text:
\section{Introduction}
Can isovist theory from architecture provide us with a metric to automatically evaluate game in general, and procedural generated content (PCG) in particular? Being able to quickly, and without human intervention, evaluate generated content would provide a massive boost to the impact PCG has on game design. It would also methodologically helpful to the academic field of PCG \cite{shaker2016procedural,short2017procedural,katecompton2016,liapis2014computational}, which struggles to provide quantitative data about newly developed techniques. Approaches such as expressive range analysis \cite{smith2010analyzing}, and its extensions \cite{cook2016towards}, provide valuable insights, but focus on measuring the diversity, rather than the quality of various artifacts. A range of existing metrics are suitable to say if two levels or artifacts are similar or not, but struggle to indicate their quality. Some attempts of the past to ground these existing metrics by comparing them to human experience - either of general quality \cite{marino2015empirical,herve2021comparing}, or specific desired experiences \cite{guckelsberger2017predicting,5740836}, are a step in the right direction, but provide mixed results, and showcase several problems with existing metrics - such as some artifacts proving too complex to evaluate on a ``per-level'' basis, or difficulties with transitioning between 2d and 3d.
In this paper, we attempt to develop a new set of metrics, based on theories from architecture, focused on isovists\cite{benedikt1979take}, i.e. the space visible from a given vantage point. This is a quantitative approach to space in architecture, with an established track record to reflect human experiences and behaviour \cite{wiener2007isovist, weitkamp2014validation}. Its agent-focussed definition also allows for metrics that are influenced by the specific embodiment of the agent and are able to provide a metric for an experience of a given moment - allowing for evaluation of not just artefacts as a whole, but also for evaluations of trajectories through the state space of a game, or a specific game state.
We develop a set-based computation approach, that allows us to apply these measures to 3d discrete environments, such as Minecraft \cite{minecraft} blockworlds - but aim to not incorporate any Minecraft specific features to keep the measures general. As a first study to evaluate these measures, we use a dataset from the GDMC AI Settlement Generation Challenge \cite{salge2018} in Minecraft. We don't focus on the actual generation, and just look at the various published maps and evaluations from human judges. Similar to other PCG AI competitions, such as \cite{khalifa2016general,shaker20112010,stephenson2016procedural}, GDMC uses human judges rather than automatic evaluation, indicating further, that there seems to be no generally agreed upon, automatic, measure of quality.

As human judgement is provided on a ``per generator'' basis, we compare the average score of our measurements with the human judgements, and find some interesting correlations, particularly between the perimeter of the isovist, and the perceived adaptability of the settlement. A measure for visible block types, which we considered as a agent-focussed refinement of the block diversity measure from \cite{herve2021comparing} also correlates well with various human judgements. We also provide location based heatmaps for selected maps and measures, to show how those values would change as the player moves around the map - showcasing the location-based possibilities of the new measures.
We will now first introduce some more details about PCG and the GDMC challenge, and introduce the isovist concepts and its computation in more detail, before discussing the results and its implications. In general, we conclude that these isovist based measures seem a useful approach to PCG evaluation that warrant further study.

\section{PCG}

PCG is the ensemble of techniques that aim to create game content algorithmically. It has been used to generate content of various nature, from game assets to game play rules. Those techniques are being used in the video game industry, and in the same time constitute a field of research. One recurring challenge in PCG is evaluating the output \cite{smith2010analyzing, summerville2017understanding}. A generator able to self evaluate the content it produces can improve itself or reliably curates which asset is relevant or not, depending of the technique being used. Metrics of evaluation can also be used by designers to tune the generators and optimize certain aspect of the generated artifacts.

The core constraint is usually playability - aimed to ensure that a game can actually be used as such. But other metrics have been developed with the intent to evaluate other dimensions of an artifact, such as its looks, the narrative it conveys, its impact on game mechanics, or even how "fun" it is. However these metrics tends to lack of human grounding \cite{marino2015empirical, herve2021comparing}. They are also build to focus the entirety of the artifact, and are rarely designed for a local use, targeting for instance a whole level instead of a single location.

Therefore, developing new metrics and improving existing ones is necessary in order to improve PCG as a field, for various reason (automatic curation, co-authoring, ...). Beyond the question of the metrics themselves lays another one : How to properly use them? In the current paper, we try to address both of these concern, by establishing a new range of metrics, polishing an existing one, and compare their efficiency both globally and locally.

\section{GDMC}

 Minecraft \cite{minecraft} is a voxel based game developed by Mojang Studio, where the players progress in an open world made out of blocks. These blocks represent different materials, such as wood, rock and so on. Players can destroy blocks, place them in any position within the world, or even combine them through crafting mechanics in order to create new types of block or item. Minecraft is mostly known for its open-endedness and is mostly used as a sandbox game. Many players use the blocks mechanics to terraform the game world, create structures such as houses, castles or cities. Since the art style and the setting of Minecraft is very generic, the game affords free creation of almost any kind of artifact, with only the player's imagination setting the limits.
\par
The Generative Design in Minecraft Competition (GDMC) is a PCG competition in which competitors submit a settlement generator \cite{salge2018}. All the submitted generators are then tested on fixed maps, which are selected by the organizers \cite{salge2020ai}. All the generated settlements are then sent to the jury. This jury includes experts in various field, such as AI, Game Design or Urbanism. Each judge scores in each of the following categories : \emph{Adaptability, Functionality, Narrative, Aesthetic}. \emph{Adaptability} is how well the settlement is adapted to its location - how well it adapts to the terrain, both on a large and small scale. \emph{Functionality} is about what affordances the settlement provides, both to the Minecraft player and the simulated villagers. It covers various aspects, such as food, production, navigability, security, etc. \emph{Narrative} reflects how well the settlement \emph{itself} tells an evocative story about its own history, and about who its inhabitants are (There is a separate bonus challenge about also adding a written PCG text that tells the story of the settlement\cite{salge2019generative}). \emph{Aesthetic} is a rating of the overall look of the settlements. In the competition, the rating of each category is computed for each generator by averaging (mean) across all judge's scores. The judges provide for each generator, after looking at every maps, one score for each of the four categories.
The overall score of the generators is then obtained by a mean average over the four categories.

The human data we are working with are the average scores for the generator. We therefore have, for each generator, 5 scores: the overall score, adaptivity, functionality, narrative and aesthetics.
In 2021, the competition received 20 submissions.

\section{Theory of space}
\subsection{Isovist}

Given a bounded environment, for each point $x$, we can compute its isovist $V_x$ \cite{benedikt1979take}, which is the set of all the points visible from $x$. $x$ is called the centroid of the isovist. The lines connecting $x$ and the boundary of $V_x$ are referred to as radials $l_{x,\theta}$.
Based on $V_x$, we can compute several properties characterizing it.
First of all, the visible area ($A_x$), and the perimeter ($P_x$). It is worthwhile to note that $P_x$ is defined by "real-surface" which are defined by Benedidkt as "opaque, material, visible surface, humanly perceivable as such" \cite{benedikt1979take}, and therefore exclude the sky or any glass surface from the computation. In addition to $P_x$, the occlusivity ($Q_x$) contains not only real-surfaces, but also any vision blocking surface which are not perceived as such. The remaining properties are focused on the radials, with their Variance, Skewness (asymmetry of the radials) and Circularity of $V_x$.

\begin{figure}[htpb]
\centering
\includegraphics[width=2.5in]{isovist.png}
\caption{Example of a set of 3 different isovist in a single environment. From \cite{bresenham1977linear}}
\label{fig_Isovist}
\end{figure}

\subsection{Isovist and Experience of Space}

Isovists are particularly interesting, since they have been developed with the purpose of capturing perception of space \cite{benedikt1979take}, and have been proved to have some correlation of how a given space is experienced and appreciated \cite{wiener2007isovist, weitkamp2014validation}.

Space in general can be analyzed to understand and even predict human and social behavior. The Space Syntax theory \cite{hillier1976space} has been used to study the features of any kind of human environment (inside of a building, mall, city,...), how it has evolved and how it is used \cite{ortega2005space, van2017space}. Space syntax analysis integrates isovist, and refer to it as "isovist space" \cite{turner1999making, turner2001isovists}. While a space syntax analysis of Minecraft's settlement is out of this paper's scope, it will definitely be an interesting follow up.

We are particularly motivated in investigating space as a key component of any 3D game\cite{nitsche2008video}. While it is obvious that space characterizes the gameplay experience \cite{nitsche2008video}, it is also deeply connected with the narrative \cite{fernandez2011spaces, nitsche2008video} and social experience \cite{nitsche2008video}. Our hope is that understanding space is a step in understanding all the layers that compose a video game.
\subsection{3D Isovist}

In its definition, isovist can be used in 2D environments as well as in 3D, and several publication focus specifically on that topic alone \cite{ giseop2019new, suleiman2013new}. However, we found very few practical attempts to use these method in a 3D environment \cite{psarra2015experiencing}. Using the isovist as defined in the first place was an option, but given that Minecraft is a special environment, with its own vision and movement rules, we redefined some of them.

First of all the Perimeter. Vision in a virtual environment is not necessarily the same for each and every player. Depending on your hardware, the view distance, screen resolution and field of view angle (FOV) will vary. Three Minecraft players can have a different view of distant mountains: one might sees nothing, the second its silhouette, while the third one may scrutinizes it in full details. Because a Minecraft environment has no clear boundaries, we decided to include in our perimeter every end of our radials. This grants a larger perimeter to outside isovists in open fields. It is an attempt to compensate for the fixed view distance we use in our computations.
It is also worthwhile to note that while the Perimeter value usually works perfectly to capture features such as walls, in Minecraft we do not have any tool to characterize the purpose of a vision blocking element. A  block is a block, and its name or position cannot determine if they are part of a floor, a wall, or a ceiling.
A good example would be roofs. If you were to look at a house built in Minecraft, you will probably be able to characterize which blocks are part of a house. But from a computational point of view, this is a much more trickier task. You can technically walk on a roof as if it was part of the environment. You cannot rely on the type of block used, as anything could be technically used, neither the position of the block relative to your isovist, since it could be the top of a tree, a hill, or any other environmental feature. It would be possible to specialize our algorithm for Minecraft game's mechanics, but the result would likely stays imprecise while making the evaluation technique less generic, which goes against the aim this paper.
For all these reasons, our Perimeter is composed of any vision blocking blocks. We however excluded doors from this list, as they might be opened, letting players see through.
We also compute another metric, called Real Perimeter, which is the subset of opaque blocks in our perimeter (mostly removing the air blocks at the maximum vision range of our radials). In other isovist terms, we are only counting the real surfaces with this metric, making it closer to it original definition.

The Area is another property that we tuned. Isovit's Area could be defined as: every point visible from the centroid, and from which the centroid is visible. This reciprocity works well in 2D and on flat surfaces, but works differently in Minecraft's noisy worlds. In numerous scenarios, you may not be able to see a close by surface where your in game character could stand. However, knowledge of the game's mechanics lets you guess the potential "surfaces" in your surroundings. It could be the shape of the terrain, but also looking at another player's head in a configuration where you cannot see their feet. We therefore defined the Area as all the headspaces visible (a headspace being a spot where a player's head would fit if they were to stand on a surface 2 blocks below, see Fig.\ref{fig:headspace}).

We measure both Variance and Average of the radials, but discarded the skewness, since its relevance was not underlined by the literature we explored. We also keep track of the longest radial, which is often refereed as the Vista Length. In place of the Circularity, we approximate two values: Roundness, the ratio between the Area and the Perimeter, and Openness being the ratio between Area and the Real Perimeter. Openness is another measure, frequently used along isovist \cite{weitkamp2014validation, psarra2015experiencing, giseop2019new}, and defined as "the amount of space visible by the viewer" \cite{kaplan1989environmental}. While isovist focus on the surface and features blocking the vision, the Openness is targeting the volume of visible space, regardless of it significance (e.g. Isovist does not include the sky in its computation).

Another metric added to the isovist theory later on is the Drift \cite{dalton2001omnivista}. An isovist's drift can be defined as the distance between the centroid and the 'center of gravity' of its Area. An isovist close to a wall would end up with a high drift value, while an isovist in the center of a squared room will tend to have a lower drift. Computing the exact center of gravity in our case presented several challenges, but we approximated it by averaging all the vectors of our radials end point.

We developed another metric in an attempt to tie what the player sees and the game locomotion, which is the Reachability. We defined it as the part of the Area accessible to the player by simply walking, with no other game specific mechanics involved. In Minecraft specifically, it corresponds to the section of the Area reachable without destroying or placing blocks. Reachability is computed using a floodfill algorithm, starting from the isovist's centroid, with a fixed amount of steps.

Occlusivity makes less sense in the current context, since all the vision blocking blocks can be considered as real surface. But we tried to adapt it based on the Reachability, and how much of that accessible space is visible. Following on this idea of visible spot were a player can stand, we also introduce the Clutter metric, and define it as the ratio between the reachable headspaces entirely visible and the Area.

Finally, since previous Minecraft focused research has highlighted the variety of block types as a relatively good metric \cite{herve2021comparing}, we also compute the number of visible block types for each isovist.

\subsection{Set-based definitions of isovist properties}

In this section we outline a set-based way to define and compute the various, above mentioned properties for a Minecraft-like 3d blockworld. This has several advantages. It should give a clear, and reproducible definition. It should provide an instructive account of how to efficiently implement the values, reusing a limited amount of pre-computed sets for each location for all values. Finally, it will provide conceptual clarity of were various forms of embodiment and game play parameters enter the computation.

A Minecraft world can be, in large part, defined by its constituent blocks. Each 3d coordinate basically contains one block, and defining the type of block present at each coordinate defines the world map. Other objects are also made up of blocks, just arranged differently.

We will define a number of sets, denoted by capital letters $X$, each containing a number of unique blocks defined by their x,y,z coordinates and their type.

\begin{figure}
    \centering
    \includegraphics[width=7cm]{headspace.png}
    \caption{Illustration of the headspace concept.}
    \label{fig:headspace}
\end{figure}

We use the concept of \emph{headspace}, defined as the block a player avatar's head could be for a standing avatar. Every block that is empty, has an empty block below it, and has a \emph{standable} block below that, is a possible headspace. The list of empty blocks contains air, but also some less common blocks such as doors, carpet, etc, that still allow the player to enter those blocks. Standable blocks are similarly defined via a list, and contain most solid blocks, but exclude things like lava or water. The two empty blocks are due to the 2 unit height of a player avatar. This should capture all blocks a player could be in $H_{\forall}$. The following sets are computed for all possible headspaces $x \in H_{\forall}$.
\begin{eqnarray}
   H_{x,d} &:=& \{\textrm{all } x \in H_{\forall} \textrm{ visible from } x\}  \\
   H_{x-2} &:=& \{\textrm{blocks 2 units below every } \in H_x\}  \\
   P_{x,d} &:=&\{ \textrm{all blocks visible from } x\}  \\
   Pr_{x,d} &:=&\{ \textrm{all real surfaces blocks visible from } x\}  \\
   R_{x,n} &:=&\{ \textrm{walkable blocks from $x-2$ in $n$ steps}\}
\end{eqnarray}
Visibility between two blocks is computed by ray-casting via Bresenham algorithm \cite{bresenham1977linear}, and checking if the blocks along the ray are transparent, i.e. in the transparency list. Air is the main transparency provider, but notably glass provides transparency without allowing avatars to pass. The parameter $d$ is used to limit the max length for this ray cast. We also compute the length of the many rays cast during the visibility computations to compute:
\begin{eqnarray}
\textrm{var Radials} &:=& Var(l_{x,\theta})\\
\textrm{mean Radials} &:=& Mean(l_{x,\theta})\\
\textrm{Drift} &:=& l_{x,mean(\theta)})\\
\textrm{Vista Length} &:=& Max(l_{x,\theta})\\
\end{eqnarray}
The visible head spaces $H_{x,d}$ are basically all positions an avatar could be in and then see its head from its current position. $H_x-2$ are all the standable blocks supporting those head spaces. $P_{x,d}$ provides a perimeter of blocks that limit our view, and contains all blocks visible from the current position. $R_{x,n}$ is a list of all walkable block, obtained by floodfilling from the standable block supporting the current position, within $n$ steps. We use usual Minecraft movement rules, that allow moving up by one block per lateral transverse, and dropping down to lower levels. Note how the features of avatar height, movement rules and vision sensors could affect those basic sets. The following properties can now be computed by operating on those set alone, without having to recompute them.

\begin{eqnarray}
\textrm{Area} &:=& |H_{x,d}| \\
\textrm{Perimeter} &:=& |P_{x,d}|\\
\textrm{Diversity} &:=& c(P_{x,d})\\
\textrm{Real Perimeter} &:=& |(Pr_{x,d})|\\
\textrm{Roundness} &:=& Area / Perimeter\\
\textrm{Openness} &:=& Area / Real Perimeter\\
\textrm{Reachability} &:=& |R_{x,n}|\\
\textrm{Occlusivity} &:=& |R_{x,n} \cap H_{x-2}|/ Reachability\\
\textrm{Clutter} &:=& |H_{x-2} \cap P_{x,d}|/ Area\\
\end{eqnarray}
The function $c(.)$ counts how many different types of blocks are in a set.
\section{Experiment}
\begin{figure*}[htpb]
\centering
\includegraphics[width=\linewidth]{isovist_in_minecraft.png}
\caption{Screenshot of an isovist in Minecraft, with perimeter blocks replaced with black blocks. The centroid is in the center of the left picture (top view). The right picture is the vision from the centroid - note that nearly all visible blocks are black, indicating that the bresenham ray cast hits nearly everything visible to us.}
\label{fig_MinecraftIsovist}
\end{figure*}
Our experiment runs on the 20 entries from the 2021 GDMC competition. The 2021 competition was held on 2 maps, and we used both of them.
We compute isovists on surfaces where a player can stand, at a height matching the camera position for the given location. For each isovist, we generate the coordinates of a sphere with a radius $d$ of 256 blocks (the by default distance view in Minecraft), with the same centroid as the isovist. The sphere itself is computed as if it was made out of blocks, for a total of 682746 blocks. We then compute the radial between every sphere's blocks and the centroid, using a 3D Bresenham algorithm \cite{bresenham1977linear}, and for each coordinate we check the type of block we are currently crossing, if it is \emph{transparent}, and if it is a \emph{headspace} (see Fig.~\ref{fig:headspace}). As an output, we get our Perimeter and our Area, and can derive the rest of the metrics. Our Reachability values are computed using a 10 steps floodfill algorithm.

Despite multiple optimizations, the code still has a significant computation time. The default map, without any structure, has 92560 possible surfaces, and a single isovist takes several seconds to be computed, depending on its size. We therefore proceeded to the following subsampling of our data: for each height value, we compute 1 isovist out of 10 possibles, picked randomly.

Once we gathered the isovist values, we computed the mean average values for each settlements, combining the values from both map. Based on those results, we calculated the ranked based Spearman correlation between the average of isovistic properties and the rating the settlement got in every categories (See Table\ref{tab_correlations}) \footnote{\url{https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ZtPX-nUfbx_f6HOYXWvReNlPuLpRvUbo}}.
\section{Results and Discussion}
\subsection{Correlations}
\begin{table*}[htpb]
\caption{Rank Based Correlation between judging criteria and isovist properties.}
\begin{center}
\begin{tabular}{|c||c|c|c|c|c|}
\hline
&Adaptability & Functionality & Narrative & Aesthetic & Overall\\
\hline
\hline
Area &  0.28 & -0.22 & -0.26 & -0.31 & -0.17\\
\hline
Perimeter & 0.59 &	0.12 & -0.16 &	-0.25 & 0.09\\
\hline
Diversity & 0.21 & 0.6 & 0.47 & 0.66 & 0.61\\
\hline
Var Radials & -0.48 & -0.16 & -0.01 & 0.28 & -0.14\\
\hline
Mean Radials & 0.004 & -0.03 & -0.33 & 0.02 & -0.11\\
\hline
Roundness & -0.33 & -0.48 & -0.1 & -0.27 & -0.39\\
\hline
Openness & 0.59 & 0.04 & -0.22 & -0.35 & 0.02\\
\hline
Clutter & -0.14 & 0.16 & 0.31 & 0.23 & 0.19\\
\hline
Reachability(10) & -0.40 & -0.43 & -0.08 & -0.21 & -0.37\\
\hline
Occlusivity & 0.46 & 0.06 & -0.19 & -0.25 & 0.03\\
\hline
Drift Length & 0.18 & 0.25 & -0.07 & 0.18 & 0.18\\
\hline
Vista Length & -0.11 & -0.06 & -0.22 & 0.1 & -0.1\\
\hline
Real Perimeter Size & 0.05 & -0.13 & -0.15 & -0.1 & -0.11\\
\hline
\end{tabular}
\label{tab_correlations}
\end{center}
\end{table*}

\begin{table*}[htpb]
\caption{p-value between judging criteria and isovist properties.}
\begin{center}
\begin{tabular}{|c||c|c|c|c|c|}
\hline
&Adaptability & Functionality & Narrative & Aesthetic & Overall\\
\hline
\hline
Area & 0.22 & 0.36 & 0.28 & 0.19 & 0.47 \\
\hline
Perimeter & 0.01 & 0.63 & 0.49 & 0.28 & 0.72\\
\hline
Diversity & 0.38 & 0.005 & 0.04 & 0.002 & 0.004\\
\hline
Var Radials & 0.03 & 0.51 & 0.97 & 0.23 & 0.56\\
\hline
Mean Radial & 0.99 & 0.9 & 0.16 & 0.93 & 0.65\\
\hline
Roundness & 0.16 & 0.03 & 0.69 & 0.26 & 0.09\\
\hline
Openness & 0.01 & 0.87 & 0.34 & 0.13 & 0.92\\
\hline
Clutter & 0.56 & 0.5 & 0.19 & 0.32 & 0.42\\
\hline
Reachability(10) & 0.08 & 0.06 & 0.72 & 0.37 & 0.11\\
\hline
Occlusivity & 0.04 & 0.79 & 0.43 & 0.29 & 0.9\\
\hline
Drift Length & 0.44 & 0.3 & 0.77 & 0.46 & 0.46\\
\hline
Vista Length & 0.64 & 0.82 & 0.36 & 0.68 & 0.68\\
\hline
Real Perimeter Size & 0.84 & 0.58 & 0.53 & 0.69 & 0.65\\
\hline
\end{tabular}
\label{tab_pvalues}
\end{center}
\end{table*}
What we observed at first is that the visible Diversity of block types, which is derived from an existing metrics \cite{herve2021comparing}, is having the best performance. We establish several significant (with p-value $p<0.01$, see Table.\ref{tab_correlations} and Table.\ref{tab_pvalues}) relations between the Diversity and the following rating: Functionality, Aesthetic, and the Overall score. To a certain extent ($p=0.04$), it also slightly correlates with the Narrative component of the settlement.
The Perimeter and Openness correlate with with the Adaptability (both wih a $p<0.01$).
There are a range of further medium significant correlations ($p<0.05$), but we note that given the range of correlations we computed, those run a risk of being spurious. Namely, Radials Variance and Occlusivity seem to have a connection with Adaptability. Finally, the Roundness($p=0.03$) and Reachability ($p=0.055$) seem to correlate slightly with the Functionality of the settlement.

The Diversity of visible block types metrics is an agent-centric reformulation of block type count \cite{herve2021comparing}. The previous metric counted the overall number of different blocks in a settlement, and had the best correlations with human quality judgments. Seeing this affirmed from an agent's perspective is expected. In general, it makes sense that a settlement that produces a range of different affordances\cite{cardona2013cognitivist} uses, and displays, a number of blocks. Noteworthy is that the correlation to the Narrative score diminished compared to the previous work. A possible explanation is the more widespread use of furnishing for the 2021 generators. In previous years furnishing was reported factor for narrative scoring \cite{salge2021impressions}, and furnishing usually introduces the use of different blocks than building. Widespread furnishing likely made this effect less pronounced. Regarding the Aesthetic and Overall categories, it is possible that this metric actually captures those two dimensions, but it is also possible that well polished generators tend to produce a larger variety of blocks. In opposition, a generator that struggles with building a simple house might not have been designed with the ability to use a wide range of assets. Also, the same objection outlined before is still relevant here - this seems to be a measurement highly indicative of perceived quality, but not one that could be maximized computationally in order to achieve an ideal human-experience result by itself.

The relation between Adaptability and Perimeter, and Openness, is encouraging, as none of the previously tested configuration-based metrics in \cite{herve2021comparing} showed any significant correlations with human judged quality. Similarly, \cite{marino2015empirical} also only found count based metrics with good grounding.
In our definition, the Perimeter is increased by the absence of walls and roofs, and therefore and outdoor isovist will have a large Perimeter. This phenomenon is highlighted in Fig.~\ref{fig_heatmaps}, where the buildings with roofs are easy to spot. Another noticeable aspect of this metric is that the bare maps have an average Perimeter higher that any of the entry. It seems that the Perimeter does not capture how well integrated in the environment the structures are, or how much the terrain has been modified, but rather indicates the presence or not of artificial structures, which produce vision blocking surfaces.
We observed that the Openness value works as following: low Openness area are usually in corridors like structure, where most of the vision is blocked by real-surfaces (walls and roofs), while offering very few Headspaces. On the contrary, high Openness isovist are close to a wall-like structure, blocking part of their vision and therefore diminishing the amount of visible real surfaces, but also having a view on large open area. Even if this behavior does not capture the whole concept of Openness as it is commonly used, it successfully highlight layout (e.g. corridors) occurring rarely in natural environment, and increased by artificial structures. As for Perimeters, Openness captures successfully the presence of artificial structures, which is part or the Adaptability of a settlement, but it as no consideration of how well these structures are integrated in their environment.
The other potential correlations, with Radials Variance and Occlusivity, are also motivating us to fine tune these metrics in further work.

\subsection{Heatmaps}

Given the locality of our isovist values, instead of only looking at the average, we can look at those values for specific coordinates. Fig.~\ref{fig_heatmaps} shows a top-down heatmap for various values that averages all values of a given metric for specific $x,z$ coordinates. We exclude (only for the visualization) values with $y<60$, as underground isovists in natural caves are constant, and confuse the image. We interpolate to the nearest value for those coordinates that have no values due to subsampling. For visual precision sake, we also recomputed the data with another random subsampling rate of 1 out of 2 isovist. First, lets look at the values for Area, Perimeter and Diversity in Fig.~\ref{fig_heatmaps} for both the base map, and the judged best looking map, and the judged best map. One of them features a more typical spread out fantasy village, while the other builds a massive `cyberpunk' city block with a complex layout - see Fig.~\ref{fig:teaser}.

First, by just looking at the basemap, we can see that our metrics produce indeed local values, which capture salient details about the environment. Area being a good proxy for the height-map, with the volcano in the middle, and the river being nicely visible. We also see the impact the different biomes have on the values, with the difference between dessert in the north and the Forest in the south leading visible in a higher block type count, due to more diversity in the Forest, and a much more smooth perimeter in the featureless dessert in the north. Similarly, the impact that the generated settlements have is also quite evident, allowing for a quick identification of where the settlement is, and its density.

If we are looking at Diversity we can see that the diverse and widely visible structure by the winning settlement increase the local Diversity values in comparison to the base basemap, offering more interesting visuals across most of the map. This is relevant to note - as when we discussed how we should average the measured values we considered only using the values from inside the build up area, or only from specific areas of the map, so the unchanged wilderness or underground area does not dominate the values. While the exact amount of this difference might vary based on generators, it seems likely that the amount of artificial blocks will be more numerous than the natural ones, thereby providing a proxy for visible human footprint. But we decided to use all isovists for the average, a.) because on average any local effect should still be visible, and b.) there might be an effect on the non-modified area. This was to capture our intuition that the experience outside the settlement might still be affected by a settlement in proximity. For example, a tranquil lake might be less enjoyable with a factory blocking your view of nearby mountains. Also note that the metric for Diversity is now location specific, so we can actually see that there are more things to see close to the village in the north then in the southern, mostly untouched forest, and it underline the spatial boundaries of the experience offered by the settlement.
Diversity and Aesthetic have the strongest correlation we found during our experiment, but the heatmap of the best looking map is quite similar to the base map, it suggest that while this metric is quite solid in most of the case, there is more about this specific map. But again, the surrounding of the settlements are highlighted, proving the visual impact of the settlement on the map. It also is a good example of a non-local metric, i.e. one were building something half a map away will still influence the value. In contrast, other values such as occlusivity, or clutter, only get influenced by changes in the environment that are very close to the measuring agent.

We can also gain insights into specific settlements with these values. Consider the third placed map, with its massive, dystopian housing block atop the volcano. We can see that the inside of the building massively lowers the seen Area, Perimeter and even Diversity, while those values are in fact elevated at the outer edge. Here the local value might offer insights on where in this structure you would want your apartment to be - and align with peoples usual preferences.

The Clutter metrics also offers interesting heatmaps. This metric has been developed as a proxy for the environment readability. Even if it does not correlate with any judging criteria, it seems to be capturing local features nonetheless. The flat top of the volcano, overlooking the rest of the map, has an higher Clutter ratio than the desert's dune. Regarding the settlements, the large open floors of the megalopolis tower over not only the environment, but the city itself, with the higher floors having the best performing ratio. The city layout allows the players to project themselves in most of the location below them. On the contrary, the more traditional village offers less uniform values. After checking in game, one explanation could be that opening such as windows, give view on only a portion of the outside, with the inability to see part of the ground. This behavior matches the implementation of the metric, and point out one of its limitations: the players do not need to see the entirety of space to understand its layout and properties. But it does underline areas of uncertainty nevertheless, which could be a potential use case.

The measure of ``Reachability'' for a given location is basically the discrete, 10-step empowerment \cite{jung2011empowerment}, as measure usually used to capture how much influence an agent has over the world it perceives. Its noteworthy that while having more empowerment is usually considered good for an agent, here there is a slight anticorrelation, indicating, if anything, that higher rated settlements have lower average reachability or empowerment. In part, this could be due to the fact that Minecraft settlements also aim to provide security, which they do by for example building houses that limit the way all agents, including monsters, can move around. If we look at the heatmap for reachability, we see that the typical houses in entry x reduce the reachability around them. Noteworthy is that the megastructure from x actually increases reachability, because it provides several levels of building, connected by stairs, allowing an agent to reach more locations than would be possible on flat land.

Occlusivity measure how much of the locations reachable in n steps are visible from the current position. Basically a measure of how easy it is to turn a corner and get lost. It is one of the measures that captures natural features as well - as forested areas and ragged mountains have more occlusivity (indicated by a lower value) then the open dessert in the north. Similarly, and expected, the cramped dystopian skyscraper with its complicated inner structure has a very high degree of occlusivity.

\begin{figure*}[htpb]
\centering
\includegraphics[width=\linewidth]{Heatmaps}
\caption{From top to bottoms, top-down heatmaps of the base map (volcano type), best Aesthetic scoring map (dystopian city block) ans winning map (typical fantasy settlement). Only the isovists above ground (y$>$60) are represented, with x,z coordinates without measured values being interpolated by nearest neighbors.}
\label{fig_heatmaps}
\end{figure*}

\section{Conclusion}

Looking back at our objective when we started this research, we were looking for generic automated metrics that would capture human perception of environmental features. This study is a first attempt at applying a well established theoretical tool, isovists, to PCG and video games. We introduced metrics based on isovistic properties, keeping them related to their primary purpose while adapting them to the Minecraft context. We transposed the idea of Perimeter and Area to a specific domain, and all their derivated metrics. We also derived metrics from the isovist's theory, specialized for virtual environment: Reachability and Clutter. Finally, the block type count metric was incorporated to a vision based evaluation called Diversity. Several of those metrics either correlated with human value judgement, or allowed for other insights into the problem. An additional output of this experiment is a fully functional and optimized framework dedicated to isovist measurement in Minecraft, that we can reuse in the future.

The metrics introduce here can be applied to a wider range of 3d environments, both based on blocks, but possibly also to continuous environments by using the raycast as a discretization tool. The metrics are also local, allowing for the evaluation of a game state, or game-play trajectory, and a comparison with a reported experience. Unfortunately, there is not data set that contains human judgment or experiences for a given game state yet. As a result, we used average values that required us to test as much isovists as possible, regardless of their intrinsic properties (undergound, in the middle of a street, in an open field, ...), and average them. But as the heatmaps demonstrated, we can imagine that a generator may test the indoor of generated building, or key location of a settlement being created. Being able to spot weak points and irregularity, or in contrary uniformity, in content could be a way to improve a generator. Local metrics are a step further in understanding generated artifact in their entirety, rather than focussing on averaged value that try to capture the overall qualities of an asset - which might not be possible for complex artifacts in principle.

Finally, we want to note again that the base sets used for the computation consider various embodiment properties of the player avatar in their computation - making them not only agent focused, but also opening interesting areas for further investigations towards their effects. By modeling an agents embodiment we try to make another step towards evaluating an agent's experience with and artifact, rather than the artifact itself. This might be a way out regarding the problem that none of the artifact based metrics are currently suitable for optimization - as having maximal Area, Perimeter and Block Count Type would still lead to a degenerative solution. On the other hand, optimizing for a given experience might prove more fruitful.

\bibliographystyle{ACM-Reference-Format}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaArXiv


text:
Suspect Abuse
Being Trauma Aware
Youth Champions
'My name is Lisa:' Immersive exhibit explores child abuse from kid's view
Posted by Stephanie Gough in Press Release Views 727
From Global Calgary – An exhibit in the United States that immerses people into the world of a child who has suffered abuse is being used by the Calgary Child Advocacy Centre to try and protect kids.
Sara Austin, the centre's CEO, says about a third of the population has experienced some form of child abuse.
"This exhibit is really meant to help you see child abuse affects kids from all walks of life … different cultural backgrounds and different forms of abuse. It takes many different forms," said Austin.
"You come out of it with a strong sense of feeling you must take action to keep our kids safe."
The exhibit was unveiled Tuesday and it allows visitors to hear, see and experience the reality of child abuse.
"Hi, my name is Lisa. You don't know me but I'd like to tell you a little about a world that is foreign to you but very familiar to me," the 10-minute program begins.
The Lisa Project, which was developed in California eight years ago, includes the little girl's frantic 911 call asking for help as she was being abused. Visitors go room by room through various scenarios to demonstrate that child abuse doesn't "look" a certain way, and they are reminded of the importance of reporting concerns and suspicions.
In a final segment, Lisa's voice is older. She describes using alcohol and drugs. She is having her own child but doesn't know who the father is.
Lisa also recounts the stories of two other children.
Ashley is from a well-off family.
"Dear diary, I have a cast on my arm. You know from the skiing accident. I've never even put on a pair of skis," she said.
"At least he didn't hit me in the face again. You'd think I was the freaking dog. Sometimes I wish I'd just die."
A young boy named Evan is often locked outside and doesn't know where to turn for help.
"He wishes he could tell someone. Or go to someone for help. But his mom tells him that if he tells anyone what's going on they'll take him away forever and he'll never see her again."
Gene Hardin created the program along with his wife after seeing how effective an immersive program was at a King Tut exhibit.
The Lisa Exhibit has been available in the U.S. for years but this is its first time in Canada. He said it is for adults and teens but not recommended for younger children.
"The audio is pretty rough so we do have secondary aged kids go through the exhibit 13 to 18 years old. We find that age group, after they've experienced something together, are much more willing to talk about things and open up," said Hardin
"You're not going to be able to forget about it and that's the point."
More information about the Lisa Project, including times it's open to the public, can be found on the Calgary Child Advocacy Centre website.
About Stephanie Gough
Tweets by @calgarycac
400, 3820 – 24 Avenue NW
Calgary, AB, T3B 2X9
Government of Canada supports partners focused on preventing gender-based violence
Sheldon Kennedy Hands Child Advocacy Centre Back To The Community
Calgary Child Advocacy Centre launches trauma-training program
With over a century of service, Calgary's Children's Hospital Aid Society earns philanthropic award
CCAC Therapy Dogs
Copyright © Calgary Child Advocacy Centre. Some rights reserved. Reg. Charity # : 82679 3283 RR0001

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


The gender pay gap is a hot topic these days, but it's not the only economic gender gap. Women also are lagging behind men in building retirement security.
Lower pay translates into a gap for women in retirement security, reducing Social Security benefits, pensions, and retirement saving. At the same time, women enjoy greater longevity, which means resources often must be stretched over a longer retirement.


text:
Bretl named Fellow in AE3
Jan 31, 2018 Susan Mumm
Associate Prof. Tim Bretl's inventiveness and success in applying fresh approaches to teaching has gained him a new leadership role within the College of Engineering.
Bretl has been chosen as an Education Innovation Fellow (EIF) of the Academy for Excellence in Engineering Education (AE3). During his three-year term, Bretl will help create, spread, and publicize faculty innovations in engineering education. Dean Andreas Cangellaris and AE3 Director Laura Hahn selected Bretl among a small group of Engineering faculty identified as AE3 Fellows.
EIFs play a connecting role in the College by interacting with AE3 staff, departmental colleagues, and others across the College to share and unify educational efforts. They also serve an innovating purpose of identifying and pursuing new pathways, helping to pave the way for educational change. EIFs are integrally involved in the college's Strategic Instructional Innovations Program – a competitively awarded grant program that enables teams of faculty to experiment with new approaches to teaching.
In 2016, AE3 established the Rose Education Innovation Fellow position to recognize an individual who has made unique and exceptional contributions as a current EIF. Scott Rose, an alumnus who earned a bachelor's degree in computer engineering in 1983, established the program, as well as the Rose Award for Teaching Excellence to support quality in undergraduate education in the College.
Bretl was chosen for the Rose Award for Teaching Excellence in 2016. Also that year, he won the William L. Everitt Award from the student-led Engineering Council organization, and won the college's Collins Award for Innovative Teaching in 2015.
A member of AE's faculty since 2006, Bretl has given considerable thought and energy to improving his teaching abilities, and his students have shown their appreciation. His Instructor & Course Evaluation System (ICES) scores have been among the best in AE.


"I think every entertainer's had nights when things go wrong. I mean you can't remember everything all the time, and especially if you're having hard times personally, things going on that you – you know, and then people make it worse. And that makes you feel worse."


PCSWMM 6.1 is here, and it's packed with unseen capabilities and improvements that will save you time and make your job easier. Helping you bring your best ideas to life, PCSWMM 6.1 not only supports the latest SWMM engine, but it also offers a brand-new 64 bit version, a tile-based project manager, and countless impressive features that will dramatically streamline your workflow.
Highlights include seamless sharing of print layouts and analyses; a fresh model comparison tool that will empower you to quickly and easily update specific input parameters; and default value highlighting which will help you to ensure thought has been put into all model inputs.
With this latest official EPA SWMM engine, you're encouaged to take advantage of roadway weirs, a modified Green-Ampt infiltration method, daily potential evapotranspiration output and more. Utilize advanced seasonal modeling features thanks to support for OpenSWMM5.1.910, and benefit from a bug fix in the maximum reported depth for SI units.
Experience a more comprehensive and visual drag-and-drop management system for projects and scenarios with PCSWMM's new tile-based project manager. You can display either all projects within a folder tree or all recently opened projects. Found under File > Manage, the project tiles allow for quick logical arrangement into scenario groups and are colored with their assigned scenario color.
Visually identify differences between the input files of any two projects in the details panel. This new capability can help determine changes made by colleagues and allows you to quickly update specific input parameters in the current project by pulling values from the compared project.
Map extents, print pages and time series events can now all be included in packaged projects, making it easier to share print layouts and analyses with colleagues.
The details panel now highlights parameters that have been left at their default values (when not in comparison mode). This helps the user ensure thought has been put into all model inputs.
PCSWMM now comes in both 32 bit and 64 bit versions. The 64 bit version allows PCSWMM to access more system memory and thus supports the manipulation of very large data sets (GIS layers and time series files). Note that the EPA SWMM engine is still 32 bit.


text:
Laura M. Barzilai
lbarzilai@sidley.com
LAURA BARZILAI is a member of the firm's Executive Committee and global leader of the Tax practice. She is a transactional tax and tax controversy lawyer with more than 30 years of experience. Her clients include Fortune 100 companies, U.S. and non-U.S. privately held companies, insurance companies, banks, private equity funds and sovereign wealth funds. Laura's practice focuses on federal income tax matters, advising clients in the areas of domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions, tax-free reorganizations, joint ventures, restructurings and other major transactions. Laura also advises insurance companies on the federal income tax aspects of alternative risk transfer transactions, including offerings of insurance-linked securities and formations of sidecars, and she represents clients in the federal income tax aspects of the formation of funds that invest in insurance-linked securities.
Laura is ranked in Chambers USA 2013–2021 in Tax, in which she is described as "willing to take a stand and can guide you to the right answer very effectively." Clients also highlight her "industry knowledge, strong technical skills and genuine focus on client service." They say that, "she really makes an effort to understand the client, which results in higher-quality, more effective advice." She also has been recognized by The Legal 500 US (2010–2017), in which she is described as "top-notch" and as having "a strong reputation in contentious matters," was selected by her peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® (2012–2022) in the field of tax and has been named to Who's Who Legal for Corporate Tax. In 2019, Laura was included in Crain's 2nd Annual Notable Women in Law list.
Recent matters include:
Prudential Financial, Inc. in the sale of a US$31 billion portion of its in-force legacy variable annuity block for US$2.2 billion to Fortitude Re, Bermuda's largest multi-line reinsurer (pending).
GIC in connection with its agreement to acquire an indirect 19.9% equity interest in Duke Energy Indiana, for a total purchase price of US$2.05 billion
Alaska Communications Systems Group, Inc. in its pending acquisition by ATN International, Inc. and Freedom 3 Capital in a transaction valued at approximately US$332 million
EQT Partners Inc. in the merger of its portfolio company, FocusVision, with Confirmit, a portfolio company of Verdane
GIC in connection with a US$1.0 billion investment in Convex Group Limited led by GIC and Onex Partners
MetLife in its acquisition of Versant Health from an investor group led by Centerbridge Partners for approximately US$1.7 billion
GIC in the acquisition by affiliates of Blackstone Infrastructure Partners, Enagas, GIC, NPS and USS, of all of the publicly held outstanding Class A Shares of Tallgrass Energy LP
Anixter International, a global distributor of network, security, electronic and utility power solutions, in its agreement to be acquired by an affiliate of Clayton, Dubilier & Rice for approximately US$3.8 billion, and in the successful sale of Anixter to WESCO International pursuant to a superior proposal valued at approximately US$4.5 billion
GIC in connection with its acquisition, together with Brookfield Infrastructure, of Genesee & Wyoming Inc. (G&W)
Ambac Assurance Corporation in connection with the conclusion of the rehabilitation of its segregated account and associated restructuring transactions
Validus/AlphaCat Managers in connection with its insurance-linked securities funds and reinsurance sidecar transactions
OMERS Private Equity in its sale of MatrixCare Holdings Inc. to ResMed Operations Inc.
PSP Investments in connection with its investment in United Talent Agency
GIC Pte. Ltd. in connection with the US$11.3 billion acquisition of ITC Holdings Corp.
Tenex Capital Management in its investment in Team Select Home Care, a leading provider of post-acute healthcare services in a home-based setting
GIC Pte Ltd. in connection with its investment in Virtu Financial Inc. to finance the US$1.4 billion acquisition by Virtu Financial of KCG Holdings, Inc.
GIC Pte. Ltd. in connection with the US$2.9 billion acquisition of Neustar, Inc.
OMERS Private Equity and MatrixCare (an OMERS Private Equity portfolio company), in connection with the acquisition of AOD Software, a leading software for the long-term care and senior living industry
Novira Therapeutics in its acquisition by Johnson & Johnson
Stericyle, Inc. in its US$2.3 billion acquisition of privately held Shred-it International
ZMC in its US$700 million sale of Cast & Crew Entertainment to Silver Lake Partners
OMERS Private Equity in its sale of Accelerated Rehabilitation Centers to Harvest Partners-backed Athletico Physical Therapy
The Mark Gordon Company, producer of Grey's Anatomy, Criminal Minds and Ray Donovan, in its sale to Entertainment One Ltd. (eOne)
CIP Capital in its investment in Affinitiv, Inc., a leading provider of marketing and technology services to automotive manufacturers and dealerships formed through the merger of four market leading companies: DPS, Peak Performance, OneCommand and TimeHighway.com
Representation of a Big Four accounting firm in multiple acquisitions
Macquarie Capital in its acquisition, with Franchise Services of North America Inc., of Advantage Rent-A-Car from Hertz Global Holdings Inc.
Guggenheim Partners, LLC in its acquisition of Security Benefit Corporation
BNP Paribas in its acquisition of the prime brokerage business of Bank of America
Laura also represents clients in federal and state tax controversies, including at all stages of the administrative process. Disputes which she has successfully resolved include:
Equity characterization of notes discharged in federal bankruptcy proceeding
Application of the net unrealized built-in loss rules of Section 382
Deductibility of educational expenses under Section 162
New York nonresident status of individual
In addition, Laura represented Coltec Industries Inc. in filing with the U.S. Supreme Court a petition for a writ of certiorari regarding the economic substance doctrine.
Laura serves on Sidley's Executive Committee. She is also a member and the previous New York chair of the firm's Committee on Retention and Promotion of Women. In addition, Laura is a member of the American Bar Association, the New York State Bar Association (Tax Section) and Tax Review of New York City. Laura also serves on the Board of Directors of the American Federation for Aging Research, a national non-profit organization whose mission is to support and advance healthy aging through biomedical research. She is also a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation.
税問題
連邦税論争
税務 – M&Aとプライベート エクイティ
税務 – 企業再編・破産管理
グローバルな活動
弁護士が弁護士業務を行うライセンスを得ている司法管轄区は[登録と認可(Admissions & Certifications)]の下に記載されています。
New York University School of Law, 法学修士, 1991
University of Virginia School of Law, 法務博士, 1986
Wellesley College, 教養学学士, 1981
メールアドレス lbarzilai@sidley.com


In the dream you talk to somebody and he/she has a very bad foreign accent, it is the reflection of your estrangement. You think that nobody understands you and your ideas.
If you speak with an accent in your dream, it means that you will bother yourself for nothing. You need to change your methods of acting; otherwise you will not reach anything you planed.
If your friend's accent disturbs your attention and you can't understand his speech, the dream means that you are too skeptical with somebody without a reason. If accent doesn't disturb your understanding, it means that soon you will settle down and enjoy your life.
If you understand this defect but don't pay attention for accent, this is a sign of your interest in new information.
In the case, you hear a conversation in a dream in a foreign language, but you understand the essence of what has been said without apparent effort, it may mean an approaching trip. It can have both professional and tourist reason.
Such a dream can mean the possibility of upcoming acquaintance with foreign residents and a long chat with them, which is quite understandable if you have to visit a foreign country. If you talk to the higher beings, such as angels - it is considered necessary to listen to their words, because they are right and can tell you the right things.


This is a placeholder page for Vince Anlauf, which means this person is not currently on this site. We do suggest using the tools below to find Vince Anlauf.
You are visiting the placeholder page for Vince Anlauf. This page is here because someone used our placeholder utility to look for Vince Anlauf. We created this page automatically in hopes Vince Anlauf would find it. If you are not Vince Anlauf, but are an alumni of Meadville Area High School, register on this site for free now.


text:
Exclusive Don't Tell a Soul Clip Starring Rainn Wilson & Jack Dylan Grazer
Don't Tell a Soul Fionn Whitehead Jack Dylan Grazer mena suvari Movie News Rainn Wilson video
ComingSoon.net has an exclusive clip for the upcoming thriller Don't Tell a Soul starring Emmy nominee Rainn Wilson (The Office, Utopia, Super), Jack Dylan Grazer (IT, IT Chapter Two, Shazam!), Fionn Whitehead (Dunkirk, Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, Voyagers), and BAFTA nominee Mena Suvari (American Beauty, American Woman). You can check out the clip now in the player below!
RELATED: Exclusive Love and Monsters Deleted Scene Clip Starring Dylan O'Brien
While stealing money to help their sick mother (Suvari), teen brothers Matt and Joey (Whitehead and Grazer) are surprised by Hamby (Wilson), a security officer who gives chase and is then trapped in a well. Over the next few days, Joey and Hamby forge an uneasy relationship. Hamby tells Joey he'll keep quiet if Joey sets him free. But Hamby holds another secret, one that will threaten Joey and his family, in this twist-filled, cat-and-mouse thriller.
Don't Tell a Soul is written and directed by Alex McAulay (Flower, Cult). Producers include Chris Mangano and Merry-Kay Poe, with Matt Bronson and Steve Poe executive producing.
RELATED: Exclusive Traces Clip Starring Martin Compston & Molly Windsor
The movie will arrive in select theaters, on Digital, and On Demand on January 15.


text:
Troy University recognizes crime author Ace Atkins with Hall-Waters Prize
Kirk Curnutt, honoree Ace Atkins, Chancellor Jack Hawkins, Jr., Gregg Swem and Walter Givhan are shown following Hall-Waters Prize ceremony.
Best-selling crime fiction writer Ace Atkins was only two years old when his family moved from Troy, but he still considers the city home.
The son of former TROY football coach the late Billy Atkins came "home" on Friday to receive Troy University's Hall-Waters Prize.
"As a writer, it is always nice to be honored for your work," Atkins said. "I consider Troy my home so it is terrific to be honored in such a way here. This is a very special place to me. I am so appreciative to Troy University. Every time I come back here, everyone is so gracious and makes me feel welcomed."
The Hall-Waters Prize was endowed by the late TROY alumnus Dr. Wade Hall, an author, former member of the faculty at the University of Florida and professor emeritus of English at Bellarmine University in Louisville, Ky. The award includes a monetary prize and a plaque.
Dr. Hall, a native of Bullock County, endowed the prize as a memorial to his parents, Wade Hall Sr. and Sarah Elizabeth Waters Hall. The award is presented regularly to a person who has made significant contributions to Southern heritage and culture in history, literature or the arts.
"Many of us are fans of the genre of crime fiction," said Dr. Kirk Curnutt, chair of the University's English Department. "Ace has produced more than 20 novels. The last several years, he has written two novels a year, which speaks to his professionalism and work ethic. We are very pleased to recognize him with this award and welcome him back to Troy University."
While being an author is sometimes thought of as an easy job, Atkins said it requires daily work.
"Sitting down at the keyboard and doing it every day, there are certainly days that you don't really want to do it," Atkins said. "Those days you just have to suck it up, get your coffee and go to work. Some people think it is an easy job, but it really is something you have to work at every day"
At Friday's ceremony, held in the Stadium Club overlooking the football field at Veterans Memorial Stadium, University officials remembered Atkins' father and all he meant to the school's football program. Several members of Billy Atkins' 1968 NAIA National Championship team were in attendance at the event.
"Alabama is known for college football, but what is not as well known is that Alabama is home to many great writers," said Al Head, a member of the 1968 team and a 1971 TROY graduate. "It has truly been a pleasure for me to watch Ace's career. Coach Atkins was a pretty good story teller, but I suspect Ace got his writing abilities from his mother. What Ace did inherit from his dad was a commitment to hard work and to excellence."
A former crime reporter at The Tampa Tribune, Atkins published his first novel, "Crossroad Blues," in 1998 at the age of 27 and became a full-time novelist at 30. In 2011, he was selected by the Robert B. Parker estate to continue the bestselling adventures of Boston's iconic private eye, Spenser. The seventh Spenser mystery by Atkins, "Old Black Magic," will be published in May.
Atkins graduated from Auburn University in 1994 and lettered in football in 1992 and 1993. Today, he lives with his family in Oxford, Miss.
Tags: Ace Atkins, Hall-Waters Prize, Kirk Curnutt, Wade Hall
Troy University honors songwriters Penn, Oldham with the Hall-Waters Prize
Troy University to honor Muscle Shoals legends Penn, Oldham with Hall-Waters Prize
Ace Atkins to receive Troy University's Hall-Waters Prize
Troy University to host 70th Association of College English Teachers of Alabama Conference


text:
Alan Parsons – Studio, Live & Compilation Albums (1993 – 2010)
EAC Rip | 10xCD | FLAC Image + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Label: Various | Genre: Progressive Rock
As indicated by its name, the Alan Parsons Project was not a band so much as a concept overseen by the titular Parsons, a successful producer and engineer. Born in Britain on December 20, 1948, he began his musical career as a staff engineer at EMI Studios, and first garnered significant industry exposure via his work on the Beatles' 1969 masterpiece, Abbey Road. Parsons subsequently worked with Paul McCartney on several of Wings' earliest albums; he also oversaw recordings from Al Stewart, Cockney Rebel, and Pilot, but solidified his reputation by working on Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon.
Influenced by his work on Stewart's concept album Time Passages, Parsons decided to begin creating his own thematic records; along with songwriter Eric Woolfson, he soon founded the Alan Parsons Project. Although Parsons played keyboards and infrequently sang on his records, the Project was designed primarily as a forum for a revolving collection of vocalists and session players — among them Arthur Brown, ex-Zombie Colin Blunstone, Cockney Rebel's Steve Harley, the Hollies' Allan Clarke, and guitarist Ian Bairnson — to interpret and perform Parsons and Woolfson's conceptually linked, lushly synthesized music.
the Project debuted in 1975 with Tales of Mystery and Imagination, a collection inspired by the work of Edgar Allan Poe; similarly, the science fiction of Isaac Asimov served as the raw material for 1977's follow-up, I Robot. With 1980's The Turn of a Friendly Card, a meditation on gambling, the Alan Parsons Project scored a Top 20 hit, "Games People Play"; 1982's Eye in the Sky was the Project's most successful effort, and notched a Top Three hit with its title track. While 1984's Ammonia Avenue went gold, the Project's subsequent LPs earned little notice, although records like 1985's Vulture Culture, 1987's Gaudi, and 1996's On Air found favor with longtime fans. Time Machine followed in 1999. After taking a five-year hiatus, Parsons returned in 2004 with A Valid Path. ~ Allmusic
1. STUDIO:
1993. Try Anything Once (1993, BMG Arista, 07822-18741-2, USA)
1993. Try Anything Once (1993, BMG Arista, 74321167302, W.Germany)
1996. On Air (1996. CNR Music, 530 00 99, Germany, Limited Edition)
1999. The Time Machine (1999, CNR Music, 2004320, Spain)
1999. The Time Machine (1999, Miramar, 09006-23146-2, USA)
2004. A Valid Path (2004, Artemis RecordsATM-CD-51562, USA)
2004. A Valid Path (2004, Eagle Records, EAGCD221, Germany)
2. LIVE & COMPILATION:
1995. The Very Best Live (1995. BMG Music, 09026-68229-2, USA)
2003. Alan Parsons Live (2003, TX2, TXT 870039-2, EU)
2010. Eye 2 Eye – Live In Madrid (2010 – Frontiers Records, FR CD 451, Italy)
LMA_AlPa.D_Discography
Author Moby_DickPosted on August 17, 2015 June 4, 2018 Categories Progressive RockTags Alan Parsons
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Pilobos Neighborhood Park is an active soccer facility in Fresno, California that is used by many local leagues. The four fields are all lighted so people can play night games. To reserve the picnic shelter or other facilities please call 559-621-6600. The picnic area has several grills so bring some meats for cooking.


Ginger. We use it to make refreshing drinks, delicious dishes and yummy candies. But why is ginger so popular? What exactly is it—and more importantly—how can it help you?
Ginger usually grows in tropical environments. It has a long history of use (over 2500 years' worth!) in India and China. Any plant that's stood the test of time like that must be something special, and ginger really is! In addition to being a delicious way to add some flavor to your favorite foods and drinks, it's also used as a supplement to support digestion and overall wellbeing.
The reason it's so useful may have something to do with the 100+ compounds scientists have identified in ginger. Gingerols are the major components of ginger that often are studied in health-related research and contribute to its unique, spicy scent.
You can use ginger's potent properties for a variety of tummy-related issues—especially when you travel. As we all know, traveling can wreak havoc on your eating habits. Whether you're sampling unfamiliar cuisine, or stocking up on fast food before a long drive, ginger will help keep your stomach calm and help with motion sickness throughout your journey.
The possibilities of this awesome spice don't end there. Ginger also supports healthy digestive tract function.
So the next time your tummy is in turmoil, do yourself a favor and grab some ginger!


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I Salonisti – szwajcarski kwintet fortepianowy z Berna, założony w 1981 roku.

Skład
 Piotr Pławner – skrzypce (od 2006)
 Lorenz Hasler – skrzypce (od 1981)
 Ferenc Szedlák – wiolonczela (od 1981)
 Béla Szedlák – kontrabas (od 1981)
 André Thomet – fortepian (od 2002)

Zespół
Zespół w repertuarze ma dzieła muzyki kameralnej, klasycznej i popularnej, m.in. takich kompozytorów jak: Nino Rota, Fritz Kreisler, George Enescu, Astor Piazzolla, Claude Debussy, George Gershwin, Béla Bartók, Imre Kálmán, Kurt Weill i Johannes Brahms.

W 1997 roku kwintet I Salonisti wystąpił w filmie Jamesa Camerona Titanic, jako zespół muzyczny grający do końca na pokładzie tonącego statku.

Od 2006 roku prymariuszem kwintetu jest polski skrzypek Piotr Pławner.

Dyskografia
 2012 I Salonisti: Gentlemen, It has Been a Privilege Playing With You Tonight (w 2-CD Titanic Anniversary Edition / 4-CD Titanic Collector's Anniversary Edition – Sony
 2004 Best of I SALONISTI – Decca
 1999 Soundtrack – Let's Go To The Movies with I SALONISTI – Sony
 1999 Bon voyage – A Musical Journey Around The Americas – Decca
 1998 The Last Dance – Music from a vanishing Era – BMG Classics
 1997 And the Band Played on – Music played on the Titanic – Decca
 1997 Tangos Argentinos – RCA Classics
 1994 Comme ci – comme ça – Virtuoso Encores – Decca
 1992 Por Favor – Music from Latin America – Decca
 1991 Gypsy Caprice – Gypsy Music from Eastern Europe – Decca
 1990 Trans-Siberian Express – The Music of Russia – Decca
 1989 Trans-Atlantic – A Musical Voyage – Decca
 1989 Orient Express – The Romance of a Great Journey – Decca
 1988 Hej Cigany! – Music from the Gypsy Salon – EMI
 1986 Intermezzo – Music from Opera, Operetta and Musical – RCA Classics
 1986 Mélodie – EMI
 1985 Café Victoria – Argentinische Tangos – EMI
 1984 Nostalgico – Argentinische Tangos – EMI
 1984 Humoresque – EMI
 1983 Serenata – EMI

Przypisy

Bibliografia
 Oficjalna strona kwintetu I Salonisti  [dostęp 2012-05-16]

Muzyka kameralna
Szwajcarskie zespoły muzyczne

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


(Solved) Erythrocytes are the largest of the formed blood cells.
Erythrocytes are the largest of the formed blood cells.
Solved Which of the following blood cells are the largest?
Solved _____, or red blood cells, make up about half of the blood's volume.


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Q: Pages are scrollable after reaching a footer Just noticed that Responsive Web Design doesn't work correctly for a desktop version of website. After reaching a footer with page scrolling, pages of website can be scrolled far further (just scrolling through empty space to the page end). At the same time, for a mobile version everything works fine, page is not scrollable after reaching a footer.
It doesn't matter whether I use native Magento Luma or other theme. The result is the same.
How this issue can be fixed?
Will be grateful for any help.
1. A desktop version:

2. A mobile version:

A: EDIT:
OK, I found a bug. It is simple. Look at your menu: Телефони -> Недорогі мобільні телефони -> submenu (its height is above 11k px!!!).
You have to change your styles, something like that:
@media screen and (min-width: 768px) {
  .subchildmenu .subchildmenu {
      max-height: 300px;
      overflow: auto;
  }
}

That's mean your submenu's submenu will have max-height 300px and scrollbar will appear (because overflow: auto).
Consider whether you should also set the maximum height for the first sub-menu to avoid such a situation in the future.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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Sundance Coverage All News Comedies All Reviews Indie Features
November 27 2011, 11:13 PM
LIFF 2011: BREATHING review
Contributor; Derby, England
A young man desperately in need of a purpose ends up taking a job dealing with the recently deceased, collecting the dead and making them look the best they can for their final journey - in the course of which he learns responsibility and respect for the value of life, while those people in the young man's life who once rejected him come to respect his decision and the changes it's brought about. There, can we compare Karl Markovics's Breathing to Departures now? Obviously there are significant differences between the two films, but see the premise written down like that and it's the first thing you notice.
But this isn't a case of plagiarism or a lazy remake. Where Departures was weighed down by contrivance, unearned sentimentality and depressingly predictable plot beats Breathing is hard, gritty and markedly more realistic. It's still a warm and deeply human film that firmly believes people can be redeemed - though whether they'll get the chance is open to question - plus it's smart, witty and frequently very funny. Yet it hits very hard, too, refusing to sugar-coat its characters' flaws and forcing them to deal with some truly harrowing situations without ever resorting to cheap shots, gross-out scares or manufactured drama.
The lead, Roman (Thomas Schubert), is an angry, sullen young man, insular and aggressive, obviously looking for a way forward in life - Breathing opens as he's trying to land a job - but clearly reluctant to extend a hand or trust anyone who might want to help him. We quickly learn he's been locked up in a young offenders institute for some time (though it's not explicitly revealed what put him there until the final act). With a court hearing due very soon, Roman's adoptive father is clearly desperate for his son to demonstrate he's making some effort to turn his life around; badgering him to take a job, any job that'll prove to a judge he's not become institutionalised.
When Roman announces he wants to apply to an undertaker's, his father thinks he's joking - and yet slowly, surely, this position proves different to all the others. Breathing is definitely following a template, there's no denying that. Roman picks up life lessons one corpse at a time, rediscovering his humanity as he goes. He has to cope with the idea of death, with sudden death, with the idea people will still hate him, sometimes, even when he does the right thing. First his new co-workers hate him, then they like him. But all of this feels entirely organic, never shouts a single message too loud and often proves devastatingly emotive.
An early scene where Roman and the one older hand who's taken an instant dislike to him have to prepare an old lady who's keeled over and died in her nightgown is a thing of rough-hewn beauty, an absolutely masterful display. As Roman and the older man move through the apartment while their boss comforts the daughter standing distraught in the entrance hall, everything is so tightly locked down, dialogue, gestures, pacing, you can practically hear what all four actors are thinking. And Markovics then promptly tops this with an emergency callout straight afterwards spinning out the themes he's just introduced in the previous scene, which kicks Breathing up to another level altogether.
So much of the character development barely seems to be in the script, but more sidelong glances, facial expressions or fleeting callbacks to previous scenes that feel more fulfilling than any big popcorn crescendo. (Witness Roman grudgingly asking his partner for help with something totally mundane, and how that winds up.) The different aspects of the plot don't come together in Big Moments but quiet epiphanies that feel extraordinarily fulfilling. When Roman makes an impulsive decision that could get him in serious trouble then it turns out people are prepared to forgive and forget, it's as far from keening Hollywood strings as it gets, but markedly more powerful, even tear-jerking.
It's not quite perfect; some of Markovics's direction is oddly stilted, with weird blocking or composition that doesn't seem to serve any real purpose, and a couple of plot developments hinge on if not contrivances, then certainly jarring leaps of faith. But this is still riveting stuff - world-class drama with scene after scene at pitch-perfect emotional intensity and yet plenty of quiet time to think about what we've just sat through. Regardless of how much he borrowed, Markovics spins absolute gold from the narrative and his cast remain on top form throughout. Compelling and uplifting, yet never shy of letting us know life is hard - and that once we've made a mistake the consequences generally don't just magically disappear - Breathing comes hugely recommended.
(Breathing was screened at the 25th Leeds International Film Festival, which ran from 3rd-20th November 2011.)


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A local electoral area (LEA; ) is an electoral area for elections to local authorities in Ireland. All elections use the single transferable vote. The Republic of Ireland is divided into 166 LEAs, with an average population of 28,700 and average area of . The boundaries of LEAs are defined by statutory instrument, usually based lower-level units called electoral divisions (EDs), with a total of 3,440 EDs in the state.

As well as their use for electoral purposes, LEAs are local administrative units in Eurostat NUTS classification. They are used in local numbers of cases of COVID-19.

Municipal districts
A municipal district () is a division of a local authority which can exercise certain powers of the local authority. They came into being on 1 June 2014, ten days after the local elections, under the provisions of the Local Government Reform Act 2014. Of the 31 local authorities, 25 are subdivided into municipal districts, which comprise one or more LEA. The exceptions are the three city councils (Cork City, Dublin City and Galway City) and the three county councils in Dublin (Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, Fingal and South Dublin). A district associated with a city or borough is termed a metropolitan district (ceantar cathrach) or borough district (ceantar buirge) respectively.

In 2019, John Paul Phelan, Minister of State for Local Government and Electoral Reform, commented in the Dáil:
Municipal districts have an extensive list of functions currently, but the situation is haphazard ... some local authorities are better at performing some functions than others. I have found that some local authorities have a strong municipal district structure, with the districts being where most of the nitty-gritty work of local authorities is done, be it roads, footpaths or lights. Some do not have that structure, though, with decisions rehashed or debated again at the councils' plenary sessions.

Boundary changes

Boundaries for local electoral areas and municipal district are determined by statutory instrument of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage. The Minister must first request the Electoral Commission to prepare a report. The minister must have regard to this report in making any changes.

Prior to the establishment of the Electoral Commission in 2023, recommendations on local electoral boundary changes were made by an independent boundary committee established for that purpose. A boundary committee has been required since 1994 for electoral areas. The 2012–13 Local Electoral Area Boundary Committee considered both administrative areas (municipal districts, though not counties/cities) and electoral areas. In 2015, separate committees were set up to consider adjustments to county and municipal boundaries passing through each of four urban areas: Athlone, Carlow, Drogheda, and Waterford. A Boundary Committee established in 2017 and which reported in June 2018 recommended alterations to municipal districts and local electoral areas which were implemented in December 2018.

Areas
Below are the districts and local electoral areas as defined by the most recent SI in each case and which were used at the 2019 local elections. Unless otherwise specified, districts are titled "Municipal District of Carlow", etc.

See also
Counties of Ireland
Dáil constituencies

References

Council elections in the Republic of Ireland
Electoral areas in the Republic of Ireland
Local government in the Republic of Ireland
Ireland
Subdivisions of the Republic of Ireland
Ireland


Yes, all midwives are confused about mixed interpretations of "rules" that may/may not imply can't care for family/friends.
Unhelpful, destructive edict from @nmcnews no clarity on PII for @IMUKMidwifery members. Inept actuary, incomplete job!!


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We are accepting new admissions but have implemented additional pre-screening procedures to ensure the health and safety of everyone at Safe Harbor Recovery Center. **At this time, all family visitation has been suspended until further notice.**
Safe Harbor Recovery Center is closely monitoring all coronavirus (COVID-19) updates and is following suggested best practices from the CDC to prevent the spread of the virus. For more information, please click here.
About Safe Harbor
Ways to Prevent Relapse after Leaving Treatment
by Jackie Hammers-Crowell | Sep 25, 2019 | Recovery, Rehab
Treatment is the first in a series of important steps on the journey to recovery from substance abuse, but it is far from a cure. Addiction is a chronic disease that is far more complicated than the decision to use or not use on a single occasion. A person who has...
Fighting Loneliness in Sobriety
by Jackie Hammers-Crowell | Sep 13, 2019 | Mental Health, Recovery
Sobriety brings about many changes in a person's life. The vast majority of them are improvements, but many people in recovery experience one negative change: loneliness. Loneliness in sobriety is common–and a risk factor for relapse. Fortunately, there are also...
How Yoga Supports Substance Abuse Recovery January 12, 2021
What Is Pink Cloud Syndrome? December 29, 2020
The Power of Self-Fulfilling Prophecies November 12, 2020
Understanding Why People Fear Sobriety October 23, 2020
How Addiction Impacts the Brain October 10, 2020
Safe Harbor Recovery Center, located in Portsmouth, Virginia, serves adult men and women who have been diagnosed with substance use disorders.
2700 London Blvd
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The creatures with whom we share the planet and whom, in our arrogance, we wrongly patronize for being lesser forms, they are not brethren, they are not underlings, they are other nations, caught with ourselves in the net of life and time, fellow prisoners of the splendour and travail of the Earth.
The seas are the hearts blood of the earth. Plucked up and kneaded by the sun and the moon, the tides are systole and diastole of earth's veins.
Our fantastic civilization has fallen out of touch with many aspects of nature, and with none more completely than with night.
The world today is sick to its thin blood for lack of elemental things, for fire before the hands, for water welling from the earth, for air, for the dear earth itself underfoot. In my world of beach and june these elemental presences lived and had their being.
Into every empty corner, into all forgotten things and nooks, nature struggles to pour life, pouring life into the dead, life into life itself.
For a moment of night we have a glimpse of ourselves and of our world islanded in a stream of stars - pilgrims of mortality, voyaging between horizons across the eternal seas of space and time.
"The Outermost House". Book by Henry Beston, www.wired.com. 1928.
The adventure of the sun is the great natural drama by which we live, and not to have joy in it and awe of it, not to share in it, is to close a dull door on nature's sustaining and poetic spirit.
The adventure of the sun is the greatest natural drama by which we live.
A garden is the mirror of a mind. It is a place of life, a mystery of green moving to the pulse of the year, and pressing on and pausing the whole to its own inherent rhythms.
If gardeners will forget a little the phrase, "watering the plants" and think of watering as a matter of "watering the earth" under the plants, keeping up its moisture content and gauging its need, the garden will get on very well.
To know only artificial night is as absurd and evil as to know only artificial day.


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At TradeSparky, we are confident you will be satisfied with our distribution equipment. We stock MCB and MCCB panelboards and accessories as well as consumer units. Stocking top brands, such as Hager, Schneider and Eaton, you can be assured you will receive quality products at great prices when you choose TradeSparky.


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UK Kerouac Convention canceled
I just read on Twitter that the UK Kerouac Convention (click here) slated for July 2013 has been canceled because of poor ticket sales.
Kerouac Sunday
It's a Kerouac Sunday – as they all are, kind of like how a red-sun October day is the best – waking up in the piney wood-smell streamside camp among the red squirrels, crows, grey squirrels, herons, frogs, osprey, chipmunks, turtles, goldfinches, hermit thrushes, bluejays, eagles, muskrats, raccoons, deer, beavers, water snakes, spiders, butterflies, loons, ducks, cormorants, and other assorted sentient beings going about their business without a care about the crucifixion (see D.H. Lawrence's Self-Pity) – absalom comes to mind – don't forget the mosquitoes either or the flying squirrels who only visit at night . . . . but it's raining today and I only know most of them are here from memory as only the squirrels and crows are braving the weather – the shack's a little bigger than Jack's on Desolation Peak and there's no Hozameen looking over my shoulder but there's a dark feeling coming down the river carried on misty fingers and settling in my aching bones, achy from sleep, age, damp bedclothes . . . . And that's about it, about all I wanted to say today, another on "the good side of the grass" (the day's not over yet) as they say down at the local watering hole in Gardiner home of Edwin Arlington Robinson (not of the Swiss Family) who's buried there, too – found his grave once and read Richard Cory aloud after a good swig of Bushmills (as is my practice at author gravesides – Thoreau, Kerouac, Frost to date with Dickinson on the short list). It's only two days past solstice but real October's coming, that bittersweet month of crisp smells that transitions into long winter snow doldrums when I dream of todays and wonder if they'll ever come around again or soon enough to save me . . . . It's a big old mystery anyway 'cause where spirituality's concerned all systems and all beliefs are wrong – only the creatures matter and they don't care about sophistry only the moment and if we all spent more time there we'd end human suffering – who knows we've never tried it – ask the little ones they have it figured out and don't even know it.Happiness visits the smallest of things. That's all I know.
Posted by Rick Dale, author of The Beat Handbook at 10:57 AM No comments:
The Town and the City
I started reading The Town and the City yesterday. I'm up to Chapter 7 (p. 45). Once I finish it, I will have read all of Kerouac's novels (at least once).
As I said on Facebook today (in the Jack Kerouac group), it's Jack and it's not Jack. You can hear his voice from On the Road and The Dharma Bums, etc., but it's more constrained (more classic in form). And it's definitely autobiographical (roman à clef) like his later novels, although even more heavily fictionalized. For example, whereas Kerouac's parents, Leo and Gabrielle, are clearly represented by George and Marge Martin, the Martin family includes eight children (not counting Julian, who, like real-life Gerard Kerouac, died), not three (Caroline, Jack, and Gerard). One of the eight is Julian's twin brother, Francis. I gather from other sources that characters in The Town and the City are sometimes composites, blending several real-life people into one fictional characters (e.g., some have suggested that Francis Martin is a composite of William S. Burroughs, Gerard Kerouac, Hal Chase, and Jack Kerouac).
If you haven't yet read The Town and the City, I recommend it. I know I'm only 9% of the way through it, but I'm confident it will continue to engage me throughout. I want to know what happens to Peter and Joe and Ruth and Francis and Mickey and Rose and Charley and George and Marge (there's a third daughter but she hasn't appeared yet for some reason).
Happy reading . . . .
Kill Your Darlings release date set
Kill Your Darlings is set for a limited release October 18 with a nationwide release to follow. Click here for my source.
Personally, I think Jack Huston will be excellent as Kerouac. We'll see . . . .
Defending Jack Kerouac
I think it would be fun if hundreds of Daily Beat readers commented on this article in defense of our hero, Jack Kerouac. We won't change the author's mind, but we could at least gum up the comments section.
Peter Orlovsky's Archive Acquired
One of 140 notebooks Orlovsky filled before his death
The Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas at Austin has acquired the Peter Orlovsky archive. Click here for the news release.
Correspondence in the collection highlights Orlovsky's many connections with other poets, authors and artists. There are more than 1,600 letters written to Orlovsky and/or Ginsberg, including 165 letters written by Ginsberg himself. Some notable correspondents include Gregory Corso, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Ken Kesey and Robert LaVigne. Orlovsky also wrote regularly to his parents and siblings, and more than 65 of his letters are included in the archive.
The collection features more than 2,650 photographs taken by or of Orlovsky, documenting the years between 1970 and 2010. Also included are eight reel-to-reel tapes from the 1960s and more than 120 audiocassettes made by Orlovsky during the 1970s and 1980s, some recording conversations with Ginsberg.
The Kerouac connection, of course, is Orlovsky's relationship to Kerouac intimate and inner circle Beat Generation member Allen Ginsberg. While the news release doesn't mention Kerouac as represented in the archive, he's bound to be referenced. Kerouac scholars and others will have access once the archive has been processed and cataloged (catalogued looks more correct to me but I suspect that is a British spelling).
See you in Austin.
Kerouac letter collection for a mere $1.25 million
If you have an extra $1.25 million lying around that you don't know what to do with, consider bidding on this collection of Kerouac letters (click here).
Happy Birthday, Allen Ginsberg
Were he still alive, beat poet extraordinaire Allen Ginsberg would have been 87 years old today. One of the inner circle of the beat generation and a close friend of Jack Kerouac's, Ginsberg is known especially for his poem, Howl, which was the subject of a famous censorship trial in 1957 (and a recent movie starring James Franco).
Let's read some Ginsberg today in honor of his birthday. Click here to read Howl. Click here to hear Allen reading it.
Happy Birthday, Allen.
Kerouac letter collection for a mere $1.25 million...


text:
About Flournoy
Flournoy Helping Hands
Multifamily Development
About Flournoy Development Group
About Flournoy Properties Group
Fee Management Services
About Flournoy Senior Living
Justin Osborne
Senior Vice President, Senior Housing
Flournoy Senior Living
Justin Osborne began his career with Flournoy Construction Company (FCC) where he spent seven years in the field and as a Project Manager. Justin resigned his position to join the military and served six years as a Green Beret in the U.S. Army Special Forces completing three combat tours to Afghanistan followed by four years working for the U.S. Special Operations command that included deployments to Kuwait, Turkey and Afghanistan. During his tour of duty, Justin received three Bronze Stars as well as many other medals and prestigious awards. In 2016 Justin rejoined FCC and in 2018, he transitioned to Flournoy Development Company as a Development Project Manager specializing in Senior Housing. He received his Bachelor of Science in Building Construction from Auburn University, Master in Business Administration from St. Leo University in Tampa, FL, and his Master in Real Estate Development from Auburn University. Justin's responsibilities include all aspects of Senior Housing.
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