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Distribution of the Tax Policy Changes in H.R. 1 and the Senate's Tax Cuts and Jobs Act [November 21, 2017] [open pdf - 156KB]
"Distributional analysis can be used to illustrate how changes in tax policy would affect the economic well-being of taxpayers. The Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) regularly prepares distributional analyses of major tax proposals. On November 14, 2017, the JCT released a distributional analysis of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (H.R. 1). H.R. 1 passed a vote in the House on November 16, 2017. The JCT has also released a distributional analysis of the Senate's version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act."
Report Number:
CRS Insight, IN10824
Sherlock, Molly F.
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
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Federation of American Scientists: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/index.html
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Summary: Join Blippi for a K-Swiss/Kids Foot Locker/Blippi Sneaker Release Meet & Greet on Saturday October 27th 2018 from 11am to 6pm at the Westfield Culver City Mall. Purchase your youngster a pair of Blippi shoes from the Westfield Culver City Mall Kids Foot Locker Store then hop in line to meet Blippi at the Center Court of the mall. If you cannot make it to the event you can always purchase the shoes from KSWISS.COM and KIDSFOOTLOCKER.COM as well as in-select Kids Foot Locker stores starting Thursday October 25th 2018.
Head on over to https://www.facebook.com/events/279429626049584 and check out the event details on facebook!


text:
Food Delivery Firms Slump After EU Proposes New Employee Rules
DROOF
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Jillian Deutsch and Ivan Levingston
(Bloomberg) -- Millions of gig economy workers in Europe could soon find themselves being designated as employees under a new European Union proposal that hit shares in digital platforms including Just Eat Takeaway.com NV.
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The European Commission on Thursday set out new rules that would mean people working for food-delivery and ride-hailing apps can presume that they are an employee regardless of what they are called in their contract. Bloomberg News reported the proposal last week.
The proposal may require the likes of Uber Technologies Inc., and Deliveroo Plc to relinquish some control over workers so they become genuinely "self employed," or else make them formal employees, which would grant them rights and protections such as paid annual leave and collective bargaining. The change could cost the sector as much as 4.5 billion euros ($5.1 billion) more a year, the EU estimates.
Shares in food delivery stocks dropped, with Just Eat Takeaway sliding 3.7%, Deliveroo declining as much as 2.8% and Delivery Hero SE falling 1.7%
The companies were split in their reactions. Just Eat Takeaway said it supports the EU proposal. Deliveroo and U.S.-based Uber raised concerns on the risks to platform workers and consumers from the new rules. Delivery Hero had a bit of both.
EU Jobs Commissioner Nicolas Schmit said a failure to hold digital platforms to the same social protections standards as other companies would open a "Pandora's box ultimately, where people in the economy are trying to get around their social obligations."
Speaking at a press conference in Brussels, Schmit rejected a suggestion that the proposals would be fatal for the digital platforms. However, social protection costs such as health care and retirement will ultimately be borne by taxpayers, and these need to be reflected in assessments of the sustainability of the companies' business models, he said.
Standards Landmark
Gig economy workers are now mostly classed as self-employed across the bloc, and have faced years of uncertainty over earnings and status while digital platforms saw business boom during the pandemic.
"This directive is a landmark for raising standards of employment in the platform economy," Stephen Cotton, general secretary of the International Transport Workers' Federation, said in a statement. "Platform companies like Uber, Bolt, Deliveroo, Glovo and others for too long have been able to use loopholes in legislation to exploit workers." The ITF says it's the biggest union for ride-hailing and food-delivery gig workers globally and represents 20 million workers around the world.
Here are the responses from the companies:
"Just Eat Takeaway.com welcomes and fully supports the EU Commission's proposals to improve conditions for workers and help them access social protections. We hope that the Commission's proposal will create clarity and a level playing field that ensures that companies across Europe are held to the same standards, so that all platform workers are treated with the dignity they deserve," Jitse Groen, chief executive officer of Just Eat Takeaway, said in a statement.
"Delivery Hero fully supports the European Commission's aim to improve the labor conditions of platform workers. The Commission's proposal includes positive and much-needed elements. However, we strongly believe that the suggested criteria to trigger the proposed rebuttable presumption of employment and reversed burden of proof are too broad and would not contribute to that goal," a Delivery Hero spokesman said in a statement.
"We have worked with national governments across Europe and the rest of our industry on ways to strengthen platform work without risking the flexibility independent workers say they want. But we are concerned the Commission's proposal would have the opposite effect - putting thousands of jobs at risk, crippling small businesses in the wake of the pandemic and damaging vital services that consumers across Europe rely on," an Uber spokesman said in a statement.
"Evidence from around the world clearly demonstrates that reclassifying riders has negative consequences for riders themselves, consumers, restaurants and the wider economy, These proposals will increase uncertainty and will be better for lawyers than self-employed platform workers," a spokesperson for Deliveroo said in a statement.
Some highlights from the proposal:
Platform workers would have a "rebuttable presumption of employment"
Burden of proof lies on platform to prove a worker is self-employed in a court.
The rules would impact any digital platform that controls its workers by meeting two of five criteria: determining pay levels for workers, setting appearance and conduct standards, supervising the quality of work, restricting the ability to accept or refuse tasks, or limiting the ability to build a client base.
As many as 4.1 million people in the EU would be reclassified under the new rules.
Another 3.8 million could be confirmed as self-employed.
It will take years before the proposal could go into effect, if at all, as the executive has to get approval from member countries and the European Parliament.
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The average Aussie spends nearly $600 on gifts for friends and family alone, according to Commonwealth Bank figures, with the cost of entertaining and feeding our loved ones bringing total expenditure up to almost $1,000 each. This generosity could have an impact on your credit rating, particularly as 40 per cent of people in a 2016 finder.com.au study admitted they would use a credit card or loan to fund their Christmas spending. Here are some ways to avoid blowing your budget this Christmas and keep your home ownership dreams on track.
Impulse purchases can be devastating for your bank balance, which is why you should always plan how much you can afford to spend before you hit the shops. Make a list of everyone you intend to buy gifts and shop around online for the lowest prices. The earlier in the year you start planning for Christmas, the better. That way, you can begin putting money aside each month to fund the festive season.
Every time you apply for credit, the provider will make an enquiry into your credit history. This is known as a 'hard' credit enquiry, and they can negatively affect your rating, especially if you make several applications within a short space of time. You should therefore avoid applying for credit cards or loans to fund Christmas spending, as home loan lenders may see this as a warning sign that you're struggling for cash.


Need some snacks to bring to class? We're sharing the best healthy snacks for college students on a budget.
I have a confession to make: I'm a notorious snacker. Whether I'm studying in the library and longing for Cheetos or sitting in my room nibbling on popcorn, my hand inevitably makes its way into a bag of something or another, especially as I creep closer and closer to finals. While my stress level rises, I've been planning healthy snacks to bring to class.
LUNA Bars are my go-to breakfast source, being a person who likes to sleep in rather than head to the dining hall for a more traditional breakfast. Packed with nutrition and offered in a wide variety of flavors (I always have a box of Chocolate Peppermint Stick in my dorm), this granola bar alternative has quickly become a staple in my diet.
I'll be the first to admit that they are not something I'd want to eat more than once in a typical day, so take heed and munch wisely. This is partially due to the fact that I typically like to save them for breakfast, but it's also because they're packed with so much healthy goodness that I don't want to ruin my appetite for later!
All joking aside, hummus is one of my favorite college snacks ever. Made up of chickpeas, olive oil, tahini, lemon juice, garlic, and a bit of salt, this dip can be paired with so many different dishes, such as sandwiches, crackers, vegetables, or just its traditional BFF, pita bread. Plus, it's an excellent source of protein for those of you who share similar dietary restrictions!
I currently live in Wisconsin and hail from a town by the WI-IL border, so cheese has always been an important component to my diet. But string cheese is one of my favorite on the go snacks for another reason – it's perfectly portable! Not only are the low-fat/skim-milk versions fairly healthy at under 100 calories per serving, they also are still chock full of protein and calcium – perfect for vegetarians and meat-eaters alike.
Annie's Bunny Grahams are delicious mini-sized bunny snacks that come in Honey, Chocolate, Cinnamon, and Chocolate Chip. And they just so happen to be my current snack of choice as I write this! As they're made of organic whole-wheat flour and organic evaporated cane sugar, trans and saturated fat free, and lack hydrogenated oils, these bite-sized graham snacks make a delightfully healthy alternative to Teddy Grahams!
What do you like to eat in between meals? What do you turn to when you need fuel during a long day? What are your favorite snacks to bring to class? What are your favorite snack indulgences? Drop a comment and let me know!


Once upon a time I used to buy a handful to new music CD's every week.
I have not spent a dime on any music from traditional sources for the last 12 years due to the insane practices of the RIAA and others of their ilk.
The only music I have added to my collection in all this time has come through direct purchases with the band, usually local groups just getting started.
It is a shame too, because there are hundereds of CD's I would like to buy, but I simply can't support the industry anymore.


I've always been quite creative. Every Saturday as a child, I would take my shilling pocket money and spend a happy hour in Woolworth's stationery department. I would browse the colourful array of pens, paint, paper, card and gadgets before carefully choosing an item to buy. I would spend hours drawing, painting and making things. Later I learned to sew and knit and really enjoyed the end products especially after spending so long making them.
Now that I have more leisure time, it is great to be able to take up these hobbies again and try my hand at some new ones. The past few weeks have been particularly interesting, as I have had a go at a couple of new pastimes.
The first came about after a chance meeting with a lovely lady called Susan Noble at a local artisan market. She was selling beautiful mosaic items which she makes herself. When I say handmade, they really are genuine. So many of these so called craft markets sell goods which are made in a sweatshop in India or China and labelled as "hand crafted", so it was refreshing to see such intricate and well- designed wares. After a very long chat with her, I bought several pieces which now adorn my bathroom! Susan runs courses in the art, so I booked in and we had a great day at her studio (aka the dining room table!). She patiently watched over me while I tried to imitate her style and I eventually produced an acceptable piece. At first it requires a lot of concentration. It is like doing a jigsaw puzzle as you try to fit the perfect piece in the gaps. But after a while you don't think about it so much and it becomes more instinctive. I would thoroughly recommend it as a relaxing and rewarding activity.
I've probably mentioned that my daughter is getting married this year and she has asked me to do the flowers. It's a huge responsibility and I have no experience but I like a challenge! I soon realised that I was going to need some help. Enter my very good friend Sue Madden who is a talented florist and runs flower stalls with her husband Denis, at London's Columbia Road market amongst others. (Furneaux Flowers). Another happy day was spent choosing flowers, learning to tie a bouquet and wiring buttonholes. Going into their warehouse was like entering an Aladdin's cave of exotic and beautiful colours and fragrances. Again, I was quite pleased that I was able to put together an acceptable bouquet and now feel much more confident to tackle the wedding flowers. Thanks Sue!!
What next I ask myself? I have a long list of crafts I want to try. I think the next couple will be upholstery and calligraphy. Watch this space!


What's the difference between standard, registered and PRO license?
The software file is the same for all licenses, but depending on the license you own you will get different features.
First of all, standard and registerd licenses are only for personal and not commercial use.
Registered and PRO licenses grant you the remote automatic update for software, ISO and links, without the need of new releases for each minor update.
In addiction to remote automatic update, SARDU MultiBoot Creator PRO can build a USB pendrive or a DVD with multiple Windows installers, both as different Windows operative systems (Seven, 8.1, Vista, W10 and so on) and as different O.S. versions (Home, Professional, etc.).
PRO license allows you to create USB pendrives or DVDs using non only legacy boot but also the UEFI standard, making the builded device compatible with the latest generation of PC, Notebook, Tablet and Mac.
Only SARDU MultiBoot Creator PRO license can manage ISO extra, the most famous Linux distributions like Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, Knoppix, Puppit, Sabayon,CentOS, ARch and so on, and all their derivates which respect their standard, including those not natively supported, as for example i386 versions or localized versions.
All these things makes SARDU the best, complete and customizable MultiBoot Creator in the world: the best solutions to repair a PC or a Mac with EFI and legacy support , as well as to approach in safety and fun world of Gnu Linux Live.
You can sign in and, if you like, buy a PRO license on http://www.sardu.pro, enabling automatic update and other features.
If you have problems downloading SARDU, please try to stop using your download manager and avoid right clicking on files. Also, check your firewall settings, because some mirrors may require that you do not block the HTTP referers.
After downloading you will be redirected to our Facebook page.


good things said on here, and they don't even come close to how good this little ball is, you ain't seen anything until you've tried one of these. --- Jason Kerr, United Kingdom Is it the competitive nature in the human being that makes this product pure dynamite for the soul?
Or are you all just a bunch of fitness gurus who like what Powerball is doing to your hands, wrists and arms each time you pick it up?
How can something that is small enough to fit in your pocket have the singular ability to make grown men quiver & women cry?
There are many aspects of this splendid spheres that you simply love... Many of you have taken the time to let us know about your experience of NSD Powerball and the many benefits you have seen from its use in your fitness, rehabilitation and exercise applications, as well as the tremendous fun you have had while using it.
Some of you have come across NSD Powerball through friends, family or co-workers, and in many other cases you have discovered this exciting product through your quest to find a cure, or treatment for common conditions such as Carpal Tunnel, Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI), Tennis Elbow, Arthritis, Wrist Sprains and Breakages or Tendonitis. We are delighted that NSD Powerball has proven to be of such tremendous benefit to many of you in overcoming these conditions, and of course are delighted to have some solid testimonials from several medical professionals, many of whom actively use NSD Powerball in their practices on a day to day basis.
That is what we care about!
These and the hundreds and hundreds of similar emails which tell us all about how NSD Powerball turned your office upside down when it arrived, how it reinvented your golf game, how it cured your RSI, how you sleep with it under your pillow... these are the things that make us smile and allow us to guarantee that your new NSD Powerball will become so much more to you than the sum of its parts - that you too will fall in love with the shiny little sphere and that you simply won't be able to put it down!
The NSD Powerball - it's 100% addictive and that is our 100% rock solid guarantee to you!


Save money on black onyx silver earrings. Onyx is the birthstone for the zodiac sign Leo. Onyx is the gemstone for 7th wedding anniversaries. Onyx has been used in jewelry for thousands of years, and is so named for the Greek word claw or fingernail.


Steeped in thousands of years of history, China's capital is home to 20 million people. Between the Great Wall, and the ancient temples and homes of the emperors of bygone dynasties, it's no surprise Beijing is one of the most visited cities in the world. However you decide to spend your time in Beijing, there's an exceptional range of tours on offer to ensure you get the most out of this ancient city.
There is no shortage of tours to the monumental Great Wall of China, and depending on your schedule, you can join one-, two-, three- or even 12-day hikes along its stone path in awe of its splendour.
You may find yourself camping in rural villages, exploring Beijing's Forbidden City and exploring The Ming Tombs, the burial grounds of 13 of the 16 Ming emperors. For a little rest and relaxation, you can partake in an organised tai chi class along the way.
Love Chinese food? Why not take a Chinese cooking class and market tour? Lead by an expert chef, you'll meander through the markets, learn about the local food culture and pick out fresh ingredients. Next, you'll visit a local family's home to learn the basics of Chinese cuisine and get involved in a frenzy of cooking. The best part: eating your homemade Chinese creations!
Acrobats and Peking Duck may sound like a strange combination, but when paired, these two make a fantastic night out in Beijing. Partake in a mouth-watering Peking Duck banquet dinner, where you can hear all about this Beijing speciality dish before being treated to the daring leaps and twists of a traditional Chinese acrobat troupe.


If you need legal advice you could send your questions to our lawyers by filling in the form in the right. You will receive a professional on-line advice on your case in 24 hours.
You could also receive a competent on-line consultation by contacting us on the Skype account of the law firm. Just click on the icon below. If we are not on-line please send us your request and we will reply to each inquiry as soon as possible.


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Small Press Spotlight on… 'My So-Called Secret Identity' with Will Brooker
The issue of sexism and a lack of realistic female role models in super-hero comics is one that has plagued the industry for years. Will Brooker – Professor in Film and Cultural Studies at Kingston University, an academic with a noted interest in Batman, and the first British editor of Cinema Journal – has taken a distinctly proactive approach to the problem.
In collaboration with artists Suze Shore and Sarah Zaidan, Brooker has sought to underline that strong, relatable female characters operating in a world of costumed crusaders can be portrayed without falling back on the clichéd representations so usually associated with mainstream comics. My So-Called Secret Identity is the result of this endeavour – a series that follows the exploits of Catherine Abigail Daniels (Cat), a young would-be super-heroine in Gloria City.
Critically acclaimed by publications like Femina and The Guardian, the first four issues of My So-Called Secret Identity are available to read online here. With the Kickstarter to fund issue #5 in full swing (offering the opportunity to own the entire first five issues in print), and as part of this column's ongoing series of interviews spotlighting the world of self-publishing, I took the opportunity to talk to Will about creating a super-hero comic for a female audience, reactions to the project to date, and the unique collaborative background to My So-Called Secret Identity…
BROKEN FRONTIER: To begin with could you give the Broken Frontier audience a brief breakdown of My So-Called Secret Identity's premise and cast of characters?
WILL BROOKER: In story terms, the book is about Catherine Abigail Daniels, a young woman in Gloria City. Gloria City is a town full of superheroes, though they never do anything heroic, and nobody is sure if they even have powers beyond dry ice, hydraulics, lighting effects and stunt teams. Catherine, or Cat, has no powers herself. She goes through life insisting she was nothing special, because she's learned to keep her head down, to never boast or show that she's different. But by the end of the first episode, she's been pushed to the edge, and finally snapped: the 'hero shot' of this issue shows Cat looking up at us, admitting to the reader and herself that she does have a kind of power. She's really, really intelligent. And if nobody's going to take her seriously as Catherine Abigail Daniels, maybe she's going to have to get a costume, an icon and a brand name, and play the superhero game herself.
Cat is our central, viewpoint character. There's a background cast of larger-than-life, costumed figures, including the Major, Sekhmet, Kyla Flyte and Miss Sparkle, but she doesn't have much contact with them, any more than you or I would have much contact with Tom Cruise if he was in town promoting a movie. She does cross paths with the Urbanite, the city's self-appointed armored lawman, and his sidekick the Misper, who becomes a particularly key character. But most of her dealings are with her housemates, Kit and Kay — two fashion students whose relationship seems to defy easy definition — and her landlady (and professional single mom) Dahlia, who becomes a close friend.
BF: Cat was created with a specific aim in mind – to provide a female character operating within the traditions of the super-hero world but devoid of the dubious storytelling trappings that have evolved around female characters in that genre. Why did you decide to take such a proactive approach to the issue?
BROOKER: The overriding sexism and limited representation of women in both comic books and the comic book industry had been bothering me for some time.
It just came to a head for me one day, soon after the start of DC's New 52, which seemed particularly full-on with its glossy, almost soft-porn images of Catwoman and Starfire, when I was suddenly struck by the huge gulf between these fictional women and the women I was actually teaching. Not just in terms of how the women in mainstream comics tend to look and act compared to the diversity and intelligence of the student body, but because I was made to feel unwelcome and uncomfortable in the comic shop near my campus, and I couldn't imagine that most of my female students would want to walk in and browse.
Catwoman and Starfire as depicted in DC's New 52 comics
You could say that the initial idea behind MSCSI was to bring those two things together — to depict women in the superhero genre who were more like the women I actually work with every day, and to try to create a superhero comic that those women might want to read.
BF: What kind of reactions has My So-Called Secret Identity elicited to date? Has it provoked the kind of discussion about the depiction of women in super-hero comics that you were hoping it would?
BROOKER: Yes, it has. It's prompted journal articles and academic discussions, and articles in the mainstream media (Femina, The Guardian, Ms Magazine, Stylist) which have reached a wide popular audience. It's been featured extensively on comic book blogs over the last 18 months or so. I think it's certainly provoked debate. It's really achieved far more than I ever thought it would.
Generally though, the response has been overwhelmingly positive, from comics professionals, fans, casual readers, journalists and reviewers. A number of people have said this was what they were waiting for, even if they didn't realise it; others have said this is the comic they want their daughters to read. I couldn't really ask for more.
BF: Given the mission statement you had set yourself were there any points in the process of writing MSCSI where you caught yourself inadvertently slipping into the clichés of mainstream comics?
BROOKER: Only early on. I can't say too much about it as it concerns the events of issues #4 and #5, and the final issue is still forthcoming — it's one of the main projects we are using the Kickstarter to support.
But in general terms, I had written the physical harming and death of female characters into the story, for no good reason at all except that it was what I was used to in mainstream comics. It's pretty shocking, with hindsight, how powerful those structures must be, if I fell into them without thinking. I just wrote that plotline because I had a sense that's 'how things happen' in these stories.
Fortunately, someone pointed out what I was doing, and I changed path. That was a key liberating moment in the writing.
BF: The book is full of analogues from the Batman universe with new twists to them. How did they factor in to the comic's original premise and, given your position as an academic who has written extensively on the Batman mythos, how vital was playing with those toys to you?
BROOKER: In the original, very early premise, MSCSI was a hypothetical pitch based on the idea 'what if Batgirl had been a Vertigo comic in the 1990s?' — with all that involves in terms of art style, aesthetic, key characters, storyline and writing. It was Barbara Gordon in a household a bit like the one in Neil Gaiman's 'A Game of You' storyline, with other Vertigo characters as her colleagues and buddies.
Accordingly, of course, Catwoman, Robin and Batman took on different roles, and were going to intersect with this Batgirl origin story.
At a certain point in the process, I realised we could actually make a proper comic out of this idea, and I took the decision to branch out into original territory — original in terms of developing characters from analogues and archetypes, as many other writers have before me.
I still see MSCSI as exploring the tropes and conventions — and the problems and limitations — of the Batman mythos. In that sense, I see it as a kind of theory-as-practice — an extension of my work on Batman, analysing and examining through storytelling rather than through more traditional scholarship. But that's only on one level. I think MSCSI has its own life and energy, and it stands up independently even if you don't know anything about Batman.
BF: Suze Shore's art on MSCSI blends those big, bold super-sequences with a more subtle and character-led visual storytelling. Could you tell us about how you collaborate creatively and how Suze came to be a part of MSCSI?
BROOKER: I simply contacted Suze when I saw her work online — a little cartoon that pointed out the ridiculous outfit worn by Poison Ivy in the Arkham video games. I commissioned some character sketches and costume designs from her, and then more and more artwork as I really loved what she was doing.
So in a sense, she played a key role in creating the world and its characters before we even started to work on MSCSI issue #1. She entirely designed Kyla Flyte, for instance.
When it seemed that a full-length first issue of MSCSI was a genuine prospect, I asked Suze if she'd consider it, and what it would cost, and we went from there.
My scripts are, I think, fairly detailed. I've seen far briefer panel descriptions, in Scott Snyder's and Mark Millar's work, for instance. (I've also seen far more detailed scripts, from Alan Moore.) I give quite a lot of information, from panel layout to 'shot type' to mood, character emotion and overall reference (such as a direction that I'd like a particular scene to evoke Tim Sale's work on Daredevil Yellow and a sense of The Catcher in the Rye, West Side Story and the novel It's Like This, Cat; in that case I would include visual illustrations).
Suze thumbnails the pages for layout and composition, I approve those, then she works on the black and white line art, sending me each page as it's completed. I might make some suggestions, which she incorporates. She sometimes makes suggestions to me about lines of dialogue or caption, which I always tend to follow.
Then the pages go to Sarah, who colours, and adds a great deal in terms of storytelling and again, mood and atmosphere.
I have a visual in my head when I write the script, which I'm essentially trying to convey to Sarah and Suze through words, but as soon as I see the page of artwork, it replaces the picture I had before and becomes my single, authentic point of reference for that scene.
BROKEN FRONTIER: Sarah Zaidan provides segments in MSCSI depicting Cat's mental processes that are very different in presentation. What extras do you feel Sarah's digital art brings to the book and its portrayal of Cat's true super-power – her intellect?
BROOKER: Sarah's colours on every page shouldn't be overlooked, even though her MindMaps might be the most obvious and distinctive contribution she makes. If you compare the black and white pages to the finished work, there's a transformation of Suze's art (which of course, is great on its own) into a deeper, richer, lived-in world, with more texture and complex light patterns. There's a scene where Sarah switches, at my suggestion, from the usual watercolour effect to a slicker, digital finish, to evoke the New 52 with its cinematic shine and gloss. So she adds a great deal.
The MindMaps are, I believe, unique in superhero comics. They're a representation of entering Cat's mind and seeing how she connects things up, how she structures and makes sense of the world. They show how she retains information in her head — academic notes, ideas about her outfit, memories of her dad, attempts to store the names of people she just met, background knowledge about recent terrorist attacks on the city, a general sense of the celebrity networks and their branded products — and makes links between key elements.
The issue #1 MindMap is more of an overview. The issue #2 feature shows her puzzling over, and figuring out, a discrepancy between the geography of Grange Manor and its depictions in the media, which leads her to investigate it for real. Issue #3 allows us to see how Cat researches and recreates a sense of Connie's personal history while also working on solving Carnival's newspaper puzzle, at the same time.
I think they depict a certain kind of intellect — more of a humanities, history, cultural theory, art, philosophy and literature intelligence than science or math. They're meant to look a little like scrapbooks and a little like essay plans.
BF: It's not just Cat's place as strong central lead that marks out MSCSI as providing a positive depiction of female characters. As a team you have also broken the traditional conventions of sexualised costumes for super-heroines. Were "realistic" costumes one of the first items on your checklist for the series? What thinking went into the design of Cat's more functional look?
BROOKER: Yes, I think they were important from the start. I wanted to convey the idea of a costume that someone in Cat's position could actually buy, and put together without sewing or construction skills. There's no way most PhD students in literature and philosophy could tailor an outfit or pay a seamstress to produce a costume; they couldn't get Kevlar armor or build a helmet, or customise a utility belt. Her outfit is made on a budget from high street stores, plus some of her dad's old cop gear.
I wanted the sense that she's a hero anyone can easily become. The outfit is practical and sensible, and it serves the purpose of marking her out as a 'costumed character' with a recognisable logo and icon, which is what she wanted, in order to be taken seriously by a culture that celebrates superheroes.
It's true of course that cosplayers do go to a great deal of effort and manage to closely reproduce superhero costumes, so obviously dressing in a full Batgirl kit isn't impossible. But Cat's outfit is the kind of thing a novice cosplayer could easily throw together (especially now we're offering official MSCSI Cat-logo t-shirts from our website).
So, that was one important aspect of her look. Another was, of course, that we didn't want to show her in anything unnecessarily or gratuitously revealing. That's not to say that we will never see Cat wearing fewer clothes — she's at a swimming pool at the start of Volume 2 — but there's no reason why she'd go around in a metal bikini or with her jacket unzipped over a bra, when she's trying to sneak into Urbanite's base.
Another key aim was to feature outfits that people might actually want to wear. So all of Cat's outfits, not just the costume, are thoroughly thought-through and designed — from her initial Autumn look to the dress she's looking at when she shops in issue #2, to the hoodie and sweats she's adopted in issue #4. Kit, Kay, Dahlia, Sehkmet and Misper's outfits were also carefully planned, thanks in large part to our great artists, who took a lot of care over these details. We wanted the characters' clothes to reflect who they were, but also to vary in different scenes (for different circumstances and moods) and to work, in some way, as aspirational. Kit and Kay, in particular, wear outfits you might wish you could buy yourself.
BF: The argument that is always tediously and disturbingly regurgitated every time the unrealistic physical depiction of women in mainstream comics is brought up is that super-heroes represent the "perfect physical form". Why do you think the populist side of comics is still stuck with these entrenched views in 2014?
BROOKER: Probably because the same people keep saying that: youngish, male, white, straight fans and creators. It might be their 'perfect physical form'. It is, of course, not everyone's. Supergirl and Catwoman have a certain look in terms of body and face which is fine — there are women who look like that, in the world, even if they're mostly lingerie models — but the problem is that so many women in mainstream superhero comics have the same look.
I don't think there's anything wrong per se with depicting a character as white, blonde, toned and busty. Kyla Flyte fits that mould. The point is that this is only one type of woman, and we should see many other types in comics, as we do in the real world.
So, the reason those views dominate, I think, is because the loudest and most dominant voices in comics are those of a specific demographic, and they probably think their own opinions are genuinely common sense truth.
Cat's creative team with a comics-style twist – Will Brooker, Suze Shore and Sarah Zaidan
BF: There's a greater collaborative background to MSCSI that is quite unique. Was that sense of community and interaction something you were always looking to foster with this project?
BROOKER: Yes, it was. Again, I think that was part of the initial aim to do things differently, and, we hoped, do things better — even if it didn't work, it would still be different, and still interesting in that respect as a creative experiment.
So that community, collaborative model went along with the deliberate aim of having a predominantly female team. It was a way of exploring an alternative way of working. Also, I felt it matched the central concept of scrapbooking, montage and collage that was always inherent in MSCSI — and importantly, it gives us the sense that there is no one version of Cat (and Dahlia, and Connie, and so on). There is no single definitive look for these characters. In issue #5, we play with this idea a little in terms of infinite earths, but more broadly I think it's valuable that our characters aren't tied down visually to a particular face or body, and aren't tightly owned by a single person. Much of what you see in MSCSI is the result of collaboration: Sarah originally sketched Urbanite from my description, for instance, then Clay Rodery delivered a more realistic, detailed version, and Suze used that as the basis for the character in the comic itself.
On a practical level, that collaboration has meant that MSCSI has been a platform for a number of people to achieve greater publicity, make a bit of money and attract more work, which is obviously a good thing. Many people are able to share in the project's success, and take advantage of that in their own careers.
BF: Gloria – the fictional city that Cat operates in – has echoes of what James Robinson did with Opal City in Starman. Were you actively looking to make Gloria City something of a character in itself in the pages of MSCSI?
BROOKER: Yes, I think that's quite a common idea in superhero comics: Gotham is certainly a very powerful presence in the Batman mythos. I haven't read Starman so there's no deliberate borrowing there, but what I was aiming for in Cat's relationship with Gloria was a modification of Batman's relationship to Gotham. She feels it's her city, and she knows it, but she sees it more as a big sister or friend rather than something she owns, patrols and defends.
She feels possessive about it because it's something close to her, something she's grown up with and grown to know. She doesn't have that same fierce overview of it that Batman has — significantly, she's nearly always at ground level, on the street, rather than on the rooftops. She loves it like a favourite book or a song. So you could say it's a character, but you might as well also just say it's a place. Places are important. I don't think we have to elevate them by saying they are like a person. They are their own thing.
BF: There's currently a Kickstarter campaign to fund the fifth and final issue of the first run of MSCSI. What kind of rewards can backers expect?
BROOKER: Most of the rewards are simply pre-orders: order issue #5 digitally, order the collected edition of issues #1-5, order the deluxe edition with guest art from a range of awesome creators. At higher levels, though, we have some unique merchandise like MSCSI temporary tattoos and nail art and the exclusive Urbanite t-shirt; we also offer limited edition, signed prints of Suze Shore artwork and original watercolours from Jennie Gyllblad. If you want to read the script for Volume 2 issue #1, in its current state, that's a reward: if you want to appear in, or have your name or band or brand feature in, issue #5, that's another option. Or you can simply donate to become a sponsor, and have yourself listed as someone who made this project possible.
BF: Issue #5 wraps up the first arc of the story. What hints can you give us for what's next for Cat and company?
BROOKER: Assuming Volume 2 does happen, which I hope it will, Cat undergoes some changes. She changes her style, her body changes, her outfit changes, her role in the community changes. Dahlia, Daisy, Kit and Kay are still involved in the story, but we focus much more in Volume 2 on Kyla Flyte (actually, two versions of Kyla Flyte) and find out more about her character. Urbanite and Misper step out of the narrative a little, and instead we have new people like Miss Sparkle, Black Light and Quiver, who were only mentioned in Volume 1 — plus some characters who appear entirely out of the blue.
Rather than the Batman mythos and The Killing Joke, this story has elements of a Crisis on Infinite Earths and the social realist Green Arrow/Green Lantern stories of the 1970s, plus a sense of Thelma and Louise road trip. Although Urbanite doesn't feature so prominently, in a way this arc is all about Carnival, and asks why, ethically, it would be wrong to kill him.
So, there's a lot there and I'm currently thinking and talking to people about how to get that story out in 2015.
You can find out more about My So-Called Secret Identity on the comic's comprehensive site here and read the first four issues online here. The Kickstarter campaign can be supported here.
Tags: my so-called secret identitysarah zaidansmall press spotlight onsuze shorewill brooker
Small Press Spotlight on… Owen D. Pomery
Small Press Spotlight on… Tillie Walden
Small Press Spotlight on… First World War Anthology 'To Arms!' with Matt Duncan and Karim Iskander Flint
Small Press Spotlight on… Chris Kent


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Smart Home/
Ring's new $60 video doorbell is its smallest and cheapest yet
Available on February 24th, with preorders starting today
By Chaim Gartenberg / @cgartenberg
Amazon's Ring has debuted its latest video doorbell, the (blandly named) Ring Video Doorbell Wired which, at $59.99, is the cheapest and smallest doorbell that the company has ever offered.
As the name implies, there is one major limitation of the new Ring Video Doorbell Wired — unlike its pricier siblings, it can only be used as a hardwired doorbell, instead of the battery-powered option offered by products like the Ring Doorbell 3 or the $99.99 Ring Video Doorbell that the company refreshed last year.
Assuming you've got your home wired already, though, the rest of the Video Doorbell Wired checks all the boxes for a Ring doorbell: 1080p video, night vision, custom motion detection zones, and support for other Ring products and services like the optional Ring Protect subscription. And, of course, given that it's an Amazon product, the new Video Doorbell Wired is also fully compatible with Amazon's Echo products, which can be used to see who's at your door.
It's effectively a wired version of the previous entry-level Ring, the aforementioned Video Doorbell, just without the integrated battery and a sleeker design (likely because it ditches the rechargeable battery). But at $40 less, it seems like a good option for anyone looking to start out a Ring home security setup — assuming you've got the wired setup or home improvement knowhow to get it installed.
The Ring Video Doorbell Wired is available now to preorder for $59.99 from Ring and Amazon, ahead of a February 24th release date.


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Science, Tech, Math › Science
7th Grade Science Fair Projects
Age-Appropriate Ideas That Are Fascinating and Fun!
Science Fair Projects for Every Grade
Science Fair Ideas
Ninth Grade
Tenth Grade
Eleventh Grade
Jon Feingersh Photography Inc / Getty Images
Anne Marie Helmenstine, Ph.D.
Chemistry Expert
Ph.D., Biomedical Sciences, University of Tennessee at Knoxville
B.A., Physics and Mathematics, Hastings College
Dr. Helmenstine holds a Ph.D. in biomedical sciences and is a science writer, educator, and consultant. She has taught science courses at the high school, college, and graduate levels.
Seventh grade and middle school, in general, are a big time for science fairs because it's a wonderful educational level for students to come up with ideas to explore using the scientific method and ways to investigate their questions. Parents and teachers still provide direction, especially helping students devise manageable experiments and appropriate work technology to present their results. However, the actual experiment should be done by the 7th grader. The student should record data and analyze it to determine whether or not the hypothesis is supported. Here are some ideas appropriate for the 7th-grade level.
7th Grade Science Project Ideas and Questions
Use a prism to show the spectrum of visible light on a sheet of paper. Mark the endpoints, which is how far into infrared and ultraviolet you can see. Compare your visual range with that of other family members or other students. Is there a difference in range between genders? Do family members have a similar range? See if you can draw any conclusions using the scientific method.
Composting is a great way to reduce waste and recycle nutrients, yet some household products and foods are contaminated with heavy metals and organic chemicals. Devise a test to measure one of these chemicals and compare the concentration in compost versus that in the ordinary soil in your yard.
Houseplants can absorb and detoxify indoor pollution. Do research to identify which houseplants are best at cleaning the air in a home, office, or classroom. Now, take the project to the next level and determine which plants are most practical, affordable, and useful. Make a chart of the chemicals the plants clean, whether the plants are toxic to children and pets, whether they can live in low-light conditions or require bright light or special care, how much the plants cost, and whether they are readily available.
Which brand of ibuprofen (or the student could test another type of pain reliever) dissolves the most quickly?
Does the pH of juice change over time?
Insects can sense light and dark. Can they still see light if it's only red or blue, etc.?
How well does a football helmet really protect against impact? You could use a skating helmet or any other protective gear, depending on what you have available.
How does the concentration of chlorine in water affect the rate or percentage of seed germination?
What is the effect of watering schedules on the germination (or growth rate) of seeds from a certain plant?
How does the presence of a given medication in water affect the survivability of Daphnia?
Does the presence of de-icer salt affect the movement behavior of earthworms?
Does the bounciness of a golf ball relate to its ability to be hit long-distance?
Does the species of wood affect the rate at which it burns? Its heat output?
Does the mass of a baseball bat relate to the distance the baseball travels?
Is the paper towel brand that absorbs the most water the same as the brand that absorbs the most oil?
Second Grade Science Fair Projects
Chemistry Science Fair Project Ideas
Middle School Science Fair Project Ideas
Elementary School Science Fair Projects
Free Middle School Science Fair Projects
11th Grade Science Fair Projects
High School Science Fair Projects
Free High School Science Fair Projects
College Science Fair Projects
Acid & Base Science Fair Project Ideas


If there is something you like to do for each of your clients, but this action is not on your task list, you can now create your own tasks! Create your own tasks in the Task Manager admin!
From your Task List admin, select the list you would like to add a task to (see below).
Select New Task (See below).
Select New, to create a new task.
Select Add Task (See below).
Select the Task from the Stock Task list.
NOTE – You can search for tasks using the search bar. You can also, see the details of the task by clicking on it.


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maziarkalaw.com
Why Do Lawyers Hire Tracing Agents?
Solicitors face different types of problems when trying to solve their legal cases. They have to arrange expert witnesses, procure hard to find documents, contact different people, and more. A lawyer may take help of a tracing agent to trace a person who cannot be found. The missing person may be someone who is crucial to solve the case, bolster the argument, prove a point, or confirm some details. It can be difficult to find a missing person through usual means. The lawyer simply may not have someone who can even visit different places where that person can be likely found. That is where tracing professionals come to the rescue and prove their worth.
Extra information about tracing agent
The Job of a Tracing Professional
The person is a professional investigator whose task is to trace individuals. The agent uses only legal methods for this purpose. The agents usually come from investigative agencies of government departments and private security companies. As the term suggests, the job of this agent is to trace a person who cannot be found. Sometimes basic information about that person may be available but that information may not be sufficient to find that person. The individual may not be returning calls and messages. The agent in these situations uses other tracing methods to trace the missing person.
Why Do Lawyers Need the Services of This Agent?
Some cases become difficult to solve because the person whose statement is needed is missing. The missing persons cannot be found by usual means of searching their name through the Internet and other methods. Sometimes the contact details of the person are known but that person refuses to return the calls and messages. A person accused of an offence or crime may be trying to avoid being found. In some cases, individuals who appeared during the initial hearings of the case may disappear later to avoid getting arrested or penalised for their role in the crime. There are all such reasons for which lawyers hire tracing agents.
How do Tracing Agents Work?
The agent first collects the available information about the missing person from the lawyer. The professional may ask the lawyer some questions related to this matter. After learning about the whole issue, the agent determines the best course of action to find the missing person. The solution may be limited to simply visiting different locations where that person is likely to be found. It can also be a complex issue where there is not much footprint of the person in offline or online places. The agent devices a tracing plan based on all such available information. The goal of all these activities and planning is to find the missing person who may be avoiding detection deliberately or unknowingly.
Tracing agents are generally hired to track debtors who have failed to pay their loan on time and not answering the calls of their lenders. Lawyers also use the services of these agents when they are unable to find people related to their cases. The agents are professional investigators specialising in tracing individuals who have gone missing. They can find criminals, offenders, debtors, missing persons, witnesses, long lost relatives, individuals named in the will, and others. It becomes easier for the lawyers to solve their cases with this service. They can bolster their arguments in a legal case. They can present in the court important witnesses whose statements are critical to proving the arguments.
maziarkalaw.com - 2022


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National commemoration
View case study >
Institute of Legacy Management
Strengthening an organisation's voice
The Affordable Housing Commission
Building the case for support
Nationwide Foundation
Influencing housing policy
Exclusive Ballooning
Lord Mayor's Hot Air Balloon Regatta
Strategic PR
Ovarian Cancer Action
We work with charities, public sector organisations and health & lifestyle brands to develop and deliver campaigns that are strategic, creative and effective. Working in partnership with our clients, we raise awareness, engage audiences, influence change and inspire action.
We were established in 2000 and have a strong track record on issues-based communications, on a range of topics: health & wellbeing, social care, education & literacy, young people, families, environment, disability, housing, drug & alcohol misuse, mental health, legal rights, older people, international development and enterprise.
Our award-winning, but down-to-earth, team has enormous experience working on one-off projects and long-term programmes for organisations large and small, from media relations and celebrity support, to strategic consultancy and crisis management. Often we involve like-minded partners to offer clients a seamless, integrated team incorporating design, digital, film and photography.
Louise Morriss
Louise began her PR career in the North East before moving to London, where she worked at agencies including Cause & Effect Marketing and Saatchi & Saatchi. She has handled consumer brands such as Disney, Persil and Eurostar, and was head-hunted to help set up the Teaching Awards Trust.
She founded Amazon in 2000 after recognising the need for good quality PR support for charities. Since then the agency has diversified, working with clients in the public sector and healthcare.
For several years Louise served as a Trustee for the Rainforest Foundation UK, including three years as Chair.
Outside work, Louise is passionate about children's books. She helps her young son run book review site Mango Bubbles Books and she is a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators.
Kate Beard
Kate worked in magazine publishing as an editor and staff writer, and in fundraising and events at charities including NSPCC and Samaritans, before joining Amazon in 2006.
Kate leads on many of our accounts, developing strategies and creative campaigns, packaging complex issues to gain widespread media attention and providing close support to in-house teams. She is adept at content development, working closely with filmmakers and photographers and on social media campaigns.
Recent clients include Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, the Orders of St John Care Trust, Evolve Housing + Support, Nationwide Foundation and the National Landlords Association.
Kate is a mentor for CharityComms and in her spare time enjoys soaking up art and culture with regular visits to galleries and the cinema.
Edward Haynes
Ed started his PR career working agency side for clients including the Coalfields Regeneration Trust and MAOAM before joining the Amazon team in February 2019.
Outside of work, he enjoys the outdoors and manages to make at least two or three trips a year to the Lake District.
A keen music fan, he currently co-runs a night titled CAT (Classic Album Thursday) Club which sees speakers, artists and musical individuals present, discuss and listen to albums from across the music spectrum.
Alice Lythgoe-Goldstein
Alice started out at London agency Band and Brown, working for a diverse range of clients including BT, British Gas and Reuters, before joining the PR team at BUPA in 2005. In 2008 she moved to consumer champion Which?, delivering PR campaigns on personal finance, health, energy and food.
Alice has been an Associate for Amazon since 2006, becoming a permanent member of the team in September 2017. She specialises in campaigning, media relations and issues management, with recent clients including Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, Forces in Mind Trust, the Orders of St John Care Trust and Kidscape.
Alice likes being a tourist in London, baking, and getting lost on Hampstead Heath.
Alice is currently on maternity leave.
Elspeth Massey
Elspeth is a former ITV journalist who has spent the last ten years in the charity sector working for organisations such as The Stroke Association, Samaritans and Beating Bowel Cancer. She's driven and developed high-profile integrated campaigns such as the FAST campaign for The Stroke Association, "We're in your corner" for the Samaritans partnership with Network Rail, and the Decembeard fundraising initiative for Beating Bowel Cancer. She joined Amazon as an Associate in 2019.
Elspeth's skills span the whole communications spectrum including content creation, delivering cut-through campaigns, strategy, key messaging, copywriting, media relations and digital.
Keeping up with her toddler takes up most of her spare time
Penny Neu
Penny has been a freelance consultant for more than 10 years, following jobs in communications at Channel 4, the BBC and the Department for Education. She joined Amazon as an Associate soon after it was founded.
Penny specialises in communications strategy and planning in sectors including the arts, education, health and social care. Whilst at Amazon she has worked with clients including Holocaust Day Memorial Trust, the Family Justice Council, Motor Neurone Disease Association, Royal British Legion and Family Rights Group.
In her spare time Penny is a listening volunteer for the Samaritans and a dedicated gardener.
Kirsty Kitchen
Kirsty has spent over 15 years working on issues-related communications for charities, central and local government, and public bodies.
Having been a permanent member of the Amazon team for 12 years, she now works with us as an Associate specialising in policy development and communications, influencing strategies, campaign planning and reputation management. Recent clients include Forces in Mind Trust, the Royal College of Psychiatrists, Holocaust Memorial Day Trust and the Institute of Legacy Management.
Kirsty is an avid reader and runner, though has never attempted both at the same time.
Charlotte has been working in PR for over two decades. After completing her MA in Public Relations she worked in both Manchester and London with agencies including Hill and Knowlton and BMA Communications. For the past 15 years, Charlotte has worked as a consultant specialising in health, social issues, charity and educational campaigns – joining Amazon as an Associate in 2009.
During her time at Amazon she has worked with clients including the National Institute of Health, Jack Petchey Foundation, NCT, Impetus-PEF and the Disabled Living Foundation.
Outside of work, Charlotte enjoys time with her teenage children, films, theatre trips, dog walking and pilates. She also helps run a community women's group and plays the violin with the Epsom Symphony Orchestra.
Lisa Pettifer
Lisa is a former BBC journalist who moved into PR after 10 years as a reporter and producer.
She has managed the communications for Jeans for Genes (now Genetic Disorders UK) and YoungDementia UK, compiled annual reports and redeveloped the websites of both charities. She became an associate for Amazon in 2012 and has worked with clients including Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund, SSAFA and the Rainforest Foundation.
Lisa is skilled at building ever-changing train tracks with her young son and baking bread with varying degrees of success. She enjoys sewing, knitting, drawing, re-purposing stuff and salsa dancing.
May Atkinson
After graduating with a degree in International Development and Spanish Studies, May worked at national social justice charity People Can, before joining Amazon as a consultant in 2012. Following a move to Bristol in 2015, May became an Associate for Amazon, combining this with a role helping Bristol-based social enterprise WECIL, which supports disabled people.
Whilst at Amazon, May secured across-the-board national coverage of a report to relaunch the domestic abuse charity SafeLives, and has also worked with forces charity SSAFA and Holocaust Memorial Day Trust.
May is a trained yoga teacher, massage therapist and life coach, and alongside working as a consultant, runs her own well-being business.
"I'd have no hesitation in recommending them, and hope to work with them again."
Legacy Foresight.
"Amazon's bespoke, timely, creative and professional service was provided by people we really enjoyed working with too."
Margaret Pyke Trust .
"Amazon were great to work with. The media exposure delivered following the event was fantastic. We would certainly recommend them."
Exclusive Ballooning .
"Amazon are clever, insightful and proactive in helping us spot opportunities. We've benefited hugely from working with them."
Evolve Housing + Support.
"Amazon were a joy to work with. A talented bunch who delivered above and beyond. I really appreciated the open, honest, timely communication."
Ovarian Cancer Action.
"Amazon are reliable, efficient and professional. They make great suggestions, do their homework and get back to me quickly."
National features & celeb journalist.
"Amazon are easy to work with and will go the extra mile if you're looking for something special."
Health editor, My Weekly.
"Amazon were utterly committed, dynamic and creative, but also carefully guided us. They delivered brilliant results."
Kidscape.
"Amazon provided fresh, creative ideas and delivered effectively. Every member of the team was a pleasure to work with."
Holocaust Memorial Day Trust.
"Amazon worked incredibly hard on our behalf. I would recommend them without hesitation."
Motor Neurone Disease Association.
"Amazon went above and beyond, helping us secure invaluable coverage and playing a critical role in terms of shaping our thinking."
Institute of Legacy Management.
Want to see some of the projects we've worked on? Have a look at our case studies.
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While the data is very clear, it does not effectively paint a picture of what it is like to live below the poverty threshold. The official poverty line in the United States in 2019 is $12,490 per year for an individual, and $25,750 per year for a family of four.³ It is difficult for most people to imagine trying to make ends meet on this budget, much less sustain any quality of life. Yet thousands of our neighbors live in these conditions every day.
The effects of such poverty far exceed financial difficulties; over the next several months, we are going to discuss the broad toll of poverty in the lives of those who experience it. This week, we will briefly share the correlation between poverty and life expectancy.
A Harvard analysis of 1.4 billion Internal Revenue Service records on income and life expectancy that showed staggering differences in life expectancy between the richest and poorest also found evidence that low-income residents in wealthy areas, such as New York City and San Francisco, have life expectancies significantly longer than those in poorer regions.
While those differences can be chalked up, in part, to healthy behaviors — low-income residents in New York City smoke and drink less, exercise more, and have lower rates of obesity than the poor in other cities — it's unclear what other factors might contribute to the difference, said David Cutler, the Otto Eckstein Professor of Applied Economics and a professor at the Harvard Kennedy School and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Among men, that gap is 15 years, roughly equivalent to the life expectancy difference between the United States and Sudan. For women, the 10-year difference between richest and poorest is equivalent to the health effects from a lifetime of smoking.
Clearly, there is a correlation between income and life expectancy across the board, but two aspects of this study's findings are of particular interest. First, the degree to which income affects life expectancy in the United States is shocking. One might expect a few years difference between the richest and the poorest, but a ten to fifteen year margin between socioeconomic classes is incredibly significant. Second, it is intriguing that this effect is mitigated somewhat by the affluence of the community surrounding a given poor individual. The study cites longer life spans for the poor of San Francisco and New York, ostensibly attributable to the uncommon wealth of these communities.
Unfortunately, this trend bears out negatively in Winston-Salem.With median household income well below the national average, the effects of Winston's disproportionately high poverty rates cannot be offset by the combined wealth of the community.⁵ Somewhat unsurprisingly, out of the five major urban counties in North Carolina, Forsyth County has the lowest average life expectancy.⁶ While we have not found any strong data that breaks down life expectancy in Winston-Salem by socioeconomic class, there is no reason to believe that the national trends are not represented, if not magnified, in Forsyth County.
It is important to understand that issues such as poverty, income inequality, and economic immobility wholly transcend financial considerations. For many in Winston-Salem, their socioeconomic status is a matter of life and death. In the city hardest to escape child poverty, you can bet that people are literally dying and losing years off of their lives because of their economic situation.
If this isn't a wakeup call for us, what is?
¹ Chetty, Raj, and Nathaniel Hendren. "Data from Chetty and Hendren (2015): Causal Effects, Mobility Estimates and Covariates by County, CZ and Birth Cohort." Equality of Opportunity, Harvard University. 2015, http://www.equality-of-opportunity.org/index.php/data.
³ "U.S. Federal Poverty Guidelines Used to Determine Financial Eligibility for Certain Federal Programs," Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation: Health and Human Services, last modified February 1st, 2019. Accessed March 16th, 2019. https://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty-guidelines.
⁴ Reuell, Peter. "For Life Expectancy, Money Matters." The Harvard Gazette, Harvard University. 2016, https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2016/04/for-life-expectancy-money-matters/.
⁶ Richard Craver/Winston-Salem Journal, "Forsyth County Life Spans Lag behind Other Urban Counties," Winston-Salem Journal, accessed March 13, 2019, https://www.journalnow.com/news/local/forsyth -county-life-spans-lag-behind-other-urban-counties/article_8b2075d4-873b-56a8-9cdf-49746a96a5e5.html.


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How I PM: Rose Yao, Director of Product for Google Maps Platform
Rose is a Director of Product for Google Maps Platform and this is how she product manages.
Cara Harshman
Managing Editor, Amplitude
I'm 99.9% sure Rose Yao's work has directly affected your life. If you've viewed a photo on Facebook, sent an email with Gmail, or used Google Maps to find your way, you've interacted with a product Yao has worked on closely. At the 11th hour, she applied for a scholarship that sent her into the vast world of product management.
We were so lucky to have Rose on our panel discussion at ROADMAP | SF Product Summit in May.
Name: Rose Yao
Current role: Director of Product for Google Maps Platform
One word to describe how you PM: Empathy
"As a PM, you're a leader on the team no matter how old you are and how big your scope is. Your words and actions have cascading impact on the team, so be intentional about them."
How did you get to where you are today?
I did my bachelor's in computer engineering and was planning to get a phD. But at the very last minute my senior year, I applied to the Anita Borg scholarship and as a finalist visited Google. I was so excited by the people I met particularly these "APMs" that I ended up interviewing/applying for the role. I was very lucky that PM was the intersections of a lot of things I love: technology, people, and creativity.
In the last 13 years, I've focused my career choices on what do I want to learn next and that's brought me from Google to Facebook to startups and now back to Google to learn how to run a business.
What role do you think data has in product management?
It's another tool and a powerful one if used correctly. Until fairly recently, good real-time data was not very accessible and product managers made decisions by gut or mostly qualitative data. "It cannot be product by numbers, there's still gut/intuition involved."Now we have real-time analytics as a decision making tool and validation tool. The key is to use it correctly. It cannot be product by numbers, there's still gut/intuition involved. Data it won't answer all questions, but it can help a lot with blind spots.
What's the best thing you've read to learn how to be better at your job?
Hmm… I enjoyed The Hard Thing About Hard Things because it's a book about how to recover from failure vs a glowing review.
What's the best advice you've ever received on how to be a PM?
So many… I've been lucky to have some great mentors and managers. Probably one I still remind myself of everyday is that as a PM, you're a leader on the team no matter how old you are and how big your scope is. Your words and actions have cascading impact on the team, so be intentional about them.
When it comes to personal professional growth what are you most focused on right now?
How to be build a great team and help them succeed. I think people are the secret to success and as a manager now hiring the right people for the right roles has become pretty critical.
Cara is the Managing Editor at Amplitude. Before joining this crew of super-passionate, smart individuals, she wrote and spoke a lot about A/B testing and personalization at Optimizely. She has spoken at MozCon, CTA Conference, Opticon, and Learn Inbound.


John Raese is feeling persecuted. Raese, a West Virginia businessman running for the U.S. Senate, declared in a recent speech that he doesn't want the government telling him what to do "because I'm an American." Specifically, he lamented that he is required to place a "huge sticker" on his buildings declaring them smoke-free environments.
For the record, the Nazis did not require the Star of David on "everybody's" lapel. Only Jews were forced to sew the symbol on their clothing under penalty of being fined, imprisoned or shot. But maybe we should just be grateful Raese did not compare smoker's lounges to concentration camps - or some tobacco junkie hiding in the toilet to sneak a smoke to Anne Frank, hiding out for her life.
Predictably, Raese has come under fire from Jewish groups, including the Simon Wiesenthal Center. He has refused to back down. "I'm not apologizing to anybody or any organization," he told the Charleston Daily Mail. He went on to say, "I am not going to be intimidated by a bunch of bull ... ."
He is hardly unique. The Nazis have become the go-to image of political demonization. We've seen Barack Obama as Hitler and George W. Bush as Hitler. But anyone who understands what happened when Hitler was Hitler cannot help but decry such a monumental trivialization of atrocity. The crimes of the Nazi regime were singular, unprecedented in their sheer awfulness. Because of this, thoughtful observers draw Nazi parallels carefully and rarely if at all.
And then there are the John Raeses of the world.
Leonard Pitts Jr. writes for the Miami Herald. His column is distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.


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The National Guard of North Dakota proposes a plan to expand its training center in a northeastern province to house more military members.
The state's National Guard is planning to seek input from neighboring landowners, provinces, cities and the Spirit Lake Nation on the proposal to expand its Camp Grafton Training Center South in Eddy County, said Major General Alan Dohrman.
Dohrman told the Minot Daily News that the National Guard of North Dakota Camp wants to expand Grafton with at least 6,000 hectares to build a new complex. The military agency prefers to add another 17,000 hectares if the opportunity is available.
Dohrman met with the Environment Committee of the Minot Area Chamber of Commerce last month about the fact that the training center is not large enough to support reach and maneuvering functions. The ability of the center to meet additional training requirements for operational reserve requires more training areas for in-state distance and maneuvering areas.
Military members in North Dakota often have to travel to Camp Guernsey in Wyoming and Camp Ripley in Minnesota for part of their training.
The proposal is still in the preparatory discussion phase. The National Guard of North Dakota assesses interest and receives feedback before deciding whether the proposal will be submitted to the legislators during the next parliamentary term.


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text:
Janaka Stucky's Ascend, Ascend
reviewed by Chris Muravez
Janaka Stucky
Ascend, Ascend
Third Man Books, 2019.
"The eye with which I see God is the same eye with which God sees me." -Meister Eckhart
"Beginning with an abject suffering, the insolence that slyly persists grows again, first slowly, then, in a flash, reaches the wave of happiness affirmed against all reason." – Georges Bataille, Inner Experience
Growing up Catholic, my family would go to church every Sunday for mass. As a young boy I often felt church to be an interesting and uplifting experience, a chance for me to hang out with God, sing with enough people to hide my tone-deaf voice, and eat doughnuts afterward. In fact, before the disillusionment of my teenage years, I wanted to be either a Catholic priest or a monk. Then video games, hormones, drug experimentation, and a wide range of literature made me walk away from the wonders of an ancient faith. Today, I still hold a lot of animosity toward the church, and the idea of religion in general. But my animosity is also ambivalent because I still have fond memories of church, the moral teachings, and the mysteries that faith presents us.
Reading Janaka Stucky's latest book Ascend Ascend made me rethink my relationship to religion and spirituality. Not in a way that inspired some kind of transcendent faith experience, nor in a spiritual awakening. Rather, I was more intrigued by Judeo-Christian theology and its relationship to linguistics, continental philosophy, and critical theory. I had recently sat in on a Catholic mass, and was struck by something when the sacrament of communion was being performed. The procession to the altar took the gifts, the bread and wine offerings, and a bible. I was intrigued that after almost 2,000 years, people are still venerating a book. To me, it felt like the power that exists between language and belief, language and thought, and language and faith was profound. These are the mysteries I had been so fascinated with as a boy. Bringing this curiosity to my reading Ascend Ascend, I went down a rabbit hole, and I think I shall never emerge. What follows is less a review than it is a meditation with a text, or indeed a series of texts, that have converged together during this period of intense inner experience and reflection.
Ascend Ascend is comprised of seven incantatory iterations, varying in length, and are titled after aspects of the Kabbalah. The titles of each section are only named in the table of contents, but are marked throughout the book by Archangelic Seals that each represent a multiplicity of associations that are thematic to each section. These titles and seals act as more than a nod toward an ancient ritual, practice, and philosophy, and instead connote their meanings as prayers, incantations, and meditations that are both exploring the relationship between the infinite and material, as well as acting as an esoteric practice to create new worlds where these relations are no longer distinct. I should note, with respect, that I'm not an expert on Kabbalah, nor a practitioner of its rituals. In fact, I remain fairly ignorant of it, but this book has piqued my interest. I should also note that, in order to both maintain mystery for the reader, and for practical brevity, I felt compelled to abbreviate the quoted sections a great deal, marked by ellipsis. I fear it might do the text an injustice considering the weight of the themes covered, but I encourage all to get a copy for themselves and experience the incantations in their own manner. But, this is beside the point. It doesn't make these things any less interesting from a critical and philosophical point of view, and that is what I shall try to attempt here.
Good God, y'all
We shall begin with God, or at least the concept of God. The proof of God's existence or non-existence is, essentially, irrelevant. Proofs are not in line with the nature of God as such because God is often portrayed as a productive force, continuously producing and never in a fixed state of post-production through the process of self-determination. God thus emerges from within us, not as the productive intelligence that created us. But, as we are limited by our senses in understanding the world around us, we can only cognize God in the abstract, through the creation and destruction of ideas about God. In many ways, because of this inability to understand God beyond the abstract into the hyperessential noumenal, God exists as a state of unconsciousness, or perhaps even pre-consciousness, subconsciousness, or spectral consciousness. This non-logical state is why there is no way to control the concept of God, and why negation and negativity, working within the states of unconsciousness and its influence on self-determination, bring the concept of God ex nihilio to this discourse. God, therefore, is a kind of Death as an always-already productive force, the effect of which remains, and will remain, unknowable. This conception of Death is not the terminus of all things, only a confusion and extraction of the material to the essential. The body decays and becomes other, and the consciousness (be it waking, logical consciousness, or the subaltern forms that it may take) loses its ability of self-determined expression and remains at the mercy of the pre-determined material conditions as it rots into the essential components of its previous construction. Death, however, is not a finality; there is an object permanence to the universe.
But, does Death nullify? In this world of ours, we need Death to keep us going. It is what we are feeding on after all. This should make one uncomfortable because, for all our distance, we can't find an escape from God's judgement. We still find problems with the noumenal, and with the effects of Death. We thrive on the dead – animal and plant carcasses, fossilized energy, microbial environments in our guts – and in this sin, we are allowed to continue breathing, fucking, shitting, living, becoming. We exist by the grace of this sin. Ascend Ascend touches on this in its second section – Yetzirah, the World of Formation
"For reasons inherent
In matter itself
I ascend with agony
On all living things ascending
Ascending I ascend
I am the name itself
The is itself I am
The limit of the great dream"
Ascension with agony is the speaker recognizing the price paid for ascension. And, having assumed responsibility for it, the speaker then inscribes the sin with meaning that can only be accessed through dream, through the states of Godly unconsciousness. It may be a moral action, but it is also one that is simultaneously self-determined and pre-determined. This is nothing new, and in-fact was expanded on by Derrida in his essay How to Avoid Speaking: Denials when he quotes Pseudo-Dionysius:
But here, as we ascend from the highest to what lies beyond, the logos is drawn inward according to the measure of the ascent. After all ascent it will be wholly without sound and wholly united to the unspeakable.[1]
Ascension is thus creating a logos of the negative, and inward state. What could be more inward that an unconscious state? Dreams operate on this kind of logic, this ability to be a whole, full of fractured contradictions, surrealisms, and unspeakables. But in this place where speech remains absent ("without sound" "unspeakable") any real cognition of the logos remains unavailable to sensory perception. This brings me to the second theme that came to mind reading this book.
Christ called himself the Word, Logos. Logos is the logic of the sacred. Logos is the circle we are bouncing inside of, contained by the walls of the body and the walls of language. The walls of language are bound by involuntary system of difference where meaning is created through relations and rejections between mechanistic variables that range from phonemes, connotations, prescriptive determinations, cultures, and cognitive processes. The walls of the body are bound by an involuntary system of organic relations where meaning is created through stimuli and affective responses. The relation between the two is determined by a multiplicity of variables such as time, space, culture, birth. On a whole, we can image this as a multiplicity of multiplicities, which bounce between self-determination and pre-determination. It is immanent phenomena akin to an Earthly chained God, one that is both capable and incapable of self-determination. These two cancel each other out, and create a linguistic negativity – a void that does not want to be filled. In this way, Logocentrism is related to the Logos of Christ in that Christ acts as the sign connecting the sacred signifier with the profane signified. And as they operate they attempt, in futility, to fill the void created by the negative spaces within language and thought. That is, from the deconstructed point of view, we can only know the Christ-sign by what it is not, and since Derrida has effectively destroyed the powers of the transcendent sign, we can safely say that it is nothing. In a way it could be analogous to quantum physics, where the majority of space is nothingness charged by the location, movements, and polarizations of atoms, quarks, and other fermions. But, meaning still seems to remain because the deconstructive dialectic truncates in on itself and re-creates the concepts.
This has been a top down process – the Logos descends from the essence to the material and inscribes, through the displacement process of ekstasis, the utterances of speech, formed into words, and later into writing. Think about Odin chaining himself to the World Tree only to come up with the Runes, an ancient Nordic alphabet that also served as a divination tool. Language gives us an idea, a concept that we try to wrap our minds around, and when we can't complete the thought, God intervenes to give us ecstasy – the ability to stand off from one's Self and perceive something Other. In religious ecstasy the Other is God, or some iteration of a univocal, unifying whole that the Self is but a part of. In existentialist circles, ecstasy is the emotive and empathetic ability to perceive the Other as another person, another consciousness. I don't think these two are mutually exclusive, and we should turn to the title of the focus work to explain this.
Ascend Ascend is a double imperative that is both encouraging and commanding. In terms of ecstasy, ascension is related to, but differentiated from, transcendence. The trans- prefix here indicates something across, beyond, as if there is a barrier that is able to be broached by a means other than Death. Yet, without trying to touch the noumena, ascension operates within the profane, material world. The speaker then combines the profane affect of religious ecstasy with an utterance of a sacred, expressive, existential ecstasy. What happens to ecstasy when l'existence précède l'essence? We ascend, and the ascension reverses the top-down hierarchical processes of transcendence by allowing the profane signified to inform the sacred.
"Blessed is our cry
Our cry our radiant repeating
The gleaming cinder
Like honey like wax like roses
The world vanishing and nothing
But us remaining beneath the abyss
Of god singing
I am the one that is not
And when the cry comes no longer
Be the vessel the cry comes
Not from your mouth
Alone it is not you talking"
Here the trance induced speaker is wrapping around the contradiction of a simultaneous presence and absence of God. The metaphysics here are expanded with the image metaphors – like honey – that give me a sense of being too holy, and too unholy. It's sticky with sounds, with cries, and the honey is stuck to the vessel. The body. The mouth. "Be the vessel the cry comes" invokes a loss of singular self-determination, common in mystical circles to become a vessel for the transcendent, in order to command both the reader, the speaker-self, and God to a communion. By bridging these voices, these conscious and unconscious states, and playing with the present absence of God, the speaker is working in what I would call a negative ecstasy.
Negative Ecstasy
The trouble with defining this term comes from the myriad relations that are encompassing it. It's like trying to build a tricycle with a Radio Flyer wagon, a big wheel, and your dad's dusty 12 speeder rusting in the garage. Taking cues from the negative dialectics of the deconstructed Christ sign, negative theology (a theological process that attempts to define God by what it is not), and the combined religious and existential uses of ecstasy, negative ecstasy is an immanent psychological phenomenon where the Self is not wholly outside of experience, and instead is subsumed into a cognitive and sensory perception of a multiplicity of Other(s). The Self then becomes part and parcel of the Other, is penetrated by the Other, and is then informed, transformed, and mutated by the Other. The speaker in Ascend Ascend expresses this process in the aptly named first section Assiah, the Material World.
"My penetrated body
Levitating weightless
Rotted by this leprous alien song
I am penetrated
I am pierced
I am penetrated by insects plants and beasts
The ecstatic march of flesh
I am penetrated by birds by stones
And the wind's twisted shell
By constellations
By butterflies
I am penetrated by death and cannot see
Igniting the orchard within
Me the path of names
A stone I name an insect I name
An idea dancing across
A dust motes horizonless gaze
I name a nightmare
Ecstasy" (9-10)
The negative ecstasy being experienced by the speaker here can be seen as the speaker's Self allowing the things which God is not to enter the affective domain of the body, which in-turn inform the body's relationship and definition of its Self, and of the God concept within. The productive forces of the Death-God bounce around inside the linguistic signs and the walls of the body through the destruction of syntactical consistency and repetitive invocations akin to monastic prayer. The penetrating force is the speaker's relationship to the material, which produces the immaterial, metaphysical affects of negative ecstasy.
This is a process of horror, of a nightmarish combination of the sacred and profane being held together by the walls of the speaker's body and language. Instead of being penetrated by Love, the Holy Spirit, or any other Platonic essence, the speaker is penetrated by the profane material of objects – plants, beasts, birds, butterflies – because the speaker always-already contains the sacred signifiers, the malleable meanings of divinity. The act must be painful, and it is this pain which produces the horror.
Explosions of the Sublime
Pain and suffering of the material world is channeled, subsumed, and passed through the body of the speaker. As we have seen, this is done through a mixture of juxtaposition between the sacred and profane, as well as the patterns between signs and signifiers that emerge from a trance infused with negative ecstasy and a logos of material ascension. Repetition also works for the speaker here as they merge thought, image, and affect while trying to find the limits and demarcations of the sign. The speaker fails and explodes, but the explosion is preeminent, and the repetitive nature of the incantations provide a poetics of a God finding productivity in the failure by not allowing much pause, and certainly not any cessation. The fifth section, Beri'ah, the World of Creation, begins in a dream that is marked by an apostrophe to the "celestial city." The dream builds momentum until the speaker begins a repetitive phrase – "I explode in blood sublimely" – which foregrounds the creative productivity of the poet-priest.
"I am the preworld objectless scape of ink
Extolling the death bell forever
Calling each fin to sup
I am the eater of history and darkness
I am the root of the tongue
I explode in blood sublimely
Each epoch of my red milk
Forged to tendrils of perfect knowing
In the ceaseless gentle hammering of gills
Dispossessed approaching the negative
Dusk of rainbows extinguished
In the belly of a terrible worm" (46-47)
This section builds on the negative ecstasy that has been occurring throughout, but there seems to be a crescendo building in the intensity of the language through the proximity of repetitive signs. The explosions of blood, in blood, operate in the negative ecstasy of a speaker full of a new world, one erupting from the walls of body and language. It's as if the speaker has built themselves as a cosmic egg, one that began undifferentiated by meaning and affect, and is about to hatch a new existence. The speaker then calls for the reception of the blood (yolk?) to the chaosmos.
"The angels receive me
Amid their thrashing enormous flippers
And fins receive me
Amid their cavernous and holy
Gullets receive me
Amid their glutted
Cosmic uncoiling
Receive me
The fourth dimension of the eternal
An insect I buzz
Hallelujah into the abyss" (49-51)
The book could have ended here on a signatory note, but it does not. The processes of negative ecstasy, incantations, and ritualistic destruction of the ego and the Self continue, and at many points they exceed analysis. These excesses add to the intuitive affect, akin to a religious experience, that Ascend Ascend built throughout each section.
Unfortunately, I was not able to witness Janaka Stucky perform these rituals during his Atlas Obscura tour. I'm sure the effect would have been intensified, but I was nonetheless moved by this book and the mystical and mysterious way it operated through an ancient ritual informed by a troubled modern world. I did, however, read Ascend Ascend with a specially curated playlist (below). I feel like this book is necessary for our dying, troubled world. There needs to be a massive transformation in how we view ourselves and our relationship to the world around us, one that is not informed by the abject quest for wealth, for validation, for war. This is one of many beginnings toward that end, and I could envision us all buzzing Hallelujah into the abyss.
Playlist (Band/Artist – Album):
OM – Advaitic Songs
OM – God is Good
Earth – Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light I & II
Panopticon – Autumn Eternal
Graves At Sea – The Curse That Is
Bell Witch – Four Phantoms
Benedictine Monks of Santo Domingo de Silos – Chant
Johannes Brahms – Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 77 (perf. Itzhak Perlman)
1. Derrida, Jacques. "How to Avoid Speaking: Denials." Languages of the Unsayable: the Play of Negativity in Literature and Literary Theory, edited by Sanford Budick and Wolfgang Iser, Stanford University Press, 1996, pp. 3–70.
Chris Muravez earned his MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Notre Dame. He currently teaches at a community college in California. He cooks very good dinners.
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