing the company's market capitalization from around $145 billion to about $85 billion by the end of the year (although that still implies a revenue multiplier of four).
And, as Exhibit 5 shows, the downturn in Biogen's market capitalization in 2015 and 2016 associated with the discussion of health care costs in the run-up to the US presidential election brought it much closer to a three-times-revenue value.
It seems that although investors may want to put their money to work in ways that are interesting and ethical, they care for the intricacies of pharmaceutical industry mechanistics only to the extent that they influence financial outcomes. For them, pharma is not an R&D machine that develops products that can be sold to health care systems to help patients, it is a black box that when working properly converts equity and debt investments into value creation and financial returns.
As long as the black box works properly, the financial markets take an unexciting but benign view that the value of a drugs company should reflect a multiple of its product sales.
When something is not working properly – signaled perhaps by profits or revenue warnings, or by an expectedly low dividend payment – the markets may want to look inside the black box. Sometimes they don't like what they see.


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New NASA astrobiology chief
Bruce Runnegar will lead study of life on Earth and beyond.
Harvey Black(hblack@chorus.net)
Another manned trip to the moon is among the goals of Bruce Runnegar, the newly named director of NASA's Astrobiology Institute (NAI). Runnegar, who will take office in January, is a professor in the Department of Earth and Space Sciences and director of the Center for Astrobiology at the University of California, Los Angeles' Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics (IGPP). Runnegar's appointment was announced 6 September. He succeeds Nobel Laureate Baruch Blumberg, who resigned in April, having led the Institute since 1999.
Runnegar told The Scientist NAI's mission centers on three areas of inquiry: "the search for life outside the Earth, how life evolved on Earth, and what do we do with our own life as we inevitably move out into the solar system and out into the galaxy." Going back to the moon is a crucial step, "a way to develop some of the skills that will...

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
The Great Backpedal
Eric Preven
Previous Article Mr. Flexibility
Next Article Nary A Word
ERIC PREVEN'S NOTEBOOK - According to experts, even the enormous bounty of rain delivered in the form of cycling winter storms recently is not enough.
Mayor Bass seemed pleased, "We have housed ... 31 people in Hollywood and 92 people in Venice. Unhoused Angelenos were suffering in these encampments. Neighbors felt less safe."
On Wednesday, Lydia Ponce called into the city council meeting to decry doing four ayem sweeps in Venice as unnecessarily stressful and called for the recall of Traci Park the Mike Bonin replacement in CD11, demanding, "Where is all the Quimby money from all of the oversized tissue box houses you've built? Get on your jobs, Being taken away to a location, that you are not familiar with at four in the morning."
Thank you, Speaker.
The mayor was not the only one taking a proactive strategy to confront a crisis. The City Council, due to inclement weather, disruptive participants, and dangerously high sanctimony levels, is currently under something of a meeting evacuation order.
One public speaker from Canoga Park called in to say, "I need people to pray for me because I have covid. Especially, my basic fans."
As the public wished Sean a speedy recovery the city seemed to be pivoting seamlessly, from one emergency (covid) to another (Homelessness).
Paul Krekorian, the first Armenian American Council President, who could easily have been jet-lagged after his recent co-announcement about Armenia with Mayor Bass, was in no mood.
After reminding everyone how patient and tolerant he'd been up to this point with the infuriating protestors, in green hats, black shirts, and white masks, Krekorian finally drew the line and whipped out… the "A" word.
Avak? No.
Asshole? Certainly, but no.
Arrest?! Bingo.
"I want to make this very clear... there has not been one citation or one arrest… But if you don't leave this meeting, you will be subject to arrest."
Gasp. Krekorian, hemmed and hawed but in the end, couldn't pull the trigger.
Eunisses Hernandez, the Gil Cedillo replacement from CD1 made a motion the following day saying that, she and Hugo Soto-Martinez wanted to explore public meetings without armed LAPD.
The city is going off the rails.
Following the news of three LAPD killings in two days tk. and Chief Moore's remarks, Eunisses said, "We can no longer look away from this crisis in our policing system — it's long past time that we establish permanent, life-affirming, care-first responses to mental health crises that truly uplift the public's safety and address the root causes of harm."
Krekorian, swiveled back and said he would give 45 minutes to the in-person crowd, a glorious mix of poverty-stricken hispanohablantes afraid of losing everything they own and angry protestors enraged by the mere presence of Tenacious-D, Kevin De León.
Krekorian seemed to be in a rush like he had someplace better to be,
The Great Backpedal of 2023:
On Sunday, January 15th, 2023, Council President Paul Krekorian will be celebrating the grand re-opening of Campo de Cahuenga and so commemorating the 176th anniversary of the Capitulation at Cahuenga.
The treaty, signed by the Mexican military commander of the area and a U.S. army colonel, was made without the formal backing of either the American government in Washington or the Mexican government in Mexico City, still, both sides observed it and the fighting ceased, thus ending the war in California. It's a great story to illustrate local control.
When one particularly smart speaker chimed in — that the restroom at the museum is overrun by people desperate to use a public restroom at the Universal Metro station.
Cut him off.
"Hope to see you there!"
The great backpedal of January 11th 2023, commemorates the day that the first Armenian American Council President in Los Angeles City History, finally threatened to have Mr. Jason Reedy arrested.
Krekorian took office, following a tsunami-sized wave of city corruption over which he presided capably as the consiglieri of choice for budgeting and high sneakery. Krekorian, vowed to represent all of the people of Los Angeles with integrity, and without preference or favor.
"The People of Los Angeles," he said, "can't wait for action on housing, on homelessness, on public safety, on reform."
He said the council had forfeited the public's trust but shared a vision for a collective future. The painful moments, the crises, and the challenges.
Krekorian said, his era would NOT be one of unilateral decision-making, not consolidating power.
Smart Speaker: Item 17… I have to say asking the city attorney and the chief legislative analyst to provide some recommendations about ways to torture Mr. De León who has the right to be in the room, despite his racist comments... is absolutely abhorrent beyond belief.
I mean, I've looked at the list and just can't even believe it.
Limit discretionary funds and ability to sign contracts?
Which of the council members is going to pay for the legal fight when this is challenged?
Limiting his ability to make and introduce certain types of motions?
What do you mean? The ones his colleagues don't agree with?
What the -- mass communications or mailings. He can't send out mailings to his constituents?
OK, you've gone around the bend and it has to stop.
You have turned the hallowed John Ferraro Chambers at City Hall into a circus. A circus led by two guys, now jumping over one another in two languages, thanking the public as they arbitrarily limit the public speaking window.
Every speaker who called in, or comes in should be heard. That is your job. Take a seat and do it for a change.
It's unbelievable. It is absolutely unbelievable. I have to say, I am disgusted by this. I'm And where is the Mayor?
The Mayor has David Michaelson, the I*&(&*le from the city attorney's office who is refusing to give the records about the mayor's out-of-state activities, as it relates to who is serving as the backup mayor.
We need to know so that we can commemorate the triple-A initiative. the first out-of-state trip for Bass as it will represent the first Armenian American Acting Mayor...
Michaelson has been blocking that information for months, for some reason.
Get. It. Together.
Krekorian turned red as a beet and had steam shooting out of all three ears, "Unfortunately," he said, "there have been improper abject lies... to the CD14 hispanohablantes."
He said he could tell from the testimony that the Spanish-speaking media had engaged in misinformation when it suggested that the City Council of Los Angeles would take money away from the district.. "that is a lie."
"To get senior citizens upset is absolutely irresponsible and outrageous," he said, "It gets me enraged... that they were not told the truth."
The Eagle Rock Neighborhood Council sent in a letter to Mayor Bass and Krekorian saying that the NC's logo should not be used alongside Councilmember de León's name, but only his office's generic logo.
That's a diss.
Mr. Soto-Martinez, the Mitch O'Farrell replacement in CD13, jumped up to say, "I couldn't have said it better than Krekorian. Every. Single. Word. "
Hugo's popularity plunged the instant he jumped in Krekorian's arms to embrace the exploration (of bad ideas).
Bob Blumenfield, equivocated for the city scholars, "We need to be wary...need to be blind to the who what when of the time...and think of long haul or play long ball.
Monica Rodriguez, the only member of the council with principles, made it super clear, a recall was the correct way to go if CD14 constituents wanted to replace DeLeon. Everything else was "anti-Latino."
De León is the best speechmaker on the council, and he finally got his turn, "colleagues, yesterday... several comments were made about me."
He said he was busy not with rhetoric or tweets but with real actions.
De Leon said it was a fact that he fought for Tenant Protections, "You know me as a hardworking representative who doesn't cut corners but delivers results for his constituents."
I have a long record of using public dollars to help my people, and no one has ever questioned that. Ever, he said.
Still, even a report back...is playing with the Latinos in my district's lives.
"I spend my funding to buy food for my constituents, every month not just during Thanksgiving and Christmas, every month. I have a food desert... and the largest homeless population in America... the school-to-prison pipeline...
After that rhetorical flourish, De León clarified, that this is not a rhetorical flourish on Twitter.
Last month, he said, he personally secured $47.5 million dollars. Awarded...because I used $250,000 of discretionary funds to hire experts in urban transportation -- not through the mayor's office. I did it through CD14.
"The largest investment in skid row ever, " he boasted.
"To limit my motions... what kind of motions I can make... this creates a second class status for CD14. It's unconstitutional."
"To limit mass mailings with my community. This is a basic tool... when and where... civic events... (like Campo Cahuenga Capitulation), and the homeless food bank."
Prohibiting that communication is only intended to hurt De Leon's constituents.
In conclusion, he said, "only one council member has ever been censured by this council ...only Huizar, not MRT. Now you want to do an 'exploration'... If eight members don't like something ...it's a slippery slope."
"Thank you very much."
County Narcissism:
When Oscar® winner Nicolas Cage makes a terrifying appearance in the trailer for Renfield, the new Dracula movie, the group leader remarks, "Okay, we're obviously dealing with a little more than narcissism here."
Mark Prestrella came right out of the gate at the first big JHahn Board meeting and took a potshot at the Los Angeles Times.
"We are doing quite well..." he said, "we've captured 21 billion gallons of water ... so far... through the backbone of our system, the reservoirs...spreading grounds...but the safe clean water ,,, thanks to the $400 million worth of projects, you've put out.
We expect to capture more. Up to 200 RoseBowls filled to the brim, every year...double what we have now!
Why not grab all the water in the roaring river when it rains?
Too hazardous to capture...
At 19ft per second...from the north end to San Pedro, capturing it would be risky.
Currently, we are investing in above-grade storage within the City of Los Angeles.
One smart speaker was enthusiastic about the report.
Smart Speaker: What can I say, A star is born! This is one of my favorite presentations all year. This has been so much more fun than the public health gang droning on and on.
This is excellent. This is public safety. This is the climate crisis -- this is one of the best presentations. Pestrella did a great job.
Let's give him credit. Admittedly, they are bilking the public for an enormous amount of money, but we made great progress.
I love the idea of adopting a drain and naming it the interceptor… I propose naming one of the interceptor drains, The David Michaelson, because he is the angling City Attorney who thinks it's appropriate to deny access to public records in mayor bass's office, right out of the gate.
Kevin James, who shimmied from Public Works at the City over to the City's Attorney's office … is doing a great job but when one hands off to Michaelson the interceptor…. DIAL TONE.
All of the Supervisors, Janice Hahn and Holly Mitchell and Lindsay Horvath, and Hilda Solis all get a lot of credit for this amazing presentation from Public Works.
This is the kind of meeting that the public deserves. Thank you.
Sup. Janice Hahn, Chair: Eric, that was fantastic. Give the man another 10 minutes! Just kidding. Next speaker.
"As for Narcan in schools, yes," the smart speaker continued, "But let's stop short of safe injection sites at elementary schools. Can we agree on that?
Narcan saves lives. but let's promote the kids, like getting George Clooney and Don Cheadle and Mindy Kaling involved.
Let's promote, not poison.
How's that for a sound byte?
We all have to do our part. That said, Danny Trejo, has done a lot. A. lot.
Can we get Bad Bunny to help get the word out about fentanyl?
And where else can we put Narcan? I suggest in addition to libraries which are such vital resources, how about sports gambling venues as well as houses of worship?!
And re: the homeless emergency, "We need to be sure the team over at CES (Coordinated Entry System) have access to urgent mental healthcare, as well, because the work they have been doing over there has been going terribly for nearly a decade and that can take a toll.
This is why I am so proud of Supervisor Horvath for rolling up her tiny little sleeves and appointing herself to LAHSA. (The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority)
Sup. Janice Hahn, chair: Thank you.
Smart speaker: She has to go in there herself, it's very moving.
Sup. Janice Hahn, chair: Yes. We are proud of her, too.
Now, I am cutting you off:
The next speaker said, "I walk with god 24/7 365"
Another said, "The 5G upgrade makes my kidneys bleed."
Wise One:
Kareem Abdul-Jabaar said another smart thing this week, "When I call someone out for what I deem bad behavior, it's because I want that behavior to stop—in them and others."
"Which is why" he goes on, "we have to be careful to only point out behavior that is detrimental to society, not just personally offensive."
A judge said last week that a school employee's right to wear a MAGA hat, like Mitch Englander did in Mexico City with Gil Cedillo, is protected "'That some may not like the political message being conveyed is par for the course and cannot itself be a basis for finding disruption of a kind that outweighs the speaker's first amendment rights,'"
Still, here's your hat. What's your hurry?
(Eric Preven is a longtime community activist and is a contributor to CityWatch. The opinions expressed by Eric Preven are solely his and not the opinions of CityWatch)
Behind the Hate: Who is Andrew Tate


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Wingecarribee Shire Council fosters a diverse, creative and vibrant community which recognises the link between community well being, business survival and growth.
We encourage the community to engage with Council to create an inclusive and culturally diverse community with access and equity to resources.
Wingecarribee Shire Council acknowledges the Gundungurra and Tharawal people as the traditional custodians of this place we now call the Wingecarribee Shire. Council provides a number of initiatives to promote and celebrate Aboriginal culture within the Wingecarribee Shire.
As part of Wingecarribee Shire Council's overall strategy to encourage and improve accessibility & inclusiveness for people with disability, Council has developed a Disability Inclusion Action Plan (DIAP). Find out further information about the Disability Inclusion Action Plan, Accessible Parking, the Mobility Parking Scheme and the Master Locksmith Access Key (MLAK).
Anzac Day is the solemn day of remembrance of those Australian and New Zealand soldiers who fought and died for their country. Anzac Day is marked annually on the anniversary of the Gallipoli campaign of the First World War.
Wingecarribee Shire Council is home to a diverse, creative and vibrant community, hosting arts and cultural events that people come from all over the world to enjoy.
Wingecarribee's Australia Day celebrations for 2023 will include a Citizenship Ceremony at Berrima, with the Civic Centre to be used in the case of inclement weather. The ceremony will also include the announcement on the Shire's 2023 Citizen of the Year.
Those of us impacted by fires and other disasters across the region acknowledge the need to do things differently in response to climate change. We need new tools and ways of working together to undertake the actions required to prepare for and prevent the impacts of disasters and to recover and rebuild in more resilient ways.
Wingecarribee Shire hosts Citizenship Ceremonies to welcome those in our community who are taking the step to become an Australian citizen.
The Community Catering Trailer is available for hire outside of the peak holiday travel period for not for profit community organisations and events that operate within the Wingecarribee Shire area.
Council's social media pages are set up to keep you connected with news and initiatives. In order to keep it a safe digital space, please have a quick read of our community guidelines.
The Wingecarribee Shire has experienced a series of unprecedented shocks including record-breaking drought and heat, the Black Summer bushfires and the COVID-19 pandemic. To assist community in their journey to resilience we have provided a number of tools, information and resources.
Wingecarribee data from the last census, conducted in 2021 can be accessed by visiting this page, as well as the Wingecarribee Community Profile.
If you want to get out and about more easily, Southern Highlands Community Transport's safe and easy to access travel could be just the ticket.
Community engagement and consultation is a regular and important part of Council's everyday services. Your Say Wingecarribee is our online hub for you to join in, share your thoughts and help shape key projects and services, as announced in our media centre news releases and our newsletters. View our current consultations and have your say.
The Southern Highlands, like the rest of the world, is currently in the midst of an event unprecedented in our lifetimes. Combating the spread of COVID-19 (Coronavirus) is a global issue and it's having a real impact on our lives. We are monitoring developments relating to Covid-19 and assessing any potential impact on services and events.
Information relating to grants and funding opportunities in the Wingecarribee Shire, including the Community Assistance Scheme Grant, social recovery small grants for bushfire recovery, Club Grants, the WSC Contingency Fund and the bushfire community recovery small grants program.
Homelessness is an increasing issue in NSW. People are considered homeless when they are without accommodation that is safe, secure, appropriate and affordable.
The Wingecarribee Community Services Forum is an information exchange for community service organisations providing services in or for the Wingecarribee Shire.
Settlement and multicultural community services available to people living in the Wingecarribee Shire.
Education and promotion of road safety concepts and safe road use behaviours, is important in helping to reduce the road toll and associated road trauma. Find out more about our Learner Driver Programs, Children's Road Safety, the Look out Before you Step out programme, and more.
Wingecarribee Shire Council is committed to providing a safe community for its residents and visitors. Find Emergency and Bushfire Emergency Information, including our Bushfire Neighbourhood Safer Places, information on Alcohol Free Zones, Community Safety and the Love Bites project.
Over a quarter of residents living in the Wingecarribee Shire are 60 years old or greater. Find our Seniors Directory, information about the Seniors Festival, Positive Ageing, maintaining independence, and participation in community life.
Severe weather information and support.
Like many other organisations, Wingecarribee Shire Council relies on volunteers to assist with the provision of services and facilities for the community. Find out more about volunteering opportunities and Volunteering Wingecarribee.
Useful information for young people living in the Southern Highlands, and those working with them, including the Youth Strategy and Action Plan, Youth Forum, the Highland's Child, Youth & Family Services Directory and information and resources for looking after your mental health.


From tea yoghurt to coffee fruit energy, portable water enhancement to Milo's brand expansions, Mintel shared category-busting innovation at Food Ingredients-Asia in Jakarta, Indonesia, this week.
"It incorporates the refreshing and reviving elements of tea with the satiety elements that you would get from yoghurt,"  said Mintel insights manager for Australia-New Zealand, south east Asia and India, Jane Barnett, of Kirin's 'Teagurt' tea yoghurt in Japan.
While the product may not survive long-term in fad-driven Japan, the innovation would fuel on-the-go breakfast developments in other markets.
Kraft-Mondelez 'Mio', a water-flavouring sachet that had expanded to deliver electrolytes and carbohydrates for sports enthusiasts, was performing well in the US and had seen take-up elsewhere including squash player Robinson's in the UK.
"I think this one's got legs," said Barnett.
Kona-Red employs caffeine-free coffee fruit in a high-antioxidant energy drink while Nestlé chocolate-based granule drink, Milo, was pushing into cereal bars, chocolate, ice cream and more.
Advanced Organic Materials (AOM) | Algatechnologies, Ltd. | Alland & Robert | Atlantia Food Clinical Trials | BGG Europe SA | Biosearch Life | DIANA, FOOD DIVISION | Döhler – Natural Food & Beverage Ingredients | Euromed SA | European Specialist Sports Nutrition Alliance | ExcelVite Sdn. Bhd. | FARAVELLI, The Best Ingredients for a better life! | Ferlux | FITOPLANCTON MARINO | Gelita AG | Gnosis S.p.A. | KGK Science | KGK Science, Inc. | KLK OLEO - Davos Life Science | Lallemand Bio-Ingredients | Lallemand Health Solutions. Quality Probiotics. Complete Solutions. | LEHVOSS Nutrition– Gee Lawson | Lipofoods, a Lubrizol Company | Lumina Intelligence | Monteloeder s.l. | Naturex | Nektium | NESSO | nutrineo – health food solutions by uelzena | Solvay Aroma Performance | Stratum Nutrition | The Whitehouse Consultancy | UAS Laboratories | VOLAC International Ltd.


is an open source NoSQL database that is compatible with Apache Cassandra. Scylla offers several key advantages over Cassandra such as scalability and better performance. Scylla was tested with IBM POWER9 processor-based servers and superior throughput was achieved with both database read and write operations. This article describes the tests that were done with IBM POWER processor-based servers, the performance results, and the value of IBM POWER processor-based servers for Scylla.
A team of experts from IBM and ScyllaDB set out to demonstrate the value of running ScyllaDB on an IBM® POWER9™ processor-based server compared to running Apache Cassandra on an Intel Xeon SP processor-based server.
The test results confirm that Scylla has better throughput for both read and write operations when running on IBM POWER9 processor-based servers.
This article describes the test environments and hardware configurations that were used, the test results with supporting data, and POWER9 sizing examples with tuning recommendations. Also, this article explains POWER9 capabilities that contribute to the superior performance of the Scylla.
Scylla is an open source NoSQL database that is a drop-in alternative to Apache Cassandra. Scylla and Cassandra are wide column stores. Scylla uses the best features of Cassandra while providing up to 10 times better performance than Cassandra and lower latency in some workloads. Scylla's highly scalable architecture enables it to handle one million database transactions per second on a single server. Like Cassandra, Scylla has automatic failover and replication across nodes to maximize availability and reliability. Workload conditioning provides a set of dynamic scheduling algorithms to minimize database operation latency jitter and reduce compaction streaming and repair time. Scylla's architecture enables the database to use both scale up and scale out hardware and processor models.
Read Scylla Architecture for more details.
Read Scylla Apache Cassandra Compatibility to find how compatible Scylla is with Cassandra.
There are several key reasons why Scylla is a good match for running on IBM POWER9 servers. The sharding feature within Scylla makes full use of simultaneous multithreading (SMT) on IBM Power® architecture for optimal parallelism. Seastar framework uses a shared-nothing model that shards all requests onto individual CPUs and allows efficient message passing between the CPUs without time-consuming locking.
POWER9 cores, with enhanced cache hierarchy, have a total of 120 MB of L3 caches with twelve 20-way associative regions and advanced placement policies. The L3 caches are fed by 7 TBps on-chip bandwidth. Along with its peak I/O bandwidth of 80 GBps, as powered by PCIe Gen4 (with Gen3 compatibility), POWER9 provides a very high data bandwidth environment that is superior to x86.
Also, POWER9 allows more memory capacity for larger in-memory database support.
Two test environments were set up: one for running Apache Cassandra on Intel Xeon SP and another for running Scylla on POWER9. Each server was similarly configured with comparable resources allocated on each server for the testing. The same performance benchmark was used when running tests in both POWER9 and Intel server environments.
The open source cassandra-stress tool was used for benchmarking and load testing. cassandra-stress is a Java-based tool that provides a built-in method to populate test data and perform a variety of workload stress tests.
Two key database operations were tested: read operations and write operations. Throughput was measured for each test run. Throughput is measured as the number of read (or write) operations per second. The tests were run multiple times for both read and write operations, and averages were calculated. Tests were also run using a mix of both read operations (80%) and write operations (20%).
In the cassandra-stress tests, the write tests were run with the uniform model. The read and mixed operation tests were run with the Gaussian model 9 million/4.5 million/10,000.
In this test, 56 cassandra-stress loaders were used.
Each write test iteration starts when the cluster has no data (data is cleared, and the database is restarted before each iteration).
Once the database was running on each server, the cassandra-stress tool was invoked using the following command invocations for the write and read tests.
Table 1 shows the key software installed for POWER9 and Intel Xeon processor-based test servers. The servers' operating systems were each configured in a bare metal, non-virtualized mode for these tests.
Table 2 shows the configuration for POWER9 and Intel Xeon processor-based test servers. The same number of cores, memory, and storage space was used in each configuration.
The cassandra-stress test driver was installed and run on a separate server than the database servers described in Table 2. A 40 Gbps network switch was used. An identical network configuration was used between the stress test server and each database server that was tested.
The test results show that Scylla performs better on POWER9 in terms of throughput than Cassandra running on an Intel processor-based server. These results mean that POWER9 systems can complete more Scylla database operations in the same footprint space because both test servers were 2U (two units) in size. It also implies that the individual operations complete faster and thus users can access their results sooner.
Write throughput of Scylla on POWER9 is 5.83 times better in terms of operations per second than Apache Cassandra on Intel Xeon SP. The write throughput results are shown in Figure 1.
Read throughput of Scylla on POWER9 is 2.13 times better than Apache Cassandra on Intel Xeon SP. The read throughput results are shown in Figure 2.
Mixed throughput of Scylla on POWER9 is 3.16 times better than with Apache Cassandra on Intel Xeon SP. The mixed throughput was 80% read operations and 20% write operations. The throughput results are shown in Figure 3.
ScyllaDB provides a System Configuration Guide that documents configuration recommendations for a variety of environment elements including hardware, storage, file system, networking, and Scylla software. Several scripts are provided to make configuration easier. In addition to these configurations, additional database tuning and POWER9 tuning is recommended.
Several key aspects of the ScyllaDB and Cassandra databases were tuned for the test environment.
During the test, the following three key POWER9 system-level environment settings were changed to achieve the best performance of Scylla running on POWER9.
Using SMT, you can concurrently run instruction streams of multiple threads on the same core. On IBM POWER9 processor-based servers, SMT4 is the default setting and most workloads will run well with this default setting. For databases including Scylla, setting SMT to the SMT4 mode is considered a best practice. While POWER9 processor-based servers offer up to four threads per core, Intel processor-based servers provide only two threads per core. Thus, when ScyllaDB runs, it uses four shards per core on POWER9 and two shards per core on Intel processor-based servers.
Table 3 shows an example of POWER9 configurations for three different installation sizes.
The recommendation for disk size is 30 times the memory size. For the example sizes in Table 3, it would be 1.8TB for Test, 3.7TB for Production, and 7.5TB for Analytics/Heavy duty.
Scylla was tested with IBM POWER9 processor-based servers and superior throughput was achieved with both database read and write operations. There are several key reasons why Scylla runs really well on IBM POWER9 servers. The sharding feature within Scylla makes full use of simultaneous multithreading on Power architecture for optimal parallelism. POWER9 provides a very high data bandwidth environment that is superior to x86. And, POWER9 allows more memory capacity for larger in-memory database support.


On the 23rd of Feb we will show the world that we are one, connected as kindred spirits raving our way into a golden era of love, peace and prosperity.
We invite you to join us on the dance floor and vibe as one.
This is a party like no other. It's quirky, it's fun, we let loose on the dance floor, celebrating our inner weird. That's when you know you've found your tribe, when you look up and everyone else is raving to their own beat, lost in their own dance with the universe. That's when you know that you are home.
We will be remembering the importance of tribal connectedness. Going back to our roots, our ancient beginnings. You will be encouraged to let the wild beast within you free. We'll be setting up some animalistic games, you'll be assigned a clan upon arrival, and we'll be playing games and competitions to see which tribes know how to have the most fun!
Dress code: TRIBAL, WILD ANIMALS, BACK TO NATURE...What do these things mean to you..?
Little ones welcome. Please bring ear defenders as without they'll not be permitted to enter the main dancefloor area at The Steel Yard. We'll have a small number to hire and some earplugs too.


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Q: How to make object references available in Node modules? I have an Express.js web app. In the main app.js file, I require() a bunch of third party dependencies. Recently I've started extracting parts of my app.js code into separate modules, e.g.
// in app.js
var users = require('./modules/users');

// and then e.g.
// users.add(doc);

Inside my modules, I sometimes need to use objects that are available in my main app.js file and I'm wondering what's the best way to pass references to those object to my modules.
My current approach:
// in app.js

// pass needed object references in initialization step
users.init([db, logger]);

and
// in modules/users.js

var db, logger;

exports.init = function (deps) {
    db = deps[0];
    logger = deps[1];
};

Does this approach make sense? Is there a better way to perform this?

A: Sure, just use modules! :)
// db.js

// create db instance here rather than in app.js

module.exports = db;

And
// logger.js

// create logger instance here rather than in app.js

module.exports = logger;

Then
// app.js

var db = require('./db');

And
// lib/somewhere.js

var db = require('../db');

This way you're able to rely on the CommonJS dependency injection system rather than on doing the dependency injection all by yourself (passing references around instead of requireing a module into yours).
The reason why this works as expected is that modules are only interpreted once, so if you instantiate everything once as opposed to using a factory function, it just works.

A: You should just be able to require modules as normal:
// users.js
var db = require('./db');
exports.init = function() {
   // use db in here
};

However, sometimes this isn't possible and you will need to explicitly pass in the module.
One way to do it is to pass in dependencies when you require the module:
// users.js
module.exports = function(db, logger) {
    return {
        init: function() { /* use db and logger in here */}
    };
}

// app.js
var db = ...;
var logger = ...;
var users = require('./users')(db, logger);
users.init();

This is the pattern that I personally prefer, I think it's cleaner to pass dependencies into the require than into some init method like you have in your example.
You'll see this done in ExpressJS code quite a lot, for example when we have all our routes in another file and need to pass our app instance around:
require('./routes')(app);

A: If you need something to be initialized specifically in app.js rather than their own module you can export them from app.js and then require app.js:
// app.js
var db = require("db"),
    logger = require("logger");

// do your initialization with db and logger
module.exports = { db: db, logger: logger };

and then:
// users.js
var db = require("./app").db,
    logger = require("./app").logger;

// use db and logger

This works because as @Nico mentioned, modules are interpreted once and app.js will not be interpreted each time it is required from elsewhere.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Tore di Ligni in Italy, Sicily resort (Topic)
Traval Articles » Travel » Tore di Ligni in Italy, Sicily resort
Tore di Ligni in Italy, Sicily resort
Tore di Ligny is the most popular tourist attraction in the city. This small fortress tower is located at the western end of the promontory between the Strait of Sicily and the Tyrrhenian Sea.
The tower was built on the rocks in 1671 by the main captain of the Kingdom of Sicily, Don Claudio La Moraldo, Prince of Liny. The author of the project was Carlos de Grunemberg. The tower served as a defense against the Berber pirates who often attacked and ravaged the coastal cities of the island of Sicily. At the beginning of the 19th century, a narrow passage connecting the city with the tower was made accessible to tourists.
In the second half of the 19th century, a firearm was installed on the roof of the tower, and during the Second World War, -the navy used the tower as an anti-aircraft firing position. In 1979, restoration work was carried out in the tower, after which it was opened to the general public.
Since 1983, the tower houses the Museum of Prehistoric Times. In the Museum's exposition on the first floor, visitors are presented with prehistoric finds discovered on the territory of Trapani; on the second floor, there are exhibits discovered at the bottom of the sea – anchors, amphorae and various decorations from Romans, Greeks and Phoenicians.
We also recommend reading Piazza della Repubblica in Italy, Sicily resort
Topic: Tore di Ligni in Italy, Sicily resort.
Torre di Ligny description and photos - Italy: Trapani (Sicily)
Tower of Vignazza (Torre di Vignazza) description and photos - Italy: Giardini Naxos (Sicily)
Castello Colombaya in Italy, Sicily resort
Ustica island in Italy, Sicily resort
Castello Schiso description and photos - Italy: Giardini Naxos (Sicily)


This event has allowed us to minister and fellowship with hundreds of people from all over the state of North Carolina. Some of them have even visited our church-on several occasions!! We want this year to be even better, but we need your help! In order to pull this off, we are asking for volunteers to give 2 hours (or more!!) of their time to man our table.


text:
/TV
New 'Looney Tunes' Project Announced By Warner Bros. Animation
By Cameron Bonomolo - June 11, 2018 03:24 pm EDT
Warner Bros. Animation will launch a new short-form, cartoonist-driven Looney Tunes content program coming to a variety of screens in 2019, Warner Bros. announced Monday.
(Photo: Warner Bros. Animation)
Warner's most ambitious Looney Tunes content initiative to date, Looney Tunes Cartoons is a series of new short form cartoons starring iconic and beloved Looney Tunes characters like Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and Porky Pig.
Multiple artists will employ a visual style that will resonate with fans as each 'season' will produce 1,000 minutes of all-new Looney Tunes animation to be distributed across multiple platforms, including digital, mobile and broadcast.
Looney Tunes Cartoons echoes the high production value and process of the original theatrical shorts with a cartoonist-driven approach to storytelling.
Marquee Looney Tunes characters will be featured in their classic pairings in simple, gag-driven and visually vibrant stories in 'toons varying from one to six minutes in length. From the premise through the jokes, each short will be "written" and drawn by the cartoonists, allowing their individual personality and style to come through in every cartoon.
"The Looney Tunes are one of the most beloved group of animated characters in the world" said Sam Register, President, Warner Bros. Animation and Warner Digital Series. "Looney Tunes Cartoons places these characters into the hands of some of the best artists in the business and into an animated shorts format that will remind many of the time when they first fell in love with Bugs, Daffy, Porky and the rest of the gang."
Warner Bros. Animation produces Looney Tunes Cartoons, which will feature veteran Looney Tunes voice cast members Jeff Bergman (New Looney Tunes, The Looney Tunes Show), Eric Bauza (New Looney Tunes), and Bob Bergen (Space Jam, New Looney Tunes). Sam Register (Teen Titans Go!) and Peter Browngardt (Uncle Grandpa) serve as executive producers.
Looney Tunes made their feature-length debut in 1996's Space Jam but haven't starred in a big-screen movie since 2003's Looney Tunes: Back in Action, which proved a financial disappointment.
The iconic cartoons returned to theaters in 3D-animated shorts preceding select Warner Bros. films, starting with Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner short Coyote Falls ahead of Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore in 2010. Warner Bros. Animation produced five shorts in all, starring the aforementioned scheming coyote and the elusive roadrunner, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, and Sylvester and Tweety Bird.
Most recently, Warner Bros. Animation returned the characters to television with The Looney Tunes Show and then New Looney Tunes.
Looney Tunes Cartoons launches sometime in 2019.
Netflix Releasing New Anime Documentary
Voice Actor Rob Paulsen on Taking Chances, Being the Best Rocker in Michigan, and More
Emmy Awards Rule Kept Stranger Things From Being Nominated
Legends of Tomorrow Reassures Fans About Missing Actors in First Season 5 Photo
Rick and Morty Season 4 First Look Revealed
The Orville Earns Its First Emmy Nomination
Teen Titans Go! Nominated For Emmy Award
Star Trek: Discovery Nominated for Four Emmy Awards


text:
Q: Specific step in proof $\mathbb P(X=x)=0$ I have a question about the following proof, where it's shown that $\mathbb P(X=x)=0$, for a continuous variable $X$ with dentisty function $f_X$:
\begin{align}
\mathbb P(X=x)=&\lim_{\epsilon\downarrow 0}\mathbb P(x-\epsilon<X\leq x)\\
=&\lim_{\epsilon\downarrow 0}\left[F_X(x)-F_X(x-\epsilon)\right]\\
=& \lim_{\epsilon\downarrow0}\int_{x-\epsilon}^{x}f_X(u)\text{ d}u\\
=&\ 0.
\end{align}
First of all, why didn't the writer stop at the second line. By the fundamental theorem of calculus, we know that $F_X$ is a continuous, so $\lim_{\epsilon\downarrow 0} F_X(x-\epsilon)= \lim_{t\to x}F_X(t)=F_X(x)$.
But that's not my biggest issue. Assume we would really like to conclude from the integral bit that $\mathbb P(X=x)=0$; which theorems to use?
So I'm specifically asking about this step: $\lim_{\epsilon\downarrow0}\int_{x-\epsilon}^{x}f_X(u)\text{ d}u=0$.
Thanks in advance!

A: According to this wikipedia page a continuous variable is one such that its cummulative distribution fucntion is continuous.
Using this we can notice that $F(x)-F(x-\epsilon)=\mu(X^{-1}(x-\epsilon,x])\geq \mu(X^{-1}\{x\})$ for all $\epsilon$, and because $F$ is continuous the left side goes to $0$ when $\epsilon$ goes to zero. We conclude $\mu(X^{-1}\{x\})=0$ as desired.

In general, if $\nu$ is any measure and you have a family of measurable sets $A_1\subseteq A_2\dots $ such that their union is $A$ you have $\lim_{n\to \infty} \nu(A_n)=A$, and if you have measurable sets $B_1\supseteq B_2 \supseteq \dots$ such that their intersection is $B$ then you have $\lim_{n\to \infty} \nu(B_n)=B$. This result is sometimes called convergence of measures.
Notice that if $f$ is an integrable function then $\nu(A)=\int_A f d\mu$ is a measure. It follows that $\lim_{n\to \infty} \nu(-\infty,x+1/n]=\nu(-\infty,x)$ and $\lim_{n\to \infty} \nu(-\infty,x-1/n)=\nu(-\infty,x]$.
it follows that $F$ is continuous (because $F(x)=\nu(-\infty,x)$)

A: For the last step of the proof in question:
$$\lim_{\epsilon \downarrow 0} \int_{x- \epsilon}^{x} f(x) \operatorname{d}\!x = \lim_{c \uparrow x} \int_{c}^{x} f_X(u) \operatorname{d}\!u = \int_{x}^{x} f_X(u) \operatorname{d}\!u = 0,$$
where we used the the theorem that states that the integral function
$$F(\chi) = \int_{\chi}^{a} f(t) \operatorname{d}\!t, \quad \chi \in [b,a],$$
is (uniformly) continuous. Notice that $x$ is taken as a parametre in the original function.
P.S.: I've checked the proof of the above mentioned theorem from a book; $F$ is usually defined as
$$F(\chi) = \int_{a}^{\chi} f(t) \operatorname{d}\!t, \quad \chi \in [a,b],$$
in standard statements of the theorem, but what I write here is equally valid since the same proof applies to it! [I'll update this answer tomorrow to include that proof.]

UPDATE:
We will prove that if $f$ is an integrable function over $[b,a]$, then function
$$F(\chi) = \int_{\chi}^{a} f(t) \operatorname{d}\!t, \quad \chi \in [b,a],$$
is uniformly continuous.
Let $\chi, \psi \in [b,a]$; then
$$F(\psi) - F(\chi) = \int_{\chi}^{\psi} f(t) \operatorname{d}\!t.$$
If $\chi \leq \psi$, then, by the triangle inequality for integrals, we have
$$\left | \int_{\chi}^{\psi} f(t) \operatorname{d}\!t \right | \leq \int_{\chi}^{\psi} | f(t) | \operatorname{d}\!t;$$
similarly, if $\chi > \psi$ we get
$$\left | \int_{\chi}^{\psi} f(t) \operatorname{d}\!t \right | \leq \int_{\psi}^{\chi} | f(t) | \operatorname{d}\!t.$$
So, in either case it holds that
$$| F(\chi) - F(\psi) | \leq \left | \int_{\chi}^{\psi} | f(t) | \operatorname{d}\!t \right | \leq \sup_{b \leq t \leq a} |f(t)| \ |\chi - \psi|.$$
Now, fix a positive $\epsilon$. There exists a positive $\delta = \frac{\epsilon}{\sup_{b \leq t \leq a} |f(t)|}$ such that
$$|\chi - \psi|< \delta \implies |F(\chi) - F(\psi)| < \epsilon$$
(for all $\chi, \psi \in [b,a]$). This means that $F$ is uniformely continuous, and the proof is complete.
The exact same proof applies even if we define $F$ as
$$F(\chi) = \int_{a}^{\chi} f(t) \operatorname{d}\!t, \quad \chi \in [a,b].$$

UPDATE 2: On the continuity of the Cumulative Distribution Function
The Cumulative Distribution Function (CDF) is defined as
$$F_X(x) = \int_{-\infty}^{x} f_X(t) \operatorname{d}\!t, \quad x \in \mathbb{R}.$$
We wish to prove that this function is continuous at any $a \in \mathbb{R}$, so pick an $a$ and then a constant $c < a$; now you can write
$$F_X(x) = \int_{-\infty}^{c} f_X(t) \operatorname{d}\!t + \int_{c}^{x} f(t) \operatorname{d}t$$
for all $x \geq c$. By what was shown above, the second integral is continuous at $x=a$ and so is $F_X(x)$!
If you want to know more about functions like the CDF you can have a look at Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absolute_continuity. Notice that what all integrals appearing in my post are assumed to be Riemann, or generalised Riemann, integrals.


text:
package org.broadinstitute.hellbender.tools.walkers.genotyper.afcalc;

import org.broadinstitute.hellbender.tools.walkers.genotyper.GenotypeCalculationArgumentCollection;
import org.broadinstitute.hellbender.GATKBaseTest;
import org.testng.Assert;
import org.testng.annotations.DataProvider;
import org.testng.annotations.Test;

/**
 * Tests {@link GeneralPloidyFailOverAFCalculatorProvider}
 *
 * @author Valentin Ruano-Rubio <valentin@broadinstitute.org>
 */
public class GeneralPloidyFailOverAFCalculatorProviderUnitTest extends GATKBaseTest {

    private final static int[] PLOIDIES = new int[] { AFCalculatorImplementation.UNBOUND_PLOIDY,1,2,3,4,10 };
    private final static int[] MAX_ALT_ALLELES = new int[] { AFCalculatorImplementation.UNBOUND_ALTERNATIVE_ALLELE_COUNT,1,2,3,4,10};

    @Test(dataProvider= "getMatrixOfPlodiesAndMaxAltAlleles")
    public void testAFCalculatorProvider(final int ploidy, final int maxAltAlleles) {
        final GenotypeCalculationArgumentCollection args = new GenotypeCalculationArgumentCollection();
        args.MAX_ALTERNATE_ALLELES = maxAltAlleles;
        args.samplePloidy = ploidy;

        final GeneralPloidyFailOverAFCalculatorProvider provider = new GeneralPloidyFailOverAFCalculatorProvider(args);

        final AFCalculator calculator = provider.getInstance(ploidy,maxAltAlleles);
        Assert.assertNotNull(calculator);
        final AFCalculatorImplementation implementation = AFCalculatorImplementation.fromCalculatorClass(calculator.getClass());
        Assert.assertTrue(implementation.usableForParams(ploidy,maxAltAlleles));
        for (final int PLOIDY : PLOIDIES) {
            for (final int MAX_ALT_ALLELE : MAX_ALT_ALLELES) {
                if (implementation.usableForParams(PLOIDY, MAX_ALT_ALLELE)) {
                    Assert.assertSame(provider.getInstance(PLOIDY, MAX_ALT_ALLELE), calculator);
                } else {
                    final AFCalculator failOver = provider.getInstance(PLOIDY, MAX_ALT_ALLELE);
                    Assert.assertNotNull(failOver);
                    final AFCalculatorImplementation failOverImplementation = AFCalculatorImplementation.fromCalculatorClass(failOver.getClass());
                    Assert.assertTrue(failOverImplementation.usableForParams(PLOIDY, MAX_ALT_ALLELE));
                    Assert.assertEquals(failOverImplementation, AFCalculatorImplementation.EXACT_GENERAL_PLOIDY);
                }
            }
        }
    }

    @DataProvider(name="getMatrixOfPlodiesAndMaxAltAlleles")
    public Object[][] getMatrixOfPlodiesAndMaxAltAlleles() {
        final Object[][] result = new Object[PLOIDIES.length * MAX_ALT_ALLELES.length][];
        int idx = 0;
        for (final int PLOIDY : PLOIDIES) {
            for (final int MAX_ALT_ALLELE : MAX_ALT_ALLELES) {
                result[idx++] = new Object[]{PLOIDY, MAX_ALT_ALLELE};
            }
        }
        return result;
    }

}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


SYDNEY (AP) — Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Thursday tensions between his country and Turkey had eased after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's office said comments by the Turkish leader that sparked the row had been taken out of context.
A diplomatic dispute flared over Erdogan's comments in the wake of Friday's gun massacre in which 50 people were killed at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, attacks for which an Australian white supremacist has been charged with murder.
Morrison slammed the comments as "highly offensive," and on Wednesday summoned Turkish Ambassador to Australia, Korhan Karakoc, to explain the remarks. Australia also placed under review its travel advisory for its citizens visiting Turkey, which was already set at "exercise a high degree of caution" due to the threat of terrorism.
But on Thursday, Morrison said progress had been made on mending bilateral ties after a spokesman for Erdogan said the president's words were "taken out of context." Fahrettin Altun, director of communications for the Turkish presidency, said Erdogan was in fact responding to the manifesto posted online by the man arrested in the mosque attacks.
"President Erdogan's words were unfortunately taken out of context," Altun said on Twitter.
"He was responding to the so-called 'manifesto' of the terrorist who killed 50 innocent Muslims in Christchurch, New Zealand. Turks have always been the most welcoming & gracious hosts to their Anzac (Australia and New Zealand) visitors.
"The terrorist's manifesto not only targeted Erdogan himself but also the Turkish people and the Turkish state.
Morrison on Thursday welcomed what he called a "moderation" of Erdogan's views, which followed a series of high-level bilateral diplomatic communications on the matter.
"Overnight, progress has been made on this issue and overnight we've already seen a moderation of the president's views," Morrison told reporters in Melbourne.
"It's my intention to break any cycle of recklessness, to work through these issues practically, to register in the strongest and clearest of terms the offence that was taken — I believe rightly — by those comments yesterday, but now to work constructively," Morrison told reporters in Melbourne.
Thursday's developments came as New Zealand Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters was en route to Turkey to meet with Erdogan and seek clarification over his comments.
Local elections are set to be held in Turkey on March 31. With the economy struggling, Erdogan's party risks losing the capital, Ankara, to the opposition. Such an outcome would be a severe blow to the president, whose ruling Justice and Development Party and its predecessor have run the city for the past quarter century.


text:
Q: C++ copy constructor: field with list of pointers I am trying to create a copy constructor for my class A that contains a list of pointers of type B. The way I was trying to do it is as follows:
class A
{
 private:
   list<B*> myList;
   list<B*>::iterator iter;

public:
  A()
  {
   }

 // Copy constructor
 A(const A &src)
  {
    myList.assign(src.myList.begin(), src.myList.end());
  }

A& operator= (const A &src);

 };

A& A::operator= (const A &src)
{
// do the copy
myList.assign(src.myList.begin(), src.myList.end());

// return the existing object
return *this;
}

Now, my problem is that if I do this:
A=a1;

//call function that will change a1

A  a2(a1);

//call function that will change a1

Then after calling this last function that changes a1, I notice that a2 has changed too. I thought that the copy constructor is supposed to prevent this from happening, but I can not figure out what I am doing wrong in my code.

A: Your std::list is a list of pointers.
Your copy constructor performs a shallow copy of these pointers. After the copy constructor call both a1 and a2 are lists whose elements point to same objects.
If you want to avoid this, either:

*

*Simply store objects rather than pointers in the std::list member or

*Your copy constructor should perform a deep copy.

Assigning one pointer to another performs a shallow copy. In simple words, after the assignment both pointers point to the same object. Your code is roughly equivalent to:
#include<iostream>

using namespace std;

int main()
{
    int i = 10;
    int *ptr = &i;
    int *ptr2 = ptr;

    std::cout<<"\ni = "<<i;
    std::cout<<"\n*ptr = "<<*ptr;
    std::cout<<"\n*ptr2 = "<<*ptr2;

    *ptr2 = 20;

    std::cout<<"\ni = "<<i;
    std::cout<<"\n*ptr = "<<*ptr;
    std::cout<<"\n*ptr2 = "<<*ptr2;

    return 0;
}

Output:
i = 10
*ptr = 10
*ptr2 = 10
i = 20
*ptr = 20
*ptr2 = 20

A: Your current copy constructor is actually equivalent to the copy constructor that would be automatically generated if you didn't implement one yourself: it copies all the elements of the list, which are pointers. If you copy a list object and make changes to the original (such as adding or removing elements), those changes won't be reflected in the copy. But changes to the objects stored in the list will be reflected in the copy, because the lists only store pointers to them. If you don't want that behavior, you have to store actual B objects in the list:
list<B> mylist;

Of course that means that B must be copyable.


text:
Network of networks - Civil and political rights - Egypt
A campaign by NADRF to highlight the roles of local female leaders in Egypt
15.03.2018 / Created by NADRF
As part of its mission to highlight the roles of female leaders or individuals who make positive change in their communities, both at the political and social levels, the National Association for the Defense of Rights and Freedoms has recently launched the campaign '' They are the hope for tomorrow'' which consisted in conducting a public vote on ''March 2018 women of the year''. The campaign ended by the election of Um El Ezz Brik from Mersa Matruh Governorate as ''Woman of the Year''.
Between 1 and 28 February 2018, the public had the chance to vote for its favorite female public figure among 10 candidates through the website of NADRF where more than 10,000 people from different governorates participated. This heavy participation in the voting process reflected the public support for women´s engagement and contribution to public life.
The results of the first four most voted female leaders were as follows:
Um El-Ezz Brik (Governor of Marsa Matruh) with 2036 votes
Maria Naim (Minya governorate) with 1980 votes
Hanan Abdel Nabi (Port Said governorate) with 1288 votes
Rabab Abdul Alim (Dakahlia governorate) with 914 votes
https://www.facebook.com/2010nadr[.......]/2010nadrf?ref=ts&fref=ts
Leadership Women's rights Freedom Egypt
Comprehensive Analysis for Gender Based Violence and the status of the National Referral System in the West Bank
The Palestinian Council of Ministers issued Decision No. 18 of 2013 on the national referral system (NRS) for women victims of...
Helpdesk Research Report: Women's economic role in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA)
The report provides an overview of current available data of women's economic role in the MENA region. It summarises the...
Preventing the Forced Marriage of Young Girls: The Action Plan of the Swedish Government
In Sweden, marriage may not be entered into without the valid consent of both people. Nevertheless, many young people are...


Yimiton's Blog: April Fools Stunt gone bad.
April Fools Stunt gone bad.
It was 11pm on the 31st of March and I was sleeping after a long drive through terrible traffic from the Island where we just had my younger sister's birthday bash.
My phone beeped; it was an sms from my boyfriend. It read 'Something came up, and I'm on my way to Benin. Moving with a friend, got a night bus, Be good'.
At first, I wanted to ignore it because I was almost certain it was an April Fools stunt, afterall, he doesn't travel by night buses. On a second thought, I decided to call him so that he wouldn't feel I didn't care about him. So, I called him but he didn't pick up. I got agitated as I really wanted to sleep and called a couple of his friends. I called his dad when his friends didn't pick up and subsequently, his brother when even his dad wasn't picking up.
I asked his brother what issues were at home and he told me about them and said he didn't know his brother had any plans to come home. I told him I thought my boyfriend was playing a bad April Fools stunt on me but I wasn't sure anymore. So I kept trying to call him all night but he just wasn't picking up his phone.
By 5.20am on April 1st, my phone rang with the special ring tone I set for him and he was sounding like he was in a lot of pain. He said he was involved in a ghastly motor accident and was in Ore with a broken arm.
But I told you never to travel at night! How could you have risked your life so much, why on earth haven't you been picking your calls and please stop playing this silly games already where some of the thoughts that raced through my mind when he told me. But I calmed myself and told him that I thought he was playing a stunt on me all the while until I called his brother and he confirmed that there were issues at home.
I didn't find it funny at all. I think April Fools jokes should be short, witty and interesting and they shouldn't keep people in suspense for too long. I also think they should be played between the speculated time between 12am and 12noon on April 1st and not before.
I sincerely think people have taken this April fools thing too far. I'm not mad at him, just sad that he doesn't love me as much as I thought otherwise, he'll be concerned about me to let me go through all that pain for no reason.
He's been apologizing and telling me how much he feels bad, but really, I just feel hurt and betrayed...really thought he loved me too much to do this for an ordinary Aprilfools day.
ah ahn please dont break up with him because of the joke nowww. it's not fair. please forgive him abeg. dont take it too seriously.
He could have something very witty and nothing to do with accidents etc(scary stuff)... But he didnt do, so i would say if he is really sorry, prove it..
you sef na wah o! abeg develop a sense of humor joh! so because he played a joke now, he doesn't love you anymore! good men are rare o! so you better have a better excuse for breaking up with the one you have. he has sha said sorry abi? and next time he knows not to play this kind of joke on you. so get over it and hold on to your man!
That was definitely too far. It's still not something to break up with your boyfriend over. Men can be silly but I'm sure this isn't the worst that could happen. At least he's ok, and not seriously wounded from an accident, abi? Just milk his transgressions for some preferential treatment, lol... Let him take you out and pamper you a few times to make up for the misdeed and then move on.
Aww.. U're all so sweet. I've taken yr advice & forgiven him but I'm enjoying the special attention, pampering and make up outings which he's doing now for apology.


text:
TRAVEL GUIDE: Biak na Bato National Park, Bulacan
The Biak na Bato National Park, in San Miguel, Bulacan, is one of top travel destinations in the province because of its historical contribution in the Philippine republic. "Biak na Bato" or split of boulder is where Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo signed the Malolos Republic (first Constitution of the Philippines). Aside from its historical background, tourist and students visit this park to relax, breath some fresh air, and witness the beauty inside the caves, especially the stunning Bahay Paniki Cave, the highlight of the area. By the way, it was declared as national park in 1937 by the former president Manuel L. Quezon.
There are concrete pathways and bridges that serve as the connection to certain parts of Biak na Bato National Park, crossing Balaong and Madlum rivers. The local government built a river wall to protect the area from soil erosion. The trail going to each highlights are simple and the terrain is surrounded by greens. In this park, three caves can be found. These caves were used by the Katipuneros during the Spanish Colonial lead by Emilio Aguinaldo.
Bahay Paniki Cave (House of Bats) is located 300 meters south of the Aguinaldo Cave. Its location is not easy to penetrate due to some sharp and slippery stones. Since the area is composed of plants, it serves as the home of some poisonous snakes, scorpions and insects. It is said to be the home of at least six species of winged mammals like: kabag-kabag, ngusong kabayo, bungisngis, sibsib, bayakan and pakibu. Inside Bahay Paniki Cave is an open space that stretches 30 meters up forming a colorful, gorgeous and spacious dome.The boulders are really huge, I think it's like a 2-storey building tall. Then beside the cave is the flowing water coming from the spring, inside the cave.
The Aguinaldo Cave is the most notable among other caves of Biak na Bato National Shrine. It is the cave where Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo once took refuge while leading the resistance movement against the Spanish and American colonizers. It is believed that this cave was the La Mesa de Aguinaldo, the table which Aguinaldo signed the historic Peace Treaty.
OTHER CAVES IN BIAK NA BATO NATIONAL PARK:
Ambush cave or the Yungib 1 has a narrow and long cavern inside. There were several battles happened in this cave; this was the place where the Katipuneros brought the Spaniards and killed them. But instead of killing the Spanish soldier, the Katipuneros killed the other Katipuneros and the Spaniards killed the Spaniards, because the place was really dark and they didn't recognize that they were killing their own group members.
Hospital cave or Yungib II served as the hospital for the Katipuneros. This was the dwelling of those people who got shoot or got ill during the battle against the Spaniards. Together with the my two guides, we had a short prayer (in Portuguese or latin) in a form of a Pasyon (a native song) for those people who sacrificed their lives just for our Freedom against the Spaniards.
Imbakan Cave or the Yungib III played a big role during the fight against the Spaniards. This was the place where the Katipuneros (Filipino Revolutionaries) stored their foods, medicines, bullets, ammunition and other things that they were using during the fight.
Tanggapan Cave served as the office and the recruitment area of the Katipuneros including Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo, for their new members . This is also the place where the new recruits were being oriented about the plans in fighting against the Spaniards.
HOW TO GET TO BIAK NA BATO NATIONAL PARK: At Baliwag Transit Terminal, in Cubao, ride in a bus bound for San Miguel. Then tell the driver or bus conductor to drop you off at the tricycle terminal to Biak na Bato, by the highway.
LIST OF 81 PROVINCES IN THE PHILIPPINES
HIKING GUIDE: MT. MANALMON
BULACAN TRAVEL GUIDE: PINAGREALAN CAVE
TOURIST DESTINATIONS IN BULACAN
Labels: Biak_na_Bato, Bulacan, Bulacan Travel Guide, Cave, Caving, Historical, Historical_Sites_in_Bulacan, Landmark, Region_3, San_Miguel
HIKING GUIDE: MT. UGO Traverse Nueva Vizcaya to It...
TRAVEL GUIDE: MT. SAMAT and the SHRINE OF VALOR, B...
TRAVEL GUIDE: MORONG CHURCH, Bataan
TRAVEL GUIDE: Bataan White Corals Resort
TRAVEL GUIDE: AGUINALDO CAVE, Biak na Bato, Bulac...
BULACAN: Pinagrealan Cave and Lioness Rock Formati...
TRAVEL GUIDE: BARASOAIN CHURCH, Bulacan
TRAVEL GUIDE: Malolos Cathedral, Bulacan
TRAVEL GUIDE: BALIUAG CHURCH, Bulacan
TRAVEL GUIDE: BULACAN PROVINCIAL CAPITOL
TRAVEL GUIDE: BULAKAN CHURCH celebrates "Dakip"
TRAVEL GUIDE: CASA REAL SHRINE, Bulacan
TRAVEL GUIDE: Guiguinto Old Trail Station, Bulacan...
TRAVEL GUIDE: JOSE COJUANGCO MANSION, Bulacan
HIKING GUIDE: Mt. Manalmon, Bulacan
TRAVEL GUIDE: PLARIDEL CHURCH, Bulacan
TRAVEL GUIDE: SAN RAFAEL RIVER ADVENTURE, Bulacan